Where a generator is made is an essential consideration for manufacturers and customers alike. Customers with eyes for quality need to guarantee that they will be reliable.
Duromax is an American premium generator brand that is one of the increasingly few companies that has managed to maintain its made in the USA label.
The History of the Duromax Generator Is All American
DuroPower, the owner of the Duromax brand, has put top-quality manufacturing into offering over 20 different generator models.
It is not just generators; their entire line of engines, water pumps, and pressure washers are both serviced and constructed in Ontario, California.
Decades of Experience
Duropower has been in the business of providing premium quality power tools, engines, and machine parts since 1989. They used these decades of experience to create the first Duramax generator in 2003, and it immediately stood out from the crowd.
Many of their products stood out because they innovated on the generator formula in unique and exciting ways for the time.
Dual Fuel
Duromax generators innovated the generator landscape with their Dual Fuel technology. This technology allowed generator enthusiasts the flexibility of operating on gasoline or liquid propane, a huge innovation for the time.
This innovation led to more options for fuel efficiency and allowed customers to choose which fuel source they needed on the fly.
Gasoline has a shorter shelf-life than propane, making for a great long-term generator solution. Propane is also more fuel-efficient which saves customers money over time.
Types of Duromax Generators
Duromax generators are versatile and come in many varieties that fit distinct situations and needs.
Natural Gas-Fueled
Perhaps the most reliable fuel source, natural gas generators, were responsible for 43% of the electricity generated by the entire US in 2019.
It is the cleanest fuel source generator available on the market and has very high reliability in the fuel consumption department. They can also be portable or connected directly to natural gas pipelines and use the fuel there.
They are also popular among businesses for their lack of odor, allowing companies to use them around people without disrupting daily life.
However, they have some drawbacks that make them challenging for homeowners, and outdoors enthusiasts to use. Natural gas fuel is highly explosive and needs severe precautions and inspections to function correctly.
These inspections are compounded by the highest maintenance costs of any generator, which puts them out of the reach of some generator enthusiasts.
Also, while natural gas produces lower emissions than any other generator, it is a non-renewable energy source, which doesn’t help push any sustainability goals forward for more environmentally minded customers.
Propane Fueled
Propane Generators require a separate tank filled with liquid petroleum gas to function.
Propane is a popular choice among Duromax Generator customers because it is very slow to degrade, often taking several decades before the gas will start to degrade.
If someone doesn’t use their generator for consecutive stretches of the year, it is ideal to set it and forget its unit. It is popular among campers, RVs, and emergency backup power when climate weather rears its ugly head.
Gasoline Fueled
The gasoline generator is a popular choice among homeowners for its cheaper initial cost and the fact that homeowners on their own typically are only using generators in emergencies.
Having a cheap solution to a power outage in backup is a no-brainer for savvy homeowners. Although, if these emergencies happen more frequently, gasoline-powered generators can begin to eat up cash and savings.
This increased cost is because of the already mentioned short shelf life of gasoline and that homeowners need to refuel them due to their higher fuel consumption rate constantly.
You can try to risk gasoline that is past its expiration date, and it will probably do its job, but expired gasoline can increase the wear and tear on engine parts and substantially decrease the long-term life span of your generator.
Gasoline generators are also subject to the scarcity and price fluctuations of gasoline. Fuel shortages in your area or a high demand due to external factors can leave you without any reliable fresh fuel when you need it most.
If your emergency is a power outage, it can affect gas stations which are the primary gasoline sources.
Overall, gasoline models are an economical choice that can be risky over the longer term.
Diesel Fueled
Diesel Generators are the most fuel-efficient type of generator and require a nominal maintenance cost.
Their low-maintenance nature allows them to possibly run for years without needing a single replacement or maintenance repair.
These advantages’ trade-off is that diesel generators are much more expensive than either propane or gasoline generators. It also shares the gasoline disadvantage because diesel fuel has a relatively short shelf life.
The shelf life is longer than gasoline at a few months until it expires, but it is still not comparable to the reliability of propane lasting for decades.
Bi-fuel
Bi-fuel generators typically combine a propane tank with gasoline or diesel fuel, allowing you to run either fuel or combine them when you need it.
Many Duromax Generators fall into this category thanks to their innovative Dual Fuel technology.
These generators try to combine the advantages of the different types of fuel while eliminating as much as they can the disadvantages.
Because of their versatility, Bi-fuel generators have been popular among generator customers who are willing to pay a premium price upfront to guarantee cost savings and fuel efficiency in the long run because of their versatility.
Tri-fuel
As the name suggests, tri-fuel generators combine three previous generator types to offer maximum customer flexibility.
You are now three times as likely to have the appropriate fuel on hand than with a single generator.
Inverter Generator
Inverter generators stand as an opposite mechanism to regular or traditional generators. It inverts the charge of electricity produced by the generator before sending it out to your power grid.
Inverter generators becoming more popular in recent years because their ability to clean up electricity is critical to make sure sensitive electronics like cellphones and computers can safely use generator power in emergency outages or situations.
Inverter generators are generally more expensive than traditional generators, but you get a quieter and more energy-efficient product with the extra money spent.
If you have a lot of electronic devices in your home, as increasing more households do, an inverter generator is the only way to avoid damaging your sensitive electronics.
As with any generator, you should not be operating it indoors or within an enclosed space, but this risk is multiplied by an inverter generator since it can leak dangerous and scentless chemicals into the air and poison you without you even knowing.
Duromax Models
The Duromax brand is offered in at least 20 different models at a time, and it is worth it to break down how these models stack up against each other.
These models are all manufactured in Duromax California plants, which reassures their customers of the quality of their product.
Duromax XP4850EH- Hybrid Generator
This model is a premium Duromax offered generator that runs on a combination of natural gas and propane for added fuel flexibility. It is also an inverter generator, which means it is smaller, more portable, runs quieter, and is more energy-efficient than its competition.
You get what you pay for with DuroMax XP4850EH, as the price tag is significantly more than other models, but you get all of the benefits you could ever need in a consumer-grade generator.
Its fuel types allow it to be very fuel-efficient, running for 8-9 hours on each fuel type, and one of the best hybrid generators for power generation.
Its other benefits are that it is very low maintenance for generators in its category and is an inverter generator. It can be used for construction and home power to power fragile electronic devices safely.
It does have some drawbacks despite its many great features. It is one of the heaviest dual generators by weight, so this weight makes it take a hit to its portability.
It is also quite loud for an inverter generator, which is understandable considering the amount of power it generates but still worth mentioning to potential buyers.
Duromax XP4400E
On the opposite end, we have the Duromax XP4400E model, one of the most affordable Duromax generators.
What it lacks in features compared to premium price Duromax generators it makes up for in cost efficiency.
It can maintain a low noise level, average power generation, and a 4-gallon tank at a great price.
This Duromax model also comes with a low oil automatic shut-off, which can detect insufficient oil to operate. This feature is great because you never have to turn off your generator if you forget about it manually.
Generators that operate with low oil risk suffer permanent engine and component damage.
Some disadvantages with this model are that it has less power than other generators its size and an oil drip problem caused by transiting the generator between places.
This oil drip can be an issue for outdoors enthusiasts who are keen to find a generator that is easily portable without much hassle.
Duromax XP4000S
This generator is a pretty cool model that Duromax offers, quite literally, because the stand-out feature of this generator is its air-cooled OHV engine. The generator can avoid overheating thanks to air-cooling technology.
The Duromax XP4000S is also pretty quiet for a generator and inexpensive. You would owe the extra dollars saved thanks to the steel frame built with being cheaper to the manufacturer and durable to wear and tear.
There are some drawbacks to consider for this model; unfortunately, it does not have a wheel kit included in your purchase. This issue will cause it to be awkward to transport until you invest in the wheel kit.
It’s not an expensive purchase, but it is a sorely missing feature compared to other Duromax generator models where it comes standard.
Please read our detailed reviews of various other DuroMax generators like (a) DuroMax XP5500EH (b) Duromax XP13000HX (c) Duromax XP15000E (d) Duromax XP10000E (e) Duromax XP15000EH (f) Duromax XP12000E (g) Duromax XP12000EH Review (h) Duromax XP10000EH (i) DuroMax XP9000iH
Final Thoughts
The Duromax brand has endured as an American-made brand for decades. It has demonstrated the ability to innovate and deliver a premium quality generator that its customers love for a good reason.
They have a long history of being manufactured in California DuroPower plants, and that is where they are likely to stay for decades to come.