FIRMAN WH03242F 4000W Electric Start Dual Fuel Inverter Generator - Refurbished - $399.99

FlashPilot

Jul 07, 2024 04:34 PM

797 Posts

Joined Feb 2016

FlashPilotJul 07, 2024 04:34 PM

797 Posts

Quote from zoocircle

:

I bought this generator last year. I received it , tested it on propane and it worked fine. That's the last time I turned it on. We had a power outage last week and I tried using it. It seems completely dead and the electric start makes a very faint noise. Could It be I need a charger to get it working again? Should I just contact Allstate for the warranty? Haven't heard back from firmans customer service so I thought I'd ask here

When using propane, the battery needs to be fully charged to allow the propane to be released into the engine before it will start. Not sure why its like that, but it must be a safety "feature". Unfortunately, using the pull starter wont help in that situation. BUT, it will still start and run on gasoline with a dead battery while using the pull starter.

It sounds like your battery isnt completely dead, so it might hold a charge. If you have a battery charger with a mode to charge at 3 amps or less, you could pull off the covers and try to recharge the battery. If you're stuck, you can run it on gasoline for an hour to charge the battery. If the battery wont hold a charge and you want to run it on propane, you'll need to replace the battery.

2

lurewars

Jul 07, 2024 11:07 PM

1,315 Posts

Joined Mar 2009

lurewarsJul 07, 2024 11:07 PM

1,315 Posts

Quote from zoocircle

:

I bought this generator last year. I received it , tested it on propane and it worked fine. That's the last time I turned it on. We had a power outage last week and I tried using it. It seems completely dead and the electric start makes a very faint noise. Could It be I need a charger to get it working again? Should I just contact Allstate for the warranty? Haven't heard back from firmans customer service so I thought I'd ask here

Yes that's exactly what happened. My battery dies within a couple days if I don't keep using it. Luckily , i've been able to pull start it even running on propane. The battery has a tiny bit of charge but won't turn over. I charge it with a barrel plug off a ryobi inverter. Just another thing to keep around if you want to use the electric start...

FlashPilot

Jul 08, 2024 01:20 AM

797 Posts

Joined Feb 2016

FlashPilotJul 08, 2024 01:20 AM

797 Posts

Quote from lurewars

:

Yes that's exactly what happened. My battery dies within a couple days if I don't keep using it. Luckily , i've been able to pull start it even running on propane. The battery has a tiny bit of charge but won't turn over. I charge it with a barrel plug off a ryobi inverter. Just another thing to keep around if you want to use the electric start...

Propane contains far less BTU's than gasoline, costs for more to operate and kills the performance capability of duel fuel generators. This Firman already performers far below its claimed ratings and needs all the help it can get. It will start and run on gasoline with the battery removed and produce a good deal more power than while running on propane. Not only can you power it on gasoline for about 1/3rd the cost, a six gallon gas can takes up 1/3rd the space of 3 x 20 lb propane tanks (common size for BBQ's), costs less to refuel and produces more power.

1

mleach99

Jul 08, 2024 02:29 AM

109 Posts

Joined Apr 2017

mleach99Jul 08, 2024 02:29 AM

109 Posts

Quote from zoocircle

:

I bought this generator last year. I received it , tested it on propane and it worked fine. That's the last time I turned it on. We had a power outage last week and I tried using it. It seems completely dead and the electric start makes a very faint noise. Could It be I need a charger to get it working again? Should I just contact Allstate for the warranty? Haven't heard back from firmans customer service so I thought I'd ask here

If you don't keep the battery charged on this with the adapter that supposed to come with it, your battery will die and the electric start won't work. You'll have to use the pull cord. I pulled mine out today actually to run it for maintenance and the battery was dead. Put gas in, turn switch to on, hold battery button for 3sec, pull choke out and pull cord 3 times, push choke in and pull cord more and it should start. Mine makes a faint noise when trying to use electric start when the battery is dead but it still works with the pull cord

1

diego15nets

Jul 08, 2024 03:33 AM

163 Posts

Joined Jan 2009

diego15netsJul 08, 2024 03:33 AM

163 Posts

Quote from zoocircle

:

I bought this generator last year. I received it , tested it on propane and it worked fine. That's the last time I turned it on. We had a power outage last week and I tried using it. It seems completely dead and the electric start makes a very faint noise. Could It be I need a charger to get it working again? Should I just contact Allstate for the warranty? Haven't heard back from firmans customer service so I thought I'd ask here

I have this same model and you don't need to use the electric start at all. If you see the instructions on the generator sticker on top, it will guide you with and without electric start. I use just propane on mine without electric start. If you prefer electric startup, you'll have to purchase the battery charger.

whodiini

Jul 08, 2024 04:02 AM

1,776 Posts

Joined Jan 2006

whodiiniJul 08, 2024 04:02 AM

1,776 Posts

Quote from diego15nets

:

I have this same model and you don't need to use the electric start at all. If you see the instructions on the generator sticker on top, it will guide you with and without electric start. I use just propane on mine without electric start. If you prefer electric startup, you'll have to purchase the battery charger.

You CANNOT start this with propane with a dead battery. This post, while technically correct - you can use a pull start with propane PROVIDED you have an OK battery. The reason is that there is a solenoid in the propane valve that is actuated by 12V. A dead battery will keep it from activating. How to tell? When you press the red button on the right side of the panel, you should hear a click from the propane valve. If you hear nothing, your battery is dead. I have this same model and had this confirmed by calling Firman. They said something else that I didnt quite understand, Evidently, even if you activate the solenoid by connecting a battery charger, it still wont start using pull start if the battery isnt charged to 12V with propane. They recommended using gasoline to start it when the battery is dead, not propane, and using pull start. So far, I havent been able to get mine to start under propane with a dead battery, so I will need to replace the battery. The battery is an 12V 5Ah AGM type and costs about $33 and 2x more from Firman. Its a pain to replace - even the Firman video instructions show the tech unable to replace the battery and he had to get help.

Last edited by whodiini July 7, 2024 at 09:06 PM.

1

lurewars

Jul 08, 2024 05:29 AM

1,315 Posts

Joined Mar 2009

lurewarsJul 08, 2024 05:29 AM

1,315 Posts

Quote from whodiini

:

You CANNOT start this with propane with a dead battery. This post, while technically correct - you can use a pull start with propane PROVIDED you have an OK battery. The reason is that there is a solenoid in the propane valve that is actuated by 12V. A dead battery will keep it from activating. How to tell? When you press the red button on the right side of the panel, you should hear a click from the propane valve. If you hear nothing, your battery is dead. I have this same model and had this confirmed by calling Firman. They said something else that I didnt quite understand, Evidently, even if you activate the solenoid by connecting a battery charger, it still wont start using pull start if the battery isnt charged to 12V with propane. They recommended using gasoline to start it when the battery is dead, not propane, and using pull start. So far, I havent been able to get mine to start under propane with a dead battery, so I will need to replace the battery. The battery is an 12V 5Ah AGM type and costs about $33 and 2x more from Firman. Its a pain to replace - even the Firman video instructions show the tech unable to replace the battery and he had to get help.

While i'm sure what you're saying is true. I went several months without starting my generator. Just the other day I went out to start it using propane. The electric start was dead. But had enough charge that it was still clicking but not turning over. I was then able to pull start on propane with a pull or two. So although you must have some battery charge, I don't think it takes much.

1

whodiini

Jul 08, 2024 05:36 AM

1,776 Posts

Joined Jan 2006

whodiiniJul 08, 2024 05:36 AM

1,776 Posts

Quote from lurewars

:

While i'm sure what you're saying is true. I went several months without starting my generator. Just the other day I went out to start it using propane. The electric start was dead. But had enough charge that it was still clicking but not turning over. I was then able to pull start on propane with a pull or two. So although you must have some battery charge, I don't think it takes much.

Sounds reasonable. Firman told me that a few months should be OK when I asked how long between starts using propane. Last time I started mine was 2 years ago. I asked Firman how long the battery lasts. She said that if you start it every few months, it should last 3-5 years. But if you let it be dead for a while, like a year, it will stay dead,.

Since I only plan to use this when blackouts occur, I will need to keep some gas around or figure out a way to rewire the generator to take an external battery pack. They sell those small hand held battery packs to jump start cars, which requires a lot more amps than this generator. So maybe I can rewire the firman and get rid of the battery and replace it with one of these. Or just try to leave the battery in and connect up this battery pack.

Last edited by whodiini July 7, 2024 at 11:00 PM.

1

FairSofa5430

Jul 08, 2024 01:50 PM

104 Posts

Joined Jan 2022

FairSofa5430Jul 08, 2024 01:50 PM

104 Posts

I tried this last year and after waiting 3 months for delivery, and passing by other deals, finally got a refund.

1

Onasedm

Jul 09, 2024 02:55 AM

11 Posts

Joined Sep 2017

OnasedmJul 09, 2024 02:55 AM

11 Posts

These are junk! I had one and it kept smoking a ton and surging idle while no load even on it, they were returned for a reason

1

pilotd

Jul 10, 2024 08:06 PM

867 Posts

Joined Apr 2018

pilotdJul 10, 2024 08:06 PM

867 Posts

Quote from Tourist1292

:

Good price for this if you don't mind refurbished and missing the battery charger and oil, funnel, etc. It is often on sale at Costco for $599.

I bought refurb and emailed Firman who gladly sent me the missing parts for free

pilotd

Jul 10, 2024 08:14 PM

867 Posts

Joined Apr 2018

pilotdJul 10, 2024 08:14 PM

867 Posts

Quote from whodiini

:

Sounds reasonable. Firman told me that a few months should be OK when I asked how long between starts using propane. Last time I started mine was 2 years ago. I asked Firman how long the battery lasts. She said that if you start it every few months, it should last 3-5 years. But if you let it be dead for a while, like a year, it will stay dead,.

Since I only plan to use this when blackouts occur, I will need to keep some gas around or figure out a way to rewire the generator to take an external battery pack. They sell those small hand held battery packs to jump start cars, which requires a lot more amps than this generator. So maybe I can rewire the firman and get rid of the battery and replace it with one of these. Or just try to leave the battery in and connect up this battery pack.

If you take off the back panel there is a battery disconnect. Do that before you put it in storage and the battery should last much longer than if you didn't. I just pulled mine out for the annual test and it fired right up.

The battery is pretty easy to access if you want to attach a jump pack in a pinch, but you could also just power the external solenoid valve directly instead of using the generator battery. The valve is in the big blue wart that attaches to the propane tank.

whodiini

Jul 10, 2024 08:51 PM

1,776 Posts

Joined Jan 2006

whodiiniJul 10, 2024 08:51 PM

1,776 Posts

Quote from pilotd

:

If you take off the back panel there is a battery disconnect. Do that before you put it in storage and the battery should last much longer than if you didn't. I just pulled mine out for the annual test and it fired right up.

The battery is pretty easy to access if you want to attach a jump pack in a pinch, but you could also just power the external solenoid valve directly instead of using the generator battery. The valve is in the big blue wart that attaches to the propane tank.

Yes. What I was thinking was why leave a battery to the elements when I could store it indoors and be sure that it working when I needed it. i kinda suspect that it wont work without a battery, like your car needs a battery to run. If you removed the battery and just jump start your car, I think it wont work. Similar with the generator. So I was going to add some terminals to the back cover and when I needed it, I would just put jumpers to a battery and start it that way.

BTW, your suggestion didnt seem to work. I powered up the external solenoid and tried to pull start and it still wouldnt start. According to Firman support, it will not start unless the battery reads over 12V. So there must be other circuitry that prevents it from starting from propane unless 12V is on the battery.

Its all a bit frustrating - like many people I suspect, all I want is a generator that can start from propane after an extended period of non-use for blackouts that is low maintenence.

Last edited by whodiini July 10, 2024 at 01:55 PM.

hermancm

Jul 10, 2024 11:04 PM

538 Posts

Joined Aug 2008

hermancmJul 10, 2024 11:04 PM

538 Posts

I got one of these on a previous sale and it came with the muffler side grill cracked and falling apart so I contacted them and it took several calls and emails over a long period of time to get it fixed. The guy I dealt with wouldn't respond to emails he told me to send with photos of the broken part then when I got ahold of him again he sent the grill for then] other end of the generator ugh. It finally got all straightened out but it took a good 7-8 months I think.

1

tex_mex

Jul 10, 2024 11:53 PM

157 Posts

Joined Apr 2013

tex_mexJul 10, 2024 11:53 PM

157 Posts

I purchased this same model over a year ago and have used it about 2 or 3 times now and it has worked with no issues. I powered 2 big refrigerators with no issue for 2 days straight this last time. Not to mention that when i first received it it looked new. No blemishes. We just went through Hurricane Beryl and my father in law ordered this model like mine and i got an upgrade to the 7500 trifuel model. Hopefully i have the same luck as my first purchase.

2

FIRMAN WH03242F 4000W Electric Start Dual Fuel Inverter Generator - Refurbished - $399.99

$400

$590

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