Power transfer switch for homes.

[gregrocky]

Has anybody ever had a power transfer switch installed in their home and if so what did it cost you and how is it working? I have a 8500 starting watt generator Honda powered. We loose power at least once a year, and I just want to plug one plug in and run the whole house. Thoughts and concerns please. My generator has plenty of power, we have a water well which has a pump that runs off a 220.

 

[MikeInEburg]

In my view, the EASIEST to use is a product called Generlink (www.generlink.com) - essentially connects between your existing meter and meter socket. Allows you access to any circuit in the house.

As to running the whole house on 8500 watts - well that truly depends on what you really want to run. It isn't going to run a ten ton air conditioning unit or a lot of electric baseboard heat. But it should run the essentials of life (well pump, fridge, etc.)
Mike

 

[Mousefield]

We have a generator panel that will power 8 of the house circuits. It is setup so if we are using the generator panel it will not back feed to the hydro panel, this is for safety. The plug and cord at the shop was wired by an electrician so we could plug in a generator to power the submersible pump that is in our 2,000 gallon storage tank, again set up so only one can be plugged in at one time, either the hydro or generator plug. First pic is of the side by side house/generator panels that are in the house garage, the others are in the shop.

 

[gregrocky]

I am going to have this professionally installed by a licensed electrician. No electric heat , I heat with a woodstove, and ac in the summertime I have plenty of starting watts for that. Just running the basics for living, lights, well pump, fridg, tv, and of course the pc, if the high speed isn`t down. I probably wouldn`t have this installed if it wasn`t for the well pump being on the 220 line.

 

[tommu56]

Look at this Ive put a couple of them in.

Generator InterLock Kit

if you have the space it saves a lot of wiring.
tom

 

[mrmikey]

I installed this unit [http://tinyurl.com/2g6qb8u last year and have used it twice so far. Simple to install easy to use and doesn't cost an arm and a leg.....Mike

 

[whistlepig]

We priced the Honda HP2s system two years ago. It was $1500.00 installed. I think it can run up to 7 circuits of your choice. It senses load so that if you have a couple or more of high wattage appliances trying to start at the same time it will delay one or more of them. It senses when power is returned to the house and switches from generator electric to power company electric. It is completely programmable from a panel installed in the house. We didn't get the HP2s system because we don't have enough power outages (8hrs. in the last three years) to justify the cost of both the generator and transfer system.Honda Power Equipment - Honda HP2S Portable Power Systems

 

[SARG]

My set up was much cheaper for my 13000w Honda.

Switch off the main breaker and plug the generator into the welder plug which backfeeds the whole place.

 

[kennyd]

My set up was much cheaper for my 13000w Honda.

Switch off the main breaker and plug the generator into the welder plug which backfeeds the whole place.

Super BAD advice. Besides being illegal-it is very dangerous.

 

[SARG]

Super BAD advice. Besides being illegal-it is very dangerous.

Works fine & the only expense other than the generator was a few bucks for the lead.

Out here in rural America everyone has either a dryer or a welder .... so they usually just flip the switch and plug in.

 

[whistlepig]

Super BAD advice. Besides being illegal-it is very dangerous.

I agree. Back feeding is not a good idea.

 

[SARG]

Amazing how folks just love to spend money cause they don't have a clue. Barnum & Bailey said it best.

Notice the schematic from the site for Generator Interlock that Tommu56 posted ........... looks almost exactly as I described.

 

[whistlepig]

Amazing how folks just love to spend money cause they don't have a clue. Barnum & Bailey said it best.

Notice the schematic from the site for Generator Interlock that Tommu56 posted ........... looks almost exactly as I described.

Yep. That's how you back feed a house. Just to make others aware a couple of switches flipped the wrong direction has the potential to electrocute a linesman or burn the house down. Or possibly both.

 

[MtHam]

I did backfeed years ago, and was always aware that I had to be super careful to not make a mistake. The liability is HUGE. You could kill a lineman if you make a mistake. Now I have a fool proof transfer switch, and thus anyone in the family can do the switchover without worry.

 

[tsteahr]

I guess I'm a little old school. I looked at those interlock plates that you screw onto your breaker panel cover plate and then backfeed the panel through a 220 breaker. I know they meet Code in most areas. I also talked to three different electricians about those plates. The two younger ones said they work great and I'd be foolish to waste my money on a proper whole house transfer switch. The older, more experienced electrician (a personal friend who has retired) agreed they meet Code, but he would never install one. He has seen too many things happen to trust isolation to a breaker in the panel. There is no way to know what can happen to the utility system during a severe storm. Utility lines can get shorted, voltage can go way high momentarily (say a transformer switchyard has a problem) or the neutral leg can get energized.

In other words, things can happen outside the home that a 220 breaker mounted in the panel is not designed to handle. A interlock plate is designed to protect the utility lineman working to restore power. It is not designed to protect your house.

I believe a separate transfer switch panel provides superior isolation between the house and the utility. Throw that switch and I don't care what happens with the utility lines. I'm isolated.

So I did it the old fashioned way, 200 amp manual transfer switch. People have told me I wasted my money. I'm ok with that.

 

[Redneck in training]

My meter pannel at the transformer has manual disconnect/transfer switch. Only bad thing is, if you have small generator, that you can't automatically choose what you want to power during the outage. It is everything or nothing.
I don't have a generator at this point but when I get one I will need to instal a "male" recptacle at the meter pannel and female at the generator cable.

 

[Redneck in training]

Works fine & the only expense other than the generator was a few bucks for the lead.

Out here in rural America everyone has either a dryer or a welder .... so they usually just flip the switch and plug in.

Another dangerous thing is that you might have exposed plug prongs with live power on them.

 

[gregrocky]

I guess I'm a little old school. I looked at those interlock plates that you screw onto your breaker panel cover plate and then backfeed the panel through a 220 breaker. I know they meet Code in most areas. I also talked to three different electricians about those plates. The two younger ones said they work great and I'd be foolish to waste my money on a proper whole house transfer switch. The older, more experienced electrician (a personal friend who has retired) agreed they meet Code, but he would never install one. He has seen too many things happen to trust isolation to a breaker in the panel. There is no way to know what can happen to the utility system during a severe storm. Utility lines can get shorted, voltage can go way high momentarily (say a transformer switchyard has a problem) or the neutral leg can get energized.

In other words, things can happen outside the home that a 220 breaker mounted in the panel is not designed to handle. A interlock plate is designed to protect the utility lineman working to restore power. It is not designed to protect your house.

I believe a separate transfer switch panel provides superior isolation between the house and the utility. Throw that switch and I don't care what happens with the utility lines. I'm isolated.

So I did it the old fashioned way, 200 amp manual transfer switch. People have told me I wasted my money. I'm ok with that.

What did this 200 amp manual transfer switch cost installed?

 

[Redneck in training]

My switch came with the transformer. It has three position ON, OFF and Axiliary power.

 

[harpoonalt]

We had a transfer switch put in while we were building. The safest, easiest way to hook up a generator. It was around $400 installed for a 10 circuit with the outlet wired into the garage. Our electrician doesn't like to put the outlet in the garage for safety reasons, but he knew I was a safety bug and would make sure the generator was running far enough away from the house. I know people who do the regular outlet and flip the main switch. I never wanted to take the chance of forgetting to flip the switch and possible killing someone. The transfer switch is pretty much foolproof. Somebodies loved ones are out there working on the lines and that's enough reason for me.
On a side note, make sure the generator is well ventilated. CO is awful stuff. In our town, someone almost died from a generator running outside between 2 houses. It was concentrated enough to seep in to an older mans house and put him out. If it wasn't for family visiting, he would be gone. A coworker of my wife actually died from a generator running outside the garage but with the exhaust pointing towards it. It ran all night and he never woke up.
The best advice is to find someone who knows and ask lots of questions.