Home Generator Questions?

[ctom87]

I turned everyone on in my house and my dad measured the draw at the panel. What I did not account for was reheating the home using the heating strips. Those alone pulled more than the 8,500 my generator could handle. So keep that in mind.

[friscopaint]

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.

That's interesting, ones I looked seemed to consume much more than that especially since I was looking at ones and considering running for a week or longer in run time but haven't dug to deeply in it at this point.

[BrianL]

You might plumb for a propane line in the house to run a heater/fireplace (or two), if you are getting a propane tank for a generator. It will be much easier to heat with propane if you can't use the heat pump and your heat strips start coming on.

[BrianL]

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.

A 250 gallon tank(200 gallons of propane because you can only fill 80% full) would only last about 4 days..... That's about $130/day in propane. couple days isn't an issue, but 20-30 days $$$$

One more thing to think about, is when you are in the situation where you need the generator, everyone around you is too and getting a propane delivery is very difficult. They are usually at least a week + out in those times.

[Scotsman 1]

PM sent

[Throwin Darts]

Whole home generators are like boats. Its good to have a neighbor that has one and pays for it.

[Scotsman 1]

Kohler air cooled 20 KW : Will run AC etc but not the emergency heat strips on an electric furnace.

Generac air cooled 24KW. Electric heat strips on one unit will run dependent on electrical usage / draw at the time.

Generac air cooled 26KW. Electric heat strips on one unit will definitely work.

Heat strips would be load shed to allow other major electrical appliances to be used. ( heat would turn off when using other major appliances then turn back on after other major appliances were done with )

If using a smaller generator. Heat strips would be locked out so they never come on with Generator power.

I am happy to run a load calculation and advise proper sizing for anyone out there.

Have a nice day - Steven

[jds247]

We have a 24kw Generac. I had it installed 6 years ago when I built the house. The longest we used it was during the last hurricane. 5 days cost me 100 bucks. I ran the whole place just like a normal day. It worked well enough 2 of my neighbors put one in ..

[Zmaxhunter]

If you want a true load calculation.
Call your utility company.
Ask them for your peak load demand. They can tell you what day and what hour you were using the most electricity, and for how long.
They can also give you your average demand.

[tigerscowboy]

So many are so far off course of design here. They are making the std country logic assumptions.

A 10KW Generac can supplement power to a "Typical" 4,000 sqft house with a transfer switch included and dedicated preferences programmed. "Typical".

We have over 40 homeowners (including mine and family) running with the same effort. Harris County and outside. The design factors don't change.

If you desire to cool and operate your entire house at once and continuous with supplement energy on a 102* August afternoon, you will need over 20KW. That's a wasted effort to most.

Why not supply the main living & master with power until it reaches the programmed objective and then switch the supply to the secondary efforts?

[60 Deluxe]

A couple of points that I haven't seen mentioned: If you get into a long-term power outage situation you have to consider fuel consumption and longevity of the generator. 3600 rpm air-cooled units are built for stand-by use. Run them for weeks on end and you will be buying a new engine rather quickly. They are not intended to run constantly. If you desire to have a generator that will run continuously, you buy one that runs at 1800 rpm, is water cooled, and will most likely be diesel fueled. The cost of fuel is a real consideration. The type of weather is also a real consideration. Plan A would be to just let the genny run and pay for the fuel if it is available. Plan B would be dependent on weather conditions and perhaps fuel supply. If the weather is mild, the genny would run for perhaps six hours a day to keep the water hot, the house climate liveable, for power for cooking and showering, etc. Plan C for me is to move the Miller Bobcat next to generator and switch from the big generator output to the gasoline powered generator. The switchover will take me less than fifteen minutes. I'll have a third of the power but can run twelve hours or so on twelve gallons of gasoline. Since I have a whole house transfer switch, I can load shed manually by flipping the breakers for water heaters and then controlling the use of other appliances by just not using them. I can take a two-minute shower and use four or five gallons of water. In the winter, I can take a shower every other day if the situation dictates. I don't need lights at night or for the wi-fi to work. My transfer switch is two wire control. The brain in the generator doesn't need to talk to the brain in the transfer switch. All that is needed is for the power from the utility to fail, a relay closes which completes a twelve-volt circuit in the generator control board start/run circuit. When the loop closes, the generator starts. The transfer switch monitors the quality of the power on the generator side of the input and then switches to generator power when it sees suitable voltage and hertz. I can also turn off a 200-amp breaker between the electric meter and the input to the switch and then manually flip the transfer switch to generator power. It is a simple system with lots of flexibility.

[Mike D]

Home Generator Questions?

I have a 22kw on my house.

If I’m gonna put a fixed generator with ATS, then yes I want to be able to use heat/air, something to cook with at bare minimum, and keep my refrigeration going.

I don’t want to put one in just to have lights and a few receptacles working.

I also live rural so my well and aerobic septic system are on there as well.


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[Big pig]

I have a 22kw on my house.

If I’m gonna put a fixed generator with ATS, then yes I want to be able to use heat/air, something to cook with at bare minimum, and keep my refrigeration going.

I don’t want to put one in just to have lights and a few receptacles working.

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I put in a 1,000 gallon propane tank for our 2,600 ft house. I hope we are never without power more than a couple days, but when we were during “snowmageddon” the 22KW Generac came on automatically and we ran the house as usual. Our power goes out in the summer often we never lose the a/c.

[FLASH_OUTDOORS]

Home Generator Questions?

So many are so far off course of design here. They are making the std country logic assumptions.

A 10KW Generac can supplement power to a "Typical" 4,000 sqft house with a transfer switch included and dedicated preferences programmed. "Typical".

We have over 40 homeowners (including mine and family) running with the same effort. Harris County and outside. The design factors don't change.

If you desire to cool and operate your entire house at once and continuous with supplement energy on a 102* August afternoon, you will need over 20KW. That's a wasted effort to most.

Why not supply the main living & master with power until it reaches the programmed objective and then switch the supply to the secondary efforts?

You are talking about $2000 savings on generator and switch. By the time you put modules on every electric appliance in the home it’s a wash (maybe more) and you only have partial control over your home.

Even if it would save me $2k on the package I still wouldn’t consider that.

I just wired a 2700sq/ft house with 1-15kw electric heater. Your setup doesn’t work.

This entire thread is discussing all electric homes Mr. Country logic
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[Mike D]

I put in a 1,000 gallon propane tank for our 2,600 ft house. I hope we are never without power more than a couple days, but when we were during “snowmageddon” the 22KW Generac came on automatically and we ran the house as usual. Our power goes out in the summer often we never lose the a/c.

This is where I didn’t do my homework. I didn’t look at fuel consumption rate and only put in a 250 gallon tank. And since it’s can’t be filled beyond 90% capacity at best I only have less than 3 full days of capacity.

Knowing what I know now I would have used a different generator and put in a much larger tank.


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