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Posted by Smarty on September 28, 2007, 11:52 pm
I installed a Generac permanent generator with transfer switch a year ago
after facing two extended power outages here. The Generac design for the
transfer switch requires a dual breaker to be installed in your main panel
which passes power to the transfer switch. The transfer switch then
subdivides this feed into 12 circuits, each of which has its' own breaker in
the transfer switch panel. These 12 circuits are the ones were are supported
during a power outage, and are literally disconnected from their current 12
breakers in your main panel and connected into the corresponding 12 breakers
in your new transfer switch. You actually "recover" 12 breaker positions in
your main panel since the 12 breakers could be reused (assuming you have
enough total house capacity and panel capacity to do so). The feeds from
each of the 12 house circuits are attached to 12 conductors which Generac
supplies using wire nuts. The entire installation process is described in a
video which can be viewed on the web, or on a DVD which Generac also
provides.
The noise level of the Generac is not terribly loud, but similar to a lawn
mower / tractor of comparable capacity when running full load. The weekly
test mode for 12 minutes of run time runs unloaded at a lower noise level.
To those of us who have subsequently lived with the generator during an
outage, the sound of the generator is sweet music. It is the silence which
occurs when it is not running but needed that I would call deafening! I
would advise to simply put the generator away from the major sleeping areas
of the house, and non fret about it. The noise level inside the house is
totally moderate. My neighbors on both sides have Generacs, and there have
been literally several thousand sold in my area in the last year as a result
of a freak October ice storm which took out power for some people up to
nearly 3 weeks.
I would also suggest you seriously evaluate your total electrical demand
since 16KW is too much power for many homes unless you want to run air
conditioning, electric stove, or other big power users. The Generac smaller
models produce considerably more efficient and less expensive electricity
when used near their peak capacity, versus running a 16y KW generator at
half load. Not only do the operating costs drop, but the cost of the unit
itself is considerably less.
Good luck and let me know if I can help you further,
Smarty
panel.
>
>>I'm considering having a 16 kw generator installed and I'd like to know
>>what
>>to expect when the generator and transfer switch is installed and hooked
>>up. For example to what is the main power coming from the transfer switch
>>hooked up into my breaker panel? What happens to the breakers of the
>>different circuits that selected for emergency operation. Do I give up
>>any
>>of the current open breaker spots I have. The Guardian unit I am looking
>>at
>>says it operates at 76 decibels. I don't know what equivalent noise level
>>that is. At the moment I am planning to have it placed directly on the
>>other side of the playroom wall as that is where the main breaker panel is
>>located. I also have a suitable spot about 20 feet away from the house if
>>the noise would be a problem. I'd like to be able to observe the process
>>with some sort of understanding. Thanks for any input or other comments
>>about the actual hooking up.
>
> I live just west of Ballimer (Baltimore - the city that slurs).
> We just experienced the first of the usual Fall-Winter power
> outages. A few years ago, we had no electricity for 6 days.
> the usual outages last 1 to 3 days. We were considering a
> generator until we heard one up close. At 100 to 150 feet
> they don't sound that loud, but if you are in the house,
> you have trouble hearing what people are saying.
>
> Dick
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