Comparison Home Stand By Generators

[aczlan]

I add things up a little differently. 1 minute with 1 inch of water in my fully furnished basement because I'm away and my sump pump has no power pays the entire cost of my standby generator.

Might be worth looking into a water powered sump pump as a backup if you have water problems and are on city water.

Aaron Z

 

[kiotiken]

Might be worth looking into a water powered sump pump as a backup if you have water problems and are on city water.

Aaron Z

No city water, generator also powers the well pump. We don't have serious water issues all year, but the pump runs on and off part of the year and we have had water in the basement when the pump failed. Now there are multiple pumps with the generator backup. That was the main reason I installed the standby generator.

 

[aczlan]

No city water, generator also powers the well pump. We don't have serious water issues all year, but the pump runs on and off part of the year and we have had water in the basement when the pump failed. Now there are multiple pumps with the generator backup. That was the main reason I installed the standby generator.

Ah, our neighbor has a similar problem, but we have town water on the road so he has a water powered backup pump.

Aaron Z

 

[MikePA]

No city water, generator also powers the well pump. We don't have serious water issues all year, but the pump runs on and off part of the year and we have had water in the basement when the pump failed. Now there are multiple pumps with the generator backup. That was the main reason I installed the standby generator.

The sump pump was our main reason as well. No city water either. I tried a battery powered sump pump that clamped on the discharge pipe and used a 12v battery. A waste of money. To state the obvious, power is more likely to go out when the weather is bad, e.g., storms, which is when the sump pump is most likely to be needed. The battery just could not last long enough and the pump could not move enough water.

Bought our first generator, a noisy Generac, just to run the sump pump. It was so noisy, I'd run it just long enough to empty the sump pit, determine how long it took to fill the pit again, set my alarm for that and try to get some sleep before I had to go and start (pull start) the generator. The longer the outage lasted, the more extension cords I'd run.

I did this for years and while it saved the basement, I hated every minute of it.

 

[grsthegreat]

i install lots of whole house generators over the years...heck ive put in 14 in the past 3 months alone. My own house has a MANUAL transfer system cause i see no need for instant start up and transfer. if im not home, i dont want it running. Alot of the auto start systems are installed in older peoples houses where they dont want to bother starting up and transferring power. they just want it to handle it automatically.

personally, i dont want my system running while im away or asleep. they do suck some fuel to be sure. But i dont mind the sound (honestly a 22KW air cooled genarac is quieter than my riding mower by 1/2). And a running generator is a nicer sound to my ears than the alternative....a pitch black night with me living by flashlight.

Most, but not all air cooled units operate at 3600 RPM. my older (16 YO) Onan runs at 1,800 rpm. Generac now sells a 20 KW synergy air cooled that switches into 1800 rpm when the demand is light, or 3600 when demand is higher.

when i do change to a larger auto start generator, it will be a 20KW LIQUID COOLED 1,800 rpm generac quietsource system. Ive installed them in the past. nice system, and i like the reliability of a liquid cooled unit.

im thinking of doing it next year....but we will see. The only reason to do so is to include my now completed basement onto the generator backup system. Ill not use the auto start feature by simply leaving the switch in the off position. As i get older, i may see the need for auto start.

I happen to know a great installer.....i see him in the mirror every day:cool2:

 

[Looking4new]

i install lots of whole house generators over the years...heck ive put in 14 in the past 3 months alone. My own house has a MANUAL transfer system cause i see no need for instant start up and transfer. if im not home, i dont want it running. Alot of the auto start systems are installed in older peoples houses where they dont want to bother starting up and transferring power. they just want it to handle it automatically.

personally, i dont want my system running while im away or asleep. they do suck some fuel to be sure. But i dont mind the sound (honestly a 22KW air cooled genarac is quieter than my riding mower by 1/2). And a running generator is a nicer sound to my ears than the alternative....a pitch black night with me living by flashlight.

Most, but not all air cooled units operate at 3600 RPM. my older (16 YO) Onan runs at 1,800 rpm. Generac now sells a 20 KW synergy air cooled that switches into 1800 rpm when the demand is light, or 3600 when demand is higher.

when i do change to a larger auto start generator, it will be a 20KW LIQUID COOLED 1,800 rpm generac quietsource system. Ive installed them in the past. nice system, and i like the reliability of a liquid cooled unit.

im thinking of doing it next year....but we will see. The only reason to do so is to include my now completed basement onto the generator backup system. Ill not use the auto start feature by simply leaving the switch in the off position. As i get older, i may see the need for auto start.

I happen to know a great installer.....i see him in the mirror every day:cool2:

It is too bad that you aren't near North Bay, ON.
To get you to come up here to install one for me would cost me the house, too.

 

[MossRoad]

So honestly, how much money did fuel cost some of you to run the larger, whole house permanently installed generators for several days? I'm just curious how much fuel they tend to consume rather than guestimating with no real-world experience with these types of units.

 

[sparc]

"But you don't need a multi hundred dollar transfer switch that requires professional installation. "

The Generlink does not require an electrician or a permit or an inspection, at least mine didn't. The utility installed it for free, took 10 minutes and that included some jaw flapping between myself and the lineman. Yes it cost a couple hundred bucks, but I don't have to run around and be a slave to a half dozen extension cords, I can power anything in the house just by turning it on. No dedicated circuits, no transfer switch. And if I should move I just unlug it and take it with me, so my investment follows me tomthe next place.

 

[bcp]

The utility here doesn't allow it. I asked. They said "No, not approved."



Bruce

 

[3930dave]

GRS - on the air-cooled vs. liquid issue, are you thinking of Rated Operating Life hours ?

Do you see the air-cooled units taking a harder hit wear-wise when people neglect oil changes ?

Rgds, D.