The Best Features:
- 3500 peak, 3000 running watts
- 4 Gallon fuel tank with fuel gauge
- 11 hrs. Run time at half load
- Automatic low oil engine shutdown
- Non-CARB Compliant/Not For Sale In California
Amazon saved the day! By Jeff
I'm going to break this review up into 2 parts, one reviewing the product and one for my Amazon experience related to it.
Amazon Experience:
I live in Alabama, which was recently hit extremely hard by tornadoes and severe weather. After the tornadoes hit all around where I live, the power infrastructure had major problems. As expected, generators were in extreme demand, none to be found in probably 100-200 miles. The storms hit Wednesday, on Thursday I had the bright idea to hit up Amazon since I had Amazon Prime. I purchased this generator and had it arrive the next day for only $4 shipping. So I have to give major credit to Amazon and their service. Instead of driving far away, battling insane crowds, and using up precious gasoline at times like these to go find a generator, I got one the next day delivered to my doorstep at a great price and barely any shipping costs!
The Generator:
It got me some basic power back up for my fridge/freezer, charge phones and things like that. I didn't really stress it that much, the priority was my fridge/freezer. But this thing did a great job. It wasn't as loud as I expected to be honest. I was highly pleased with the gas usage, it ran all night and I still had between 1/4 and 1/2 tank the next morning when I checked it. We were out of power for about 5 days, and this generator did it's job nicely. Also it's not all that heavy so it can be portable as needed. Not stout enough to power a ton of things at once, but can definitely get you by in an emergency situation.Very well designed generator By wisconsin-knight
I purchased this generator because I wanted a small generator that would provide both 120 and 240 volts. You have to read the generator descriptions very carefully because they are generally written by someone who has little electrical knowledge or they are written by the company and are sometimes misleading. For instance, this generator would be rated at the surge capacity of 3500 watts by many manufacturers instead of the 3000 watts that Amazon lists. The generator started at the first pull and I purchased an RV plug to connect to the circular twistlock plug that comes with the generator. This plug costs about twenty dollars but is included with the generator. I wanted to be able to get the full output at 120 volts so I put in a call to the phone number painted on the generator and found the people manning the phones didn't know what they were talking about. I put in an inquiry at Wen's website and got a call the next day from someone who was very helpful. So here is the deal: When the 120/240 switch is set at 120, the full 25 amps is available at either of the 120 receptacles. When the switch is set at 240, 120 volts is available at the twistlock and so is 240 volts. But, since the two outputs of the generator are now in series, you can only pull reduced amperage of about 13 amps from either the 120 or 240 volts, but not both. This is a very good design and so far the generator has never failed to start on the first pull. I am very pleased with it. I have an associate degree in electronics and have a good deal of experience in this are.nice low entry portable generator. great design 120/240 volt By donny
UPDATE! APRIL 10TH,2013 the rope on the pull start recoil broke. i called wen and they sent a whole recoil assembly free of charge. it took 5 minutes to change. i put a new rope on the OLD recoil and i have a spare in case it happens after warranty expires... STILL RATE 5 STARS!
shipping took 6 days from ordering to delivery and it was free. ups delivered the box in great condition.
i'm impressed with this unit. simple to attach wheels and handles. it included all tools necessary to assemble. self locking fasteners that are provided is a plus, no need for locktite to keep it from vibrating apart. the oil plug is easy to get to. i use this measuring container that has a hong clear tube with twist on/off built in that was made for such applications. i checked over the generator quickly, looking for any obvious problems that may have developed from it's long journey from china. i found none. i put in 4 gallons of fresh gasoline, 21 ounces of royal purple synthetic 5W30 oil. it calls for 20 but it needed 21 to get it to the second thread of the oil inlet as recommended in the manual. 20 would have been okay. the engine (nice looking honda clone)is labled 7 horsepower and 212cc, not 6.5 and 197cc as advertised at amazon.. i did notice the carb is made in japan,. it fired up on the first pull, stuttered a couple times and smoothed out nicely. i let it reach operating temerature and run 1/2 hour before putting a load on it. probably not something needed each time it's used, i just did it for a quick break in. it's alot quieter than i thought. i'll not hear it run during outages if i have it inside my shed which is 75 feet away. it's 2 year warrantyis a plus. the company wen is an older american company with a rich history of making and designing products that others have copied or reproduced for generations.
i purchased this small generator for our numerous, extended A.E.P. power outages and to supply power to my barn and out buildings as needed. i will only use the 120/240 switch to supply 240volts of power to my well and pressure tank as needed during those outages, probably only once or twice a day as my holding tank is over 80 gallons. i have taken the supplied L14-30 male nema twistlock plug and attached it to an 4 foot long piece of 12-2 guage nomex wire with a nema 6-20 P plug (3 wire)that i have set up to plug directly to my pump that i hooked to a nema 6-20 R recepticle to. this will prevent someone from inadvertently plugging a standard 120 plug into 240 volts. i have it set up to work ONLY when it is disconnected from my main breaker so as not to have feedack into the grid. an electrictian friend advised me that it is appropriate to wire the neutral and ground on the L14-30 plug as one as my well is connected to my homebreaker with a 12-2(3 wire, 2 hot and a ground) underground feeder. neutral wires are basically grounded wires in most all dwellings
please note: i took this info from a description of a honda generator and changed some figures and some wording to try to explain how i interpret how the wen 3500 was designed and how the 120/240 switch works. READ YOUR MANUAL PLEASE
the 120/240 switch is a great feature offered on some quality generators with 120/240V capability. The voltage selector switch allows you to choose between operating the generator at both 120V and 240V simultaneously, or at 120 only with full power.
some generators with 120/240V capabilities have two separate main windings( SUCH AS THE WEN 3500). Each winding is capable of the same output. In the 120V only position, power is maximized for 120V usage and 240V is not available. In the 120/240V position, power is maximized for 240V output but current is reduced by 50% for each 120V receptacle. How? The voltage selector switches the two main windings from a SERIES connection for the 120/240V position to a PARALLEL connection for 120V only.
If the generator is in the 120V only position, you can get the maximum power (25A) out of the 120V receptacles and 120 volts (25A) from the nema L14-30 twistlock outlet.
But in the 120/240V position, only half of the power, or 12.5A, is available on each side. It's almost like taking it and making it into two 1,500 watt units. In the 120V/240V position, you cannot get the full power from the 120V 20A receptacleS. You can get a maximum of 12.5A only.
So in a nutshell, the voltage selector switch allows you to get maximum power from each of the 120V receptacles. it's recommended that the voltage selector switch always be in the 120V position unless 240V is required.
The voltage selector switch is a great feature that is not available on many competitive generators.
Switch Positions and descriptions
120V/240V Mode
The voltage regulator switch is set at 120/240 volt. The two 1500 watt windings are connected in series. You can only get 12.5A from any 120V outlet. 240V IS available.
120V Only Mode
The voltage regulator switch is set at 120 volt only. The two 1500 watt windings are connected in parallel. You can get the maximum power from any 120V outlet, but 240V is NOT available.
NOTE: IF YOU ARE USING ONLY 120 VOLTS, KEEP SWITCH IN THE 12O POSITION, EVEN THOUGH IT WILL WORK IN EITHER POSITION. THIS MIGHT HELP KEEP YOU FROM OVERWORKING THE UNIT UNNECCESSARILY AND PROVIDE MAXIMUM USAGE OF AVAILABLE CURRENT The Best-Selling WEN 56352 3500 Watt 212cc 7 HP OHV Gas Powered Portable Generator with Wheel Kit then to sell out very fast, if this is a must have product, be sure to order now to avoid disappointment.
