Starting a Generator

[Syncro]

Thought I'd pass on a near tragic experience that happened to me while using a generator. I was drilling some holes in wood using a Milwaukee 3/8" drill and a large spade bit with the trigger locked on. For whatever reason, the generator stopped, which meant so did the drill. As I walked toward the generator to see what was wrong, someone else restarted it. Well, I had draped the cord over my shoulder with the drill hanging by my legs. The instant the generator fired back up the drill immediately began turning, the spade bit caught my blue jeans and began winding its way into my leg. Fortunately I was able to stop it, but it was amazing how fast it caught and how quick a serious injury can happen, just a second or 2.

It never crossed my mind since the drill had stopped when the generator stopped, no sound, nothing moving. Now I unplug everything before starting, or re-starting a generator.

 

[btolle]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I was drilling some holes in wood using a Milwaukee 3/8" drill and a large spade bit with the trigger locked on.)</font>

That was your original "sin". Never use something like a spade bit with the trigger locked. Spade bits are especially prone to hanging up and can hurt you when the do.

I was using one and had a Milwaukee drill. It hung and before I could get my finger off the trigger the drill had spun around about 3 times and wrapped the cord around my arm. Milwaukee drills are stout and can hurt you.

I finally ground the button down that locked that drill so that it could no longer be locked in the "On" position, too dangerous with a 1/2" Milwaukee Magnum drill.

Bill Tolle

 

[SkyPup]

I agree, the torque on these kinds of electric drills is tremendous.

 

[Syncro]

Both you guys are missing the point, the problem was not the drills torque, or the 'stay on' trigger button, but rather a tool that suddenly went dead and seemed harmless until the generator suddenly restarted.

 

[PineRidge]

Syncro I think that they actually hit the nail on the head. If your drill wasn't in the locked on position there would not have been a problem with the restart of the generator.

I'm a lefty, and by nature when I grab an electric drill my hand almost always depresses the lock on button. I leaned early on to do just what Bill suggested and disable the button. If you do it will save you some grief in the future.

 

[Syncro]

Alright I guess I'm out numbered, and I suppose if I had filed the lock button off or otherwise didn't use it, the accident wouldn't have happened. But I like that button /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Anyways the button is avoiding the root of a very dangerous issue, which is never to have anything plugged into a generator recepticle when starting it. Think about what electrical tool or appliance could suddenly start up, there is now a 'live' 120v wire that an instant before was dead. Thats my point. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[tillerkiller]

Ummmmm... I'm with Synchro here. He sounds like a reasonable guy (like any of us) and his 'train of thought' got derailed when the generator quit. It did not even occur to him to release the trigger lock on his drill because the thing went dead on him. He viewed it as an inert object because it just quit on him. When the juice came back on, he realized what happened, and didn't want any of us to have the same kind of experience that he had.

Thanks for the heads up I say, this is why I always read this kind of stuff, so that maybe when the same thing happens to me I will release the lock on whatever tool just quit on me.

 

[Highbeam]

I will continue to leave devices and extension cords plugged into generators. I will be sure to turn them off though. This is also a problem for generators, leaving a power draw on when the generator is off. I seem to remember something in the owner's manual about the generator head demagnetizing or something if you leave a load on a dead generator and start/stop the generator with the load applied.

The important lesson is the misuse of the drill. Another device with equal or worse characteristics is a 4.5" angle grinder. I frequently use the lock-on button for this device but if the device stops working then I must remember to disengage the lock-on button.

 

[Soundguy]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( will continue to leave devices and extension cords plugged into generators. I will be sure to turn them off though. This is also a problem for generators, leaving a power draw on when the generator is off. I seem to remember something in the owner's manual about the generator head demagnetizing or something if you leave a load on a dead generator )</font>

Um.. yeahright.... the plug your 'load' is hooked to is a big loop of copper... Having a load plugged in shouldn't be a problem. Our genny we pickd up from TSC states to have large loads ( 220 side ) plugged in and on when you start the genny.

Newer brushless units don't have issues with demagnetizing.

Soundguy

 

[woodlot]

Thanks for the tip. I will remember that one. I thought I'd share a bone-headed moment I had with a drill., you might get a "spin" out of it. I was drilling out some holes in drywall for elec boxes. I was doing it before hanging the drywall. Well I had a hole to make about 4 ft off the ground and I decided to hold the sheet with my body and drill from the backside. All was working great untill the spade bit popped through the drywall and came at my body. The spade bit caught my shirt and twisted it instantly. I had a ruined shirt but the worst part was that it ripped all the hair off my chest in about a 4" diameter circle! God did that hurt and did I look goofy!

 

[btolle]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Anyways the button is avoiding the root of a very dangerous issue, which is never to have anything plugged into a generator recepticle when starting it. )</font>

Another issue is WHO started a generator without verifying that eveyone else was in the clear? I know it was one of those things people don't think about, but that would be the proper procedure.

If this was on a construction job, how many idiots had boomboxes blasting away and couldn't even hear the generator stop or start?

That's why I would never allow radios on any job. Someone gets tangled up in a drill, cuts a hand on a saw, or is hanging from a roof eave, and nobody hears him call for help.

But I am one of those "jerks" who points out safety violations to people who get mad at me. Had a Corporal in the Army who looked a little ticked off when I got on him about letting his head get behind an anti-tank rocket on the firing range. Later that morning his index finger was blown off by the backblast. A couple of days later he thanked me for making him keep his head out of the way.

Keep using those trigger locks folks, it makes for interesting reading on safety forums /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Bill Tolle

 

[trlong]

I would add my vote for avoiding trigger locks. Although it turned out just a bit scary, and very funny for to his wife, a friend of mine was standing (probably too high) on a ladder, drilling into a ceiling joist with a 1/2 drill and a spade bit. He locked the trigger. The bit bound up in the joist while the drill kept turning. "Body in motion...." and all that spun him off the ladder. Holding on to the still spinning drill (fortunately dialed to a fairly slow speed) he could not unlock the trigger and while screaming at his wife to unplug it, she was too busy laughing at him spinning 'round and 'round. The drill stayed plugged into a fairly long extention cord and he got his legs wrapped by the cord until it pulled from the wall. Only then did his wife stop laughing and set the ladder back up so he could untangle himself from the cord and back the drill/bit out of the joist. He was lucky he only got a bruised ego and upset with his wife for a couple of days.

 

[BigEddy]

Think about it. Synchro ws about to walk back to the generator and start it himself. Immediately that drill would have started spinning round and round until it wrapped itself up in the cord and broke it free, Synchro noticed it, or worse still something flew loose and hurt someone. Hopefully Synchro could see the drill from where the generator was.

Whether it's the lock button or leaving it plugged in - the message is - make sure nothing is going to start before you start the generator.

 

[Highbeam]

Agreed. Do everything methodically and carefully so that the unexpected doesn't bite you in the backside.

 

[Soundguy]

On our jobsites we use power boxes with electromagnetic interlocks on them. You plug in the extension cord with the power box into the generator with the generator powered. There is a red and green switch on the power outlet box. You hit the green switch and then the plugs are energized. If power goes out and then comes back on, you must manually reset the green button to restore power. the read button is the manual trip button. There is also provision for personal gfi on the boxes.

Insurance company loves this setup... No way to have someone plug in a extension cord and have the load power up without direct manual intervention.

We have noticed that a few devices do not 'like' the gfi outfitted boxes.. or rather that the gfi boxes do not like the load device... for those loads.. we keep some plain interlock power boxes.. no gfi hardware.

As far as I know.. these power boxes are standard equipment and comercially available at contractor supply houses.

Soundguy