[Axe Victim]

It's probably been asked before but we'd love to get some power down to the lotty to run saws and stuff. Would a 2.4 kvA generator be able to run a shredder properly? It works out at about 2KW and should, in theory, do the business (and is more than enough for the saw) but I don't want to fork out 200 squid and find it barely lights a bulb. There seems to be a great leap in cost if one goes for a higher rated generator and petrol shredders are a fortune, besides we'd like to run other DIY equipment as well, such as circular saws etc.

All advice and experiences gratefully received.



AVx

[grendel]

maybe you could hire one to try for a few days, remember if the shredder hits a tough bit it may take a higher current - if this trips the generator it may cause problems as you would need to clear it before restarting. generators with motors can be tricky.
Grendel

[grendel]

from this site you need 3x the running wattage for startup - http://www.justgenerators.co.uk/pages/calc.htm
so your 2kW shredder would need a 6kw generator (7.5kVA). just to handle the motor startup.
Grendel

[Axe Victim]

maybe you could hire one to try for a few days, remember if the shredder hits a tough bit it may take a higher current - if this trips the generator it may cause problems as you would need to clear it before restarting. generators with motors can be tricky.
Grendel

That was the wife's idea. Darn, right again!

[Gwiz]

If you should decide to go down the generator route, look at a brand called Loncin. They are one of the biggest engine makers around.

Very good value for money for what you get.