GENERAC EMAIL - THOUGH IT WAS A SCAM BUT TURNS OUT TO BE GENUINE - I WILL PLAY

SEE POST 12 FOR UPDATE

I received an email a few days ago from the Generator Company that in stalled my natural gas 22K Generac whole house generator about 3 years ago. They stated that the manufacturer has selected me for a brand new starter unit - even though mine has not failed. The swap out will be free of charge - I know almost nothing in life is "free," so I called the Company this morning and here is what they had to say....

Apparently there have been a higher than normal amount of failures of the starter in these units over the last 5 years. They have not figured it out yet but they want starters that have been working as designed in the field for a number of years to look into and help them solve their dilemma. Supposedly, the new unit they will be installing is a beefed up one and comes with a brand new warranty. The swap should only take an hour and they are sending a Tech on Thursday to do the job.

Normally I leave well enough alone but after talking to a few people regarding this issue, they told me the one Achilles Heel with these units is the starter! Well, I'll play and hopefully the new one gives me good service and the old one aids them in finding out why they are having issues.

While there are a few other manufacturer's of high quality generators these days, I have been more than satisfied with Generac's customer service and 24/7/365 no-wait on hold hot line. After owning a Generac of one sort or another for 3 decades, this is one of the major reasons why!

My unit is now 16 years old. So far, the starter has been replaced, and the battery twice. I DO have the annual maintenance done.

They say that the service life is 15 years. So, I'm in a quandary what to do. They don't make my model anymore. The replacement is bigger and has more circuits. I don't NEED any more, but I expect that a replacement would not be straightforward and would cause a huge expense.

I have the 20KW Generac and opted not to have the auto starter. I manually start it and have a 200 amp switch for the line or generator. Works well no issues other than I have to go outside to start it and pull the switch. If I remember the cost of the switch was half of the cost of the auto starter/switch.

Hey, why not, if they want to reverse engineer yours and replace it with a beefier one for no charge have at it. I would have been suspicious as well though a bunch of scams out there.

Good luck with the new one.

As a long time Generac owner, please keep us in the loop and give us your thoughts on the finish of this operation!

goatsnguns said:

I have the 20KW Generac and opted not to have the auto starter. I manually start it and have a 200 amp switch for the line or generator. Works well no issues other than I have to go outside to start it and pull the switch. If I remember the cost of the switch was half of the cost of the auto starter/switch.

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Being retired we travel a lot. If we are not at home and the power goes out, our basement will flood and the pipes freeze.

Living without autostart is not a good idea. The genny was expensive to begin with.

We have five years on a 20K unit, electric start, oil filter heater and supposed pre-lube on start-up. I have replaced the battery once and since that time have installed a battery tender, which is the same unit I use on anything that sits for an extended period of time. No problems...We laugh at the fact that since this unit was installed, we have not experienced a need for the unit to operate. A couple years ago there was a wind induced power outage that knocked out power all around us, our block remained untouched. Before this Generac unit I had a 10K water cooled two-cylinder Honda unit on wheels that I had to roll out of the shop and hook up to the separate isolated power box, it provided enough power to run the furnace blower motor, most outlets and in a pinch the A/C.
I was told that Generac's engine was designed by a guy that worked with Caterpillar in their design department, he proposed his design to Caterpillar, and they had no interest in its purpose for running small generators, they were and continue to be in the large-scale generator business. It was from its beginning designed to operate a small generator, not a lawn mower or other required output. I did a small amount of research and did not or could not fault this as a sales gimmick. They build their own engines, I know of no one that has had a failure. This starter issue is the first sour note I have heard from anyone other than a few people I know that bought smaller Generac units from Costco and tried to install them on their own.
I too would appreciate any further information from those of us with Generac units. Mine does a bimonthly start up on its own, a couple times a year I put a full load on it and everything seems to work just fine. I like the fact that if something takes my abilities away, my wife is covered in event of a full-on power outage. I have one friend that lives OUT, not off grid but truly away from town. He has the identical unit to mine, based on my recommendation and available natural gas pipeline. He loses his power at least once a year, either because of brown-out or due to trees in the area. His unit performs flawlessly and actually makes good use of his 20K availability, even continues to run the electric gate that further secludes his property. Between the two of us we have probably sold six or seven Generac users to other friends and acquaintances.

Kinman said:

I too would appreciate any further information from those of us with Generac units. Mine does a bimonthly start up on its own, a couple times a year I put a full load on it and everything seems to work just fine.

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I've had my 22K home Generac generator since the end of 2017. It does a weekly exercise and in a blackout it kicks in after 13 seconds. With my medical issues it is reassuring to hear the weekly test run and know that I will never be without A/C or my CPAP machine. When standing on my front porch the generator runs quieter than the neighbor's leaf blower across and down the street. I'm sure glad I bought it before all the craziness started and Generac got behind on orders.

My Generac Guardian 22kW has pulled me through two extended outages here in Houston over the last 4 years of ownership. I scrupulously maintain my unit, especially during long outage runs with daily shutdowns for oil check. My starter Bendix gear solenoid “failed” after 2 years. Luckily it happened during weekly testing. The Bendix gear was crudely machined and would bounce out of engagement without turning the crankshaft. With the engine failing to start the controller tripped out and timed out on under speed. Service tech owned up to this common glitch as he fixed my machine under warranty. Techs don’t like to change out starters because they’re on the bottom side of the block opposite the lid opening, same as they don’t like to check and adjust valve clearance. I am happy I have an emergency generator, but I sure wish it was a Kohler.

ggibson511960 said:

My Generac Guardian 22kW has pulled me through two extended outages here in Houston over the last 4 years of ownership. I scrupulously maintain my unit, especially during long outage runs with daily shutdowns for oil check. My starter Bendix gear solenoid “failed” after 2 years. Luckily it happened during weekly testing. The Bendix gear was crudely machined and would bounce out of engagement without turning the crankshaft. With the engine failing to start the controller tripped out and timed out on under speed. Service tech owned up to this common glitch as he fixed my machine under warranty. Techs don’t like to change out starters because they’re on the bottom side of the block opposite the lid opening, same as they don’t like to check and adjust valve clearance. I am happy I have an emergency generator, but I sure wish it was a Kohler.

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I have adjusted the valve lash once and it is not a big deal to do. A few simple tools and a feeler gauge is about all you will need. I did replace the two gaskets when I did mine and the entire operation took less than an hour. From what I understand, it really only needs to be done once.

I hear that Kohler is a good, reliable brand as well but the issue I have with Kohler is the lack of a Dealer Network, parts and service techs as compared to Generac. In our area there are Generac Dealer's all over the place, parts and service are available easily and quickly. I am sure there is a local Kohler Dealer too - but I never remember seeing one. I have never seen any service trucks around town and I don't know of anyone in our 1,165 home community that owns one. Again, they may be a great brand, but I feel much more comfortable owning piece of emergency equipment that is much more common and readily accessible.

At this time I am quite healthy and able do all my own scheduled maintenance on the Generac but at 71 I might need to rely on a service company sometime down the road. I don't need slim pickins if and when I do.

I have had a Kohler 22KW unit for over ten years. Yes, more expensive than the Generac but it would appear that the running parts of the engine are somewhat "better made" than the corresponding Generac system (tappets are self-lubricating as an example). We have a Kohler dealer in the Western suburbs of Philly, and they have an excellent service twice a year or more frequently if necessary. Since we have natural gas (mainly methane) as our "heat producer" no problems over the last 10 plus years. Dave_n

3 days after speaking to Generac they sent a highly trained, polite and knowledgable Tech to our house to swap out he old starter with a new beefed up version. The Tech took just under a half hour to do the swap and test everything and I am very glad I let them do the free upgrade. He also told me there have been no reported issues with the new version and he has had zero repairs on the new ones. I am happy I responded to and accepted Generac's offer! Thank you Generac!

chief38 said:

I have adjusted the valve lash once and it is not a big deal to do. A few simple tools and a feeler gauge is about all you will need. I did replace the two gaskets when I did mine and the entire operation took less than an hour. From what I understand, it really only needs to be done once.

I hear that Kohler is a good, reliable brand as well but the issue I have with Kohler is the lack of a Dealer Network, parts and service techs as compared to Generac. In our area there are Generac Dealer's all over the place, parts and service are available easily and quickly. I am sure there is a local Kohler Dealer too - but I never remember seeing one. I have never seen any service trucks around town and I don't know of anyone in our 1,165 home community that owns one. Again, they may be a great brand, but I feel much more comfortable owning piece of emergency equipment that is much more common and readily accessible.

At this time I am quite healthy and able do all my own scheduled maintenance on the Generac but at 71 I might need to rely on a service company sometime down the road. I don't need slim pickins if and when I do.

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We had a Kohler generator installed when we bought our house as we moved to the country. Have a local dealer who is great and their techs do a yearly maintenance too. Ours exercises every Monday for about 20 minutes.
We have had a few power outages since we bought the home, and the Kohler works as planned.

KittenPics said:

anyone try to run these generac units off of a PROPANE TANK...

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If your talking about a small barbecue size tank no. If running off a big tank yes, I have a 500 gallon propane tank at my rural property.

NYlakesider said:

If your talking about a small barbecue size tank no. If running off a big tank yes, I have a 500 gallon propane tank at my rural property.

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My mom and dad had a Generac generator that ran off of a large propane tank too. They had a few problems back in the late 2000s but they got those resolved.

Muley Gil said:

My mom and dad had a Generac generator that ran off of a large propane tank too. They had a few problems back in the late 2000s but they got those resolved.

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My gas system was hooked up by the propane company. They did a few adjustments when installing and all has been OK.

FWIW the tank also runs the furnace, stove and hot-water tank. The company takes care of generator owners and keeps the tank well filled. I do have a pellet stove and if necessary use that and not the furnace if the situation calls for plan B!

KittenPics said:

anyone try to run these generac units off of a PROPANE TANK...

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One of my friends has a 22K unit that runs on propane as his development does not have natural gas. During Hurricane Ian he successfully used it but his 500 gallon propane tank ran out in a few days or so - but thankfully power was restored soon thereafter. Unfortunately, propane does not go that far under a full load. Last time I spoke with him he was planning to try and get permission to add another 500 tank, but don't know if he ever got that.

Yes it will work, but generator running time needs to be managed and the propane supply nursed. BTW, our development is one of the very few around us that has natural gas in every home. That was also an important factor in us buying here.

Saw a post on the NextDoor app last night by someone complaining about Generac generators, mentioning that they were being sued by people whose beef was they had not started up when needed. Good to see Generac is working proactively to fix the issue.

NYlakesider said:

... I do have a pellet stove and if necessary use that and not the furnace if the situation calls for plan B!

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My pellet stove kept me warm when my boiler sprung a leak 2 winters ago and I had no heat for 2 days and the night-time temps were around 15ºF. I use it on winter mornings and eves. anyway along with the HW rads as I like the radiant heat. It's 25º this morning and have it on now. I can use it in a power outage as well since it only draws about 95W and doesn't drain the battery backup system much. I have a c.1960 Onan 6kW diesel genny & 25 gallon external tank to run the house & charge the batteries (4 x L16) when necessary.

KittenPics said:

anyone try to run these generac units off of a PROPANE TANK...

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I mentioned in my post that mine runs off natural gas. I also mentioned the friend of mine that runs an identical unit, he runs his off the same huge propane tank that runs his house. Both of us have had no problems. Mine went off today on its bi monthly test, right on time. I checked into the valve adjustment and being a natural mechanic felt that it would be something I could easily take care of, I ordered the gasket set along with a couple of extra oil filters. I have not had a power failure long enough to run up the hours necessary for valve adjustment. I did have a tech come by last Spring for a check up and asked him. He told me I was well below the hours necessary and the worst part is accessing from the front end to be able to turn the engine over manually for proper adjustment. I've adjusted valves on everything from early V.W.s, hot little SBC V8s, flathead V8s, BMW motorcycles, and a boat or two.