Portable generator recommends?

[Frank Howell]

My 8 year old Yamaha 1000 died while exercising it and the new part costs
about $500 or more, so it's not worth repairing, so I am looking for a
replacement, but it's not going to be a Yamaha ef1000is or the Honda
equivalent. Too much money for what I use it for now.

When in California, all camping that we did was 'dry' camping, but here in
Oregon most everywhere we go has electricity and water, but every now an
then we go places and 'dry' camp, so it's nice having a small quiet genset
and not have to use the Onan.

My first candidate is the following: http://tinyurl.com/cju28sc which is
Homedepot and the Ramsond Sinemate 1500 which is a misnomer as it's
continuous wattage is 1000 and peak 1200! But it does meet the requirements
of light(35 lbs), quite(54 DB) and it's a 4 stroke and less money($400).

But if anyone has recommendations for a better replacement, let me know.

--
Frank Howell

[Janet Wilder]

OT:

Where are you in Oregon? We will be in Sutherlin this summer.

--
Janet Wilder
Way-the-heck-south Texas
Spelling doesn't count. Cooking does.

[Tom J]

Looks like that is a good choice since you have used that size before and
know it will suit your needs!! You can always fire up the Onan when you need
more and it'll need exercising anyway!!

Tom J

[Ralph E Lindberg]

In article <5169ad07$0$17129$c3e8da3$76a7...@news.astraweb.com>,

As long as you consider it disposable. Parts are unlikely to be
available.

I have a counter idea, how often do you lose power at home? If you live
outside of the urban areas plan on losing power at least once a winter
(this was the first winter we haven't in more then 10 years). This is
why we have enough generator to run the house refer.

Our record was 7 days in sub-freezing weather. That storm Portland had
almost an inch of ice from a freezing rain storm. People in the city
were without power for several days.

--
--------------------------------------------------------
Personal e-mail is the n7bsn but at amsat.org
This posting address is a spam-trap and seldom read
RV and Camping FAQ can be found at
http://www.ralphandellen.us/rv

[Jim Rusling]

Woot has a 2000 watt inverter generator for $450 with just $5
shipping. Amazon want over 600 for the same model.

<http://tools.woot.com/offers/duracell-portable-inverter-generator?utm_source=Daily+Digest&utm_campaign=881e14143f-Daily+Digest+-+20130414+-+Woot&utm_medium=email#trackedd>
--
Jim Rusling
More or Less Retired
Mustang, OK

[Hunter Hampton]

On 4/13/2013 10:24 PM, Ralph E Lindberg wrote:
> Our record was 7 days in sub-freezing weather. That storm Portland had
> almost an inch of ice from a freezing rain storm. People in the city
> were without power for several days.

I had no power for 5 days in a situation like that. I simply took the
food out of the fridge and put it on the screen porch where it kept just
fine (c:

Hunter

[RonB]

I bought one of the yellow cube champion 1700 Watt generators last year for about $599 for light work and battery recharging. It is an inverter generator so I feel safe charging the laptop, phones or other electronics. It also has a very quiet "economy" mode, and even the standard mode isn't that noisy. Shop around because the prices ranged from $599 to $799 for the same machine. Also it is a little short on capability for our microwave.

RonB

[Ralph E Lindberg]

In article <516ac803$0$33716$c3e8da3$a909...@news.astraweb.com>,

Then we used the generator to power the heater, TV, chargers and such

The radio station had a "call in help" one lady was worried about all
the food in the refer/freezer. The host told her to put in out on the
back porch.

[Frank Howell]

Ralph E Lindberg wrote:
> In article <5169ad07$0$17129$c3e8da3$76a7...@news.astraweb.com>,
> "Frank Howell" <fpho...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>> My 8 year old Yamaha 1000 died while exercising it and the new part
>> costs about $500 or more, so it's not worth repairing, so I am
>> looking for a replacement, but it's not going to be a Yamaha
>> ef1000is or the Honda equivalent. Too much money for what I use it
>> for now.
>>
>> When in California, all camping that we did was 'dry' camping, but
>> here in Oregon most everywhere we go has electricity and water, but
>> every now an then we go places and 'dry' camp, so it's nice having a
>> small quiet genset and not have to use the Onan.
>>
>> My first candidate is the following: http://tinyurl.com/cju28sc
>> which is Homedepot and the Ramsond Sinemate 1500 which is a misnomer
>> as it's continuous wattage is 1000 and peak 1200! But it does meet
>> the requirements of light(35 lbs), quite(54 DB) and it's a 4 stroke
>> and less money($400).
>>
>> But if anyone has recommendations for a better replacement, let me
>> know.
>
> As long as you consider it disposable. Parts are unlikely to be
> available.

That's why I'm buying cheaper this time. The controller went bad on the
Yamaha and that part sells from $500 to $800, and since a new generator is
$800, I have to consider the broken one as disposable.

>
> I have a counter idea, how often do you lose power at home? If you
> live outside of the urban areas plan on losing power at least once a
> winter (this was the first winter we haven't in more then 10 years).
> This is why we have enough generator to run the house refer.
>
> Our record was 7 days in sub-freezing weather. That storm Portland had
> almost an inch of ice from a freezing rain storm. People in the city
> were without power for several days.

We use our Onan from the moterhome when that happens. Last time was about a
year ago and we had both the Onan and Yamaha on for 14 hours. While the Onan
can power most of our house needs in case of power outages, the Yamah was
able to power our outdoor freezer and frig.

--
Frank Howell

[Frank Howell]

We are in Salem, about 120 miles north of Sutherlin. What is you itinerary
for Oregon? You can email it, if that's your preference.

--
Frank Howell

[Frank Howell]

60lbs is too heavy for me to consider this a portable. Also I saw no mention
of noise level.

--
Frank Howell

[Janet Wilder]

We are heading up to the Olympia WA area from Sutherlin. Will probably
pass through Salem on the way there. Maybe we could meet for lunch?

[Jim Rusling]

"Frank Howell" <fpho...@yahoo.com> wrote:

<<snip>

>60lbs is too heavy for me to consider this a portable. Also I saw no mention
>of noise level.

It is 62 db.

[Bruce S]

It says 62 db, but no indication of whether that is full throttle or
economy mode.

--
Bruce

Thomas Jefferson - "The policy of the American government is to leave
their citizens free, neither restraining nor aiding them in their pursuits.

No man has a natural right to commit aggression on the equal rights of
another, and this is all from which the laws ought to restrain him."

[Frank Howell]

Thanks for the reply.

--
Frank Howell

[Frank Howell]

We would look forward to it.

--
Frank Howell

[Frank Howell]

My Yamaha came in about 52db, so 62 is a lot noisier, but that genset is
about twice the output of what I'm looking for and I figure the bigger the
generator the more noise, all other things being equal.

--
Frank Howell

[Bruce S]

If you really want the smaller one, check Harbor Freight - I got an
advertisement from them a week or so ago with the 1000 watt one on sale
for about $100. Might do what you are looking for.

[Ralph E Lindberg]

In article <516aed42$0$1923$c3e8da3$3a1a...@news.astraweb.com>,

"Frank Howell" <fpho...@yahoo.com> wrote:


> >
> > As long as you consider it disposable. Parts are unlikely to be
> > available.
>
> That's why I'm buying cheaper this time. The controller went bad on the
> Yamaha and that part sells from $500 to $800, and since a new generator is
> $800, I have to consider the broken one as disposable.
>

Good, I've read a few accounts of people trying to get warranty service
from this company, to be told the nearest place is 100's of miles away

[Ralph E Lindberg]

In article <516af572$0$63250$c3e8da3$3a1a...@news.astraweb.com>,

Janet Wilder <kellie...@yahoo.com> wrote:


>
> We are heading up to the Olympia WA area from Sutherlin. Will probably
> pass through Salem on the way there. Maybe we could meet for lunch?

Got an ahead when?

[Ralph E Lindberg]

In article <516aee71$0$63243$c3e8da3$3a1a...@news.astraweb.com>,

"Frank Howell" <fpho...@yahoo.com> wrote:


>
> We are in Salem, about 120 miles north of Sutherlin. What is you itinerary
> for Oregon? You can email it, if that's your preference.

Doesn't Cecil live in the Salem area?

[Janet Wilder]

I'll email you. I hope this is a good address?

[Janet Wilder]

On 4/14/2013 10:05 PM, Ralph E Lindberg wrote:
> In article <516af572$0$63250$c3e8da3$3a1a...@news.astraweb.com>,
> Janet Wilder <kellie...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>
>>
>> We are heading up to the Olympia WA area from Sutherlin. Will probably
>> pass through Salem on the way there. Maybe we could meet for lunch?
>
> Got an ahead when?
>

Olympia in mid-June is as far north as we get on this trip. We will be
there two nights.

[Frank Howell]

Yes.

--
Frank Howell

[Frank Howell]

I decided that I will pay more for a 4 stroke and inverter technology as I
also use this genset to power my telescope tripod that runs the go-to motors
and computer.


--
Frank Howell

[Frank Howell]

Ralph E Lindberg wrote:
> In article <516aee71$0$63243$c3e8da3$3a1a...@news.astraweb.com>,
> "Frank Howell" <fpho...@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
>
>>
>> We are in Salem, about 120 miles north of Sutherlin. What is you
>> itinerary for Oregon? You can email it, if that's your preference.
>
> Doesn't Cecil live in the Salem area?

Aumsville which is about 15 miles from Salem.

--
Frank Howell

[ozm...@gmail.com]

On Monday, April 15, 2013 9:35:33 AM UTC-5, Frank Howell wrote:
>
> I decided that I will pay more for a 4 stroke and inverter technology as I
> also use this genset to power my telescope tripod that runs the go-to motors
> and computer.

I also like 4 stroke, mainly for economy and noise.

However, don't worry about requiring sine wave inverters for your electronics. Sawtooth or square waves* are just fine, as the CONverter in the charger smooths out the DC.

Oh, and as with "flammable" / "inflammable", meanings get lost in popular usage.

ANYthing that makes ac from dc is an inverter......doesn't matter how it's done. Some salespeople, however, try to scare computer and phone charging folks into paying a LOT more for sine wave inverters.

*that "buzzing" sound you used to hear from the radio in your '48 Pontiac came from what was commonly called the "vibrator tube". It was just a multivibrator, creating a square wave, then run through a transformer to give plate voltage to the vacuum tubes in the old radios -- an inverter/converter, as it created 200+ v DC from 12 v DC
But it used HUGE amounts of current from the battery, leaving lovers stranded....aw, shucks.

[gregz]

I would not be so calm about the quality of the ac out. It's been shown
marginal electronics can fry.

The terms inverter, converter, are thrown around. You have dc to dc
converters, inverters. Ac to dc inverters, converters. And dc to ac. I've
seen the threads about poor sine waves. The generators also screw up,
especially with 240 generator, drawing everything unevenly on one 120 leg.

Greg

[ozm...@gmail.com]

On Monday, April 15, 2013 10:37:55 PM UTC-5, G wrote:

> I would not be so calm about the quality of the ac out. It's been shown
> marginal electronics can fry.

You are, of course, correct. That is why I restricted my assurances to using that ac output ONLY for those items like the laptop and phone chargers that have THEIR OWN rectification and filter systems in them.

Using the direct ac is going to be dependent on what it is used for.

> The terms inverter, converter, are thrown around. You have dc to dc
>
> converters, inverters. Ac to dc inverters, converters. And dc to ac.

As I illustrated, like "flammable", "decimated", etc. Americans are piss poor grammarians, generally. But, like inbreeding, it is self limiting.

> I've seen the threads about poor sine waves. The generators also screw up,
> especially with 240 generator, drawing everything unevenly on one 120 leg.

...hoo, boy...Correct.

If I ever need to use a 120 tap off a 220 generator, I dig in with my meters FIRST.

Friend of mine has 220 in his barn. 120 outlet "over here" off one leg; 120 outlet "over there" off another. Knocked him on his ass one day. Dunno who rigged it that way.....but it's fixed NOW.

oz, who has a 6ft. copper rod burried at the edge of his barn for a ground.