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(01-31-2024, 01:26 PM)rwe2156 Wrote: Fully understandable for you. For some the stress management of being able to stay in your home is worth the expense.
However, if its a hurricane and you're in a evacuation area, a generator won't help it's only AFTER the storm and assumes there's no damage to the house.
I have a 4500W generator. An electrician friend put a cut off box in my pump room that cuts power from the house and shifts to an outlet. I have a double ended plug that goes to the generator.
I have also backfed my service panel a few times [GASP].
Make sure you turn all main breakers off if you do. Roly
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(01-31-2024, 01:26 PM)rwe2156 Wrote: Fully understandable for you. For some the stress management of being able to stay in your home is worth the expense.
However, if its a hurricane and you're in a evacuation area, a generator won't help it's only AFTER the storm and assumes there's no damage to the house.
I have a 4500W generator. An electrician friend put a cut off box in my pump room that cuts power from the house and shifts to an outlet. I have a double ended plug that goes to the generator.
I have also backfed my service panel a few times [GASP].
Mine is backfed now. Not overly comfortable with it. I have 2 200 amp panels fed by 2 service conductors from the meter. I put in a 2 pole, 60 amp breaker in each panel with their conductors running to a NEMA 14-15R receptacle on the wall. Shut off the two mains, plug in and start the generator and then flip on the two 60 amp breakers. I don't like it but it works. I have the wires to the breakers disconnected inside the panel and tape over the breakers. When the power goes out, I have to connect the wires inside the panels which really only takes about 5-10 minutes.
At the last house, I installed a big manual transfer switch outside near the meter. Pulled the meter (butt puckering moment) and disconnected the service conductor to the main service panel and wired the meter socket to the transfer switch with THHN in conduit and took the service conductor connected to the panel and hooked it up to the transfer switch. Didn't want to deal with a manual transfer switch inside with a bunch of individual breakers and a panel stuffed with spliced wires. I did that once. What a pain. Much nicer to plug in the genny and flip a switch between the meter and the main service panel to get whole house service.
