3000W Chinese Gensets Info.
professor95 wrote: EDIT ADDED 45/5/2013- When this thread started in March of 2005, I never expected to see it survive this long or amass the quantity of information that has been shared here. In...
Forum Discussion
I got a chance to look over an Alton from Costco today. It is made by Hangzhou Universal Instrument and Tool, LTD. in Hangzhou, China. UIT is a well established manufacturer of generators and other consumer/commercial power tools. The replacement 6.5 HP Honda-like engines you see on the shelf at PepBoys are made by this company. The muffler on this generator is of a different design than on the other models I have used or examined. This may account for the higher noise rating given by Alton. The front panel is also made of plastic rather than steel. Depending on the grade of platic used it may be subject to stress cracking at the mounting holes, warpage or environmental degration. Personally, I am not real cool on the plastic used on may Chinese manufactured products. Actually, IMHO, the platic parts used on the majority of our RVs is of pretty poor quality as well. Maybe they are made in China too?
Other major manufacturers of these small generators are:
Shangai Chenchang (UST, Contractor, and many 1,000 watt 2 cycle units)
Taizhou Zhongshan (Direct sales in small quanities to most any buyer Big Lots, etc.)
Fuzhou Hauccen(Power Pro)
Jiangsa Jiangdong (Allpower, early ELM3000, Wildfire, Harbor Freight)
My major concern with the Alton is a lack of consumer input on this forum. We have no real history of performance, service or the availability of replacement parts specific to this unit. I did note that the carburetor was built by Huayi, which is typical of most all of the 200cc Honda-like engines used on these generators.
Depending on your needs and priorities, this may be an OK product. I am sure we will find out soon from forum reports.
Still, I contend if you want service after the sale, customer support, a warranty we know is well backed and an affordable price the little yellow units we have become so well reviewed on this forum are hard to beat.
BTW, has anyone bought or have experience with the Chinese built ONAN Homepower unit? Other than the initial advertising and one I saw at the RV show last February I have no other info. They were way over priced (guess because of the ONAN name). I am not sure what Chinese company builds them for Onan, but from the exterior it could be any one of the above listed or even someone else.
One other comment. I have found nothing to suggest Champion Power Equipment builds generator units for rebranding by other vendors. Their factory in Shanghai only builds their own product line.
For those who choose to purchase the Alton from Costco, please keep the formum aprised of your findings.
Other major manufacturers of these small generators are:
Shangai Chenchang (UST, Contractor, and many 1,000 watt 2 cycle units)
Taizhou Zhongshan (Direct sales in small quanities to most any buyer Big Lots, etc.)
Fuzhou Hauccen(Power Pro)
Jiangsa Jiangdong (Allpower, early ELM3000, Wildfire, Harbor Freight)
My major concern with the Alton is a lack of consumer input on this forum. We have no real history of performance, service or the availability of replacement parts specific to this unit. I did note that the carburetor was built by Huayi, which is typical of most all of the 200cc Honda-like engines used on these generators.
Depending on your needs and priorities, this may be an OK product. I am sure we will find out soon from forum reports.
Still, I contend if you want service after the sale, customer support, a warranty we know is well backed and an affordable price the little yellow units we have become so well reviewed on this forum are hard to beat.
BTW, has anyone bought or have experience with the Chinese built ONAN Homepower unit? Other than the initial advertising and one I saw at the RV show last February I have no other info. They were way over priced (guess because of the ONAN name). I am not sure what Chinese company builds them for Onan, but from the exterior it could be any one of the above listed or even someone else.
One other comment. I have found nothing to suggest Champion Power Equipment builds generator units for rebranding by other vendors. Their factory in Shanghai only builds their own product line.
For those who choose to purchase the Alton from Costco, please keep the formum aprised of your findings.
