{"id":15200,"date":"2015-05-29T17:30:01","date_gmt":"2015-05-30T00:30:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/?p=15200"},"modified":"2015-06-02T13:38:33","modified_gmt":"2015-06-02T20:38:33","slug":"drag-race-101-generators-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/drag-race-101-generators-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Drag Race 101: Generators, Part 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Gen<\/p>\n

Get a Charge out of This:\u00a0<\/strong>Picking The Right Generator, Part 2<\/strong><\/p>\n

In part one<\/a>, we began our investigation into generators. If you missed, the first segment covered power output \u2013 specifically, the amount of watts you need to run some pretty basic electrical equipment.\u00a0 This time around, we\u2019ll dig deeper into the features you should look for.\u00a0 You\u2019ll get a charge out of this!<\/p>\n

\"Something
Something to take note of are automatic circuit breakers. They are standard on many generators but some models do not have this feature. The system works just like the system in your house or shop: If a circuit is overloaded, the breaker trips and shuts down the power. If a generator doesn’t have this feature, you run the risk of overloading the equipment.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Charging Capability<\/strong><\/p>\n

Not all generators have DC capability.\u00a0 That means that you cannot directly charge a battery from the generator.\u00a0 In these cases, you’ll have to plug a battery charger into the generator, then link the charger to the battery(s).\u00a0 In many cases, the larger generators (in the 3000 watt range) do not have DC capability as standard equipment (although some have DC capability listed as an option).\u00a0 Typically, the smaller portable generators used at drag strips with DC capability provide 12 volts and 8.3 to 10 amps of output.<\/p>\n

Most often, small generators have shorter running times than their bigger brothers.\u00a0 In other words, they’re likely to run out of gas in less than two hours.\u00a0 On the other hand, larger units can run constantly without overheating or running out of fuel for ten hours or more.\u00a0 Some generators are of the four stroke variety while others are two strokes.\u00a0 Two stroke motors always require oil mixed with the fuel (either by automatic injection or mixed directly into the gasoline).\u00a0 While this might seem like a pain, two stroke generators are often lighter and feature more horsepower per pound than their four stroke counterparts.\u00a0 Take your pick, but I’d lean toward the oil injection models when it comes to portable two stroke generators.\u00a0 Naturally, if no-fuss operation is in your game plan, a four stroke powerplant is the only way to go.\u00a0 Besides, a good four stroke combination will feature electronic ignition to ease starting and to reduce maintenance (if you’ve ever tried to start a two stroke with fouled spark plug(s), you’ll know what I’m talking about).\u00a0\u00a0 Similarly, a good four stroke generator will include an automatic shutdown feature which stops the engine if the oil level falls too low.<\/p>\n

\"If
If the generator you select has the capability of operating on 120V and 240V, the generator will have a switch such as this. As you can see, this Honda system allows 120V only along with 120-240V selection.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Making Peace With Your Pit Neighbors<\/strong><\/p>\n

Noise is a problem that you should also concern yourself with.\u00a0 Simply stated, some generators are very loud.\u00a0 Other’s aren’t.\u00a0 Think about working on your car in the pits while a two stroke chain saw buzzes in your ear at wide open throttle.\u00a0 It’s not a pleasant thought and one which can prove to be equally annoying to other racers.\u00a0 Because of the noise factor, take the time to listen to several generators while they operate at wide open throttle.\u00a0 Buy a well muffled job.\u00a0 You won’t be sorry and neither will the other racers who pit next to you.<\/p>\n

Some generators come equipped with automatic circuit breakers.\u00a0 Other models do not have this feature.\u00a0 It’s a good idea.\u00a0 And it works just like the system in your house or shop:\u00a0 If a circuit is overloaded, the breaker trips and shuts down the power.\u00a0 If a generator doesn’t have this feature, you run the risk of overloading the equipment.<\/p>\n

\"Some
Some generators have DC capability. Others don’t. Having DC capability means that you can directly charge a battery from the generator. If the generator doesn’t have this feature, you’ll have to plug a battery charger into the generator, then link the charger to the battery(s). In many cases, the larger generators (in the 3000 watt range) do not have DC capability as standard equipment (although some have DC capability listed as an option). Typically, the smaller portable generators used at drag strips with DC capability provide 12 volts and 8.3 to 10 amps of output. In most cases you can\u2019t use AC power and DC power simultaneously.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Optional Extras<\/strong><\/p>\n

Of course, there are myriad options available when it comes to portable generators:\u00a0 Electric starters, two and three wheel dollies, spark arrestors, CD or electronic ignition systems, varied circuit breakers, automatic voltage regulators and an almost endless list. Larger capacity generators (the type which are permanently mounted in the trailer) are available with liquid cooling.\u00a0 A number of liquid cooled generators feature automatic shutdowns which operate when the water temperature becomes too high.\u00a0 On a similar note, larger generators are also available with electric start.\u00a0 Even some small generators feature option electric starters.\u00a0\u00a0 Many generators are also capable of handing both 120 and 240 V outputs.<\/p>\n

The bottom line is simple:\u00a0 Shop carefully before buying a generator.\u00a0 The market is loaded with hundreds of different generator styles and formats.\u00a0 Just remember to purchase a unit that serves both your present and future needs.\u00a0 Buy the unit that suits your present and future needs.\u00a0 You’ll never regret it…..and you’ll always have power on tap.<\/p>\n

\"This
This Honda 6500 series generator has a 6.6 gallon fuel tank. In operation, it can run constantly for over 10 hours. The generator cranks out 6500 watts at full bark and can momentarily produce 7,000+ watts for 10 seconds to start large equipment. Over the past five years, it\u2019s been dead reliable and it\u2019s a go-to piece of equipment.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This time around, we\u2019ll dig deeper into the features of generators you should look for. You\u2019ll get a charge out of this!<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":15196,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3448,11,9],"tags":[961,2729,281,139,461,55,321],"class_list":["post-15200","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-drag-race-101","category-how-tos","category-tech-tips","tag-drag-race-101","tag-generator","tag-how-to","tag-shop-equipment","tag-tech-tips-2","tag-tools","tag-wayne-scraba"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/Gen-Feat.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p42YSK-3Xa","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15200","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/20"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15200"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15200\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15544,"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15200\/revisions\/15544"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15196"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15200"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15200"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15200"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}