Generator and sizing

[kybaseball]

I was wondering what size generator you guys use for backup power and what all does it run? Would like to know your hookup?

 

[stihly dan]

If you have a well pump you need at least an 8,200 starting watt.

 

[pennsywoodburnr]

I've also been thinking about hardwiring some kind of emergency generator to my house if we have some kind of prolonged power outage, so this will be an interesting thread for me. Dan, why such a high wattage rating for the well pump?

 

[Mad Professor]

If you have a well pump you need at least an 8,200 starting watt.

3 or 5 KW military will do that.

Most deep wells take about 4.5-5 KW on start and a Mil Gen will take that fine. Even a 3.

A 5 will run 6.25 KW all month, unless you are > 5000 ft More on start

Try that will a gas powered box store POS

Even a 3 will take the start up load, then run with it on ,......

Don't plan on running a dryer and freezer at the same time..........

P.S. Never start your girl Genny with full load. If she is running warm and cozy much better.

Foreplay : )

 

[alleyyooper]

I have a 7500 watt that I bought for my UP deer camp cabin but is also used here at home when the power goes out. I installed a reliance transfer switch rated for 7500 watts. It runs my submerged well pump, two freezers in the basement, living room lighting. TV & antenna rotor, Kitchen lighting fridge and micro wave. Installing the transfer switch was easy simple job as it came with a DVD and instruction book on how to install it.
http://www.lowes.com/pd_182534-48019-30216 BRK_0__?productId=3131281&Ntt=transfur switch&pl=1&currentURL=?Ntt=transfur+switch&facetInfo=

I have a second 3500 watt unit I use in the pole bar. It runs the dog house heater the heated water bowl and several tools I may want to use out there and the lights.

Al

 

[Whitespider]

I have to argue a little bit with that 8200 watt also.

My emergency/backup generator is a "gas powered box store POS" , it's a 5500/6500 watt from Harbor Freight. I run the whole house, well house and shop on it... two refrigerators, one deep-freezer, well pump, wood furnace, lights, electric kitchen range/oven, washer and dryer (can't run oven and dryer at same time), microwave, TV's and satellite tuners, ceiling fans, and whatever else. Admittedly we do "think-before-acting" when running on it... you don't intentionally fire-up the microwave when you've got the toaster and two top burners on the range fired.

Dad has a 6500/7000 watt, his house is at least three times larger than mine... three refrigerators, two deep-freezers, well pump, sewage lift pump, gas furnace, two kitchen range/ovens, washer and dryer, lights, two microwaves, dish washer, TV's and satellite tuners, ceiling fans, and whatever else. Just like me, they have to "think" when the oven or cloths dryer is running (especially the cloths dryer)... but the well pump ain't never been an issue.

As far as sizing.
If you use the "tools" for sizing a generator they'll likely say you need at least 10,000 watts, likely more... and they're not wrong. But we're talking emergency/backup usually for a short time, like maybe a day at the most (although we've gone a week or more here a couple times). Really, if ya' use a bit of common sense, unplug what ain't essential or not in use, run only the lights ya' need, use the cloths dryer during low demand daytime, etc... you can get by with something in the 5-7000 watt range quite nicely for a few days. Of course, I won't deny, more is "more better", but at a cost... so you decide. If ya' have a gas oven and/or dryer you're way ahead of the curve. In reality, running an electric cloths dryer is pushing it... but we've done it during week-long outages. Another thing that can help is to "balance" the 115 volt loads for things always plugged in and/or often used. For example, if your refrigerator, freezer and furnace are all running on the same service "leg" it increases the chances of "popping" the breaker on the generator, especially if all three start-up at the same time... you could maybe move breakers at the service panel to put the refrigerator on the other "leg".

Hookup.
Well, to be 100% honest, the "right" way is with a transfer switch... any other way is the "wrong" way. And depending on local code and/or your contract with the electric provider that may be the only approved way. I will tell you that neither dad or I use a transfer switch, but I won't tell you how either of us do it... simply because, if you screw-up, any "wrong" way is potentially dangerous to you, your family, your property and even the linemen working on restoring your grid power (and you could smoke the generator). A transfer switch is pretty much foolproof; throw the switch one way and the grid is connected/generator ain't, throw it the other way and generator is connected/grid ain't... simple, safe, and positive.
*

 

[kybaseball]

Thanks for all the great info. I have an industrial diesel generator 7500 watts. I am putting in the 10 circuit transfer switch just to make everything safe for everybody. I had thought about back feeding the box. Just worried if is out and I am not here the wife will mess things up. Don't want anybody hurt. Would save money in the long run but life is worth more in the long run. Wants again thanks for the good info.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

I have two generators that I run... MOST of the time, I use my Honda 2000 "inverter" genset, sitting it on my back porch and running a HD extension cord into the house,

It's super quiet and only runs as fast as it needs to, to cover the load that's on it, and that saves a ton in fuel cost!. It will run my fridge, some lights and the fan on my woodstove with no problem, or if needed, I can unplug the fridge and plug in the sump pump.. When the power is out, I don't mind being inconvenienced a bit, so I don't try to overload it just to watch the TV or ? ... I have flashlights handy, oil lamps and batt powered radio.

IF I want/need to run more than that, I get out my 15,000 PTO genset, it will easily run my whole house, even with my little compact tractor ahead of it. It powers the whole house, you don't even know that you are operating on a genset,

I like to live on the conservative side, so I don't use a ton of electricity, if I did, I'd put a bigger tractor in front of this genset and make even more power. With the little Kubota on it, it runs my whole house, including the water pump. BUT, I have a flowing well, it shoots pure/cold water out of the ground 24/7/365, so I can get all the cold/clean water I want, without pumping, any time that I want, winter or summer,

IF I could only have ONE generator, it would be a Honda inverter, just a little bigger than I have!

Keep in mind, it's the cost of making your own electricity that kills you, not the price of a generator!!

SR

 

[Dogsout]

I have a 5700 watt generator that runs my whole house. I have it installed to a double 30 amp breaker in my box with a 10 ft cord with a plug in to fit my generator. When the lights go out I plug in the generator fire it up, and then go in and throw the main breaker to my box and turn on the double 30 from the generator. Here are a couple of tips that may help you when you are setting one up. See what kind of amp draw you have with just you normal house stuff and lights. Mine was 3 amps and 3.5 amps. I then started up my OWB to see what the draw was for that. Then my furnace pump to check that and finally my well pit. I was really good on both of my 20 amp lines until my well pit. I over came that by switching the well pit from 110 to 220 which dropped my draw from 13 amps to 7 amps. Try and balance out the load for each breaker and you won't have any problems. As stated numerous times above there is no need to run every electrical gadget you have in the house, just use what you need and you will be fine. It sure is nice that within five minutes of the power going out that you are back up and running. (Especially the heat and water) Finally DO NOT FORGET to shut off and unplug generator when the lights come back on when you turn your main breaker back on.

 

[Chris-PA]

Well, to be 100% honest, the "right" way is with a transfer switch... any other way is the "wrong" way. And depending on local code and/or your contract with the electric provider that may be the only approved way. I will tell you that neither dad or I use a transfer switch, but I won't tell you how either of us do it... simply because, if you screw-up, any "wrong" way is potentially dangerous to you, your family, your property and even the linemen working on restoring your grid power (and you could smoke the generator). A transfer switch is pretty much foolproof; throw the switch one way and the grid is connected/generator ain't, throw it the other way and generator is connected/grid ain't... simple, safe, and positive.

Yeah, me too and I've given that speech before too. Electricity is kinda what I do though. I also have mine instrumented so I can monitor voltage, frequency current and power.

I've recently upgraded from a 5000/6250W $500 box store generator to a 7500/9000W Coleman Vertex unit that I really like. It was my dad's but the electronic voltage regulator failed. Took me a while to diagnose it, and then the NOS regulator I bought was defective so I ended up having to reverse engineer the circuit, figure out what it was supposed to do and fix it. It's got a 14.5hp B&S OHV aluminum engine and electric start with a battery. It's doesn't use a drop of oil and is much quieter and less stinky than the old generator. Refueling it hot is easy, and with the lack of oil consumption I have run it for days non-stop.

Now I just have to upgrade the connection wire size, as at the moment that is limiting how much power I can pull out of it. Even with the present wire I can pull around 4200W from it, and with juggling of loads it keeps us running. We lose power for long periods quite often here.

 

[dave_376]

http://www.donrowe.com/usage-chart-a/259.htm

I have a 9000 watt Chinese honda clone. It starts up easy and is quiet. I have only used it for one major storm where we lost power for a few days. It was a big help.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Then my furnace pump to check that and finally my well pit. I was really good on both of my 20 amp lines until my well pit. I over came that by switching the well pit from 110 to 220 which dropped my draw from 13 amps to 7 amps.

I'm a bit confused by that statement. You aren't implying that you went from drawing a total of 13amps on 120V to now drawing 7 amps on 220V, are you??

SR

 

[Dogsout]

I'm a bit confused by that statement. You aren't implying that you went from drawing a total of 13amps on 120V to now drawing 7 amps on 220V, are you??

I am not an electrician so I am giving the information that the person who did the wiring told me. Above is exactly what he told me when he was done. He said that my amp draw was way high for my generator with my well pump wired to 110 so he rewired it to 220 and cut the draw in half. Does that make sense?

 

[Whitespider]

I'm a bit confused by that statement. You aren't implying that you went from drawing a total of 13amps on 120V to now drawing 7 amps on 220V, are you??

Instead of thinking in terms of volts and amps, think in watts.
If you have something that can be wired to run on either 115 or 230 volts it still requires the same amount of "power" (watts).
Amps times volts equals watts... doubling voltage halves the required amps without changing power.
13 amps x 115 volts = 1495 watts
6.5 amps x 230 volts = 1495 watts
*

 

[John R]

I have a 20KW standby hooked up with an automatic transfer switch, and runs off the propane.
I like it, works great.

 

[stihly dan]

If you have a well pump you need at least an 8,200 starting watt.

I say this because many generators are 5500/6250. There is a chance that when your pump starts and say the fridge is running and someone turns on a hair dryer or microwave that the well pump can get cooked. With common sense this would not happen, but wife and children may not have that. I see many well pumps getting replaced after a long power outages around. Well pumps are VERY expensive to replace in the middle of winter. So a little more $$ on a little larger genny is cheap insurance.

 

[GM_Grimmy]

I got one of these a few years ago, when the house was without power for the better part of a week.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/PRO-SERI...-Diesel-Contractor-Generator-GENSD7/100660521

I don't run a transfer switch. I do it the way you're not suppose to, but well I'm an industrial electrician and know a little about residential. I do throw the main off and verify it's open before I turn the generator on. I chose diesel for the fuel economy. It's not as quiet as my Yamaha inverter (same as the Honda, but blue) but it's way quieter than the gas one I had back in 08, that I had to pick up during the spring ice storm, that I had to run for 9 days at $25 a day in gas! I run everything in my house almost like normal. Like many others have said, you become aware of what you have on and are more prone to shut the added amenities off. I do trip the breaker for the hot tub and the electric stove. I can run those, but I will shut everything else off before doing so.

It's what works for me, and in about 10 minutes, I can have power back on in the house, keep the heat rolling, fridge cool, and the tv and movies still playing to kill the time.

 

[pennsywoodburnr]

I say this because many generators are 5500/6250. There is a chance that when your pump starts and say the fridge is running and someone turns on a hair dryer or microwave that the well pump can get cooked. With common sense this would not happen, but wife and children may not have that. I see many well pumps getting replaced after a long power outages around. Well pumps are VERY expensive to replace in the middle of winter. So a little more $$ on a little larger genny is cheap insurance.

"Wifeproofing"...Boy, ain't that the truth! LOL. I'm kind of leaning towards figuring out my total wattage for appliances being used on a regular basis like the fridge, computer, hot water heater, and maybe a burner or two on the stove going at the same time and then multiply that number by 2, just to be on the safe side.

 

[Chris-PA]

My well pump is a surface pump that sits in my basement. It is presently wired for 120V, but I want to change that to 240V as it seriously unbalances the system when it starts up. It should be less disruptive on 240V.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

I am not an electrician so I am giving the information that the person who did the wiring told me. Above is exactly what he told me when he was done. He said that my amp draw was way high for my generator with my well pump wired to 110 so he rewired it to 220 and cut the draw in half. Does that make sense?

What you are now doing is, you have two lines carrying the load instead of one... Like was already said, you are still using the same amount of electricity... just easier to manage through two hot leads instead of one.

SR