"I've only taken this thing tent camping once (in Oct 2007), but it did work to my expectations. Make no mistake, it is NOTHING FANCY. But considering you could buy about SEVEN of these puppies for the same price as ONE Honda EU1000i, I thought I would give it a shot. So far, I'm pleased. My least favorite thing about it is that you've got to pre-mix the oil into the gasoline, like you do with some lawnmowers. The special "two-stroke" oil comes in a little bottle, and you pour a small amount (read directions) into the gasoline canister before filling the generator's tank with the mixture. The oil itself is not expensive, but they don't sell it just anywhere; you gotta go to a decent hardware store (i.e. I couldn't find it at Target, but I did find it at Lowe's). So far, this is the only real drawback I experienced; and frankly, it's not that bad. The unit weighs about 40 lbs. That puts it in the lightest class of generator that I could find. There may be a couple out there that are slightly lighter - but not by more than a few pounds. Starting up the unit requires about five steps done in order. For some people, 5 steps is about 3 or 4 steps too many, so if you're not mechanically inclined, I'd keep the instructions handy (page 9) until its operation becomes second nature to you. Again, it's really not that bad. We ran it for about 1.5 tanks of gas, occasionally stopping and restarting when we left the camp site for a bit. Usually, it started on about the 3rd pull. One time it got fussy and I had to pull it about 7-8 times, but that was just one of the starts. As for the noise, it's not too bad either. It's just slightly louder than the EU1000i, and you could buy a truckload of earplugs with the $650 you'll save. Of course, instead of earplugs, I just bought one of those orange utility extension cords and placed the generator off to the side of my camp site (about 20 feet away). The noise was barely noticable, and certainly didn't hinder a normal conversation. In short, this is a decent product for the amazingly cheap price tag, and it opened up so many new options for our campsite. If it craps out on me, I'll be sure to update my review to let y'all know!" - A.S.

The biggest risk is with the portable ones, people put them too close, or inside the building which we don't recommend. It should be 5 to 10 feet away from the building, and point the exhaust away from any openings inside the building, doors, windows, and vents that vent inside," said Jim Saulnier, with the Audburn fire department.

It's important to follow all safety procedures when using a generator, including ventilation and electric hookups as specified in the owner's manual.

"Bought this for emergency use. It weighs about the same (240lbs) as the comparable 6000 watt Honda inverter but costs much less and provides the same quiet usable power. After mounting the small wheels, adding oil and gas (uses regular) and charging the battery (electric start only) it started right up. Unlike cheaper generators, it produces a pure sinewave at exactly 60Hz and powers even sensitive devices such as computers, audio-video electronics and even our forced-air furnace, which is very picky about clean power. The $700 Colman Powermate we had before would not power the forced-air furnace. The Powermate had a large muffler and was relatively quiet but the Kipor is much quieter, using an even bigger muffler and padded enclosure. In addition, the Powermate needed to run at 3600 RPM all the time to produce the needed 60Hz output. The Kipor, like the Honda, runs only as fast as needed to provide the electrical power demanded. One problem with the unit we received was that the neutral and hot outputs on the 120V sockets were reversed (240V socket was OK). Even with this reversal everything ran but the forced-air furnace (this is how we discovered the problem). It took about 20 minutes to take off the side cover, unscrew the wires to the sockets and screw them back correctly. Now it powers everything without a hiccup." - Michael M.

"During the ice storm this year, we were without power for 9 days, our generator worked great to make things a little more comfortable, but there were extension cords all over the place. After reading reviews and searching the hardware stores I decided to make the investment in a transfer switch. If you are comfortable opening your breaker panel, installation went easy, took about 2 hours, I installed it in the wall with the optional trim piece, our box is in the garage. After it was done I gave it a test drive, it was so nice to just have one cable from the outside to the garage. I liked this product over some of the others because you can get different breakers at any hardware store if you need to add circuits, this box is expandable. All in all, very happy with this product and you can't beat Amazon's price and fast shipping." - D.S.

"My adult son and I recently purchased large gas generators and when attaching them to our homes the electrician recommended this product. We ordered thru Amazon and the items arrived sooner then expected. my transfer switch was installed and worked perfectly, my sons had a circuit switch stuck open on his and notified the company and they made it good." - Michael F.

"Bought this about 4 months. Never had a chance to use it much. But during our recent storm blackout, used this to power our 4000 square foot home. What a life saver. Works and starts without any problems. Relatively quiet. I recommend to this to anyone." - W.G.

"I have shopped locally & on on-line, and you get a lot of generator for your money. It was a very good price and AMERICAN made. Ramsond corp. shipped it free straight to my house. Amazon & Ramsond Corp. are both awesome companies. I plan on hooking it up to my house, but haven't done that yet (too lazy). I do recommend this product but don't plan on moving it around much." - S.W.

"Living in Florida means power outages. If it's not a hurricane passing through, it's the afternoon thunderstorms that blow down branches or just an unlucky squirrel...somehow there always seems to be a power outage. Having pushed an old Coleman Powermate generator to it's limit, we decided it was time to start searching for a replacement. Originally wanted a nice Honda inverter generator but wasnt able to locate them - and the price was pretty high. Because we live in a residential area, noise levels are a factor and want/need something that can run a few electronics including a small room A/C without major incident. Saw this and decided to give it a try. Right off - seems like a nice little unit for decent price. Versatile, fairly quiet...it's not a Honda but also cost a lot less. Satisfied with purchase to date. " - J. J.

"I bought this generator for power outages and it works well for light use. I really like the light weight. It can be moved around easily. It's good on gas too. I like the charging cables that come with it for charging batteries, they plug right in the front panel. It also has a fuel guage built into the fuel tank. I found the drain on the carb very convenient for storage. The air filter has easy access wing nuts for easy cleaning. The rubber feet on the bottom keep it from "walking" across the floor when running. The only thing I didn't care for was the light on the front panel that indicates there is 120 volt power present, it is very dim, making it hard to see in the daylight, but I can live with that. I bought a second one just to have two around. If you're looking for a small generator, this is a winner!" - Brian F.