Need a Generator? We Can Help.

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Hey everyone! Stoked to be working with the Van Living Forum as a sponsor. Wherever you're at, hope you're doing well. We're American Camp Supply, a vendor of over a dozen different types of FIRMAN generators.

A big part of getting off the grid is making sure you have access to stable power, so we're here to help. We have a wide range of wattage options that can help get the power you need, whenever you need it.

Swing by americancampsupply.com and feel free to let us know if you have any questions!
 
Just curious....how many dBA are these rated at. My generator is way too loud for most settings like camp grounds and places where there are other people sleeping. It has a Tecumseh motor with a large muffler like you would find on a riding mower.
 
Just curious....how many dBA are these rated at. My generator is way too loud for most settings like camp grounds and places where there are other people sleeping. It has a Tecumseh motor with a large muffler like you would find on a riding mower.
We have options as low as 62dB, depending on how much power you need. Any idea what your fab rating currently is? Every 3 dB decrease halves the amount of sound.
 
No, I don't know exactly. Other than to say it's about as loud as my Grandad's old Troy Bilt garden tiller. Has basically the same motor. How far way should the sound be measured from ? Is there a standard for measuring sound abatement ?
 
No, I don't know exactly. Other than to say it's about as loud as my Grandad's old Troy Bilt garden tiller. Has basically the same motor. How far way should the sound be measured from ? Is there a standard for measuring sound abatement ?
This might be easiest so you can compare dB levels.
 

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Thanks, I'd give this old generator of mine a 110 dB as it is louder than my lawnmower. Still having the droing put put put on and on isn't healthy or welcome. I bought it used and the original owner may have reset the carb/governor to run at a higher rpm.

I may experiment with a better muffler system and even a box baffle to operate it in and see if I can get the noise down. Or just sell it this fall and get something more quiet. Thanks for posting that chart too.
 
I'm in Cali and hearing a lot of doom and gloom about gasoline (petrol) generators.

They aren't my favourite thing, but I sure didn't use my share of petrol during pre-retirement years and I only want what's mine.

I spent a gazillion bux on solar; what are my options for cheap, E-Z, and minimal inconvenience to the survivors? I just want to run a couple of Linux laptops, back up my files, and maybe leave a message in a bottle on a freedombox or something.

I've got room for about a gallon of gas and a generator the same size, but I have pets and pyrophobia. One careless spark and no more Cali.

But are these fears reasonable? What about thrift stores and estate sales? What about when I get to Texas and there isn't any money left and I look like a stupid hippie?

Can you help?

tia
 
Yeah everyone says how nice my generator looks and how it keeps me from looking like a stupid hippie.

:geek:
See what I mean? 🤣 I'm not the slightest bit scared, I just can't keep a straight face!
 
Well that was my bad....

Back to generator questions and answers.
Seriously talk to me as if I were five:

Minivan with no roof rack or cargo box (yet).

I have absolutely zero experience handling petrol or working on internal combustion engines.

Am I insane? It just seems as if it would make life so much easier, other than socially, that is.

< cringe >
 
Sovryn if you are in a minivan you probably have no need for a gasoline powered generator and you certainly (I would bet on this) dont have room for one.

Small gasoline fueled gensets are typically used to power some kind of camper or RV...and maybe the occasional power tool.

For the power you need for charging laptops, smartphones, etc, you might look at one of the portable power packs with a solar panel or two.

Jackery, Bluetti, Goal Zero, Rockpals, Anker, are a few of the more well-known brands, but there are several brands to choose from.
 
I have an old generator from 30 years ago. I only used it a few times at camp grounds during the winter when nobody was there. It is so loud I couldn't use it in town or around others which was my situation most of the time. I've walked by quiet generators in motorhomes and you could hardly hear them. They were in insulated box bays though so I don't know if it was the bays or better mufflers that kept them so quiet. Can't have a loud generator if you staying in a motorhome. I'm going to try and put a better muffler on my generator but I do want to get a smaller one half the size of the one I have now that cranks out the power.
 
As to a generator in a minivan. I carry a smaller generator in the 1,000 watt range in my Honda Element. It takes up most of the floorspace in front of my passenger seat. I mostly use it for running some power tools now and again. I have solar power for my fridge, house lighting, lap top etc. But if I needed it to it can run a 650 watt electric heater or a 500 watt, soft start AC. However you do need to remember that the higher the elevation the less power a generator can produce. So where I am camped now at close to 7,000 feet I have to change a carburetor jet out to make it run and even then it is still not going to let me run some of my tools that I can easily use it for in Quartzsite AZ. It is rated as a very quite generator but I do not run it at night or early in the morning if camped near other people as some people are light sleepers and can't help being that way.
 
Just wanted to add some info/opinion on the topic of small generators. Small/medium wattage generator/inverters are available that run off of propane. There are a lot of benefits to this type of unit over a gasoline powered unit if you start to think about it :)
 
Sovryn if you are in a minivan you probably have no need for a gasoline powered generator and you certainly (I would bet on this) dont have room for one.

Small gasoline fueled gensets are typically used to power some kind of camper or RV...and maybe the occasional power tool.

For the power you need for charging laptops, smartphones, etc, you might look at one of the portable power packs with a solar panel or two.

Jackery, Bluetti, Goal Zero, Rockpals, Anker, are a few of the more well-known brands, but there are several brands to choose from.
Generator is nice when your Solar is not enough to power your batteries or power station. Them you charge with generator. I have a WEN generator 2350 watt. Nice and quiet. Inexpensive.
 
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