After speaking to several friends last week in the Williamsburg Va area the wife and I decided to go ahead and take the plunge and get a generator. It had been on our list for a while but we kept putting it off.
Next we needed to decide what appliances we would want working if we had to use it. Freezer, refridgerator, few lights, maybe a window AC or fans. Nothing more we could worry about at this time. Water can be heated on the outside stoves if necessary to bathe. We don't watch much TV, movie here and there. Radio would be good but not a major influence since we have portables with batteries. Few house lights would be good.
We ended up talking about a 5000 watt unit. But something new came into play....could she start it? We tried a few, she had difficulty as always.
Remote starts for these higher wattage units gets expensive.
Anyway, we ended up settling on subject generator and it arrived today.
Packaged well.
Simple to assemble in about 30 minutes. I believe some of the reviews I read on-line complained of poor instructions but if you have ever changed oil in your car you'll be OK.
Added oil, gas and it took off using the remote start key (like your car door opener). 124volts, 61 hz.
Overall I like it and believe it will do what were asking at this time. Not for sure on the long haul? Longest our power has ever been out is 6 hours, but our freezer loves to frost up when not running and it's a pain in the butt defrosting.