Generators.....advice please

[Scotsgun]

So the numpties raise the storm alert from amber to red 5 mins before it hits. Yet again i'm left with a gaping hole in the roof (about a dozen tiles and a couple of ridge tiles) and about 30ft of missing guttering. Being out in the middle of no-where, our electricity supply is as reliable as an old whore's knicker elastic and immediately went out.

This is the third time in 12months that our power has been cut for a period exceeding 24hrs. Its getting tiring so i need to invest in a generator which is more capable than the little 800w we have in the garage. We have an oil fired boiler which requires electricity to run so ideally i'd like one that can be wired somehow into the house supply, run the heating and some lighting.

Am i asking too much?

Am i talking alot of money?

What typical size generator would i need?

Am i better paying more for a diesel or save my money on a petrol?


Thanks for any info / advice.

[Jenks]

Scotsgun..

I will be following this one with interest. I have an ancient Honda EB 1900 I bought it brand new in 1984 and it has served me faithfully. That is until this recent windy weather. A huge Ash tree blew over and cut our power. We were without power for about eight hours. My hitherto trusty 'Genny would not run fast enough to generate 240v.** I was considering replacing it but looking at the cost of a new one I think I will look at getting it repaired/serviced. Incidentally how do you get the power from your genny into you house circuit? At the risk of appalling all the electrical buffs on here. I just turn the mains off at the fuse board and plug the genny into a three pin socket in the shed. The Genny has enough power to run the lights,fridge, freezer,central heating. When the power returns I make sure it is disconnected before turning on the power at the fuse board.

** Ironically I had checked that the generator was running OK a few weeks ago and It was working fine.

Jenks

[dodgyrog]

I used to have a Yanmar diesel 5.5 KVA genny as a back up for my kid's nursery (before it went tits up)
I plugged it into a power socket using a male to male lead (don't electrocute yourself!!!) after isolating the power at the main board using the master switch.
I would go for a silent diesel genny now because they can be dreadfully noisy.
Sorry to hear of your problems.
Have a look on flea bay for a good used one.

[Ovenpaa]

My old college lecturer had a Honda that he also used to use a male to male and plug into the ring main with the main switch off and could get a few hours on a gallon of fuel, I forget the numbers but it worked well for him. My great Aunt and Uncle who lived in Mid Wales had an old motorbike engine that was started on petrol and then swapped to paraffin, when the fuel ran out the engine stopped and that was their only supply of electricity. I can remember as a child lying in bed listening to the engine stutter as it started to run out of fuel.

I would say look at a dedicated diesel generator, a quick check shows them from around GBP700 for a 6.5kva unit so not cheap but for peace of mind...

[Polchraine]

Do you want an auto start or a manual changeover ? Given the frequency of use and no "essential" equipment that needs power within seconds I would suggest a manual start and changeover. You can leave the fridge and freezer off for a few hours without a problem.

Work out what the essential load will be: 50% of lights, central heating, fridge & freezer, and kettle then add a 20% or so. You do not need: PC, Cooker, power tools, television, DVD player, or much else. And given that a generator may not be as clean (electrically) as mains, just use the devices that will not suffer. A 5 or 5.5 kVA should be adequate.

DO NOT use the plug into a socket method suggested above - it can be lethal and cause damage.

Get a qualified electrician to remove the tails from the consumer unit and fit them into a suitable 100A changeover (break before make) two pole switch. Connect the generator output to the other switch input (or leave a set of tails for later connection) and the output of the switch to a new set of tails into the consumer unit. He will also need to sort out the earthing connection.

When power fails, you trip any un-required breakers (cooker, immersion heater &c) then switch over.

An electrician should be able to do that in a couple of hours - half a day at worst.

Get an outdoor generator, pour a concrete slab with studs in the right place and bolt it down! A simple wooden cover to protect from the worst of the elements.


Also, make sure you have a simple plug in phone and not one that requires any sort of power supply.

[Christel]

Also, make sure you have a simple plug in phone and not one that requires any sort of power supply.

I always insist on having one connected in the house, I know we all have mobile phones these days but sod's law that there is no reception on the day when you really need it.

[Polchraine]

Also, make sure you have a simple plug in phone and not one that requires any sort of power supply.

I always insist on having one connected in the house, I know we all have mobile phones these days but sod's law that there is no reception on the day when you really need it.

Exactly. If power to the house goes there is a good chance power to the base station will have gone too and very few have generators installed, just a bank of batteries which provide a few hours at reduced power, resulting in less coverage and fewer channels available.

[Jenks]

Do you want an auto start or a manual changeover ? Given the frequency of use and no "essential" equipment that needs power within seconds I would suggest a manual start and changeover. You can leave the fridge and freezer off for a few hours without a problem.

Work out what the essential load will be: 50% of lights, central heating, fridge & freezer, and kettle then add a 20% or so. You do not need: PC, Cooker, power tools, television, DVD player, or much else. And given that a generator may not be as clean (electrically) as mains, just use the devices that will not suffer. A 5 or 5.5 kVA should be adequate.

DO NOT use the plug into a socket method suggested above - it can be lethal and cause damage.

Get a qualified electrician to remove the tails from the consumer unit and fit them into a suitable 100A changeover (break before make) two pole switch. Connect the generator output to the other switch input (or leave a set of tails for later connection) and the output of the switch to a new set of tails into the consumer unit. He will also need to sort out the earthing connection.

When power fails, you trip any un-required breakers (cooker, immersion heater &c) then switch over.

An electrician should be able to do that in a couple of hours - half a day at worst.

Get an outdoor generator, pour a concrete slab with studs in the right place and bolt it down! A simple wooden cover to protect from the worst of the elements.


Also, make sure you have a simple plug in phone and not one that requires any sort of power supply.

Polchraine..

DO NOT use the plug into a socket method suggested above - it can be lethal and cause damage.

Really I have been using this method for thirty plus years. Never had a problem, Have I just been lucky?



Jenks

[artiglio]

Jenks, not lucky as such, a male to male works, but as i understand it renders the safety devices in your consumer unit useless, so in the event of a short or earthing problem you have no protection, on top of which all the current is drawn through the socket you plug into, which if its on a ring main is not so bad but could be problematic on a spur. Like a lot of things "all's well 'till it goes wrong"

all the best phil

[Polchraine]

DO NOT use the plug into a socket method suggested above - it can be lethal and cause damage.

Really I have been using this method for thirty plus years. Never had a problem, Have I just been lucky?



Jenks

To be honest, yes you have.

Potential problems:

Touching the live contacts
Someone may switch the main switch on without thinking.
A 6KVA generator can provide nearly 30A continuous and possibly more for short period. Is your house wiring capable of that for long periods and what about the RCDs or breakers.
The fuse in the plug will be 13A - how have you overcome that?
Earthing ...
RCDs will not work - they will be out of the circuit.


My professional qualification is Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology - formerly the Institution of Electrical Engineering (IEE). So hopefully, I have a reasonable understanding!