Small Standby Generator cost

[jim779]

Just wondering if anyone had a small (roughly 10KW or less) standby generator installed what the total cost of the generator plus installation was?

Thanks

Jim

[CloudNine33]

I have a Honda 7,000 fuel injected, electric start generator which is fantastic and with no carburetor to worry about gumming up. Had the house wired with a separate panel for everything important and the Honda powers the whole house other than the hot tub, oven and clothes dryer.

Cost was about 1/3 of a Generac automatic system and annual maintenance cost about 1/10. Obviously the big downside is I need to be home to wheel it outside and turn it on. We live in an area with very few power outages, I’ve hooked it up once so far and only for an hour.

[jim779]

Thank you CloudNine33

I'm probably going to go with a small portable generator and a power inlet with an interlock kit. Nut I would like to know how much a small standyby would cost.

I have had problems with so many lawnmower carbs getting gummed up over the years. I never really thought about fuel injection for a generator. I was looking at running on propane or natural gas.

Jim

[MathWizard]

Thank you CloudNine33

I'm probably going to go with a small portable generator and a power inlet with an interlock kit. Nut I would like to know how much a small standyby would cost.

I have had problems with so many lawnmower carbs getting gummed up over the years. I never really thought about fuel injection for a generator. I was looking at running on propane or natural gas.

Jim

$600 gets you what I have:
Electric start, dual fuel gas or propane, 3500 running watts, 4375 surge watts, 120V only. It does have a 30amp RV outlet.

https://www.amazon.com/Champion-Power-E ... 07BYBKB7G/
This is loud though.

An inverter version is quieter , but more expensive.

For around $1300, you can move up to 9200W running and both 120V and 240V.

https://www.amazon.com/Champion-Power-E ... 151&sr=8-9

Going with the inverter version pushes you up above $1700.

The inverter versions are quieter and more fuel efficient.

When using propane, the power is about 10% less, and running time is less when using a 20 lb tank from a grill vs the gas tank.

[Walobolo]

I also went with a Champion duel fuel setup. It was an enclosed inverter type on sale last Aug for $469.

Power outages are rare for us. Our stove, furnace and water heater run on natural gas and require very little electricity to run. The only other things I have on the backup circuit is a refrigerator and chest freezer but the chest freezer would not need to be powered 24/7.

The big issue with portable generators is fuel storage. The last 2 times we had widespread power outages the gas stations in our area were also closed. The ones that had power had long lines and ran out of gas quickly.

The bigger the generator the more fuel you need to store. On a 3500 watt generator 5 gallons of gas will probably last about 14-16 hours depending on load. The goal for my setup was to have 48 hours of backup power which would require about 20 gallons of fuel.

The duel fuel setup lets you run on propane tanks. I purchases 3 spare propane tanks plus we have the one that gets used with our grill so was always have at least 3 full tanks ready to go. 1 tank will run our generator for about 20 hours depending on the load. (I bought the tanks from a big box store but when you have them filled take them to a place that fills like Costco and does not do exchanges, the big box stores like Home Depot only fill the tanks about 80% full)

Keeping pump gas or more specifically ethanol out of the generator and only using propane make storage and maintenance simple. The generator is also small and light enough that I can easily store and move it. I also appreciate how quiet it is as this replaced a 20 year old open frame generator that was obnoxiously loud.

Got quotes for a full house generator. 2 quotes both came in around $14,000. With this setup I am all in for $1050 and I can take the generator with me in the event we move.

[windaar]

The big issue with portable generators is fuel storage. The last 2 times we had widespread power outages the gas stations in our area were also closed. The ones that had power had long lines and ran out of gas quickly.

You also need to be handy with small engine maintenance. You can't just have this under a tarp in your shed and assume it will fire up and run properly when you need it. Think of that weed whacker or leaf blower that just won't start after a long time unused. And the fuel issue goes beyond storage, which to me leads to some safety concerns. Even Sta-bil treated gas only lasts 2 years at most. You're going to have to be willing to change out the gas at least annually, pouring it into your car or whatever and then getting fresh. Theft is an issue as well; if that thing is running in the driveway at night attracting attention during a prolonged outage, be prepared to have someone take it.

[Broken Man 1999]

I have a tri-fuel 8750 watt Honda engine unit, set up for propane. Where we stage the generator is a gas head from a 200 gallon propane tank. The tank also used to feed our grill on the deck we recently removed, and our fireplace logs.

I paid $1,500 for it in June 2013.

The connection to the gas head is a quick connect hose, and the output of the generator is to a electrical socket thru the garage wall to a transfer panel inside the garage.

Three things I would recommend:
1. Natural gas or propane eliminates storage issues that come with gasoline.
2. For safety of all, use a transfer panel to dummy-proof your switching to generator power.
3. If you don't buy a generator with electric start, get one with a Honda engine. Your back will thank you!

Broken Man 1999

[Sandtrap]

I have a Honda 7,000 fuel injected, electric start generator which is fantastic and with no carburetor to worry about gumming up. Had the house wired with a separate panel for everything important and the Honda powers the whole house other than the hot tub, oven and clothes dryer.

Cost was about 1/3 of a Generac automatic system and annual maintenance cost about 1/10. Obviously the big downside is I need to be home to wheel it outside and turn it on. We live in an area with very few power outages, I’ve hooked it up once so far and only for an hour.

my son has this system as well
the largest honda portable inverter generator is ultra quiet and starts up quickly.
Around
5k generator
4-500 bypass transfer panel
800 electrician

j

[lazydavid]

Theft is an issue as well; if that thing is running in the driveway at night attracting attention during a prolonged outage, be prepared to have someone take it.

This is part of the reason mine is in our fenced backyard in a horizontal shed that I modified into a generator shed. I cut 20x20" holes in both ends, installed residential return vents over each, and hung a 20" box fan off the one on the right side. It draws fresh air in from the left side to feed the generator, and blows the exhaust out the right side. I drilled another hole in the side and installed a waterproof in use box over it for the cable to run out. That way the generator can run happily inside, protected from the elements and from theft by a sturdy lock. No it's not perfect, but it should be good enough. It also cuts down the obnoxious noise by quite a bit.

My all-in cost was a bit less than $2k. That includes the generator, shed, parts to modify it, cable, inlet box, lockout, and electrical work. At some point I'll probably replace the cheap open-frame generator (similar to this one) with a nice dual-fuel inverter generator to reduce the noise further and make cleaner power. If I were to do this all over again starting with the Inverter generator, my total cost would be around $3500.

[guitarguy]

Well timed thread, as I was just about to post a new one something titled "get me out of generator research hell" or something of the like!

We currently have an old Honda 3000w standard gas generator. Has gotten us through a couple of outages, but won't run our current fridge. Plenty of wattage...but the fridge makes weird pulsing noises on there so my guess is the power isn't super clean out of this (probably) 20 year old beast. Our garage fridge works fine however...

Anyhow...this has me shopping for an inverter generator...maybe slightly larger wattage. I'm not interested in a 10kW unit to power the microwave coffee maker toaster and AC and all kinds of wattage heavy stuff.

We will need to run:
- fridge x2
- wifi, tv, a few LED lamps, phone chargers, laptop, etc
- sump pump
- gas boiler (in winter, just a small pump and valves...low wattage) or a few fans (in summer)

Not sure if I'm missing anything major off hand, but we have all gas appliances (except washer) and we don't mind some inconvenience for a bit with not having everything up and running.

I'm considering a champion or a westinghouse inverter generator, roughly 3500 running watts on propane, and a separate 40lb propane tank (plus the 2-3 that I have laying around for grill and smoker, etc). I will buy a 25 ft 30A breakout cord to run into the house, and branch off ext cords from there.

I'm leaning champion as the open frame model (we have a big lot and don't care a ton about noise) is a few hundred less than the westinghouse, and from googling, westinghouse gets crappy customer service reviews whereas chamption gets a high nod.

Am I missing anything here?

* I realize this isn't a super pricey Honda or automatic Generac setup...not interested in spending the $$$ for a totally ideal system. We don't lose power often, and don't mind a little inconvenience for a few days.

[pshonore]

About 20 years ago, I bought a 5000 watt Coleman gas generator. We had just had central AC installed and I had the electrician install a 10 position transfer switch at the same time. We have a 220v well pump so that that took two positions. We also hooked up the oil burner (for heat and hot water) and several lighting circuits including refrig, etc. We did lose lose power for 6-7 days a couple of times but got through it easily. Propane would be nice but those tanks get very heavy, probably twice what 5 gallons of gasoline weighs. Tractor Supply sells LPG by the gallon by the way. Think I paid $450 for the generator, and $400 for the transfer switch and installation. This thread reminds me I should check and make sure it starts because we probably have another month of hurricane season in New England.

[lthenderson]

I don't have a generator but all my other electric start small engine machines (tiller/snowblower) that are only used seasonally, do have issues with maintaining the battery in order to be able to use the electric start as the years go by. Those small batteries that they use on those machines just don't seem to hold a charge like their bigger automotive brethren and don't seem to last as long. So I always have to throw on a battery charger a day before I fire them up in the spring/winter and then I'm usually good to go for the rest of the season. But it would be hard to do in a power outage. If you go the electric start route, I would verify it still has an old fashioned pull cord on it too.

[guitarguy]

I don't have a generator but all my other electric start small engine machines (tiller/snowblower) that are only used seasonally, do have issues with maintaining the battery in order to be able to use the electric start as the years go by. Those small batteries that they use on those machines just don't seem to hold a charge like their bigger automotive brethren and don't seem to last as long. So I always have to throw on a battery charger a day before I fire them up in the spring/winter and then I'm usually good to go for the rest of the season. But it would be hard to do in a power outage. If you go the electric start route, I would verify it still has an old fashioned pull cord on it too.

I leave a battery charger / maintainer on my riding mower all winter…maybe a battery maintainer for the generator battery as well?

But yes I agree the old fashioned start should be available as a backup!

[guitarguy]

About 20 years ago, I bought a 5000 watt Coleman gas generator. We had just had central AC installed and I had the electrician install a 10 position transfer switch at the same time. We have a 220v well pump so that that took two positions. We also hooked up the oil burner (for heat and hot water) and several lighting circuits including refrig, etc. We did lose lose power for 6-7 days a couple of times but got through it easily. Propane would be nice but those tanks get very heavy, probably twice what 5 gallons of gasoline weighs. Tractor Supply sells LPG by the gallon by the way. Think I paid $450 for the generator, and $400 for the transfer switch and installation. This thread reminds me I should check and make sure it starts because we probably have another month of hurricane season in New England.

Uhaul will refill propane tanks also. And you know the line there won’t be near as long as at the gas stations in a big storm…at least in our area.

I plan on hopefully using a 40 lb tank on wheels…I’ve seen them. They can lay horizontal or vertical too for easy storage.

[lazydavid]

I leave a battery charger / maintainer on my riding mower all winter…maybe a battery maintainer for the generator battery as well?

This is what I do. When I was having the electrician put in the power inlet on the house, I had him run a regular 120V circuit to the back of the yard next to where I put the generator shed. I pulled from that into an outlet box inside the shed, and plugged a battery maintainer into that. It is permanently connected to the generator battery via ring terminals. it fires up on the first press of the start button every time.

[ClaireB1000]

The big issue with portable generators is fuel storage. The last 2 times we had widespread power outages the gas stations in our area were also closed. The ones that had power had long lines and ran out of gas quickly.

You also need to be handy with small engine maintenance. You can't just have this under a tarp in your shed and assume it will fire up and run properly when you need it. Think of that weed whacker or leaf blower that just won't start after a long time unused. And the fuel issue goes beyond storage, which to me leads to some safety concerns. Even Sta-bil treated gas only lasts 2 years at most. You're going to have to be willing to change out the gas at least annually, pouring it into your car or whatever and then getting fresh. Theft is an issue as well; if that thing is running in the driveway at night attracting attention during a prolonged outage, be prepared to have someone take it.

We have always run the tank on the generator dry after use. Then get some fresh fuel when we fill up the cars when we know there’s likely to be some storms coming through. Main problem is the electric start up battery. Nice thing about having a “portable generator” is if it completely fails - we can go out and buy another. Plus of course it was much cheaper for us to do it this way.

[Jack FFR1846]

If you run your generator dry and leave it like that, you can run into the problem I ran into. The inside of the tank rusted a lot. So much so that before I realized it, I ran it and it completely blocked the filter. I solved this by replacing the tank with a plastic boat type tank.

Because power outages around me have tended to be very uncommon but once a decade occur and last a week, I have no special connection in the house. I re-wire the furnace and water heater to take an input from the generator and then run 2 refrigerators, the internet box, lights plugged into power strips, TV, computers around the house, access point. A Generac 5500 powers all of this easily and I've run it for a week. Just a matter of watching the gas level and topping off when needed. Because our cable/internet is FIOS fiber optic, it's never interrupted with local electrical outages. I bought this at Lowes for $700 during an outage. It's big and loud but we place it on the sidewalk and run the cable into the basement door. It's got 2 separate circuits and if we want, can even run 220V from another outlet on the unit.

If we were in New Hampshire, where outages are a common occurrence, we would have a more integrated system, probably automatic.

[pshonore]

If you run your generator dry and leave it like that, you can run into the problem I ran into. The inside of the tank rusted a lot. So much so that before I realized it, I ran it and it completely blocked the filter. I solved this by replacing the tank with a plastic boat type tank.

I been running Gravelys for probably 30 years. Most came with 12HP Kohler engine. They are so easy to work on - you can see the carb with a separate choke and a little inline fuel filter, some even have a fuel pump. They last forever. Then I made the mistake of buying a new Cub Cadet snow blower. Left gas in it over the season and now it won't start. Unfortunately to get to the carb and choke you have to disassemble the top of the engine which means there be lots of little screws and clips etc. that will get dropped and disappear forever. No choke cable - just a plastic button you press. So it will going to the shop in the next few weeks to get ready for winter. I think it has a plastic fuel tank so at least it doesn't rust.

[Point]

A few things to think about with a standby generator:
- location away from windows, shrubbery, combustible materials, inlet ports and vents to house
- spare fuel on hand with stabilizer, rotating fuel on regular to keep fresh, ie burning in vehicle and refilling cans with fuel and stabilizer (and safe transportation and storage (food cans)
- weekly operation to assure functionality and exercise
- grounding
- management of loads when using interlock kit vs transfer panel
- licensed electrician doing work
- proper cable between genset and panel
- weather conditions when using (no tents or burnable protective structures)
- placement above grade when running : snow, water…
- spare oil filters, air filters, wrenches, spark plugs, oil, oil change containers (know run time specs and required changes
- know continuous run time specs and oil check intervals

[physics911]

We have a DuraMax 10k dual-fuel at once place, and a Westinghouse 10k dual fuel at another place. I wired the interlock system myself, so only cost was material and the genny for each site. Both of these units are loud, but they get the job done, and I can run the whole house (mostly). Project Farm on YouTube has a couple great small generator comparison videos.

[Dude2]

Just got an interlock switch and outdoor box with 30A plug/breaker done by electrician, and the cost was around $750. I saw on YouTube (probably old) that I could have done it all myself for $50. Oh well, I don't regret paying for the expert. For less than $100 additional, I could have gone with a 50A plug/breaker, but I did not. You can get a generator with a 30A 240V plug for less than $1000. What will cost will be making it quieter. The $5k Honda (EU7000iS) that Sandtrap mentions in this and other threads is a wonderful system with something like 52-60 dB of audible noise. Many gens are in the 70 dB range. 10 dB more is 10 times more noise. 3 dB more is double that amount of noise. So, you get the picture on how noisy a default unit is going to be. Is that worth going from $1k to $5k? Probably not.

I went with a Champion 100519 6250-Watt Open Frame Inverter Generator. It is a bit loud (69 dB). Open Frame is louder. I got this one because I had heard much grumbling about CO sensors and how they are awful. A breeze will blow and come back into the sensor and kill the power. Don't need that, so I opted for a louder and more basic unit.

I have had another Champion that only has 120 V 30A output for years. I just start it up about once a quarter. I use ethanol-free gas. No issues.

[A440]

I have a 2000 watt Inverter from Harbor Freight. It was just over $500. I paid an electrician to install a 4 circuit manual transfer switch to cover things we need when the power goes out. I also use it with power tools from time to time.
For maintenance, I run it for 15-20 minutes ever 3 months and change the oil every season when I change the oil in the lawn mower.

[Attorngineer]

About a year ago, I spent $3700 total for a portable 9000W tri-fuel generator, interlock kit, 50-amp receptacle, 50-amp cable, electrician, and plumber to install an exterior gas outlet with shut-off valve and quick disconnect. Best money I ever spent. We recently lost power for 3.5 days, but this unit powered the entire house, including A/C, without a hiccup. I earned massive "good-husband" credits, saved about $12K compared to a Generac system, and later helped a couple neighbors with similar setups.

Pro-tip #1: I highly recommend going with a tri-fuel generator and running off of natural gas, if you have it, to avoid worrying about storing enough gas or propane to last through an extended outage or dealing with a gummed-up carburetor.

Pro-tip #2: I highly recommend purchasing a magnetic drain plug to catch oil shavings. Most portable generators don't even have oil filters to catch shavings. So, know and follow the oil change intervals.

Pro-tip #3: If you live in a hot climate, you should know that most portable generators aren't strong enough to run traditional 1-speed or multi-speed A/C compressors. That's because traditional A/C compressors, like all electric motors, require about 3 times the amount of power to kick-on (usually above 30 amps) than they require to run steady state. However, the newer generation of inverter-based A/Cs (continuously variable) don't require massive current at start-up (usually under 10 amps). So, you can get away with a much smaller generator if you have an inverter-based A/C. To ensure that whatever generator you're going to buy can start your A/C, you can measure starting and running current with a cheap, clamp-style amp-meter. Consult YouTube. If you don't have an inverter-based A/C, you can install a soft-start capacitor that slowly draws and stores power until the unit has enough juice to kick-on. Again, consult YouTube. However, keep in mind that those capacitors are not ultra-reliable. So, consider purchasing a back-up.