General Tips for a home generator?
- Thread starter Fan_of_Fanboys
- Start date
I drove through Cola on the way back from Sullivan's Island, yesterday. It was nothing compared to what came through early this morning. Greenville got fucked up. I know y'all did, too. My little A-iPower inverter generator is humming away on the back deck, right now, but we're just charging phones and laptops and keeping the stuff in the kitchen fridge cold/frozen. We've got another 9000 watt generator in the garage, but I doubt I'll bust it out because the weather is about perfect. We've also got a gas water heater, so hot water good to go.
We're probably going to put in a whole-house generator after this. It doesn't happen often, but spending 8k-10K to pretty much guarantee no power outages is worth it, to me. I will be avoiding generac like the plague. They are pieces of shit, for the most part. Even the commercial/industrial ones. I work in an industry that heavily relies on them and the generacs are the ones with the most issues. Even our vendor techs laugh when you ask them their opinion of generac. My parents have had great luck with their Kohler, and that brand has been recommended to me by numerous techs, so that's probably who we'll go with, especially since there are a few people that service them, locally.
The comment about looking up techs in your area is 100% spot-on. There huge swaths of the country that aren't readily serviced by anyone. You'll have to pay the nearest guy to travel if your local market is barren.
If natural gas is run to your house, anyway, just go with a whole house generator, especially given how fucking hot it is in Columbia. It's literally Satan's Anus.
We're probably going to put in a whole-house generator after this. It doesn't happen often, but spending 8k-10K to pretty much guarantee no power outages is worth it, to me. I will be avoiding generac like the plague. They are pieces of shit, for the most part. Even the commercial/industrial ones. I work in an industry that heavily relies on them and the generacs are the ones with the most issues. Even our vendor techs laugh when you ask them their opinion of generac. My parents have had great luck with their Kohler, and that brand has been recommended to me by numerous techs, so that's probably who we'll go with, especially since there are a few people that service them, locally.
The comment about looking up techs in your area is 100% spot-on. There huge swaths of the country that aren't readily serviced by anyone. You'll have to pay the nearest guy to travel if your local market is barren.
If natural gas is run to your house, anyway, just go with a whole house generator, especially given how fucking hot it is in Columbia. It's literally Satan's Anus.
You might want to, I read your avatar as saying Geriatric and figured that tracks on this forum.
What type of fuel do you have available?
what is your yearly high/low temperature?
airflow availability under the deck? Is it a clean or dirty area(dust/cobwebs/leaves)?
access to junction box, fuel source, possibly water?
what is the total kW load of your home during hot/cold times?
Will your under deck location allow proper service room & be able to get rid of exhaust gases?
just some questions to start.
natural gas in the home, could supplement with gasoline/propane as needed
hot as fuck, it was almost 100 just this past Monday. Low is usually in the 30s
good airflow, cleaner than it probably looks. no cobwebs or leaves
junction box would be the other side of the house. yes to file and water
no idea, I would need to grab an electric bill
yeah, can almost stand up under there
Take Ball GO HOME
Generator Battles of 2024!
Fuck ya
I do need a tractor, I also need land but a tractor is a very smart investment if you can do some earning with it
I used to run a PTO pump off a really old Kubota
I could empty or fill a small lake, I ran 300-500 high flow sprinklers across 1.5 square miles for 8 hours on a tank of fuel
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PTO's are definitely the way to go if you have a tractor, great excuse to buy one imo
Turn in your man card, there is always a need for a tractor.
I used to respect you.
I can drive one, Parents have one
A tractor would take up 1/2 my yard. I can't even justify a riding lawn mower lol
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That 13k Predator you posted should dlbe ok for what you want. I have a 10k version that runs my furnace/ac, freezer and fridge....we stick to not running anything with a heating element like our dryer when using it. A panel disconnect/interlock is pretty cheap...I have one but have not installed it yet. At my old house, I had a welding outlet installed right by the main panel in the garage. That was so convenient, because I just made a cord to plug the generator right into the welding outlet and back-fed the panel...just had to make sure the main was off when the generator was running. We also used to back-feed through the dryer outlet back in the day, but not recommending you do that, lol.
Of course I'm joking@sparkuri
I don't know shit about shit when it comes to power/electic
WAYYYY too late bro, I rage-quit hours ago.
Mainly your fault.
Good evening.
Natural Gas will require a new meter & line run. I did this with mine. My opinion is that NG is the best option because you'll have fuel as long as the compressor stations are operating (and will likely have fuel even for a couple days after they go down).
For really hot areas I like water cooled standby generators. They're going to cost more but the engine will likely last longer & they won't(shouldn't) use nearly as much oil as an air cooled. I wish I would have gone with a water cooled unit when I did my whole house generator. I use a VERY good oil that isn't really to manufacturer specs (more viscous at high temperature) but is FAR more sheer stable, FAR less volatile (turning into mist/vapor) & has better cold flow properties. I use this to increase lifespan & reliability & has worked out well.
I'm not completely sold on the under deck location tbh. Personally, I'd want something I can easily get to as if you're out for several days, you're going to be under the deck to shut down the unit & check oil levels daily. You'll also be under that deck during service intervals. The ability of that space to retain NG in case of a leak would also give me pause.
My area gets really hot (>110 in the summer), my house is also under 2,000sq'. My generator is an 18kW. It can & has run the entire house. I do have a load monitoring system that will drop my HVAC load if the generator becomes overloaded. I just make sure not to do laundry during generator runs & I've never had to deal with loss of HVAC.
My generator is a Generac. I wanted to get a Cummins but the company Cummins & Kohler never returned my calls/emails so I went with Generac. Total cost for mine, including all new NG line, service sub panels, etc was $20k.
Cummins and Onan have merged within the last few years. Onan, IMO, had the best relay packages & Cummins the best engines. Should be a perfect combination; if your local Cummins dealer is worth a shit.
My opinion on the Generac is the new air cooled V-Twin is a solid engine (now has hydraulic lifters so no lashing valves) but I think the generator itself will likely crap itself before the engine as I don't see a way to replace the brushes. Generac is everywhere though & parts are easy to come by if needed. That also makes a big difference.
Personally, if I was looking for a standby generator in a hot area with a decent sized house, water cooled 23-28kW.
Let me know if you would like to know more.
We got crazy winds yesterday and the power has been out since 3 pm. Grabbed my bros generator for food items - but I also need power to the sump (house is on cistern water). Problem is it's hard wired.
I'm thinking I can rig up an old extension cord by cutting it in half, stripping the wires and connect it to the junction box and get juice to it that way?
I know enough about electricity to get myself in trouble - hence the question.
I'm thinking I can rig up an old extension cord by cutting it in half, stripping the wires and connect it to the junction box and get juice to it that way?
I know enough about electricity to get myself in trouble - hence the question.
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I don't read threads much in the AM
I have to go to work man
@sparkuri you know anything about this shit?Aren't you certified in the ways of juice?
I don't read threads much in the AM
I have to go to work man
Aren't you certified in the ways of juice?
