Generators

(7 of 7 customers found this review helpful)

Comment:

We bought our Kohler 14kw LPG standby unit on line in 2012 and did a major portion of the installation ourselves. The critical electrical hook up was performed by a master electrician. The unit has performed without a hitch since September 2012. This includes starting in subzero weather, although I'm installing the recommended carburetor heater this spring based on OEM feedback. As with most items of this kind, once you install them you don't have an emergency to prove their worth. The once a week exercise, however, lets you know the functionality of the system is performing as designed or not, and it's fully automatic. I highly recommend the Kohler systems to anyone in remote areas, where you might be without power for extended periods.

How long have you owned it:

Bottom Line

Yes, I would recommend this to a friend.

(9 of 10 customers found this review helpful)

Comment:

Kohler is high quality and the buyer pays for that. Remember these are standby generators for safe use in an emergency, for basics. <br /><br />When shopping for a generator it was difficult getting concise info upfront about the Kohler warranty's interplay with Kohler's annual $325, 40 step, one hour service call (i.e., for a 20 KW gas unit). The Kohler dealer/installer will do it at 6 months, then annually thereafter, and charge the expensive fee each time. <br /><br />A routine, annual 40 step inspection suggests a lot of things can go wrong, but how likely? we don't know. And there is a black box in the unit which reports to the servicer's computer software during inspection. Can any of this data be monitored by the owner, instead, and would that satisfy warranty requirements? Can the owner do any other maintenance (eg., oil change, air filter, etc.)? Are there warranty-accepted servicers nearby other than the dealer/installer, and which may be less expensive? <br /><br />Compare these costs with other manufacturers and the quality of their units. During a 5 year Kohler warranty (20 KW unit) the annual inspections would total about $1600 -- of course, an owner would continue inspections therefter regardless. What about such costs at the other brands?<br /><br />The best measure of whatever maintenance any unit really needs would be what's required by the warranty, since then the manufacturer is on the hook for repairs.

How long have you owned it:

Bottom Line

Yes, I would recommend this to a friend.

(14 of 14 customers found this review helpful)

Comment:

Ours is a 20KW version of the one CR reviewed. We live in northern Virginia in a suburb of DC, in a neighborhood of only 32 homes, which puts us at the end of the priority list during county-wide extended power outages. The 20RES runs most circuits in our 4-bedroom all-electric home and barn except for some of the heavy-hitters like our heat pump, electric oven, electric clothes washer & dryer. We made a calculated decision we can live without those circuits during an extended outage. We agree with CR's positive rating, but we also have experienced a firmware issue similar to the one another reviewer mentioned that makes the weekly auto loaded exercise happen erratically. This fault was embeded within a firmware upgrade that fixed a one time overspeed error condition during a weekly test. Our 20RES ran continuously through the 100+ degrees 100% humidity 3-day outage after the derecho in late July 2012. We're very pleased with our decision to install this unit and its corresponding ATS. The local Kohler factory authorized installer has been very responsive.

How long have you owned it:

Bottom Line

Yes, I would recommend this to a friend.