There are four factors that you should think about before you can determine the best portable generator for your needs. A bad judgment on any of these four factors may cost you hundreds or maybe thousands of dollars on the wrong one; you may end up with one that consumes too much fuel (which you can’t afford) or one that will fizzle out in an instant (if you buy one that is too incompetent for your needs).
Below is the list of four important factors in choosing the best portable generator for yourself:
1. The Power Needed
Portable generators come in a wide range of power capacity so it is wise for you to get something that adequately fit with your wattage needs. You can determine the wattage requirement easily by going online and search for a wattage calculator. Add up the power usage of every appliances and lights so that you can determine how much of power your generator would need to generate at maximum usage.
For our house, we can get by with a 1000 watt generator when the electricity is down. Turning on the television set, a laptop and printer, and a few incandescent bulb would total up to about 300 watts during the night.
2. The Cost of Fuel to Run It
If you’re using gasoline, propane or diesel to run the generator engine, figuring out what the fueling cost would be like is important. Do also remember that fuel usage is closely related to the run time of your portable generator. Make sure to check the load size of the fuel tank to estimate the approximate run time of the portable generator. You would want to aim to use 12 – 18 gallons of fuel daily.
3. Price
When you already determine the perfect combination of the two factors above, do a little bit of market research and compare all portable generators available online and in the stores near you. The best portable generator would always generate you the needed amount of power, allows you optimum usage of fuel and also be economically priced.
4. Noise Factor
Now, noise pollution may seem to be a bit trivial, but believe me, it does matter. Take me as an example. Before I was married, I lived in an apartment building where it is prone to blackouts. And since I could not live in the heat without a fan, I bought myself a small portable generator – which was way too loud for its size. Yes, I was able to stand the heat but I could not even shut my eyes to sleep with that thing on. I bet you can just imagine how many complaints I got from my neighbours.
On the other hand, if you live in a neighborhood where the houses is at least a few feet apart, noise would not be a big factor. Or if you would only be using your best portable generator during emergencies like during hurricanes and snow storms, I would think that the neighbours would have other things to worry about than the noise coming from your generator.
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