Aldi £59 petrol generator and television

[D. T. Green]

On just buying a 800 watt 'two' stroke petrol generator from Aldi, we have heard from someone who says that he has got one; and that his is running very roughly, and is really noisy.

Also it says in the instructions that it is *not* suitable for connecting to televisions or other sensitive electronic equipment.

Has anybody any experience with one of these very cheap generators ? (Only £59 ).

Also saying they are not suitable for sensitive electronic equipment; would that just be the manufacturers covering themselves? Would buying something like a *surge- protector* make it possible to use the generator with a portable television?

[Sylvia Else]

The generator probably has poor stability in both voltage and frequency. Equipment that's senstitive to those may indeed break.

Sylvia.

[Gareth Magennis]

Blimey, if even the manufacturer is telling you its crap, it must be REALLY crap.

No way I'd connect one to anything of mine.

Gareth.

[Martin Brown]

Likely it is not just acoustically noisy but electronically noisy too and the ignition system radio emissions will cause snow on a portable TV. It might be so rough and ready electrically either voltage or frequency wise that it could fail or wreck some old sets completely. I'd expect most modern switched mode PSUs to cope with almost anything but then you are taking a risk since the maker says it is unsuitable.

I suspect your problem will be mainly electrical interference. Charging up a battery to use with your TV would get around this and be quieter.

[N_Cook]

If I was using one I'd wire in permanently a baseload 100W mains bulb (assuming you are allowed to start up with a pre-existing load) . If the lamp flickers /wavers then no use with a TV but if a constant light output I'd try only a sacrificial old TV with an old set-top box , if the picture rolls from lack of frequency control then at least I tried.

[The Other Mike]

After looking at the subject I thought, we've had gas powered fridges, now a petrol powered telly...

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Sounds like you want it to use on a camp site, etc. You will not be popular.

[Owain]

Surely that depends on the choice of programme?

It might be extremely popular if it's showing the women's beach volleyball ;-)

Owain

[Jeff Liebermann]

All 2 stroke engines are noisy. 4 stroke engines are much quieter. Running "rough" could mean no regulation. This generator is a piece of junk.

That's because the voltage and frequency output is probably not regulated. Light bulbs, heaters, and resistive loads might survive. Anything electronic or that uses a motor, probably won't.

No experience. I don't need to stick my hand in the fire to know that it's hot.

Yep. Unsuitable for any purpose other than making lots of noise.

No. If the generator goes into over voltage, even for a few fractions of second, the MOV (metal oxide varistors) in the "surge protector" will explode, catch fire, and eventually blow a fuse. Surge protectors also don't do anything for changes in frequency.

Look into various "inverter generator" offerings. They're quiet, efficient, low RFI, and have a fairly clean and regulated output.

[Jeff Liebermann]

I don't think the program matters much if the viewers need a gas mask and ear plugs in order to watch the TV. Last time I checked, many small LCD TV's run nicely on 12V battery power. No need for generator. For example:

I guess going camping with a TV is ok, as long as one leaves the screaming kids, barking dogs, ATV's, motorcycles, and boom box at home.

I'm impressed that the question was cross posted to a repair newsgroup. That suggests that the generator or the TV will soon require some manner of repair. Planning ahead is a good thing.

[Arfa Daily]

I would have said the exact opposite of that. Linear supplies with a nice big chunk of L in the way, are pretty much unconcerned about such nasties as spikes, whereas switchers will fail if you just look at them wrongly on a day with a Y in it ...

However, that said, I would agree with everyone else that using this with modern electronic equipment would not be a good idea. OK to run a few lights (but not CFLs or electronically ballasted linear flourescents), and maybe power tools, which is probably what Aldi had in mind for it. I've actually found Aldi to be pretty honest in this respect. It's cheap, and they know it, hence the warnings.

Arfa

[The Natural Philosopher]

No. they just rectify teh peaks.

But iron transformers dont like odd waveforms.

Having said that, ive used a genny to power a laptop for watching TV on in a camper.

[Jules Richardson]

Although the bigger they are, the quieter they seem to be for their size.

[spamtrap1888]

Maybe. A power line surge proved to be too much for the surge protector my old Toshiba CRT TV was plugged into.

Could it be a private labelling of this Einhell generator? I found a polyglot owners manual for it.

[Steve Firth]

I've used one for the last 10 years. It's close to being dead now. It was used mostly for lighting and battery charging. If you connect an incandescent light to one you will notice that the light flickers, a lot. Also the engine will occasionally speed up or cut out with large surges in brightness and drastic changes in the AC frequency.

A lot of electronic equipment won't like this.

I also have a 5.5 kW inverter generator that puts out a rock steady 230V @

50 Hz. It's better than the mains where it is used. It cost 15x the price of the 800W generator, which BTW is likely to be 350VA not 800VA

The baby generator is OK. It does a passable job. I've used it with computers. The Apple PSU was OK with it, do was HP and Samsung but a Fujitsu PSU started to buzz and smoke.

A surge protector won't work and the two voltage stabilisers that I have kill the generator with their start up surge.

When it goes the failures will probably be the 13A socket which is really poor quality and ultimately corrosion of the exhaust. Use synthetic 2T at

50:1 and the engine seems good for heavy use over a long period.

[ffedroid]

heres an idea put an independent surge protector on it or frequency stabili zer

[Brian Gaff]

2012 eh, where did that post come from after several years maybe its knackered? Brian