Recommended Generator for Supplying Power to Refrigerator and Other Household Items

Question:

I am looking at the A ipower 2000 watt inverter generator. I live in Puerto Rico and as you know the hurricane hit us kind of hard. I need to power my house, at least fridge, tv and maybe some lights...would this generator help me. Appreciating extremely your fast reply. Been without electricity for a month plus 2 weeks. Cordially

asked by: Nellie V

Expert Reply:

In order to determine what size generator you will need, it's best to locate the electrical demands of the equipment that you want to operate. You will want to look for both the starting output (the power it takes to start an appliance like your refrigerator) and the running output (the power it takes to keep it running) in watts. This information should be listed on the appliance itself.

Once you have this information, you will want to determine the total running wattage for the devices you are wanting to plug into the generator. After finding the running watts for each device, you will add them all together to get the total running wattage. You will then need to determine the total starting wattage for your devices by finding out which device requires the most starting (surge) watts. You will add this value to the total running wattage you calculated.

While the wattage can vary, typically a refrigerator will require around 1,600 starting watts and 800 running watts. A standard television won't require any wattage to power up but needs around 100 to 150 running watts. You will then just want to add the wattage needed for your lights, as this will vary greatly depending on how many you are needing, their style, etc.

Just looking at the refrigerator and TV, you will likely need a generator that supplies at least 2,500 watts of starting power (1,600 watts for starting the fridge + 800 for running it + 100 watts for running the TV). And this is without factoring in your lights or anything else you might want to power. With this in mind, the A-iPower 2,000-Watt Inverter Generator # 289-SUA2000I referenced in your question is likely not going to be enough for what you are needing it for.

A better option might be the A-iPower Inverter Generators w/ Parallel Kit # 289-SUA2000I-2. This is actually a pair of the 2,000-watt generators that you were looking at that can be run in parallel to get 3,800 starting watts (and 3,000 watts running) of power. These are very nice, portable generators that feature an easy-start engine and quiet operation. The 4-stroke engine uses standard unleaded gas.

I have attached a short video demonstration on this product that you can take a look at. I have also included an article on generators that you might find helpful, as well as a link that will take you to our available selection. Depending on what else you are needing to power, you might benefit from a generator with even more power. You can filter through the different wattages by using the facets on the left side of the page.

I really hope your power gets restored soon!