After the good advice I got on hole saws I figured I’d come back for a bit more guidance on generators.
I’m going to be doing some exterior trim and door replacements on fire damaged properties with no electric service.
I’m looking for the quietest, smallest generator that can run a table saw, router table, and cordless tool chargers. I will be the only one working so it won’t see much of a load. I’ll be using the cordless tools for everything else. I’m looking for a small generator I can carry myself that is most importantly quiet, I’d like to be able to start work early and don’t wan’t any noise complaints if I can avoid it.
Anyone have any recommendations?
Thanks, Ray
Replies
A small Honda !
Will the small Honda's start a tablesaw motor? what watt are they?
I dont have specific recommendations for you, but in general;
-get one with an idle control...WAY quieter
-load isnt so dependant on size of crew as it is on how big a motor you want to start at any one time. for a jobsite table saw I think you need about 4000 watts minimum.
-unfortunately, 4000 watt or larger generators are not light. I usually run mine right in the trailer or in the back of my pickup under the shell.
-working solo with a generator, I try hard to do as much work that requires the generator at a time as possible, then I can shut it down and use cordless for a while....rest my ears.
Panasonic ... and you can combine two little ones for a larger load. Trouble is, at $800 they're not cheap.
I'll give another vote for the smallest Honda that has enough juice for your needs. Super quiet engines.
Bruce
Here is a link to a selection of Hondas that may suit your needs. I have the EU1000iA for power failures and use the EU2000iA at work. You can easily carry them in one hand, they start first pull and are extremely quiet. They are a bit pricey but fantastic machines.
http://www.hondapowerequipment.com/products/models.aspx?page=models§ion=P2GG&category=play
Edit: The only problem I have ever had with Honda generators is when I stored them in a damp location and didn't run them under load regularly to keep everything dry.
Edited 11/23/2009 8:34 pm ET by fingersandtoes
Thanks for all the input, I'll have to find a dealer for Honda locally and check them out. I've used a bunch of the ones that are the size of a portable tablesaw with the roll cage design on various jobsites, I remember them as uniformly noisy but not unbearably heavy to carry around myself. If Honda makes a quiet version of the ones I'm familiar with it'd be just the ticket.My tablesaw is a underpowered Craftsman benchtop so I can't see it stressing the generator that much, I can always rig a skill saw under a square blank of plywood if it came to be a problem. (take that OSHA, as long as no employees are involved :)
Have you considered an inverter, Spare battery in the back of the truck, Charge with jumper cables when it gets low.
http://www.invertersrus.com/inv5000w.html
http://www.invertersrus.com/inv2500w.html
"Shawdow boxing the appoclipse and wandering the land"
Wier/Barlow
I have a Yamaha, inverter series 3000SEB. It will run my 4410 Bosch SCMS saw and the biggest FEIN shop vac simultaneously even when in energy saver mode where it will throttle up or down to meet the load.
It is extremely quite. I can talk and hear on my cell phone when standing right next to it. I got it from Wisesales.com the day Hurricane Ike hit. It has electric start as well as pull start and it is relatively compact, but you will need help to lift it out of a pickup. The wheels are fine on concrete but would get stuck in the mud. They also make smaller ones.
Table saw covers some wide ground as far as amps go, so you need to find that out.
The 3000SEB will not start my 30 gallon, 120V, oiless compressor. Compressors are very hard starters, I would think that a small table saw that works on a 15 amp, 120V outlet may start. I know I can also run my production Milwaukee router and FEIN vac simultaneously.
The Yamaha sounds very interesting, how comfortable would you feel leaving it overnight in a room you'd used for all your cutting with the sawdust, etc.. around? I could get it out of the truck on load-out and then lock it up in a closet with the tools, etc.. but it'd be near sawdust obviously and I don't know how the gas would respond to that.I may be on site for awhile replacing some flooring systems so it'd be handy to have around. It won't ever need to do more than run a tablesaw & router as I use a cordless framing and finish guns, have a compressor but rarely use it except in the shop.
You might actually be able to drop down to the 2400is. Same type of inverter generator, just smaller and lighter.The 3000SEB costs a lot more than the typical contractor generator. You can buy a much larger contractor unit for a lot less money, but they eat gas and make a lot of noise. The Yamaha is quite, expensive, and a joy to use. Theft is definitely an issue. People will want it.I am not sure where you are going with the sawdust issue, it does have an exhaust that gets hot and I don't know how long it takes to cool down, because I just basically roll the thing where it is away from me so I don't carbon monoxide myself and run extension cords to where I need them. It should always be outside when running. It has a valve to shut the fuel off that I always close and run it out of fuel prior to storing it.I would definitely let the exhaust cool before putting it in a closet, because gasoline vapors could accumulate in an enclosed area and might be ignited by the still hot exhaust. I don't know because I always shut it down and pickup all my tools then rolled into a garage instead of a tight closet.
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This is exactly what you want. I have one and use it for building a Habitat house every year. It will run all the tools I have except the big Thomas compressor (for bump nailing). It will however run my small Thomas hotdog compressor very well. It is so quiet, when the wind is blowing away from us, I sometimes have to walk over and check to make sure it is running. It can be carried easily by one person and starts with one, half hearted pull on the rope. It can also be linked to another 2000 to double the power and start the big compressor. Its pricey ($1,000) but well worth the cost.
edit: it will run my dewalt 745 table saw.
You get out of life what you put into it......minus taxes.
Marv
Edited 11/24/2009 9:36 am by Marv
Marv,That looks awesome and your comment on the noise is great to hear. I'm going to check that one out and once I nail down the scope of these projects I'll be looking to buy.
I find my SCMS takes more power than my compressor! Lol
Was working on a wood basement and needed a generator. It would would run the compressor but not the saw.
The Honda 2000 will run my Ridgid worm drive with no problem.You get out of life what you put into it......minus taxes.
Marv
That's the one. I have the smaller 1000 at home and I almost look forward to the power going out so I get the chance to use it. Runs forever on a tank of gas and is so quite I can hear my neighbor's generator running two acres away over the noise mine makes.
Do you have an electric air compressor?
Small generators can't support air compressors of much size.
pb
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Edited 11/24/2009 10:00 am ET by plumber_bob
I have a Honda eu3000is.
Runs all day on 2.5 gallons of gas at half load. Very quiet. A little heavy for one person to move around. Honda has an unenclosed 3kW inverter, too.
Not cheap, but it won't destroy cordless tool chargers like cheapo generators.
I have to turn off the idle control or else it stalls when starting up a compressor or worm drive.
One thing- any generator provides maximum output through the twist lock receptacle. Get the adapter.