Portable Generators

[Take Down Sicko]

Just wondering if anyone is familiar with Harbor Freights Predator generator 9000/7250. Cost is 750.00 and seems to have most of the things you would want in a generator except its not dual powered. Only gas powered. Supposedly it is a Honda generator clone. Sold out right now but expect more in about two weeks.

[Tex1961]

I’ve heard decent things about HF generators from a few friends. The online reviews are also good. If you’re only wanting one for emergencies then I’d say it’s a good deal.

[RPBrown]

I have a couple of them for jobsite use. They work good for that except for a couple of things. (1) They don't like to start in cold weather and (2) you have to have the carburetor cleaned or replaces about every 300 hours.
I just keep a couple of carbs in stock for immediate replacement.
Also, for some reason, some home gas furnaces don't work with them. My furnace at home won't but I also have a Ford 12000 watt for home use that my furnace will work with. I can't, nor can the furnace manufacture explain why.

[philip964]

I saw a guy in front of me filling 3 10 gal gas jugs at the gas station two days ago. The station ran out before I was able to get gas.

To me this is the issue with gas or diesel generators.

[jmorris]

I'm seriously looking at the Predator but the 3500 Inverter. Plan on using it with the Travel Trailer so quiet is important. Read many good things about them on RV forums.

Although I'm also looking at the https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08FPBV4VX/?c ... _lig_dp_it Champion 4250. Slightly larger, slightly cheaper, and comments about it have been pretty good.

[Take Down Sicko]

I have a couple of them for jobsite use. They work good for that except for a couple of things. (1) They don't like to start in cold weather and (2) you have to have the carburetor cleaned or replaces about every 300 hours.
I just keep a couple of carbs in stock for immediate replacement.
Also, for some reason, some home gas furnaces don't work with them. My furnace at home won't but I also have a Ford 12000 watt for home use that my furnace will work with. I can't, nor can the furnace manufacture explain why.

Hummm. Main reason for me to buy one is for cold weather and 300 hours is not very long either. Was the Ford generator considerably more expensive? Any issues with it?

[Tex1961]

We have a Onan 4500 in our Motorhome if we need one, but if I were to get another one it would be be dual fuel.

[clarionite]

I pulled an Onan microquiet 4000 out of an RV a couple of weeks ago. The RV was mine, and I sold it to a buddy when I bought my new to me 5th wheel. The gennie has about 246 hours on it. But when my brother lived in the RV for a year he didn't start it monthly like I'd done when I owned it and the carb gummed up. If I'd have kept the RV i was just going to order a new carb for it. My buddy mistook a 30a 220v outlet in his garage as a 120v and ran a receptacle for the RV from it. Promptly popped the power switch in the inverter. So instead of messing with pulling it all out and fixing it he wanted to just put in a converter for the 12v system. I paid for the converter and did the install in exchange for the old equipment. Yesterday I ordered a new carb for the Onan. I'm eyeballing the propane rig for it too. I'm going to weld a rig to mount the onan in the hitch on back of my new 5th wheel. Put a couple of wheels on it so I can roll it just outside the garage for outages here at home. Won't power the entire home, but will run lights and quite a bit of heat.

[Take Down Sicko]

You guys are pros at this generator stuff. I wouldn't know how to wire up the home heating system to one. Is it hard to repair or replace the carb in one of those things?

[puma guy]

We had a small older generation HF generator that was a piece of crap. Not going to say anything against their new generation of the products which are advertised as comparable to name brands. The problem is finding parts later for their machinery. They change manufacturers often. I have an 10" Iron Forge table saw from Home Depot and you can't find parts for it. They had many iterations of 10" Iron Forge saws and unless you are lucky enough to find a part on Ebay you are out of luck. For my home I have a Generac 8000 Electric start and an older 5500 that parts are available from the company. I've have a Colemen Power Mate 4000 circa 1988 that I can still find parts for. In fact I rebuilt the carburetor and replaced the air cleaner and muffler to let my brother use during hurricane season last year. I have a 6000 Honda at my deer lease for backup, too.

[philip964]

I run everything out of gas. I never leave gas in anything but my cars. If I don’t, they don’t start the next time.

Am I the only one?

[puma guy]

I run everything out of gas. I never leave gas in anything but my cars. If I don’t, they don’t start the next time.

Am I the only one?

Get ethanol free gasoline and a fuel stabilizer additive. My son-in-law if a Paramedic/ Fire fighter in the Hill Country and their equipment was constantly needed the carbs cleaned. He got the department to start buying ethanol frees gas and the problem disappeared. It wont last indefinitely, but gasoline with no ethanol and a stabilizer will last much longer. I won't bore you with the fine details, but the gasoline available today is far different than yesteryear when it was predominantly straight run from a crude tower, with some enhancements and blend stock. The crude I ran in my units produced about 7-8% overhead material which is naptha. Most of that is not even used in blended gasoline. The majority of gasoline is produced from cracked gas oils.

[RPBrown]

I have a couple of them for jobsite use. They work good for that except for a couple of things. (1) They don't like to start in cold weather and (2) you have to have the carburetor cleaned or replaces about every 300 hours.
I just keep a couple of carbs in stock for immediate replacement.
Also, for some reason, some home gas furnaces don't work with them. My furnace at home won't but I also have a Ford 12000 watt for home use that my furnace will work with. I can't, nor can the furnace manufacture explain why.

Hummm. Main reason for me to buy one is for cold weather and 300 hours is not very long either. Was the Ford generator considerably more expensive? Any issues with it?

The Ford was a little over 1100.00 last year. As for the time on the HF, keep in mind that these are used on construction sites by employees that really don’t take care of stuff. The Ford will run most every thing in my house. Even the a/c if nothing else connected

[clarionite]

You guys are pros at this generator stuff. I wouldn't know how to wire up the home heating system to one. Is it hard to repair or replace the carb in one of those things?

Hooking one up to your home isn't something for the newly initiated. And more than likely illegal for you to do in your area if you're not licensed to do electrical work. It would require a power switching unit and some other things that you wouldn't know how to do. My little 4K watt generator wouldn't be big enough to run the entire system, so I wouldn't even consider tying it into the house. If I had to use it, I'd plug in what I needed to it. A couple of area heaters or a window unit or mini split.

Carb work isn't difficult at all. I've worked on small gas engines since I was a teen. I took a shop class that helped me learn. Replacing carbs is usually what I'll do now. I'll pull the old one off, put the new one on and fine tune it. I'll take the old one apart, clean the jets and replace all the seals and it'll go on the shelf if I need it in the future.

[carlson1]

I'm seriously looking at the Predator but the 3500 Inverter. Plan on using it with the Travel Trailer so quiet is important. Read many good things about them on RV forums.

Although I'm also looking at the https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08FPBV4VX/?c ... _lig_dp_it Champion 4250. Slightly larger, slightly cheaper, and comments about it have been pretty good.

I have the Honda EU Is 3000 for my ZV. I keep it at my house and not on the RV. It is about 8 plus years old. The Predator 3500 is appealing. I wonder how Duggar’s they are and how long they will last. I have had zero problems or failures with my Honda.

I would like the Generac, but my budget doesn’t.