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Frequently Asked Questions About Tents

1. What size generator do I need?

Add up the wattage of everything you want to run at once, then add headroom. As rough guidance: a few lights, a phone charger, and a fan need only a few hundred watts; a refrigerator, sump pump, and some lights during an outage typically need 3,000 to 5,000 watts; running a furnace, well pump, and several appliances usually calls for 7,500 watts or more; and powering most of a home at once points to 10,000 watts and up. Our lineup spans roughly 2,000W to over 11,000W. Check the running and starting wattage on the product page, and contact our experts with your list of appliances if you want help sizing.
2. What's the difference between running watts and starting watts?

Running watts (or rated watts) is what the generator produces continuously. Starting watts (or peak/surge watts) is the extra it can deliver for a few seconds when a motor kicks on. Appliances with motors — refrigerators, air conditioners, well pumps, power tools — draw a big surge at startup, often several times their running draw. Size your generator so it can handle the largest startup surge plus everything else already running, or the generator will trip.
3. What is an inverter generator, and do I need one?

An inverter generator converts its output to produce cleaner, more stable power, with less electrical "noise" than a conventional generator. That matters for laptops, phones, TVs, and anything with a circuit board. Inverters also run quieter and adjust engine speed to the load, so they use less fuel at partial load. Choose an inverter for camping, tailgating, RVs, and sensitive electronics; a conventional open-frame generator usually gives you more watts per dollar for job sites and heavy loads. We carry inverter models from FIRMAN, Champion, DuroMax, and PowerMax, from about 2,000W to 10,500W.
4. What does dual fuel or tri fuel mean?

A dual fuel generator runs on gasoline or propane, and a tri fuel generator adds natural gas. That flexibility matters most during an outage, when gas stations may be closed or out of fuel. Propane also stores indefinitely without going stale, unlike gasoline, and burns cleaner. We carry dual fuel models from DuroMax, Champion, FIRMAN, and PowerMax, plus the FIRMAN Tri Fuel 11,400W with electric start.
5. Can I run a generator indoors or in my garage?

No. Gas generators produce carbon monoxide, which is odorless and can be fatal within minutes in an enclosed space. Never run one indoors, in a garage (even with the door open), in a basement, crawlspace, or shed, or near open windows and vents. Always operate outdoors, well away from doors, windows, and vents, and use a working CO alarm inside your home. Battery power stations from Jackery, Goal Zero, Comvolt, and others produce no emissions and are the only option that can be used safely indoors.
6. What is a CO sensor or CO shutoff?

A built-in safety feature that detects rising carbon monoxide levels near the generator and automatically shuts the engine down. Champion calls it CO Shield and FIRMAN calls it CO Alert, and many models in our lineup include one. It's a worthwhile feature, but it's a backstop, not a substitute for correct placement: always run generators outdoors and far from the house.
7. What's the difference between a generator and a portable power station?

A generator burns fuel to produce electricity. It can run as long as you keep feeding it, delivers high wattage, and is the practical choice for outages, job sites, and heavy loads — but it's loud, needs fuel, and must be used outdoors. A power station is a large battery with outlets. It's silent, emission-free, safe indoors, and needs no fuel or maintenance — but capacity is limited by battery size, and it takes hours to recharge. Many people own both: a generator for outages, a power station for camping and electronics.
8. What do watt-hours mean on a power station?

Watt-hours (Wh) measure stored energy — essentially the size of the tank. A 1,000Wh station can theoretically run a 100W device for about 10 hours, minus conversion losses. Compare watt-hours when you want to know how long a station will last, and compare watt output (W) when you want to know what it can run at once. Our power stations range from a few hundred watt-hours up to the Goal Zero Yeti PRO 4000 at 3,994Wh and the Comvolt 6000 at 12.8V/470Ah.
9. How do I connect a generator to my house?

Safely, through a transfer switch or interlock kit installed by a licensed electrician. Never plug a generator into a wall outlet — known as backfeeding, it's illegal in most places and can electrocute utility workers and damage your home's wiring. Without a transfer switch, run appliances directly from the generator using heavy-duty outdoor-rated extension cords rated for the load.
10. How much do generators cost?

Our lineup runs from about $699.95 to $12,139. Small inverter generators start around $700 to $1,000, mid-size dual fuel and larger inverters run roughly $1,000 to $3,000, and high-output and standby-class units run higher. Power stations range from a few hundred dollars to about $8,000 for the largest systems.

Need help choosing? Contact our experts or call (888) 884-2234 with what you need to power and for how long, and we'll recommend the right size and type. Gearing up for a trip? See our camping equipment, coolers, and rooftop tents.

The Complete Guide to Portable Generators & Power Stations

Most people buy a generator twice. The first time is usually in a hurry, during or right after an outage, and the result is often a unit that's too small, too loud, or the wrong type for how it actually gets used. The second purchase is the informed one.

This guide is meant to make the first purchase the right one. Our collection includes 77 portable generators and battery power stations from 14 brands, from around $700 to $12,139, covering gas, dual fuel, tri fuel, inverter, and battery systems. Below, we cover how to size a generator, what the different types actually do, the safety rules that matter most, and how to maintain one so it starts when you need it. If you'd rather talk it through, contact our experts or call (888) 884-2234.

Start Here: What Are You Powering?

Before comparing brands or features, answer three questions.

What needs to run? Make a list. A refrigerator, a sump pump, and a few lights is a very different job from a whole house, or from charging laptops at a campsite.

How long? An outage lasting hours is different from days. A weekend of camping is different from a season of job site work.

Where? Home backup, a remote job site, a campground with noise limits, or indoors — the answer rules some options in and others out immediately.

Those three answers determine wattage, fuel type, and whether you want a generator or a battery power station. Everything else follows.

Sizing: Running Watts, Starting Watts, and Headroom

This is where most mistakes happen.

Running watts (rated watts) is what a generator produces continuously. Starting watts (surge or peak) is the brief extra it can deliver when a motor spins up. Anything with a motor — refrigerators, freezers, well pumps, air conditioners, furnace blowers, power tools — draws a surge at startup that can be several times its running draw.

To size correctly, add up the running watts of everything you'll run at once, then add the largest single starting surge on top. That total is your minimum.

Rough guidance:

  • Under 2,000W — lights, phones, laptops, a fan, small electronics
  • 3,000 to 5,000W — refrigerator, sump pump, lights, and small appliances during an outage
  • 5,000 to 7,500W — the above plus a furnace blower or well pump
  • 7,500 to 10,000W — most essential circuits in a home at once
  • 10,000W and up — whole-home backup or heavy job site use

Our lineup spans roughly 2,000W to over 11,000W, including the FIRMAN Tri Fuel 11,400W at the top of the portable range.

Leave headroom. Running a generator constantly at its maximum shortens its life and leaves nothing for an unexpected surge. Sizing 20 to 25% above your calculated need is sensible.

Not sure? Send us your appliance list and we'll size it with you.

The Types, and When Each Makes Sense

Conventional open-frame generators are the traditional design: an engine driving an alternator, in an open frame. They deliver the most watts per dollar and handle heavy loads well, which makes them the standard for job sites, farms, and whole-home backup. They're louder and produce less refined power than inverters. Generac, Champion Power Equipment, Cummins, DuroMax, and Tomahawk Power all build in this category, with models like the Champion 8000W with wireless remote start.

Inverter generators convert their output through electronics to produce cleaner, more stable power, with far less electrical noise. That matters for laptops, phones, televisions, and anything with sensitive circuitry. They also run quieter and throttle the engine to match the load, which improves fuel economy at partial load. FIRMAN's Whisper Series, Champion's 4500W dual fuel open frame inverter, DuroMax's 7,000W dual fuel inverter, and PowerMax's range from 2,500W to 10,500W cover this category. Inverters are the right choice for camping, tailgating, RVs, and sensitive electronics.

Battery power stations are large lithium batteries with outlets. No engine, no fuel, no fumes, no noise, and safe to use indoors. They're limited by battery capacity and take hours to recharge, but for camping, electronics, medical devices, and indoor emergency use they're unmatched. Jackery, Goal Zero, Comvolt, Dory Power, Wagan, Dark Energy, and EXP PRO all build these, from compact units up to the Goal Zero Yeti PRO 4000 at 3,994Wh and the Dory Sentry PRO Max.

A common approach: a gas or dual fuel generator for outages and heavy loads, plus a power station for camping, electronics, and quiet indoor use.

Fuel: Gas, Dual Fuel, and Tri Fuel

Gasoline is widely available and delivers full rated power, but it degrades in storage, typically within months without stabilizer, and it's exactly what's hardest to buy during a regional outage when stations lose power.

Propane stores indefinitely without degrading, burns cleaner, and is easy to keep on hand in tanks. Output is usually slightly lower than on gasoline.

Natural gas offers an effectively unlimited supply if your home has a line, which removes refueling entirely.

Dual fuel generators run on gasoline or propane; tri fuel adds natural gas. That flexibility is genuinely valuable during outages. We carry dual fuel models from DuroMax, Champion, FIRMAN, and PowerMax, and the FIRMAN Tri Fuel 11,400W with electric start covers all three.

If a generator is primarily for emergencies and will sit unused for months, dual fuel with propane stored on hand is the most reliable arrangement.

Understanding Power Stations

Watt-hours (Wh) measure stored energy — how much the battery holds. A 1,000Wh station runs a 100W device for roughly 10 hours before conversion losses.

Watts (W) measure output — what it can run at once. A station may hold plenty of energy but still be unable to start a high-draw appliance.

Compare watt-hours for runtime and watts for capability. Both matter.

LiFePO4 (lithium iron phosphate) is the chemistry used in most quality power stations, including models from Jackery, Goal Zero, Comvolt, Dory Power, and Wagan. It offers far more charge cycles than older lithium-ion chemistries, better thermal stability, and steadier performance over years of use.

Solar charging turns a power station into genuinely renewable off-grid power: charge by day, use at night. The EXP PRO APEX ships with a 100W panel, and brands like Jackery and Goal Zero offer compatible panels. Solar input specs vary by model, so check the product page or ask us which panels pair with a given unit.

Safety: The Two Rules That Matter Most

Never run a gas generator indoors or in an attached space. Carbon monoxide is odorless and can be fatal within minutes. That means no garages, even with the door open, no basements, no crawlspaces, no sheds, and no covered porches. Run generators outdoors, well away from doors, windows, and vents, and keep working CO alarms inside your home.

Many models in our lineup include automatic CO shutoff — Champion's CO Shield and FIRMAN's CO Alert detect rising carbon monoxide and shut the engine down. It's a valuable backstop, not a license to run the unit closer to the house.

Never backfeed your home. Plugging a generator into a wall outlet to power your house is illegal in most places and dangerous: it can send current back onto utility lines and electrocute line workers, and it bypasses your home's protective devices. Connect to your home through a transfer switch or interlock kit installed by a licensed electrician, or run appliances directly from the generator with heavy-duty, outdoor-rated extension cords sized for the load.

Other essentials: let the engine cool before refueling, keep fuel stored safely away from the running unit, keep the generator dry and out of standing water, and don't overload it.

Noise

Noise decides more purchases than people expect, especially in neighborhoods and campgrounds.

Inverter generators are the quiet option among fuel-burning units. FIRMAN's Whisper Series is built specifically around this, and many campgrounds have noise limits that effectively require an inverter.

Conventional open-frame generators are noticeably louder. Fine for job sites and rural properties, less so for close neighbors.

Battery power stations are silent.

Check the decibel rating on the product page if you'll use the generator anywhere noise matters.

Use Cases

Home backup. Size for your essential circuits, favor dual fuel for supply flexibility, and have a transfer switch installed. Larger units from Generac, Cummins, Champion, and DuroMax cover this.

Job sites. Conventional open-frame generators with high output and durable construction. Tomahawk Power, DuroMax, and Generac are built for this work.

Camping and RVs. Inverter generators for quiet, clean power, or a power station for silence. Either will run lights, device charging, and an electric cooler for a weekend. Pair with our camping equipment, tents, and rooftop tents.

Tailgating and events. Inverter generators or power stations for quiet operation near crowds. Good company for cornhole boards and coolers.

Off-grid and overlanding. Power stations with solar input, which recharge indefinitely without fuel.

Farms and acreage. Higher-output dual fuel or tri fuel units that can run tools, pumps, and outbuildings — useful alongside a gas ATV or UTV.

Maintenance and Storage

A generator that won't start during an outage is worse than no generator at all, and stale fuel is the usual culprit.

Oil. Change on schedule, including after the initial break-in hours.

Air filter and spark plug. Clean or replace as the manual specifies.

Exercise it. Start and run the generator under some load every month or two so you know it works and the carburetor stays clear.

Fuel storage. Either drain the fuel system for storage or use a stabilizer. Gasoline degrades in months. This is where propane's indefinite shelf life becomes a real advantage.

Battery. On electric-start models, keep the starting battery charged.

Cover and store dry. Out of the weather, off damp ground, and never operated in the rain without proper protection.

Power stations need far less: keep them charged, avoid extreme temperatures, and store indoors. In a Nebraska winter, keep batteries out of an unheated garage, since cold reduces capacity.

The Brands

  • Generac — a household name in home backup power
  • Champion Power Equipment — broad range with CO Shield safety technology
  • DuroMax — dual fuel specialists across many wattages
  • FIRMAN — Whisper Series inverters, CO Alert, and tri fuel models
  • Cummins — engine heritage applied to portable power
  • Tomahawk Power — job site and commercial focus
  • PowerMax — inverter and dual fuel inverter models
  • Jackery and Goal Zero — leading names in portable power stations and solar
  • Comvolt, Dory Power, Wagan, Dark Energy, EXP PRO — LiFePO4 power stations and solar bundles

Explore More

Not sure what size you need? Contact our experts or call (888) 884-2234 with a list of what you want to power and how long you need it to run, and we'll recommend the right unit.