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Re-post.....generator.....watts?

B

banjoman09

Well-known Member
I was still asking a few questions on my last post - I think once it leaves the front page it is history !! That's fine....just one more question ; I have decided to go with a small generator....is 700 watt sufficient for a fan motor and a few lights on a float? A good battery and invertor would run $150-170.00... Harbor freight has a 900/700 watt generator for $100 bucks...should be fool proof if it is big enough. Thanks.
 
The math is simple;700 watts divided by 120 volts= 5.8 amps of usable power. Add up what you are using to see if it is big enough.You will also need to check how much that inverter will pull from your system and make sure the wires are large enough also.
 
You really need to know the total amp draw of everything intended to run.

That can be determined by either adding up each item by the mfg tag, or plug it in and test with an amprobe.

With that information, a generator can then be selected.

But... Read the information carefully!

Most gensets give misleading information. Usually the advertised numbers are "peak" performance, not sustained load.
 
Surely you have an off season machine to borrow a battery from!
I haven't priced inverters. If they are led lights you can get a lot of illumination from 700 watts. The old obsolete Christmas light bulbs were 7 watts.
 
I have a 99.99 harber freight inverter. Is like 2200 peak and 1400 sustained. I think. It is good for parades. I loaned it to a friend during a ice storm. He was house bound. I showed his wife how to hook alligator clips to her new ford car. She just let the car idle 24/7.they were without power for almost a week. The inverter ran their tv. Refrigerator and two lamps. they had a 6000 generator. She couldn't start it. They lived 90 miles from me.
 
okay...bare with me...this is my first "rodeo" on this task Im wanting to do. The adds on Ebay that sell the blow-up float
characters don't list/ or say how much amps the item takes....not that I read anyway. I have emailed the one seller and he hasn't
said anything about the usage.... ...he did say it has 5- 7c bulbs and a fan motor. Plus Id like to add a string of lights around
the edge....so Im still wondering.....thank you guys for your reply's. Maybe I should look for a 1200 or 1250 watt generator?
Thanks.
 
I have that same little HF $99 generator. It will run a lot of lights and brush type motors (electric chain saw and string trimmer, more than it's 900 watt rating, but will not start a 1/2 hp cap start motor on a small band saw. Ask at the HF store if they will allow you to return the gen set if it will not start / run the intended load.

Otherwise it is a well built, quiet and smooth running little generator. Also weighs only 40 pounds.
 
I would just rent a generator for the weekend. 2000 watt Honda would run the Rudolph. If you're dead set on buying one just by a big one and be done with it. No sense just trying to buy the bare minimum, you can always use a generator, and you will have the power to add to the float more next year.
 
I would not worry about noise either pretty sure most of the floats will be running the cheapest generators they can find. Kind of the nature of a light parade.
 
You don't supply enough information to answer you question. Lights should be a steady current draw, you should be able to add up the current draw for all the lights. A string of 100 C-9 bulbs will draw 900 watts at 120 volts. The fan motor might have a high startup current and a lower running current, depending on what kind of a motor it is: a 10 watt computer cooling fan, a fan to fill an inflatable display or a 2 HP barn fan. Start the motor first, then turn on the lights.
 
Most stores are sick and tired of one time buyer user generators and don't allow that anymore. You put gas in it and it is now yours. Just go to a rental store and give them enough information to rent you one. I have everything from 900 watt to 8000 watt units. The little one will run an angle grinder or a refrigerator but that is it. You need around 3ooo to be comfortable. My 3.3k unit can run much more than the little toy unit. Also most of these smaller ones are 2cyl. Units so watch your fuel type! I would really go talk to a rental store if I could. Many of the Home Depot stores have rentals or they could tell you who is local and would rent you one.
 

Purchase something large enough for the parade to also operate the fridge, freezer, sump pump , microwave and some lights when the utility power fails. 3000-3500W units are common , low cost and will run enough to get by.
 
Those little two-stroke generators at HF often sell for $70 if you look around.

Doesn't your tractor already have a 12 volt battery? Lots of small inverters around to run lights that cost less then $20. This one is rated 500 watts continuous and 1000 watts surge.

My Pontiac Vibe (small SUV) has one built into the dashboard.
a178620.jpg
 
The $99 Harbor Freight generator is a 2-stroke; it is noisy and makes a lot of smoke. I know this from first hand experience.

The upside is that it is cheap, you won't mind too much if it is stolen, and it's better than sitting in the dark.

It is NOT an inverter generator. You will need to mix fuel for it.
 
I had one of those HF 700 watt two-stroke generators back when they were $69 on sale. Rated for a 50 to 1 oil/gas mix and I ran mine with 20 to 1. Did not smoke much even with that extra oil. I thought it was pretty quiet too, as compared to my older gens from the 70s with Briggs & Stratton motors. It is rated at 82 dBs noise-level. I found that it was over-rated power-wise. Mine could barely sustain 500 watts and would trip at a surge over 800 watts. Hey, for $69 - it was a good deal.

I bought this 3900 watt gen with four-stroke engine and electric start that runs on gas and propane for $80, shipped to my door. Pretty amazing deal.

That said, seems a $20 inverter 400-700 watts hooked to the battery your tractor already has is the way to go.
a178627.jpg
 
Where did you find this for $80 ??? Ill take one! My tractor is 6V...... seems if I just buy a small- quiet generator I can use it and not worry- and for other things also. Thanks!
 
I appreciate all the feed back guys.....I guess when so many opinions come in I just have to choose- it gets confusing....I may
want to run this operation more than one time...more than one parade....so renting is not a god option. Would rather use my own
equipment so I can just hook up and go. To hook to tractor- I would need a 6V-120V inverter; If I get a Rudolf that the head
rotates....the fan is on for air...and 2 or 3 strings of lights- I think I better get a generator. Thanks!!!
 
Nothing wrong with those little HF 700 watt generators for what you want to do. Obviously the inverter idea only works well if your tracctor has a 12 volt system.
 
Not enough information. How big is the fan? The run load amps and the locked rotor amps should be listed on the fan motor. The 700 is continuous watts and the 900 is surge watts. Basically the 900 watts will provide your locked rotor current for the fan. Also, how many lights, what type, what wattage?
 
hold on please...I haven't bought anything! Just looking...my goodness...it cant take much to run a 1.5 amp fan motor and a couple string of lights??? I will buy a 1200-1400 watt generator and be done with it! Thanks for all the reply's!
 
okay...thanks! Im going on Black Friday to find something- just hope the 700 isnt too noisey..? Maybe they can run one for me? But I doubt it! It will work......:)
 
I just finished the trailer I was getting ready for Christmas parades and checked the current draw. 8 stings of LED Christmas lights, plus a 6 foot inflatable polar bear with 6 of the C7 lamps inside it all combine for a draw of 152 watts so the little 700 watt generator should be plenty of power, but remember, most generators are sold by surge, not continuous, so a 700 watt will probably only deliver 500 continuous, but you still should be in good shape. If you decide to use an inverter, that will figure out to 12.5 amps, plus the inverter inefficiency, so figure 13 amps for my 152 watt load.
 
Update!!!! I had my trailer setup to run on a generator, and decided to try my 400 watt inverter. setup only draws 152 watts, so it should not be a problem. Wrong, inverter would not handle it. After some experimenting I discovered my inverter just did not like the LED lights. Both my inverter and LED light strings are a few years old, but for some reason it would not run certain strings. If I disconnected those 3 long strings all was ok. Inverter would not run just those LED light strings by themselves even though they were only 20 watts total. I have been an electronics technician for 50 years, started on on vacuum tubes and learned and kept track all the way up through digital and fiber optics, but this took me for a surprise, though it probably shouldn't have with all the strange things I have seen over the years.
 
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