Bmxenbrett
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And to think there are people who only test there generators when its 85* and sunny.
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Currently Running on MEP Power
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FloridaAKM
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Or those of us who run our generators when the wind is blowing 75+ mph & the power has been out for @ least a day or so. Hurricane season is as much fun for a Floridian as the snow storms for folks living in the snowbelt.
8madjack
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What transfer switch are you using to hook up to power the entire house? What I've talked to a local electrician they gave me some ridiculous price for a whole house transfer switch or they try to sell me an entire Generac system. I don't have the military generator I have a whisperwatt 25. I don't need an automatic switch just a manual one would be fine. Thank you and hopefully my question is reasonably Within parameters for this thread.
Chainbreaker
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Like some romances, they often turn into a love/hate relationship. I love to get the intended usage benefits these MEP's were designed for out of my 3 generators. That part is very satisfying to know you were prepared and the often forgotten until needed, electricity producing machine comes to the rescue to save the day & night! However, I hate the weather that comes with long term outage situations. While living in various places I've been through 130 MPH hurricanes in Florida, 3 ft snow Storms in Colorado, 1" ice plus snow Storms in Oregon and they all test your patience and they just plain suck after a few days.
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Chainbreaker
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On my compound I am strictly manual switchover using a generator inlet box type hookup with breaker panel interlock. Having older Mil Surplus generators that are ~30 yrs old I prefer to do a complete pre-flight check on all systems before starting genset and switching on each breaker on independently knowing the current state of my house and which breaker will consume the most current draw. Its an easy routine once you do the drill a few times during test runs. I've practically done it in my sleep, or at least while sleep deprived! Auto Start and ATS certainly have their place though, but your right they are pricey to purchase and have installed by an electrician.
skinnyR1
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How do you wire in something like this when using a breaker interlock? I have a similar setup and don't know when the line power comes back up.
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Goes right into a knockout on your main panel. https://www.amazon.com/Reliance-Controls-Corporation-THP108-PowerBACK/dp/B003KREORA
Someday I will install mine!
Someday I will install mine!
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I would simply hook up a light to city power, on the input side of the switch. As long as no city power is on the input side, no light.
Mad Jack, there are some guys here who can help you with that question. I would not touch it, unless we were talking about Germany.
Mad Jack, there are some guys here who can help you with that question. I would not touch it, unless we were talking about Germany.
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A light is an easy way to do it. Having both a visual and audible alarm can be advantageuos if one is not able to directly see the breaker panel though.
A simple audible alarm can be made with a single pole double throw(center off) switch, a 110v relay, a small neon bulb, a small 12v step down transformer, a couple of diodes and a DC piezo buzzer/ horn. Probably $10-15 in parts from online sources.
House it in a small plastic project box.
The neon light is 110v so its wired to the primary side of the transformer. The diodes are wired to the secondary to provide DC to the piezo.
The switch is wired so it can be placed in "OFF" or ON when power goes out.
Chainbreaker
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The Reliance Controls PowerBack alarm that Light in the Dark linked, is independent of your breaker interlock. It goes on a line of the Service Feed within your breaker box. As I recall, there are some good tips & photos in the Amazon user reviews section. When I installed mine, I timed it to coincide with a planned Utility service downtime my Utility Provider had scheduled in advance. All I had to do was take off my breaker box panel cover and wrap the inductive signal wire around one line of the incoming feeds and then sneak the wire under the panel cover (I didn't have any room to run conduit into breaker box). The Powerback has an on/off switch that you trip when power goes out. It is powered by a 9V battery. If you don't feel comfortable going into your breaker box I'm sure it would be a ~15 minute job for an electrician to install one for you.
There is a discussion here on SS regarding an installation a member (CSHeath) did with photo's. Here it is see post # 22:
https://www.steelsoldiers.com/showthread.php?167618-Best-way-to-tell-when-power-is-restored/page3
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Thats cheap enough.....probably not worth building one unless the parts and knowledge are on hand. Thanks for the link!
Chainbreaker
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BTW, my PowerBack alarm has been 100% reliable. Also, note that it has a low battery LED to let you know if you need to change battery when its activated. Also, I edited my post above to include the direct SS thread link and reference to post #22 for installation method that I used. Just be sure your tape or tie wrap the sensor wire once it is wrapped snuggly around one of your incoming feed lines.
bones1
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Me too.
8madjack
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I have my setup all wired up, and its been perfect the last few weeks, thanks for the replies .
