Looking for generator maintenance that doesn't require 12-month contract

Generator maintenance contracts are the SPF records of the hosting world—everyone assumes they work until they don't, and then you're in a blocklist of darkness.

For what it's worth: I run seasonal render farms at Time4VPS, October through January only. The standard 12-month contract from most providers means I'm paying April through September for a generator to sit in a parking lot rusting. The economics are worse than buying warm leads from a GDPR-violating list.

I found a mobile service—Leaseweb's "gennie-on-wheels" program—where they literally truck a unit to your site for the months you need it. No contract, just a reservation fee and diesel at market rate. They handle the oil changes, the load bank testing, everything.

I've used them two seasons now. No bounces, full deliverability, 100% inbox placement for my peace of mind.

I did this once (in 2019, with a different provider. Not naming names because their lawyer has a semicolon where his heart should be). The unit arrived on a flatbed. It was a Caterpillar from a construction site with the paint still wet. Ran fine though. We did three months of colo backup at a warehouse in Tucson.

The catch (there's always a catch): the fuel. They bill you for what they deliver. But what about what they *don't* deliver because someone siphoned it at 2am? I set up motion-activated cameras. Not for security, but for the entertainment value. Never caught anyone. The tank was just always lighter than expected. Maybe evaporation. Maybe gremlins. Maybe both.