Generator

[Whitey]

OK........I thank all whom have replied........your ideas are great. I think I like KeithInSpace ideas the best. The only problem is I did not implement them soon enough! We are in day three of our power outage and the boss is not happy. We lost power on Sunday evening at 8:15 PM and power company says maybe by Friday. I at least had the smarts to drive early Monday to a rental yard and grab a generator so we are roughing it but it could be worse. Problem is that the generator has a 250 volt / 30 amp four prong connection and my well is 240 volt / 20 amp 1/2 horse. I am afraid to hot wire it without a neutral and damage the pump. So we are driving into Slippery Rock University and showering there and using spring water (boiled) for everything else.

I am quite sure that this issue will be solved shortly if the boss has anything to say about it.

I am going to buy a generator of some sort and use the breaker idea and back feed my house from the shop and disconnect my main from the power company. After I figure out my wattage needs I will post my wiring ideas on line for comments. I can escape to work, the kids to school, but not the boss. At least this ordeal is forcing us to re-examine our way of life and what we take for granted.

I will say it again.....I am almost embarrassed on how much we are unprepared for this.

So long for now......from us camping in Slippery Rock

 

[Soundguy]

Remember.. 220 is hot and hot... Your pump will run exactly like that.. with a ground for safety.

I wouldn't be wasting the fuel to drive for a shower when i had a genny and a well pump and a few foot of 3 conductor wire laying around.

Heck.. I've bent the wires over and plugged them into the genny socket with no pigtail harness and then wired them into the pump pressure switch and then isolated the pump from the house via breaker before, in emergency power outtages, just to get water going for the animals and the wife...

soundguy

 

[Egon]

Not officially allowed but does work.

Turn off your panel main breaker to hopefully isolate your wiring from the main line supply.

Turn off all the other breakers in the panel. Take two extension cords with male prongs on each end.[ You have to make these up ] Plug into a 120 volt plug-in on your system so one cord feeds each leg of you main panel. Then you can run the generator and use the normal wiring systems for running those items you require like the well pump. All you gotta do is turn on the proper breakers.

I have two very short cords, about one foot long, for this purpose.

 

[Soundguy]

Seems like technically, theoretically speaking here, you could kill the main breaker, and just wire the genny up to the hot side of the well pump, and that would backfeed the house.. at whatever 'load capacity' the circuit for the well pump was sized for.

soundguy

Not officially allowed but does work.

Turn off your panel main breaker to hopefully isolate your wiring from the main line supply.

Turn off all the other breakers in the panel. Take two extension cords with male prongs on each end.[ You have to make these up ] Plug into a 120 volt plug-in on your system so one cord feeds each leg of you main panel. Then you can run the generator and use the normal wiring systems for running those items you require like the well pump. All you gotta do is turn on the proper breakers.

I have two very short cords, about one foot long, for this purpose.

 

[podagrower]

They also make main panel backfeed retrofit kits for most electrical panels. This kit installs a sliding plate between the main breaker and a breaker that goes to your generator. The sliding panel is designed so that only one of these two breakers can be on at a time, either the main breaker providing commercial power, or the backfeed breaker providing generator power, but never both. This kit is far more economical and practical for occasional backup power shifts IMO. They are much easier to install than the other two options. They are also more versatile in that it allows you to feed power to everything that is wired into your panel, within the limits of your generator of course, just like a whole house transfer switch does. These kits are UL approved and run about $150, and can be installed by an electrically savy homeowner. Generator InterLock Kit - Introduction

Hey, hey, hey, these interlock kits are supposed to be a secret. How am I supposed to keep undercutting other electricians prices if everyone know about them???
I installed two of them last weekend and they make for a really clean install. If you use a generator inlet box, you can use a standard cord with a male end and female end. This makes for a professional looking install.
30-Amp Power Inlet Boxes @ Electric Generators Direct - Your Online 30 Amp Power Inlet Box Superstore
50-Amp Power Inlet Boxes @ Electric Generators Direct - Your Online 50 Amp Power Inlet Box Superstore
Those 50 amp twistlock cord caps are not cheap, but ebay is a good place to look sometimes.

 

[Diamondpilot]

All this talk about back feeding the panel makes me think. What was done at my home by the previous owner was to have a 50 amp twist lock plug on the outside of my house adjacent to my breaker panel. Then it goes about 3 feet to a 200 amp 2 way connect master switch. You can either get power from the pole or the 50 amp plug but not both.

My cord that goes from my generator is 25 feet long and has the proper twist lock to mate up to the genny and the proper twist lock to mate up to the house.

I also made a generic cord that is another 25 feet long and has a twist lock to mate up to the house end of the first cord and has male dryer plug on the other end. So you connect the two cords together for 50 feet total and you end up with a cord with the twist lock for the genny end and a dryer plug on the other end. I made this up so my sister or dad could use my genny if needed and all they would have to do is disconnect the dryer, cut off the main breaker in the panel to prevent back feet then fire up the genny to power the whole home via back feed.

I have never had to loan it out but it allows me to have a generic setup that will power most anyone's home with a electric dryer.


As for gas I keep 25 gallons on had at all time. That is 3 days for my genny at my homes load. I put stabilizer in it and at the end of winter or spring if it has not been used in the genny it gets run through my gas truck or car. So what I am saying is I replace the gas twice a year so it is always fresh. I also have a boat that holds 70 gallons of gas and is always filled up at the end of the week to prevent condensation in the tank. It is a EFI motor so it has a electric fuel pump. I have in a pinch, removed the fuel line from the out side of the pump and put on a extension then turned the key on to pump fuel and fill up gas cans. I once had to pump out 60 gallons of the 70 gallons and it went very quick, about 1 hour.

Chris

 

[Egon]

just wire the genny up to the hot side of the well pump, and that would backfeed the house.

Wasn't the fellow a little leery of wiring the 220 side???

 

[Soundguy]

Wasn't the fellow a little leery of wiring the 220 side???

If power is off.. I don't know why.

besides.. that's the only side of the well you can wire.. if you wir ethe other side of the pressure switch.. the thing can't cut off and will blow up!

soundguy

 

[Diamondpilot]

I guess they are getting cheaper every day. I was at Rural King today picking up some blades for my mower and saw they now had PTO Generators. They always had a good price on genny's but this seems real good. A 15,000 watt complete with stand and pto shaft for $999.00

Here is a link

https://www.ruralking.com/Store/detail.aspx?ID=15098

Chris

 

[Egon]

If power is off.. I don't know why.

Sounds like you did not read the posters post and made an interpretation to suit your needs whatever that may be!

Course when the Moon is full one does not need light does one???