Chicago Electric generators
1 report to CPSC, the latest made Jul 18, 2011. A report isn’t a recall.
Watch and the shortlist are kept with a free account, on every device. Your watch list. CPSC’s own search is on saferproducts.gov.
At a glance
From SaferProducts.gov, released Oct 25, 2026.
- 1report to CPSC
- Jul 18, 2011the latest report was made
- Jul 18, 2011the earliest
- 0with the company’s comments
- Brand
- Chicago Electric
- Maker
- Harbor Freight ToolsMakers, importers or sellers, as the reports name them
- Product
- GeneratorsIncluding power plantsCPSC’s product type: Generators or Power Plants (code 606), in Home Maintenance and Structures: Electrical Systems
By month
The numbers, as a table
| Month | Reports |
|---|---|
| July 2011 | 1 |
How badly anyone was hurt
- No one hurt 1 CPSC: Incident, No Injury
As each report says it, in short words; CPSC’s own words are under each.
The reports, as CPSC published them
Reports people made to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. CPSC publishes each one after sending it to the company named, and doesn’t guarantee they’re accurate. A report isn’t a recall.
Each report is the words of the person who made it, as CPSC published them. The company’s comments, where CPSC published any, are set apart as the company’s own.
CPSC, SaferProducts.gov public database export. Released Oct 25, 2026. Updated daily.
-
No one hurt Made Jul 18, 2011, published by CPSC Aug 8, 2011
The product, in the report: Gasoline engine driven 13 horsepower electrical generator
The float bowl fell off of the carburetor while generator was running. This caused gasoline to pour onto the ground under the hot engine, even after the generator stalled for lack of fuel.
There is no obvious mechanical means to hold the float bowl to the rest of the carburetor. The replacement carburetor sold to me by harbor freight is of the same construction with no obvious mechanical means of securing the float bowl to the remainder of the carburetor.
If the float bowl is glued to the rest of the carburetor, then this failure mode can be expected of any generator equipped with this carburetor.
Harbor Freight generator model number is 98838. I purchased my generator January 17, 2009 from Harbor Freight store number 177 located in Gaithersburg, Maryland. The carburetor is part number 14A in the manual that came with my generator.
- Model
- Model 98838
- Bought from
- Harbor Freight Retail Store
- Bought
- Jan 17, 2009
- Where
- Chesapeake Beach, Maryland: Home/
Apartment/ Condominium - Who was involved
- Unspecified
- The reporter’s relation to them
- Unspecified
- As this report names them
- Brand Chicago Electric, made or sold by Harbor Freight Tools
- How badly, in CPSC’s words
- Incident, No Injury
CPSC’s disclaimer
Disclaimer: CPSC does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of the Publicly Available Consumer Product Safety Information Database on SaferProducts.gov, particularly with respect to information submitted by people outside of CPSC.
Word for word, from the disclaimer in CPSC’s export.
Sources
Sources
-
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, SaferProducts.gov public database export.
Released Oct 25, 2026 and checked Oct 25, 2026. Updated daily. Public domain (U.S. Government work). CPSC asks to be credited, and that no endorsement be implied.
Reports of harm are from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), on SaferProducts.gov. CPSC does not endorse Hearth Record.