Ray,
Everything has changed. The Kohler 6.5RMY and the Onan 6.5 Commercial were wonderful units, but also both flathead twins, eventually discontinued for efficiency and emissions reasons, as I came to understand. Also, the American residential market was (and remains) almost exclusively about home standby, not off grid, and the major manufacturers went in that direction. Home standby is a competitive market, and generators aren't expected to run for many hours over their useful life, so internals can be cheapened and features to make them more like a home appliance are added. Many of us have customer horror stories about home standby units used off grid. I have written favorably about the Generac EcoGen here and in Home Power, as it's pretty much currently the only under-10K unit designed for off grid use. I have now had two at my home - we had a fire in May that took out an outbuilding and the gennie, and I replaced it with the same model, because it had performed well and there was nothing else to compete with it. Always starts, minimal maintenance, exceeds its rated output on occasion, doesn't require a separate enclosure, and is sealed against mice. Oh, and very quiet. So far the only disadvantage is the need for either an AC feed for the 8W phantom load to keep the controller awake, but a PV module and small controller on the starting battery will handle that one of these days. It's not just one of their standard units with different bells and whistles, but has hardened valves, lower (2,500) rpm, longer maintenance intervals, and other reliability features. I know all about Generac's otherwise-poor reputation, and am willing to stick my neck out about this model, as I think it's the best we currently have in this size range. My understanding is that the Propane Reliability Council (or some similar organizational name) was involved with sponsoring development of an LP gennie tough enough to handle off grid demands. They first approached Kohler, who turned them down, and then worked with Generac (all this is hearsay; don't quote me on it). Allan
Allan Sindelar
On 1/30/2013 10:41 AM, Ray Walters wrote:al...@positiveenergysolar.com NABCEP Certified Photovoltaic Installer NABCEP Certified Technical Sales Professional New Mexico EE98J Journeyman Electrician Founder and Chief Technology Officer Positive Energy, Inc. 3209 Richards Lane (note new address) Santa Fe, New Mexico 87507 505 424-1112 www.positiveenergysolar.com
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