I have another microwave question, but first I have to tell you about this.
In 1988 I bought a small Honda generator. It's about the size of a large bread-bin and weighs ~ 40lbs.
It only produces 1000w of power, so it won't run an electric kettle or a hair dryer, but it will run things like a TV, a light, or a microwave oven. I know that might seem a bit restrictive, but prior to it's purchase, our only source of electricity was a 12 volt battery.
For us, it was like moving in to the space age.
| Click to see full-size image. |
As good as it was, (And let me tell you, when it comes to engines Honda are pretty damn good) it did have it's drawbacks. These were mainly to do with it's tiny size.
For one thing, the petrol tank only holds about a pint. so long winter evenings meant at least one re-fill. Usually during a rain-storm or in the middle of a good film.
Another problem was the capacity of the tiny sump. This only held about half a cup of oil, which of course was adequate for such a small engine, but it did get dirty really quickly.
You see when an engine burns petrol, it produces waste in the form of ash and carbon. Most of this filth is carried away by the exhaust gasses, but some is deposited on to the piston and cylinder, where it is picked up by the oil.
Oil is an engines life blood, it allows moving metal parts to rub against each other without causing damage, but if that oil is contaminated, it becomes abrasive, like grinding paste, and it will kill your engine in no time.
I used to change the oil in the little generator once every two days, but in between oil changes, I would still fret. You see these little engines were only designed to run for the odd hour every now and then. I was running mine for like, 8 hour stretches, 7 days a week.
Then one day I got talking to a bloke who had a huge American car. I asked him how he could afford to run such a beast. By way of an answer he motioned me over to the 'trunk'.
Inside was a gas cylinder. He was running his car on propane gas.
"Oh it's much cheaper than petrol" He told me. "And what's more, it keeps your oil clean".
To demonstrate, he popped the hood and pulled out the dipstick. It was coated with a film of beautifully clean green oil, not a trace of soot or carbon in sight.
"Won't need changing for 100,000 miles" He assured me.
Filled with excitement, I wrote to Honda to ask about converting my little Jenny to run on Gas. To my surprise they wrote back to tell me that I could order a kit from my local Honda dealer.
With the conversion kit fitted, the oil in my generator never got dirty again. (I still changed it once a month though. It didn't need it, but I couldn't help it).
It also cured the re-fill mid film problem. I used to run it off a 47kg 'torpedo' propane bottle which would last about three months.
An unexpected benefit was being able to stop the generator without getting out of bed. I just used to lean out of the caravan window and turn the gas bottle off. I was the envy of all my friends.
That was almost 25 years ago. I still have my little Honda generator. I don't use her so much these days, except for a week or two each year if I go to Stow or some other horse fair, or during power cuts.
When I do use her though, I check the oil level, connect her to a gas bottle, pull the cord, and she starts first time, every time.
You can't beat clean oil.
Author