# Would Like to get a Generator And Tips on Picking one?



## JOE G (Aug 3, 2010)

I'd like to get a Generator for my home, I have Oil heat I'd like it to be able to run the Furnace,On Demand Hot Water Heater, Well Pump and the Fridge and maybe a few lights, 

What size would I need? 

What Brand?

What Fuel Type?

I dont know much about them any info would be great, I am not even sure what the diffrent hook up methods are. Thanks a lot.


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## hp488 (Sep 23, 2009)

What kind of money are you looking spend? You can get a good one at homedepot for about 600.00 that will run what you are looking run. They also sell the 100 amp with switch gear that run on natural gas and will come on as soon as the power is shut off, they are about 3500.00.


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## JOE G (Aug 3, 2010)

Id Like to stay under a Grand.


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## J2! (May 8, 2010)

I have a snapper 6800 watt and it does great. Only thing that worries me is that on demand water heater, is it electric or gas ?? If it's electric those things pull ALOT of amps, and I mean AOLT, more than an electric range !! If it is electric you will need to get at the very least, a 10,000 watt, and you won't find one of those under a grand for sure. By the way, I'm an electrician by trade so I am very familiar with this. All the Honda's are great but they will cost ya. If you decide to go with a 10000 or bigger I would suggest looking into an arc welder, they have generators on them too, kinda two things in one. Good luck finding what you need.


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## BrutemanAl (Jul 3, 2009)

I do gen sets for a living , if you are wanting to stay under a grand then , more than likely you will have to go with a portable unit , few options are to get a portable and put in a manual transfer switch , or back feed it through the main panel ( i dont recommend this option , but many people do it ) I wouldnt go woth anything under 5 kw (5000 watts). And stay away from the off shore brands , they maybe cheaper to buy , but they are cheaper for a reason , they break ALOT !!! and getting parts for them is next to impossible and not worth the time it takes to fix them half the time. And remember if you do go with a portable unit , START it at LEAST once a month ( if not every 2 weeks) and run it for a good 20 to 30 mins with a load on it , and when you shut it off , turn the fuel off first and let it run dry and shut off so the carbs dont get gummed up. And if you get one with electric start , make sure you keep a trickle charge on the battery or when you go to start it....it wont !! Most have pull start back up , but thats not why you payed for electric start lol.

Generac , Honda(expensive but great units) , yamaha are from my experience the best ones out there. Generac is the only company that rates their generators at true power , so if you buy a 5000 watt generator , thats what you are getting , others are rated at ....example 5000 watt honda , but that is it's surge for only a few seconds when really it is only 80 % of the rated 5000 watts ( give or take a bit)


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## JOE G (Aug 3, 2010)

The On Demand water heater is Propane.

Would I want a Gas,Diesel or propane Unit?

I Dont care if I have Electric or Pull start,

Having it auto switch over is nice but I dont need it.

If you dont like back feeding into the box how do you suggest I hook it up?


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## wcs61 (Jun 7, 2011)

JOE G said:


> I'd like to get a Generator for my home, I have Oil heat I'd like it to be able to run the Furnace,On Demand Hot Water Heater, Well Pump and the Fridge and maybe a few lights,
> 
> What size would I need?
> 
> ...


Doubt you will find one to run all of this for under a grand. On demand water heater? It runs on a 220 circuit right? Furnace probably another 220 circuit, well pump possibly 220 but probably 110 and a fridge 110. That's a lot of amps / KW's needed.

Fuel - Propane since you already use it.
You will have to have the power switch or the local power company will not let you hook up. An electrician will have to hook it up. Don't want to kill a lineman with your generator.


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## brute574 (Aug 10, 2011)

I run a 12,000 watt, hooked to a Gen panel. You can turn off the water Pump and Water Heater and only turn them on when needed, as you will turn off other stuff to use that. This Why you can run a Smaller Gen. The Gen Panel will disconnect the power the the Main Line, that way no power is feeding back to the Pole. 

This Hooks up with a LARGE Cord that plugs in to a 220 outlet on your House and 200 outlet on the Gen


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## JOE G (Aug 3, 2010)

How Long does say a BBQ size tank last? I have a big Propane tank that I could use also.

Water heater 110, I think furnace is just blower motor, Well is 220. Dryer is 220


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## wcs61 (Jun 7, 2011)

Doubt it will last a day.


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## BrutemanAl (Jul 3, 2009)

4 or 5 hrs MAX , if your conservative , furnace is just the blower for the most part, it is 110v. On average a 420 tank hooked up to a 8 kw fully automatic gen ,if using it conservitaly(sp lol) will last about 4-5 days on constant run .


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## JOE G (Aug 3, 2010)

That would be expensive to run at the price propane is around here.


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## wcs61 (Jun 7, 2011)

JOE G said:


> That would be expensive to run at the price propane is around here.


any fuel is high around anywhere in North America! Bought 5 gals of Kerosene yesterday at 20bucks and change.


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## BrutemanAl (Jul 3, 2009)

ya its not cheap , we have alot of customers moan and groan about it , but when the power is out for 4 plus days , how much are you going to lose if you dont have power ? Freezer , fridges ,flooded basements... ect ect, plus if it winter around here and the power is out and your not home and the pipes freeze...... even more expensive . 

It doesnt need to run the entire time , we tell people to turn it off during the night and back on in the morning if they are concerned with gas guzzling .


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## JOE G (Aug 3, 2010)

Yeah I figured Id run it during the day and off at nite, the fridge holds its cool for quite a while.. Do they ramp up when theres a load and then idles down when there isnt a load?


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## brute574 (Aug 10, 2011)

Yes, to a Point


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## BrutemanAl (Jul 3, 2009)

Yes they will ramp up , especially on the portables , the more load the more noise they make , less load the less it has to work so it idles down , but only to a certain degree . Most of them run about 3600 RPM , no load .


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