Portable Generator Question

John B.

Well-known Member
Why are most portable generators that people list on Facebook Marketplace so cheap?
Is it they don't have a use for it or something they thought they needed and don't?
When I say cheap, I think the asking price is low for most of them. That's just me!
 
Maybe cheap China big box store units that went bad and they find out there's like no parts or service ?? Just saying Or they are loud screaming 3600 RPM open construction type

John T
 
(quoted from post at 13:56:56 07/18/20) Why are most portable generators that people list on Facebook Marketplace so cheap?
Is it they don't have a use for it or something they thought they needed and don't?
When I say cheap, I think the asking price is low for most of them. That's just me!
've seen that too and figure it probably needs a carb cleaning and thorough check of the fuel system. Then you might have a decent generator at a decent price. People buy them during a power failure and then they sit around a few years before they are needed again. By the time you need it again, it won't start.
Another thing I saw once was a generator that somebody set beside the road. My neighbor picked it up and brought it home. The engine ran fine but it wasn't putting out anything. I stuck a drill in the 110 plug, squeezed the trigger and spun the chuck by hand and it took right off. I read about that somewhere and it works.
 
Haven't seen too many like that, but I would guess that it doesn't run right and they don't want to pay someone to fix it for them. I missed one like that at a garage sale a couple of years ago, looked like a good deal, but I was driving my motorcycle. I could of paid for it and went home and got my truck, but someone else bought it.
 
personally; I would only buy a propane fueled one. I've had gas ones and you can't let them sit with gas in them, for sure. just letting them set is bad enuff! For sure on gas ones, buy premium fuel as at least it has a shelf life!
 
(quoted from post at 07:04:59 07/19/20) personally; I would only buy a propane fueled one. I've had gas ones and you can't let them sit with gas in them, for sure. just letting them set is bad enuff! For sure on gas ones, buy premium fuel as at least it has a shelf life!
remium fuel doesn't have any different shelf life from regular gas. And I agree that propane solves the problem of sitting around for long periods of time.
 


I've paid as little as $5.00 for a gen and only had to drain the fuel system and add a new $11.00 replacement carb off Ebay to have a nice 5000W genset. In short, people don't want to mess with fixing anything these days.
 
(quoted from post at 16:23:19 07/18/20) Check the manufacture date and don't buy ones
made in 1999, If any survived this long.
Bought ours in 99 - as a talisman to ward of the Y2K demons . . . we run it for 10 mins every 6 months . . . works just fine, not had a decent power outage for years :)) :)) .
 
You find all kinds of people out there and I have to agree with the pervious post that people don't want fix things today (lazy/uneducated) so they just get rid of them.

I have also noticed a significant price reduction on most things on FB. Working from home many days I would surf Marketplace to see what was out there and I couldn't believe some of low numbers. Had to resist chasing deals but I reminded myself that I have more than enough projects going now to keep me busy for a long time.
 
Because most of the cheap ones. No one wants to or can work on them. Parts for some can be very hard to find. If at all.Some buy units that are not what they really need. So it is be stuck with it. Or try to sell it.

Y2K (a big joke) sold more generators. Than anything in history. After Y2K I had people offering me generators.Make offer please. Just so they could get rid of them
 
When someone has a lawnmower or rototiller that is not working right they justify spending the money to fix it because they need it and repairs are less expensive than replacement.

A generator purchased to be used for the occasional power back up will sit around for years then as would be expected it will not start and run like it did when it was brand new.

Now the mindset turns to I have not used this thing in 5 years so why should I spend money on it now.
Might as well cut my losses and sell it as is.

Same thing goes with snowplow blades for pick up trucks, snow blowers for tractors and walk behind snow blowers.

After 3 or 4 years of mild winters they are a dime a dozen, buy them up and wait for a stormy year and you will pocket a nice profit.
 

Premium fuel usually does not contain ethanol so there is less carb damage .
After a year in storage . Premium fuel has more octane than 87 octane that has been in storage for a year .
 
(quoted from post at 12:26:32 07/19/20)
[b:494e139f4e]Premium fuel usually does not contain ethanol so there is less carb damage[/b:494e139f4e] .
After a year in storage . Premium fuel has more octane than 87 octane that has been in storage for a year .
he bolded statement is incorrect.
 

Next time in town I will take a picture of the gas pumps and post the info . 87 octane 10% ethanol . 89 octane 5% ethanol and 91 octane 0% ethanol .
Canadian Tire Gas Bar . Fuel trucked in from Sarnia Shell refinery .
If ethanol was a good idea in gasoline . The stuff would be allowed in a aviation gasoline .
 
(quoted from post at 15:31:49 07/19/20)
Next time in town I will take a picture of the gas pumps and post the info . 87 octane 10% ethanol . 89 octane 5% ethanol and 91 octane 0% ethanol .
Canadian Tire Gas Bar . Fuel trucked in from Sarnia Shell refinery .
If ethanol was a good idea in gasoline . The stuff would be allowed in a aviation gasoline .
erhaps I could have been more clear. Here in the United States (where I live) federal law requires all gasoline for highway vehicles to contain ethanol. The percentage of ethanol does not vary based on regular or premium.
 
I called Shell corporation once and they claimed all grades of their motor fuel contained ethanol. Perhaps Canada is different.
 
Yep, a moisture magnet for parked aircraft. Also your range would be cut shorter. There goes all your performance charts in the
POH.

I don't hear of any corn producers clamoring for ethanol powered tillage or harvesting equipment or haul trucks. John Deere will
no doubt soon be releasing ethanol powered tractors to support the farmer's efforts at sustainable fuel.
 
Here in central Wisconsin many gas stations have one grade of gasoline that does not contain ethanol. At Mobil it's their Super+. Fleet Farm, middle grade. None that I
know of have regular without ethanol. Your statement that "all" gasoline for highway use must contain ethanol is not correct. A certain percentage of it , but not all.
 

If the election had went the other way as corporations expected . The Tier V emissions regulations would be signed into law.
This is why GM developed the 6.6L 401HP DI gas engine . For medium and light duty applications where a Tier V diesel would not operate hot enough and long enough under high enough sustained load .
It is also why Kubota has spark ignition engines that are a direct bolt in swap for their diesel applications under 100HP.
Given how most of the world applies a luxury tax on gasoline and most operators want the lowest price to fill the fuel tank . Plus there are also some customers that want a diesel no matter if it is the best choice for the application or not .
There will always be some diesels in the small light and medium duty market .
 
INTERNATIONAL HARVESTER DID TESTING ON ETHANOL as a fuel for their 400 series engines back in the late 1970's, early 1980's.
 

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