Generator Interlock kit questions

[dogwood]

What! Mets fans! I grew up on Long Island as a diehard Yankee fan during the Mickey Mantle-Roger Maris-Whitey Ford-Yogi Berra years. On the other hand you've both been very helpful to me here, which I very much appreciate, so I'll let it go. Thanks so much and good luck in the upcoming season. I must confess in a traitorous fashion as a kid, I did go to an Amazin' Mets game their first season at Shea Stadium.

Mike

 

[dogwood]

Are you off the grid then Village Idiot?

Mike

 

[Village Idiot]

Are you off the grid then Village Idiot?

Not off the grid, but off my rocker if you ask my wife. I do dumb things, and she rewards me with head shakes and eye rolls.

I live in suburban Northern Virginia. We don't lose power very often, but when we do, I want to keep my family warm. Actually, the primary reason I have generators is to power my sump pump and chest freezer. When it rains, our water table jumps up pretty quickly and preventing a flooded basement even once will save thousands of dollars. We buy our beef by the side and pork by the hog so the freezer must be kept running as well.

So, with the few times that I have had to use my generators, I know that I am way ahead of the game in keeping my family warm, dry, and well fed.

 

[semipro]

the primary reason I have generators is to power my sump pump and chest freezer.

Water powered sump pumps are available if you're on a public utility. Nifty idea.
Chest freezers will stay frozen for quite a while if you don't open them much.

 

[Village Idiot]

Water powered sump pumps are available if you're on a public utility. Nifty idea.
Chest freezers will stay frozen for quite a while if you don't open them much.

I have one of the water powered pumps. (I am a belt and suspenders kind of guy when it comes to being prepared.) It is amazing what it can do.

My kids know that they had better have a good reason to open a fridge or freezer during a power outage. Coordinated incursions are general rule. I grew up in an area where it was not unusual to lose power for over a week after a hurricane or other big storm and I have lived in places where electricity was on a few hours a day or not at all.

When it comes to being prepared for adverse conditions and making due with what you have, I was well raised. Being without power was always an adventure. We would get to toast marshmallows on the gas stove, use the propane lantern (heck, my sister gave us one as a wedding present), and keep warm with the fire. We didn't have the luxury of a generator.

I am sure some of you remember scrubbing out the bathtub and filling it with water before a hurricane hit since no power meant no water if you had a well. My mother had a waterbed and we would run a hose with a shutoff valve on it to the downstairs bathroom. We just had to remember the rhyme "If it's yellow, let it mellow, if it's brown flush it down." Good memories.

 

[dogwood]

Village Idiot, that's a good idea to fill the bathtub with water if you anticipate an outage. We just got our power back on a few hours ago after losing it for a day and a half following the snow and freezing rain storm we had here in SW Virgina. I'm guessing you and Brother Bart had the same same weather in Northern Virginia. Figures I hadn't had the opportunity to put in the interlock yet, so there were wires everywhere powering the refrigerator, freezer, furnace and some lights. Could have been way worse. So next time we're filling the bathtub. Excellent idea.

Mike

 

[Village Idiot]

So next time we're filling the bathtub.

Haha. Glad I was able to share a good idea. In the same theme of filling the tub for emergency water storage, I was given an AquaPodKit (look on Amazon) for Christmas. They are essentially plastic water bags that are the size and shape of a regular tub. Much more sanitary in my mind than scrubbing the tub and hoping you got it clean enough if you end up needing to drink/cook with it.

 

[KB007]

I use the tub mainly for other water duties (note I did not say doody). I keep a bunch of bottled water for human and pet consumption, as well the generator can power my well pump. In a pinch, if I had to I'd boil the water from the tub before using.

 

[Dr.Faustus]

I too have a generator interlock. I like it because i can pick and choose what i want to run. suppose i dont need hot water. I can shut that off and run other things. It was an easy install (although i have worked in my panel before) and i got lucky in that the appropriate spot was empty for the gen breaker. I added the inlet later on in the year (the same one velvetfoot posted a pic of) The whole thing took some thinking, rethinking, research and double checking. then triple checking. things like this you want to make sure you have right before you bust out the tools and get to work.

 

[velvetfoot]

i got lucky in that the appropriate spot was empty for the gen breaker.

I got lucky too because I had enough wire slack to move two breakers in that position.