How to wire the house using a gas powered generator?

Stampede4ever · 09-15-2008, 03:17 PM

Power company says WE Won't have power till Sat. What can I do?

Thanks.

biohzrd · 09-15-2008, 04:14 PM

the two ways that i know to do it are either int the dryer outlet, or through the a/c unit if you central heat/air. just make sure you turn off your main breaker coming into the house first. going the dryer plug route, just get you a 3 prong dryer plug and wire it up. worked on my house for a week and a half. gas got expensive though, but i was able to run the fridge/freezer, lights, fans, tv and at nightwith everything off a little window unit.

Camaroholic · 09-15-2008, 06:43 PM

Yep, if you back feed your house, you MUST disconnect the main breaker from the power company!!!

alittle1 · 09-15-2008, 10:57 PM

Depends on the size of the gas generator. Don't expect to light it up like Xmas, but you can have some lights working and a few appliances.

If it says 6000 Watts peak, consider that 50 % is gone in just holding a line to your lights. So, with 3000 watts you can run 10- 100 watt light bulbs, a 1500 watt toaster oven and an electric tooth brush. If you thought you were going to run the stove and make bacon and eggs with toast for breakfast, you'll just brown out and fade to black. Keep it sensible and things will work out.

G-Body · 09-16-2008, 12:47 AM

Depends on your electrical setup. 1st choice is a welder outlet if you have one as it will have the heaviest wiring normally 50A for a fullsize welder.
Then either a dryer or electric stove outlet as they are normally 40A. Last would be A/C as it is usually 30A.

How big is your generator? is it 110v or 220v?????

You MUST!!!!!!! disconnect yourself from the main, if you don`t you will probably burn up your generator and can kill whatever lineman comes there to fix the power. If you have fuses you can pull the main disconnect out, if you have breakers I would just pull the main out too (technically you can just turn it off, but I would rather have the piece of mind of having an open gap that cannot be closed on accident)

Stampede4ever · 09-16-2008, 06:00 AM

What size would be decent, I would like to run the dryer if possible.
Doesn't sound to bad to wire up.

Thanks.

Camaroholic · 09-16-2008, 06:55 AM

You need to look at the dryer power draw. Dryer outlets themselves are 30A @ 220V - which straight up is 6600 watts. Your dryer will pull less than that, but maybe not much less. I wouldn't try it with a 5000 watt nameplate generator.

And to do a dryer, you also need a generator that will do 220 volts. Some will only do 120.

redbandit98 · 09-16-2008, 07:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by G-Body

Depends on your electrical setup. 1st choice is a welder outlet if you have one as it will have the heaviest wiring normally 50A for a fullsize welder.
Then either a dryer or electric stove outlet as they are normally 40A. Last would be A/C as it is usually 30A.

How big is your generator? is it 110v or 220v?????

You MUST!!!!!!! disconnect yourself from the main, if you don`t you will probably burn up your generator and can kill whatever lineman comes there to fix the power. If you have fuses you can pull the main disconnect out, if you have breakers I would just pull the main out too (technically you can just turn it off, but I would rather have the piece of mind of having an open gap that cannot be closed on accident)

i dont agree with pulling the main especially with someone inexperienced. The main reason being that you wont ever know when the power is going to come back on and then you must try to put the main back in with power on it. One wrong move there and it could easily be over for you. If you dont want power on it you must pull the meter. This means that you must either cut the tag off and pull it yourself, therefore getting you on the bad side of the power company. They may not even come put it back in without having it re-inspected. The code states that any kind of generator hooked to your house needs a trasfer switch installed. Im not saying i personally use one, but I verify everything is dead with a meter before i turn on my generator. (use it to backfeed through a welder outlet in the garage). Im just saying that if you call the power company and tell them you have a generator hooked up and you need your meter put back in, the first thing they may do is ask why you dont have a transfer switch. Then, they may refer the local inspector to your neck of the woods. If you dont have to worry about all this stuff and live out of town, i guess you are alright. I still dont recommend pulling the main though. Just turn the main off, verify that it is infact open and the contacts are not stuck, then hook your generator up. Turn off all your breakers at first as not to shock the generator with the whole house trying to come on at once. This is if you have a 220v generator. If all you have is a little 110 unit, extension cords to whatever you want to run is the only way you can do it.

mrdragster1970 · 09-16-2008, 08:06 AM

.

Last time my power was out & they said it would be 2 days, I did a temp line myself.
I happen to have a 220V gen. I turned off the main, not removed.
I pulled the 2 lines off my welder breakers. Cut the end off a long, 12 gauge ext cord.
I put the 2 feeds, (black & white) into each breaker. Put the green ground into the neutral bar.
Unplugged all the stupid crap, room fresheners, night lights ect.
You just want a couple of lights & the ice box. Don't waste wattage & you should be ok
with a average generator. Fired up the generator & turned the welder breaker back on.
Just remember, do not turn on the main, until you put everything back to normal.
You can do the same thing with a 120V generator. You just want to make sure you are on the
icebox side of the box when you pick a breaker. Good luck.

.

G-Body · 09-17-2008, 02:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by redbandit98

i dont agree with pulling the main especially with someone inexperienced. The main reason being that you wont ever know when the power is going to come back on and then you must try to put the main back in with power on it. One wrong move there and it could easily be over for you. If you dont want power on it you must pull the meter. This means that you must either cut the tag off and pull it yourself, therefore getting you on the bad side of the power company.

There really is no good way without a transfer switch. I would never want a homeowner to pull the meter because the electric company will have a fit, and its more dangerous than pulling the main, lots more open/exposed contact area to touch if you pull the meter than the main.

With breakers it is slightly more risky to pull the main than with fuses, which is another reason why I prefer fuses for residential installations.