Backup generator

[MadHatter]

That’s what I thought. Gotta have fuel for the generator. Understand the transfer switch now with the TBH knowledge.

Thanks for the input.

But do you really....
Just be careful

[Pipeliner1]

Come again .
Yes, bury a 2k gallon lp tank and pipe it to the genny, when the the power goes out, flip the transfer switch & fire up the generator.
Contrary to popular belief, you don't need electricity to run a generator when the grid goes down

2k gallon?? That’s a lot of gas!

[Greenheadless]

OP, my best advice to you would be get with a licensed electrician or generator installation company.

Not trying to be demeaning, but the questions you are asking tells me you are WAY in over your head.

I would be careful taking advice from internet ‘experts’ when discussing electricity and generators. There is too much at stake with you and your family, your house, and the linemen that work the lines.

[Zmaxhunter]

Rotney,
Generators are typically sized by several factors..
Sky is the limit for options.
Sq footage means nothing.
If you want to run everything, washer, dryer, stove, lights, furnace, water heater.. et .. you need to do a load calculation..
Do you want an auto start system.. or do you want a manual system
Call your utility provider.. ask them for your monthly peak demand usage..
Most people can survive very well with a 12kw generator.. not miss much if at all.
Total electric homes obviously need more power than a home with NG, or propane, heating oil..
Fuel typ depends on what you plan to use and store.. a 12kw generator can burn 3glns of fuel per hour.. propane can store long term.. compared to gasoline.
Yes, i am that expert. A licensed, bonded, insured electrician with lots of generator installation experience.

[MadHatter]

2k gallon?? That’s a lot of gas!

Satire my dear boy, satire.
You didn't pay very close attention.
See greenheads post.

Me personally, when I do it, that's how I'm gonna do it

[Greenheadless]

Don’t know the correct answer but I am having an electrician come out and rig everything out to support a 50amp generator.

Best answer given.

[Pipeliner1]

Satire my dear boy, satire.
You didn't pay very close attention

Now you sound like my teachers😂😂😂

[Zmaxhunter]

If you want a home standby system.. you would typically have a NG or Propane system.. it will sell start monthly.. a 500gln propane tank should suffice.

If you want a manual system.. you will need a manual transfer switch capable of handling your generator output.. the most common is a 30am 120/140 volt 4 wire system.

Like to weld? Get a trailer/truck mounted generator welder..

Keep your eyes open.. you can buy a generator light tower at an auction if it fits your needs.

https://www.machinerytrader.com/listings/for-sale/light-towers/1045

[Zmaxhunter]

Go to the Generac website.. they have calculators and a lot of the info you seek

[Swampa]

Scary questions on here! Definitely need an interlock so you don’t kill a guy working on the power line. Yes it can all be done correctly


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[HogHunter34]

My system is a manual switch box with internal fusing when running the gen
The switch box comes with all the wires in it. Mine is a 10 circuit switch each with a black wire & red wire (20 wires)
It’s mounted adjacent to my service panel with 1” conduit & feeds into bottom of service panel via a 1” knockout
The way it’s wired is the hot (black) wire on the breaker in service panel is removed & in place the red wire from switch box is connected to breaker and the black wire from the switch box is connected to the black wire that was removed from the breaker. The black wires are wire nutted together
Essentially the black wires become your common
My switch box has Line/Off/Gen settings
Mine has 6 circuits rated at 15amps & 4 circuits at 20amps
You can select two of each & generate 30amp or 40amp protection if you want to run electric hot water heater or cook top
Just in case someone was curious on how my setup works

[Chew]

Come again .

Yes, bury a 2k gallon lp tank and pipe it to the genny, when the the power goes out, flip the transfer switch & fire up the generator.

Contrary to popular belief, you don't need electricity to run a generator when the grid goes down

[emoji38]

I'm very corn-fused

[DPElite]

I literally just about 15 Min ago placed my $5k deposit on a Champion generator 14kw
It will be powered by natural gas when the power goes out
My house is 1700 sqft with huge shop and barn as well and well water
The electrician said this will be plenty to do what I need to do during the government outages [emoji15]I meant weather outages [emoji1787]


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[Mike D]

I literally just about 15 Min ago placed my $5k deposit on a Champion generator 14kw
It will be powered by natural gas when the power goes out
My house is 1700 sqft with huge shop and barn as well and well water
The electrician said this will be plenty to do what I need to do during the government outages [emoji15]I meant weather outages [emoji1787]


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$5k deposit on a 14kw?

I only paid $5200 for a 22kw with a whole house transfer switch.


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[Edward F]

I’m in $300 for supplies, it’s a friend so hopefully labor isn’t too expensive. 🤣

Total was $380 parts and labor.