Cheap vs. Expensive Generator (Surprising Results)

**NOTE: We purchased both of these generators and all of the
opinions are our own**

Wea're a husband and wife team who bought 20 acres of bare off-grid land in North Idaho. Follow along as we turn a pole barn into our dream shop with an upstairs apartment!

00:00 Generator Face-off: Kohler vs. Predator
01:59 Generator cost, portability, and fuel options
04:03 Generator usability and output
05:17 Kohler and Predator generator performance test
07:36 Efficiency of heat pump technology
09:52 Generator fuel consumption and weatherproofing
12:07 Generator sound and maintenance
13:29 Warranties and extended service plans
15:49 Installing a smart thermostat
17:29 Wiring and soldering an auto start
23:25 Testing the generator

[alskjflaksjdflakjdf]

One thing to keep in mind when comparing against stated output is altitude, so derate by 3% for every 1000 ft above sea level. These are combustion engines, and around where I live generators can only generate about 85% of their nameplated capacity. Same goes for cars and anything else with a combustion engine. Great video by the way, and thanks for posting!

[waynedunham]

Your ladder setup at 16:40 gave me flashbacks! I'm a now retired career firefighter and had a ladder accident. I was up at the 2nd floor and the ladder slipped on the asphalt driveway. I ride the ladder down and my left knee went between the rings and hit the asphalt first. It shattered my patella into 7 or 8 pieces . I had multiple operations and was out of work for an entire year. BE CAREFUL!

[vincemarshall]

If you buy products with your own money then give an honest review of them, it’s more like Consumer Reports provided online for free. Nice job Riley!

[brianbeuning]

THD = Total Harmonic Distortion (clean power rating)
Kohler is rated for THD < 5%
Predator 13000 has THD < 23%
Appliances are required to support THD < 5%

With the Kohler, it can feed power direct to home and home appliances will be happy.
With Predator and direct feed, some appliances (like curling iron) may not work.
If you can set Victron's so generator charges batteries and inverters power home, then it will be good.
Battery chargers don't mind noisy power.

Thanks for interesting video.

[SX]

Wonderful comparison, I am impressed, HOWEVER, being a US Navy Nuclear Submarine Veteran electronics tech, I would have kept the Diesel Generator and put a remote start module on it. So much more robust and longevity would be at hand. In addition you guys are heavy users of diesel fuel which you keep on hand. 73's KV4WM, Dennis

[gordiehattrick]

Completely agree with @brianbeuning9279's comment regarding THD below. If you are running lights and sump pumps dirty power shouldn't cause any issues. But, with today's modern appliances, HVAC, TV's, Computers, Cell Phones, etc. dirty power is a show stopper. A very large percentage of the non-inverter Harbor Freight type generators (DuroMax, Champion, Generac to name a few) all have between 12 and 23% THD. Some of the larger Westinghouse open frame generators (WGEN 11500 TFC) have THD below 6% which is considered clean power. Inverter generators provide pure sine wave power, so less than 2% THD, but they are exensive! This is actually cleaner than power from your power company in most cases, they provide 5% or less THD. So, when shopping for a portable home backup generator, the first items on your check list should be continuous wattage output and THD. Your pocket book and sensitive electronics will thank you 🙂 Great video by the

[trainman]

I have a Onan P4500i that I have been running for a couple years now. It has just crosses 10, 000 hours. It is a small beast and has given me no issues. Very happy.

[mikeconroy]

Great evaluation! I spent about 35 years in the generator industry. In the end, what's best really depends on what you need it for. If I were going off grid, I'd probably buy a couple identical small diesel surplus gensets. There are several reasons why. While the up-front equipment cost is an important factor initially, the cost of making your own power over time should be a big consideration. A small 1800RPM diesel will beat any gasoline or Lp genset that runs at 3600 rpm, as the ones you tested do. The diesel wins on fuel consumption and durability and over a five- or ten-year period that will be significant. If you got 2000 hours out of either of those two gensets tested I'd be shocked. You can get 10, 000 to 13, 000 hours out of a diesel with a little Kubota on it. While the LP engines do very well wear wise, the 3600 rpm is what kills them. And, the general design is just not as robust as the diesel surplus gensets. Duty cycle is also very important. As you saw, what they claim and what they can actually do is two different things. If I had either of those gensets, I wouldn't base load them any more than 50% of the nameplate rating or they will come apart. If I were looking for a small diesel, my engine choices would be Kubota 1st, Yanmar second and Lister 3rd. I'd probably steer clear of any others. But, I guess if you don't mind the aggravation associated with correcting failures, you could buy 6 predators and deal with the failures as they happen and keep the good parts to repair the rest till they are all done. One other problem with all these Chinese built products is they constantly change things, so unless you bought 6 at the same time ( say, in the same year), they likely won't be identical. In the end, math will dictate the best value based on life cycle cost and fuel efficiency.

[donalddodson]

First: Riley, you are amazing! I have met other geniuses in my >70 years on earth, but you are one of the best communicators among them. Your insatiable curiosity is contagious.

Secondly, I would add one more test to them both: how RF "clean" are they. I would ask one of my ham radio buddies to measure the sine wave, spurious RF and then run them through a "whole house" surge protector & a UPS as a buffer for computer / "smart" stuff.

Thank you, all 5, for lifting my spirits! (Rain in LA Mesa, CA, now.) Blessings. 🙏🤲🙌📖😀

[themadpants]

That remote start modification is what I am here for! Very cool Mr. Cool!

[patzke]

I bought the first 13, 000 watt Predator generator from my local harbor freight store. I have about 900 hours on it. Zero problems. I love mine. I run mine easily on a 40# bottle which is stated as the minimum in the generator manual.

[alhubb]

Happy Birthday Oliver and Happy Easter to all!

[randallellis]

I am amazed at the knowledge you possess. I enjoy your families humor and the devotion you and your family possess. The content of your videos are very interesting and I hope you Courtney Oliver and dogs continue to give us the joy of your video’s

[johnhufnagel]

Before I even watch, I'll put it this way. after Hurricane Sandy I helped a half dozen people buy and connect the Predator 9500 units to their houses. WAY cheaper than CNG powered whole house units with a K on them, that BROKE constantly. People can still hate on HF all they want, but a lot of their stuff is pretty damn good.

[JonHosford]

As a broadcast engineer, I inherited a portable backup generator at a remote mountain top transmitter site that had been modified exactly like this. It received the start command from the automatic transfer switch. It worked every time I tested it on site with a simulated failure (pulled the breaker). But inevitably, every time we had an actual power failure, it wouldn't start. We scrapped it and bought a Kohler!

[ShaneGulley]

The coffee shop trailer by me has been using a predator inverter generator 6 days a week for 3 years without issue. For the cost they are really hard to beat. Of course I have heard stories where they were DOA too. Lol

[graemedalgleish]

Something to consider is a Whisper Watt, I have been on quite a few jobsites with them. They are trailer mounted, run on diesel fuel, and you can stand beside them and carry on a conversation.

[JeffHB]

Might add a stake in the ground and chain the Predator to keep vibrations from dropping it off that hill. I've never had to run one for house backup though, only worksite applications. Great video! I really like the expensive vs cheap/diy solutions for similar things.

[shield]

In my area of Canada we get occasional blizzards that bury us in snow and knock trees down over power lines. The Christmas blizzard of 2022 knocked power out for several days while dumping 5 feet of snow in -20 windchill temperatures. People without power were desperate without heat and water pipes freezing in their homes. Most of the whole home Generacs in my area failed due to the wind driven blizzard snow clogging up and freezing the Generac intakes. My portable tri fuel generator saved the day. I set up a garden shed to shelter the generator, by running the exhaust pipe out through the wall, and installing an exhaust fan next to the generator. Hooked it up to the Natural Gas from my home, and we ran worry free for days. Furnace, fridges, lights, etc all running just fine. It all cost me a fraction of the price for a whole home Generac system.

[randydiver]

We bought a Cummins to replace our Kohler. Love it. Works and works and works!