Ocean State Job Lot generator sale

[Rusty]

If you buy a generator you will get a gift card that can be used for anything in the store except an item that is one of their "CRAZY DEALS".
As an example: 7000 watt generator for $899 and you get a $600 gift card.

I guess if you shop at "Ocean State Job Lot" a lot, the $600 card would be a good deal.

Here is the ad:

[Grandpa Redneck]

We have the 7000 watt one. We bought it last year on a similar crazy deal, $899 with a $400 gift card. We use it at our camp property in Clarksville. My wife and I both really like the remote wireless electric start for when we get up in the morning and want to make a pot of coffee, just hit the button to start, and no need to go outside to start it. We used the card to buy a 10x15 easy up, a grill and other odds n ends for camp. We put over 500 hours on it this summer, and it has performed flawlessly. We would definitely buy another one.

[Doobs41378]

I found it funny they call it a "crazy deal gift card" but it cannot be used on crazy deals. I assume that is because you get it from buying a crazy deal but still laughed. We have one of those stores in Hooksett and I went in there to buy some Christmas lights a few weeks ago. It is kind of like a building 19, maybe a little nicer but not much.

[CAVU]

I have been considering buying a generator for backup power when the lights go out, I just may have to go buy one if 7000KW is enough to power a house.

[Rusty]

Also there is no expiration date on the gift card.

[Biggd]

So far, anything that I have purchased from Ocean State Job Lot has been cheap crap made in China. I still go in there and look for some stuff but don't buy anything expensive that you are going to depend on to last.

[Slickcraft]

Originally Posted by CAVU

I have been considering buying a generator for backup power when the lights go out, I just may have to go buy one if 7000KW is enough to power a house.

Well 7K is probably not enough for everything however it can make things much more comfortable. You can have all the electronics and lights on as well as heat and water pump. Then in addition some "or" situations such as coffee maker or one electric stove burner or microwave but not all at once.


Suggest having an electrician install a 220V/30A outside plug wired to the breaker box with a generator interlock switch. https://www.interlockkit.com/
No need for extensions running around the house.
Also a watt meter that shows how much is being supplied to each 110V leg.

[fatlazyless]

Ocean State has some nice looking stand-up paddle boards ...... polyethelene plastic filled with air inside for flotation. Just picture yourself out on Meredith Bay tomorrow, or Wednesday, paddling a new s.u.p.

These two sup's have been there for months so's could be good to hit them with the old "Yes, I am very interested, but I will only make you a one price offer....this price of $xxx is my first, last, and only offer.....so's you can take it or leave it....so's if you want to get rid of this sup right now....here's your chance!

And, if that don't work you can always return a day later and try it again with a new price.....maybe on a different sales person.

Seems like Ocean State has some good deals on paddle boards......after all.......the first word in their name is OCEAN!

[MAXUM]

These generators are good for running power tools on a remote construction site, powering lights and so forth not powering your house.

The output from them is very poorly regulated (if at all) and thus your feeding all that nice sensitive stuff in your house with very dirty power. Think of all your appliances, TV, computers, they can't handle it never mind your furnace or well pump. In some cases these devices simply will not work if the power in falls outside a set of parameters but I wouldn't put much trust in that protection usually you find out when stuff goes boom unless you put something in between to clean up that power which would easily off set the perceived savings here.

There are portable generators that are designed for this purpose but they are significantly more expensive because the components necessary to give you good clean stable power cost more.

[dpg]

If your looking for something serious to handle (most) of your home during an outage and don't mind spending some money go with the Honda or Generac INVERTER generators. They don't run as loud as a freight train and are preferred for electronics, etc...Yes they are expensive but you get what you pay for. 6,000 or 7,000 watts won't light up a home like a train station but it will run all your important things during an outage...There's a time and a place for the crap from a dollar store if your investing in such an item a power loss during 20 degree weather shouldn't be that time.

[Pineedles]

Thanks Maxum and DPG. I have never lost power at home for more than a couple of hours, and I can count on Jerry Garcia's hand how many times that it has happened. I was considering one of these, but you have talked me out of it. Thanks.

[ishoot308]

Honestly guy's, almost all modern electronics can very easily handle any swing in sine wave these generators have. If they couldn't there would be a lot of blown equipment during a simple power outage and start up. What most people call "sensitive electronics" are in fact not sensitive in the least. Don't believe me, look it up...

I used one of these cheap generators for many years and it worked just fine. Had all kinds of "sensitive electronics" connected including large screen TV's, computer/s, furnace electronics, etc, etc. Why spend crazy money on something you may only use once a year unless noise is an issue...

Edited to add: These cheap generators are very loud. The quieter they are the more expensive they are....

Dan

[Rusty]

Originally Posted by MAXUM

These generators are good for running power tools on a remote construction site, powering lights and so forth not powering your house.

The output from them is very poorly regulated (if at all) and thus your feeding all that nice sensitive stuff in your house with very dirty power. Think of all your appliances, TV, computers, they can't handle it never mind your furnace or well pump. In some cases these devices simply will not work if the power in falls outside a set of parameters but I wouldn't put much trust in that protection usually you find out when stuff goes boom unless you put something in between to clean up that power which would easily off set the perceived savings here.

There are portable generators that are designed for this purpose but they are significantly more expensive because the components necessary to give you good clean stable power cost more.

Do you have some data to back that up?

[MAXUM]

Originally Posted by Rusty

Do you have some data to back that up?

My brother in law bought a Generac generator to power the essentials if the power goes out. It would NOT power his forced hot air furnace, when he flipped it to generator power it cut off and there was a voltage alarm on the panel of the furnace. Flip it back to line power it was OK. Power coming from the outlet seemed fine. Call to the manufacturer resulted in the following: if you want to power this with a generator you need one with an inverter. So he got a Honda with an invertor and it worked fine.

I blew the brain box in my brand new Samsung fridge after putting it on the generator. Since it was under warranty I called to have it fixed, when the guy came out to repair it he asked if we had a power surge, I said no BUT I was running it off my generator. He asked to see what I was using and told me yup get rid of that thing and get one with an inverter OR use something to clean up the power from that before it gets to the fridge. he said all these new appliances and electronic gadgets cannot handle the power fluctuations these generators are notorious for putting out. In fact he said he has replaced tons of fried circuit boards because of this.

Bottom line - some things may be less sensitive to this than others, but the way I see it I'm not taking the chance. Yes I have tested the output of my old generator with a meter and it was running a little hot and bouncing around a little bit. This was also not an old generator.... I sold it with only about 50 some odd hours on it. I now have one with an inverter on it and have not had any problems since.

Here's a little blurb on Honda's website concerning inverters:

Honda 's inverter technology takes the raw power produced by the generator and uses a special microprocessor to condition it through a multi-step process.

First, the generator's alternator produces high voltage multiphase AC power. The AC power is then converted to DC. Finally the DC power is converted back to AC by the inverter. The inverter also smoothes and cleans the power to make it high quality. A special microprocessor controls the entire process, as well as the speed of the engine.

Honda uses only high quality inverters in our generators, which produce stable, consistent power.

The end result? Clean enough power to run even the most sensitive electronic equipment.

[HomeWood]

I thought about a knock off brand generator but I decided to spend a little more and get something of quality. I recently bought an 8000 watt NorthStar generator with a real Honda engine and it uses a brushless generator head. I hook that up to a 6 circuit transfer switch. Works great. Runs 90% of my first floor lights, outlets, fridge, and TV's. It will not run the stove or our heat/ac pumps. It will run some space heaters and we have a propane fireplace.

This unit puts out so called clean power, so my smart TV's and computer work fine. I have $1900 into the generator and transfer switch from Lowes. This is for my house here in NC. I just made sure we'll never lose power again .

I think it's cheaper in the long run to buy a better unit to begin with.

[noreast]

Originally Posted by ishoot308

Honestly guy's, almost all modern electronics can very easily handle any swing in sine wave these generators have. If they couldn't there would be a lot of blown equipment during a simple power outage and start up. What most people call "sensitive electronics" are in fact not sensitive in the least. Don't believe me, look it up...

I used one of these cheap generators for many years and it worked just fine. Had all kinds of "sensitive electronics" connected including large screen TV's, computer/s, furnace electronics, etc, etc. Why spend crazy money on something you may only use once a year unless noise is an issue...

Edited to add: These cheap generators are very loud. The quieter they are the more expensive they are....

Dan

I agree, These things are pretty steady now, you won't get the huge fluctuations to blow up your stuff. I've only known 1 guy that did it, That was because the jack ass left his panel on. That's a great deal, If it's a piece of trash you'll probably get 3 years out of it.

[ishoot308]

Originally Posted by noreast

I agree, These things are pretty steady now, you won't get the huge fluctuations to blow up your stuff. I've only known 1 guy that did it, That was because the jack ass left his panel on. That's a great deal, If it's a piece of trash you'll probably get 3 years out of it.

I got 14 years from a Coleman powermate bought at Sams Club. It ran for four days non stop one year! It actually never died, I just gave it to a friend when I moved from one house to another. ! As far as I know that generator is still running to this day. It was louder than all hell but I lived in the sticks at the time so it didn't really matter.

Dan

[wifi]

Originally Posted by Biggd

So far, anything that I have purchased from Ocean State Job Lot has been cheap crap made in China.....

Actually, I picked up some nice stock pots made in India )

[fatlazyless]

Why O why bother with a generator?

While it makes very good sense for a municipal water system to have a back up generator so that people will still have a supply of cold running water during a power outage, is it all that necessary for an individual home to have a back up generator?

For me, going back to 1992, living way down the end of Meredith Neck, hooked up to NH Electric Coop, the longest time to be without power was something like 12-hours, and that only happened once or twice in 24-years. So, why bother with a generator ....... seems like it is a lot more useful to spend the money on a smaller 110volt-20amp high quality, outdoor hot tub, and spend the winter making snow angels in the snow before running back into the hot tub. An outdoor hot tub is just much more useful than a generator....which hardly ever ever is needed....around these here parts.

You know that when the power is down, your local electric utility is not selling any power because your meter is not spinning, which is plenty good incentive for them to keep the power working, or to fix it fast.

And besides, when the power goes down which is very infrequent ....... it would be a good time to grab a cold beer and go retreat to the 104-degree hot tub .....which stays warm for a couple hours without the power.....and just chill out until the power comes back on....... bottoms up ...... no power.....what power outage?

[radar4401]

I have a whole house generator that I installed about 6 years ago. While I agree that installing a generator can be pricey, I guess it is a matter of personal needs. If you live near a main line, your power wont be out for very long. But if you are out in the boondocks, or have an ice storm, you could be without heat for days. If you have a summer cottage, maybe not necessary, but if you live around here year round I don't think you would want to live with the consequences of having no heat if there is no way to heat your home. We are way overdue for an ice storm of the kind that hit just south of the lakes region. I am glad that I got my generator as we have been without power for up to 12 hrs. just in the last 10 years and that is with the town (Wolfeboro) upgrading our power grid. My 2 cents worth.

[Biggd]

Originally Posted by fatlazyless

Why O why bother with a generator?

While it makes very good sense for a municipal water system to have a back up generator so that people will still have a supply of cold running water during a power outage, is it all that necessary for an individual home to have a back up generator?

For me, going back to 1992, living way down the end of Meredith Neck, hooked up to NH Electric Coop, the longest time to be without power was something like 12-hours, and that only happened once or twice in 24-years. So, why bother with a generator ....... seems like it is a lot more useful to spend the money on a smaller 110volt-20amp high quality, outdoor hot tub, and spend the winter making snow angels in the snow before running back into the hot tub. An outdoor hot tub is just much more useful than a generator....which hardly ever ever is needed....around these here parts.

You know that when the power is down, your local electric utility is not selling any power because your meter is not spinning, which is plenty good incentive for them to keep the power working, or to fix it fast.

And besides, when the power goes down which is very infrequent ....... it would be a good time to grab a cold beer and go retreat to the 104-degree hot tub .....which stays warm for a couple hours without the power.....and just chill out until the power comes back on....... bottoms up ...... no power.....what power outage?

Get er done!

[dpg]

MAXUM - well saying your BIL bought a Generac is only half the story what size did he buy? Generac makes very tiny to huge...And yes, quietness is expensive in the Generator market. That's an individual preference. I can't believe it's that big of a deal (or expensive) to make them quiet but I'm no expert by a long shot...(most) Honda products do rock but yeah there's much cheaper out there also.

[Slickcraft]

In post #14 MAXUM outlined the Honda inverter technology. A very real benefit of this is that the generator does not have to run at a high fixed speed to output 60 cycle power. A switch selective Eco mode allows the microprocessor to cut RPM to the lowest level that can meet the load power draw. Up the load a bit and the RPM moves up to meet demand.

The result is quieter operation and better fuel economy. As has been noted, these are more expensive machines.

[noreast]

I use to think like FLL (about the generator) till that 95? ice storm when I had my first child. We lost power for 3 days, Then the next was 5, then 7, Some of those storms were F'n freezing. My brother lost power for 19 days in Derry! hardly the boon docks. I'll never be without one again. With kids in the house it gets expensive keeping it running, especially when gas was $4 a gallon.

[Biggd]

Originally Posted by noreast

I use to think like FLL (about the generator) till that 95? ice storm when I had my first child. We lost power for 3 days, Then the next was 5, then 7, Some of those storms were F'n freezing. My brother lost power for 19 days in Derry! hardly the boon docks. I'll never be without one again. With kids in the house it gets expensive keeping it running, especially when gas was $4 a gallon.

He probably enjoys saving electricity when it goes out. In this day and age there is no reason to be without power and I don't understand anyone that would be happy about it.

[wifi]

Some people just like going against the grain.

[dpg]

Originally Posted by noreast

I use to think like FLL (about the generator) till that 95? ice storm when I had my first child. We lost power for 3 days, Then the next was 5, then 7, Some of those storms were F'n freezing. My brother lost power for 19 days in Derry! hardly the boon docks. I'll never be without one again. With kids in the house it gets expensive keeping it running, especially when gas was $4 a gallon.

So that being said did you opt for a $500.00 machine or a $4,000 "quality"(?) unit?

[SIKSUKR]

Originally Posted by Slickcraft

In post #14 MAXUM outlined the Honda inverter technology. A very real benefit of this is that the generator does not have to run at a high fixed speed to output 60 cycle power. A switch selective Eco mode allows the microprocessor to cut RPM to the lowest level that can meet the load power draw. Up the load a bit and the RPM moves up to meet demand.

The result is quieter operation and better fuel economy. As has been noted, these are more expensive machines.

This. Really the only reason one needs to buy an inverter generator. They are generally quieter and more efficient but as ishoot posted, there is no issue with electronics on normal gens. I have used a few different ones for 20 years and have never had any problems. I am the tv nut that has way too many tv's and computers. Never had a failure.

[ishoot308]

Originally Posted by SIKSUKR

This. Really the only reason one needs to buy an inverter generator. They are generally quieter and more efficient but as ishoot posted, there is no issue with electronics on normal gens. I have used a few different ones for 20 years and have never had any problems. I am the tv nut that has way too many tv's and computers. Never had a failure.

I also have a Honda Inverter Generator that I use on the island. One must be extremely careful when using their or any manufacturers "Eco" mode for anything with large draw wound electrical motors such as well / water pumps, air conditioners, washing machine, etc, etc. The few seconds it takes for the generator to rev up to send the juice necessary to run the motor can physically damage it! The absolute worse thing you can do to any wound motor is under power it and it only takes a few seconds to cause damage. I normally only use Eco mode at night or when I am not there and shut the breaker for my water pump.

You would be better off using the cheapest generator you can find that runs at a constant rpm than you would using an expensive inverter generator on Economy mode, at least with wound electric motors...

Dan

[brk-lnt]

Originally Posted by MAXUM

My brother in law bought a Generac generator to power the essentials if the power goes out. It would NOT power his forced hot air furnace, when he flipped it to generator power it cut off and there was a voltage alarm on the panel of the furnace.
[/I]

Counter point:
At our previous house we had 2 oil/FHA furnaces and an oil-fired water heater. I ran them ALL off a medium size Generac (6.5 or 7K, I forget which one). I also ran them off a crappy Harbor Freight inverter (not inverter generator, just a 12V->120V inverter) that had a pretty horrible sine wave. They ran fine on that too.

Off brand generators are almost guaranteed to be loud, have crappy engines, and dirty output with poor regulation. They'll be fine for basic power outage, camp power, etc. Most electronics will do just fine with them, as long as you don't overload them (same as any generator). Cheap generators likely won't be long-life, and for not that much more you can get a decent unit, but if you're on a budget or don't use it often, they can be an OK deal.

[MAXUM]

Originally Posted by dpg

MAXUM - well saying your BIL bought a Generac is only half the story what size did he buy? Generac makes very tiny to huge...And yes, quietness is expensive in the Generator market. That's an individual preference. I can't believe it's that big of a deal (or expensive) to make them quiet but I'm no expert by a long shot...(most) Honda products do rock but yeah there's much cheaper out there also.

6500 watt portable - plenty of power for what he needed but the problem wasn't whether there was sufficient capacity to do the job, it was the output voltage. Trust me he was not happy with having to spend the extra $$ to get something that would work.

Same thing in my case... and if you notice there are more and more inverter generators out on the market for this very reason. Don't have to buy a Honda there are other offerings out there but no matter the case these are noticeably more expensive than their non-inverter counterparts. That said if you buy some cheap piece of crap it's not going to make much of a difference what it is, other than a piece of crap!

Not trying to kick up an argument here either guys, just pointing out you gotta be careful with these things or you may end up with a problem. Stuff now a days is not like it used to be and all these electronically controlled devices get a little fussy.

[Rusty]

Originally Posted by MAXUM

6500 watt portable - plenty of power for what he needed but the problem wasn't whether there was sufficient capacity to do the job, it was the output voltage. Trust me he was not happy with having to spend the extra $$ to get something that would work.

Same thing in my case... and if you notice there are more and more inverter generators out on the market for this very reason. Don't have to buy a Honda there are other offerings out there but no matter the case these are noticeably more expensive than their non-inverter counterparts. That said if you buy some cheap piece of crap it's not going to make much of a difference what it is, other than a piece of crap!

Not trying to kick up an argument here either guys, just pointing out you gotta be careful with these things or you may end up with a problem. Stuff now a days is not like it used to be and all these electronically controlled devices get a little fussy.

I did some research and it looks like you are correct. It appears that some low end generators have a high Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) that can harm some electronics. If a generator has over 5% THD, some sensitve electronics can be harmed.
Some furnaces won't run with over 5% THD and like you said it caused a big problem with your brother in-laws furnace.

[Slickcraft]

Here is a copy of Consumer Reports take on portable generators from Oct 2015. They show only the recommend generators of a larger number tested.

The #2 Ridgid is not shown in the current online ratings, don't know why. The Kohler is #2 in the online ratings.

I decided to buy from a local business, not a big box store. Ended up with the Kohler at NuWave Electric in Laconia. They do Kohler service right there. In test runs all of the electronics were happy as well as were the microprocessor controlled pellet stove and heat pumps.