Also consider a magnetic oil plug or a Fumoto quick drain:

https://www.amazon.com/Fumoto-F106N-M14-1-5-Threads-Nipple/dp/B003T7XUE4/ref=asc_df_B003T7XUE4/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=693070740367&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=10840115983745823729&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1016367&hvtargid=pla-382629196960&psc=1&mcid=c151cdf445733bef8d1d7766d460b811&gad_source=1

I installed this on mine to make it easier when you may be changing it more frequently. The placement of the drain is also super inconvenient and this helps not make a mess.

I have the champion 4500 inverter generator. I used it for this event and had both refrigerators with freezers running, two fans and tv and digital antenna. I was only using 20% capacity. I will get a portable air conditioner or window unit for the next event - plenty of capacity.

Cinco Ranch Aggie said:

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Quote:

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everyone should have a Honda 2000/2200 in their garage.

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I've been looking at the Honda inverter generators as well as cheaper units from Craftsman, Generac, and other off-brands.

I am definitely not interested in spending the money for a whole home Generac. I don't think we get enough events such as this to warrant that expenditure. Dad had one at his last house and never once utilized it, even with Ike and Rita coming through when he lived in that place.

So for a 2000 or 2200 or comparable wattage inverter, is that sufficient to power 2 refrigerator with freezer units, a stand-alone freezer, and a window unit? Or would I need to get two to link together to double the output?

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I was able to run a refrigerator, chest freezer, and 8,000 BTU AC on my Generac IQ3500. I decided to use this as an opportunity to clean out the outside freezer, so it has been off for a couple of days which has helped save a little fuel. Right now I'm running my in room AC and gas dryer along with a laptop and small lamp. I didn't think about it before now, but the ability to do laundry is nice. I'm not sure dropping 1KW would allow that. The Generac was also half the price of a comparable Honda.

Thanks.

I'm in an information-gathering stage currently, so every data point helps.

Rumor from the Facebook Generator group is that DuroMax is completely sold out of their 13kw tri-fuel generator.

Said the 2024 models won't be ready to go for another couple of weeks.

Improvements expected to be:

Fixed spark plug problem as all NGK now, switch issue and I believe a few other small items

Southside AG said:

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I have the champion 4500 inverter generator. I used it for this event and had both refrigerators with freezers running, two fans and tv and digital antenna. I was only using 20% capacity. I will get a portable air conditioner or window unit for the next event - plenty of capacity.

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How did you measure the capacity? I have the 7K inverter and the gauge only shows voltage (always around 240), F (Hertz around 60, time running and total hours.

Mine powered all that stuff plus the variable AC and lasted about 8-9 hours per tank of gas.

jh0400 said:

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Cinco Ranch Aggie said:

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Quote:

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everyone should have a Honda 2000/2200 in their garage.

---

I've been looking at the Honda inverter generators as well as cheaper units from Craftsman, Generac, and other off-brands.

I am definitely not interested in spending the money for a whole home Generac. I don't think we get enough events such as this to warrant that expenditure. Dad had one at his last house and never once utilized it, even with Ike and Rita coming through when he lived in that place.

So for a 2000 or 2200 or comparable wattage inverter, is that sufficient to power 2 refrigerator with freezer units, a stand-alone freezer, and a window unit? Or would I need to get two to link together to double the output?

---

I was able to run a refrigerator, chest freezer, and 8,000 BTU AC on my Generac IQ3500. I decided to use this as an opportunity to clean out the outside freezer, so it has been off for a couple of days which has helped save a little fuel. Right now I'm running my in room AC and gas dryer along with a laptop and small lamp. I didn't think about it before now, but the ability to do laundry is nice. I'm not sure dropping 1KW would allow that. The Generac was also half the price of a comparable Honda.

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My 7K Champion inverter was able to power the house w/ AC and I linked an Amazon deal a page or 2 back. Very pleased that I picked it up 2 weeks ago.

Any recommendations for how to correct these issues for the 2023 model?

The solvent did most of the work. Toothbrush just kept the sediment moving. By the way, I used gasoline but didn't want to kick off a thread sidetrack about fire hazard, blah, blah, blah.

ChemAg15 said:

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Any recommendations for how to correct these issues for the 2023 model?

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The spark plugs are easy. Buy these:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KMPBSFO/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The rest are probably more just fixing some of the small designs that maybe came unexpected loose.

Spark plugs are probably the biggest performance related fix though.

deweylittle said:

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The solvent did most of the work. Toothbrush just kept the sediment moving. By the way, I used gasoline but didn't want to kick off a thread sidetrack about fire hazard, blah, blah, blah.

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I'm going to pull mine out in a minute and check it. Got plenty of gas on hand too since I had that as a backup fuel should I have needed it.

My generator has a capacity gauge, it shows in increments of 20% all the way up to 100%.

On thing I'm not sure of, when using a generator and an interlock, does the generator need to be rounded to a grounding rod in the earth?

No. If you are connected to the panel and your wiring is still connected to your houses ground rod then you do not need a grounding rod attached to the generator. However, in this case you should float the neutral in the generator. It is easy to do.

YZ250 said:

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No. If you are connected to the panel and your wiring is still connected to your houses ground rod then you do not need a grounding rod attached to the generator. However, in this case you should float the neutral in the generator. It is easy to do.

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So what does "float" mean. I think generators come grounded to the generator? But it's on rubber feet and wheels.

Floating means that the neutral and ground are not connected. Bonded is when they are connected. In a system you only want the neutral and ground bonded once. Your main electrical panel is already bonded so that is why you need to float the neutral. It's all about safety. As long as your wiring is in good condition you won't notice a difference. But as soon as you have a short in a system that is bonded twice you can still be shocked.

If you connect things to the generator using extension cords then you wan the neutral bonded. The frame becomes the ground.

Finished my maintenance.

1. Changed the oil
2. Cleaned/inspected the air filter
3. Cleaned the spark arrestor (there was some decent dirt in the outtake and on the screen).
4. Trickle charging the battery.

Fired up on the first try on propane and sounded solid. The generator is set for nat gas, and so there were some mildly rough half seconds, but overall, great.

YZ250 said:

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Floating means that the neutral and ground are not connected. Bonded is when they are connected. In a system you only want the neutral and ground bonded once. Your main electrical panel is already bonded so that is why you need to float the neutral. It's all about safety. As long as your wiring is in good condition you won't notice a difference. But as soon as you have a short in a system that is bonded twice you can still be shocked.

If you connect things to the generator using extension cords then you wan the neutral bonded. The frame becomes the ground.

---

This is important, and most of the big duromax types are floating already. note if you ever wanted to use the generator on a construction site, etc. then it would no longer be safe as a floating genny.

Generac on Nat Gas ran a day and a half and died. Tried to restart and nada. It would catch and then caput.

1. Changed out the battery
2. Changed out the spark plugs
3. Topped off oil
4. Removed air filter (don't have a new one)

Started it and it ran for 3 minutes, sped up a bit and them died. Tried to crank. Sputtered a few times, nothing.

Spent an hour trying to get through the Generac and finally got Fardeep….errrr…."John" who took my info but wouldn't know a generator from a Red Rider Wagon.

Any ideas?

Ok I know nothing about generators. Honda 2200 could do what? Could it run a portable a/c for 1 room, and a garage freezer and or indoor full size fridge/freezer? Not at the same time. I would assume one major appliance at a time.

What about the off brands that are similar to the Honda at 1/2 price? Not sure I have room for a massive generator. Also seems weird for me to spend $1100 to save $500 food that has happened 1x in my life, but am open.

Just changed the oil on the predator 3500 inverter. Running strong. A couple of quirks. But it seems I've got it figured out knock on wood. It's super quiet which is nice. Not too heavy.

https://generatorbible.com/blog/bonded-to-floating-neutral/

TXTransplant said:

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BF got his whole house hooked up to his Duromax. Did the plumbing yesterday and the electrical today. He's not running the A/C yet because he wants to introduce that load and then gradually add more things little by little to see what his utilization is. He's also got some loose ends/details to polish up, but our redneck whole house generator is installed.

He's only been procrastinating since he bought the generator a year ago. It's amazing how motivating 5 days without power in this heat can be.

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Hard or soft start on the AC? What size is the unit?

TXTransplant said:

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BF got his whole house hooked up to his Duromax. Did the plumbing yesterday and the electrical today. He's not running the A/C yet because he wants to introduce that load and then gradually add more things little by little to see what his utilization is. He's also got some loose ends/details to polish up, but our redneck whole house generator is installed.

He's only been procrastinating since he bought the generator a year ago. It's amazing how motivating 5 days without power in this heat can be.

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You want to start the AC before adding anything as it's gonna have the highest starting surge. And get a soft start installed.

Tabasco said:

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Ok I know nothing about generators. Honda 2200 could do what? Could it run a portable a/c for 1 room, and a garage freezer and or indoor full size fridge/freezer? Not at the same time. I would assume one major appliance at a time.

What about the off brands that are similar to the Honda at 1/2 price? Not sure I have room for a massive generator. Also seems weird for me to spend $1100 to save $500 food that has happened 1x in my life, but am open.

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Generac 3500 inverter will run all three at once for $1,000 upfront. Fuel burn is 2.5 gallons for nine hours. I did a lot of research, and the Generac QPR beat Honda by a lot.

Tabasco said:

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Ok I know nothing about generators. Honda 2200 could do what? Could it run a portable a/c for 1 room, and a garage freezer and or indoor full size fridge/freezer? Not at the same time. I would assume one major appliance at a time.

What about the off brands that are similar to the Honda at 1/2 price? Not sure I have room for a massive generator. Also seems weird for me to spend $1100 to save $500 food that has happened 1x in my life, but am open.

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I looked at the 2200, biggest shortfall is the fuel consumption at full load, would only last 3 hours on a tank.

Tabasco said:

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Ok I know nothing about generators. Honda 2200 could do what? Could it run a portable a/c for 1 room, and a garage freezer and or indoor full size fridge/freezer? Not at the same time. I would assume one major appliance at a time.

What about the off brands that are similar to the Honda at 1/2 price? Not sure I have room for a massive generator. Also seems weird for me to spend $1100 to save $500 food that has happened 1x in my life, but am open.

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At night, I ran a LG Inverter Linear refrigerator, an LG regular refrigerator and a Black and Decker 8,000 btu portable air conditioner all at once on the Honda 2200i. I only got about 5 1/2 to 6 hours of run time, but it worked.

During the day, we alternated charging refrigerators (every couple of hours), powered our internet and WiFi (since AT&T 5G was out) and charged devices. We used battery-powered fans during the day, and battery-powered LED lanterns at night.

Later we consolidated everything into one fridge (and tossed leftovers and stuff we didn't need), so at night we added a fan in the room with the air conditioner and could charge a phone or device.

We were using a plain extension cord on one generator outlet and this on the other to allow more than one device to charge:

https://www.wattswire.com/products/ww-12t100y

TXTransplant said:

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BF got his whole house hooked up to his Duromax. Did the plumbing yesterday and the electrical today. He's not running the A/C yet because he wants to introduce that load and then gradually add more things little by little to see what his utilization is. He's also got some loose ends/details to polish up, but our redneck whole house generator is installed.

He's only been procrastinating since he bought the generator a year ago. It's amazing how motivating 5 days without power in this heat can be.

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You're a woman. You have ways to motivate him…seeing y'all have been together for at least a year, and I'm assuming you're not shooting for the white dress.

Not that he paid for it (because I would never let him), but he knows I'd rather have a generator than a dress, ring, or designer purse. And I think he's grateful for that.

I'm not a nagger, though. I saw my mom do that to my dad, and I know everything will get done in its own time. And I can procrastinate, too, when I don't want to do something (or think I don't have the time to focus on it).

I sure am glad I got my butt in gear and 1) ordered the generator and 2) filed the insurance claim on my roof (that was approved last week). I would have been SOL on both if I'd waited any longer!

I have the champion 4500 inverter. Cost $1000 and has been awesome. Runs on propane. At 20% load, one 20lb bottle lasts ~18-20 hours.

Actually, our Honda 2200i inverter generator runs 8 1/2 hours on one gallon of gas. While running a 6,000 window unit a/c and our kitchen frig. 24 hours a day. To that load I add our garage freezer for 2 hours in the morning and evening. And run the Mr Coffee before the freezer.
It's been consistently using 3 gallons of gas each 24 hours since Monday afternoon.

Have we inquired on preferred brands? Duromax, Westinghouse, firman, champion…. I'm looking at tri fuels so curious peoples experience.