One for the Electricians out there

[woody_tobius_jr]

Thanks for the info guys, appreciate it! Thanks for the link to that website Summiteer, some good info on there for sure.

Has anybody got/used the 'Generac' Gensets from Princess Auto? They're priced not too bad, I was wondering if the motors were any good on them, and how reliable they are.

 

[Cyle]

Thanks for the info guys, appreciate it! Thanks for the link to that website Summiteer, some good info on there for sure.

Has anybody got/used the 'Generac' Gensets from Princess Auto? They're priced not too bad, I was wondering if the motors were any good on them, and how reliable they are.

Had one for a little under a year I believe? The generator crapped out but was under warranty. Got a LOT of use out of it though, it ran for probably 7 months strait 8 hours a day. Motor was still fine. Gave a brand new one, was a newer model and a lot nicer then the old one. Wouldn't hesitate to buy another one if it's for occasional use. I wouldn't say it's good for someone on a daily basis all the time.

 

[rusty]

I would try to stay away from the generac line of generators. There transfer switches are decent. For a house application a small 5000w genset is plenty of power. If you were to turn everything on in your house at the same time the current draw will not exceed 30 amps. And they are portable and easy o maintain. Dealing with generac parts and standby power for block heaters and all that jazz is kinda a pain in the butt.

 

[MATTIAC]

in my new house when I build it, it will have a generator and transfer switch for back up. wanting to find a 10-15KW diesel at an auction

 

[OVERKILL 19]

I just did a quick search, a guy from work put one like this one off eBay for his farm. I think he said it had 6 breakers, fridge, freezer, furance,lights,mirowave and a pump. you need to switch manually but it works good and cheap back up. He got electric start on the gen so his wife can do it all.

TRANSFER SWITCH KIT for Portable Generators - 30 Amp on eBay.ca (item 350242017978 end time 11-Apr-11 10:19:45 EDT)

 

[sledn]

Just make sure your main breaker is OFF,then plug your generator into any dryer or range plug.Most houses can operate conservatively with a 5KW generator.Turn off the heavy electric loads.When the street lights come on,unplug the generator before turning on the main breaker(Or it will damage it).No rewiring at all.Balance the loads in panel phases only(move breakers as required) so you can use all your generator potential.No danger at all if the main breaker is off.Have been doing this for 20 years cause we get alot of power outages in the Wabamun area.

 

[chadwik74]

Charge cordless drill batteries on a generator all the time, never had a issue. Not sure why you would?

Lots of Milwakee(sp) cordless drills wont charge off a genny or inverter....Dewalt=No problem!

 

[Summiteer]

Just make sure your main breaker is OFF,then plug your generator into any dryer or range plug.Most houses can operate conservatively with a 5KW generator.Turn off the heavy electric loads.When the street lights come on,unplug the generator before turning on the main breaker(Or it will damage it).No rewiring at all.Balance the loads in panel phases only(move breakers as required) so you can use all your generator potential.No danger at all if the main breaker is off.Have been doing this for 20 years cause we get alot of power outages in the Wabamun area.

That works for you, you obviously have some familiarity with your system, not everyone does. The nice thing about the transfer switch is that there is 0 % chance of making a mistake if it is properly installed. You are messing with chit that can kill you or burn down your home..... to save a couple of hundred bucks. Good luck collecting insurance if things go sideways.

 

[Showtime]

There is a brand new set-up available out now where you have the untility company come and replace the meter on the side of your house, it has a multi-pin connector coming out of the bottom of the meter itself, in the event of a failure you simply plug the external cord into the socket and the other end goes to the Genny. I believe the set-up is around a 1000 bones, see if i can dig up a brochure on it, seen it at afew electrical trade shows i've attended.

 

[Showtime]

Here's the link:



Automatic built in transfer switch
Offers Surge suppresion
c/w 30ft of cord
roughly $1200 available at Eecol Electric

 

[Summiteer]

Here's the link:



Automatic built in transfer switch
Offers Surge suppresion
c/w 30ft of cord
roughly $1200 available at Eecol Electric

Thats the one I was looking for.

 

[bigz64]

Here's the link:



Automatic built in transfer switch
Offers Surge suppresion
c/w 30ft of cord
roughly $1200 available at Eecol Electric

i work for one of the power companies and this is the first ive heard of this. i would call your local utility first, we may not allow them at all

talk to your local utility first before installing any generators, some systems like micro-gens we dont allow to island themselves from the grid during an outage.

if you connect without a transfer switch you will feed back the to transformer and steps the voltage back up to 14400 volts and if someone is on the line trying to turn your power back on, hes now in the hospital or dead...

 

[rusty]

i work for one of the power companies and this is the first ive heard of this. i would call your local utility first, we may not allow them at all

talk to your local utility first before installing any generators, some systems like micro-gens we dont allow to island themselves from the grid during an outage.

if you connect without a transfer switch you will feed back the to transformer and steps the voltage back up to 14400 volts and if someone is on the line trying to turn your power back on, hes now in the hospital or dead...

This is news to me, standby power generation is a large part of the CEC. If installed correctly it has zero chance of failure. The standard break before make switches prevent all this from happening.

 

[bigz64]

This is news to me, standby power generation is a large part of the CEC. If installed correctly it has zero chance of failure. The standard break before make switches prevent all this from happening.

isnt that what i just said?

there were posts of pluging into dryer plugs and overloading generators with mains still closed

 

[rusty]

I apoligize, this was the point i was wondering about...


i work for one of the power companies and this is the first ive heard of this. i would call your local utility first, we may not allow them at all

talk to your local utility first before installing any generators, some systems like micro-gens we dont allow to island themselves from the grid during an outage.

 

[Polarblu]

Big thing is to shut off the outside feed!!!!!! Once done its your own campsite. You own it!! As far as the power company goes you have the power to shut off their feed at anytime. As per the guy saying that my 4000 watt genset can kill someone i am a happy participant in you proving that!! Give more info to back that up!!!! transformers are not a capacitors so how could this happen?

 

[woody_tobius_jr]

Here's the link:



Automatic built in transfer switch
Offers Surge suppresion
c/w 30ft of cord
roughly $1200 available at Eecol Electric

Thanks for the link, I'll maybe give Epcor a call on Wednesday when I get done with these safety courses. Definitely looks interesting though. Goof Proof, I'm all over that! :d

 

[rusty]

Big thing is to shut off the outside feed!!!!!! Once done its your own campsite. You own it!! As far as the power company goes you have the power to shut off their feed at anytime. As per the guy saying that my 4000 watt genset can kill someone i am a happy participant in you proving that!! Give more info to back that up!!!! transformers are not a capacitors so how could this happen?

Please reread your post and add this at the end..
Transformers have the ability to induce voltage on either side. So 240v will be transformed into 5kv

 

[Snort]

I have been looking for a standby generator myself. These are units that have an automatic transfer switch and will self start when the power drops out and then shut off when the power is restored. Personally looking at a 15 kWatt unit to run the whole farm. The LP model with all available winter prep equipment was about $7000.

Have not heard too much good about Generac.

As far as I know, it is highly frowned upon to tie a generator in with no transfer switch. I am sure I heard of an instance where the power provider found such a situation and immediately disconnected the service.

 

[woody_tobius_jr]

I have been looking for a standby generator myself. These are units that have an automatic transfer switch and will self start when the power drops out and then shut off when the power is restored. Personally looking at a 15 kWatt unit to run the whole farm. The LP model with all available winter prep equipment was about $7000.

Have not heard too much good about Generac.

As far as I know, it is highly frowned upon to tie a generator in with no transfer switch. I am sure I heard of an instance where the power provider found such a situation and immediately disconnected the service.

What have you heard about the Generac? As far as the transfer switch, I won't do this without one, for the cost it's peace of mind.