Portable generator used to run most of the house

J.Wal · Aug 4, 2018

Really excited to finally get everything set up. Figured I would share my setup with everyone. Using a portable generator to back feed panel. Safety panel interlocks in place!

Total cost right at $2,570

I often loose power due to living so far out in the country. Until now I have had to run extension cords through the house and used a 3,050 watt generator to power an AC window unit, WiFi, fridge/ freezer, deep freezer, phone chargers. Real pain to run all the cords and all that.

So to solve all this I purchased a Champion 9,200 watt ( model 100110) generator, 2 Geninterlock.com interlocks ( specific to needs), 2 extension cords,One for 50 amp house feed, one for 30 amp for shop/ apartment over shop.

Generator $1000 Lowe’s
Electrical work $1000
Generator interlocks $69 and $64 plus shipping
50 amp 10’ cord and inlet box $160
Inlet box for shop $43
30 amp 100’ cord for generator to shop/ apartment $180
Power back alarm $45

The generator interlocks are the most important part of the setup IMO. This setup requires a 2 pole 50 amp breaker to be placed in the breaker box. The interlock kit makes it impossible to have both the main breaker and generator breaker on at the same time. It will only allow one or the other at a time. This prevents the generator for back feeding the main power lines or the generator and main line both attempting to power the house at the same time.

I did have to replace my electric water heater with natural gas so that I could free up 2 poles in my breaker box. That was extra cost but not required by most folks.

So, power goes out, I turn on the power back alarm ( notices me when main line is reenergized) and turn off the main breaker and all other breakers off.... go to garage and plug up house side of extension cord and thread the collar onto the inlet box so it can’t be pulled out. Plug the other bed into generator. Next I start generator and go back to breaker box. I double check the main is off, slide the interlock over and turn the generator breaker on. I then turn on all 110 breakers one at a time with a pause between them to allow the generator to recover for items coming on line.

I walked my wife through setup and break down of this tonight. I also printed off instructions.

I will have to add instructions for running the 100’ cord across to the inlet box on shop. It will allow me to power the apartment over the shop for my renter.

The champion 9,200 watt is a beast for less than $1000! I turned on every light in the house, 4 ceiling fans, 1 deep freezer, 1 fridge/ freezer, 1 110 window unit, one large eye on cook top, and 1,000 watt microwave and was only pulling 3 to 5 power bars of the 7 available. I consider this to be a overall great investment. Will make life much easer!

I do plan to get a 30 gallon drum to store fuel in. Every 6 months I will fill my truck up from the drum and refill it with fresh fuel.
Parts list
Generator
9200-Running-Watt Portable Generator with Engine Shop Champion Power Equipment 92-Running-Watt Portable Generator with Engine at Lowes.com

Power back alarm
Reliance Controls Corporation THP108... Amazon.com: Reliance Controls Corporation THP18 PowerBACK! Mains Return Alarm: Home Improvement

50 amp 10’ power cord and inlet
Conntek GIB1450-015 50 Amp... Amazon.com: Conntek GIB145-15 5 Amp DUO-RainSeal Kit NEMA 14-5P 4 Prong Temporary Power Cord with Inlet Box, 15': Garden & Outdoor

Shop 30 amp inlet box ( bought on amazon)
30 Amp Generator Inlet Box, AI-PB30 Power Cord Twist Lock Receptacle | eBay

30amp 100’ cord for shop to generator at house
L14-3 Generator Extension Cords

Generator interlock site
https://www.geninterlock.com

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WFM · Aug 5, 2018

Looks like you'll be all set if you lose the power. For the past 22 years I used a gentran 8 switch panel here to power my home. My business is here on my property here also. A welding sheetmetal shop. Then this past fall I lost power for a week. And no power to my welding business. Yes I could sit in my house and watch Opera and Dr Phil. But losing a weeks work killed me. I bought a bigger generator and had the electrician install the interlock panel. With the gentran box your powering only 6 or 8 breakers in the service box. So when the power comes on, other stuff would come on that wasn't on the Gentran 8 switches. So you knew that the power was back on. With the interlock panel. You need to physically go out side and look at the electrical meter on the side of the house to see if its light up. That stinks.

J.Wal · Aug 6, 2018

WFM said:
Looks like you'll be all set if you lose the power. For the past 22 years I used a gentran 8 switch panel here to power my home. My business is here on my property here also. A welding sheetmetal shop. Then this past fall I lost power for a week. And no power to my welding business. Yes I could sit in my house and watch Opera and Dr Phil. But losing a weeks work killed me. I bought a bigger generator and had the electrician install the interlock panel. With the gentran box your powering only 6 or 8 breakers in the service box. So when the power comes on, other stuff would come on that wasn't on the Gentran 8 switches. So you knew that the power was back on. With the interlock panel. You need to physically go out side and look at the electrical meter on the side of the house to see if its light up. That stinks.

I got that issue covered also.

I used a “ power back” alarm. It wraps a wire around one of the main lines in before the main breaker.

Once power is in that main like the power back alarm picks up on it and triggers a audible alarm similar to a burglary alarm. That will let me know power has been restored.

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ehenry · Aug 6, 2018

I got lucky and stumbled on to a Generac 10kw natural gas stand by unit that my employer was selling because its capacity was outgrown. I had to buy the transfer switch and pay to have it all wired in. I've got right $1000 in the entire setup. It has been in service for 20 years and only issue I've had is a started had t be replaced. The longest the unit has ever run was when Katrina came blew through. Six days non stop.

skeets · Aug 6, 2018

Yes Sir them things are worth their weight in gold when you need them. I have an old gen set brand unknown with a Tecumseh motor. 5.5k we lived off it for 13 days several years ago when a big snowstorm really did a job to the power grid around here. I keep saying I want a 10kw but then I look to the price and say welllll maybe this will be ok for another time around

shootem604 · Aug 7, 2018

I have 2 services to my property, one for my house and one for my shop. I put a gentran/reliance controls 6 breaker panel on each service to run the well pump, lights, freezers, etc and I have a HDG 10,000 that runs the whole setup. I paid $180 each for the panels on ebay, with cords and connections, and $1000 for the generator. Under $1500 for the works, and worth every penny. Next step may be to adapt the generator to run on propane as well - looking at some of those kits to add the capability.

J.Wal · Oct 5, 2018

Added fuel storage to the system. Got a 55 gallon drum that had 5-W20 oil in it before I got it. I used 2 or 3 gallons of gas to thin the remaining oil and dump it out of the drum.

I used the Fill-rite hand pump setup. It produces more gallons per stroke than the crank style. I have a 5PSI 2 way vent on it to keep expansion and contraction from effecting the structure of the barrel. It took $20 in piping parts to attach the 3/4” pump to the 1” filter then back to 3/4” for hose hookup. All together it’s about $300 for the setup.

I filled it with 100% ethanol free gasoline, treated with PRI-G for storage.

I plan to use the fuel for small engine stuff around the house. Once I have it 1 year I will empty whatever is left into my truck and refill and retreat the new fuel to store for another year.

I will be doing the same with a drum for diesel.

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dalola · Oct 6, 2018

Sounds like you have a well thought-out plan & implementation.

I was going to do something similar with an interlock switch, but didn't have enough room in my panel, so went with a Reliance 10 pole transfer switch instead. I have a couple Honda EU2000's that I can run solo or parallel, pending electrical needs, to power most of what we need in the house. They are extremely quiet, and only use about a gallon of gas every ~6 hrs (each) at load. Longest we've had to run on back-up was 4 days, back in 2012 after the Derecho blew through. Usually, it's less than a day here and there for various power company issues.

I would not consider a rural home without some sort of back-up power.

sagor · Oct 6, 2018

Great job. Enjoy it when the power goes out.
Myself, I have a 7.5kW automatic start generator running off my large 2000L (about 500gal?) propane tank that I use for heat and hot water. I hate running out to refuel gas generators, especially when they are hot. With a relatively full propane tank, I figure I can run the house for over 2 weeks with full heat in dead of winter.
My transfer panel is also automatic, and only critical loads are on it - Furnace, water pump, freezer, fridge, microwave oven, pellet stove in secondary building, and of course, my satellite TV system. I can sit in the dark and watch TV at least. I find no need to power the entire house, a few lights here and there are enough.
System automatically shuts down when power is restored and is stable for 20-30 seconds.

JWool · Oct 6, 2018

Nice to be prepared.

I added this Kubota 11,000 Diesel generator, and a Reliance transfer switch.

Also have a gas 6,500 Generac that works but, hard starting due to old gas and the recoil acting up when I wasn't home, caused me to upgrade.

ehenry · Oct 6, 2018

Jwal, I have a question..... You say you live far enough out to lose power frequently (I feel your pain) but yet you have access to piped in natural gas? If that's the case ditch that drum of gas and convert your generator to natural gas ! Unless you were referring to a propane water heater instead of NG.

J.Wal · Oct 6, 2018

ehenry said:
Jwal, I have a question..... You say you live far enough out to lose power frequently (I feel your pain) but yet you have access to piped in natural gas? If that's the case ditch that drum of gas and convert your generator to natural gas ! Unless you were referring to a propane water heater instead of NG.

I have no desire to loose the 10- 15% of wattage going from gas to natural gas.

I may do it if I don’t find this setup to be easy enough.... but think this is the best setup for my current needs.

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ehenry · Oct 6, 2018

Converting NG was just a suggestion.

I've had a natural gas 10kw standby gen set for 20 years on my house. It runs everything I need to run in the event of an outage. So what if I loose a few watts running NG. I don't have to worry about having gasoline on hand for an extended outage.

I'm 180 miles from the gulf. When Katrina hit we lost power for 8 weeks. Folks were standing in line for gas, mad and wanting to fight.....it wasn't pretty or fun. My NG gen set never skipped a beat. My well pump ran so toilets flushed, refrigerators/freezers stayed cold and A/C was on.

Glad you got your setup like you want. Enjoy

edritchey · Oct 6, 2018

I have a 15kw pto generator in the barn and a 15kw diesel generator in the garage at the house we don't loose our power often but when we do we're ready.

J.Wal · Oct 6, 2018

ehenry said:
Converting NG was just a suggestion.

I've had a natural gas 10kw standby gen set for 20 years on my house. It runs everything I need to run in the event of an outage. So what if I loose a few watts running NG. I don't have to worry about having gasoline on hand for an extended outage.

I'm 180 miles from the gulf. When Katrina hit we lost power for 8 weeks. Folks were standing in line for gas, mad and wanting to fight.....it wasn't pretty or fun. My NG gen set never skipped a beat. My well pump ran so toilets flushed, refrigerators/freezers stayed cold and A/C was on.

Glad you got your setup like you want. Enjoy

No doubt it would be a good thing to have for something like that.

I may eventually go that rout but it would cost me a good bit to run the gas line to where I would need it to do a quick attach for the gen.

We loose power for 1 to 3 days average. Not often much past that.

With the generator full and the 55 gallon drum full I have enough to run around 70 hours. Other than a earthquake, I should be able to drive in any direction within an hour and get fuel.

I am outside Memphis TN so we have a lot of surrounding city’s less than 2 hours drive.

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shootem604 · Oct 12, 2018

I am laughing at my dad's NG genset now because he considered it uninterruptable. In BC there was an explosion on the NG pipeline, and there may be a shortage/stoppage. Mine is LPG/gasoline, and that extra hassle is worth it to me.

skeets · Oct 12, 2018

Now if I could find one, that would go MG,LPG,Gasoline,and Diesel I would snap that bad girl up in a heartbeat. Somewhere I was reading that the military, was working on or, had an engine that would run off any liquid or vaporious that was cumustable. Yup that would be really cool

ehenry · Oct 15, 2018

If NG quits flowing here I"ll plumb a propane bottle to it. This one is suppose to swing both sides of the tree with out any hassle...never tested it though. Also, if NG quits flowing here there will be lots of other problems to contend with too.

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