Does anyone know a cheap brand of genny that is dependable? I need one, we hade a 3500 watt.A bigger one would be a good deal but i dont want so spend 500 or more for a coleman powermate.

Will a 3000 watt be enough. We've been finding honda clones very reasonable, fairly quiet and light.
They're not a Honda but for <$300 they are quite nice.
I have one that I have used for a year and a half. The only problem I had was a broken pull cord. I took off the recoil cover and it had a provision for wraping a cord to start it. Cool!
If I needed another genny I would be happy to have another Jiang Dong gennerator. I have not seen one with more than a 3500 watt peak rating though. I have seen several different brand names but all have had a Jiang Dong 6.5hp gas engine.

What size bulbs are you using? If you're using 500 watt bulbs you can drop down to the 350 or 225 ultra bulbs. Still get the light but you can get away with a smaller genny.

I've bought a couple of the Chinese made'honda clone' gennys and so far everybody seems to like them. They're now around $230.00 (with tax)for a 3000 watt (3500 peak) model. They're fairly quiet and come with a one year warranty. I'll pobably buy another when I go back up to Chicagoland. If you're interested, I'll pick up two.

Well Menards sells a Wen Generator for $279. That is a 3000 constant with 3500 to start. It is very quiet and also has a built in Battery charger. Snuffy has one and is has worked well all summer.

I think the Wen genny is pretty much the same as the ones that I've been buying. Just a different label.

They're rated at 74dB. Which is louder than a honda but really not bad.