Portable Generator Reviews

Portable Generator Reviews? – You’re in the Right Place

At the Portable Generator Grader, you’ve found your home for the best unbiased portable generator reviews around.  My name is Ray Bolger.  No, not the actor, just a regular guy who likes to look before he leaps.  I’m the kind of guy who window shops before making important purchase decisions.  I want you to understand that to buy a portable generator, also known as an engine-generator or a gen set, IS an important decision.

The reason that I started this site is that I was searching for my first portable generator and spent weeks trying to find the right one.  I was preparing for the power outages that happen periodically where I live.  I figured that even when there was no power emergency, that it would prove valuable around the house.

I have a large yard and could just take the generator out instead of running a 250 foot extension cord from my house to my tools.  Although I don’t go camping often, when I do, portable electricity sure makes the outdoors a bit less wild.  And believe it or not, my wife insists on taking her electric hair dryer into the woods.  I guess she wants to look good for the squirrels!

And yes, i eventually found the right one for me, but it may not be the right one for you.  But after going through this site, I am confident that you will find the YOUR perfect match.

To get started on your search right away, you can start by clicking on the BRAND tab on the menu bar above and select from many popular brands.  You might be concerned with price, then just click on the PRICE tab, where you will find the gen-sets organized by price level.

The Right Time

This site will help you if you are in the market for your first portable generator, or if you’ve owned one before.  Maybe you’re the one who has “gotten your money’s worth” and time for a new one.  Is this what yours looks like?

This one has seen better days!

Well my purchase was my first, and was more than just walking into my local home improvement store and taking one home.  I tried that first.

What I soon found was that there were so many differences and features to consider, that the sales associate couldn’t explain them all to me.  Gas?  Propane?  Wattage?  Surge?  Inverter?  Outverter?  (Just kidding, there is no “outverter”).  But that first day, the words just got jumbled up.  There were so many variables, there was no way I could make an informed decision without further research.

So I went home and started a web search.  I soon found that all the websites of particular companies didn’t provide all of the information I needed in one place.  These websites explained real well the features and benefits of THEIR models.  I can understand that.

That’s why I started Portable Generator Grader.  So people who are interested in purchasing the best portable generator for home use or many of the other uses, tailgating, camping, work-site, wherever, can find out everything they need to know to make a wise purchase decision, all on one site.

I found that for most people, the purchase decision is made for the occasional power emergency.  They want to keep their food from spoiling, maybe keep the sump pump running, and have a few lights on.  This opens up a whole other group of considerations.  I like to say that a happy consumer is an educated one.

The more I studied, the more I learned.  Kind of like school, huh?  That’s how I decided on my website name, Portable Generator Grader.  Although I don’t give letter grades to the various portable generators that I review (that’s your job), I write each of my reviews with the goal of getting an A+ on the reviews themselves.

Writing reviews is so important to me that every time I review a portable generator, I read reviews by others, visit the manufacturer’s website, read each available manual, and visit home improvement stores.  I do all the research and legwork so that you don’t have to.

The Right Choice

You’ll hear the term ‘standby generator’ which are units that you hard-wire into your home’s power supply and are left in a permanent location.  It automatically turns on when your home loses electricity and is meant to provide for all of your lost power.  These are typically 20,000 watt, fixed location units, and an expensive choice.  Standby generators are NOT reviewed on this site.  This site is dedicated to portable electric generators which are less expensive and more versatile.  You give up convenience in a power outage, but smart use of the available wattage will keep your basic necessities powered up.

To see how many available watts you need in your generator, for periodic use, or in an outage, check out the article on this site, How Much Power Do I Need?

When you decide that you need a portable instead of a standby unit, you have to decide what type of fuel to use to run the engine.  The three main choices are gasoline, liquid propane (or natural gas), and diesel.  There are benefits to each, but gasoline is the most popular.  You might hear about solar powered generators.  These are like the fuel powered inverter generators mentioned on this site, but use solar panels to charge a battery or bank of batteries which convert the electricity from DC power into AC power.  Confused yet?

Once you decide on your fuel source, you will decide on a standard generator or an inverter generator.  Inverter generators are gaining popularity due to their many benefits such as fuel efficiency, they’re the quietest generator, and produce cleaner power.  But they are more expensive than a standard generator that gives the same amount of watts.

So now you’re beginning to see how much there is to know about portable generators.

The most important aspect of making any purchase that is a bit of an investment is to be an educated consumer. You are making a purchase that should provide you with many years of satisfied ownership.  That’s why on this site, not only are several of the popular portable generators reviewed, but also basic knowledge is available through the extensive list of articles.

To view a comparison table of popular models you can click here.  Some of the features on the comparison chart will be better understood once you’ve read a full review on that model.

I tried to make getting around this site as easy as possible.  You can click on the BRANDS tab to see just the portable generator reviews and you can search by brand name.  Your can even search based on PRICE.  For those of you like me, who need to know all of the background, general important information, the Portable Generator 101 tab is where you’ll find your educational articles important to an informed user.

Be an Educated Consumer

In our Portable Generator 101 tab, you can read articles like How does a portable generator work?  A machine that makes electricity?  What are the basics of electricity so I know what I’m dealing with?  What is an inverter generator and why is it so popular?  What about safe operation for my family.  You need to know the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning.  You’ll want to know the why and how of selecting your proper extension cord.  How do you choose the right one?  What are all those plug configurations on the generator’s panel?

It’s all here on this site.

I am always available for personal contact for your individual questions.  Simply reply in the comments section of any of the reviews or articles.  I would look forward to meeting you.

You’ll find that whether it’s your first portable generator, or you’re thinking of an upgrade, all you need to know to make the right choice is right here.

Give yourself an “A”.  I’ll give you the “+”.

-Ray