What's the best kind of generator, fuel-wise; propane, gas or diesel, for my home?

[Sun]

We are on the market for a generator, and are wondering which brand to get, and what kind of fuel is safest, easier to obtain, or better all around.

Also, which brands of generators are best?

[Blueflag]

If you have to deal with 'zero degree nights' and MUST run the furnace, then get some advice from a qualified electrician on the startup, peak and continuous load your heating systems creates. With this knowledge in hand, there are fairly simple worksheets available fomr the generator manufacturers to calcualte the capacity generator you need.

Don't guess at it. Get the math right.

In NC mountains we're ususally dealing with temps in the teens at night in winter. AND we have the wood stove, so we DON'T need to run the furnace.

Getting the generator size established is FREE help you can get from the retailers. Do it ;-).

[Sun]

Thanks for the consumer rep. link.

[epow]

Get a Honda like I wish I had gotten. A man who runs a roadside fruit and vegetable stand near my daughter's home uses a small Honda to power his stand that is so quiet you can barely hear it running if you're standing 25-30 feet away. He first bought a Coleman because it had the lowest price he could find, but after a couple of days he took it back and traded it in on the Honda. Also, people who have had Hondas for a long time say they last practically forever. The down side is the initial cost. Hondas aren't cheap in the short run, but they will outlast at least two El Cheapos.

Unfortunately I bought a 5KW Coleman El Cheapo with a Tecumseh engine back during the Y2K debacle because of the lower price, and the engine has been nothing but trouble since the day I brought it home. I have spent almost enough on repairs to make up the price differential between it and a better unit. It's still very hard to start and doesn't run at a constant speed, which is important for a generator engine. Whatever you buy, make sure it isn't powered by a Tecumseh engine.

[Sun]

Another thought I had, was to get a furnace that burns both oil, and something else (since our furnace is old, we're kind of due), if there is such a thing, and a small generator for frige, lights and water pump.

Our fireplace is OK for the first day, but with each day, the house gets colder. An old-fashioned hot water bottle really helps (but not good for pregnant women, btw).

[Sun]

"Get a Honda like I wish I had gotten. A man who runs a roadside fruit and vegetable stand near my daughter's home uses a small Honda to power his stand that is so quiet you can barely hear it running if you're standing 25-30 feet away. He first bought a Coleman because it had the lowest price he could find, but after a couple of days he took it back and traded it in on the Honda. Also, people who have had Hondas for a long time say they last practically forever. The down side is the initial cost. Hondas aren't cheap in the short run, but they will outlast at least two El Cheapos.

Unfortunately I bought a 5KW Coleman El Cheapo with a Tecumseh engine back during the Y2K debacle because of the lower price, and the engine has been nothing but trouble since the day I brought it home. I have spent almost enough on repairs to make up the price differential between it and a better unit. It's still very hard to start and doesn't run at a constant speed, which is important for a generator engine. Whatever you buy, make sure it isn't powered by a Tecumseh engine."

That sure is good to know. It's better to pay more than be sorry later.

[_Jim]

You will want the GE locomotive generator. It runs about 6000 horsepower,

You're going to need 'frequency conversion' too, to run any motors, AC-only stuff, b/c that's not 60 cps (60 Hz) coming of the generator in that unit ...

[elfman2]

http://www.electricgeneratorsdirect.com/?source=goog&kw=EMportable_generator

[Balding_Eagle]

My wife’s cousin works in a locomotive repair facility.

Do you know how they 'torque' the head bolts?

They thread a eye nut on the top of the head bolt(s). Then they use an overhead crane, with a scale, to pull up on the head bolt the correct amount, 'stretching' the bolt a little. Then they run the nut down to the head (they have this one threaded on below the eye nut) hand tight. They then release the crane. A couple times around and presto, they've got it properly torqued! And the nuts are only tightened by hand!

[Balding_Eagle]

I have an electric (powered) generator.

Phase converter?

[Sun]

Thanks, everybody for the great information!

btw, for those who don't know, don't use generators for the tv or computer. It can ruin them.

[Blueflag]

OK. ;-) Just remember that your furnace light the burner w/o electric power to run the blower. Running the blower means you have a transfer circuit, cuz you can't 'plug' in your furnace to a generator via an extension cord.

Here's an alternative to look at.

http://www.woodstove.com/pdffiles/Woodstock%20Wood%20Brch.pdf

THIS is the woodstove we have, installed as a fireplace insert. The hardest part of doing this is getting the 580 lb stove into the house! A competent handyman (or chimney sweep) can help you with the chimney conversion (simpler than it looks, once you see it done).

This wood stove is called a 'fireview' because you can see the fire like a regular fireplace.

It has added benefits I can attest to.
(1) It warms your house better than a fireplace
(2) It produces more heat in your home per lb of wood burned.
(3) It burns very cleanly (if you care about that) if you employ the built in catalyst
(4) You can control how much heat the stove puts out by adjusting the damper -- much like the throttle on a car.
(5) With good hardwood like oak and hickory, it WILL stay lit and warm ALL NIGHT long. Poplar requires a 4 o'clock check.
(6) It is completely safe - you can stoke a roaring fire in the stove and leave the house with no worries
(7) no electricity required at all.
(8) put a cast iron kettle w/ water on the top and it'll add a good deal of humidity to the house, making it feel warmer.

I could go on and on. We love having a woodstove instead of a traditional fireplace. Didn't think that would be the case, but we instantly loved the difference.

These 'wood' stoves come is natural gas models as well. So, you have options.

We have acres of firewood, and I still love to split it, so we went with wood.

There are many brands of woodstoves. We picked 'Woodstock'. Woodstock stoves are pricey compared to what you can buy at your local hardware store. BUT -- they don't smoke, they're very sturdy, easily emptied -- on and on. There's reasons to spend the money on a good wood stove, regardless of whether it is a Woodstock stove or not.

IF you choose not to power your furnace in emergencies, you CAN get by with an 8500 continuous/10,000 W peak-start gas generator. We do it frequently, use common sense, and get by just fine.

IF long duration outages are frequent and troublesome, go ahead and price a true back-up generator with a transfer.

Portables are noisy in comparison and require more intervention from you (power cords, managing loads, adding fuel).

A 'built-in' with auto start will get you up and running in less than a minute just like nothing happened (except restting digital clocks).

Like most things, it comes down to $$$. $1,000 vs. $10,000.

[Abathar]

Do you live in the country with a tractor? I have a 25kva generator that mounts on my PTO, lot cheaper to just buy the generator if you already have the engine sitting there.

[Sun]

Thanks AGAIN!

A woodstove where you can see the fire! I printed out the link you gave me, and it's a good-looking stove, too.

I talked it over with my husband, and we probably will go with a generator, because it's less costly, and maybe save for a wood stove for later on. Also, since it gets so cold in these parts, we're concerned about our pipes freezing.

I think we'll look for a propane generator, because of the "shelf life" of propane. This winter we lost power for days once and several hours a couple of other times. But we have gone as long as two years without an outage, except for very brief outages.

All of your posts were VERY helpfu, and I printed out the entire thread.

[Sun]

No tractor, but thank you.