FirePower FP130 and a Generator...

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I have been out of a welder for a little while since my old Lincoln idealarc 100 went down. I searched and searched and finally decided on the FirePower FP130 for my needs and I got what I'm thinking was a great deal on a good little welder. Question being is I have a 3500peak/3000 countinuous watt generator and I'm needing to do some field work with my welder. Is it it possible to run my welder with this without causing damage to either component??? Ive read some threads on this but don't completely understand. Thanks in advance.
Reply:The manual suggests not running the welder if your voltage is below 110v, and says it wants a 20 amp 120v connection. That would be 2400 watts.  Many welders even though they say they want a 20 amp circuit will draw more than 20 amps when set to max. That's a bit close in my opinion to max output on a 3000 watt genny. When you max out a genny, engine rpms usually drop and with that output voltage drops. You may have some issues when trying to run near max on start up if the genny bogs down due to the start up demand current of the welder.Safe way to know would be to get one of those little plug in wattage/volt meters Depot/Lowes sells like a Kill-A- Watt and see what the actual wattage draw is at max on standard line current. If you are really close to 3000watts, I'd look at a bigger genny. If you are down around 2400 watts, then I'd plug it into the genny and do it again, but watch the voltage drop instead. If it looks like it's going to brown out below 110v, again I'd look at a bigger genny.http://www.homedepot.com/p/P3-Intern...4460/202196388.No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:I plugged it in and ran it on high setting and the engine had a small rpm drop at start and then picked right back up. It was hot enough to burn through 5/16 steel and it said the max was 1/4". I just don't wanna burn up neither. I'll check into that wattage meter for sure tomorrow and give a update. Thank you for the info.