Unchained Preppers
General Category => Sustenance => Topic started by: JoJo on August 04, 2017, 03:27:47 PM
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It's about portable generators. I've been looking at a 5500watt dual fuel generator for $760.00. It's a little small for my house, I would have to pay close attention to what is being used.
I got my BJ's coupon book today and in it it had a 7500watt gas only for $629.99. Both are Champion generators that will run 8hrs on 6gal of gas +/-
What I need it for is for a well pump with 4" casing a 15 amp septic pump, freezer, large refrigerator the fan for my gas heater and the igniter's for my gas stove.
Is the 5500 watt worth the extra $130 because of the dual fuel or the 7500 watt with the safety of extra wattage?
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I use a 10Kw that is 8Kw continuous gas only generator. It handles most things in the whole house except I have to do a bit of energy management because the generator has a 30 Amp breaker at 240 VAC. If you do the math you only get 240volts X 30 Amps = 7200 Watts. If I forget to turn the hot water heater breaker off and the well pump comes on while the hot water heater is on, the breaker pops and I have to go out and reset it. If I want to take a hot shower, I have to turn the well breaker off and turn the hot water heater breaker on. Then when the water is hot, I turn off the Hot Water Heater breaker and turn the well breaker back on. That puts pressure on the water line and I can take a hot shower. So, I suggest the bigger generator. If you feel that you must have a second fuel source, you can always buy a conversion kit to fit under the carburator and then use Propane or natural gas. I just keep about 50 gallons of gasoline and a couple of quarts of 30 weight motor oil on hand. Another tip is Lawn tractors and Gas generators don't like Multi-Viscosity motor oil. They will smoke like crazy when you first start them up. It won't hurt them but the small engine repair man told me to use straight 30 weight on all small engines.
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@pkveazey. Wow I forgot about my electric hot water heater. The larger unit it will be.
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if you keep a note pad at the breaker box or your switch over box, keep a drawing of pre-sets.
one for washing clothes.
one for cooling the house.
one for ...
showing what breakers should be on and off for each.
makes it easy to get it right when your tired or stressed.
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Good discussion.
Also look into getting those "daisy chain hook-ups" (https://www.hunker.com/12133073/how-to-add-an-aux-fuel-tank-to-a-generator) for your generator. No more pouring gas into a generator that is hot.
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It's always nice to have more power available than you need. Just remember that typically, the larger the generator, the more fuel it's going to use. At work we have a variety of generators. I've found that the diesel generators are usually the simplest, and they have the least problems. Our propane generators have had the most problems. We're talking 10-20 kilowatt generators. We also have some of the small 2 KW Hondas, and they've been very reliable, very quiet, and incredibly fuel efficient.