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Gas vs electric generator for my food cart which one actually saves money long term?
I've been running my taco cart for about 8 months now and I'm stuck on this generator choice. I started with a cheap gas one ($350 at Harbor Freight) but after 3 months the noise was driving me crazy and I spent like $60 a week on gas. Friend of mine runs an electric generator off his truck battery but says the setup cost him $800 upfront and he can only run his fridge and a small griddle off it. So I gotta decide do I stick with gas and deal with the noise and fuel cost or drop the cash on electric and hope it works for a full day at the farmers market? Anyone here made the switch and regretted it or loved it? Asking for real numbers not just opinions.
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oscarh164mo ago
Figure out your total cost per hour including maintenance and replacement eventually, not just the upfront price. Gas generators wear out faster because they have a tiny engine screaming its guts out, and you'll be buying a new one every year or two if you run it daily. Electric setups last way longer since there's basically nothing to break except the battery cells, which degrade slowly over like 5-7 years. Your friend's $800 cost is steep but compare that to $60/week for gas which adds up to over $3000 in a year, plus a new $350 gas generator annually. The math leans electric hard if you can handle the lower power limit, just make sure you actually calculate your full draw before dropping the cash.
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xena_fisher494mo ago
Yeah but electric can't handle heavy stuff like a well pump or fridge startup surge.
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