DeWalt's generator arithmetic

 According to DeWalt's web site -- and commercial sites that presumably get
their stats from DeWalt, such as
http://www.dewaltpowertoolsonline.com/Generators/Dewalt-Generators-DG6300B-Portable-Power-Gas-Generator.html
-
- the DG4400B, DG6300B, and DG7000B generator all have 4.8 gallon gasoline
tanks (OK) and all have 8 hour run times at 50% output.  Now, I can't imagine
that the DG4400B at half it's rated output of 4180W -- 2090W -- consumes as
much gasoline in an hour as the DG7000B at 3275W... that's more than half
again as much power output, after all.  So... are DeWalt's stats probably just
wrong?  Or if it possibly relatively gross rounding?  (E.g., DG4400B really
lasts 8.5 hours and DG7000B lasts 7.5 hours, both rounded to 8...)  Perhaps
the gas tank sizes are wrong?  Any ideas?

I suppose I'll post a question on DeWalt's web site and see what they have to
say for themselves...

Thanks,
---Joel

  While such an even round number will have to be rounded out to some extent,
other factors such as the model of the engine will come into play, as
engines will consume a base amount of fuel with no load, 50% load will add
to the consumption, and 100% load will drain the tank quicker. What are the
differences in engine size and possibly manufacturer between the different
generators?



http://www.dewaltpowertoolsonline.com/Generators/Dewalt-Generators-DG6300B-Portable-Power-Gas-Generator.html
-

 

http://www.dewaltpowertoolsonline.com/Generators/Dewalt-Generators-DG6300B-Portable-Power-Gas-Generator.html
-

imagine

Perhaps

In the Honda Generator brochure I figured out that the eu2000 uses the same
amount of gas as the eu1000 but is rated for higher output at that
consumption level which, according to Honda, means it would use *less*
gasoline than the smaller generator at the same output level.  Kinda hard to
believe.

 
Exactly... which seems to suggest that, if weight and initial purchase price
aren't a big concern (granted, the price difference between the eu1000 and
eu2000 is probably pretty big... although in my case from the Dewalt 4400W
unit to the 6300W it's about $200), you're better off getting the bigger unit
even if you're only using a small fraction of its rated output, it would
seem... plus you then have the extra capacity for starting up bigger loads
like air conditioners or refrigerators or furnace blowers.

---Joel

 wrote: