Champion Power Equipment 42436 1500/1200-Watt Portable Generator, Yellow/Black

I have only had it one day and only used it for testing at this point. The packaging was above average though there appeared to be some oil leaking through the box. Oil was on one side of the unit when unpacked. Easily wiped off with a rag and some 409.I attached the rubber "feet" to the unit put in the required .42L of oil and some gas. Turned on the gas valve and let it sit for a few minutes. Choked it, pulled twice and it was off and running!The machine, while not a $1000 Honda generator, is exceptionally, surprisingly quiet. Putting it in my back yard and coming in the house and you could barely hear it 20 feet from the door.The power sine is relatively clean but I would definitely run a small inverter between the unit and any sensitive electronic devices like computers. Most laptops have an inverter of sorts built in to the power cord so you should be ok but just to be safe.I had bought two generators prior to this one trying to find one that would meet my needs. One: It needed to fit on the tailgate cargo rack on my Jeep Wrangler. Two: It needed to power a fridge and a couple lights and a fan to keep cool if needed.I hooked my fridge up to it as well as two 15 watt CFL lights, a small box fan and a 100 watt incandescent light. It ran all with no problem. There was a noticeable dimming of the lights when the refrigerator cycled but the machine recovered quickly and held the power steady.It's light enough to be "man portable" though a bit awkward to carry. I'll be coming up with a way to carry it more easily. I can carry it with one hand full of gas and oil.At this point, I would HIGHLY recommend this product if you need a small easily portable generator to run lights, and small power tools, or for a quickl short run emergency genny. It will NOT run your house. But in the case of a power outage, lasting a couple days even, it will do fine to bring you at least "close" to your normal day to day routine.Camping, or working in a remote location, this is the perfect genny if you don't want to spend the money on a Honda or equivalent. Can't beat it.

Bought this on "prime day" as I've had it in my cart for over a year or 2 waiting for an exceptional deal. When it went for 159, it was finally time.I've been wanting it for mostly ice fishing, but figured it would be good for keeping the refrigerator/freezer running during power outages.I only tried it for 5 minutes, but first impressions are pretty good.After installing the rubber feet for 3 minutes, I put some Shell T6 5w-40 full synthetic heavy duty diesel oil in, a splash of old gas from about 2 years ago, turned the choke on and it started on the second pull. Pretty good for a dry carb and fuel line.My only test so far was on a 5hp shop vac. It seemed to bog it down a fair amount, but that is a pretty heavy load. The only problem I had was under load, the generator "walks" across the garage floor. At idle it didn't move at all that I noticed.The noise level was a fair bit louder than the honda inverter series, but I wouldn't call it excessive or annoying, especially if you can just place it a little ways from your location.I will probably update this review in a years time after I use it this winter.That brings me to my next point, I used the 5w-40 as some people said it was tougher to turn over when it was freezing outside using 10w30 or straight 30. Manual says you can use 5w30 from -20 to just above 0.With a good heavy duty synthetic like the Shell T6 I used, it should have no problems running on the hottest of summer days for many hours as synthetic is much more temp/sheer stable in the extreme temperature ranges vs regular oil.If it's good enough for the extreme pressures of a diesel, it should be ok for this little guy.

I bought this generator on October 25th, 2012 from Amazon, but just got around to actually running a full-blown test on it. I had started it a few times over the past year, but never actually hooked up anything to it. Well, today I decided to do it. That way I figured I'd be ready if another hurricane came blowing through and knocked out the power.Anyhow, I live in a 3-story townhouse condo, so I wheeled it out of my garage and set it up in the driveway. I ran the 30-ft extension cord I had purchased with it down from my 2nd-floor kitchen window to the driveway. I had also purchased a power strip, which I attached to the female end of the cord in kitchen. It took a few tries to get the generator started, but it finally turned over and then ran steady. It was relatively quiet too.I went back up to the kitchen and first plugged in the refrigerator. I heard the generator slow for a second, then steady out again. Then I proceeded to plug in a floor lamp and my kitchen TV. Everything worked flawlessly, so successful test. I figured I was probably pushing the maximum wattage with all this running, so I decided to quit while I was ahead and not try anything else.My only regret was I should have bought something a little bigger. This generator will be great for powering what I used, or perhaps for someone with a small camper. But I will probably also buy the WEN 3500W, Model 56352, from Amazon. I did extensive research on bigger generators, and that one no doubt is the best one for the money.As for this little Champion, you can't beat it it you just want something basic, primarily to power your refrigerator. I especially like that it is so small, so practically takes up no space in my garage. I also bought a small dolly to keep it on and wheel it out in, so it's very easy to move around. The time to get a generator, any generator, is BEFORE the storm; so you can't go wrong with this one just to have something on hand.

So, it finally happened after owning this generator for a year - a week long power outage where I needed this generator to perform. It did good. We ran the generator for about 12 hours a day with various household necessities plugged-in. This generator replaced our previous 5 kW when it broke.The good news: it supported our refrigerator, chest freezer, mobile device chargers and a halogen shop lamp. I like this generator for it's size; my wife can pick it up and carry it making it a bit more versatile than the 5 kW.The moderate news: it barely ran the set of things we plugged in. Everytime the refrigerator compressor kicked on the generator would struggle. If the frig and freezer both kicked on at the same time the generator died about half the time. We plugged-in a small space heater and that was too much. Upon inspecting the heater, it wants 1800 watts which is more than this 1200 watt generator has to offer. The heater did work when plugged-in by itself but it produced less heat than usual (that's expected).This generator is good if you want it for the absolute basics. If you want to run a heater, it is way to small. We've discovered that our baseline, cold weather power requirement is about 5 kW. I plan to buy a second generator (probably a little bit bigger) for redundancy and to support the other side of the house with fewer extension cords crossing the living space.

I've had this generator for about 4 months now, with about 200 hours on it. I'll try to break down everything I like about it and the only thing I don't.It starts right up on the first or second pull, every time. The only time it takes 2 pulls is if I can't open the choke quickly enough. If I am quick enough, though, it typically starts on the first pull. The pull is easy enough that my girlfriend will volunteer to start it, no hesitation.The autothrottle does a very good job of regulating output voltage. I was worried about putting some sensitive electronics on a generator (a timing system for a race course), but my power smoothing setup had an easy enough time that I tried running the timing system without it, and it did just fine.It seems to do pretty good on gas. It does not need oil mixed in, which makes it easy to fill up. I ran a couple crockpots, a TV, some speakers, and some lights (tailgating!) for 6 hours and it only took a gallon.The fuel gauge is easy to read. 'nuff said.The only thing I don't like... it's kind of loud, but that's what extension cords are for. If you want a really quiet generator, you can buy one that costs 4x the price. I run a 100' extension cord off of a reel and the noise isn't bothersome.Just make sure you run the proper break in with the oil (an hour + an oil change, I believe?) and change the oil every 100 hours thereafter. The first regular oil change looked clean, so I imagine the internals of the engine are pretty well manufactured.If you need a generator in this size range and don't mind a little volume, buy this one.

This is a neat little generator. It comes well packed but while doing the minimal assembly needed I found one fastener that was not tightened at the factory so be sure to check around for loose bolts.While not really noisy I can't say it's real quiet either, it's just loud enough for its size. I have a generator that's twice its size that seems a tiny bit quieter. And the exhaust is rather smelly. Not that you want to be breathing exhaust from any engine but this smells kind of bad. Ought to take care of any skunks under your porch in short order. The Recoil pulls easily but the engine rarely starts on the first pull; usually 2nd 3rd or 4th. I wonder how it will start in cold weather. This little yellow machine produces a good 60 hertz and runs my juicer very nicely. It also will run my circular saw and 4 inch belt sander (individually) . The power tools run but not as brilliantly as with a large generator. II have not checked precisely to see if I am getting the hours of runtime per tankful that is advertised. But I know it does not hold a lot of gas and runs pretty long. Loads vary in my use so it is more imprecise to measure gas consumption. I'm glad to have it and hope it lasts a long time. Put in good oil and keep it changed.

This generator runs well as long as you follow the directions in the manual. (Very important.) Don't let it sit once you get it, start running it and plug in a load once warmed up. I put in Honda 10w-30 power equipment oil and added Tru fuel with the higher octane rating and no ethanol. I have been running it often. I found that it will handle one higher watt load alone better by itself. (Such as a large fridge.) It will handle a mini fridge and a light just fine. It handled a larger fridge and a light but had issues when I plugged in anything else. (Under the watt capacity.) It will run power tools and my shop vac. It will probably run a tv and dvd player but I haven't tried that yet. Will update this review once I do.. This generator is perfect for keeping one or two things going during a short power outage up to 36 hours. Overall I am happy with this generator but if you want to run a whole lot of stuff at once you will have to get a larger generator with much higher running watts. Hope this review was helpful.

I am so happy I got this generator, the feeling of knowing I have something backing me and my family up while the storm roar outside is a big relief. Here in hurricane/lightning central, the power WILL be going out. It is inevitable. So you can believe we will be sitting on the PC with a fan going while we charge our devices and await the power company. A couple 30 minute breaks to run the refrigerator compressor and we are set.I broke this generator in properly, checked every bolt and nut and it is set well from the factory. They seem to have some sort of oil in it, nowhere near enough to run it (as stated on the box and generator itself) so drain it out and put in some good oil. I ran this thing no less than 8 hours (seemingly longer) on the 1.5 gallon full tank. It comes with spark plug removal tool and the proper funnel for not only changing the oil but also adding a tiny bit to the cylinder for storage.The fuel on and off switch is located properly so that the carb runs dry. This thing should honestly cost more than it does, but it's nice to have this price range for people who need a little power when emergencies strike.The unit it only slightly louder than my central air compressor. Grab some oil stabilizer and carb cleaner. Run this thing the right way and break it in well. It isn't too hard to carry, good weight balance overall and about 60 lbs. I didn't feel a big difference with a crankcase full of oil and tank full of gasoline.I am very happy with this purchase, it's great insurance.I am now a big champion fan.

I used it twice this year already, to power my furnace fan + fridge + some interior lighting. My appliances are all fairly efficient, so this generator runs the critical ones for me all at once. I have a couple of deep cycle batteries that charge from this as well using a 120v charger whenever it's running, and those provide lighting when I don't want to run the generator.The MAIN reason I got this is because I have a Champion 4500w generator that has run well for years. My only complaint was that the bigger one took so much gas to run for a day that power outages get quite expensive and involve lots of driving to fill gas cans. I don't need to run everything in my house when the power's out, so I wanted a smaller generator to keep the gas furnace fan running and the fridge cool, and this was the ticket for me. It runs about 8 hours on a tank of gas (1.25 gal), so a couple of 5 gallon cans will go a long way if you cycle the generator as you need it. In the last outage I used about 3.5 gallons over 3 days.Starts easily, runs a bit loud but it's not obnoxious. No trouble running the furnace fan and the fridge simultaneously, it ran like a champ even in the pouring rain and freezing snow. This generator if well maintained should be good for about 1000+ hours of use, and possibly more if you really keep on top of maintenance.

I give this generator four stars for the following reasons. ( I have only had it for several weeks.) Here is the good stuff.- - - great price, decent fit and finish, starts easily, does almost everything I would like it to do. After warm up, the unit produced 120V plus or minus 2 V and provided fluctuating 61 to 62.8 Hz with a 400 W. load. I have a freezer full of good stuff and wanted the unit to run my 3.5 amp fridge and a few lights. It did so with no problem. It is light enough to throw in the back of my truck. Fuel consumption is very modest but it must be remembered that it provides only ten amps (1200 Watts) Now for what may be considered as negative to some. I will not hook it up to anything digital such as my TV. I strongly suspect that the waveform is dirty considering the price of the unit. I do not have a scope to check it out though. My long ago Honda unit had a perfect wave form but cost considerably more. It is not worth the extra bucks for my needs. A Back-UPS unit between the generator and my computer may allow a safe feed but as I said, it works for my needs as is.

I didn't want the hassle of a 200 lb expensive unit. I've been following the instructions and starting it every 2 weeks and letting it run 20 minutes. Starts on first pull usually if you have the gas valve turned correctly. This size is to run a refrigerator or very small window AC. In the past I've just let my old generator (larger and heavier) just sit neglected for months/years and of course it wouldn't start when needed. I leave this one strapped on an inexpensive lightweight luggage carrier so it's easy to roll outdoor and test. 80cc motor. Big generators will need 5+gallons a day, this one 1+ gallon a day. If you gotta have everything lit up in the house you wouldn't be considering this one anyway.Update Feb 2021. Great little worker. Been working like a dog during our texas blizzard. Runs our 1500w heater like a champ. That's all the watts it can crank out. Great deal for $200.

I have been an industrial electrician for 30 years and have found that high quality tools are a necessity for work. Don't let this "off name" or "made in china" keep you from purchasing this generator. It is constructed of high quality materials, over head valves and cast iron sleeve and the generator is machined alunimum, not stamped steel. It has double rubber mounts for zero viberation. After 5 hours of contineous use at 3/4 load it used less then one gallon of fuel and the generator body was warm, not hot! It was packaged in 2 layers of very heavy cardboard and foam liner which could handle drops and extreme shipping abuse. I have put several hours on my unit with no issues. It starts easy, makes the transition from no load to full load and back again very smooth. It has the sound of quality, not a cheep sound. Also very quiet and light. My unit is not the one pictured, it is 1400/1800 watts not 1200/1500 as pictured, it also is 6.2 pounds heavier then described. It has the same motor, but i believe this newer version has a larger generator. It also has a fuel guage. It comes with a large full color seven step easy start guide. If you are considering purchasing this unit make sure what you expect to operate fitts into the watt range, also it is rated for 11.7 amps. Take the time to read the owners manual and follow all instructions and you should get years of trouble free service.

Ok. California wildfire threat had our utility co. shutting off all power -- again. THIS time I had this generator! It's somewhat heavy, (sturdy and substantial is another way of putting it) but I can pick it up to maneuver it, and there's always the hand truck to transport. (I'm a 71 yr-old woman- maybe a stronger person wouldn't need the hand truck...) It's sort of loud, but that's the nature of the beast. It ran straight out of the box (with oil and gas added) and ran and ran and ran. Sips gas, used no additional oil. I was so happy not to lose the refrigerator! Had a good light to read by, and tv, which is a bonus. Didn't run tv and refridge together, but probably would have been ok. So, it's not the fancy, whole-house, auto-flip, major power thing, but for emergency power, couldn't beat the price with a stick! I do live in earthquake country, in addition, so to finally invest in this generator, a good, long, heavy-duty extension power cord, and two easy-pour 2 1/2 gal. gas cans adds some security to my life. Glad I bought it.

This is my second generator of this model I have bought in the last ten years. My old one is still going, but is getting long in the tooth. I'll keep it as a backup as anyone who has hunted in the high country knows you can't be too prepared or redundant. So I'm basing this review on the performance of my ten year old generator as I expect nothing less of my new one. I am a Champion Generator fan, the only issue I had with my first one was a worn out fuel petcock and a broken pull starter. I called Champion and actually spoke to someone here in the U.S. and got the replacement parts no problem. I primarily use this for charging the batteries on my camper. I don't have a microwave or an a/c in my camper. If you do you may want to opt for a larger output generator.My only disappointment with the new model is that it doesn't have a 12 volt 10 amp output for charging batteries directly from the generator. My original one does and that has been a lifesaver in the past with being able to charge cold killed vehicle batteries and the camper batteries when my onboard converter failed.

Champion 1200/1500 Surge Generator,Just enough to run my fridge, ( I have a medium sized Fridge) At this price point for a traditional generator I don't think you're going to get any better. As long as I keep fresh fuel in it and do my part it starts on the first or second Pull. I have had mine for 4 years now I've used it on three separate power outages. As long as I plug the fridge in first and let it start up I can then plug a light in as well and charge my phone. Do you make sure that 1200 w is enough power for what you need before you buy this generator. It's not an inverter generator but because it's so small it's pretty economical on the fuel and not as loud as the larger generators.