NorthStar Portable Generator - 8000 Surge Watts, 6600 Rated Watts, CARB Compliant

I have owned several big box store Briggs and Stratton engine generators of this size. I always said if I ever bought another it would have a Honda engine. I just received it and put in some gas and oil, pulled the choke and it fired up the first pull. This generator is impressive. It is not silent but not as annoying loud as the Briggs engines let alone a Tecumseh one. I was surprised at the lack of vibration. It is really smooth running even when it loads up. I ran it on my concrete shop floor and I can not detect vibration in it and this is just the frame sitting on the ground. My old generators would have walked off due to the vibration. I believe this is a good generator for the price point vs. the cost of a full on Honda.

The North Star generator seems to be real good. The Honda gx started the very first pull and ran like a champ. Generators are very heavy and unless you are an able bodied man they are difficult to move around even with the lame wheel kits they sell. I suggest that you take it to a weld shop and have them build a wheel kit with four tires (solid rubber) and a handle on it so that it can be easily pulled around like a wagon. You'll probably have this unit for a long time so spend the extra money and make it easy on yourself and your wife.

This thing is way too loud. I can handle a little noise but this thing is loud. It is super heavy too. I built a ramp so I could roll it in and out of the trailer, sounds easy right, I nearly threw my back out. It does the job though, enough power to run lights and a 15.5kBtu Air Max II Dometic A/C. Next time I will fork out the extra money for a Honda inverter.

This generator is more than large enough for everything I can throw at it and then some. It makes power outages very comfortable / relaxed.I love this thing, has a nice Honda engine, reliable, powerful, great fuel efficiency, and quieter. I wired in a backfeed breaker with an interlock kit to use this for backup power at my house. I got a good deal when Northern Tool was having a sale and got free shipping and a $100 credit that I used for the wheel kit.The THD rating for the all copper wound alternator is <5% and is safe for sensitive electronics. It comes with a test report sheet giving you all the performance specs from testing at the factory.This thing really is made to last, built like a tank. As a result though, its a little heavy. I recommend the wheel kit for sure. I kind of wish it came with it, but with the deal that I got, I basically did get the wheels for free.

Brought this unit to replace an aging Generac prior to an ice storm. Ran solid for two days powering my boiler, air handler, fridge, freezer, microwave, TV, numerous lights. All this was with extension cords. After that I said never again and wired a sub panel with manual transfer switch and moved "critical" loads. Works like a charm when we get outages. Experienced another lengthy outage during a hurricane and ran a portable A/C unit in our bedroom for comfort. The tank holds enough for us to run about 10 hours on approximately 1/2 load. For maintenance purposes I suggest you run your generator for 20 minutes or so every few weeks to make sure you are not surprised when you need it. I would buy this unit again.

I have one of these. The generator head stopped working (excitation coil failure) and the head is unavailable. I'm stuck having to buy the 6500/6000 head and making it fit. Not pleased.

Standard 3 br ranch, this NorthStar powers the entire home. We don't switch everything on, but we could.Heat, Fridge, Fios (tv,internet), and all the lights we need.Last outage we had was for about 40+/- hours and it worked like a charm.I ran it for 6 to 7 hours on a tank, never running out. Just shut it down and topped it off.It's always started on the first pull, even in the dead of winter.Is if wrong that I don't mind loosing power any more or even hope for an outage :)I start it once a month and let her run for 10 or 15 minutes.Great investment...ps; get the wheels as she is heavy...