What Will A 5500 Watt Generator Run?

ByJames Perez

When buying a 5500 generator, you would want to ask, “What will a 5500-watt generator run?” Usually, a generator with 5000W to 7000W capacity is suitable for 1200 to 1750 square feet homes.

This power is enough to run almost all household items. The generator with 5500W power delivery will run a refrigerator, an air conditioner, a toaster or microwave oven, multiple lights, and fans.

Although a generator of 5500 watts is considered in its lower end, it can meet most of your electricity requirements. So, when there’s a power cut, you can easily recover most of your home appliances with the 5500W generator.

Why Should You Use A 5500-Watt Generator?

If you have a 5500-watt generator, it can run various types of household items. These include lamps, fans, radios, TVs, water pumps, hairdryers, electric heaters, and electric blankets. Indeed, it can run all appliances with wattage under 5500 watts. Also, these generators are not so expensive and ideal for residential use.

Henceforth, a 5500W capacity-enabled generator can easily run your required home appliances with ease. The real question is, how many devices may you run simultaneously with the 5500W generator?

Before we head to this important question, let’s clarify a few facts about a 5500W generator. We will also discuss what else this generator can run apart from our daily home appliances.

Firstly, you can run your refrigerator using this type of generator. It is possible because a refrigerator typically requires 200W to 300W per hour. Hence, using the generator to power up a standard-sized refrigerator is absolutely fine. You may even run a double-door refrigerator with a 5500W generator.

On top of it, you may also run a washing machine. Yes, a washing machine needs 200W to 275W of electricity per hour. Thankfully, you will mostly run the washing machine for one or two cycles. It is equivalent to 150W to 200W, which the generator can easily accommodate.

There’re other reasons for choosing a 5500W generator. It includes:

  • A 5500W generator is mostly pocket-friendly. You don’t need to spend a massive amount on these generators. Yet, it can easily fulfill most of your household electricity requirements during a power shortage.
  • When you use a generator in a residential space, you must be careful about its noise level. Thankfully, 5500W generators with a limited capacity will cause the least noise. So, you can use it without any disturbance.

Can a generator run a welder?

If you are a DIY craftsmanship-oriented person, you might use a welder frequently. You can use the welder to weld and joint metals for creative and decorative works. So, you may ask whether or not a 5500 generator can run a welder.

The answer is yes! Of course, you can easily use this generator for welding purposes. These generators are large enough with sufficient energy so that they can run AC/DC welder. An AC/DC welder with a 225/125W power requirement will easily run with a 5500W generator. These welders will use E6010 welding with a 1/8-inch diameter for the welding rod.

However, the capacity of these generators is limited. So, it can’t run larger welders. If you successfully run a commercial welder, you’ll need an AC generator of 15000 watts. But, is it a good idea to use the generator and run a welder?

As gasoline prices are a bit expensive, it’s the least proficient way to work with a generator. At least it’s when you want to run it for a long time.

What Household Appliances Will A 5500-Watt Generator Run?

A 5500W generator is usually a low-end machine considering the larger generators. However, it is still powerful enough to run most household items during power cuts and emergencies. In the next few sections, we will show you the number of appliances these generators will run.

Refrigerators and freezers:

Refrigerators and freezers use an electric motor and a compressor to generate colder air. In essence, you might have two different electric motors that get translated into the wattage of a triple start-up.

The initial wattage should be 1,800 watts for the refrigerator. It is because every one of these items initially has a 600W working wattage requirement. So, the refrigerator will initially require more than 1/3rd of the generator’s total power to switch on after a power cut. Hence, you must avoid plugging many items into the circuit if you’re working with a generator of 5,500 watts.

Microwave oven and stoves:

Depending on the model and maker, microwave ovens utilize 750 to 1100 watts of electricity. On the other hand, an electric stove will need 1800W to 2200W power to cook efficiently. None of these devices will need a higher electricity supply initially, like the refrigerator.

So, microwave ovens and stoves are lower power watts consuming devices. You can work with them altogether, including your refrigerator. You can run them along with a few other lower-wattage items while using a 5500-watt generator.

LED TVs:

Surprisingly TVs don’t use a lot of power. For example, it’s a TV of 19-inch that just uses 65 watts. The advancement in LED technology has revolutionized television. It has made televisions the least energy-consuming device.

Even this is amazing that a projection-screen TV of 61-inch uses just 170 watts. So, you can watch television for hours with a 5500W generator.

Water heater:

A water heater is just the opposite of an LED television regarding energy consumption. Yes, a water heater uses lots of electric power. Shockingly, 40 gallons of water heater use 4500 watts to 5500 watts per hour.

As the electricity consumption of the water heater shows, you can run it with a 5500W generator. However, it is only theoretically possible. We will discuss the reality in the next part.

If you use a 5500-watt generator, it can run a water heater. But, it’ll not be able to run something else while running a water heater. So, it’s not a practical idea at all.

Computers:

When you work from home, you may need to run your computer when there’s no electricity. So, how much power a computer needs to run properly?

Typically, a computer uses 250W to 300W power, depending on your graphics card and CPU capacity. Still, it is moderate power consumption.

However, it consumes just 60 watts when you’re operating it in sleep mode. Even you can run your laptop just using 50 watts. Depending on your house size and the fans’ model and make, cooling an entire house with fans may use between 240 watts and 750 watts.

5500-Watt Generator Related Question & Answers

Let’s know some questions about a 5500-watt generator below. It will help you have a better understanding of the 5500W generator. So, you may decide whether or not you should use the generator.

What Can I Run On A 5500 Watt Generator?

You can run almost all types of household appliances using a 5500-watt generator. These include:

  • Fridge with a freezer
  • Small window AC unit
  • Small good pump
  • Coffee maker
  • Washing machine
  • Dishwasher
  • Microwave oven
  • Pressure Cooker and many more

How Long Will A 5500 Watt Generator Run On A Tank Of Gas?

A reliable engine with a single-cylinder can produce 6875 initial and 5500 running watts. Thus, it’ll be able to run for about 9 hours at 50 percent of load using its 6.1-gallon gasoline tank. Although scores of generators may run extensively, the stable thing to be obtainable is fuel.

But, as they should shut down for servicing or repairing and then keep working, they can’t run for a long time. Moreover, depending on the machine’s type, you can use a backup generator. Many people like to use a portable generator as their backup generator.

Yes, it is possible to use a portable and compact generator as a backup during power cuts. If you use a small generator, it may run just about 11-18 hours per day. The backup may vary depending on which voltage and capacity you are running the generator. For instance, a generator will provide a slightly longer backup with 120V than 240V.

It will also vary depending on the type of fuel the generator uses. In General, a generator uses gasoline and propane for fuel. Experts say gasoline provides better back up because of its higher burning capacity.

You must also maintain the generator properly and timely to increase its backup time and lifespan. You must ensure that the generator is well-maintained to ensure better performance. It will also be crucial for lowering the noise level of the generator. It is crucial for residential uses.

It’ll make them keep running well without any issue. It can run for a 24-hour a day for the full week. Hence, a generator can run continuously for months when you maintain it properly.

What Can A 5500 Watt Generator Run At The Same Time?

Regardless of where you’re living, there might be the issue of losing the electric supply. The power shortage may vary from minutes to hours and days in some cases. It may happen for many unexpected reasons like floods, storms, and something you don’t know.

That’s why many people like to buy and use generators for electric backup to overcome the issue of outages. A generator can run almost all things about your house. These including:

  • Refrigerator
  • Microwave Oven
  • Fans
  • TV
  • Radio
  • Water Heater
  • Computer/Laptop
  • DVD Player and many more.

The list shows that you will never have rotten food in your refrigerator with the generator. It is also capable enough to run most of your entertainment systems to enjoy the power shortage period without boredom.

Can A 5500 Watt Generator Run A Hot Water Heater?

Yes, a generator of 5500 watts is competent for running your electric water heater. It would help if you cautioned that the water heater should not exceed the wattage of 5500 watts. It’s better to run a water heater that needs 4500 starting and 3500 running watts.

Will A 5500 Watt Generator Run A Commercial Welder?

Yes, a generator of 5500-watt with 230 VAC can run an AC/DC 225/125 welder that’s using E6010 with a diameter of 1/8 inches. You’ll probably know how the electrode is getting hard to strike, plus also they often stick while working when you try to weld with this arrangement.

So, we suggest you not work with a welder with a 5500W generator as it won’t deliver the best welding performance. Also, it risks damaging the welder and ruining your entire metal work.

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Conclusion

Hopefully, you got the answer to the questions: what will a 5500-watt generator run? Unplug other items first while starting up your home appliances with the generator. It is vital because initially, most devices will require higher starting electricity as it integrates all of their parts to switch on and work. Once the machine gets started, the power consumption will be less. So, you need to work carefully with the generator.

You can run all of your household items using a 5500-watt generator. It would help if you cautioned that the water heater should not exceed the wattage of 5500 watts.

Even if a single tool needs 4500 watts, you should plug out all other appliances from the generator to run it smoothly. So, when using a 5500W generator, you must be careful not to plug more appliances into it than the machine can afford.

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