Gear For Sale Sportsman gasoline-powered inverter portable generator 1000/800 watt for $170

Gr8ful said:

52 watt AC, 57 watt DC input according to video test in the ad.

Click to expand...

Thanks. I probably shouldn't have asked, since it's still Greek to me

You'll only use 52 off the 800 max watts the genset produces.

Gr8ful said:

You'll only use 52 off the 800 max watts the genset produces.

Click to expand...

Wow. Sounds like a good thing.

Actually it's slow charging not because of the genset but because it's a small power unit from Amazon.

Gr8ful said:

Actually it's slow charging not because of the genset but because it's a small power unit from Amazon.

Click to expand...

Them's fightin' words!

A better way for me to say has a small battery, that's why it's small, light & doesn't cost much.

I detest noisy stinky generators and avoid using one as much as possible. But there is always a balancing act between cost and need. I think this particular unit that is still within my budget will charge my power station and home batteries when the sun fails me. And that's the only time I will pull it out.

YT has review videos, if anyone is interested. I did install a hour meter to both it and my Honda.

Just letting people know the generator (in this thread) works fine and has been a big help. Thanks Gr8ful.

There were a couple times when I had no power on my trip to the coast. Not knowing what the generator could handle, I just used it to power my lights and recharge all my electronics.

My neighbor at the casino helped me get it started for the first time. He was a little disappointed to discover you have to remove a side panel to add and check the oil.

Also, there is a 20 hour break in period. The manual says to change the oil before it hits 20 hours. Do I really have to do that?

Anyway, I really like having it. It was cheap, usually starts easily and I can always charge my stuff.

I would as it "wears in" it may give off metal shaving and/or dust you want to get out of the engine for longer engine life.

Actually I would change it after an initial 20 minute run and see what comes out with the oil. If there is any thing in the oil I would refill with new oil, run it 6 hours, drain it and see if anything was still in the oil that shouldn’t be there and continue to repeat the cycle till the oil comes out clean. These generally have no filters and hold only a few ounces of oil so making sure you have gotten rid of anything that was left from the (cheap engine manufacturers seldom get them clean by rerunning them) manufacturing process is essential to the engine’s longevity.

I agree with Bullfrog. I'd filter the oil & if there's a steel spot on the bottom of the oil sump I'd put a strong magnet, maybe on the drain plug if it's steel. One last thing people may disagree with comes from owning & flying antique planes. Most had no way of attaching an oil filter so I ran non-detergent oil aka mineral oil with the thinking it's better for crud to attach to internal engine cases instead of always being in suspension flowing thru all engine parts do to high detergent oil. I realize this is a cheap investment but just my thoughts.

Gr8ful said:

I agree with Bullfrog. I'd filter the oil & if there's a steel spot on the bottom of the oil sump I'd put a strong magnet, maybe on the drain plug if it's steel. One last thing people may disagree with comes from owning & flying antique planes. Most had no way of attaching an oil filter so I ran non-detergent oil aka mineral oil with the thinking it's better for crud to attach to internal engine cases instead of always being in suspension flowing thru all engine parts do to high detergent oil. I realize this is a cheap investment but just my thoughts.

Click to expand...

I think I already have 8 hours on it. By the time I read the manual enough to figure out how to change the oil, I might be where they recommend anyway: just under 20 hours.

I forgot to mention that it uses a tiny amount of fuel. I forgot... something like 1/2 a gallon gives you 12 hours. I can look it up.

I've got 68 hours on mine. Liking it so far. There's a lot of tree cover here in the Midwest which makes using roof mounted solar panels problematic. Sometimes its just easier to fire up the generator, for a couple of hours, than trying to chase the sun though a break in the tree cover.

Frood said:

...a 2nd backup for emergencies.

Click to expand...

.
Wowza!
In addition to the Onan 2600LP we scored off a factory RecreateVehicle [the deluxe version with 'holding' tanks...] headed to the dismantlers for lack of registration/license, I just realized we have three back-ups:
1 -- the yuge alternator on our rig's big-boy Cummins 8.3
2 -- the photovoltaic array aloft
3 -- voluntary elimination of superfluous gadgets such as lights (we generally hit the sack around sundown).
.
An aside:
We read your '2nd' as 'tuned'.
Great name for a band -- Tuned Backup.

LoupGarou said:

...tree cover...makes using roof mounted solar... than trying to chase the sun though a break in the tree cover.

Click to expand...

.
Portable panels?
On warmer days, park the rig in the shade, park the portables in the sun?

LargeMarge said:

.
Portable panels?
On warmer days, park the rig in the shade, park the portables in the sun?

Click to expand...

I have a portable solar panel set. Sometimes I use both, it and the generator, at the same time. Often the tree cover is just too dense and I don't feel like chasing the sun with the portable solar panel set.

tx2sturgis said:

On the Tractor Supply webpage:

"High altitude use: this generator is not recommended for high altitude use above 3,000 ft"

Dang...leaves me out.

Click to expand...

There might be an optional jet for higher altitudes. I have two generators and both companies have jets available for high altitude use. In fact they sell a range of jets for various altitudes. It can take a bit of research to find the right literature for those part numbers and then figure out the steps to swap jets. For my Honda 1000 I carry a second jet for high altitude. It takes about 10 minutes to swap jets once you get used to doing that task. It is not technically difficult, just removing and replacing a few nuts, a hose end and a screw. Of course different makes will have easier or harder access to the carburetor than others.

But do remember even if you can get a high altitude jet to put into the carburetor that the power output on a generator decreases as the elevation increases. So a very small generator that is already marginal for your needs at low elevation might not meet your needs at higher elevation.

If it has a needle valve many have 3 spots to put the circlip depending on density altitude which changes by altitude, temp & humidity.