This is a very well-built and HEAVY generator. I could not get it to run on propane at first. After several hours of struggling, at the suggestion of someone online, I checked the spark plug, and it was a cheaper plug (LG) than what is recommended in the manual. It also was not gapped correctly (.025). I got the exact plug from an auto parts store that the manual recommends and it fired right up. Most auto parts stores will carry the NGK BPR5ES plug (NGK 7734, copper). It is a F6RTC.
I strongly recommend checking the plug before you fire it up. Also be aware that this has automatic choke. The troubleshooting section of the manual says to close the choke if the engine will not start. That confused me.
Otherwise, it runs smoothly on propane and gives plenty of 50A power to my transfer switch to power my 240V well pump, furnace and 7 other circuits.

Box was beat up after delivery but what can stand shipping handlers and truckers? Put wheels and braces on in about 30 minutes. Hooked up propane, followed starting directions and it cranked first time purred like a kitten. Not as noisy as I thought considering the motor size and kw. I have 2 other gens with bigger motors and smalled kw and they are way louder. plugged in several 110v fans and tools no issue no strain on generator or motor. Just idled along. Have not tried the 50 amp circuit but volt meter on my hand held tester showed 240v/50amps. Love the pull start option if the battery dies. Plan to use a battery tender on the off seasons. I would give this a 5 rating if I had the chance to use the 50 amp circuit which I wlll do in the next week or so. Amazon and the shipping companies went beyond my expectations to deliver 2 days early which was great because we were expecting a hurricane which came but luckily I did not to test it on the home just yet.

I wanted a Generator that has a dependable 50 amp output, so I shopped and shopped...
I wanted a Gen that's NOT made in China and preferably made in the U.S.A. All I could find was Generac. They are two or three times the cost...
I wanted the Gen for emergency power conditions... I already have two other older 30 amp capable Gens and they _can_ run the emergency stuff. But I wanted growing room.
I almost sprang for the 13k HXT. There's one local still new in the box for 1250.00...
So instead I dropped the additional $$ for the 15k EH, not sure that was/is wise especially since finding the Westinghouse 13k tri fuel which has more features and accessories than the Duromax 13k tri fuel... and costs less (It's made in Vietnam... I'm ok with that.)
Anyhoo...
--This thing is HEAVY! and it's tall, it won't fit under my 36" high garage bench without modification of the 2x4 support rails under the bench.
--Surprisingly, the wheels are PLASTIC. Both the rims and the tires. But since it's NOT a jobsite Gen, it's probably a non issue. Tubed rubber tires on metal rims would be better IMO.
--I wished the handles were joined in a u shape like other Gen models, but again, this ain't gonna be a tote around Gen...
--I've read complaints about the battery configuration. The battery is shipped backwards, the terminals on the interior side of the Gen. Just flip it around so the terminals face out! The terminal wires are long enough on purpose to reach the appropriate terminal lugs when the battery is spun around with lugs facing out. The battery retainer bar is notched on one end so it slides under a screw head, the other is just a hole. I heard people complain about this also... so just flip the thing around so the notched end is on the side behind the wheel...
--I heard complaints about the 50 amp port being above the wheel and people having problems connecting 50 amp cables. I guess this could be an issue if you have particular cables... I dunno. I have one that is a right angle with finger holds and it connects without a problem and the cable hangs down between the tire and frame fine (see pic).
--There's no idle control and at first this bugged me. But I realized this isn't a jobsite Gen where power usage is not constant. Using this to run a house back-up setup means idle control would be meaningless anyways (I have a 6000 and an 8000 watt generator(s) for jobsite usage and they have idle control).
-- Being a big v-twin engine, it's gonna burn more fuel than the single piston models. I would have preferred a longer run time, but that would mean a larger gasoline tank... for an already heavy TANK!. Propane bottles are ubiquitous. Having several is just a smart thing to do. Buy a used one for $10 (or get it for free), take it to Wally world or Lowe's or TSC etc and use it for the trade in priced filled bottles. (Be sure to check the stamped dates on the bottles you get and get newer ones from the lot incase you need get them refilled elsewhere... there's a 10-12 year refill limit on bottles).
-- There's no assembly instructions AT ALL, so if you're not mechanically inclined, you're gonna be a lil frustrated. But it's only the wheels and lift bar at the top that needs to be installed. The battery needs connecting as well, and this is where you need to take advice from others and flip it around so you can connect a maintainer/charger. Which is another issue... this thing should have come with a battery charger and charging while running feature like other models have. But again, for me it's an emergency use Gen. I might not run it for months. So having a battery maintainer is just gonna have to happen. (The Westinghouse 13k dual and Tri fuel come with battery chargers as well as battery charging while running).

This thing started right up on propane after assembly. I only ran it for 10 minutes, and it ran nice.

I did take the advice of others here and installed an oil drain valve with the drain hose adapter. It's just smart to do.

Edit 9/15/23
I wanted to set up this generator for a house backup. I also wanted to run it from my detached garage. I set up a 50amp connection to my garage sub panel and set up a disconnect in the house to another sub panel that my garage and emergency circuits are in. I can disconnect the main panel from the sub panel when the power goes out and back feed the sub panel with the Generator.
But I wanted to exhaust the Gen to the outside so I shopped Amazon for products I could employ for this purpose. All the things you see in the pictures are purchased from Amazon. I used an 1 1/4 ID flex exhaust and a 1 3/4 flex exhaust section, putting the smaller in to the larger for a double walled exhaust. I used exhaust fittings and clamps to connect them. I also purchased a 3" stainless wall cap with louvers and a screen for the outside of the garage.
The 1 1/4 fits VERY snugly over the exhaust port on the Generator and needs no clamping or screws to retain it. Using red high temp silicone, I sealed the connections all together, inside and out.

It all works very well and all the exhaust is ported outside the garage.

-Update 8/1/2020-
We have now used this generator for just about two years to power our 1.5hp 520ft deep water well. Our property (working on it to be a homestead) does not have electricity, so our only option was to use a generator to power our well. Solar well pumps are ok if the well is shallow, but we wanted a deep well and honestly spent most of our money on the well so the generator was the more affordable option when compared to a solar option. This generator does wonderful to power our well, we've run it for up to 8hours a day using the well to fill an above ground pool, a water tank on a trailer we use, and other power tools etc. as long as you do on time maintenance and use good fuel (ethanol free), replace the spark plug occasionally, I think we can make this genny last us a good while. Very pleased.

The only con is this genny can be loud when compared to other units, but you can't beat it for roughly $1000... I know other brands might be quieter by a few decibels, they are either double or triple in price. This one is priced well and performs well.

-Update 8/12/2019-
This bad boy still runs great and is used nearly everyday for about 10-20min at a time, with a few days of more heavy use of 6+hours when using certain power tools. Good genny for the price and so far so good.

-Update 4/9/2018-

I finally got my generator back from Northern Tool. It turns out the governor was out of whack, cylinders and a spring needed retuning. $25 total repair costs. Now why was it so difficult for Duromax tech support to even identify such a simple problem from the beginning? Generator now runs fine and is back to normal operation. Raising my review back to 4 stars ONLY FOR THE PRODUCT. Duromax tech support was horrible. 20+ minute wait every time I call, direct extensions for the support techs only leads to their voicemails and they never ever called me back. I spoke to the same two peopleevery time, leading me to believe they have a two man show for customer service.

Also be aware, I called 3 small engine shops to have them take a look at this generator, all of then turned me down because they didn't work on and couldn't acquire parts for small Japanese generator engines (which this Duromax generator has). Northern Tool was even skeptical of accepting the generator but took it after I asked repeatedly. So be aware you may not be able to find help incase this generator breaks on you.

Update 3/19/2018-

So I ran into quite the problem with this generator. About 3 months ago, I started noticing the generator was running much louder than usual. Considerably louder than usual. After further inspecting, online searches etc my brother and I came to the conclusion that the generator was and still is revving itself to run at 110%.. as in, it's trying to overwork itself without any need to do so. After further troubleshooting.. We noticed a small (but developing) leak from the cylinder head... which is not good. I am an intermediate mechanic and am familiar with standard generator use.. changing the oil every 20hrs (per manual), cleaning the air filter regularly, using non-ethanol fuel, etc.

We reached out to customer service @ Duromax.. they were difficult to get a hold of by phone (always a 20min hold time every single time we call) and very slow to respond to emails. We provided video and photos of the generator acting up and they eventually (2 weeks after initially opening the ticket) sent us a replacement relay which they believed had failed. Upon going to install it, it was the wrong part... it was much smaller than the existing relay. Called customer support again, left voicemails and emails for the reps, finally got a hold of them and they needed photo proof that the part was wrong. I provided the proof.. they realized the factory switched parts on them without notifying them, so another week later they finally sent me a whole replacement panel for the generator because they couldn't track down just the relay. I don't mind extra parts so long as my problem is resolved.. I installed the new panel and it seemed to be fine. But the generator was still noticeably loud. We continued to use it and have once again reached out to them in early March to get this same problem addressed again because we noticed the exhaust was glowing red at night after only 15min of use, with nothing plugged in. So this again meant the generator had a failing system such as a voltage regulator or relay or whatever mechanism keeps track of power output. For a week now I am yet again struggling to get in contact with the representative assigned to my ticket. In the past I have made it repeatedly clear to the tech support that this generator currently powers our new deep water well... without it we can't get water. But my calls for help continue to fall on deaf ears. I've spoken to multiple reps at the support office but they all transfer me back to the same tech guy that has been assigned to my ticket..

This is just ridiculous. I am beyond upset that it is so difficult to get simple support for a problem that should have been resolved 3 months ago. I will update this review after I hear from them, but until then, I have lowered my review of this generator from my initial five stars to one star. A good quality product and customer support are two aspects that Duromax should focus on but have failed to do so.

-Original review-

3/5 stars for the generator's instruction manual
4/5 stars for the included accessories (wheels, bolts, pins)
5/5 stars for the generator

Bought 26 acres in East Texas and am now living out here full time to turn it into a working homestead farm, we are completely off-grid. We use this generator to power our 12x24ft cabin wonderfully -- a small fridge, A/C, computer, tv, phone chargers and other accessories. There are some things you should know about this generator, pros and cons so to speak:

Pros:
-Fuel efficient (lasts about 10hrs on a full tank at half-wattage usage)
-Large capacity fuel tank (close to 10 gallons, I use 89octane and it works well)
-Power is fairly steady, does not fluctuate, but we still use a surge protector on our expensive electronic equipment (fridge, computer and tv)
-Good engine (runs good, no issues so far and it doesn't use much oil)
-Electric start with key, also has manual rope start (electric start is awesome, especially on days when you are sore from work the previous day. The electric start on this genny works well, and is a key start. You get two keys, and so I like to leave one in the genny and one on my own key ring)

Cons:
-Heavy (this thing is a beast, both literally and it's also written on the generator's top cover. This weighs in over 250lbs, requiring two people to lift it if it needs to be lifted, and if one person is to move it on wheels it can be difficult for smaller size folks.)
-Loud (comparing this to a 2nd generator I have, a smaller 4000watt peak, this generator is slightly louder, but that can be expected because it's twice the size of my 2nd gen)
-Included accessories are absolutely garbage (the wheels are no-flats, meaning they don't have air valves, but they are cheapy tires. if the generator is left in one spot for over a few hours, the tires are "dented" flat and don't reform for hours, which makes it very difficult to move the generator on wheels because the tires are dented -- see pictures. it's absolutely ridiculous.
-The included instruction book is very outdated -- it still refers to the wheels as inflatable with valves, and it has directions that are incomplete and lacking, which will confuse novice generator users that don't have working knowledge of an engine.
-Did I mention this thing is heavy? It's very difficult to move on unleveled land (ie a farm, or in the woods, or mountains). But if you were to just keep it in one place permanently, this generator would be fine for that.

Things you'll need to do once you receive this generator:
-Add engine oil (the genny ships without oil, so have some on hand (it takes close to 2 quarts))
-Connect the negative battery terminal (it ships with it disconnected) (you also may need to charge the battery before you use the generator, as it could be near-dead or dead)
-Add fuel (I use 89octane, 87 would work, but I use 89 in all of my machines and equipment because it tends to run better)

If you're planning on using this generator to power a travel trailer, know that it will work very well for that purpose. We used this with a 33ft 2010 travel trailer that we lived in on our farm for a few months and it worked very well. Powers all of the goodies (ac, microwave, general electric etc) without tripping any breakers or blowing any fuses. Our much smaller generator was not able to run all of the goodies at one time, so it was great to be able to use this generator to power the trailer. You'll just need a few 30amp extension cords so that you can put the generator further away from the trailer, and you'll also need a 30amp female to 15amp male adapter in order to plug the travel trailer into the generator. (there is no 30amp outlet on the generator, which is why you need the adapter). We are now selling our trailer because we need the $$ for other things and have moved into a wood cabin which is more simple and energy efficient for our needs.

Once our home is built, this generator will be converted to a back-up generator for our future solar powered system - we expect it will be sufficient for that use. Overall, I recommend this generator for the price -- just know that the wheels are garbage and will likely need to be replaced if you plan on moving the generator, and that this genny is fairly loud. They claim 68db for loudness, but I think it's much louder than that (I play guitar and have some experience with sound/recording/volume etc) -- not sure where they got 68db from.

We chose to purchase the XP12000EH after extensive research of on-line reviews and surveys. Basically, our need was brought on by what appears to be a part of life now in Northern California. During the "fire season" we have endured a number of planned power outages that once lasted five days. When we didn't have a generator the first time we lost all the food in our refrigerator and freezer. We borrowed a small portable generator in time for subsequent outages, but we had to live without running water because we have a well and the pump is hardwired into the house power. We checked out standby generators, but the estimates we got ranged from 15 to 20 thousand. They run on natural gas, but what if the gas is shut off? So, I searched for a portable generator powerful enough to deal with the pump motor and ideally able to run on propane to avoid having to store and deal with gasoline for most of the year. This product was rated highly on various website comparison reviews. I ordered one from Amazon, and it seems to fit the bill. However, getting things right may not be for the faint of heart, so you should be aware of some issues before you decide whether to buy one for yourself.

The short version of the story is that the unit I got would not start with the electric ignition system, and rather than go through more time-consuming hassles to find out the cause (probably the starter, by the way) I took advantage of the Amazon return policy and basically exchanged it. The replacement seems to work perfectly. It's hooked up to two propane tanks and a tickler battery charger, and starts without a problem. An electrician will install an interlocking kit later today. The only remaining test remaining test will be whether it holds up to actual use.

Now for some reasons to be cautious. There are well over 900 Amazon reviews on this machine. about a third of which are negative. I did not go through them carefully before I made my purchase. The generator weighs well over 250 pounds, perhaps 270, and may arrive in a cardboard box that is dented and torn. There is only foam padding on one side. So, look for any denting or other damage. I didn't have that problem.

When you open the box, you find a red tag in the shape of a stop sign that advises you to call Duromax before returning the product and ask for help. This message is repeated at the beginning of the instruction manual. So, they must have a high return rate.

It turns out that the negative lead to the battery is disconnected for shipping. That has caused trouble, since they don't tell you about that in the instructions. Apparently dead batteries must have arrived enough for them to take that step. So, the first step, not included in the setup guide I received, is to connect the black wire. Unfortunately, in order to do that you have to remove a cover plate (four screws); you can't even see the battery unless you do. I only found out about this from support staff emails. I got a trickle charger to make sure the battery won't go dead again from sitting around for long periods.

My other big problem was related to propane. When I was hassling with my first machine I was only able to start it with the manual pull cord, but I couldn't get it to start with propane. In the course of exchanging messages with the support staff was informed that my problem was trying to use 20 pound tanks. They recommended at least 40 pound ones. Nowhere in the manual or advertising was this mentioned and the photo on the website shows it next to a 20 pound tank. None of the reviews I read warned of this either. I was miffed to say the least because I had just spent about $100 on two new 20 pound tanks. However, I discovered that there was some confusion on what to do with the choke. This seems to be clearer in the instructions now "“ it should be full open (not half open as one support person suggested). I am happy to report that in fact it runs fine with a 20 pound tank after all.

Unless you turn on the idle control. If you do, the engine dies. Again, support staff will tell you that idle control should not be used with propane. But this is not stated anywhere in the manual or other instruction material.

Some other confusion with propane stems from the fact that in earlier models the secondary regulator installed on the frame had a button that needed to be pushed the prime the line before starting. Now the generator comes with a more advanced regulator that does that automatically. But the manual and quick start instructions haven't been updated. Also, I was advised to wait 5 to 10 minutes after turning the gas on before starting to give the regulator time to do its thing. This is not necessary at all (thank goodness); starts right up for me.

Just a minor thing "“ the funnel they give you for adding oil is too short. I went a got one with a much longer plastic tube. Makes the job easier and you don't spill as much. Some people have complained about the wheels going flat, but that hasn't happened here. Perhaps the wheels have been upgraded after complaints.

A word about the warranty, touted in the web reviews as a plus. It only covers parts and not labor or shipping. And it was up to me to either replace it or find someone to pay to do it. The nearest Duromax service center is two hours away and I don't have a pickup truck to transport this 270 pound thing. I also read a review that stated there was a delay getting parts delivered. Just so you know. In addition, despite what at least one one-line review claimed, the generator is not made in the USA, it comes from China. Again, just so you know.

Would I buy it again, knowing what I know? Probably. It is relatively unique in its power and ability to run on propane.

Addendum: The electrician installed an interlocking kit and a 50 amp plug. The unit ran fine during our test with all circuits switched on. We let some water run until the well pump started and measured the load it created - it was running at 2400 KW, so we definitely needed a generator this size.

One last propane note - this time the engine wouldn't start with the choke open. It started easily with the choke closed bur ran rough until I opened the choke. So go figure. The answer must be to remain flexible and do whatever works.