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General Site Info => General Discussion => Topic started by: Blazin on December 13, 2008, 01:45:26 pm
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Going on 40 hours without power here. They are saying it could be another couple days. Got the generator running. Heat with wood so its no biggie. Just a pain having to fill the gas etc.
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The old lady said earlier that some folks in Massatwoshits were out of power. I wondered if if affected you up there.
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Going on 40 hours without power here. They are saying it could be another couple days. Got the generator running. Heat with wood so its no biggie. Just a pain having to fill the gas etc.
Sorry to hear that I know it sucks to be with out power. We had the same problem here when I was young we were with out power for five days. Atleast you heat with wood, mabye it wont be much longer.
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At least you have a generator. I work on gesets for a living, but mostly industrial/commercial. Not much use for residentual here. Hope things turn around soon for ya.
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Ya, the news showed you guys getting hammered. We lost our power for about 30 hours, came back on about 4 hours after I bought a generator.
Take care. Hopefully the tree and power crews get the power back quick.
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I am headed up that way this friday for 8 days to visit family and friends, hopefully when i`m up there nothing like that happens.Maybe me bringing some of the southeast warmpth will thaw some of that crap out by the time i leave.. lol... j/k
thanks
pat
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They say it might be as long as Wed. before we see power. Approx. 350,000 out of power at the peak. Plus tonight PSHN, ( Largest elec. co. in the state ) had a fire at one of there main stations!
Yep woke up Fri. morning no power and over 2' of water in my basement. Set up the gen and sump pumps. Went out to sand etc. the heater core started leaking all over the floor in the 1 ton!
Of course I bought the generator last spring. I never got around to installing the switch at the main panel. So for now I am back feeding power into the 220 dryer outlet. 9000 watt gen so it runs the whole house, as long as I don't use every electrical thing at one time.
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They say it might be as long as Wed. before we see power. Approx. 350,000 out of power at the peak. Plus tonight PSHN, ( Largest elec. co. in the state ) had a fire at one of there main stations!
Yep woke up Fri. morning no power and over 2' of water in my basement. Set up the gen and sump pumps. Went out to sand etc. the heater core started leaking all over the floor in the 1 ton!
Of course I bought the generator last spring. I never got around to installing the switch at the main panel. So for now I am back feeding power into the 220 dryer outlet. 9000 watt gen so it runs the whole house, as long as I don't use every electrical thing at one time.
I am sorry if asking this question offends you, but you do have the main breaker turned off right? I am sure you do, but I know tht in an emergency situation, little things get over looked, and if its on and the power comes back.......it can get ugly. You guys probably have alot of experience with generators up there where the power outages are norm, youd be suprised the stupidity I see here on a regular basis. Well, it's not all stupidity, just lack of knowledge. Had a guy rewire the lights in his house to 220vac because someone told him it used less electricity( for those of you who have heard this before, it is false. You pay for kilowatts used, and it takes thesame kilowatts to do cetain things whether it is 120 or 220.) Anyway, he didnt realize that it was as easy as just moving the original neutral wire to a hot leg, and flipping a switch. He almost burnt the house down. I went over to inspect later. 120 volt bulbs can explode when 220 is applied, and when wiring burns rapidly, it leaves neat looking designs inthe wood of attics and walls.
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WOW What some people do - it's scarry sometimes.
You still cannot get around Watts = volts x amps.
Running things a 220 reduces the load on the wires by half but still uses the same amount of electricity.
I like equating electricity to water hydraulics. Running one 2 1/2 inch hose to flow 500gpm is VEERY innefecient if not close to impossible (high friction loss). But running two 21/2 inch hoses to flow the same 500 gpm is very efficient with acceptable friction losses.
Anyway,
Harold, is there much damage to your basement? Is it finished? My biggest fear is getting alot of rain and we lose power and the finished basement floods because the sump pump can't run. I feel your pain.
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Don't make the same mistake I made by having the generator power all my lights, and I live at the end of my street. The electric worker saw that I had lights and moved on the next circuit. The houses two down from me and further down are on a different circuit. The guy saw I had lights and disregarded working on my circuit.
Well, this was right after huricane Gaston came through dumping 17 inches of rain and knocking down powerlines, blowing transformers, etc..needless to say, my neighbors got their power back in two days. mine was out for 10 days. All because I had a generator.
Anyway, as for pulling the main switch or breaker for the main feed---it is a must! They say your generator can back feed to the electric lines and electrocute power workers.
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Yep got that covered. Have completely wired a several houses, and a few garages. Got power back this morning. The basement is not finished. It is a hand dug rock basement. Has only had a concrete floor for about 6 years. The furnace has some issues but nothing that cant be fixed. Have hot water just not zones for heat.
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Well that's good news. Now on to the heater core? I am going out to work on the wiper motor.
It's 32 degrees and 10 to 15mph winds >:(
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It's pretty darn cold here too and my boiler blew up Friday night. My buddy came over and we fixed it yesterday but that was a mess. My house was an ice cube and I had no hot water. I took an ice cold shower. brr Running good now!
I still need to wire up my generator so when the time comes I can run my boiler, well pump, and some essentials. Losing power flat out sucks. I feel your pain
As far as people thinking higher voltage uses less electricity they're just confusing efficiency in AC motors. When voltage is increased amperage is increased proportionally according to ohms law and any circuit calculation. And yes volts x amps = watts. However when an electric motor for example needs a certain amount of power the load requirement must be met. If your motor uses 3000 watts and you have a 100 volt source 100 volts x 30 amps= 3000 watts. If you increase the voltage to 200 volt source with the same 3000 watt motor 200 volts x 15 amps = 3000 watts. Therefore you are using less current. Most electric company's charge by the kw/hour
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Weather is screwy here.
In the low 60's today in KY....freezing rain moving in by morning, followed by 3 days of flurries.. ???
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My biggest fear is getting alot of rain and we lose power and the finished basement floods because the sump pump can't run. I feel your pain.
If I was you I'd have a generator and a spare sump pump on hand.
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Heater core is fixed. i didn't have time to mess with it. I took it to a buddy of mine. Him and his step father run a shop. I wouldn't take computer diagnostics, etc. to them. But for brake lines, fuel pumps, exhaust, heater core type stuff they do good. $70.00 to swap the core in an AC truck! They treat me good because I send them allot of jobs that I don't want to mess with or I know the people won't pay my price.
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Sometimes it is just easier to go to someone and have it fix. Especially if the price is right and at 70 dollars, the price is RIGHT!
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I hope you are all ok in the northeast. We had a snow and ice storm come thru but it left the next day... Another one tonight I guess. Global warming.
I need to get a genset- how big should it be? Is 5500 ok if it has a 220 outlet? I thought of getting two 2000 watt units and tie them together (They're quiet)
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Hey Don, how much do you want to run? Whole house or specific circuits?
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60 yesterday and now I have freakin ice all over my truck...ahhhhh
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I thought of getting two 2000 watt units and tie them together
Don't do that. The power needs to be phased correctly, and 2 gensets working together will not be phased.
Add up the load that you need working during an outage: Refrigerator, freezer, lights, air handler... then look at thier tags and find the startup load for all the motors. Your genset will have to handle all that.
I can run 2 refrigerators, 1 freezer, air blower (not the a/c compressor) and 3 or 4 75 watt light bulbs and one of the following; microwave, coffe pot, or hair dryer with my 4000kw onan.
I just bought a 6720kw genset in Sept, but haven't tested it yet.
I have a multi step list of procedures to engage:
1. flip house main breaker and all individual breakers off.
2. Hook up the wiring from the generator to the house (wiring de-energized)
3. Start generator and let it run alone until running smooth.
4. Energize wiring to the house at the genset breaker box.
5. Energize 2 pole back-feed breaker at the house breaker box
6. flip on individual pre-marked circuits in order to allow for electric motor startup load.
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Don it depends on your house. do you have electric water heater or gas? do you want to run your HVAC system with it? If both answers are to the affirmative, you will need more than 5500 watts.
I have two fireplaces so I don't care about running HVAC with generator. I have a 3500 watt and it is plenty. I have electric water heater, but, running the generator directly to it for 20 minutes about once every three days, will be just fine. The water for showers will at least stay warm for a few days after 20 minutes direct electric.
So I don't run my heat pump or AC with generator, no need. If I had to, I can switch to my oil furnace and connect the generator to circulation fan blower.
I back feed my house after removing the main feed breaker so as not to back feed through the neighborhod.
I take an electric cord, splice a second male end on one end. Therefore the extension cord has two male ends. I plug one in the generator, one in any other electric outlet in the house. Viola! power.
I have a honda 2000watt generator which I take camping and use that mainly--very quiet. My 3500 watt is just quite loud so unless i have to, i dont use that.
Never put a generator inside a garage or basement or whatever. I heard druing the ice storm in the northeast last week that the only casualty was a guy using a generator for his camper. Must've put the generator inside or next to an open window or something.
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do a google search for honda generators. You can safely combine two 2k watts to make 4k watts. you have to buy a converter thing that combines the two. you can combine two 1kwatts to make 2k watts, etc.. I see double honda generators all the time at bluegrass festival campgrounds. you can also get two 3000 watt hondas and make 6k watts. these hondas are expensive though, but they run forever on little gas and extremely quiet.
http://www.hondapowerequipment.com/products/models.aspx?page=models§ion=P2GG&category=sq (http://www.hondapowerequipment.com/products/models.aspx?page=models§ion=P2GG&category=sq)
parallel box:
http://www.hondapowerequipment.com/products/generators/content.aspx?asset=gg_parallelcapability (http://www.hondapowerequipment.com/products/generators/content.aspx?asset=gg_parallelcapability)
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I thought of getting two 2000 watt units and tie them together
Don't do that. The power needs to be phased correctly, and 2 gensets working together will not be phased.
Add up the load that you need working during an outage: Refrigerator, freezer, lights, air handler... then look at thier tags and find the startup load for all the motors. Your genset will have to handle all that.
I can run 2 refrigerators, 1 freezer, air blower (not the a/c compressor) and 3 or 4 75 watt light bulbs and one of the following; microwave, coffe pot, or hair dryer with my 4000kw onan.
I just bought a 6720kw genset in Sept, but haven't tested it yet.
I have a multi step list of procedures to engage:
1. flip house main breaker and all individual breakers off.
2. Hook up the wiring from the generator to the house (wiring de-energized)
3. Start generator and let it run alone until running smooth.
4. Energize wiring to the house at the genset breaker box.
5. Energize 2 pole back-feed breaker at the house breaker box
6. flip on individual pre-marked circuits in order to allow for electric motor startup load.
We used to phase in two 30kw or two 60kw generators when I was in the Army .
You had "Phase Lights" they would sense the output (through the wiring) of the other set you brought the idle up or down till you got them phased then flipped the breaker two gen sets running as one.
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Gee, wonder how much these little phaser thingies cost?
My point was you just can't hook them up together and expect it to work. They will not phase automatically without help. ::)
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Gee, wonder how much these little phaser thingies cost?
My point was you just can't hook them up together and expect it to work. They will not phase automatically without help. ::)
+1 If you dont have some type of paralleling swichgear or controls that tie the to generators together, you are asking for a big melt down. Single phase is not as sensitive as 3 phase, but if the voltages and frequency ( engine speed) are not the same one will be carrying most of the load, which is why the Honda parallel device requires two like units. I imagine it is for Honda units speciafically since the have a board that controls the voltage and the speed, unlike some other models that have a set engine speed and voltage is controlled according to speed only. If you dont have a generator already, make sure it is a quality genset. The Hondas and Onans are good gensets. I prefer the Onans for durability, then Honda, followed by Generac. You can get a cheaper genset from Home Depot or Lowes, but dont count on them to last long. They are disposable, that is why they are cheap. Onan is mostly repairable, Honda as well. We have probelms getting Generac parts here. Just invest in quality, you will thank yourself later.
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This is the gen I have. Only difference is mine has electric start as well.
http://www.titanindustrial.net/9000.html
I bought it off a truck after a trade show for $1,150.00 I had my Artesian pump, Boiler, Microwave, half dozen lights, stereo, etc. on it. It lugged it off without a problem.
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you stole that generator. I paid $1,000 for my 2,000 watt Honda :-\ She will go 15 hrs on one gallon of gas though ;D
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It will run about 6 hours on a tank of gas.
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It will run about 6 hours on a tank of gas.
I do believe I would be looking into a bigger tank, or at least an auxillary tank.
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I don't run it continuasly. I run it four 3 or 4 hours then shut it down for several. Just enough to keep the fridge cold get water etc. Use kero lamps, and candles during the down time.
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Use kero lamps, and candles during the down time.
We tend to foget the old ways. I have quite a Dietz Lantern collection...which were the lightbulbs of the early 1900's to about the '40's prior to everyone having electricity. Heck, I even have some old road construction lights (before they invented decent battery operated blinking warning lights) that were also lanterns. Some highly collectible lanterns are those that have "L.A. County Public works" stamped onto them or Cincinnatti Public works. They were 70 hour burning lanterns with red or yellow globes that were frequently stolen on the side of the roads.
I have about 20 different lanterns. Many people call them railroad lanterns or barn lanterns, but, they were used for everything from living room lighting to flashlight way back in the day. Heck. the first Ford cars had old hors wagons had lanterns as headlights. You can sometimes find the really old oil - hedlights on ebay.
I usually fire up about 5 or 6 during power outages or even on my camping excursions. They are great.
Anyway, check them out www.delbridge.net/lanterns
Ford lanterns/headlights
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Pair-of-Ford-Modet-T-8-Lanterns-c-1912_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZ66Q3a2Q7c65Q3a13Q7c39Q3a1Q7c240Q3a1318QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQhashZitem120344547373QQitemZ120344547373QQptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories (http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Pair-of-Ford-Modet-T-8-Lanterns-c-1912_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZ66Q3a2Q7c65Q3a13Q7c39Q3a1Q7c240Q3a1318QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQhashZitem120344547373QQitemZ120344547373QQptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories)
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2-OLD-Ford-Model-T-CAR-Headlights-OIL-LAMP-LANTERNS-nr_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZ66Q3a2Q7c65Q3a13Q7c39Q3a1Q7c240Q3a1318QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQhashZitem250329678696QQitemZ250329678696QQptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories (http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2-OLD-Ford-Model-T-CAR-Headlights-OIL-LAMP-LANTERNS-nr_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZ66Q3a2Q7c65Q3a13Q7c39Q3a1Q7c240Q3a1318QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQhashZitem250329678696QQitemZ250329678696QQptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories)
http://shop.ebay.com/items/?_nkw=lantern+ford&_sacat=0&_fromfsb=&_trksid=m270.l1313&_odkw=lantern+headlight&_osacat=0 (http://shop.ebay.com/items/?_nkw=lantern+ford&_sacat=0&_fromfsb=&_trksid=m270.l1313&_odkw=lantern+headlight&_osacat=0)
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We got one expected tonight. Got a pair of Goodyear Workhorse studded snows mounted up just in case I need them.
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I'm at my mom-in-law's house right now (about an hour and a half south of Blazin) warming the house with a generator for a few hours to keep the pipes from freezing solid at 20*. Still no power here after a week, and with 10" of the fluffy stuff expected today/tonight, the power crew thinks it may take until mid-week next week! I lost power at my place for 30 hours, and used a little honda 2400 watt generator to power the oil furnace (also heats my water), my fridge or the upright freezer (not both at once) a small tv with sat box, and my laptop with Verizon mobile broadband, which I'm using now. If you just need the basics, you can get by with a rather small unit.
And those Honda engines are bullet-proof. I have a 25 y/o honda mower that still starts on the first pull every time Just change the oil every now and then.