Ice Storm TREV

[Von]

Franz, Just got back on line myself today! /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif We have been out of power since Friday at 3:00 am. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif Have been running my 4400 watt genset that I got during the 91' storm the whole time. I'm still not convinced that a PTO genset like Trev's is the way to go. There is no way I want to put a years worth of hours on my tractor in a few days during these storms. Plus I would not want to do the cleanup with out it! We lose power a few times a year here (thanks RG&E /forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif) and for the $485.00 I spent on the genset that I got 12 years ago, If it dies tomorrow and I buy a new one I'm still way ahead of the game! Only thing that we could not do is use the oven and I did not trust the computer on with the gen. running.

 

[Trev]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Trev,
Trev, I just looked at your profile and you have a 4300. For
some reason I thought you had a 4700. The 4300 is giving
enough HP to power everything? I guessing I'll get a PTO
generator, I bought the tractor with that as an option for the
future. What are you running off the generator? If a 4300
provides enought umph, my 4700 should not have a problem.
Are you running the 4300 at PTO speed?

Later,
Dan

)</font>

Hi Dan,

Yep, just a 4300.. running a 17KW / 35KW surge generator off the back. Let's see.. it's running our furnace, all of our lights, TVs, computers, sump pump, fridge and freezer, electric stove and oven, and whatever else happens to be plugged in. In short, life hasn't changed a bit except for having to remember to put diesel in the tractor from time to time. I really make no effort at all to reduce power comsumption.. this thing handles is all without breaking a sweat. Your 4700 should have NO trouble. Oh yeah, I forgot.. it's also running the neighbor's sump pump, their freezer, and some lights.. plus an occassional thing like a hotplate to cook on, etc. We could run more, but he never took my advice to get some proper cabling made up, so he's just running a couple of extension cords over there.. and in 300 feet there is a lot of voltage drop... enough so that he worries about running his fridge off of it.

When I turn the thing on, it isn't one breaker at a time.. it's the whole shooting match.. and it brings everything up without even a burp of smoke or a wiggle of the meters.

As for PTO speed.. it's weird.. slightly lower than normal 540.. I forget but will look it up if you want to know. What you do is simply bring the speed up until the meter on the generator reads 60 Hz. This turns out to be something like 515 RPM or thereabouts.

Hope this helps some. Let me know if you want more details, and I'll look them up at home for you.

Best,
Bob

 

[Trev]

Dan,

P.S. I forgot washer and dryer, all outside lights that come on at dusk, dishwasher, heating pad for our aging and aching bones, etc.

Unless I misunderstood, which is possible, I think Franz is willing to wire everybody up for free! /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[dmccarty]

Hey Trev,

Thanks for the info. That is a lot of power you are shoving
out of that tractor/generator! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif I would be trying to run
the same stuff you are doing with maybe a small pump for
the solar water heater. The 4700 should be able to handle
a 20KW genererator which is likely enough to run most of the
neighborhood! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif I added up all of power requirements
when I was buying the tractor and figured 20KW was a bit
of an overkill! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif But the tractor could do it. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

We will have a detached garage and barn. The barn I think
is going to get built prior to the garage. I want to run the
a thick gauge power cable from the house to the barn. Our
house design specs a switch to handle a generator. So I
want to be able to put the generator in the barn out of the
rain and have it power the house. It will be far enough
away so it won't be as noisy. I'm still don't know if we should
use the PTO to generate the power or a self contained
genset. I'm putting 200 hours a year on the tractor but the
number of hours I put on the tractor will decline steeply after
the next couple of years so I don't really mind running the
generator off the tractor.

It will be a dollar decision on which way to go. But I have
been concerned about what size generator to buy for the
4700. Seems like there are lots of generators in the 15KW
area and then they jump to maybe 20KW and 25KW. So its
good to know that a 15KW will do the job easily.

I seem to get about 1/2 gallon of fuel per hour when running
near PTO speed. So figure a buck a hour for power is
pretty cheap compared with the alternatives! /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif With a
12 gallon fuel tank that is 24 hours of run time. That should
get me through a couple of days.

Home you get real power back soon. Its not fun being
without. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

Later,
Dan McCarty

 

[dmccarty]

Trev,

I figured I could get Franz down here to wire it all up pretty
cheap! But I did not think he would do it for FREE!! I was
going to give him a couple cases of his beer of choice! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Franz is a heck of a nice guy to do all of these jobs for free!

/forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Later,
Dan

 

[ronjhall]

<font color="blue">Unless I misunderstood, which is possible, I think Franz is willing to wire everybody up for free! </font>
TREV
I would hope that offer includes<font color="orange"> ORANGE</font> tractor owners. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Buck]

Von,

Just got up myself yesterday at noon. I used a 5500W Homelite generator that I bought when I bought my current home. I really need it because my sump pump is very active this time of year. I was very happy with its solid, non-stop performance. I was a little anxious because of my previous experience with B&S engines, but this one chugged on non stop (except for oil change) smoothly for 108 hours. My house is wired for a generator with a 220 main outlet located outside so I could easily shift the electric to various areas in the house.

I gotta tell you though, I often thought of Trev. I think his rig would be a lot quieter than our $500 solutions.

P.S. ALL --- Von was on TV recently with his kids. His Hockey rink and Zambusi? (Ice finisher) were the subject of a local news segment recently!

Buck

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Guys, Trev is smoking cigarettes without printing on them again, he does that from time to time.
I told him I'd show up if he paid for the car & driver, but you shoulda seen the look on his face when he saw the Bentlye and chauffer.
BTW Trev, that gas card you gave me bounced. Was that from work?

 

[Von]

Hi Buck, What were you doing up so early for to see that on TV! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif They got here at 4:30 AM so they could shoot it live!.... way too early for me, but the kids had a ball!

About the generater being loud, I took the muffler off of it and replaced it with a 8 ft. piece of flex pipe. I can now have it run inside of the barn with the pipe running thru a hole in the garage door. I got a used car muffler on the other end of the pipe that is on the outside. Made it real quiet, and I don't have to worry about the gen. being out in the elements. I just plug into a 220 outlet and backfeed the whole house, after shuting the main off first. Can use anything without switching on/off any other breakers.

As for the B&S engines, I have had good luck with them. I just run the gen. dry and top off the oil and put it away for the next time. Have been doing it this way for the past 12 years and it starts right up every time /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif I do change the oil every 30-50 hours of run time, so that might help it last. I still think I would rather spend the money on a stand alone genset, than tie up my tractor and add all those hours to it, but thats just me. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[dmccarty]

Von,

I was yacking with my wife last night about the generator
issue. I said, "Dear Wifey, we had a discussion on TBN today
about generators." At that point her eyes rolled in her head,
she said, "Oh, that is nice." and preceeded to play with the
dogs. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

While I mumbled to her about the pros and cons of PTO and
standalone generators, I pulled out a Northern catalog and
looked at some prices. A Honda 13,000 watt generator was
about $3,000. A 13,000 watt PTO generator, trailers, and
shaft was about $1,500. She was out of the room by this
point. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I'm still cleaning up the downed trees on our road from the
ice storm last December. I had to clean about 1000 feet of
road and another 500 feet of driveway. I sawed up the
trees, put them in piles by hand, and then use the tractor
to pick up the piles. The trees for the most part are pines
up to 4 inches with a few ceders, oaks, and a big hickory
thrown in for more fun. This is the second major cleanup
I have had to do along the road. The first was just opening
the road after 20 years of little/no maintainance. I'm making
a third pass as part of this cleanup that will remove EVERY
pine tree that threatens the road.

If we had been living at our house site I would have taken
me a good day to saw my way down the road. There would
have been no way to get emergency vehicles to the house.
Not a good thing. What I have found is that I don't use the
tractor for cleanup until everything is cut and stacked so
I can use the 4700 as a power source. On the other hand I'm
sure the Honda generator has an electric starter so the wife
could turn it on unlike the tractor solution....

There really is no right/wrong answer in all of this...

I have tried to use the tractor to pick up stuff without the
trees being piled by hand and it just creates more work. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
I had about 41 piles to pick up and I'm down to 4. The big
burn pile is a good 6 feet tall and about 20' feet around. I
still have a bit more to add!

If Franz will wire things up for me from his Bentley Car, I'll
supply the beer, sticks, hot dogs and bon fire! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Later,
Dan