Generators for your Reef?

[xmetalfan99]

lol in florida we dont have winter - summer is the hot time to by generators because of hurricane season...people steal them like cars down here.

lol

 

[mfinn]

Any idea which yamaha's?? I was looking around at Honda and yamaha but couldnt find anything under 700 bucks!

When I bought my yamaha 1000w gen. it was $200 cheaper than the same honda with the same specs.
That was 3 years ago and I bought it at Cabelas. ( with work safety cabela bucks).
When it is running on my patio with the door shut, it cannot be heard in my bedroom at night.

I just did a quick google seach and they are much higher now, but still seem to be cheaper than hondas.

 

[fsu1dolfan]

When I bought my yamaha 1000w gen. it was $200 cheaper than the same honda with the same specs.
That was 3 years ago and I bought it at Cabelas. ( with work safety cabela bucks).
When it is running on my patio with the door shut, it cannot be heard in my bedroom at night.

I just did a quick google seach and they are much higher now, but still seem to be cheaper than hondas.

I will just have to keep my eyes open to see if there are any good sales around here for something decent....so Harbor Freight i guess the concensus is thumbs down.

 

[dougers31]

If you ever need an emergency power source you can run to walmart and grab an inverter and deep cycle(should be pre-charged) battery for about 120 bucks... just not sure how well the inverters they have would work on tank equipment.

 

[mfinn]

I will just have to keep my eyes open to see if there are any good sales around here for something decent....so Harbor Freight i guess the concensus is thumbs down.

If I didn't have a generator now, and I knew the big one was coming and I was desparate, I would get the harbor freight one. But as a long term investment, no, I would not buy one from them.

 

[Akwarius]

If you ever need an emergency power source you can run to walmart and grab an inverter and deep cycle(should be pre-charged) battery for about 120 bucks... just not sure how well the inverters they have would work on tank equipment.

In a pinch, I've heard of people running a pump or two off of a car running just outside of their house. You'd need a decent power inverter and an extension cord. Not a good option for a prolonged outage, however.

 

[fsu1dolfan]

If I didn't have a generator now, and I knew the big one was coming and I was desparate, I would get the harbor freight one. But as a long term investment, no, I would not buy one from them.

Yeah i am definitely thinking more long term and actually i might look into something bigger to run a few additional items in the house...figure if i get one might as well get a decent one.

 

[mfinn]

Yeah i am definitely thinking more long term and actually i might look into something bigger to run a few additional items in the house...figure if i get one might as well get a decent one.

You should look at a honda or a yamaha. The one I have is pretty loud and I am getting a little embarrased every time I have to start it up.
Everytime I see a honda at someones house or see a rental at work, I have some serious envy

 

[fsu1dolfan]

You should look at a honda or a yamaha. The one I have is pretty loud and I am getting a little embarrased every time I have to start it up.
Everytime I see a honda at someones house or see a rental at work, I have some serious envy

What kind do you have?? Honda would definitely be my first choice.

 

[mfinn]

What kind do you have?? Honda would definitely be my first choice.

I have a 6500watt electric start Generac that is wired into my house with it's own box.
I also have a 1000watt Yamaha to run the tanks circulation pumps and heaters at night.

 

[CJO]

I'm not sure if my 6500 watt generator that I have, (that has been used several times over the years) produces a pure sine wave or not.
It's a Gererac which isn't the most expensive.
I don't know if I would trust the harbor freight one.
If your looking at a smaller one, checkout the yamaha's. They are just as quiet as the hondas, just a little cheaper.

Generac makes some very good generators. You could always look up the model to see if it outputs a pure sinewave. Another option would be to plug your return pump into it- if it chatters, it is not a pure sine wave, if it runs fine, it is. If it doesn't output a pure sine wave, you could always plug a nice UPS into it that does and run your equipment off of that.

CJ

 

[fsu1dolfan]

Generac makes some very good generators. You could always look up the model to see if it outputs a pure sinewave. Another option would be to plug your return pump into it- if it chatters, it is not a pure sine wave, if it runs fine, it is. If it doesn't output a pure sine wave, you could always plug a nice UPS into it that does and run your equipment off of that.

CJ

Nice just did a quick search and saw that they have a GP1800 for a $325...not too bad for 1800watts.

 

[cdness]

FYI I have the exact generator you posted in the original post. It IS loud but it does work fine. I rav a 300W heater, return pump, and skimmer off the generator and it felt like it was getting loaded. I don't know if I would run lights as the reef will be fine without them, but it will run your basic life support equipment. If you want to run the complete system, get a larger generator.

No chattering from the pumps with the Chicago generator from my experience. And I didn't replace the spark plug either.

 

[fsu1dolfan]

FYI I have the exact generator you posted in the original post. It IS loud but it does work fine. I rav a 300W heater, return pump, and skimmer off the generator and it felt like it was getting loaded. I don't know if I would run lights as the reef will be fine without them, but it will run your basic life support equipment. If you want to run the complete system, get a larger generator.

No chattering from the pumps with the Chicago generator from my experience. And I didn't replace the spark plug either.

CDness - Glad to see someone has this thing...was thinking no one did. How long have you owned it for??

 

[luisgo]

I live in Puerto Rico and we also have hurricanes and power outages. I have a APC SmartUPS 1000 that will run two Koralias and a small pump in my sump for 8 hours. After that I have a Honda 3000 generator which produces pure sine wave.

I have used inverters conncted to my car and some pumps like Koralias will have startup problems.

Yes Honda generators = big bucks but also Reef tanks = big bucks!!

I purchased both equipments used. At ebay with some patience you can find a sine wave UPS like mine for $100.

 

[fsu1dolfan]

I live in Puerto Rico and we also have hurricanes and power outages. I have a APC SmartUPS 1000 that will run two Koralias and a small pump in my sump for 8 hours. After that I have a Honda 3000 generator which produces pure sine wave.

I have used inverters conncted to my car and some pumps like Koralias will have startup problems.

Yes Honda generators = big bucks but also Reef tanks = big bucks!!

I purchased both equipments used. At ebay with some patience you can find a sine wave UPS like mine for $100.

Very true Luis - Just hoping for something a little cheaper that might only be used once or twice ever (crosses fingers for never). Waiting to see how long CDness has owned his.
UPS's are nice but i want something for longer.

 

[mfinn]

Generac makes some very good generators. You could always look up the model to see if it outputs a pure sinewave. Another option would be to plug your return pump into it- if it chatters, it is not a pure sine wave, if it runs fine, it is. If it doesn't output a pure sine wave, you could always plug a nice UPS into it that does and run your equipment off of that.

CJ

I've already run my whole tank on the Generac generator several times, TV, dvd players, hot water heater, pretty much most of the house.
The generator I have before ( old reclaimed rental) must not have been one that produces a pure sine wave, because I toasted a computer in the two days I was without power.

 

[mfinn]

Very true Luis - Just hoping for something a little cheaper that might only be used once or twice ever (crosses fingers for never). Waiting to see how long CDness has owned his.
UPS's are nice but i want something for longer.

The first time it doesn't work ( the cheap one) and you lose everything in a extended power outage, you'll hate yourself for going too cheap.
A good generator is like buying insurance. You pray that you never have to it, but if you do, it's there for you.