I've had my silent chinese diesel generator for over 6 years and I've kept a log of issues and repairs. I'm completely satisfied with mine. I cannot remember the "brand" of mine, but it was a frequently seen maker in 2006. Here are my comments in 1600 hours of use:
I've had this unit since July 2006. I did engine break-in for 10 hours at light loads using rotella 15w40. I change oil at 100 hours and clean the oil filter/screen. It has been used for power in remote locations on some timber acreage, storm back up and as a power unit on my truck and my garage (which has no utility service. It currently has 1030 hours on it with a few failures along the way. I had to replace the voltage regulator. I relocated it outside the alternator so it would be cooler. The low oil shut down circuit board burned up and stopped the unit. The board is not available where I could find one, so I bypassed the oil pressure switch. The ignition switch broke and was replaced with a universal one from the auto part store. I've cleaned the injector at the local diesel pump shop every 500 hours. In three years i've used 3 lawn and garden batteries.
With 1030 hours it doesn't smoke or use oil. It does leak a very little bit from the valve cover. Overall the genset has been good. The cabinet is very well made and sturdy; a real surprise. The wheels stink, but they work. The engine and generator head have performed well. The biggest glitch is the cheap electrical components like the sockets, switches, indicator lamp/led. Tie up all the wires with nylon zip ties and replace the cheap parts as they fail and you'll be fine.Most stuff can be found at home depot or an auto store. Great item if you need reliable power and fuel efficiency. It burns 1/3 gallon per hour at half load. I'd buy another one if I did n't have this one.
Update May 2011: I have about 1300 hours on my unit and I'm told this is near the service life of a good unit. I recently replaced the voltage meter on the front panel (I got a combined voltage/ Hz meter so I can monitor the 60cycle current from the generator. I also had to replace the engine magneto charging regulator. That's the thing that charges the starter battery. The regulatyor died and it ran until the battery was dead and shut off the fuel. Once replaced it ran great again. I'm still changing oil every 100 hours and cleaning the filter screen. No metal particles in it yet. i know some folks have gotten a bad unit, but mine has been very good except for the cheap electrical components. I'va about replaced them all with better stuff. I'd buy it again if mine quit.
Update April 2012: 1500+ hours and still going strong. I have a new oil leak from the injector pump/engine case gasket. It's not a bad leak, just some oil and a drip trail. No oil puddle. I'll get a gasket and fix it later. I'm still changing oil and cleaning the filter at 100 hours. I found an ebay seller that had the oil shutdown circuit and ignition switch, so I replaced the parts on mine that failed years ago. Now my low oil pressure shutdown works again. That makes me feel better. The unit got a good workout in January with the terrible tornados that hit my area in Alabama. It kept my house operating for the 5 days we did not have power. The 220v was enough to power my gas furnace, fridge, lights, TV, coffee maker, stove/oven. It used one gallon of diesel every 2.5 hours with it loaded. I spent about $80.00 for fuel for those 5 days. Not sure how many watts I was using - it varied considerable and I turned it off whenever possible. I have a 2 stroke 1000 watt portable generator and I used that after dinner. I was enough to power a few lights and our TV until bedtime.
I must have a good one, and I take good care of it. It has chugged along with very little trouble for SIX years. No indication it will stop either. I certainly got my money's worth when I bought this unit.
Update November 2012: I had to replace the battery again last week with yuasa sla12v-18. When the battery gets weak it won't start without the compression release, which it has but is hard to use. Mine does not have an access door on top (some do) and I have to remove the air filter cover to reach it. There should be a lever to active it on the front panel, but they did not design that in. I've seen a few on ebay recently that had a reserve pull starter on the end, and that would be a welcomed addition if I were shopping today. The digital HZ meter I added last year has been a good modification and I like being able to see both volts and HZ at the same time. Ive recently tried burning used filtered motor oil and transission fluid mixed 50/50 with diesel fuel in order to get rid of my jugs of old oil. So far this has worked ou well. There's a little bit of smoke at start-up, but it doesn't seem to have any negative side affects. it makes my fuel costs lower and I don't have to cary the dirty jugs to the oil change place. I had the injector cleaned after about 50 hours of burning this mix fuel and it was normal spray pattern. I have had the injector cleaned every 500 hours at a local diesel shopanyway and i was curious if the used oil would plug the injector. no problems to report. the clock shows 1650 hours and still running well with regular maintinance and 100 hr oil changes.
