Everything You Need to Know About Generators

During power blackouts, a generator can power necessary appliances, like refrigerators and heaters, and control temperatures in your home. Interestingly, sellers of electric generators record high sales during major storms.

What does this finding show? The majority of the users only buy the generator when an emergency strikes. When you’re in a hurry, you choose a generator randomly that appears to be up to the task. Consequently, you don’t pay attention to specs, follow the recommended installation procedures and are likely to misguidedly use extension cords.

We also have a duty to provide a reliable backup power for our families. Therefore, a generator is simply inevitable for each and every household. Read on for everything you need to know about generators.

Typical uses of a generator

Backup Power during extreme climatic conditions

If extreme weather conditions are a threat where you live, a backup generator provides a lasting solution. A user who lives in a chilling climate can’t afford to rely on utility power to support their furnaces and heaters.
Besides, we all have a duty to provide a haven for our family members. Standby (or even portable) generators will enable you to use heat producing devices during power blackouts and hence provide comfort to your family members. The same applies to individuals who live in coastal regions. A generator provides backup during an emergency.
Outdoor recreational activities

Portable generators have made outdoor camping not only safe but also convenient. They enable you to enjoy all the expediency of modern living including having a coffee maker to make your favorite drink, a refrigerator for the storage of perishables and much more. With a portable generator, you can bring along your fancy appliances and enhance the security of your family with low-voltage lights.
Generators for, Backyard, contractors, business and commercial use.
Are you a contractor working on a remote construction site without electricity connection or even in the backyard? A Portable Generator is ideal for you. It’ll enable you to operate all your electrical tools, such as roofing guns and spray gun systems, power your lighting allowing you to work indoors, at a distant backyard, during the night and huge darkening storms. Small entrepreneurs also stand to benefits a lot since generators will enable their businesses to remain operational even during power outages.

Types of Generators to Consider

.Standby Generators

• Besides costing a lot of money, standby generators need to be skillfully installed by a professional. You, therefore need to factor in labor costs. The reason is you’ll need the service of a qualified electrician to guide you on appropriate permits, proper location, and noise restrictions.
• Start automatically during blackouts and tend to supply more power that other alternatives.
• They self-diagnose and notify you when maintenance is due, some even through text or email.
• You choose your preferred fuel type whether propane or natural gas. Both types are safe to store.
• Their outputs range from 5 to 20 Kilowatts. Standby generators are therefore best Whole House Generators since they can support all household appliances.
• They cost somewhere in the range of 5,000 10,000 dollars

.Portable Generators
• Portable generators cost less than standby generators
• They run on propane or gas. Due to their limited fuel-tank capacity, you may have to store the fuels in enormous quantities. Doing so necessitates the use of a stabilizer to maintain quality.
• While they can be utilized anywhere within or without your property, they should be not less than 15 feet from any residential property. They should not be used in enclosed spaces and must not come into contact with water.
• Most of them have electric starting though the battery required for this function is usually bought separately.
• Typically supply power in the range of 3,000 to 8,500 watts
• They cost between 400 and 1,000 dollar

Features to look out for

Automatic starting: When the power goes off, the standby generator automatically starts without a user’s input. This feature is particularly useful if you are always on the move and have sensitive appliances that need powering.
Electric start: Many latest portable generators have push-button starting as an alternative to the traditional pull-staring. Find out if the price quoted is inclusive of the battery used for electric starting and accordingly factor in the cost of buying one.
Wheels: Give priority to portable generators with wheels that are priced jointly for added portability.
Extra features: Fuel gauge and low oil shut off are significant additions that make generator use hassle free and safe respectively.
Inverter Technology: If you are going to power sensitive appliances go for high-end generators with inverter technology
Several outlets: Four or more outlets will ensure you have enough outlets to plug in several electronic devices especially during emergencies.

Generator maintenance tips

Run your generator where there is free flow of air to avoid inhaling harmful carbon monoxide gas
When using your generator for backup during a storm, cover it with a waterproof material to keep at bay risk of electric shock
Pay attention to rated/continuous power ratings only while choosing a generator since the ratings refer to power that a generator supplies continuously
Never refuel your generator while still hot, or connect the generator’s output to the wall socket and be sure to check and change oil and filters as often as possible
If you are storing generator fuel for a long time, add a stabilizer to maintain its quality.

Equipped with the above crucial information the next important thing is to know how you can get the best generator. You need to establish your intended use of the generator, power requirements and the extra features you need. Regardless of your situation, you can get the generator that perfectly meets your requirements.

Guest article is submitted by Victor Hill from http://trustworthypower.com/

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5 thoughts to “Everything You Need to Know About Generators”

Now, I’m not trying to piss off anybody here, but let’s slow down a minute…

“Everything…”? Really?!? Well…sorry, but no, it is not “everything”. Readers take note: The title is hyperbolic and misleading, and should NOT be taken literally. I urge the author of this article to change the title to something more realistic and appropriate. Yes, the article contains useful information which appears to be correct as far as it goes; but it falls woefully short of the “everything” it promises and would have readers believe it is. By the way, the linked articles provide some very good supplemental information and should also be viewed when reading this article.

Readers read articles like this because they/ we know that knowledge is power. To those readers who are considering acquiring a generator, please be aware that there is much more information available on the subject of generators from many sources, information that goes far beyond what is contained (or linked to) in this article, information that could help keep a consumer from making a poor choice, wasting money, and possibly endangering the very lives he only wants to improve.

No generator is inexpensive. The purchase of any generator requires the outlay of significant cash, so it is both prudent and frugal to empower oneself with all available knowledge before pulling the trigger and making a purchase. Look far beyond this article for guidance to help you make the optimum generator choice for your needs.

How? Start by seeking additional information online, visiting reputable generator manufacturers’ websites; and then if able, visit with qualified manufacturers’ representatives, either in person or by telephone…these conversations can be enormously helpful and revealing, and they cost consumers nothing extra. Know your electrical needs ahead of time. And then factor in the guidance these manufacturers’ representatives provide, and make your better-informed choice accordingly.

Across the various brands, generator wattage output ratings may be similar or identical, but not all brands and models of generators are created equal. A cheap price usually suggests a cheaply made product. If in your situation, lives could truly be at stake, then quality is essential; so when you’re weighing your options, keep this advice in mind: “You DON’T get what you DON’T pay for.” Save up your nickels and dimes until you can afford the very best quality generator available that meets or exceeds your needs.

Then, to ensure your comfort and safety, and to get the best performance from your generator unit for the longest possible time, it is ESSENTIAL that you learn everything you can about it by thoroughly reading and fully understanding the information contained in the generator owner’s manual BEFORE you ever employ the generator to supply you with electricity.

And for as long as you intend to rely on your generator either for normal power or emergency electrical power, you MUST perform — at a minimum — ALL the recommended maintenance in a timely manner. Neglecting your generator could be a costly, perhaps fatal mistake.

Obviously we’re big proponents of generators, and we absolutely love and appreciate ours. For over 15 years we have enjoyed having both a portable generator and a whole-house standby generator. Living in the far west at an elevation of about 5000′, the wind is most often the cause of power failures, as it was again just yesterday morning. At about 0515 our diesel standby generator automatically kicked on when the street power to our region failed due to the very high winds of this storm that’s pounding us. Our generator hummed along quietly and reassuringly until 0850 when street power was restored; and after its brief, pre-programmed cool-down period, it shut itself down. It’s a beautiful thing. We highly recommend having a standby generator connected to the home through an Automatic Transfer Switch (ATS).

This post is certainly not everything there is to know about generators but is everything you need to know. Often I find too much info simply causes analysis paralysis. Then nothing gets accomplished. Im positive I could go find a post in the net with everything there is to know about generators. A phd in them. But I don’t believe it would help anyone. It would cause more people to do nothing.

I would rather people go to harbor freight and grab a generator for a disaster and use it than have nothing.

Thanks for the comment.

It’s the title of your article (not the article itself) that I find deficient. Again, as I expressed when I wrote, “I urge the author of this article to change the title to something more realistic and appropriate,” following that immediately with, “Yes, the article contains useful information which appears to be correct as far as it goes; but it falls woefully short of the “everything” it promises and would have readers believe it is,” in my view, the title makes an empty promise to readers that is unworthy of the content of the article itself (which I thought quite good, especially when fortified with the articles you link to.)

So I question not the content of your article — or any perceived lack of content — just your choice of title, which is probably as misleading to other readers as it was to me.

For what it’s worth, I do agree with you when you suggest that people are better off having a cheap generator than nothing — as long as that cheap generator continues to operate and do the job. Unfortunately, on average, cheap equipment fails sooner than higher-quality (read: more expensive) equipment (you don’t get what you don’t pay for) and when the SHTF and the lights go out AGAIN because the cheap generator fails, replacing it even with a more expensive unit may not be an option any more.

It is easy to forget how useful a generator can be. After all, we only appreciate these machines when there is a power failure. However, a generator is a very practical piece of equipment that has provided power to the world for over one hundred years.