quote:
It's getting to be hurricane season again and living in florida, I'm considering getting a generator. good idea
#1. Most less expensive generators (Less than $1000) are not continous cycle. snip
NOT TRUE. Your talking continuos watts verses surge watts. A lot of companies show surge rate, so it looks better. Allgen sets have surge and continuous. I have yet to see a gen set that could not be run 24/7. Until its broken in iyts adviseable to shut it down and check oil, and everytime you fill it check oil, but as long as gas and oil are fine no reason any of them can not run 24/7
2. The Honda uses less gas
NOT TRUE
I have a Kohler that uses less gas than my larger honda and they are both rated at 10K. HOnda being better at gas consumption is an old wives tale. What makes for a lot of difference in gas consuption is "auto-idle" some of the cheaper gen sets run at a set speed regardless if they arte loaded or unloaded with power draw. Look and make sure yur getting a auto idle gen set, so it drops down to a lower speed when unloaded. These auto idle sets will also last longer since they are not running at wide open throttle all the time.
3. The Honda is whisper quiet. It runs between 49 and 58 decibels snip
Yes/no...the cheap gen sets are sold with a typical small engine muffler that leaves a lot to be desired. Nnothing worse than hearing the constant drone of these cheap gen sets days on end when everyone is running a gen set. There are some fine after market mufflers made for those cheap gen sets that makes the noise level as quiet or maybe even quieter than a Honda.....I certainly do think HOnda makes a good gen set, but there is lots of honda powered sets out there that are just that honda p owered, and all do not use the same grade of motor. Honda also makes a cheapie consumer grade motor that is no better than the typical tecumseh or Briggs and Stratton engine, so do not go by the name on the motor. HOnda also produces a cheap cponmsumer grade of gen set also, which is higher priced and no better than some gen sets sold at Wally world.......its a buyers market and manuf know this and take advantahge of the general public know knowing what engines are what and how things arte constructed......and the way the routinely market the gen sets etc....
4. The Honda puts out very pure power snip
60 cycles power is far from being clean anyhow, and do not think for one minute the power yur getting from a power company is clean., I would not be afraid to b et, a gen set of cheap design is gonna produce power that is equal to or better thanwhata yur getting fro9mn the power company on a good day. probbaly even better than the power company provides. Yet another myth in the ploy to sell gen sets, buyt higher priced dealers make more profit, and its not a critical aspect to worry about at all.
Do you actually need 220 volts or can yu get buy on 115.....9 out of 10 times folks never use the 220, and what 220 is there is not enough to power AC or most 220 items so it goes unused.
What I would do is make a list of what I definately "NEED" to power up, and add 50 to 100% more in watts, and shop around. I would not be afraid of any Generac set. Same for a true honda made set or a yamaha. Onan and Kohler also make good sets. I prefer a multi fuel gen set and these can be had for about 100 bucks more than a gas powered set. All but one of our 3 gen sets is multi fueled. Less problems and hassles runing a gen set on propane than gasoline, buyt if need be a simple push of a lever and I can run on gas as well as LPG......No flamable liquiids have to be stored. Most everyone has LPG cylinders around, and running on LPG is much cleaner, and extend maintenance etc such as oil changes etc.......Gen sets set most of the times unused. and gas powered sets are gonna fail to start just when you need them. LPG is not usually a problem in that area.
Figure wattage needs, then shop. Don't let a louder gen set stop you if its $100 or more cheaper. A simple muffler change fixes that, look for auto idle and what the gen set is rated at continous use Surge is basically useless to most home owners anyhow as they just use extension cords without really concerning themselves on what they intend to power up. Surge rating is nice if yur installing a auto start on/off line setup, to power just about everything or if you know about surge requirements of some items......just don't let surge rating fool u into thinking its bigger , its the continuous that counts.
