Whole House Generator

Discussion in 'Energy & Fuel' started by Beth Gallagher, Mar 24, 2021.

  1. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    I think we are scheduled to get a second quote on a generator in August. Seems like the whole-house generator biz is really hoppin' these days, so patience is a virtue.
     
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  2. Bruce Andrew

    Bruce Andrew Very Well-Known Member
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    I only read your post, none in between.

    I got a Cummins whole house in May 2018. It is a 13KW unit which easily runs everything in my house. It was $7,800 installed.

    My main reason was in case I had a flood, the power went out and my sump pump wouldn't work. So all I really needed was a small portable. But I got the biggy instead. Being old, I didn't want to screw around with flashlights, extension cords, etc. in the middle of an outage.

    It comes on within 2 seconds of the power going out. It certainly hasn't paid for itself yet, but I don't regret buying it.
     
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  3. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Thanks, Bruce. We have a Cummins in our motorhome and it has worked flawlessly for 11 years now. Of course it's gasoline and needs a lot of maintenance as the RV sits for extended periods. Is your whole-house generator natural gas powered?

    I like your name; my father was Bruce.
     
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  4. Bruce Andrew

    Bruce Andrew Very Well-Known Member
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    Thanks Beth. My mom always told me they named me after King Bruce of Scotland; I assume she meant Robert the Bruce although she was always joking around so who knows?

    Fuel, ah yes I forgot to mention that. I live in the woods, no natural gas, so the generator is hooked up to my 300 gallon propane tank.

    They recommend having the generator serviced/checked every year. I had it done in 2019 and the guy told me every other year would be fine, ha. So I'll have him come this fall. Cost for that was around $120-140 . . . ?

    FWIW, my mile-long dirt road has 12 permanent residents on it including me -- four of us have WH gens.
     
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  5. Don Alaska

    Don Alaska Supreme Member
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    I imagine that after the winter experience in Texas, there are a few more "preppers".
     
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  6. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Exactly. Paired with recent notices from the electric company to "lower the demand" plus hurricane season all add up to a renewed interest in generators.
     
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  7. Faye Fox

    Faye Fox Veteran Member
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    I like the idea of a propane tank feeding the generator so, in case of an earthquake and damaged lines or intentional shut off of natural gas, you still have electricity at least until the tank runs out.
     
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  8. Bruce Andrew

    Bruce Andrew Very Well-Known Member
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    I was talking to a neighbor last year who also has a generator. He actually calculated how long the gen would run if the power went out and he had a full propane tank. It wasn't good enough for him, so he ordered the biggest tank he could get -- 500-600 gallon? don't remember.

    I'm paranoid, but not that paranoid. Even though my tank is mostly for my furnace, I hardly ever use it. I heat with wood and coal and the propane tank never gets below 50%. And anything short of a global disaster, the propane delivery trucks could still probably make their rounds.
     
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  9. Don Alaska

    Don Alaska Supreme Member
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    The good thing is, unlike gas or diesel, propane is stable almost forever. I have been through extended outages, but we never kept a generator running the entire time. We heated with wood, lighted with oil most of the time, and used the generator to keep the freezers and refrigerators cold by running the generator only every few hours for 30 minutes or so. Since we have gotten older and don't want to chop holes in the ice on the lake for water and rely solely on wood (it isn't Virginia here), our new generator will run the furnace and pump.
     
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  10. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Well since we live in a suburban neighborhood with deed restrictions and a regulation-size lot, there won't be any propane tanks hauled in. I'll just have to make do with natural gas (which seems to be the only stable utility we can depend on; we have never had a natural gas "outage.")
     
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  11. Frank Sanoica

    Frank Sanoica Supreme Member
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    @Beth Gallagher

    Over half a century ago, it was widely predicted that natural gas supplies would run out way before the turn of the century. Thus the need for a new maze of cross-country pipelines,like the "Big Inch", which my folks and I saw them excavating for.

    Still gas a'plenty, it seems.

    Frank
     
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  12. Don Alaska

    Don Alaska Supreme Member
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    They have been predicting the demise of the fossil fuel industry for decades now, but the supply seems to continue to increase. Gas has become the fuel of the current moment, as it is thought to release less CO2 into the atmosphere. Fluidized bed coal technology would be great, but as soon as it is proposed, all the eco-nuts start talking about black smoke and smokestacks, neither of which usually apply to the fluidized bed stuff.
     
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  13. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Finally, another company bid on installing a generator. They offered three different bids, different levels of coverage and different brands of generators... Kohler and Generac. The bids ranged from $14,500 to $20,000 and they are booked until December for installing. So now we have more studying to do.
     
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  14. Al Amoling

    Al Amoling Veteran Member
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    MY electrician, who installed my Kohler priced it in Maine but bought it in South Carolina. Even the shipping cost didn't make it more expensive.
     
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  15. Frank Sanoica

    Frank Sanoica Supreme Member
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    @Beth Gallagher

    With today's prevailing prices, the "payback" for installation of a whole-house generator appears to be gruesome. Like we anticipate buying a smaller car to save on gasoline, even doubling the fuel economy does not make it.

    I guess we could factor in the value lost for spoiled food. But $20,000 buys an awful lot of electric power; in our case around twenty year's worth.

    Frank
     
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