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[schoppy]

I purchased my battery warmer on line. You just need the physical dimensions of your battery to be sure it will fit ok.

My carb heater is a factory accessory for my generator which is a Kohler and I also found it online.

The thermostat control I purchased at Menards called a Thermocube. It has 2 receptacles and turns on at 35 degrees and off at 45 degrees.

I can see the end of my generator that has the electrical wiring in it from my spare bedroom. Using multiple receptacle adapters I plugged in L.E.D. night lights to show me the 120 volt power is on at night and when it gets below 35 outside the other light comes on showing power to my heaters. No need for me to go outside in cold weather to check for station power to the generator or my heater accessories. 

[Roger2561]

I purchased my battery warmer on line. You just need the physical dimensions of your battery to be sure it will fit ok.

My carb heater is a factory accessory for my generator which is a Kohler and I also found it online.

The thermostat control I purchased at Menards called a Thermocube. It has 2 receptacles and turns on at 35 degrees and off at 45 degrees.

I can see the end of my generator that has the electrical wiring in it from my spare bedroom. Using multiple receptacle adapters I plugged in L.E.D. night lights to show me the 120 volt power is on at night and when it gets below 35 outside the other light comes on showing power to my heaters. No need for me to go outside in cold weather to check for station power to the generator or my heater accessories.

Thanks for the info. I need to do some research to find stuff like that for my generator seeing it sits out in the open with nothing to buffer the wind from hitting dead on.  Thanks again.  Roger

[smithbr]

Wonder if a battery warmer, strapped to the bottom of my 8K gas generator, would keep it warm enough so I could still turn it over at -25C?  I gave up during last night's power outage, I wasn't sure if the pull rope or my back were going to give out first.  Fortunately the boys had the juice on after a couple of hours.

[mlappin]

Wonder if a battery warmer, strapped to the bottom of my 8K gas generator, would keep it warm enough so I could still turn it over at -25C?  I gave up during last night's power outage, I wasn't sure if the pull rope or my back were going to give out first.  Fortunately the boys had the juice on after a couple of hours.

It would certainly be worth a try, get the mat style instead of the wrap. I’m not sure what small engine manufacturers think about synthetic oil in a small engine, but that certainly could be worth looking into as well.

I have a radiant style LP heater I place next to my portable if it doesn’t want to start, being radiant requires zero juice and warms the crankcase up fast.

[schoppy]

If I remember correctly my battery warmer was under it and all 4 sides too.

[smithbr]

Blanket type - good point; also doubt my generator has a port for a heater, like an engine block would have.

Now I just need a thermostat-enabled AC plug, so I only heat the generator below 0 F.  I know I've started it at that temperature before.  Maybe there's something in the block heater marketplace, for powering a car block heater only when needed?  Or other thermostat options?  Help appreciated.
Blair

[Bigbaddave]

 I was in my local Home Depot today and I saw a receptacle that plugs into an AC outlet for running icemelt  cables on gutters I believe it was made by Frost King would probably work good for your application  it has a thermostat built into it  and it wasn't very expensive I believe like $18

[smithbr]

Thanks, I'll follow up on that.

[smithbr]

So the Canadian version of HD has such a unit.  $80 clams, and utterly terrible reviews.  I'll keep looking, thanks for the idea!

[willieG]

I have a briggs and straton  16 kw generator and it came (I paid extra I believe) a cold weather kit-battery warmer and trickle charger, oil heater, carb warmer(it uses propane) that adjust to outside temps. warranted to start at -20F (Canadian province) perhaps your model and make offers such an add on?

[schoppy]

All this generator talk got me thinking I haven't heard my unit run lately. I went out to test run it and my starter just clicked. The battery voltage reads good and all connections are tight. Tomorrow I will try a different battery in case it has a bad cell but if that doesn't do it I will be calling for service. It is still under warranty but I hope it isn't anything big.   

[BIG AL]

I have a 1500 watt magnetic block heater that I use on a couple of the tractors and the diesel welder when it is very cold. Warms the oil enough to get them to turn over easier. I'm sure you could put that on a T-stat plug or plug it in manually when it was needed. But then again a lot of the new small engines have aluminum blocks so I'm not sure how that would work out.

[Roger2561]

When I arrived home from work yesterday evening, I saw signs that the generator had started itself sometime during the day.  I had replaced the battery with a new one, tested it and all worked great.  That new battery made all the difference.  BUT, I'm going to purchase one of those battery blankets for the generator as well as my tractor.  Roger

[schoppy]

Well I tried a different battery and my generator fired right off. Checked the cells and they were all dry like it had been overcharged. My generator has been in service since February 1 of 2016 and I purchased the battery in July of 2015. The battery had a 40 month free replacement so I got a new one and installed it and the generator operated fine. 

I checked the charging voltage and it was 14.05 volts. I made the sure cells of the new battery were full of fluid and charged it before installing it. The generator charger was still charging it at 14+ volts even though the battery was fully charged. I contacted the factory service rep who did the start up of my unit and he said this is normal and they only expect a battery to last 3 years max. He said the voltage stays at 14 volts but the amperage drops way down. It is no wonder a battery will only last 3 years if it never stops charging completely and doesn't go into standby mode.

I will be checking electrolyte level in the battery every summer but that may not prevent failure. My battery warmer blanket only goes around the sides but does a good job of keeping the battery luke warm in cold weather. 

[mlappin]

Not sure the rep is completely wrong, if your checking voltage while most any vehicle is running its not unusual to find 13.8 to 14.2 volts. its the amperage that counts in this scenario. Three step alternators are a different story.