Buying A Generator For Shows?

[wildrose]

I'm not a "newbie", but this is a new area for me. I do one or two big outdoor events a year in my regular run of shows, which run into evening hours and where the ability to have better lighting than just lanterns would be great. Also, my husband has a c-pap machine - and you might know about the "derecho" wind storm that knocked power out for long stretches of time here recently. Which, for someone like him means no sleep 'til it comes back on. We were fortunate that ours came back the same night...

Anyhow, if you have a generator, what do you use and why? Is it quiet? Does it really put out the fumes? I've seen/heard some at shows that there is no way I'd buy.

[Itch]

I have used one of these for 3 years now.I would recommend it 100 percent..Light weight,quiet,and dependable..I think I paid 8-9 hundred for it online..http://powerequipment.honda.com/generators/models/eu2000i

[Tree Reaper]

You want to calculate the wattage you'll be using, get the biggest one you can afford and carry because you'll have to lift it in and out of the vehicle.

Get copper winding not aluminum, it will cost more but last longer.

[Ferg]

I have an 8500watt generator we used last year when a storm took our power for 7days. It has two wheels at one end with handles/stand at the other. Takes two men and a boy to put it into the bed of my pick-up. Generators must be located a safe distance from any live animals, humans included.

All that said, here in Ohio I doubt if you would get on the grounds with a generator of any size. Noisy? you bet. Smelly and other problems.

I know where you are coming from but personally, I wouldn't even consider it.

ferg

1342746051[/url]' post='257127']

I'm not a "newbie", but this is a new area for me. I do one or two big outdoor events a year in my regular run of shows, which run into evening hours and where the ability to have better lighting than just lanterns would be great. Also, my husband has a c-pap machine - and you might know about the "derecho" wind storm that knocked power out for long stretches of time here recently. Which, for someone like him means no sleep 'til it comes back on. We were fortunate that ours came back the same night...

Anyhow, if you have a generator, what do you use and why? Is it quiet? Does it really put out the fumes? I've seen/heard some at shows that there is no way I'd buy.

[Mike516]

I know someone who has one of those Honda ones Itch linked and he loves it. It's small but he uses it in an emergency when his power goes out at his house and he uses it on his boat. He said there's also a larger gas tank accessory you can get for it so it'll run longer on a tank and it's easy to move.

I just got something similar to the one Ferg described for our house since when the power goes out here, it goes out for a while. But it weighs almost 300 pounds so even with the wheels and handles it's not practical for moving very far except out of the garage and into the garage.

For what you describe using it for, I'd go with the Honda if I was you.

[Itch]

We use to set up at bike rallys all summer long for a couple of years.That little Honda never let me down..It will run a small fridge,lights,fan,and laptop no problem..

[Glendon]

I'll put my vote in for the little Honda generators as well. My uncle just replaced a much bigger wheeled generator at his hunt camp with one of the mid range Honda models. Much quieter, and very fuel efficient.

[Iron Pounder]

We use two seperate power inverters ran off deep cycle batteries. Make no noise, smell or take any fuel. I went this way as some of the camp sites we go to don't allow generators of any kind and we use this set up to camp as well. Our set up now is two 105 Amp hour batteries with a I think 1500 cont. watt unit running off it and we have a smaller one in the van that charges laptop, cell phones, runs a small cooler and anything small, normally one of two things at a time on as needed. Anyway maybe something like this would work for you but i will warn you the batties are very heavy.

[Glendon]

I'd be curious what those batteries cost to run? A gas generator would be easier logistically I would think. If you end up spending an extra day at an event or power is out longer then expected, always easier to get a can of gas then find replacement batteries.

Edited July 21, 2012 by Glendon

[wildrose]

We're likely going to get a Honda generator. Up to this point, I've used multiple lanterns around the booth, and they're just not bright enough. We do have a portable battery, which we got for emergency use because of my husband's cpap machine. It WOULD be handy camping as well.

[Art]

Our 20kw unit is an Onan I think, it is diesel. My little one is a Honda EM, 5500 watts I think. Honda (and I suppose Generac and Yamaha) make a smaller series that are pretty good also.

With any of them, but especially the gasoline models, if you are not going to use them for a month or so, run them dry when shutting down so the gasoline will not varnish up the carb, and most definitely use Stabil in your gas that you store. With diesel, use store-n-start (diesel form of Stabil) in your tank. We run the diesel every two weeks for an hour or two with a load on it to heat it up and force any moisture out. Every couple of months, I crank up the gas one to charge the battery.

Want to talk noisy, I still have a 3kw communications generator from the Korean war, by today's standards it makes more noise than a dump truck, but still works. I don't use it anymore as my guess is you need to run it on leaded gas.

Art

[Iron Pounder]

We bought the batteries from a place that just sells batteries and they are blems (which mean a sticker or something that is no big deal is gone or torn). I think it was just over 100 for the pair out the door. I think that might have been a 20% discount over walk in without an account though. They work good for us and are multi function ( camping). I see a ton of the little Honda gen and some type of knock off which seems to be as quite and I would guess a bunch less money.

Without a generator we get to set up in areas they wouldn't allow us to set up if we used one so might look into that.