Revisiting the PTO-generator question

[Trev]

Hi Von. Say, we still need to get together someday.. I'd forgotten you lived so close!

<font color=blue>As for helping your neighbors, 10 to 1 when your neighbors don't have power you won't either! </font color=blue>

Well, I kind of envisioned driving around, giving people enough power to get warmed up, keep their pipes from freezing, get their fridge and freezer cooled down, and then move on to the next ... or back home to do my own house again. Obviously this isn't an ideal solution.. just a way of helping people out a bit if we do have a major outtage (and I hear that downing our power grid is one of the terrorist objectives.) And of course I want my family to be as comfortable as I can make them...

Thanks for your perspective on this. The stand-alone unit is something I haven't ruled out. Not by a long shot. But I really do like the idea of one less engine to maintain.

My JD dealer thinks he may have found me a 12,000 watt (13K surge) unit that has 3-pt hitch connection.. he just has to see if he can get it. Now that might be a nice setup. Some weight on the back of the tractor in case I have to use my front blade to push some snow to get to the folks electric boxes, then just turn around and plug in.

I dunno.. I have a lot more learning to do first!

Bob

 

[ebeacham]

<font color=blue> maybe I can install a small nuke and begin selling power. (Bet there's a lot of paperwork to do that!) </font color=blue>

You got that right!! An awful lot of paperwork to boil water!!

 

[MikePA]

<font color=blue>I just back feed the house from a 220 line in the shop after killing the main in the house.</font color=blue>
Hi, Von! How do you do this? A power cord with a male 220 plug at each end, one end goes to the generator and one plugs into the 220 outlet?

 

[Von]

Mike, Yes that is how I do it. I plug in the generator and shut off that breaker as well as the main. Then start the generator, once its warmed up I hit the breaker to the line that the generator is plugged into and I'm back feeding the whole house and shop. Has worked fine for the last 12 yrs.

 

[MikePA]

What size cable did you use for the connection between the generator and the 220 outlet?

 

[Von]

Mike,I used 12 ga. wire as the generator is rated at 16 amps for 220 and 12 ga. is rated up to 20 amps. The wire is cool to the touch when the generator is running, so there must not be any problems. only have a run of about 15' from gen. to outlet, so that might help too.

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Von, that ice storm was in March of 91, I still have the hat to remember those 16 hour days by. This is starting to look like the Greater Monroe County emergency power board from my perspective in Hilton.
Pulling meters is normally a BIG NO NO, and highly unlawful; However, if a politician declares a State of Emergency, all rules are off.
The right & proper way to feed a generator to a house is thru a transferr switch, big double pole double throw switch, that COSTS $.
About 10 years ago, a few manufacturers came out with tin boxes called things like Gentran, with a couple pilot lights and a mickey mouse meter. These things are nothing but a bunch of double throw switches in an overpriced box. First, you can make your own from a 3 way switch, and second, installing such a unit may well be in violation of the National Electrical Code.
Now, I have nothing against owning the biggest anything in the neighborhood, so I really don't mind if somebody wants to own the biggest honkin PTO generator, or even a 100KVA CAT, but unless you're living in a house with major electrical loads, it just isn't necessary. I've proven it too many times by running a recording Amprobe on the service conductors, most houses rarely draw more than 10 amps per leg on the service.
I personally run 2 houses and my shops on a 7'5 kva machine, and have run both of them on a 3.5 kva. Load balance is more important than load capacity.
For the average guy, a half dozen 3 way switches will more than satisfy his need for a transfer setup, and save him a couple hundred bucks. If all you're worried about is the furnace and freezer, and sump pump, you can do it with a single 3 way and some extension cords.

 

[Trev]

Folks, I'm electrically ignorant ... I notice generators for single phase, double phase, triple phase. What does this mean? Which one do I want to run a normal house?

Thanks yet again!

Bob the clueless

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Trev, you want a single phase generator, turning the lowest number of RPMs you can afford.

 

[Trev]

My sincere thanks to everyone who replied.

I found a reasonable deal on the same setup as Neil got.. 17KW, 35KW surge, 70 amps at 240 volts, 1800 RPM, 515 PTO RPM (seems an odd number.. but I suppose this is good as the tractor doesn't have to run quite as fast). Comes with the whole thing assembled on the trailer, ready to plug & play (or is that plug & pray?) I talked to our electrician, and he will get back to me on a good transfer box solution.. first he needed to know the amperage, etc.

This is probably a lot more than we need for our own house, but it looks like good, solid equipment that will last a lifetime, and if we need to power something serious we can do it.

Now I just need to figure out how best to help out neighbors if we run into an extended outtage. I understand (I think) the issues of making sure the system is NOT on the service line.. I'm a bit more shaky about being clear on the power meter approach to this in the event a state of emergency is declared and this becomes legal. Just pop off the glass meter, and underneath I'll find a house side and a service side? I'll ask our electrician to show me, when he comes out. I'm not sure what type of cable I would need, and how to make sure I'm on the house side rather than the service side. I'm sure it's obvious when you look at it, but I never have.

Anyway, thanks once again for all your great advice!!!

Best to all, and happy holidays!

Bob