Off Topic- Generator's

C

can't miss

Well-Known Member
Watching the millions without power in Texas, decided to fire up my genny yesterday, tuned and ran in the fall, but old brigg's and strat was having none of it in yesterday's cold. Did get it humming away eventually, but took a bit, wouldn't have been to happy if needed at 3 AM?
Curious how many have back up power? Guessing with generator prices fairly reasonable anymore, more have them, then not?
 
I live out in the country and had a genny panel installed when we moved in. Shortly after.. purchased a genny. Saved our bacon a few times, during the ice storm a few years back we were without power for 7 days. Have needed it a few times since most recently a few months ago when we were again 4 days no power. In the country it is a must as you do not have water without power and the horses like to have a drink now and then. I did just upgrade my genny this week with a Generac that was on sale at CTC. Works very well with a push button electric start.
 
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Plan to get one in the near future.
Just need enough power to plug in a few things.
@can't miss do you have one that will power the house or just a few essential
Items?
 
Probably do the whole house but do not have hook up for it, so just use extension cords, but is still handy as hell during a outage. Strange thing about who-ever built this house back in the 50's, most appliances, water, furnace ect, have a regular plug in some-where, rather then hard wired right to pannell, no idea why but handy when power out.
Bet you couldn't find a genny in Texas right now, sure alot don't have back up power as they've never needed it.
 
I have a small Honda 2200 ui that we carry in the rv. If I needed to I could wire my furnace fan motor to it and be ok for heat.
 
Kipor kge 3500 ti. Electric start. Sits in the shed and I run extension cables to my house and neighbour.
 
I have 3 generators that I can use in a pinch.
I plan on moving north in a few years. There I will have an automatic generator set up to run off propane or natural gas if available. Power goes out and it will start automatically.
 
I have a Firman 3400w inverter. I use it to run the ac etc in the trailer if no power hookups. Super quiet, easy to start. Weighs around 80lbs.
 
We have a Honda EU7000iS and since it came with a "promotional" free remote start, we built a "Genni-shed" beside the house and keep it there...can't hear a thing when running although it is ridiculously quiet to start with. Had it for over 4 years now and hasn't given a moments issue. It's used ALOT in the winter months. Has wheels and handles and can be mobile with ease...just don't try to lift it alone. lol.
Have always found Honda quality to be very reliable. Just my opinion.
 
The place I'm at has a Coleman Powermate 5000/6500w unit which is powered by a 10hp Briggs&Stratton. The previous owner seen fit to wire in a back feed system to the main panel from the garage . Used it first time during the ice storm pretty simple to use , First; Disconnect from the grid by shutting off main breaker, 2nd; Shut off 240v circuits ie, baseboards, hotwater tank , etc. , 3rd; Fire up that brute of a generator and use 240v cable to plug into house system. Bingo ! Feeds the whole house without a tangle of extension cords. I did notice the lights inside the fridge would gently get brighter then dimmer but the generator was doing the same thing by gently speeding up and slowing down. Haven't figured that out yet ? Voltage drop maybe ?
 
Old Cut, believe that's the same genny I have, since new has always seemed to cycle up and down, except if you load it up, and then it run's smooth.
 
Old Cut, many of the newer genni's have an "Eco-Mode" (economy) switch on them. This feature allows the genni to run at an idle until such time a load is called upon and the unit will rev to full song generally without fluctuation and when the load is no longer needed, it will idle down again. If you have this feature, make sure it is "on". When your fridge light starts to dim then brightens, take notice if the fridge compressor is kicking in at that time. If so, then the dimming is a common occurrence as the compressor is pulling power, momentarily dropping voltage then the genni kicks in replenishing the power. A 5000W unit should be adequate for a house of 1800-2000 sq. ft. to run the basic essentials.
Something important to keep in mind, that genni produces approx. 22 amps+/- and the main grid delivers 100+ amps. Use the genni power sparingly...hope this helps.
 
Old Cut LongPointer I suggest you get a qualified electrician to install a transfer switch to make your installation SAFE. What you have does not meet electrical safety code requirements
 
We installed a Generac a few months back. Auto start is a great feature when the power goes out, no more getting the generator and cords out. No more having to fill the generator with gas, even if you had enough to last for a couple of days.
We had a generlink before. Your hydro supplier had to install it between your meter and meter base. It has a special cord that fits your generator to the link and runs your house threw the electrical panel
 
Purchased a Generac Guardian 7KW in 2004 from AST Enterprises in Delhi. Price was $3954. It has provided 17 years of faithful service. Routine oil changes, a couple of batteries, air filter, the odd spark plug change and one starter replacement. Single cylinder OHV engine on natural gas. Most of the house is hooked up with exception of the oven.
 
Don't remember seeing an Economy switch on the unit. As for load ? I have two fridges and a freezer plus Internet and TV and a few lights(LED of course) also water pump and sewage pump so there was a good load on it but not over doing it as best I calculated. There is a fused disconnect switch in the garage to feed the main panel that why the very first thing you do is flip the main breaker off so you are not back feeding into the grid with the generator. I would hate to think what would happen when the normal grid is energized and you weren't disconnected.
 
It's not as much what happens when grid comes back on, the real concern is a genny back feeding threw a transformer, stepping up the voltage and burning a lineman who expects the powerline to be dead.
Not going to preach that you must have a proper 2 way disconnect, many different ways to back feed, but a visual open point would be better than relying on a breaker or disconnect. Could also be insurance concerns as well
 
I have re-wired a few houses and garages in my days however, I had B.C. Hydro come in and wire up the genni and solar panel feeds. Not only to satisfy the insurance company's requirements,($3000 per year fire ins. premium alone) more so for piece of mind that the units are safe and up to code as fire is our worst enemy. We are 35 km. into the mountains off grid on a 5 acre parcel of forest. We have no medical or fire service here so in the event of fire, it can become catastrophic in a New York second. (forest fire). So my point here is, if you are going to have genni back up power, spend the money once and have it installed by a reputable source insuring the unit is up to the task and installed correctly and safely. Protect yourself, others and your investment.🤞🤞
 
Generac and generlink drop out the grid when they are running. Generac has its own transfer switch, and Generlink feed is bypassed in the meter base. Once the cord is unplugged the link allows outside power to resume
 
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