Home Generator Questions?

[txlawdog]

We have a big house and 22K just covers it. Kohler is the way to go...

Agree on Kohler. If you are anywhere near Houston KISS Generators is a go to company. If not still go with Kohler and get a company that does the service on it. Not coming on is just as bad as not having one. Where I live we don't have gas and I would have to put in a propane tank and bury it due to the HOA rules. Don't get me started on the HOA. So we just use some Honda generators and the fireplace when the need arises. Would still be nice to have one though. Only been once in the last 3 years, we are on grid with VA hospital so the rolling blackouts don't happen to us unless a line goes down with ice.

https://kissgenerators.kohlergeneratordealer.com/

[Hogmauler]

So why is Kohler better than Generac? In layman’s terms.

[FLASH_OUTDOORS]

So why is Kohler better than Generac? In layman’s terms.

Kohler is more of a “mechanical” / “Dumber” operation. The Generac is more “smart” / “over complicated “ operation. A lot more to go wrong with a Generac


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[Hogmauler]

Kohler is more of a “mechanical” / “Dumber” operation. The Generac is more “smart” / “over complicated “ operation. A lot more to go wrong with a Generac


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There ya go. Sounds like when I get to that point I’ll go Kohler.

[FCoDxDart]

The biggest draws are A/C and Heat. If you have electric heat 18kw is the minimum I'd get. Everything else is negligable. If you have lp or natural gas heat then you can go smaller to around 10kw

[TxBowHntr]

I got one a little over 2 years ago. Here is what I tell everyone.

If you are running natural gas, get the biggest air cooled one they have. I ended up with the 24KW, but I think they have a 26KW out now. If you are going to spend the $$ to get the install, the difference in price is negligible. I think the difference in price of the 22KW to the 24KW was $500. When you compare that to the total install cost, spend up. If you really don't need that much power, I would say at least get the 22KW as it is by far their #1 home generator.

[FCoDxDart]

I got one a little over 2 years ago. Here is what I tell everyone.

If you are running natural gas, get the biggest air cooled one they have. I ended up with the 24KW, but I think they have a 26KW out now. If you are going to spend the $$ to get the install, the difference in price is negligible. I think the difference in price of the 22KW to the 24KW was $500. When you compare that to the total install cost, spend up. If you really don't need that much power, I would say at least get the 22KW as it is by far their #1 home generator.

The problem in doing that is you're wasting gas for energy you don't need. It's best to have a generator around 90-95% of your needs if you don't plan on expanding. You'll get the best efficiency matching the generator as closely as possible.

For a crude example. Say you need 8.5kw to power your house. You get a 10kw generator and use .5 gallon an hour to get your power. If you get a 15kw generator you use .7 gallon an hour for the same amount of power.

[Drycreek3189]

I have a Generac, but I had my own electrician install it and he services it. It self starts once a month just to let you know it’s still kicking and I had to put a 500 gallon propane tank in the backyard. I’ve had it two years and we’ve lost power three times for a short period. It started right up with no hesitation. Sure is good for peace of mind. BTW we have a very efficient fireplace heater with a fan, so winter power loss is not a problem as long as we can run the fan in the a/c-heating unit.

[BrianL]

I would think about how you want/will need to use it. Look at the consumption and the more KW the more fuel. There is a big tradeoff if it is used for minute/hours vs days/weeks.

If I cut way back and just run essentials I can operate my house (1700 sq ft) on 2KW. If I want to run EVERYTHING without concern it is probably close to 22KW. I have three generators 2000w, 3500w, and 15000w.

I can run for 24 hours on the Honda 2000 for on about 2.5 gallons of gasoline, (2 Honda 2000) 3500 on about 4.5 gallons, and the(Miller welder generator)15K about 25 gallons.

Gasoline will be more efficient than propane.

The longest I have been out is 3 weeks, 90% of the time it is less than 12 hours.

I can see how a backup 22+KW would be great 95+% of the time, but it will be really expensive to run it days or weeks.
.

[Mudslinger]

FYI on propane usage for a generator. I have a 13,500 dual fuel generator and a 25# propane bottle lasts about 2 hours. Not sure if some use more or less but if you get a dual fuel, might want to think about a big, like 250 gallon tank.

[Sasqy]

Have an 18k here on my 2 bedroom 1,500 sq ft !
More than enough for me.

[kingranch]

The best setup imo is an all led fixture/bulb house w gas appliances like heater and water heater.
You can run all this on the 11k dual fuel generator w ease. No ac but that's ok w small penguin type to get you by or a minisplit/window unit

[Johnny Dangerr]

Agree on Kohler. If you are anywhere near Houston KISS Generators is a go to company. If not still go with Kohler and get a company that does the service on it. Not coming on is just as bad as not having one. Where I live we don't have gas and I would have to put in a propane tank and bury it due to the HOA rules. Don't get me started on the HOA. So we just use some Honda generators and the fireplace when the need arises. Would still be nice to have one though. Only been once in the last 3 years, we are on grid with VA hospital so the rolling blackouts don't happen to us unless a line goes down with ice.
https://kissgenerators.kohlergeneratordealer.com/

Just called them for a service job. We will see...

[friscopaint]

Your big killer will be the heat. Open the panel and send me a picture of the inside. I will do a load calculation and give you an exact number. If the house is all electric I’m assuming you don’t have natural gas. In that case you will need a propane tank. And you will be looking at only about 3 days run time on it.


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The propane was an eye opener for me when looking at generators for a house in Florida, I was really surprised how fast they tear through the propane and that's if tank is filled. Was more concerned with long term outages due to hurricane/wind damage to power grid. I worry about natural gas outage too and then what but not sure if that is really a huge worry or not......luckily our fire station during ice mageddon never failed on natural gas, fort worth.....I guess I could always have a back up to the back up a generator that runs off tractor pto and just have plenty of diesel on hand. Here in N. Texas I can heat house with fireplace insert and fan that can easily run off my 9000 kw portable generator which is pretty fuel efficient on gasoline. The ICF built homes in Florida are so well insulated it can greatly reduce the size of HVAC necessary which would help on the size of generator and propane consumption.....

[TxMedic]

The propane was an eye opener for me when looking at generators for a house in Florida, I was really surprised how fast they tear through the propane and that's if tank is filled. Was more concerned with long term outages due to hurricane/wind damage to power grid. I worry about natural gas outage too and then what but not sure if that is really a huge worry or not......luckily our fire station during ice mageddon never failed on natural gas, fort worth.....I guess I could always have a back up to the back up a generator that runs off tractor pto and just have plenty of diesel on hand. Here in N. Texas I can heat house with fireplace insert and fan that can easily run off my 9000 kw portable generator which is pretty fuel efficient on gasoline. The ICF built homes in Florida are so well insulated it can greatly reduce the size of HVAC necessary which would help on the size of generator and propane consumption.....

It depends on what you are running and how many KW your generator is. My best friend just ran their 22KW Generac for right at 30 hours and used less than 50 gallons of propane...between 1-1.5gal/hr with lights, HVAC, TV, and a couple of loads of laundry.