Mecafer MF3800
(2 reviews)
A fifteen litre tank, three sockets and two big wheels: the site generator that runs all day without you touching it.
Characteristics
- Power: 3500 W peak, 3000 W continuous
- Engine: 7 hp four-stroke petrol, 15 L tank
- Runtime: Up to 10 h at 75% load
- Outputs: 3 x 230 V sockets + 12 V DC, AVR regulation
- 15 L tank, wheels and folding handles
Detailed overview: Mecafer 3500 W wheeled generator
The Mecafer MF3800 (factory reference 450138) is a petrol generator from the French brand, a specialist in compressors and standalone site power. It targets a clearly identified use: running power tools away from the grid, on a plot of land, a house under renovation, a market stall, an outdoor event, or as domestic backup during a long outage.
The engine is a four-stroke petrol unit rated at 7 hp, running on unleaded E10 or 98. It delivers 3500 W maximum power, known as LTP, and 3000 W continuous power, known as PRP. The distinction matters: peak power absorbs the starting surge of an electric motor, continuous power is what you should size your setup around. With 3000 W available permanently, a cement mixer, a circular saw, a site floodlight and a small compressor all run without a second thought.
The control panel gathers three 230 V sockets to French standards and a 12 V DC output rated 5 A for charging a battery. AVR regulation, for Automatic Voltage Regulation, continuously corrects the output voltage so it does not follow engine speed variations: a useful safeguard for power tools, though it does not reach the current quality of an inverter set. Overload protection and a low-oil warning complete the safety package.
The 15 litre tank is the headline argument against portable rivals in its class: Mecafer quotes up to 10 hours of runtime at 75% load, a full working day. The tubular frame, two large wheels and folding handles let one person move the 49.2 kg unit, in a footprint of 605 x 470 x 495 mm. Starting is by recoil pull. Mecafer covers the machine with a 2 year commercial warranty and commits to 10 years of spare-parts availability, a point rivals rarely highlight. For a more modest output on a tighter budget, the Einhell TC-PG 35/E5 sits one rung below.
EAN: 3283494501384
Comparison
Between £290 and £550, open-frame petrol sets separate on continuous power, tank size and engine quality. Here is how the Mecafer MF3800 sits against three references from our catalogue.
| Criterion | Mecafer MF3800 | Einhell TC-PG 35/E5 | Einhell TC-PG 25/1/E5 | SDMO Perform 3000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Continuous power | 3000 W | 2600 W | 2100 W | Not stated |
| Peak power | 3500 W | 3100 W | 2400 W | 2800 W |
| Tank | 15 L | 15 L | 15 L | 4.1 L |
| Quoted runtime | 10 h at 75% | Not stated | 12.5 h at two thirds | 3.2 h at 75% |
| 230 V sockets | 3 (+ 12 V DC) | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Weight | 49.2 kg | ≈ 44 kg | 36.8 kg | ≈ 46 kg |
| Observed price | ≈ £389 | ≈ £293 | ≈ £333 | ≈ £560 |
In short, the Mecafer MF3800 is the most powerful of the group and the only one with three 230 V sockets, which changes everything on a site with several work stations. The Einhell TC-PG 35/E5 comes close and costs around a hundred pounds less, with one socket fewer and 400 W less peak. The TC-PG 25/1/E5 is lighter and longer-running but clearly less powerful, better suited to household backup than to site work. The SDMO Perform 3000, the most expensive, banks on a genuine Kohler engine and French after-sales support, but its 4.1 litre tank means refuelling three times a day. For power and runtime without breaking the budget, the MF3800 is the most rational pick.
Related video
Video: Groupe electrogene Mecafer MF3800 - Published on 28/02/2018
Our tester's review: Christophe Delpuech
The MF3800 makes no attempt to charm: it is a site generator, open tubular frame, exposed engine, two big wheels and two handles you fold down to pull it along like a wheelbarrow. That choice has one direct consequence on noise, a quoted 96 dB(A) sound power, and another on use: you put it far away, run an extension lead, and you do not set it down on a campsite pitch. In exchange you get three things no sound-insulated set at the same price offers. First, power: 3000 W in steady operation runs a cement mixer, a circular saw or a compressor, where small inverter sets top out at 1800 or 2000 W. Second, runtime: 15 litres for a quoted 10 hours at 75% load is a full working day without refuelling, when most portable rivals manage four to five hours. Third, equipment: three 230 V sockets let three work stations run at once with no multi-way adapter. Two points call for nuance. The first is weight, 49.2 kg dry: the wheels save you on flat ground, less so on stairs or into the back of a van. The second is the nature of the current: AVR regulation stabilises voltage, but it is not an inverter. For a tool, a floodlight or a pump it is perfect; for a laptop or fragile electronics, an inverter set is the safer choice. That aside, this is one of the soundest power-to-runtime-to-price ratios in the segment.
Frequently asked questions: Mecafer 3500 W wheeled generator
The 3500 W is maximum power, known as LTP, available for a few seconds to absorb the starting surge of an electric motor. The 3000 W is continuous power, known as PRP: that is the figure to size your setup around.
Yes, that is exactly what it is for. With 3000 W continuous and a 3500 W peak, it takes the starting surge of a mixer motor or a site circular saw without difficulty.
Not ideally. AVR regulation stabilises the voltage, but it is not an inverter: the current remains less clean than that of an inverter set. For sensitive electronics, choose an inverter model.
Mecafer quotes 10 hours at 75% load, roughly 2250 W drawn. At full output, expect 7 to 8 hours, and considerably more if you only run a few tools intermittently.
On flat or soft ground, yes: the two large wheels and folding handles let one person pull it like a wheelbarrow. Loading it into a boot or carrying it up stairs, however, is a two-person job.
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Published on 28/07/2026, updated on 02/09/2026