Generator

[coopntex]

I know I can power my fridge , fans and lights. I was wondering if I can power my T.V or computer on my gas generator?

 

[UTeric32]

yes and yes

 

[UTEE]

A qualified yes. The total power consumption for all the appliances and devices you want to power cannot exceed the power supply capability of your generator.

 

[si se puede]

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[hullabelew]

Has anyone used the small Honda generators? I'm thinking about buying one but know nothing about them.

 

[Ignatius]

We've used one (the 2000) at the tailgate for 2-3 years; the price tag is up there, but if you use a generator at all it's well, well worth it...

 

[Luke Duke]

The Hondas are great. The EU2000i is the biggest bang for the buck. The best deal is at Wise Sales. They sell them for $870 shipped (no tax, free shipping) and they take about 3 days to get to you. I have bought 2 Hondas and 1 Yahama generator through them and I highly recommend them.

 

[UTEE]

Hey Luke-- do you have the inverter-style Yamaha? If so, how do you like it compared to the Hondas? I've wondered how they measure up against one another.

 

[Luke Duke]

I have the Yamaha EF2400iS.

Honda Pros:
Cheaper
Slightly quieter
Lighter

Yamaha Pros
Higher output
Runs longer on one tank

You really can't go wrong with either. I needed the slightly higher output of the Yamaha for my travel trailer. We parallel 2 Hondas together for the tailgate and that works great.

 

[lostman]

So what is the total wattage you would need for a freezer, 2 fridges, a big TV and a couple fans? Just enough to keep the food safe and make life comfortable inside.

I borrowed my brother's Troy-Built (about 6000 watts) and we had no trouble getting those items up and running, but it is ungodly loud! Could not sleep last night because of it.

Losthubby said the guys in the offshore industry swear by the Hondas. A 6000 watt Honda goes for almost $4000 though. Could we get by with less?

 

[Luke Duke]

3kW would probably work. With Honda it is generally cheaper to get two 2kW generators than it is to get one 3kW generator. Ideally you could borrow/rent a 3kW generator and test it before you buy.

 

[Hou-Tex Horn]

I got this...

...a 5000Watt Pramac by Subaru at Home Depot on Sunday for $650. A little loud, but once it was on the side of the house you couldn't really hear it. We ran the fridge, two fans, television, directv, and the microwave.

Not sure what I'll do with it now, but for the price it was cheaper in dollars and sanity than staying in a hotel room for three days with the wife and two little kids.

 

[bevo_daddy]

I know it sounds stupid but please dont run it inside your house!!! Carbon monoxide will kill you.

It's already killed at least 5-6 people that were using them from Ike

 

[Luke Duke]

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[CaboWabo]

Can I hook one of those up to power my central AC. If not it's useless to me, other than for maybe Directv.

 

[lostman]

My brother hooks up a window A/C unit in the bedroom to his generator (7800 watts). We had a freezer, 2 fridges, and a couple fans, Big TV and computer on it. Did fine. Not so sure about the central A/C but I would guess you would need a big *** one to do it.

 

[_e.]

I guess it would be possible, if you are a McGyver type. You would need a powerful enough 240V unit for the condenser, then an extension cord into the house to power the blower. Also you would need some kind of transfer switch to isolate the power to those two units; I doubt you could do that and keep it up to code. So no, practically you could not do that.

My brother in NOLA installed a 17KW Generac stationary unit shortly after Katrina. It will power everything in his house, as long as there is still natural gas. Oddly, he has never needed it yet, and they stayed through Gustav.

 

[Montag]

That's because nothing happened in NOLA for Gustav. Baton Rouge got it bad. And that's why I love my Honda 2000. It's been great for the tailgates but that little sucker did just fine powering my fridge, 2 fans, tv or dsl modem & comp. It wasn't big enough to get the microwave going, but that's fine, I have a gas stove. Toaster worked as well in combination with all of that. Point being, I ran that Honda all day every day for a week and it shows no signs of stopping. Although, it seems happy just to be sitting there now, no doing anything. Plus, it's quiet, so it won't attract unsavory peoples.

 

[hornimal]

much like montag, my honda eu2000i got me through the ike aftermath. I fired that sucker up at 9:30am the day of the storm and ran it for a week straight -- stopping it once to do an oil change, and the rest were gas refills.

first two nights I had my fridge, tv, directv receiver, small fan, lamp and window unit going at the same time. after the cold front moved through I disconnected the window unit and continued to chug along quietly the rest of the week.

 

[pevodog]

I bought a craftsman 4000 watt friday morning before Ike. It ran a fridge,T.V., small 110 v window unit, a couple of fans and lamps for 7 seven days. It used about 61/2 gallons a day.