Don't put a generator in your basement unless carbon monoxide suicide is your original plan. Should take about an hour and its hard to fall asleep into Death with that smell and choking.
The EU1000 by Honda is quality and quiet. Ive worn down two of them to scrap

i got honda generator wich is extremly quiet compare to all other i had in the past

Oh my… who would be dumb enough to operate the generator indoors?
Thanks for the tip on Honda generators! 🙂

After that, You bump WAY up to the Onans and other diesel generators that are so far out of my price range....that I have no experience to share.

Just thought I would start with the safety warning. Most deaths during power outages happen from generators or people trying to heat their home with their propane stove. Gas me to the max.

Thank you, Cernunnos5 🙂

Honda...but they are pricey

GM1

OOPS! Temporary brain fart. One of the quietest and also most efficient generators is your car with a power inverter in it.(much better muffler) I don't have the info for that at my fingertips but I'm sure someone on this board will have a good go to page to send you to. Keep a steering look on it though if using this option so no one steals your car.

If you have some fabrication skills you can pipe the exhaust out. If you pipe it a long way in a buried pipe it will kill much of the sound. There are things that can be done like welding rings inside the pipe that reflect the sound back up the pipe that can make it even quieter.
NOT for the inexperienced.

OOPS! Temporary brain fart. One of the quietest and also most efficient generators is your car with a power inverter in it.(much better muffler) I don't have the info for that at my fingertips but I'm sure someone on this board will have a good go to page to send you to. Keep a steering look on it though if using this option so no one steals your car.

Jack Spirko!!!
The Survival Podcast...episodes 1039 and 1040.
http://www.thesurvivalpodcast.com/episode-1038-steven-harris-on-battery-back-up-systems-part-1-of-2
http://www.thesurvivalpodcast.com/episode-1040-steven-harris-on-battery-back-up-systems-part-2-of-2

I don't know the brand but they were selling tiny 1200/2000 peak watt generators at Walmart for $199 a couple years back. A friend of mine bought one and bragged it was so quiet he could sit in the same room with it(as he hosed the exhaust outside.)and claimed it could run for an hour on the equivalent of a fart for gas. 😆 He owns a tourist camp and so has 10 KW diesels, 4500 watt Hondas and that miniature thing. He later said it died after a winters use. Seems owning one might be a good backup for an emergency at $199. I have a EMS 4000 watt Honda at the house and it is a pig on gas but very reliable. My 2nd is a Onan 4000 watt(on propane) in the RV and another is a Miller 8500 watt 225 Bobcat welder at my shop. I think I have emergency power covered!

Honda ei2000 for the win!

Cost be damned; it'll run forever. And be dependable!

And if you can hear it beyond 25 yards, I'm impressed:)

A good plan is to put the Gen in a shed with a metal extension for the muffler. Nice place to store batteries and any charging controllers
Consider a trickle charger for your Gen battery.
Get a Gen with pull as well as electrics start.
You will want to use fuel stabilizer. Buy extra parts like spark plugs, oil and air filters, fuses
Also, take a pic of the panel and write down start and stop procedures. If your not around, your spouse may need to start it or you can ask a neighbour. Having that attached to Gen will help and maybe avoid costly mistakes. I like honda . Have two if you can afford it. 6,500 or 10,000 watt is nice sized unit for 3,000 foot home.