Back up Generators - finally looking.

[IXLR8]

One of my Maine neighbors has the noisy Kohler, the other a Generac, the other a cheap portable construction generator and I have a Honda inverter generator. My Honda is the quietest, followed by the Generac, then the portable generator and the Kohler is the loudest and drowns out all the other generators when it is running, it is also the farthest one from my house!!
I'll look into the Generac's and the Winco's, heck, it's only money and it doesn't cost to research.
GRSTHEGREAT- Thank you for your thoughts.

 

[jaydee325]

My step son was in a car accident and he is now confined to a wheel chair. He was using a portable generator for back up power but that is no longer an option for him. Wife wants to buy him a whole house standby generator and run it from the 500 gal propane tank that is there. I am still working on sizing it, which will depend on if she also decides to give him central AC as the house is in NC. My question is, do folks have recommended brands we should be looking at, or brands to avoid. My neighbor in Maine just installed a Kohler standby unit and it is LOUD, it drowns out all the other generators in the neighborhood when it is running. So Kohler is off my list unless someone knows this might be just one bad model. I don't know what model he installed. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

If there is a medical need, then you should be able to have insurance pickup all or part of the cost.

I've had 2 Generac 22kW units (2 different houses) and have been completely happy with them. I even went with the same dealer since they did a stellar job for me in both cases.

The Generac's are the air cooled Guardian units, but I am not concerned with the noise given the part time nature of the need and does not bother us. Also, deciding between a unit with the capacity to handle AC or not is really a moot point (IMHO) since the cost differential between say a 14kW and a 22kW Generac Guardian series is only about $1300.00 (refer to the Generac website). Also, there are other loads you can preferentially leave off like cloths driers or ovens in order to have the head room to cover AC.

As stated above, you can go with the liquid cooled units but those carry a pretty steep premium in cost.

I'd also let the installing dealer to the power requirement evaluation.

 

[grsthegreat]

honda inverters are super quiet, but also limited in output power (i believe 7,000 watts, but i may be wrong there) and they are not auto start. i really cant believe how quiet they are. but they cost almost the same as a generac 22,000 watt unit.

i have quite a few customers that are disabled and rely on generator for living. especially those with oxygen generator units. i have had some insurance companies install units for special needs customers.

my neighbor has very bad copd and very low lung function. i gave him a lightning damaged 20kw unit i repaired because he could not haul out the portable to fire up when power failed. his insurance co would not help, and he could not afford it himself. people forget that some people cant just pull out a portable generator when needed.

 

[Racenut]

We got a generator for my mother in law on the PG&E program. Had the rebate check in 2 weeks. Was actually surprised it came that fast. We got a dual fuel portable unit. Electric start with remote. 7500 watts running, 9500 peak, which is small for some people, but mom has simple needs and a smaller unit will be better on fuel. But not bad for an almost free generator, the rebate didn't cover sales tax.

 

[IXLR8]

honda inverters are super quiet, but also limited in output power (i believe 7,000 watts, but i may be wrong there) and they are not auto start. i really cant believe how quiet they are. but they cost almost the same as a generac 22,000 watt unit.

i have quite a few customers that are disabled and rely on generator for living. especially those with oxygen generator units. i have had some insurance companies install units for special needs customers.

my neighbor has very bad copd and very low lung function. i gave him a lightning damaged 20kw unit i repaired because he could not haul out the portable to fire up when power failed. his insurance co would not help, and he could not afford it himself. people forget that some people cant just pull out a portable generator when needed.

Yup, my Honda is super quiet, not sure how they do it. I park the unit about 20 ft from my bedroom window and I can't hear it running when I am sleeping. You are correct, only 7Kw, but that handles everything except my air compressor. It is push a button to automatically start the fuel injected unit, as long I remember to exercise it and the battery isn't dead. Which is the setup my wife needs when I am away from home.

 

[Hay Dude]

Natural gas is arguably the best fuel source for a home generator if you're fortunate enough to have the service available. Very few have it in my rural county.

The reliability of NG has definite advantages of other fuel sources but it isn't perfect. Distribution compressor stations can lose power during a wide spread outage. During hurricane Katrina, NG distribution was shut off for weeks in many cities due to the widespread destruction. After the loss of gas pressure, water entered the pipe distribution system and it took a lot of time and effort to purge.

Oddly enough, those with gas powered generators sometimes fair the best. Gasoline can be brought in to stricken areas by tanker and generators used to power up gas stations.

Weather and Ground conditions play a big role in the fuel of choice. We are blessed here to have nearly zero earthquakes and hurricanes with a lot of wind. Our worst weather anomaly is usually flooding and they have never cut the gas because if it. In fact, pressurizing the lines probably prevents more problems (unless lines are ruptured). Thankfully never an issue.
You guys on earthquake ground, forest fires and hurricanes may not fare well with gas.

 

[shooterdon]

I did not read the thread

Things to consider

Will your wife be able to put it on line in you are not home or are injured? PTO units suck for most women. Auto transfer is nice.

NG is best and propane next. No fuel to treat or go bad and no carb issues.

I had portable units and got a whole house Generac two years ago. IIRC cost installed was $6500-7000 for 13kw.

We had s three day outage a little while back and it sure was nice to be prepared.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

I just picked up a backup generator today. It's probably about 50 years old, a 4000 watt 3600 rpm Dayton generator run by a 10 hp Briggs and Stratton. It's a rope pull motor, but does have an electric start. It has good compression, and the guy said it ran about a year and a half ago. He stored it with the gas tank empty, and the oil showed use but was fairly clean. $50.

 

[ponytug]

Interesting selection of outlets, and a great score!

All the best, Peter

 

[Grumpycat]

Price a Tesla Powerwall. 13 kWh for $10,000 for the first one, $7,000 for each thereafter to expand your capacity. The installer will want to sell PV solar too but that is optional. 26% Federal tax credit. Possibly more from California.

Will not only carry you though most outages but can be automatically configured to charge from the grid at night when T.O.U. is low to assist in daytime use.