What Generator

[Stimpack]

I used a Generac https://www.homedepot.com/p/Generac-...6433/305099439 to run my entire house when the electric went out and never had a problem with electronics or anything. I always turned the gas off to let it run out of fuel and every time I cranked it, it cranked on the first pull. I never used fuel stabilizer, but it is recommended. That Gen was stolen from my home and I now live in a 2016 GD 337rls and are looking for a new Gen, preferably one that will run the entire RV mainly both AC's. I had good luck with the previous Gen, but it was loud and now live in a RV. I don't mind a loud Gen but soon to start traveling later this year or next and really do not want to offend the neighbors when doing so.

Dang, got long winded there and never to my original point.

Always run your Gen or any GAS running machine out of fuel to shut it off. No fuel is stored in the carb does not gum up. Always if stored for long periods to put some stabilizer in your tank before you run it out of gas to shut down.

[thamric]

If you're looking for good bang for your buck you may consider a Predator 3500W inverter generator from Harbor Freight. I know the mention of Harbor Freight makes some folks shutter but I own this unit and I'm very impressed with it. Bought it for $650 and its every bit as quiet as the Honda generators. My family owns 3 Honda 2,000W units and one Yamaha 3,000W unit. It's been a good unit so far.

Am leaning toward purchase of a Predator 3500 based mainly on Consumer Reports ratings. How has yours held up in the year since this was written? Would be interested to hear from anyone else who owns a Predator 3500.

Terry

[jasonl78]

Am leaning toward purchase of a Predator 3500 based mainly on Consumer Reports ratings. How has yours held up in the year since this was written? Would be interested to hear from anyone else who owns a Predator 3500.

Terry

I have 176 hours on the unit so far. Most have been from powering an ice fish house in below zero weather. It has performed absolutely flawlessly. I am super happy with the unit. I actually happened to see a guy at the fuel station the other day who was using it to power his semi-trailer. Not sure what he was powering but I asked him about it. He said he has over 700 hours on his and it's been a terrific unit. It replaced and Onan he had before. Met another guy a while back who wasn't happy with his Honda so he bought this instead and said he was also very happy with it. He hadn't owned it for very long but it did absolutely everything he could ask for. I don't know the whole story behind the Honda but he was a satisfied customer.

So many positive reviews about these units. Not taking away from any of the others but so far I am pleased with my choice.

[thamric]

I have 176 hours on the unit so far. Most have been from powering an ice fish house in below zero weather. It has performed absolutely flawlessly. I am super happy with the unit. I actually happened to see a guy at the fuel station the other day who was using it to power his semi-trailer. Not sure what he was powering but I asked him about it. He said he has over 700 hours on his and it's been a terrific unit. It replaced and Onan he had before. Met another guy a while back who wasn't happy with his Honda so he bought this instead and said he was also very happy with it. He hadn't owned it for very long but it did absolutely everything he could ask for. I don't know the whole story behind the Honda but he was a satisfied customer.

So many positive reviews about these units. Not taking away from any of the others but so far I am pleased with my choice.

Great info--I think I'm sold. Thanks.

Terry

[thamric]

I have 176 hours on the unit so far. Most have been from powering an ice fish house in below zero weather. It has performed absolutely flawlessly. I am super happy with the unit. I actually happened to see a guy at the fuel station the other day who was using it to power his semi-trailer. Not sure what he was powering but I asked him about it. He said he has over 700 hours on his and it's been a terrific unit. It replaced and Onan he had before. Met another guy a while back who wasn't happy with his Honda so he bought this instead and said he was also very happy with it. He hadn't owned it for very long but it did absolutely everything he could ask for. I don't know the whole story behind the Honda but he was a satisfied customer.

So many positive reviews about these units. Not taking away from any of the others but so far I am pleased with my choice.

One more question: Predator 3500 owner’s manual calls for a grounding wire, which isn’t included. The person answering on their tech line advised me to get one at Home Depot, but the folks at my local HD were baffled. Haven’t noticed these being mentioned in this forum or in YouTube videos I’ve watched. Was planning to run the generator from my truck bed. Do you use a grounding wire?

Thanks
Terry

[BabyBober]

One more question: Predator 3500 owner’s manual calls for a grounding wire, which isn’t included. The person answering on their tech line advised me to get one at Home Depot, but the folks at my local HD were baffled. Haven’t noticed these being mentioned in this forum or in YouTube videos I’ve watched. Was planning to run the generator from my truck bed. Do you use a grounding wire?

Thanks
Terry

https://generatorgrid.com/blog/grounding/ for your reading pleasure...
Technically,(if you follow electric code ) the generator "should" be grounded. Does it need to be? Well 98% of people do not. If something happens could your ground "float" and fry everything, sure. Is it likely to happen? probably not...

[JColeman]

I've recently made a switch. I had a very good Honda eu2000i and it has served me very well. But I wanted to be able to reliably run one of my a/c units and extend my boondocking season here in warm old AZ and that left me with two choices.

I looked into buying a Honda eu2200i to pair with mine but the cost of a new 2200 is over $800 at the best prices I could find.

Or, after looking around for a while, I purchased a Pulsar 4000 for $699 shipped. The Pulsar has a BT remote and is much more quiet than running two Hondas. It comes with a 30amp outlet to power my trailer and runs the a/c and microwave and TV at the same time without a hiccup. The downside is that it weighs ~100 lbs. I built a ramp out of (2) 2x8's and load it easily into my front compartment using them. I then sold my Honda for $650 and ended up being in the deal for $49.

I only have a few hours on the Pulsar but so far it has been bullet proof. I left it off with gas in it for about 5 weeks and it fired up with a single press of the remote. Will it last a bazillion hours? Doubt it. Will it last as long as I'm likely to want it (occasional use for 5-7 years)? Likely.

[gbkims]

One more question: Predator 3500 owner’s manual calls for a grounding wire, which isn’t included. The person answering on their tech line advised me to get one at Home Depot, but the folks at my local HD were baffled. Haven’t noticed these being mentioned in this forum or in YouTube videos I’ve watched. Was planning to run the generator from my truck bed. Do you use a grounding wire?

Thanks
Terry

Also:
https://www.osha.gov/OshDoc/data_Hur..._generator.pdf
and
http://noshockzone.org/generator-gro...utral-bonding/
"Mike Sokol says:
October 15, 2014 at 1:20 pm

Don’t confuse G-N bonding with actual earth grounding. Since a portable generator is isolated from the earth, you don’t need a ground rod driven into the dirt for a localized power system such as used to power the typical concession trailer or RV. However, you really DO want a G-N bond since that’s what allows the circuit breakers to trip in the event that a hot wire is shorted to the frame somehow. The basic rule of bonding is that there should be one ONE Ground-to-Neutral connection, and that should be external of the RV’s service panel. The RV or concession trailer itself must have NO G-N bond on its own. So an RV with an on-board generator will have the G-N bond established by the transfer switch. If you plug into a pedestal, that pedestal will include a G-N bond from back at the service entrance panel. However, when you plug into a portable generator, you need to provide a G-N bond somehow. There’s no rules as to when a generator has a G-N bond or not, but typically if it has a GFCI, then it DOES have a G-N bond. If it doesn’t have a GFCI, then it DOES NOT have a G-N bond. If it DOESN’T have a G-N bond, then you can simply add one with a ground plug as I’ve discussed above. If it DOES already have a G-N bond, then just plug it into your concession trailer and go. You can confirm the G-N bond using a simple 3-light outlet tester making sure the two yellow/amber lights are on, and not the red light. If you get an open ground indication, then you have an unbonded Neutral or broken ground wire somewhere in your power chain. Let me know if this answers your question."

[Cate&Rob]

You guys might be making this too complicated. Every source of electricity should have the neutral and safety ground bonded together at the source. The neutral and ground should never be bonded anywhere else. The purpose of the (safety) ground is to take the current back to the source if there is a break anywhere. Neutral and ground should not be bonded at power posts in a campground. This should only happen at the main panel where the secondary side of the transformer is the “source” of the electricity. Similarly, a generator is a source of electricity and the neutral and ground should be bonded at the generator. Driving a stake into the actual earth will have nothing to do with the functionality of your generator.

Rob

[thamric]

Also:
https://www.osha.gov/OshDoc/data_Hur..._generator.pdf
and
http://noshockzone.org/generator-gro...utral-bonding/
"Mike Sokol says:
October 15, 2014 at 1:20 pm

Don’t confuse G-N bonding with actual earth grounding. Since a portable generator is isolated from the earth, you don’t need a ground rod driven into the dirt for a localized power system such as used to power the typical concession trailer or RV. However, you really DO want a G-N bond since that’s what allows the circuit breakers to trip in the event that a hot wire is shorted to the frame somehow. The basic rule of bonding is that there should be one ONE Ground-to-Neutral connection, and that should be external of the RV’s service panel. The RV or concession trailer itself must have NO G-N bond on its own. So an RV with an on-board generator will have the G-N bond established by the transfer switch. If you plug into a pedestal, that pedestal will include a G-N bond from back at the service entrance panel. However, when you plug into a portable generator, you need to provide a G-N bond somehow. There’s no rules as to when a generator has a G-N bond or not, but typically if it has a GFCI, then it DOES have a G-N bond. If it doesn’t have a GFCI, then it DOES NOT have a G-N bond. If it DOESN’T have a G-N bond, then you can simply add one with a ground plug as I’ve discussed above. If it DOES already have a G-N bond, then just plug it into your concession trailer and go. You can confirm the G-N bond using a simple 3-light outlet tester making sure the two yellow/amber lights are on, and not the red light. If you get an open ground indication, then you have an unbonded Neutral or broken ground wire somewhere in your power chain. Let me know if this answers your question."

Thanks for the enlightenment—the links and Sokol quote were particularly helpful. Am afraid you guys are in electrical grad school while I struggle through the fifth grade. The Predator 3500 does have dedicated circuit breakers for each outlet, but my guess is that this is not the same principle as GFCI. Either way, my surge protector (Progressive Industries) indicated an “open ground” while the generator ran with no ground wire. This was alleviated by fashioning an “Edison plug” as described in the Sokol video. Thanks again for the time you took to explain a confusing subject.