Whole House Generators

[Scot]

On Thu, 3 Feb 2022 10:15:11 -0600, Jerry — MacSolutions wrote:
> 	•	What type of fuel did you choose for your generator and why?

I live in Northern California, in the Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) 
service area. As such, we've had to deal with Public Safety Power 
Shutoffs for the past three summers. I used a large Honda gas powered 
generator during the first two years, and it was a large PITA. 
Schlepping around large jugs of expensive non-alcohol gasoline, which 
required treatment for long term storage, and finding a safe place to 
store it was the start of the issues. My location is rural, so there is 
no natural gas, and Diesel fuel does eventually age and require 
replacement. The house is already plumbed for propane, so that was the 
natural choice. I was evacuated for almost a month during the 2018 Camp 
Fire, but had I chose to stay, I probably wouldn't have had enough 
propane to last. So I upgraded to a 1,000 gallon propane tank. That's 
turned out to be a good thing considering the run up in propane prices 
over the past year.
 
> 	•	Do you limit your activities and lighting while the generator is 
> being used?  Can you detect the generator is being used and set a 
> pseudo in XTension to change the behavior of your home’s electrical 
> use?  Does it even matter?

The Honda generator had to be hauled outside and connected, the manual 
transfer switch thrown, then the house could be powered up. While the 
generator was running, I couldn't run the A/C because it drew too much 
power and would trip the breaker on the generator or it would just shut 
itself off. To limit fuel use, I'd run the generator a few hours in the 
morning to cool down the refrigerator, then start it up again at night 
for cooking and lighting and more refrigeration. That left the day 
without electricity, and no Internet (the local cell towers also quit 
working), not a good situation to be in with active wildfires raging 
nearby. I installed solar panels and a backup battery bank in 2020. Now 
I can run the A/C during power outages, and will do so when the sun is 
shining during the day. That keeps the house cool during the worst of 
the heat, but the battery bank isn't big enough to run the A/C without 
seriously discharging it. So during subsequent PSPS events, I've 
manually started the generator to provide power to the A/C when the 
house gets too warm overnight. That's a big improvement from the Honda 
generator days. It's also a big improvement that the change over 
between grid/solar/battery power to generator power so quick most 
electrical items in the house continue uninterrupted. Sensitive ones, 
like the satellite internet modem and TV receiver, and the safety 
solenoid on the propane stove, each get their own UPS units. During the 
Honda days, I would manually power down the sensitive items, start the 
generator, then bring them back on line. That meant significant delays 
while the modem and TV receiver came back up, and manually resetting 
the stove, another pain point. I used M-Power brand solar powered 
lights once the sun set so I could limit the time I needed to run the 
Honda. Now, the battery bank provides ample power for lighting and 
refrigeration, and makes it so I have to check the inverter logs to see 
if the power is off or not. From the above it should be clear I don't 
trust XTension, or any other automated system, to deal with planned 
power outages with regard to load shedding, and prefer to manage the 
system manually. I don't need to heat or cool the house while I'm away, 
and let the system self manage during those times, knowing that the big 
power draws like the A/C system and well pumps won't be running because 
I either disable them when I leave, or with the pumps, there isn't any 
water demand to trigger them. The inverters do have an information 
system that can be remotely monitored over the web, but it's pretty 
crude and I don't find myself looking at it very often. I do use it to 
keep an eye on the battery bank during planned outages, though.

> 	•	If you’re ever in a disaster area, do you think that the fuel 
> supply will be unavailable?  Will liquid fuel be tough to find?  Will 
> the natural gas supply be interrupted by the plant going offline?

During times when evacuation orders are in effect, authorities can't 
force you to evacuate, but once you do, they will keep you from 
returning to your home. And they won't let propane or other fuel 
delivery services into evacuated areas, either. At the same time, PG&E 
has implemented PSPS events, so there's no electricity to run the pumps 
at gas stations in the evacuated areas, so even if you could get to 
one, you couldn't get gas or Diesel unless they also had generators or 
a solar power system for power. This is what drove my decision to 
upsize the propane tank. Had I had access to natural gas, I would have 
been tempted to use it for generator power instead. But recognize if a 
power outage is wide spread enough, the compressors that deliver the NG 
would also be effected, and NG supplies would be interrupted. In the 
past, that scenario would have seemed unlikely, but major storms like 
Sandy, and wildfires like the Dixie, have shown that such widespread 
events are possible and do occur. If you plan to stay in your home 
during such times, you would do well to plan your energy sources and 
use accordingly.

$.02...

Scot
Yankee Hill, California