If I got a generator for my house to be prepared for a power outage (California wildfire country) – how does that work? Do I have to run extension chords from any appliances I want on generator power? Is there a way to connect a generator to the house so that lights work?
In: 3
2 ways:
1) have an electrician wire up a plug that connects to your house so all the plugs in your house work as if you’re on the grid when the generator is plugged into it. I assume they would make up a switch for safety reasons.
2) run a bunch of extension cords and plug in which appliances you want to power when you turn on your generator.
I haven’t done the first one yet but it has its advantages and disadvantages like convenience vs practicality
2 ways:
1) have an electrician wire up a plug that connects to your house so all the plugs in your house work as if you’re on the grid when the generator is plugged into it. I assume they would make up a switch for safety reasons.
2) run a bunch of extension cords and plug in which appliances you want to power when you turn on your generator.
I haven’t done the first one yet but it has its advantages and disadvantages like convenience vs practicality
There’s two options for this
Portable gas generators are meant for construction, being in the woods, etc but can be used to power appliances in an emergency. They are gas powered and you hook up to them using an extension cord.
A standby generator for your house will typically either be Diesel or natural gas and will be hooked up directly to your fuse panel using a transfer switch.
When it detects that power is out, the generator will start automatically (depending on the model) and once it’s running the transfer switch will cutover to the generator.
The generator will keep running until either the mains come back up, or the generator runs out of fuel.
The downside is there is 30 sec or so of power loss between losing power and how long it takes the generator to spool up and cutover.
In the IT + Medical world this is a massive problem because the equipment we work with can’t loose power. So to hold the equipment we also need a UPS or a battery backup system in addition to the generator.
There’s two options for this
Portable gas generators are meant for construction, being in the woods, etc but can be used to power appliances in an emergency. They are gas powered and you hook up to them using an extension cord.
A standby generator for your house will typically either be Diesel or natural gas and will be hooked up directly to your fuse panel using a transfer switch.
When it detects that power is out, the generator will start automatically (depending on the model) and once it’s running the transfer switch will cutover to the generator.
The generator will keep running until either the mains come back up, or the generator runs out of fuel.
The downside is there is 30 sec or so of power loss between losing power and how long it takes the generator to spool up and cutover.
In the IT + Medical world this is a massive problem because the equipment we work with can’t loose power. So to hold the equipment we also need a UPS or a battery backup system in addition to the generator.
There’s two options for this
Portable gas generators are meant for construction, being in the woods, etc but can be used to power appliances in an emergency. They are gas powered and you hook up to them using an extension cord.
A standby generator for your house will typically either be Diesel or natural gas and will be hooked up directly to your fuse panel using a transfer switch.
When it detects that power is out, the generator will start automatically (depending on the model) and once it’s running the transfer switch will cutover to the generator.
The generator will keep running until either the mains come back up, or the generator runs out of fuel.
The downside is there is 30 sec or so of power loss between losing power and how long it takes the generator to spool up and cutover.
In the IT + Medical world this is a massive problem because the equipment we work with can’t loose power. So to hold the equipment we also need a UPS or a battery backup system in addition to the generator.
Speak to your electrician. There are basically two options.
One option is that you plug extension cords into the generator, so the generator is only powering the devices that you plug into it.
The other option is having the generator wired into your electrical panel, using something called a transfer switch. That way when the power goes out, your generator is providing power to all of the plugs in your house via your electrical panel. The transfer switch will automatically disconnect your generator when the power comes back on (which prevents you from backfeeding the grid and possibly electrocuting someone working on the power lines)
Speak to your electrician. There are basically two options.
One option is that you plug extension cords into the generator, so the generator is only powering the devices that you plug into it.
The other option is having the generator wired into your electrical panel, using something called a transfer switch. That way when the power goes out, your generator is providing power to all of the plugs in your house via your electrical panel. The transfer switch will automatically disconnect your generator when the power comes back on (which prevents you from backfeeding the grid and possibly electrocuting someone working on the power lines)
Speak to your electrician. There are basically two options.
One option is that you plug extension cords into the generator, so the generator is only powering the devices that you plug into it.
The other option is having the generator wired into your electrical panel, using something called a transfer switch. That way when the power goes out, your generator is providing power to all of the plugs in your house via your electrical panel. The transfer switch will automatically disconnect your generator when the power comes back on (which prevents you from backfeeding the grid and possibly electrocuting someone working on the power lines)
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