OT – recommendations wanted for purchasing a household emergency generator

[bill4807]

If you dont want to spend a bunch of money on a permanent generator and auto transfer switch, although it is good if you travel alot since it will switch for you.

I have a generac it is on wheels, gas powered its pretty big i wouldnt be throwing it in the bed of a truck but you could use a smaller gas one on wheels, and install a 30A plug on the outside of your house, make a 30A whip that will plug into the generator then plug into the plug.
This plug essentially backfeeds your panel, so then you can just flip on whatever you choose to power.
It doesnt backfeed the grid because this kit comes with a lockout for the main breaker if you turn the generator breaker on. So it needs installed in your first 2 panel slots.

But the kit is about $250 or so and a $500-700generator, you have a pretty decent setup.
I did this to my house.
Or get a natural gas generator with transfer switch for thousands installed.

[Rson]

Originally Posted by jstolaruk

Heard recently that lack of transfer switches/relays are holding up new installations. They are a mechanical break-before-make arrangement, very simple but I could see where they won't live for ever.

I'm in your neck of the woods, so to speak, and recently had a Generac whole house generator quoted. It was 12-18 months lead time.

[geniusintraining]

Originally Posted by Rson

It was 12-18 months lead time.

When I first moved up here the lead time was 24 months, I have not checked in awhile, we have never gone without (yet) ours is underground so its dependable unless the mains are out.... I am leaning toward a self contained camper then its the best of both worlds and you can run for the hurricanes

Originally Posted by Ken Roach

My city...

I think you need to move Ken, come to the east coast... we even have more charging stations than you can shake a stick at, its a little hotter here but its a good life style, the NC mountains are a very nice area and if you want to see the crazies in the city its only an hour away.

[dploof23]

Check out Ecoflow. My father purchased the delta pro. A little pricey, but really impressed with it.

https://us.ecoflow.com/?msclkid=81f8...9F%E5%90%8D-EM

[geniusintraining]

Originally Posted by Ron Beaufort

I did a quick Google search for conversion kits to run a gasoline engine on propane – which I'm hoping someone might be able to comment on ... sounds like that might be a good option for some of the emergency situations that I've been thinking about lately ...

Hi Ron,

Just had time to go back and read the whole thread... in my past life I was a welder and had several Miller propane welders that had 120vac outputs on them, that maybe an option, I do NOT remember a time that one of them ever did not start or gave me issues, they were heavy but they may sell just generators? my point was they could sit for weeks or months and fire right up, I also have a 40hp Kubota tractor thats diesel and its sat for months, so propane or diesel would be my option

[rupej]

I bought this one on a recommendation from a friend:


https://www.northerntool.com/shop/to...0933_200680933

It's light - website says 117 lbs empty. I can easily move it around by myself (they have an optional wheel kit too). It's also surprisingly quiet compared to most generators. I don't know of anything better for the price. They're usually in stock, too.


I use the "backfeed through a breaker" method since there's no way to add a transfer switch to my electric panel. I just pull the electric meter from its base when the power goes out to avoid energizing the power lines.

[Ken Moore]

Originally Posted by Rson

Depends on your needs - but as an old guy who doesn't do a lot of heavy lifting anymore I have a Honda EU2200i generator.

It only uses about a gallon of gas at a time and is about the size of a 5 gallon gas can. As far as generators go - it's pretty portable.

You can get parallel cables and buy a companion for it and run a 30A 120V outlet if you ever find yourself needing the extra power. There are also aftermarket siphon tanks for longer run times if you find the small gas tank too limiting.

Same here, this unit has an inverter and produces true sine wave, clean power. Good enough for electronics. Mine is the 2000 watt model. Weighs about 40 pounds. It is enough to run the fridge, or microwave, or coffee pot.
All I'll ever need in an emergency. I run mine for 15 minutes or so on the 15th of every month. Always buy and use the non-ethanol gas in it. With extended use, say 3-4 days. The plug sometimes fouls a bit. I have a spare on hand.

[Rson]

Originally Posted by Ken Moore

. Always buy and use the non-ethanol gas in it.

Yes! I have a separate gas can for non-ethanol gas.

You can find gas stations that serve non-ethanol gas near you here:
https://www.pure-gas.org/

[5618]

They're not cheap, but I'm a fan of the quiet Hondas. Several years ago we were without power for days after an ice storm. I was extremely impressed with my EU2000i. It ran a forced air oil furnace, the fridge, the TV with cable modem and wireless router, and a light or two for days with no problem. It did not like when I tried to microwave at the same time the furnace was running. I just waited until the furnace cycle was done to microwave.

I made my own extended runtime fuel cap, buying an extra OEM cap and tapping a hose barb to it for a piece of fuel line to a can. I've never used it.

At the furnace, I added a three way switch on the wall to select house power or a pigtail below the switch. Extension cords distributed power through the house.

To run the well pump, water heater, and stove occasionally, I backfed a welder to the garage panel, certainly with the main breaker off. Before shutting that down, I would trigger the pump switch to have a full charge in the well tank.

The Hondas will sync waveforms for parallel operation. I thought about trying to synchronize two out of phase with a transformer to create 240V to run the well pump, but I only have one suitcase. Later I got a great deal on a lightly used EU6500i. That's an awesome power source, but not cheap at all new.

These only see non-ethanol gas.