Generator output

M

mwerner

Joined
Apr 23, 2002
Messages
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As I mentioned in my "civil preparedness" post, i have a Coleman generator the kids left behind.

Found out this thing is like 11 years old, and Coleman no longer offers them, nor do they have any sort of owner's manual or documentation.

The thing is rated, according to the little plate on the engine, at 1500 watts. As a non-electrical type, this means little to me.

So, electrical engineering gurus; what might I be able to run with this little dude?
 
Not a Maytag washer. I burnt the motor on ours when we had a 5-day power outage after a tornado hit in early May.
1500 watts is equivalent to 15 one hundred watt bulbs. Not bad for a campout, but the watt consumption rating of the appliance you hook it too may not tell you all; include the START UP draw if it has a motor. Some household appliances can draw 10k or more on start up and it doesn't do them good with less. 1500 watts may be a peak rating, not continuous for your generator.
I did a search subsequent to the washer burnout and found plenty of websites with watt ratings of average appliances. 1500 watts is better than no watts hooked up to a freezer full of beef. Just match the load - the appliance repair may cost as much as what you were trying to save if you don't check.
 
Well, 1500 watts isn't very much.

As lu2236 noted, it won't power most kitchen appliances. It might be enough for a small toaster oven or microwave. It probably won't be enough for most refrigerators. It might also work for a small space heater, but I wouldn't count on it. It would be enough for an electric blanket.

Mostly, its probably useful for lighting and a radio or tv.

There is a chart located
here that might help.

Any generator is better than no generator in my mind.

-- Rob
 
Ah, that's a good site. I had no idea of the actual numbers involved

Looks like I could have gotten away with the TV with no trouble, but anything past that would be pushing it. Thirsty little devil, I noticed; the tank held a bit over a gallon of gas, and I had to refil after only a few hours of running.
I see on the Coleman site they offer whole-house generators with automatic-on circuitry. Expensive....but maybe nice if you lived in remote areas.
We were all back up within 24 hours, and there was no lack of services in the immediate area.
 
Thaks for the link - this discussion touches on a lot we went through too.

So... What if the law of electricity were divinely repealed? (I see a great disaster movie plot.) Some diesel trucks might keep going for a while, then the infrastructure collapses, all the SSI dependents freak out, riots in the streets -

Nahh. (Honey, where's my black T-shirt?)

We did ok, neighbor helping neighbor. That's why I moved to a small town.
 
Long ago, I read a scifi short story about an alien race who became appalled at our violent and pollution-ridden culture. They enveloped the planet in a field that cut off all internal combustion, all electricity production.

Presently, humans were all busy fighting with spears, crossbows, and swords....
 
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