As Craig and Allan and others have said, if she is happy, then that’s enough.
The reality is probably slightly darker. If she is unhappy, then I’m going to
know about it.
Donald H. Snook
> On Sep 14, 2023, at 6:10 AM, dan penoff.com wrote:
>
> Pretty much my situation as well. Mrs. Dan
Think of it this way:
Two service calls, mileage and travel time, and parts ($2500 plus incidentals.)
Figure a $4000 bill when it’s all said and done.
When you approach the 50% point is when we would look at replacement cost. We
offered a new unit at a discount (Generac tossed in some $$$ as
> Generac says $2500 for a complete distributor. ... Since this is a piece of
> equipment that’s critical and still warrantied by Generac there’s no way we
> could even consider trying to jury-rig something. So we offer to essentially
> sell them a new (replacement) unit at or near our cost,
Pretty much my situation as well. Mrs. Dan wanted a whole-house standby system,
so I got one.
-D
> On Sep 13, 2023, at 9:52 PM, Allan Streib via Mercedes
> wrote:
>
> On Wed, Sep 13, 2023, at 16:32, Donald Snook via Mercedes wrote:
>
>> She’s happy, then I’m happy.
>
> That tends to be
On Wed, Sep 13, 2023, at 16:32, Donald Snook via Mercedes wrote:
> She’s happy, then I’m happy.
That tends to be all that really matters.
If she ISN'T happy, you can bet YOU won't be either.
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On Wed, Sep 13, 2023, at 16:22, Jim Cathey wrote:
> Something that one could do is mount an LED or neon indicator
> in their fuse box, connected directly to the un-switched power.
Seems like that would be a good feature in general. WARNING -- the feed into
this panel is LIVE when light is lit.
Donald,
Speaking as someone who could have done much of my generator setup myself, you
did the right thing.
I certainly don’t begrudge anyone who makes the effort to be self-sustaining in
emergencies, no matter how large or small the effort. There are times when
things are best left to the
P.S:
Mitsubishi never sold that distributor in the U.S. on an engine other than the
ones sold to Generac. They were sold directly to Generac, so no U.S.
distributor would have even had one in their warehouse or be required to
support them. If you called a Mitsubishi industrial or automotive
Big Bertha, which if wired in optimally would run everything but the electric
furnace, no muss no fuss, is a thirsty girl. (And it could even handle the
furnace
too if it were strapped for 3-phase, which BB has, but that's a MAJOR rewiring,
with quite a large throw-the-switch-Igor knife switch
> The last time the power went out the house behind me lit up in 20 seconds.
> He has a generac.
Yes, that's stunningly convenient, and quite attractive. The problem here, and
likely for many,
is fuel.
We don't have NG, nor propane. It's all carried in in cans or bottles, one way
or
On Wed, 13 Sep 2023 16:32:59 -0500 Donald Snook via Mercedes
wrote:
> Most importantly — my wife said she would rather have the generator
> than putting in wood floors. She’s happy, then I’m happy.
Wow. That does show the preferred path, doesn't it?
Craig
Speaking of the oh-so-vital checklist when using suicide cords, I just copied
them onto my web site.
(There are actually four checklists, and were LaTeX documents printed in a
binder.) These are
written not just for myself, but for my family members should I not be
available at the moment.
This.
If you have a modern distribution panel, there’s a good chance the manufacturer
offers an interlock plate for it. You might have to move some breakers around
to accommodate it, but think of it as a sliding metal “door’ or “flag” that
when one breaker is closed, the trip handle is pushing
All of these emails about ways I could have saved by rigging up a different
generator and potentially electrocuting myself and having an electrical box
that may or not be code has convinced me I absolutely did the right thing.
The last time the power went out the house behind me lit up in 20
> I suppose the problem with manually reverse-feeding your whole house with a
> suicide cord off the generator is, how do you know when the utility power is
> back on?
In my case, the pumphouse is completely separate from the house. So I just
turn on the light over the door down there. When I
> Like requiring $80 arc fault breakers instead of $8 regular breakers.
Which I promptly removed in our new living room, because it kept killing
the power to the entire room when you turned the lights on and off.
Not every time, but often enough. POS...
Yes, switches do arc. This is NORMAL!
We had an outage last February, out from maybe 1pm to 4am. It was a heavy
snowstorm so I'd expected it.
I got a text notification that power was out about 15 minutes after it went
out. Got the notification it was back on about a day after it was back on...
-Curt
On Wednesday, September 13,
On Wed, Sep 13, 2023, at 15:47, mitch--- via Mercedes wrote:
> I'm subscribed to text alerts.
> Consumers Energy will send me a power restoration text about 5-15
> minutes after it comes back on.
My REMC claims to offer that, but their texts are only loosely connected to
reality.
>
On 2023-09-13 16:18, Craig via Mercedes wrote:
On Wed, 13 Sep 2023 14:13:07 -0400 mitch--- via Mercedes
You can buy an interlock plate which is a sliding piece of sheet metal
which physically prevents you from having the topmost circuit breaker
and the main breaker turned on at the same time.
On 2023-09-13 16:29, Allan Streib via Mercedes wrote:
I suppose the problem with manually reverse-feeding your whole house
with a suicide cord off the generator is, how do you know when the
utility power is back on?
I'm subscribed to text alerts.
Consumers Energy will send me a power
On 13/09/2023 3:29 PM, Allan Streib via Mercedes wrote:
I suppose the problem with manually reverse-feeding your whole house with a
suicide cord off the generator is, how do you know when the utility power is
back on?
There will be real big sparks!
Randy
I suppose the problem with manually reverse-feeding your whole house with a
suicide cord off the generator is, how do you know when the utility power is
back on?
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On Wed, 13 Sep 2023 14:13:07 -0400 mitch--- via Mercedes
wrote:
> On 2023-09-13 14:01, Allan Streib via Mercedes wrote:
>
> > If you switch off the main breaker at the top of your panel, that
> > will stop any backfeeding out through the meter, correct? This is
> > what a proper transfer switch
Its amazing.
The previous owner built it in 2007 with lumber he milled off his own land. Its
tongue and groove and also bolted together. Not going to fall down in a hurry.
Some of the fittings aren't fantastic, the big side doors are kind of flimsy.
Now that we've got the garage doors I'll
Nice building.
Randy
On 13/09/2023 12:07 PM, Curt Raymond via Mercedes wrote:
Garage doors are surprisingly expensive.
Our barn in Maine had cutouts for garage doors on the south end:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/xAZeQ5PAMp7F79W66 the doors openings are filled with
a kind of industrial
> You can buy an interlock plate which is a sliding piece of sheet metal which
> physically prevents you from having the topmost circuit breaker and the main
> breaker turned on at the same time. I'm not up to date on whether this is
> code compliant, but it does physically prevent backfeeding
On 2023-09-13 14:01, Allan Streib via Mercedes wrote:
If you switch off the main breaker at the top of your panel, that will
stop any backfeeding out through the meter, correct? This is what a
proper transfer switch does automatically?
You can buy an interlock plate which is a sliding piece
> If you switch off the main breaker at the top of your panel, that will stop
> any backfeeding out through the meter, correct? This is what a proper
> transfer switch does automatically?
Yes.
-- Jim
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On Wed, Sep 13, 2023, at 12:56, Jim Cathey via Mercedes wrote:
> Not exactly true. You can't connect LIVE utility power without a
> breaker tripping.
> But you could attempt to back-feed your neighborhood if utility power
> is off, which is Bad for several reasons.
If you switch off the main
> by combining the two hot leads in the 240v circuit, you absolutely cannot
> connect it and the utility power at the same time or a breaker will trip.
Not exactly true. You can't connect LIVE utility power without a breaker
tripping.
But you could attempt to back-feed your neighborhood if
On Wed, Sep 13, 2023, at 12:07, Curt Raymond via Mercedes wrote:
> The openings were 9'x9' but 9 foot tall doors are tremendously
> expensive. Our builder, who has also been working on the house, shrank
> the openings to 8'x9'. Two doors, installed ran $6500...
A friend was telling me the
On 2023-09-13 12:26, Donald Snook via Mercedes wrote:
My problem with the little portable was that I could run the
refrigerator, a freezer, a few lights, maybe the TV and not much else.
And that required running extension cords all over the house AND
running home from work and filling it up
Garage doors are surprisingly expensive.
Our barn in Maine had cutouts for garage doors on the south end:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/xAZeQ5PAMp7F79W66 the doors openings are filled with
a kind of industrial belting used for paper making.
Rocky Racoon moved in which I wouldn't mind so much if he
Randy wrote:
> The problem with the small portable generator, is that it may not work when
> you need it. You need to start and run it often to ensure it works and most
> folks will tire of that soon after they get it. I have a portable in the
> shed. I would fire it up spring and fall and
20# of propane is 4.6 gallons assuming you've actually gotten a complete fill.
The trade in tanks are now down to 15# which is only 3.5 gallons.
At the risk of sounding like a broken record I put 1oz Seafoam gas additive per
gallon of gasoline that goes into our generator at camp. It starts on
Diesels are routinely used in installations above 80kW-100kW and can be located
in outdoor enclosures.
Block heaters are a requirement and will keep the water jacket at or near
around 90F-100F for ease of starting.
Block heaters are standard on industrial units regardless of location.
-D
>
On 2023-09-12 21:57, Randy Bennell via Mercedes wrote:
I have a portable in the shed. I would fire it up spring and fall and
let it run a bit. The last time I tried, it would not start. Old gas?
Likely needs the carb cleaned.
I run mine at least once a year. Shut off the fuel and let it die.
Yeah small engines are a PITA if they don't get used regularly. For sure it
would be worth buying ethanol-free gas.
Letting the carb run dry each time you put it away is probably good too.
On Tue, Sep 12, 2023, at 20:57, Randy Bennell via Mercedes wrote:
> The problem with the small portable
The problem with the small portable generator, is that it may not work
when you need it. You need to start and run it often to ensure it works
and most folks will tire of that soon after they get it. I have a
portable in the shed. I would fire it up spring and fall and let it run
a bit. The
Mine didn’t cost $30K. And last winter was rough because we were a week without
power. The times it has gone out this summer were inconvenient, but not
deadly. My problem is all the HUGE old trees in my neighborhood means this is
likely going to continue.
Donald H. Snook
> On Sep 12,
Yes, it was a big chunk of change, for sure. Not that it matters, but we bought
the house directly from a friend at a significant discount. Because of the lead
time to acquire and install the equipment, we couldn’t wrap it into our
mortgage, so we just paid out of pocket and considered it a
A rope-pull unit is entirely adequate for emergencies. What you lack
is comfort and convenience. We lose power for a day or more every
year or two. The longest was 6 days. Exclusively in deep winter, I
might add. That longest one was weathered using a little 1800W
camping unit. It was a big
That seems like a lot of money for the convenience.
I can pay for replacing spoiled food in my freezer a lot of times with $30,000.
If you're preparing for a possible extended outage as you might have in
hurricane areas, maybe. To me it doesn't make sense. Knock on wood, I've never
been
On Tue, 12 Sep 2023 20:26:31 + "dan penoff.com via Mercedes"
wrote:
> I have a Kohler 24kW propane-fueled set in my backyard. With the
> 1,000-gallon LP tank buried in my front yard, I have about 15-20 days
> of whole-house operation before needing to refuel. If things really
> tank we would
Full inspection of all systems, diagnostic report, etc., etc., including their
travel time and mileage. Last visit the starting battery had a cell that was a
little low, so they replaced it under warranty.
Look at it this way: I worked on these things for years for a living, I didn’t
do it for
On Tue, 12 Sep 2023 20:33:44 + "dan penoff.com via Mercedes"
wrote:
> It gets serviced twice a year for which I pay a local dealer $450. One
> service includes an oil and filter change.
What else, besides the oil and filter change, do you get for your $450?
With all you do on cars, would
On Tue, 12 Sep 2023 14:19:43 -0700 Jim Cathey via Mercedes
wrote:
> For reference, TWO used batteries were $26 in 2006, and oil was
> $0.50/quart on sale at that time. My, how times have changed!
Indeed.
Craig
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> And yes, now that we have the generator, it will probably be the calmest
> fall, winter, and summer in 100 years.
And isn't that what you want? No electrical outages, regardless of 'cause'?
When Big Bertha's two batteries died, I replaced them. Even though I've only
had to use that genny
Generac is the top consumer-grade standby generator. The industrial business
considers them the “KMart” of the industry, a label they earned in that market
in my opinion. However, they have done very, very well in the consumer market,
and while their products are still somewhat over-engineered
Generac — sort of. We bought it from Generac. It is warranted by Generac. The
paperwork all
Says Generac. The housing says “Honeywell”. Apparently, Generac builds them
and brands them Honeywell but if you life the cover everything inside says
Generac. It’s a 24 KW like yours. And yes, now
Mine is a Generac. They said two years for the first oil change unless we run
it more than 200 hours. So, I guess that means every 200 hours or 2 years
whichever comes first.
Donald H. Snook
> On Sep 12, 2023, at 3:21 PM, mi...@mitchellhaley.com wrote:
>
> Generac wants me to change oil in
Nearly every home standby set (and most commercial/industrial ones, too) have
“exercise clocks” or timers that run the unit weekly for a short time to
“exercise” it. I’m sure Donald’s does, regardless of brand.
Mine runs for 20 minutes every Monday at 11:00. Because it’s in a
sound-attenuated
It will “exercise” every Thursday. It’s funny you used that term because that
is exactly what the installer said.
Donald H. Snook
> On Sep 12, 2023, at 3:27 PM, Allan Streib wrote:
>
> At work they have backup diesel generators on many of the buildings. They
> have to "exercise" them
On 2023-09-12 16:27, Allan Streib via Mercedes wrote:
At work they have backup diesel generators on many of the buildings.
They have to "exercise" them every so often (monthly? quarterly?)
wondering if your system came with any instructions i.e. "run it up to
operating temperature every 30
It's amazing how weak the storms became after we purchased a generator.
On Tue, Sep 12, 2023 at 4:28 PM Allan Streib via Mercedes <
mercedes@okiebenz.com> wrote:
> At work they have backup diesel generators on many of the buildings. They
> have to "exercise" them every so often (monthly?
At work they have backup diesel generators on many of the buildings. They have
to "exercise" them every so often (monthly? quarterly?) wondering if your
system came with any instructions i.e. "run it up to operating temperature
every 30 days"
On Tue, Sep 12, 2023, at 15:19, Donald Snook via
Kohler or Generac?
I was in the “business” for 25 years, Donald, working for Kohler on the
industrial side of the standby generator business. I have a Kohler 24kW
propane-fueled set in my backyard. With the 1,000-gallon LP tank buried in my
front yard, I have about 15-20 days of whole-house
Generac wants me to change oil in the air-cooled 7k every year if not
used or every xx hours if used.
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My neighborhood has a LOT of very large and old trees. Just this year the
power has gone out 5 times. We got pretty frustrated and decided to pull the
trigger on a whole generator that runs off natural gas that is coming into the
house anyway. It has an automatic switch and does everything on
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