Need information about generators

Posted by MaryL on October 3, 2005, 9:36 pm

I live in East Texas, and I lost the contents of my refrigerator and freezer
for the second time in 2 years (this time from Hurricane Rita -- which also
caused a power outage for 1 week, so air conditioning was off in all this
heat). Can anyone give me some advice about home generators -- cost,
safety, ease of use, etc.? I would need to set it up myself if I ever lost
power, and I have some arthritis in my fingers. Therefore, I think I would
need to get one with an electric (battery-powered) switch instead of one
that has to be "cranked up." I read about several deaths from carbon
monoxide poisoning caused by an generator, so I know it would need to be
wheeled outside, and I understand that appliances would have to be connected
to it by long extension cords.
How heavy are they and how difficult to wheel around? (There are *none*
available in this community right now, so I haven't had a chance to actually
look at one, but I would like to be prepared "next time.") I know they come
in different sizes. I was thinking of one that would handle an upright
freezer, a large double-door refrigerator, a lamp, and a fan. The house has
central air, so that is out of the question, but I would like to get a fan
that is powerful enough to make life more livable if I lose power for an
extended period again.
Thanks for any help!
MaryL

Posted by Carpenter on October 3, 2005, 11:49 pm

MaryL wrote:
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Welcome to the club, fellow Texan, I just went thru the same ordeal,
(actually no power yet for me) and just finished searching into
generators to be better prepared next time.
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Yes Some models have a push button starter, similar to what was on old
cars/trucks.
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Not necessarily. An electrician can connect all the circuits that have
to be on during an outage to switches between the breaker panel from
the electric co and the generator's.
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Typical portable generators are around 200 pounds. Home Depot has a
15000 Watts (should power a 4 ton AC, they say) that is just over 400
pounds. has also a starter and a switching panel for about $2,400.
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Any model, $600 and up should handle that load, but you should also
consider how much noise you can handle. Usually smaller = noisier.
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If budget allow, you can have installed a permanent unit sized to
support also your air conditioning unit. They are a bit pricey, $3.500
and up, depending on the load, plus the cost of an external tank for
propane or diesel (unless you already have one, plus the installation
cost.
Some come up automatically when there is an outage and test themselves
automatically once a month. If it's within budget go with one of these.
Check out some here: http://www.generac.com/
Fuel is another thing to consider. Small portable units run on
gasoline. A thank last perhaps 10hours, then you have to let the unit
cool down completely and refuel.
Storing gasoline is a pain: it's dangerous and gets stale quickly, so
you can only store little quantity.
Propane is much easier to store and doesn't go bad. Plus can be
delivered, so that you don't have to lug heavy containers.
Hope this helps some, but for more info do a google search on
newsgroups: the generators topics has been discussed over and over in
this newsgroup.
Whatever you choose, the first step should be to hire an electrician to
quantify the load and check if any re-wiring is needed.
Good luck
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Posted by Doug Boulter on October 4, 2005, 1:26 am

2005:
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http://www.dougboulter.com/repair/electric.htm#generators
--
Doug Boulter
To reply by e-mail, remove the obvious word from the e-mail address

Posted by Stormin Mormon on October 4, 2005, 6:39 pm

I ran some numbers, from the Northern Tools catalog. They list how long the
generator runs, gas tank size, and watts of the generators. What worked out
is that a galon of gasoline supplies about 2200 watts, for one hour.
--
Christopher A. Young
Do good work.
It's longer in the short run
but shorter in the long run.
2005:
show/hide quoted text
http://www.dougboulter.com/repair/electric.htm#generators
--
Doug Boulter
To reply by e-mail, remove the obvious word from the e-mail address

Posted by krw on October 4, 2005, 3:03 pm

@hotmail.com says...
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That seems high. Gasoline has an energy density of 9700Wh/l or about
2500Wh/gallon. At 2200Wh/g that means an efficiency of 88%, which seems way
high for an engine+generator. ...maybe I missed something though.
http://www.xtronics.com/reference/energy_density.htm
--
Keith

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