Portable generator and wattage recomendation

B

BlackTip

Active member
I am shopping for a portable power generator. It will be used for the tank only. It will be stored in the garage and moved outside when operated.

I have two dedicated circuits:

Circuit #1 (has all the essentials)
one return pump
one gyre
one heater 800w
one light
one skimmer
one ATO pump
one doser
recator pump (gfo/carbon)

Circuit #2
One return pump
one heater 800w
one light
UV pump
UV lamp
fuge light
circulation fan



From MyApex, I have a peak of 12 amps on 2 power bars. One heater doesn't kick in at all. I am thinking, if I have power outage and the HVAC is not working, the second heater will kick in and brings the total amperage higher.

How big of a generator I need to buy?
Any recommendation on brands?

I am considering 1700W and 2500W by PowerBoss.

http://www.powerboss-equipment.com/...tails.cfm?id=1c66046f2928440d2df95b02a27538d7

http://www.powerboss-equipment.com/...tails.cfm?id=6d8cf6e0f96075c2062942c1525807c1
 
both would theoretically work. I would suggest getting a minimum of 3500 running watts generator. You are always going to want to plug in more than the tank when the power is out. Plus most generators run much more efficiently when only at a half load versus an almost full load.
 
Bigger is better, of course. But, the reasons I don't want large one is storage space and weight. I am really tight on garage space, and I am worried about the weight. The 2500W is more than 100lbs. It is not a problem for me, but I am considering when I am away and someone is looking after my tank. I want the procedure to be easy and painless.
 
A lot of the larger gennies come on wheels or you can buy a wheel kit for them. You also want one that has a built in invertor so that the power is smooth and not all over the place which is bad for electronics. Finally if you are worried about someone else needing to start it get one with electric start.
 
Honda simply can't be beat for quality, simplicity and reliability. They always seem to start even after less than perfect maintenance & a long time in storage. You would want an inverted generator or your DC pumps, LED fixture & Alex could be at risk.

You didn't list the wattages for all of your equipment, but 1700w won't be enough if both heaters are needed. You don't mention where you live & what type of ambient room temperature is possible in a worse case scenario.

Even a 2500w could be cutting it close if you had the lights on plus a few other things. A tank sitter may need to be trained in what non critical items might need to be shut off during use of the genset. I'd go 3000w just for the extra capacity and the ability to possibly run some other things like a refrigerator, TV, etc.
 
Reef Frog said:
Honda simply can't be beat for quality, simplicity and reliability.
Click to expand...

Add Yamaha to that list as they are both on equal footing and the only generators you will see at most race tracks and such. They work flawlessly, take a beating, and sip fuel. I know for me and my race partners we have a mix and your couldn't tell a difference and we have put our machines through hell. One even fell off a trailer at about 80 down a highway and with some duct tape was working that night at the track...

I have a larger rigid brand for my house but ONLY bought it because it was made by Yamaha with a Yamaha engine in it then slapped with a rigid sticker on it and sent out the door. My smaller race genny is a honda though simply since I got a great deal on a used one.
 
I got a 3100W Champion with built in inverter after we lost power for 48hrs and I decided I didn't want to go through that again. It was pretty cheap at Cabelas and got good reviews. Reading your thread I just realized it's probably been almost 6 months since I started it and I just went out and started it on the first pull.
 
You folks with the "discount" gensets: You can't go by the nameplate rating, by a longshot. You can get a rough idea by the engine horsepower, but only rough.

1 Horsepower = 745.7 Watts

So if you take that 1 horsepower output from the motor and dump it into the generator shaft, the generator puts out something less than 745.7 Watts due to mechanical and electromechanical losses.

The discount Asian units may be as low as 50% efficient, the more expensive high end units may be north of 80% efficient.

Lets do some math:

5 Horsepower engine = 3728.5 Watts
Output between ~1865 - 3170 Watts.

10 Horsepower engine 7457 Watts
Output between ~3300 - 6350 Watts

Some of the vendors of the Asian stuff are actually fairly honest. The champion, harbor freight and some others have nameplate ratings that are believable. That said, you really need to be careful when buying a generator.

Honda engines are very reliable. The Asian knock-offs... hit or miss. I (personally) would avoid the Briggs/Tecumseh, etc.

A Honda engine on a cheap genset is better than a knock-off on a cheap genset.

The Honda branded generators are top notch, but VERY expensive. If you ARE NOT mechanical and expect to get a fair amount of use out of your genset, then buy the Honda. On the other hand, if you don't mind working on small engines or don't expect much use, then get the cheaper stuff.

If it does not get regular use, then you MUST drain the fuel and clean out the carb, otherwise it WILL get gummed up/varnished sitting for extended periods. Fuel additive only goes so far.
 
That one's 80kw. Gave my old 75kw to the fire hall across the street. The old ones can be had for a song. Parts are getting hard to find.
 
Misled said:
That one's 80kw. Gave my old 75kw to the fire hall across the street. The old ones can be had for a song. Parts are getting hard to find.
Click to expand...

I was looking at the same basic models, 20kW and 30kW (pulls from Verizon). Around 3K. Add a 200A service rated transfer switch for 1K, site prep and plumbing, and the 5K investment caused a stinkeye from the warden. Yet, she is okay with 2K for an air cooled 8kW genercrap that I refuse to buy.
 
My three tanks (10g, 29g and 56g) have spent about 40 hours running off my Honda 3kw over the last month. That's three separate storms. It's also a whole bunch of extension cords!
 
BeanAnimal said:
I was looking at the same basic models, 20kW and 30kW (pulls from Verizon). Around 3K. Add a 200A service rated transfer switch for 1K, site prep and plumbing, and the 5K investment caused a stinkeye from the warden. Yet, she is okay with 2K for an air cooled 8kW genercrap that I refuse to buy.
Click to expand...

That's really not a bad deal. Some of the Verizon pulls should be converted for NG. The one on my roof is a Generac with a chevy 283 converted. It's a really nice machine.
 
Generac still builds nice standby and prime equipment over 20kW but their consumer air cooled stuff is marginal, at best. Sadly, the same holds true for almost all of the sub 20kW stuff anymore. In fact, most of it is the same stuff shoved into different tin.

In the meantime, I ordered one of those conversion kits for my HF special :) tri-fuel. Will let you know how it works.
 
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