[KYHAM] "gas" vs. diesel gen-sets (was BPL, Ham radio and the EOC)

[Larry Brown]

Tony and group,

  The short answer is......not very darn long!  To explain, a common 
air-cooled small engine under constant load/continous operation can use up 
to 1 ounce of oil an hour. Yep! That's almost a quart a day.  Based on that 
info oil should be checked every two to four hours  and changed every 25 
hours(per most manufacturers spec). Without hour meters it's difficult to 
gather hard facts but with proper maintenence a box-store genset should last 
600-1000 hours with the occaisional 24-72 hour constant operation.
   If anyone wants to donate a cheap genset for the cause I'd be happy to 
start one up and let it run till it dies for the sake of science!

Having said all that, the dealer I work for sells and services Honda gensets 
and inverters. Several of our contractor/builder customers have units that 
are 5+ years old and are routinely subject to 8 hours a day 5 days a week 
operation and still going strong. Of course a Honda 6.5KW will cost about 
$3000 compared to the "box-store" special that may run $799 or less.

My own genset is a 4KW Generac I got from a older ham that upgraded to a 
Honda with electric start. It's a 1986 model that was well cared for and 
other than being noisy as H&%L has served me fine. I'm guessing it's had 
around 450 hours of service,some of that in 24-48 hour stretches.

If asked to reccomend a genset, I'd say do your homework and answer a few 
basic questions.
1) how often will it be used
2)where will it get most use(home,field day,emergency ops etc.)
3)what load will it be under(a few lights,radios,deep freeze,fridge,big 
screen TV)
4)can I maintain it myself or depend on a dealer for service
5)do I have a safe storage area for fuel(enough for up to 72 hrs)
6)can I replenish fuel supplies easily(propane stores well longer,gas and 
diesel need to be rotated out to maintain fresh and viable stock. Gas needs 
to be used within 3 months of purchase,diesel about a year)

After you answer these questions,then start researching the different types 
of units(portable,stationary and mobile-trailer mounted). Talk with people 
and see what works for them. Check with state and local enities(maintence 
crews not politicos),fire depts,EM teams neighbors ,anyone that has used a 
genset a while and get their experiences. Find out where the service shops 
are and what they will and will not work on. That $399 special at Harbor 
Freight might sound like a deal but if you can't get repair 
parts........nuff said?

Lastly, no matter what you get,portable or stationary. $299 special or 
$15000 whole house unit. Unless you start and run it at least once a 
month,keep the fuel fresh and do regular maintenence,when another Ike rides 
through the Ohio valley,an ice storm takes the powerlines down or you just 
need a saw and drill on the back forty,good luck! Chances are pretty good 
that neglected genset won't hit a lick!

Sorry for the ramblin folks,just wanted to be sure I hit all the high 
ground!
73!
Larry

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "A. W." <ky4sp at yahoo.com>
To: "Kyham" <kyham at mailman.qth.net>; "Larry Brown" <larryb13 at iglou.com>
Sent: Saturday, October 11, 2008 10:42 PM
Subject: Re: [KYHAM] "gas" vs. diesel gen-sets (was BPL, Ham radio and the 
EOC)


> Larry,
>
> You might be in a position to give us some idea of how many hours of 
> service a typical 3600rpm "lawn mower engine" generator is good for. I'm 
> sure you have quite pile of them waiting right now, with problems ranging 
> from stopped up carbs to having been run dry of oil.
> How long will one of those hold up running on a near continuous basis? 
> Let's assume for the purpose of my question that the operator would check 
> the oil about every 24 hours, use conventional type oil and change said 
> oil at the suggested interval.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Tony KY4SP
>
>
>
>
>
>
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