Gas-powered generators are a common piece of equipment at remote job sites. Plus, many homeowners have generators on hand to prepare for a power outage. These small, portable generators are powered by gas motors, delivering wattage to power electronics, power tools and home appliances.

Yet, you need to match the generator’s capacity and wattage to your needs. For example, if you need to provide power to an entire multi-room home, a small generator wouldn’t be the best option. And if you need a power source at the job site for a circular saw, a mega-wattage generator would be more costly and deliver way more power than what’s needed.

So how do you select a gas generator for your needs?

Gas Generator Buyers Guide: Questions to Ask

How Much Wattage Do I Need?

Whether you’ll be using the generator to power equipment at the job site, or as a backup power source if your home’s power fails, you need to select a generator with the proper wattage output.  Home refrigerators, for example, have a running wattage of about 600 watts and a surge wattage of 2,000+ watts. And a circular saw has an average running wattage of about 1,500 watts and surge wattage of about 3,000. That means to start up a circular saw, you will need a generator that can support up to 3,000 watts.

What is the generator’s capacity?

Gas generators are powered by motors that use gasoline. The capacity is the volume of the gas motor’s tank, as well as the maximum amount of time that the motor will run. If you need a generator that will run continuously for long periods of time – for instance, as your home’s backup power – a larger volume tank is more ideal. Portable generators for the job site tend to have gas motors that can run for a max of 6-8 hours.

What features and items do you need?

There are a range of things to consider in terms of features and included items. For example, you might need additional items like:

• Power cord
• Oil
• Wheels
• A cover

Be sure that you know what’s included in-box with the generator you purchase. Special features include automatic idle, automatic safety shutdown, spark mufflers, liquid cooling and electronic start. Depending on the application, you may need a specialized gas generator. For example, worksites that have greater fire dangers often require generators with spark muffling and fire-prevention features.

How portable does the generator need to be?

Small, medium and large gas generators tend to come in a variety of configurations. Often, they have wheels that make the generator easy to move around to different pieces of equipment. Others are fixed, and they’re designed to be set up in one position. Be sure to select a generator that is portable if you’ll need a power source at different locations throughout the day.

Do you need a transfer switch?

A transfer switch is a piece of hardware that connects to your home’s switch box, and transfers the power from the main supply to the generator. This is needed for home energy gas generators.

Deelat.com is your source for gas generators. We offer an incredible selection of gas generators, with a range of wattages, and our prices are the best available. Start shopping today and save.