costco honda generator

[George]

Unfortunately like most companies they are just a name that used to mean good period. They own and manufacture for example the junk ademco alarm equipment.

[jethro]

have no argument with your there, that is why the costco/honda is apparently a good engine/bad briggs&stratton electronics for the governor and I would not recommend it if you want steady voltage at any load using 240v connection

[Frank]

There was a calculate shipping thing there and to my zip code they say $87. I guess that could be reasonable if cheaper than off the shelf items.

Hope I never need another generator but if I do, I'd opt for something quieter.

[Stormin Mormon]

Please test it under a variety of situations, and let us know how it works for you.

[HeyBub]

I thought about that. If mine didn't sound like the hinges on the gates of Hell, I'd be able to hear all my neighbor's generators.

[Frank]

I gotta agree with that. OTOH mine is noisiest to me since it's closest ;)

[willshak]

Mine is loud too, and more so because it is on a walkway between the house and poolhouse, so it echoes between the walls. I have it positioned so that the muffler points towards the woods behind my house, so that it doesn't bother the neighbors as much, but when my generator is running, so are the neighbor's generators. I've thought of removing that box muffler and replacing it with a pipe and auto muffler pointing straight up. Maybe make a removable foam insulation board surround (3 sides), to keep the motor and generator noise down.

[Stormin Mormon]

They may list the dB rating in the literature. They may even accurtely report it. Wouldn't that be a surprise!

[Stormin Mormon]

I've thought of putting generator in a shed, with fiberglass insulation and a ceiling bathroom type fan. Run the exhaust outside. Eaves vents for fresh air coming in.

Or buy a quieter generator, next time.

[m II]

I beg to differ. I have the GTC (Gecko Trading Co) version of the six horsepower cold start Listeroid. It has the original seven bolt head and a chrome bore. An oil filter is also fitted.

No sand or burrs. I know, because I checked it all before firing it up. I even had the head off to make sure all was in order.

Pure simplicity in construction makes it easy to work on.

I purchased mine here:

I have no business interest or any financial ties with that company. I'm just a customer. I think the PowerAnand engine is the same design and probably are the manufacturers.

mike

[vaughn]

If you are reasonably handy, find yourself a good deal on an old Onan generator like they use in motor homes. They run at half the speed of portable generators and are much easier to make quiet. Further, most of them you find still have thousands of hours of reliable operation left in them.

Vaughn

[jethro]

anything on that gen they just put their name on it.

the maker of the Honeywell is NORTSHORE POWER SYSTEMS LLC, phone

414-332-2375

[Ulysses]

briggs&stratton

I actually have only a little experience with the B&S OHV engines and it has been favorable, but those of us who have tried to work on their old standard lawnmower type engines realize they are basically disposable. Short blocks are available for a reasonable amount of money for the vertical shaft models but none were available for a comparable horizonital shaft engine such as is found on their Pulse 1850 generator. So, basically, in my mind they have a reputation for making cheap, crappy engines. That doesn't mean that they don't make better engines now, but in my mind B&S means poor quaility so I don't even look at them.

I'm not surprised to hear that your Honda engine was overrated. I've had the same experience on a couple of their engines. Plus many generator manufacturers seem to underpower their units, probably so they can sell them for less. The maximum output they give apparently is possible under ideal conditions. I've had three (two are still running) generators in the 5000 watt range: one is powered by a Honda 9 HP, another is powered by a Tecumseh

10 HP, and the other one is powered by an 11 HP Chinese OHV engine. The Chinese have given us the little bit more power needed which can come in handy on a hot day at 3000' elevation. Without actually doing any scientific tests I would say the Honda is not quite 9 HP, the Tecumseh really does seem to be 10 HP, and the Chinese is the best suited of the three. I also have a Chinese 2000 watt generator and they put in a 5.5 HP engine and it easily keeps up with the loads. Theoretically 4.5 HP should be able to provide their surge rating of 2300 watts. I noticed that using a slightly bigger engine does not seem to increase fuel consumption, possibly because the engines are not having to work quite so hard.

I have two riding mowers and one has a B&S OHV 12.5 HP engine. The other has a Tecumseh twin cylinder 18 HP engine. The B&S seems to have more power even though the Tecumseh is rated much higher.

[Richard W.]

I pretty much agree with everything you say. Although did you know that the V2 Briggs engine is made Japan? It's seems all the larger Brigg's engines are made in Japan including their diesel engine. You shouldn't have had any trouble ordering a short block for a briggs generator. Also Tecumseh has went broke and you might want to find a new short block while you can. They say parts will be made for many years, but so far no one has picked up the engine lines. I read this on the generator forum on Smokestak. There is a seller on Ebay that has bought up a lot of stock. The seller goes by "small-engine-deals". He has had complete engines in the past.

I know people have made adapters for generator heads so that they can be used with a belt and pulley or direct coupled. I would like to try running one with a 6 hp diesel engine. This may be a way to use generators ends with the Tecumseh engines, since no one else make an engine with the proper taper to fit the gen heads. At least if they do I have never heard about it.

Richard W.

[Richard W.]

I have to agree with you there. I have seen Onans with less than 150 hours being sold from motor homes that are being scraped or the generators are upgraded to a larger unit.

Richard W.

[jethro]

..and they just confirmed, all parts come from India and China

[vaughn]

Caution. Many portable generators (and some that are not-so-portable) have only one bearing on the generator rotor. The other part of the rotor is supported by the engine crankshaft. It would take a machine shop to make an "adapter" to swap engines for most of those units.

Further; unless you engineered an adapter that incorporated a bearing, belt driving one of those generators would be impossible.

Vaughn

[wmbjkREMOVE]

As I'm sure you know, the modern, imported, OHV small engines are all starting to look *very* similar in quality. I have a 13hp clone of the popular Honda model and it's really nicely made. Time will tell if it's as good as it looks, but there's one thing I have no doubt about: most of Honda's rep for quality was based on the difference between them and their competitors' older models. Honda earned that reputation, but the resultant brand loyalty should be less now that their competitors have improved so much.

With either engine It takes the same amount of horsepower to do the job. All other things being equal, a bigger engine should use a little more fuel since there's more friction and waste with larger piston etc. But it seems that design can sometimes make up for that. For example, our car was offered with a 2.4L 4 cylinder, and a 3.5L 6 with

100 extra hp. Even though the 6 added some weight, it delivers slightly better highway mileage. Things like chain-driven cams and variable valve timing on both cams probably more than made up for the extra friction and weight. The following year they offered a redesigned 4, and now the same vehicle gets slightly better mileage with that, which indicates that the tech is probably now equal in the 2 current engines.

Wayne

[Bruce in alaska]

Just want to make a NOTE, Here.....

With all the interest in Gensets that this thread has generated, it would seem that a bit of Term Definition would be in order....

1. Prime Power Generator: A Generator that was designed and built to provide power 24/7/365, for its life, with periodic Maintainance being done at OEM prescribed intervals. Typically these turn 1800 Rpms OR Less and usually are bigger than 5 Kw, and can be as big as 5000 Kw. Design Lifetime is "Indefinant" with OEM Spec'd Periodic Rebuilds, usually in the 10-20K Hour range for Topends and 20-40k Hour IN-Frames.

1. Standby Power Generator: Similar to Prime Power Generator but rated to provide power 24/7 for anywhere from a few Hours, Days, or Weeks. Again with periodic Maintainance being done at the OEM prescribed intervals. Usually in the 5 Kw to 1000 Kw Range. Lifetime is "Indefinant" with OEM Spec'd Periodic Rebuilds, usually in the 10-20K Hour range for Topends and 20-40k Hour IN-Frames.

2. Contractor Grade Generator: These are much less robust than either of the two above, but the are designed to provide power for 18/6 for there operating life. Maybe 1800 Rpm, or 3600 Rpm, depending on their Design Lifetime, and usually are rebuild-able which can extend their useful life, out 3-5 times. Usually will have a Pressure Lubeoil system and LubeOil Filter. Design Lifetimes, with OEM Spec'd Maintainance, in the 10-20K Hour Range.

1. Consumer Grade Generator: These are typically what is found in Hardware Stores, and Discount Houses. Mostly 3600 Rpm Units, and Splash Lubed with No Oil Filter. Come is various quality Grades from "Superb", all the way down to "Cheap Junk, even when New of the Shelf" Design Lifetime, with OEM Periodic Maintainance, will vary from 500 Hours to maybe 10K Hours, for one of the "Superb" Grade Units. Most of these type units, are built in limited Factory Runs, with limited Parts availability, and this severely limits there rebuild-ability, due to lack of parts after just a few years.

From the discussions seen on this thread so far, we are not talking about either of the first two categories, and mostly about Consumer Grade Gensets.

If one REALLY wants a GOOD Genset, then it will cost a lot more than what Costco is charging, and basically the Old Adage, "You get what you pay for", applies here. I have had a couple of Prime Power Generators in the 20Kw Range, that were both in the 66K Hour Operational Range when they were replaced, and that only happened because they were 20 years old, and InFrame Parts were no longer available from the OEM in Japan. Replacement costs were in the $6K range, and if you figure in how many Contractor Grade Gensets one would have to buy to do the same job, they were cheap, at twice the price. I also have a Fairbanks/Morse 45B/3Kw that is over 60 years old, was last InFramed 5 years ago, and will not need another, in my lifetime... It runs a neighbors operation, 16/7/180 each summer, and turns at 1200 Rpm. I sold a Lister 12 Kw last summer, that came from a Mountaintop Telco Microwave Site, that had 120K Operational Hours on it, with InFrames every 40K Hours. It had just 120 Hours on it after the last InFrame, and the only reason they replaced it, was they added more load at the site, and had to put in a bigger Genset. It went to a neighbor for $1.5KUS....

[Ulysses]

Thanks for posting that Bruce. Basically what I'm saying is that I think some cheap, crappy generators are better than other cheap, crappy generators ;-) I would like to find something that would qualify as a Prime Power or Standby Power generator that would directly charge my 48 volt battery bank. Know of any? If I ever get my 6.5 HP engine to drive my Delco alternator satisfactorily and reliably I would be very interested in either driving it with a high quality engine, or replacing it with something else altogether providing it will hold up to a few hours of every day use.