[Shop-talk] LP Generator supply

Sat Aug 21 15:15:23 MDT 2021

You’ll be good with what you have. I have a 3 kW Honda on a 10 circuit transfer switch, feeding a 2600 ft2 house. We can’t run the the big power hogs - A/C or electric oven - but other than that, we are good. We run some lighting, internet/computer/TV, NG powered  heat, HW, cooktop, dryer and grill, etc. Its an inverter based system and it rarely runs much above idle unless heat, both fridges, freezer and coffee maker are all calling for power at the same time.

Tom Coradeschi
tjcora at icloud.com

> On Aug 21, 2021, at 4:29 PM, Jim Stone <1789alpine at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> From David:
> 
>> You need a low pressure regulator. Input is 10 to 15ish inches of water.  Output is 10 inches water. 
> Steal the one from your furnace, if you need to.
> 
> There is a regulator between the tank and the house, so it comes in before the line to the outside.  It is hard to read the regulator, as it is under the porch, which is why I gave the stats for the water heater. 
> 
> From Pat:
> 
>> Silly question. Did you talk to the folks that installed the generator?
> 
> 
> Not silly, but it isn’t a permanent whole house generator.  I’ve thought about installing one, and certainly will if weather patterns change enough that we are dealing with this more often, but the price didn’t seem justified given the amount of use that it would get.  As I said, I have had this one for about 8 years and never had to use it.  My main worry has always been an extended outage in the winter, but we don’t need much amperage with propane heat for the furnaces. (Separate heat in the shop.  Hey!  Shop content!).  I haven’t done the exact math, but believe that 4000 Surge Watts/3250 Running Watts will be enough to keep things going here for as long as it takes…as long as I can run off of the in-ground tank.
> 
>> On Aug 21, 2021, at 3:46 PM, Pat Horne <patintexas at icloud.com> wrote:
>> 
>> Silly question. Did you talk to the folks that installed the generator?
>> 
>> Peace,
>> Pat
>> 
>> Pat Horne 
>> We support Habitat for Humanity
>> 
>> 
>> On Aug 21, 2021, at 1:08 PM, Jim Stone <1789alpine at gmail.com> wrote:
>> 
>> I am on Eastern Long Island, directly in one of the projected paths of Hurricane Henri.  We are being told to plan for 7-10 days without power, although FWIW we were only powerless for 4 days following Sandy.  Shortly after Sandy I purchased an LP Generator (https://www.jbtools.com/buffalo-tools-gen4000lp-4000-watt-propane-generator/?wi=off&gclid=CjwKCAjwyIKJBhBPEiwAu7zll1U54VH4euJneVO0jmOzjdgwy6-t0MUdEtaEHYXf_7W0sQxKo54TphoC__4QAvD_BwE) which, of course, I have never needed, although I do run it periodically to be safe.  It is designed to run off of LP tanks and comes with a standard regulator.  A little Googling shows the following specs for the regulator:
>> 
>> Low Pressure Regulator
>> Inlet Pressure:               25-250PSIG
>> Outlet Pressure:            280mmH2O= (11"W.C.)
>> Flow Capacity(MAX):    119000(BTU/hr)
>> 
>> We use Propane for DHW and heat and have a 500 gallon in-ground tank.   I had an outside gas line stubbed out when the house was remodeled, just in case I ever needed it and I would like to be able to connect the generator directly to the house supply and avoid having to depend on the portable tanks.  The house supply is regulated and, as an example, here are the specs for the water heater:
>> 
>> Max Inlet Gas Pressure:    13.0 “W.C.
>> Min Inlet Gas Pressure:     8.0 “W.C.
>> Recovery Rating:               206/Gallons/HR
>> Max Working Pressure:     150psi
>> Max Output:                       180,000 BTU/HR
>> Max Input:                          11,000 BTU/HR
>> Manifold Pressure:             3.9 “W.C. (For Max Input)
>> 
>> Am I missing anything, or should I be able to hook the generator directly to the house supply without the regulator?  For the record, I tried it once with the regulator attached and it barely ran and didn’t put out any appreciable power.  I always meant to research this before I needed it, but like many of us, never got around to it until now.
>> 
>> Thanks,
>> Jim
>> 
>> 
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