subject: Purchasing Portable Generators: Tips You Might See [print this page] Purchasing Portable Generators: Tips You Might See
Why buy a portable generator?
Managing|Coping with electrical power outages is truly undoubtedly no easy thing. There may be a lot to complete everyday.
You wouldn't like electrical power outages to disrupt your plans, would youl? If however you own a portable generator, you may not need to care about electrical power outages, regardless of how frequent they are.
The portable generator makes it easy to continue life more or less as usual. All the lights, gadgets and appliances in your own home can continue working as usual.
Your refrigerator would keep running preventing food from going bad.
These generators are way more useful in running temporary hospitals set up to provide aid to victims of a natural disaster. They're equally beneficial in lighting a campsite or even a mobile home.
It is important for every home to possess a portable generator.
In many cases it can show to be a life saving device when you are living in a location that has stormy weather.
Purchasing a portable generator
Deciding upon a portable generator which is just right for your requirements is no easy task. To buy a model that is right for your needs, we should have a crystal clear idea of what your needs are.
When and where would you like to use it.
How long are you considering making use of it and what is the power output you expect from the portable generator.
Selecting the fuel for use in your portable generator
One decision you should make very early on will be deciding what on earth is the fuel your portable generator might be running on. While gas powered portable generators are generally the cheapest to operate in the long run, gas is just not very stable. It has a tendency to breakdown in the long haul.
In brief, the gas has got a short shelf life. Moreover being small they require frequent refillings.
Diesel run portable generators are definitely the most efficient but are generally more expensive. As compared to gas powered portable generators, diesel generators are much more tough and long-lasting.
Gasoline powered generators are a lot more popular. But they can be quite noisy.
The advantage with propane gas is huge amounts can be stored. Propane gas has the benefit of an extremely long shelf life.
Power output
Before buying the generator you will need to make an estimate of your power needs. There are two varieties of power needs that you will probably be dealing with here.
The difference between your peak power output of the generator, and the continuous power it is able to supply. Typically, when you start an appliance, it does take a lot more power - lot more compared to what it needs during operation. This is the peak power it requires.
The absolute maximum power produced by the generator must not be lower than the peak power. When the generator cannot deliver the peak power needs of all appliances, then you will be unable to operate the generator to power every one of them simultaneously.
You can get your total requirement by adding the wattage of all the appliances that you will be using.
Normally for a home the power requirement is around 5000 watts. It can vary a little depending on the number of appliances you will be using.
On the other hand, if you plan to be using your generator in a campsite or on a mobile home, the generator that supplies around 1000 watts should be sufficient. However for outdoor establishments like building sites or temporary hospitals the requirement could very well exceed 8000 watts.
Before you go ahead and buy a generator, you would want to have a crystal clear idea of what your power requirements are.
Safety tips
While running portable generators you are faced with two safety hazards.
The greater of the two is by far emission of carbon monoxide, a lethal gas which can neither be seen nor smelt.
Also, some portable generators can be very noisy.
To guard against carbon monoxide, ensure that the manufacturers also supply the battery operated carbon monoxide gas detectors. It is very important that you have these gas detectors installed is as many rooms as possible.
And of course, you'd need to install these detectors in your bedroom. Carbon monoxide is a gas that cannot be seen or smelt. And it is lethal.
Many portable generators are known to be very noisy. The noise levels often cross the allowed limits making them a nuisance in the neighborhood. To protect yourself against such eventualities have the generator run in your presence to check the noise level.
The latest generators called inverter generators are much less noisy. A lot of care has been taken by manufacturers to reduce the noise levels in these generators.
Don't let your generator run out of fuel
What is also important to know is the time taken between two fillings. You wouldn't want the generator to run out of fuel just when you need it to be working, would you?
Portability of the generator
Unless you can move your generator around easily, what's the point in having the portable generator? If you are going to be the only one moving the generator then you can't have too heavy a generator.
And some models are too heavy for a single person to handle. Also look for a compact generator that won't occupy too much space and can be stored comfortably when it is not being used.
