It would have been about year 2000, give or take a
year. We had a winter time power cut. A friend of
mine had water in the cellar. He could not stay
ahead of the water, with buckets. Carpet in the
cellar got wet. His brother was out of town, had a
generator in the garage, but it would not start. Old
gasoline. I gave it a spray of ether in the air intake,
and it fired right up, old gas and all. I can't afford
a Honda, but I do like them. My Dad had a Honda
for a while, and he really liked it.

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

"Stormin Mormon" wrote in message
. ..
It would have been about year 2000, give or take a
year. We had a winter time power cut. A friend of
mine had water in the cellar. He could not stay
ahead of the water, with buckets. Carpet in the
cellar got wet. His brother was out of town, had a
generator in the garage, but it would not start. Old
gasoline. I gave it a spray of ether in the air intake,
and it fired right up, old gas and all. I can't afford
a Honda, but I do like them. My Dad had a Honda
for a while, and he really liked it.


Mmmm
I like the idea of a keeping a bottle of ether around for a standby
generator..

I rotate my backup gasoline at least yearly, by dumping it into one of the
cars and refilling the storage tank with gas+Stabill.
I also use that gas during the year for smal motors like lawn mower and
chainsaws,
Have about 20 gallons stashed that way.

But I'm looking to convert a generator to propane and just have a bunch of
propane tanks as backup
Propane doesn't go bad like gasoline.

On Aug 2, 11:30*am, "Atila Iskander" wrote:
"Stormin Mormon" wrote in message

. ..

It would have been about year 2000, give or take a
year. We had a winter time power cut. A friend of
mine had water in the cellar. He could not stay
ahead of the water, with buckets. Carpet in the
cellar got wet. His brother was out of town, had a
generator in the garage, but it would not start. Old
gasoline. I gave it a spray of ether in the air intake,
and it fired right up, old gas and all. I can't afford
a Honda, but I do like them. My Dad had a Honda
for a while, and he really liked it.

Mmmm
I like the idea of a keeping a bottle of ether around for a standby
generator..

I rotate my backup gasoline at least *yearly, by dumping it into one of the
cars and refilling the storage tank with gas+Stabill.
I also use that gas during the year for smal motors like lawn mower and
chainsaws,
Have about 20 gallons stashed that way.

But I'm looking to convert a generator to propane and just have a bunch of
propane tanks as backup
Propane doesn't go bad like gasoline.


Storing propane indoor is accident waiting to happen. A leaking
propane tank inside a house, garage or a Mormon trailer can blow
everything into smithereens.

On 8/2/2012 11:30 AM, Atila Iskander wrote:

"Stormin Mormon" wrote in message
. ..
It would have been about year 2000, give or take a
year. We had a winter time power cut. A friend of
mine had water in the cellar. He could not stay
ahead of the water, with buckets. Carpet in the
cellar got wet. His brother was out of town, had a
generator in the garage, but it would not start. Old
gasoline. I gave it a spray of ether in the air intake,
and it fired right up, old gas and all. I can't afford
a Honda, but I do like them. My Dad had a Honda
for a while, and he really liked it.


Mmmm
I like the idea of a keeping a bottle of ether around for a standby
generator..

I rotate my backup gasoline at least yearly, by dumping it into one of
the cars and refilling the storage tank with gas+Stabill.
I also use that gas during the year for smal motors like lawn mower and
chainsaws,
Have about 20 gallons stashed that way.

But I'm looking to convert a generator to propane and just have a bunch
of propane tanks as backup
Propane doesn't go bad like gasoline.




Honda's are nice but cost twice that of others. What I really like
about them is how quiet they are.

I too, rotate my gas but every two years. Also start the generator and
run under load every few months.

I have a Yamaha that never fails. If I have a start problem with any gas
engine, I found that a shot of cheap carb cleaner also acts like ether
for easy starting.
There are gas additives to prolong gasoline life in the tank.

Stormin Mormon wrote:
It would have been about year 2000, give or take a
year. We had a winter time power cut. A friend of
mine had water in the cellar. He could not stay
ahead of the water, with buckets. Carpet in the
cellar got wet. His brother was out of town, had a
generator in the garage, but it would not start. Old
gasoline. I gave it a spray of ether in the air intake,
and it fired right up, old gas and all. I can't afford
a Honda, but I do like them. My Dad had a Honda
for a while, and he really liked it.

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
.

Hi,
Up here in cold weather every one loves Honda for ease of starting.

On 8/2/2012 10:10 AM, Stormin Mormon wrote:
It would have been about year 2000, give or take a
year. We had a winter time power cut. A friend of
mine had water in the cellar. He could not stay
ahead of the water, with buckets. Carpet in the
cellar got wet. His brother was out of town, had a
generator in the garage, but it would not start. Old
gasoline. I gave it a spray of ether in the air intake,
and it fired right up, old gas and all. I can't afford
a Honda, but I do like them. My Dad had a Honda
for a while, and he really liked it.

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
.



As little as I use it, I couldn't justify the Honda either.
So I splurged a hundred bucks on the little Chicago 800 watt
2 stroke toy at Harbor Freight.

It has only been used to run a pressure washer and fans while
working on the boat. It has never missed a beat though.

Frank wrote:

Honda's are nice but cost twice that of others. What I really like
about them is how quiet they are.

I too, rotate my gas but every two years. Also start the generator and
run under load every few months.


That second item is something most folks don't do. They don't realize
that the engine could run just fine but the generator head may not be
working. SOP for our FD is to start the engine on all items at least
monthly (if not more often) All get tested under load and some get
maximum load tested as well. We made a simple load bank out of 200 &
500 watt quartz lamps with a volt and frequency meter attached.

--
Steve W.

Sounds like you got your money out of it. Glad to hear.

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

"Richard" wrote in message
m...

As little as I use it, I couldn't justify the Honda either.
So I splurged a hundred bucks on the little Chicago 800 watt
2 stroke toy at Harbor Freight.

It has only been used to run a pressure washer and fans while
working on the boat. It has never missed a beat though.

I'm negligent, in the generator operation. The neglected generators tend to
be hard to start.

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

"Steve W." wrote in message
...

That second item is something most folks don't do. They don't realize
that the engine could run just fine but the generator head may not be
working. SOP for our FD is to start the engine on all items at least
monthly (if not more often) All get tested under load and some get
maximum load tested as well. We made a simple load bank out of 200 &
500 watt quartz lamps with a volt and frequency meter attached.

--
Steve W.

On 8/2/2012 9:08 PM, Stormin Mormon wrote:
Sounds like you got your money out of it. Glad to hear.

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
.

wrote in message
m...

As little as I use it, I couldn't justify the Honda either.
So I splurged a hundred bucks on the little Chicago 800 watt
2 stroke toy at Harbor Freight.

It has only been used to run a pressure washer and fans while
working on the boat. It has never missed a beat though.




LOL! My small shop vac gave all for this job.
It was attached to the palm sander to keep the blue fug down
(copper based bottom paint - ionic copper!)

100+ degrees temps, and a 300 foot extension cord were listed as
contributing causes. I doubt we were getting 90 VAC there.

The shop vac was $30. The pressure washer cost $100.
Seemed like it was gonna cost a hundred bucks either way, so
now I have a generator (of sorts) to boot.

Priced a Honda generator, and the salesman fired it up inside the store. I
have never heard, or didn't hear, a generator as quiet as that one. Silence
cost a lo of money.

Might come in handy, for the next power cut. Run the furnace, and some
lights.

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

"Richard" wrote in message
m...

LOL! My small shop vac gave all for this job.
It was attached to the palm sander to keep the blue fug down
(copper based bottom paint - ionic copper!)

100+ degrees temps, and a 300 foot extension cord were listed as
contributing causes. I doubt we were getting 90 VAC there.

The shop vac was $30. The pressure washer cost $100.
Seemed like it was gonna cost a hundred bucks either way, so
now I have a generator (of sorts) to boot.

My Dad had similar experience, in a Honda generator store. Neat demo. I
wonder how many of thier sales guys die of monoxide?

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

wrote in message
...
Priced a Honda generator, and the salesman fired it up inside the store. I
have never heard, or didn't hear, a generator as quiet as that one. Silence
cost a lo of money.

wrote:
Priced a Honda generator, and the salesman fired it up inside the store. I
have never heard, or didn't hear, a generator as quiet as that one. Silence
cost a lo of money.

My cheap little generator is very quiet, without load. !!!

I have not used it much, but when new, the rope broke very quickly for some
reason. Works now. My big generator is like most. How do they expect you to
fill tank when cap is in middle. It's impossible to fill with regular
portable tank and spout. I need a longer spout.

Greg

"Stormin Mormon" wrote:
Might come in handy, for the next power cut. Run the furnace, and some
lights.


Some little generators are not for electronic equipment. Don't want to fry
the controller. I'm in process of looking at voltage and waveforms from
mine.

Greg

"Stormin Mormon" wrote in message
.. .


wrote in message
...
Priced a Honda generator, and the salesman fired it up inside the store.
I
have never heard, or didn't hear, a generator as quiet as that one.
Silence
cost a lo of money.


My Dad had similar experience, in a Honda generator store. Neat demo. I
wonder how many of thier sales guys die of monoxide?


I once happened to witness to salesman from two US companies (T-x & H-y)
that made calculators, go after the same potential customer.
After both did their spiels about all the features of their respective
product, the H-y salesman took his calculator and threw it as hard as he
could at the ceiling a good 20+ feet up
Calculator went up, hit the ceiling, came back down, landed on a bench,
bounced off, and landed on a concrete floor
As the sales guy picked up his calculator, and started demonstrating how it
was still operational, he looked at his competitor and said:
"Our products are designed and built by engineers, for engineers who
work and rough environments.
We don't expect our equipment to be treated this way.
But at least, they have a good chance of surviving such abuse.."
He then turned to the other sales rep, and said:
"How about your calculator ?"
The other rep declined lobbing his calculator at the ceiling.
Guess who got the sale...

On 8/2/2012 10:30 AM, Atila Iskander wrote:

"Stormin Mormon" wrote in message
. ..
It would have been about year 2000, give or take a
year. We had a winter time power cut. A friend of
mine had water in the cellar. He could not stay
ahead of the water, with buckets. Carpet in the
cellar got wet. His brother was out of town, had a
generator in the garage, but it would not start. Old
gasoline. I gave it a spray of ether in the air intake,
and it fired right up, old gas and all. I can't afford
a Honda, but I do like them. My Dad had a Honda
for a while, and he really liked it.


Mmmm
I like the idea of a keeping a bottle of ether around for a standby
generator..

I rotate my backup gasoline at least yearly, by dumping it into one of
the cars and refilling the storage tank with gas+Stabill.
I also use that gas during the year for smal motors like lawn mower and
chainsaws,
Have about 20 gallons stashed that way.

But I'm looking to convert a generator to propane and just have a bunch
of propane tanks as backup
Propane doesn't go bad like gasoline.


I used to install and service a lot of home backup generators and even
converted a few gasoline generators to run on natural gas. The small
engine shop in town sold me the conversion kits and the kits worked out
very well with the typical portable 5kw contractor generators. ^_^

TDD

On 08/02/12 10:42 pm, gregz wrote:

Some little generators are not for electronic equipment. Don't want to fry
the controller. I'm in process of looking at voltage and waveforms from
mine.

The Honda EUx000i generators are highly rated in that regard. A recent
issue of QST (the American Radio Relay League's magazine --
www,arrl,org) tested a handful of small inverter-equipped generators.

Perce

"Richard" wrote in message
m...
... As little as I use it, I couldn't justify the Honda either.
So I splurged a hundred bucks on the little Chicago 800 watt
2 stroke toy at Harbor Freight.

It has only been used to run a pressure washer and fans while
working on the boat. It has never missed a beat though.


The clerk at HF said they were only returned for being too loud.

"Atila Iskander" wrote in message
...

After both did their spiels about all the features of their
respective product, the H-y salesman took his calculator and threw
it as hard as he could at the ceiling a good 20+ feet up

Too bad Honda generators break and are VERY expensive to fix. I went
instead with a couple of very cheap second hand Colemans I can
maintain with a chainsaw tool, and a noise-reducing folding weather
enclosure made from fireproof ceiling tiles, which quiets them enough
that they can't be heard from a moving car in the street. We lose
power for a week or more after bad ice storms and a 2KW Honda won't
start my washing machine; the Coleman 3750 can barely supply the
starting current.

The smaller Coleman is light enough to carry through deep snow without
shoveling a path, or lift into the back of the car. Those can be
important.

jsw

Jim Wilkins wrote:
"Richard" wrote in message
m...
... As little as I use it, I couldn't justify the Honda either.
So I splurged a hundred bucks on the little Chicago 800 watt
2 stroke toy at Harbor Freight.

It has only been used to run a pressure washer and fans while
working on the boat. It has never missed a beat though.


The clerk at HF said they were only returned for being too loud.

One nice thing about Honda generators is that they're quiet.

That quietness enables you to hear all your neighbor's generators during a
power outage.

Looking at? You can see electricity?

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

"gregz" wrote in message
...

Some little generators are not for electronic equipment. Don't want to fry
the controller. I'm in process of looking at voltage and waveforms from
mine.

Greg

On 2012-08-03, Percival P. Cassidy wrote:

The Honda EUx000i generators are highly rated in that regard. A recent
issue of QST (the American Radio Relay League's magazine --
www,arrl,org) tested a handful of small inverter-equipped generators.

What issue was that? I've recieved QST fer the last year and a half
and don't recall any such article.

nb

--
"Do you recognize me? No!
....cuz I don't work here"
Support labelling GMO foods
http://www.nongmoproject.org/

On Fri, 3 Aug 2012 02:42:31 +0000 (UTC), gregz wrote:

"Stormin Mormon" wrote:
Might come in handy, for the next power cut. Run the furnace, and some
lights.


Some little generators are not for electronic equipment. Don't want to fry
the controller. I'm in process of looking at voltage and waveforms from
mine.

Most electronic equipment today uses SMP supplies which are quite tolerant of
poor waveforms - actually a lot better than older transformer input stuff.

On Fri, 3 Aug 2012 07:39:22 -0400, "Jim Wilkins" wrote:

"Atila Iskander" wrote in message
...

After both did their spiels about all the features of their
respective product, the H-y salesman took his calculator and threw
it as hard as he could at the ceiling a good 20+ feet up

Too bad Honda generators break and are VERY expensive to fix. I went
instead with a couple of very cheap second hand Colemans I can
maintain with a chainsaw tool, and a noise-reducing folding weather
enclosure made from fireproof ceiling tiles, which quiets them enough
that they can't be heard from a moving car in the street. We lose
power for a week or more after bad ice storms and a 2KW Honda won't
start my washing machine; the Coleman 3750 can barely supply the
starting current.

The smaller Coleman is light enough to carry through deep snow without
shoveling a path, or lift into the back of the car. Those can be
important.

If this happened with any regularity (read: twice), I'd have a permanent
installation by the time the power came back on. Sometimes, 0ur power goes
out daily but it's usually just long enough to screw up all the clocks and set
the 'fridge alarm off. It's rarely more than an hour (even after a storm has
taken lines down) and never a week after an ice storm. ;-)

On 8/3/2012 7:09 AM, Stormin Mormon wrote:
Looking at? You can see electricity?


He's using a visual aid, an oscilloscope. The old way was to get a sheet
of paper, pencil and pair of wires. Stick the wires in your
mouth, hold the pencil to the paper then turn on the electricity.
Your hand will jerk around drawing the waveform of the voltage. To
get a drawing of the current waveform the wires must first be hooked
to your testicles then follow the same procedure as before. ^_^

TDD

On 8/3/2012 7:03 AM, HeyBub wrote:
Jim Wilkins wrote:
"Richard" wrote in message
m...
... As little as I use it, I couldn't justify the Honda either.
So I splurged a hundred bucks on the little Chicago 800 watt
2 stroke toy at Harbor Freight.

It has only been used to run a pressure washer and fans while
working on the boat. It has never missed a beat though.


The clerk at HF said they were only returned for being too loud.

One nice thing about Honda generators is that they're quiet.

That quietness enables you to hear all your neighbor's generators during a
power outage.



Keeps the generator thieves from looking for one at your place during a
disaster. ^_^

TDD

On Aug 2, 7:42*pm, gregz wrote:
"Stormin Mormon" wrote:
Might come in handy, for the next power cut. Run the furnace, and some
lights.

Some little generators are not for electronic equipment. Don't want to fry
the controller. I'm in process of looking at voltage and waveforms from
mine.

Greg

Put a 3 stage EMC line filter in series with your electronics. One
stage a waste of time. Schematic is often shown on the side.
A 10A unit is a large block, but will provide a lot of protection
against higher frequency spikes - the type of spikes most
'inexpensive' electronics do not protect against.

On 08/03/12 08:20 am, notbob wrote:

The Honda EUx000i generators are highly rated in that regard. A recent
issue of QST (the American Radio Relay League's magazine --
www.arrl.org) tested a handful of small inverter-equipped generators.

What issue was that? I've recieved QST fer the last year and a half
and don't recall any such article.

Pages 49ff. of the June 2012 issue. They tested Honda, Yamaha, Generac
and Champion models.

Perce

I learn so much from you. What would I ever do without you?

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
..

"The Daring Dufas" wrote in message
...
On 8/3/2012 7:09 AM, Stormin Mormon wrote:
Looking at? You can see electricity?


He's using a visual aid, an oscilloscope. The old way was to get a sheet
of paper, pencil and pair of wires. Stick the wires in your
mouth, hold the pencil to the paper then turn on the electricity.
Your hand will jerk around drawing the waveform of the voltage. To
get a drawing of the current waveform the wires must first be hooked
to your testicles then follow the same procedure as before. ^_^

TDD

The Daring Dufas wrote:

One nice thing about Honda generators is that they're quiet.

That quietness enables you to hear all your neighbor's generators
during a power outage.



Keeps the generator thieves from looking for one at your place during
a disaster. ^_^


Oooh! Good point! But, if you can't hear the generator, how do you know it's
gone?... Never mind.

I have burglar-bar doors and chain my generator to the door. For others, it
seems trivial to sink an eye-bolt to the brick facade (or similar).

On 2012-08-03, Percival P. Cassidy wrote:

Pages 49ff. of the June 2012 issue. They tested Honda, Yamaha, Generac
and Champion models.

Well I'll be dogged. Their it is! Don't know how I missed it.
Probably cuz I'm not a big fan of QST. Too much ARRL propoganda and
sales. I'd rather read CQ, which has more hands-on DIY stuff.

nb

--
"Do you recognize me? No!
....cuz I don't work here"
Support labelling GMO foods
http://www.nongmoproject.org/

On 08/03/12 11:22 am, notbob wrote:

Pages 49ff. of the June 2012 issue. They tested Honda, Yamaha, Generac
and Champion models.

Well I'll be dogged. Their it is! Don't know how I missed it.
Probably cuz I'm not a big fan of QST. Too much ARRL propoganda and
sales. I'd rather read CQ, which has more hands-on DIY stuff.

Ryobi (sold by Home Depot) now has an inverter generator as well, the
RYi2000(T) for $599, but the reviews on the HD Web site are a mixed bag:
4 out of 5 overall, but several ratings of only 1.

Perce

"Stormin Mormon" wrote:
Looking at? You can see electricity?

Christopher A. Young
Learn more about Jesus
www.lds.org
.

"gregz" wrote in message
...

Some little generators are not for electronic equipment. Don't want to fry
the controller. I'm in process of looking at voltage and waveforms from
mine.

Greg

Called an oscilloscope.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscilloscope

Greg

" wrote:
On Fri, 3 Aug 2012 02:42:31 +0000 (UTC), gregz wrote:

"Stormin Mormon" wrote:
Might come in handy, for the next power cut. Run the furnace, and some
lights.


Some little generators are not for electronic equipment. Don't want to fry
the controller. I'm in process of looking at voltage and waveforms from
mine.

Most electronic equipment today uses SMP supplies which are quite tolerant of
poor waveforms - actually a lot better than older transformer input stuff.

There was recently a long thread in electronic group recently. Reported
distorted waveforms, and problems loading on side of the 240 split.

Greg

Atila Iskander wrote:

I once happened to witness to salesman from two US companies (T-x & H-y)
that made calculators, go after the same potential customer.
After both did their spiels about all the features of their respective
product, the H-y salesman took his calculator and threw it as hard as he
could at the ceiling a good 20+ feet up
Calculator went up, hit the ceiling, came back down, landed on a bench,
bounced off, and landed on a concrete floor
As the sales guy picked up his calculator, and started demonstrating how it
was still operational, he looked at his competitor and said:
"Our products are designed and built by engineers, for engineers who
work and rough environments.
We don't expect our equipment to be treated this way.
But at least, they have a good chance of surviving such abuse.."
He then turned to the other sales rep, and said:
"How about your calculator ?"
The other rep declined lobbing his calculator at the ceiling.
Guess who got the sale...




Sounds like the guys who sell Thermal Imagers in the fire service. They
will take a unit and bounce it off a concrete floor or throw it around
to demonstrate how much they can take. One rep had that fail at our
station though. He brought in the units and started his demonstration.
He would then pass the unit around to show how the functions worked.
When it came to the tossing part he did his thing and handed me the
camera. OOPS! the screen had a big blank spot where part of the sensor
or screen failed!!!


--
Steve W.

wrote in message
...
On Fri, 3 Aug 2012 07:39:22 -0400, "Jim Wilkins"
wrote:

If this happened with any regularity (read: twice), I'd have a
permanent
installation by the time the power came back on. Sometimes, 0ur
power goes
out daily but it's usually just long enough to screw up all the
clocks and set
the 'fridge alarm off. It's rarely more than an hour (even after a
storm has
taken lines down) and never a week after an ice storm. ;-)

I can run on a solar-charged battery and use the genny only to top up
the battery on overcast days or wash laundry. The clothes dryer is
solar.

Soon enough we'll have Social Poetic Justice when the carbon tax jacks
up the energy bills of those who demanded it, but don't know how to
reduce their consumption.

"HeyBub" wrote in message
news:2pOdna-7mPHyeYbNnZ2dnUVZ_t-

I have burglar-bar doors and chain my generator to the door. For
others, it seems trivial to sink an eye-bolt to the brick facade (or
similar).

We are supposed to keep generators away from any structure for their
fire and carbon monoxide hazards, and protected from the weather.

On Fri, 3 Aug 2012 16:36:53 +0000 (UTC), gregz wrote:

" wrote:
On Fri, 3 Aug 2012 02:42:31 +0000 (UTC), gregz wrote:

"Stormin Mormon" wrote:
Might come in handy, for the next power cut. Run the furnace, and some
lights.


Some little generators are not for electronic equipment. Don't want to fry
the controller. I'm in process of looking at voltage and waveforms from
mine.

Most electronic equipment today uses SMP supplies which are quite tolerant of
poor waveforms - actually a lot better than older transformer input stuff.

There was recently a long thread in electronic group recently. Reported
distorted waveforms, and problems loading on side of the 240 split.

Distorted waveforms, within reason of course, aren't a problem for most SMPSs.
PC power supplies, for instance, will take just about anything. They have a
rectifier right in the front end and switch that voltage up to a few hundred
volts and step down from there. This isn't at all uncommon in electronic
appliances anymore. Anything with a transformer in the front end will balk at
crappy waveforms, though.