Who makes the best portable Generators...

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Czechvar

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...Besides Honda? Honda prices are crazy high.

Got friends in Panama City possibly looking at trying to buy a portable generator. Power in their area projected to be restored Oct 24...maybe longer.

Looking at models from 3000 Watts to 6000 Watts and less than $1,000. Specifically I need the Brand Name known to be reliable and well built. Sam’s Club is trucking in 3500 Watt Champion Generators...Not sure if the Home Depot and Lowe’s have reopened yet.

Thank You...
 
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This must be a TRICK question!
You mean other companies make portable generators?

Honda is the best. Yamaha if you can find one.

Depends on your definition of "portable"

I have a bigger one on wheels powered by Briggs. It is more commercial industrial use but it's portable,:)

And a suitcase Honda that sips gas, so quiet you can't tell it's running.


Harbor Freight sells knock offs, you gonna trust them for a few hundred bucks?


Now if Dillon made one then that would be it!:)

Pay the money for a Honda.

The big ones SUCK gas. While the Hondas will keep the ridge and a small AC running on less than a gal. You will also be able to talk and sleep.
Are the gas stations up and running. When Irma hit here, all the stations had gas but no power to pump it! FEMA planning at it's best!:rolleyes:

The big ones is like having a 10-12 horse lawn mower outside you window. Lot of power but for WHAT!?
 
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Briggs & Stratton Storm Responder 6250 has worked well so far for me. It's served me through 2 storms. It's fairly loud and heavy but in post hurricane situations those aren't major concerns. It's pretty reasonable on gas IMHO. With it I power my well, the frig, a large older chest freezer, TV, lights, computer, fans, other misc and a decent window shaker. The window shaker cools one room icebox cold and can take the heat edge off several other rooms. My dual zone central air isn't hooked into my transfer switch and would be too much for the generator. Way cheaper than a Honda and likely found at a big box hardware store. I don't recall if it was a Home Depot or a Lowes item but it was one of the two. It's been a good machine. Parked outside the closed garage door I can hear it just well enough to tell if it's seems to be running well but it's not annoying at all, more comforting. Changing the oil on it could be easier but I've seen worse. A curved oil drain extension of some type would be a nice bonus or a very shallow oil drain pan. The standard models don't fit under it very well. If I have help handy I'll lift it up on cement blocks to dump the oil.

Oil draining is something that needs improving on most every small generator I've seen. Bring plenty of oil as you will reach oil change intervals very frequently when running 24/7. Keeping fresh oil in those little air cooled engines is important and often if not usually neglected.

I have an older generator that's served very well thru more and longer storm recoveries but it's not a current model so can't be recommended. It was TroyBilt 5500 (corrected from Coleman) branded but it also had a Briggs engine. Parts other than for the engine could be problematic. When properly maintained I've had very good luck with Briggs engines.

I agree that Honda is the gold standard if you can afford one. They are way quieter.

My brother bought a Chinese generator from HF. It was several years ago so maybe they've changed. His was junk.

I live in a more rural area (but only by about 5 miles) and seem to always be near last in having power restored. I've also been through way too many extended hurricane outages. I hate hurricanes! (But not The Hurricanes)
 
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I had a Generac 5,000 and it served me well for 16 years. Its a bit noisy but when you need it it, starts right up

I used it for years as a emergency when the power goes out here in the boonies. Normally thats real bad winter weather.. Had a plug in installed by a electrician (100% legal) to my braker panel box and I could run 6 circuits. Take the unit outside, plug it in, start it and your ready to go.

I made it a point to ONLY use none E gas with a stabilizer as it stores much better for a much longer time. I normaly kept 20 gallons on hand and rotated my stock.

Now on a whole house propane Generac unit that stars itself 30 seconds after a power failure.

Both my Generacs done me good, I can recommend that company!
 
I love Honda, those are the only cars I buy. But $1700-$3000 Just isn’t in the budget. They are actually using a temporarily borrowed Generator right now...but that will end soon.

I’d heard good things about Generac before...
 
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NYlakesider said:
Now on a whole house propane Generac unit that stars itself 30 seconds after a power failure.

Both my Generacs done me good, I can recommend that company!
Click to expand...

I have a whole house 22k Generac generator on natural gas. With my medical issues and equipment I am glad I got it put in. When I tested it I turned off the main breaker and the generator had the power back on in 13 seconds.
 
CR did a report comparing Honda to one that harbor freight sells , they didn't see much difference

We have had a Lifan Inverter generator on then back of my friends boat for 7 years, works great and was about $900
 
I have Honda, great on fuel consumptions and reliability I find is the best, might cost more, but you get what you pay. When we had Wilma 2005, my generator ran 24/7 for 16 days before power was restored, and helped my neighbor with her place for power. The best Generator I ever used.
 
star1 said:
CR did a report comparing Honda to one that harbor freight sells , they didn't see much difference

We have had a Lifan Inverter generator on then back of my friends boat for 7 years, works great and was about $900
Click to expand...

I've been running HF generators for over 10 years. Never had a problem with them. During the recent outage I hooked up my 8750 watt HF generator to my house through my stove receptacle(suicide cord) and ran the whole house & pump excepting the heat pump.
 
In the recent storm no power, then buddy 2 houses down found a generator, we hooked it up and 5 hours later Bingo...power restored. He is going to go around the neighborhood and get donations since he tipped over the juju bucket and got power back on for everybody.

I have a portable Honda generator, quiet and purrs like a kitten.
 
Czechvar said:
...

Looking at models from 3000 Watts to 6000 Watts and less than $1,000.

Thank You...
Click to expand...


That is a WIDE range of wattage. A big difference of 2,000 watts. If al that is powered is a fridge some lights and a TV then that big engine is just using gas for no reason,
Determine what the min max needs are,



What do they want to run? Do a worksheet and determine what needs they have to determine what size Gen they need.
 
Rule3 said:
That is a WIDE range of wattage. A big difference of 2,000 watts. If al that is powered is a fridge some lights and a TV then that big engine is just using gas for no reason,
Determine what the min max needs are,



What do they want to run? Do a worksheet and determine what needs they have to determine what size Gen they need.
Click to expand...
This isn’t an exact science...the idea is to settle on a good brand that’s affordable, then get the most output for the money. If a 6,000 Watt only costs $800...then great.

But if they get the water and sewage up soon...and power up by the 24th like they are saying...it might not be necessary to go through the ordeal right now.
 
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Czechvar said:
This isn’t an exact science...the idea is to settle on a good brand that’s affordable, then get the most output for the money. If a 6,000 Watt only costs $800...then great.

But if they get the water and sewage up soon...and power up by the 24th like they are saying...it might not be necessary to go through the ordeal right now.
Click to expand...
You really don't want a lot more generator than needed due to gas consumption. The TroyBilt 5500 (non-current model) would run most what was needed plus a window shaker but to run my well I had to shut off the refrigeration and the windowshaker. The slightly bigger newer Briggs 6250 bumped me over the breaking point and I can kick the well pump without powering other stuff down. The old TroyBilt still works fine after many, many hours. I loaned it to my son the last time. We seem to have the worst power service anywhere besides 3rd world. Extended outages from Floyd, Charlie, Francis, Ivan, Jean, Katrina (I hate to count this one due to what it did later), Wilma, Irene, Matthew, Irma. At least I think I got that right. Not sure now. It doesn't really seem to take much. The Francis Jean double whammy made for a very undesirable experience.

Plenty of OT from some of the storms but far from being worth it. I drove home in the middle of some of them. Had to chain saw my way down the street. Slept for a few and had to chain saw again. I would have gotten more OT if I hadn't called out at the house. Was supposed to sleep at the substation. It's hard not check on the house when it's not far out of your part of the county. Too many TS and hurricanes. I'm getting tired of FL. However, I've never been in an area hammered the way New Orleans or Mexico beach were, thankfully.

Sorry, I wandered off.

IMHO, the secrete to long lived generators is changing the oil on schedule, even if it's blowing rain and then storing them with rec gas (alcohol free) and "GOOD" stabalizer in the tank and having run some through it before storage. I'm a strong believer in K100 but use something. I don't worry about running on rec gas but get the ethanol out before storage.
 
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