Silence my generator!

Samasutra · Post by **Samasutra** » Tue May 12, 2009 12:59 am

Hey there fellow Burning Man enthusiasts! 2009 will be my fifth year at the Burn. I have completely roughed it every year and loved every minute of it. However, I have decided I want to treat myself this year to a blender and cold drinks all week long. This is where a generator comes in. Not a big fan of the noise that most generators produce and would rather not subject my neighbors to such an annoyance. Anyone have a decently priced silent generator that you can refer me to? Or can someone explain how to make a good muffling system? Thanks in advance :D

ygmir · Post by **ygmir** » Tue May 12, 2009 6:03 am

Hondas in a box are generally accepted as most quiet, for a reasonable size genny.
What size are you thinking?

Some of the old RV gennies are pretty quiet, especially, again, in an insulated box........

or, a 200yd extension cord to someone else's.................

Captain Goddammit · Post by **Captain Goddammit** » Tue May 12, 2009 6:03 am

A generator just for a blender?
You need this!!

Post by **AntiM** » Tue May 12, 2009 6:48 am

I live in Hushville, we have a hand-crank blender.

justfred · Post by **justfred** » Tue May 12, 2009 7:31 am

Mixing the fuel 50/50 with sugar does a good job of silencing most generators.

Barbie · Post by **Barbie** » Tue May 12, 2009 10:28 am

YEa PArty BlenDer !!!!!!!!! Had my fair share of Margaritas Out of those things over the YEarsssss!!

Samasutra · Post by **Samasutra** » Wed May 13, 2009 4:49 pm

ygmir wrote:Hondas in a box are generally accepted as most quiet, for a reasonable size genny.
What size are you thinking?

Some of the old RV gennies are pretty quiet, especially, again, in an insulated box........

or, a 200yd extension cord to someone else's.................

Size is another question mark for me.. this is my first time, so I am totally ignorant.. ewww, an ignorant virgin, that doesn't sound fun.

I do know that an RV is out of the question. I am living in the Philippines at the moment and will be flying home two days before the burn. Don't have too much extra cash to be flushing down a clean RV toilet if ya know what I mean.

Samasutra · Post by **Samasutra** » Wed May 13, 2009 5:02 pm

Captain Goddammit wrote:A generator just for a blender?
You need this!!

Wow, I just peed a little. I am not sure if I can handle so much power!! Pfffft hell yes I can. I was also hoping to use the generator for a sound system but I am sure there are other ways.. Thanks Captain, this just might be the way to go.

Samasutra · Post by **Samasutra** » Wed May 13, 2009 5:07 pm

justfred wrote:Mixing the fuel 50/50 with sugar does a good job of silencing most generators.

Really? That's such a nifty bit of info. How in the world to you come to figure that one out? Did you slip while making brownies or something??

mojo · Post by **mojo** » Wed May 13, 2009 5:14 pm

Coleman makes a really nice "camping" blender that is battery powered- they were selling them at Costco last year. You should be able to find them online.

Post by **AntiM** » Wed May 13, 2009 5:46 pm

Chainsaw blender. Apparently not difficult to make.

littleflower · Post by **littleflower** » Wed May 13, 2009 6:09 pm

just don't back into it.

ygmir · Post by **ygmir** » Wed May 13, 2009 6:48 pm

your new bartender:

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Wed May 13, 2009 7:01 pm

Samasutra wrote:Don't have too much extra cash to be flushing down a clean RV toilet if ya know what I mean.

Just in case, even if you have an rv with you, don't use the toilet. You don't have a week's worth of flushing in your tank and you will have problems getting any more.

skibear · Post by **skibear** » Wed May 13, 2009 10:22 pm

AntiM wrote:

Chainsaw blender. Apparently not difficult to make.

Hey, this chainsaw blender totally rocked.
One of the most awesome things I saw in 2007.

Samasutra · Post by **Samasutra** » Thu May 14, 2009 3:58 am

justfred wrote:Mixing the fuel 50/50 with sugar does a good job of silencing most generators.

Oh sheesh.. was that a joke that flew right over my head? :oops:
I am pretty sure that the only way the sugar will silence my generator is by breaking the shit out of it...

ygmir · Post by **ygmir** » Thu May 14, 2009 6:43 am

Samasutra wrote:
justfred wrote:Mixing the fuel 50/50 with sugar does a good job of silencing most generators.
Oh sheesh.. was that a joke that flew right over my head?
I am pretty sure that the only way the sugar will silence my generator is by breaking the shit out of it...

......sharp as a watermellon...................

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Thu May 14, 2009 7:38 am

Skip all the fancy modern shit and come to the playa to have fun in the rough.

You don't need electric stuff..

oneeyeddick · Post by **oneeyeddick** » Thu May 14, 2009 8:04 am

Tell that to Megavolt.

theCryptofishist · Post by **theCryptofishist** » Thu May 14, 2009 9:37 am

Some one did tell him; and he doesn't come to the playa anymore.

oneeyeddick · Post by **oneeyeddick** » Thu May 14, 2009 9:58 am

His gig fucked up my hairdoo anyhoot.

Sail Man · Post by **Sail Man** » Thu May 14, 2009 2:39 pm

ygmir wrote:
Samasutra wrote:
justfred wrote:Mixing the fuel 50/50 with sugar does a good job of silencing most generators.
Oh sheesh.. was that a joke that flew right over my head?
I am pretty sure that the only way the sugar will silence my generator is by breaking the shit out of it...
......sharp as a watermellon...................

just add vodka

Post by **AntiM** » Thu May 14, 2009 3:13 pm

justfred wrote:Mixing the fuel 50/50 with sugar does a good job of silencing most generators.

An unwrapped tampon is more effective.

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Thu May 14, 2009 4:00 pm

mojo wrote:Coleman makes a really nice "camping" blender that is battery powered- they were selling them at Costco last year. You should be able to find them online.

You big truck stops have all the kitchen stuff in 12v. Ever coffee makers and microwaves.

Samasutra · Post by **Samasutra** » Thu May 14, 2009 4:34 pm

Sail Man wrote:
ygmir wrote:
Samasutra wrote: Oh sheesh.. was that a joke that flew right over my head? :oops:
I am pretty sure that the only way the sugar will silence my generator is by breaking the shit out of it...
......sharp as a watermellon...................
just add vodka :wink:

Watermelon, (just one L by the way) vodka, party blender.. now we have a fucking party. 8)

Captain Goddammit · Post by **Captain Goddammit** » Thu May 14, 2009 6:03 pm

The battery blenders are pretty weak and kinda' suck. The hand-crank ones are sort of OK, need a solid table to clamp onto.
The gas powered ones are pricey, about $200, but absolutely can't be beat for sheer coolness, even if there's electricity available.
The coolest option in the gas-powered category, in my opinion, is to build one yourself. The more outrageous the powerplant, the better!

justfred · Post by **justfred** » Thu May 14, 2009 7:14 pm

AntiM wrote:
justfred wrote:Mixing the fuel 50/50 with sugar does a good job of silencing most generators.
An unwrapped tampon is more effective.

And a lot funnier when you have to take it to the mechanic and they figure out what caused it.

Karlene · Post by **Karlene** » Fri May 15, 2009 1:57 pm

We had an older generator that was loud for about two years, but we built a box out of plywood, pretty good size, like a play pen and set the generator down in it on a pile of blankets so it wouldn't rattle. That worked good. But last year we bought a Honda "quiet" generator. It really is quiet, but it was expensive. We run a lot of stuff on it, fresh waffles in the morning...oh boy..

unjonharley · Post by **unjonharley** » Sat May 16, 2009 6:52 am

The best muffler I have seen, Was in 03. The box was four half sheets of plywood.. Along the top of the box was old (soft) sofa cushions.. I stoped and looked in to see if the genny was runng..

Post by **Elderberry** » Sat May 16, 2009 8:50 am

unjonharley wrote:The best muffler I have seen, Was in 03. The box was four half sheets of plywood.. Along the top of the box was old (soft) sofa cushions.. I stoped and looked in to see if the genny was runng..

What do you mean "along the top of the box"? If the sofa cushions 'covered' the box, how did you look into it? I'm just trying to figure out the logistics--if it works this good, I might consider building something similar. But I'm thinking that if cushions covered the box it would get too hot.

JK