I recently sprung for the Honda E2000, also got a 6 gallon extended gas tank and a primable, quick-disconnect (low spash) hose kit. That plus a bunch of extension cords, one is a 100’ 10 guage plus several 100’ 14 guage that were on clearance for $8.
I let it run for an afternoon with 2 x 1000 watt dehydrators turning randomly on and off. Worked like a champ. Stupid easy to pull start and has been 100% on 1-pull starts.
Stockpiled some no-ethanol gas and treated it with a double dose of PRI-G. I think it’s enough to keep the essentials running - multiple fridges, chest freezers, coffee makers, etc. I haven’t tried hooking of up to the house and running a gaspack furnace on it yet.
Interesting idea. I don’t have a transfer switch but I guess you can just pull the manual cut-off in a pinch.