[SurvivalistChick]

I have been looking into getting a quieter generator because I know getting one of those super noisy ones is a bad idea unless I am sitting on hundreds of acres where outsiders would never hear it. I've talked to a couple salespeople casually, who basically say noise won't be an issue, but I beg to differ. I don't want people hearing the generator and trying to steal it, I remember that happening when Katrina hit (although a lot of the "news" about stuff like that in the Katrina aftermath ended up being not true, but I'd rather be safe than sorry).

Are there quieter generators than others? I am sure someone here has researched it so I thought it would be a great starting point.

I tried searching the forums but didn't find anything specific to generators that are quieter than others.

 

[Bearbait1]

Honda's small generators are about as quiet as you will find. You can get larger generators with silencing kits that are so quiet you can barely hear them running but you will be getting into big money. You can also direct the sound away from a certain directionby sitting the generator next to a barrier to deflect the sound.

 

[0dell]

Get a blue or red one.

 

[dneprdude]

honda is it.

 

[gpracer1]

honda is it.

And it only revs as high as it needs to.

I can run my 900 watt swamp cooler at just about idle.

I love my EU2000i :thumb:

 

[13FoxTrot10]

EU2000i here, 2 actually, one is the companion to hook em together. Excellent , gas sipping gennys. Super quiet.

 

[Halkon]

4 solar panels and some 200 Amp hour commercial batteries.

Use a mini generator (like 1200 watt) to back up the solar panels, runs about 3 hours on one gallons, but most days, you won't run it at all.

Of course you can't power the whole house.

Maybe a freezer, HAM radio, laptop and a fan

 

[Daggel]

Yamaha also makes really good generators, and the price has come down on them in recent years. The North Star Generators from Northern Tool are good, and inexpensive too. Anyone can make just about any generator quieter, just add pipe and a muffler, it doesn't cost a lot and you don't necessarily have to have a welder. I repacked a muffler I got for free at a junkyard to use on mine.

 

[TraderBob]

You can also install it below ground, make a vented insulated cover, install a larger muffler, or even run the exhaust out in a barrel of water.
You can quiet them down enough so the only thing you hear is the engine mechanicals.
Google brings up a wealth of information on quiet operation.

 

[Meat Guy]

The RV generators are usually quieter than the portable. For a stationary unit, look into a rock crib for intake and exhaust. The slower the engine, is usually quieter. Usually the specs. show the db's of the generator.

 

[Chey's Daddy]

onan or rv generators are generally good and alittle more quiet and lower rpm

 

[Bontemps3]

We sandbagged around ours in the Army; worked very well on our 5kw gens.

 

[prepperintraining]

+1 Honda eu2000i

 

[Teslin]

+1 Honda eu2000i

+2 hondas (eu2000i) with connector here ... very quiet .. very very quiet .. they are still sleeping in their boxes. My husband is afraid to start them up because then he has to remember to run them once a month ... but we have them ... just in case.

 

[Sooner_Will_Survive]

I have been looking into getting a quieter generator because I know getting one of those super noisy ones is a bad idea unless I am sitting on hundreds of acres where outsiders would never hear it. I've talked to a couple salespeople casually, who basically say noise won't be an issue, but I beg to differ. I don't want people hearing the generator and trying to steal it, I remember that happening when Katrina hit (although a lot of the "news" about stuff like that in the Katrina aftermath ended up being not true, but I'd rather be safe than sorry).

Are there quieter generators than others? I am sure someone here has researched it so I thought it would be a great starting point.

I tried searching the forums but didn't find anything specific to generators that are quieter than others.

solar panels and a turbine

 

[Sooner_Will_Survive]

+2 hondas (eu2000i) with connector here ... very quiet .. very very quiet .. they are still sleeping in their boxes. My husband is afraid to start them up because then he has to remember to run them once a month ... but we have them ... just in case.

better to start them now and run them shoot even every 3 or 4 months a pop then to have to need them and find out neither works ;-)

 

[crankyfarmer]

I have a Coleman 5000 Watt generator. I swear they intentionally made it loud enough to drown out the end of the world. Without ear protection it is uncomfortable to be with in 50 ft of it. I am going to weld a car muffler on to it.

 

[gbm75]

I have a Honda EU1000i that i bought to run the tv I installed in my teardrop trailer. I've been in campgrounds from Yosemite to RV parks on the east coast & run the thing all night with neighboring campers not even realizing I was running it. The whole series is ultra quiet.

 

[Tundrascout]

If you are going to house it inside something to decrease the noise, make sure that the sides are super rigid and braced so as to limit the amount of expansion of unbraced surface material of the housing. These open spaces turn into mini type drums that transmit the hum of the generator by buckling/vibrating. Industrial Gensets use this technique (Also called tuning) along with aiming the exhaust outlet and cooling fan outputs straight up toward the sky, (Above normal ear level).

Some insulating foams will burn readily and/or melt in gas vapor, so be carefull if you go that route.

I'll take a solar panel over a 13% active wind turbine any day.

 

[gcvt]

I have a Coleman 5000 Watt generator. I swear they intentionally made it loud enough to drown out the end of the world. Without ear protection it is uncomfortable to be with in 50 ft of it. I am going to weld a car muffler on to it.

I had a Coleman 1850w with the 150cc Briggs & Stratton motor - that thing was L-O-U-D! Thankfully, it spun a bearing after 10 years which forced me to buy an EU2000i. Couldn't be happier