Generators are Tricky!

 So far I have owned about 3 generators of different sizes. I bought a Generac for 500 to 600 dollars about 7 years ago. But, when I went to Home Depot to buy one something like it made by DeWalt the same or similar thing cost about 900 dollars. It's enough to run a whole house if you want to and not just your refrigerator like smaller Gasoline powered Electrical Generators.It's really important to not overburden your generators with too much electrical draw at one time because that can get dangerous. Also, don't run your generator through existing walls in your house and only through one of those orange 100 foot cords or whatever length you need to actually make the whole thing work.

I usually pull out my refrigerator because it has sort of wheels that allow you to do this and then unplug it from the wall and into a surge protector plugged into my 100 foot orange cord. This way if I can get enough internet and Cable TV that will work too. But, if too large and area loses power this doesn't work because all the INternet and Cable TV boosters in your are will likely be down too. So, the only thing for sure you can run with your generator then is your refrigerator and lights. Otherwise if your generator is big enough you can also run Internet and Cable TV and other things.

However, you cannot plug in heaters or electric things. I'm not sure about plugging in a hot plate because that is sort of borderline in the draw it would take from your generator but you cannot plug in electric heaters into your generator generally speaking unless it is one of those trailer types of generators which start at about 5000 dollars or more.

I'm mostly writing here about generators that cost less than 1000 dollars (usually from around 200 to 1000 dollars. The closer you get to the 1000 dollar models the more likely it will run your whole house just not your refrigerator and a few electric lights.

So, anyway the last generator I bought was something like the Dewalt I just bought from Home Depot. However, I got it started (be sure to add oil because I almost didn't because there was some oil in the dipstick but just not enough. And if you put gasoline in make sure it is regular grade and not Premium because that is likely how I burnt out my Generac. That and you need to start your generator about once a month so it doesn't get all gummed up which is something I just learned today.

So, the 900 dollar Dewalt from Home Depot I was able to pull start it pretty quickly. But, it also comes with an electric starter. But, the battery is unconnected when you get it so there is a control panel where you can recharge the battery with a little "Trickle charger" like you use on motorcycles. IN fact, the battery and starter look a lot like a motorcycle battery and starter. Likely about the same thing. But, don't charge your battery for more than 48 hours or you will damage the battery and it might not work. This is likely because it doesn't have a shut off automatically like some motorcycle chargers do so you don't ruin your battery or ignition system with an over charged battery or other problems.

I was able to use this Dewalt and get it started by pull starting it with a handle and built in rope. However, the problem became something entirely different.

The problem was that I couldn't trace down the gasoline smell for about a week or two. Everyone in the household including a caregiver and a Janitor couldn't find the problem.

However, then when I moved it today so I wouldn't use it in the garage with the exhaust facing out the open garage door we decided to buy a plastic wood shed for around 300 dollars because of the gas smell and carbon monoxide smell too in the garage.

But, after I moved the generator under a tarp temporarily I saw in the rain the evidence of gasoline drips the way they sort of rainbow when they hit water on the pavement from the rain. Then I realized I had a drip of gas that was dropping from the bottom of the generator about once every 10 to 30 seconds. You wouldn't be able to find it because gasoline evaporates so fast but you sure could smell it for the last week or two.

So, I realized I needed to talk to my wife about what she wanted to do. Her point of view was return the Dewalt to Home Depot so we wound up doing this. However, they were completely out of generators and she met another gentleman who asked if our generator worked. She said "Yes. But, it has a gas leak. We were able to run it for about 6 hours one night but that was not enough to prevent losing about 200 to 400 dollars worth of food in the freezer section of our refrigerators.

So, I'm not sure what you will take from this article but probably the main thing I'm trying to convey here is:
CAVEAT EMPTOR

Which is Latin for: "Let the Buyer Beware!"