Where to begin... I decided to purchase this product based on the Good Housekeeping seal and after comparing this price level of inverter generator against others. Generac cannot be compared to the Honda line of generators. Honda is the king and if you want the best, plan on spending double or more of what you will pay for this unit.I ordered my ix1600 and it arrived in the usual lightning fast order from Amazon. The generator came in a very sturdy and attractive box from Generac. The generator was very well packed and nothing looked out of order or beaten up once I looked inside. The unit is not shipped with oil so you must take care in adding the proper amount, which is supplied with your new purchase. I then added gas and even cracked open the owners manual to make sure I wasn't missing anything.
I then executed the sequence to start my new generator, and...nothing. Not even a sputter. I pulled out the spark plug as I thought I may have flooded it. Cleaned and dried everything off and tried it again. Nothing. I pulled the plug again, cleaned and dried it and then removed the air filter. I used a shot of ether right into the carb and still had no luck. All in all I spent well over an hour trying to get it going.
12-01-10 I tried to register the generator online but their website would not accept it as there was some technical error. I called Generac and had a representative enter it for me. I told him my situation and he said I would have to bring the unit to an authorized dealer for the warranty repair. Lucky for me the dealer is close by and they do excellent work. I brought the unit to them and explained the problem. They tried a couple quick things but could not get it to fire. They said they would get back to me.
12-07-10 I called the repair center for an update and they told me they were waiting on a part. They expected the new part within a day or two.
12-10-10 The new ignition part arrived but did not fix the problem. The dealer told me they called Generac and spoke with a technician who said it could be one of two other things. They had to send a different part out to try next.
12-15-10 The second part arrived and again did not work. Finally, Generac told the service repair center it must be the LED control module. The module was not stocked by any distributors and had to come direct from Generac. I took it upon myself to call Generac directly and ask about this situation. The lady I spoke with on the phone told me she would look into the matter and get back to me by the end of the day with a resolution.
12-16-10 I had not received a call back from Generac. I called again and spoke with a different lady who told me she would check with the person from the day before and she would call me back regardless by the end of the day. No return phone call.
12-27-10 The LED module had still not arrived from Generac yet. I was a little upset, to say the least. I then contacted the Better Business Bureau and filed a complaint. Generac later responded and said due to the holidays, the orders were delayed and they were closed for a few days, which I understood. They advised the part would be there shortly.
01-05-11 The LED module arrived and was installed. Nothing. The service center said they called Generac and spoke to a technician who "Didn't seem to know anything about the unit." I asked what the next step was and the service guy advised me they were trying to get Generac to ship a brand new unit. I called Generac and left a message for a supervisor to return my phone call. Nothing as of today.
01-10-11 Generac replies to the BBB and says they are shipping a brand new unit and hopes I will enjoy years of service with it.
01-11-11 I got a call from a supervisor at Generac who told me the new unit should arrive at the dealer in about 2-3 weeks. While I composed myself in silence, I advised the Generac rep that I had already waited over a month for a working unit. I told him that I only live about 6 hours from their headquarters and they could have it on a delivery truck overnight. He then said he will see what he can do to expidite the process. He also assured me each generator is tested prior to shipping them out. I called him on that because if the first one was tested, they would have realized it didn't work and we would not be in this situation!
01-25-11 The replacement generator finally arrived at the dealer. I got it home and I ran some tests. No 12V power! Unreal. I brought it back to the dealer who had to replace the 12V receptacle (part in stock) and attach some wires that were never connected from Generac! Again, not tested before it left Generac.
FINALLY, I got it home and finished testing. The 12V output is unregulated at 5 amps. This means the 12V will NOT shut down and will overcharge a battery if you don't keep an eye on it. Be careful about leaving it on a battery for too long. The 120V side tested good. My meter showed 120.1V AC at 59.9-60 HZ. I let the unit warm up and then placed an instant heavy load on it from a portable heater. Using my meter, the heater instantly drew 1,526 watts at 12.62 amps. The generator bogged way down and it took about 6 seconds for it to stabilize and put the full power out. While at full output, the line frequency, voltage and amperage all looked stable.
After the second part failed, Generac could have easily supplied a new unit. Even after all of this, they did not even offer to supply the next larger unit or add some accessory as a kind of "Thank you for putting up with the situation." This has been one of the worst purchases I have made in some time. Generac's customer support is virtually non-existent and it's obvious they don't even test their products before shipping them out. I can only imagine how I would have felt had I bought this for a true emergency.
Amazon didn't disappoint, the generator was on my porch on Saturday morning... we started up the generator and it has been working great! We used it for 12 hours straight through Saturday night and Sunday during the storm to power our sump pump... then used it Sunday to alternately run the refrigerator, garage freezer and television... and decided today to push our luck and power the refrigerator, freezer, computer, and router simultaneously... still, no troubles, its working great!
So, first thanks to Amazon for getting the generator to me in time.. and thanks to my Generac 5792 for saving my house from flooding, all of our food, and our sanity!
Buy Generac 5792 iX1600 1,600 Watt 99cc 4-Stroke OHV Gas Powered Portable Inverter Generator Now
I purchased this unit after doing a quite of bit of research. Price and the 2 year warranty sealed the deal for me. The unit arrived as expected and was very well packed. I put gas and oil in it (followed the owner's manual for starting the unit) and after several pulls, it finally started. I used the generator a couple of times on a week long trip with similar results. The instructions say to pump the cap on top of the unit prior to starting. More often than not, doing this only floods the unit and it then has to be drained of the excess gas. The second trip is where things went south. The unit would only start after over a HUNDRED pulls and would only run on full load with the choke on.Last month, I contacted Generac and they instructed me to take the unit into one of their authorized repair shops where it has been for over 5 weeks. The shop indicated they are waiting on parts from Generac. I called Generac and got nowhere. Spend the extra money and buy a quality generator because as the saying goes, you truly get what you pay for. I am going to buy a Honda or Yamaha and dump this one once it gets fixed.Generac 5792 iX1600 1,600 Watt 99cc 4-Stroke OHV Gas Powered Portable Inverter Generator
I purchased this unit to be used as a household backup and for use with a weekend business. First time out the unit only ran for an hour before needing a new spark plug. 10 running hours later the engine 'took off' with the overload lamp illuminated. I quickly shut it down to the smell of smoldering electronics. The unit was only loaded (electrically) to 30% of its rated capacity. I tried in vain to contact Generac for two weeks without success trying to get through their terrible audex system and no replies to several emails to their service department. I finally took it to a local servicing dealer. They have had this unit for over 6 months and have tried to obtain a replacement for me from Generac to no avail. Generac does not stand behind their product, nor do they appreciate customers. For all the trouble with this unit for loss of use / money / time the more expensive Honda would have been a bargain! Note that I'm an industrial engineer and thought that this would have been a good purchase on a price vs. use/need for me..... I was so wrong. I'll never purchase anything from Generac again. Note also that my 8500 watt Troybilt starts on the second pull and never gives me a hiccup. Generac is a scam provider, do not be fooled and learn from my mistake.I purchased this generator in anticipation of losing power during hurricane Irene. I went online on Thursday afternoon and after reading reviews was very insecure about the purchase but know Generac is a quality brand. I ordered it next day air and with my prime membership I got shipping for $3.99. Friday at 2PM the generator was sitting on my front door step. Saturday I broke it out of the box, followed the easy to follow directions and it started as expected. Power went out Saturday night and I fired up the generator. It worked flawlessly throughout the 18 hours we did not have power. It ran our refrigerator and sump pump along with some other small appliances without skipping a beat. Without a heavy load on it the generator ran for almost 7 hours on a single tank, much better than expected. The eco mode is nice as it moderates engine speed to the amount of power it needs, which was very apparent with the sump pump as it would run much harder during the short periods when the pump was running. I must say I am extremely happy with the purchase and have found no problems with the generator yet. While I hope we don't need to use it again it is certainly a nice security blanket.
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