Posted on 04/25/2011 2:59:23 PM PDT by spacejunkie01
I need advice on the best backup generator to buy, particularly non gas run. I like solar but not sure who deals in them besides mysolarbackup.com and they're not cheap.
If I want to run my freezer/fridge for an extended period of time, what would be best?
Natural gas powered generator.
Solar will only run a light bulb.
guess I should read better sorry
Propane.
I would never rely on solar energy. The sun hasn’t shined here in a week. If you only need to run a refrigerator and freezer you only need a 2.5 or 3.5 kw generator. If you have natural gas use that. If you don’t get a propane tank. Gasoline will go bad and it has all that alcohol crap in it.
Bfl.
I have one of these and it works very well.
http://www.gepower.com/prod_serv/products/nuclear_energy/en/index.htm
And what if natural gas stops being delivered?
I know a guy whose grandfather dug a gas well on their land back in the early 1950’s for a couple hundred bucks. No enviro-impact statements, no EPA - just drilled the damn well. He is supplying gas to his own home and a few vacation cabins he owns on a nearby lake.
I told him I’m going to his place when SHTF. He joked and said - we’ll see if I let you in....
And, if you go with gas and don't want to be chained to public supply, be sure you know the compatibility of generator and fuel tanks.
(A friend is going through fits after reading fine print on what tanks her generator will deal with.)
Also, consider where you live and how quiet the gen has to be: quiet is costly.
There is a company that provides multi-fuel conversions for most generators but I don't know how well they work. Same company offers very expensive factory converted jobs.
Finally, wherever you live, if you go with gasoline be sure you know how long the stuff they sell in your market will store.
(I'm in SoCal & have to load up with Sta-Bil or something like it just to leave a car in the driveway for a week or so - that applies to carburettors far more than to fuel injection and your generator will have a carb.)
I run non-oxy gas in all my small engines. Doesn’t go bad.
If it is really backup, then propane.
Gas goes bad pretty quickly. Diesel also goes bad over a longer period but still goes bad.
Natural gas is dependent on the utilities to provide it. Debatable in a true emergency like an earthquake. Natural gas also has less energy per unit volume so generators generally produce less when compared to propane.
You can bury a large propane tank making it very robust, particularly in an emergency.
If the purpose is more than backup then diesel. Diesel engines are more reliable and last longer with less maintenance. If it is regularly used the diesel fuel will be consumed before it goes bad.
Propane is the way to go, but one BIG drawback is getting a propane truck out to your home if there is a lot of debris from a hurricane or tornado.
Gas powered generators are a lot like your lawn mover, you can't run your lawn mover 24/7 or you will burn it up and you need to change your oil in a generator every 24 hours if you run it a lot
That is extremely unlikely. Natural gas lines are subject to decay through water intrusion if unpressurized, so it would have to be a very extreme and long-lasting situation for the gas to be turned off. Moreover, if you want a generator to be working 24/7 for more than a day or so, there is no way you can store enough gasoline, diesel, or propane on site. Nor do you want to be managing that headache. NG is the way to go.
The generator has to be run every so often to keep it workinf properly and to recharge the battery that starts it. Don’t worry about the Diesel going bad you will be burning it off every so ofthen just startinf the generator to make sure it is working properly.
Generac propane 18kw - big tank ! Power has gone out for more than a week before during ice storms in NH
Saved Christmas Eve family gathering one year....
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