Electricity Generator(s): advice & help selecting

I assume it runs off diesel? Where do you keep it when in use?
 
StrongTurd said:
I work from home and Escom's load shedding was REALLY getting me down. Problem is, generators cost a lot of money (or so I thought). Just out of curiosity I went to a shop yesterday to see what they had. I ended up buying a little 750 Watt generator. This thing is very small - about 30cm cubed. It cost me a whopping R700. (I bought in from Wikkies Pompe in Pretoria).

I took it home, fired it up and plugged in my desktop PC (Pentium D 805, 1.5 TB HDDs, Radeon X1950 Pro, 19 inch LCD). It worked like a charm. I then tried to see what else I could drive off it. I plugged in my dual 1 meter tube fluerescent desktop lights. No problem. Next came my ADSL router and cell phone charger. All worked fine. I let it run like that for a couple of hours just to make sure that all was well. I even fired up Stalker to see if 100% CPU load would overload the generator. Not so. My problems are solved.

All I need to do next time Escom stuffs up is to roll out the lead, fire up the little gen and plug in my power strip. My PC has got a UPS (about 5 minutes) so I don't even have to reboot.
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Is the UPS genny compatible?

Sounds good - haven't had any loadshedding at home ... yet ... but will look at that if it comes down to that.
 
Nope. It runs off 93 unleaded mixed with some 2 stroke oil. It is really not very noisy at all. I just put it outside my back door. I honestly cannot hear it from inside my study. I'm sure my neighbours can't even hear it. For comparison, it is far less noisy than a lawn mower.
 
I think I probably have the same generator - had it well over a year now and its great. :D
 
Great news - post the specs of the genny and UPS up so others can benefit from it. :D

Oh, does the genny start easily? I don't want a thing which you'll have to pull a million times before it starts...
 
I heard it is not too good to run a PC direct from a genny, always run it through a UPS to clean the power first.

True?
 
The_Librarian said:
Great news - post the specs of the genny and UPS up so others can benefit from it. :D

Oh, does the genny start easily? I don't want a thing which you'll have to pull a million times before it starts...
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It is called a Red Rhino GC950DC although I think it is basically a no-name brand Chinese unit because the name does not appear on the manual at all. Wikkie's Pompe (Google it) still has a lot of them left but the sales guy told me that they are moving very fast.

Here's the basic specs according to the manual:

Continuous AC output: 650 Watt
Max AC output: 720 Watt
Type: 2-stroke, reed valve, forced air-cooled, single cylinder
Fuel: Unleaded gasoline
Lubrication: 50:1 pre-mixed fuel
Fuel tank: 4.2 liters
Displacement: 63cc
Continuous run time: 5.8 hours
Weight: 18.5 kilos

It took about ten pulls on the very first time I started it. This is probably because the fuel supply was not primed yet. After that it starts on the first pull every time. BTW you don't need to use the choke as specified by the manual. I think our climate is too warm for that and it only causes the motor to flood. Simply open the fuel tap, switch it on and pull once. There you go.

The UPS is likewise a no-name unit because I can't find anything about it on the web. It simply reads "UPS Direct 1000VA". It has given me about two years of trouble-free service thus far.
 
James said:
I heard it is not too good to run a PC direct from a genny, always run it through a UPS to clean the power first.

True?
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Dunno. My logic says so. A UPS is supposed to filter spikes and dips out of the supply current so I think it is a good idea to run a UPS.
 
The_Librarian said:
Is the UPS genny compatible?

Sounds good - haven't had any loadshedding at home ... yet ... but will look at that if it comes down to that.
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And we have 2 hours of loadshedding at home Each day...Not "fair" now is it? :rolleyes:

cyberarmy said:
Surge protector should also filter spikes?
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A Surge protector is designed to protect you from voltage spikes yes. A UPS does about the same - some protect you from other gremlins things as well...if you have the $$$ to spend.
 
Dude be very careful when handling generators, the fumes generated by generators can KILL people, I heard on Talk FM that people should be careful using them.

btw great price damn, i should look into that too.

cheers.
 
Solar Panels/Generators Advice

Considering our eskom woes and the mass amounts of people who come here for advice, perhaps it would be useful to have a sticky thread were we can post information, buying guides, experiences, etc on solutions like solar panels and generators rather than have the same questions keep popping up over and over again?
 
cyberarmy said:
Surge protector should also filter spikes?
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Nope, it'll only filter serious surges, not normal fluctuations.

btw there is new legislation coming out about genny usage. Haven't heard anything via official channels, but its coming...soon.
 
HavocXphere said:
btw there is new legislation coming out about genny usage. Haven't heard anything via official channels, but its coming...soon.
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Why don't they fix their electricity network instead of dumping more and more laws on us. Idiots!
 
generators

i just bought a Generator cause i cannot take this power rubbish anymore


does anyone here know what i cannot run?

can i run my pc plus my tv plus dstv on 4500a Generator
 
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