Whole house Generator for Home?

Bridog

Bridog

Well-Known Member
Oct 4, 2006
4,961
Gulf Shores AL / Brick NJ
Boat Info
2016 19SPX OB
Engines
Mercury 150 4S OB
Not boating related but I feel many of you here might have some pertinent and valuable input. Natural Gas has just been run into our development and I’m curious about your thoughts. We live in a high risk area for Hurricanes and think it might be a good investment. Any brands better than others? Generac seems to be the brand of choice here, but we’re open to suggestions from those who had them installed. Costs for annual maintenance? Would you buy again? Installation concerns? Noise levels, Etc...Etc...
Thanks, Brian
 
I have family that lives at Tahoe. They lose power all the time and love their Generac. Turns on instantly. Don't know about maintenance, but they would certainly buy again.
 
Great! Had one for years . Oil change every year , can’t remember doing a tune up. Very quite uses little fuel. Will not live without one.
Cost depends what size. U do not need one that runs everything at once since that never happens here. 2 ovens , magnetic cook top, 2 fridges and deep freeze. Central heat and air. Never had a issue and I have 2 200amp boxes.
 
I’ve had my Honeywell (same as Generac with Generac motor) only 3 years so no issues yet. I hear annual maintenance is about $125 for oil change and valve adjustment. I just do it myself. It exercises once per week for about 15 minutes. The newer ones run less and have a moisture condensation problem in the crankcase in cold climates because they do not run long enough to heat up enough. That can be programmed to run longer. Also I throw the transfer switch once per month and run the house on it so it works a little. The weekly exercise is at reduced rpm and no power production.
I wouldn’t be without it. We travel quite a bit and it is piece of mind for heat and the freezers. Like everything else now, it texts us when it runs, when the power goes out and when it comes back on.
 
My uncle has a 17kw Generac unit. Works great except it wasn't specd out right whoever did it because it cant run the central air. Just make sure they give you the correct size for your house based on the load. Other than that its quiet, starts up automatically once a week for like 10 minutes as a test. I do the maintenance on it for him. Just oil change once a year. Spark plugs, air filter and a new battery every few years. Its a twin cylinder lawn tractor engine.
 
I just had a 30KW diesel Generac Protector series liquid cooled unit installed at the house; in fact it was fueled up the first time today. We do not have NG in our area and a large enough propane tank simply couldn't be buried; I wanted 4 days of run time at 50% load. Originally, I looked at a 20KW diesel unit but some of the house's load needed to be shed which also needed to be automatically done. If I'm gone and the generator cut's in on a power outage the excess load has to be removed automatically or the genset could trip off line. So, by the time I added the load shedding capabilities and all of that wiring it really ended up being about the same cost as a whole house 30KW unit. The unit is comparatively quiet; much quieter than the air cooled units. Probably due to the generator runs at 1800 RPM vs the air cooled units running at 3600 RPM. It has a Perkins 2.2L turbocharged intercooled 4 cylinder engine. It's just really big.
Plus I figured if I buy this generator we will never have a storm that requires it........
IMG_4836.JPG
 
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ttmott said:
I just had a 30KW diesel Generac Protector series liquid cooled unit installed at the house; in fact it was fueled up the first time today. We do not have NG in our area and a large enough propane tank simply couldn't be buried; I wanted 4 days of run time at 50% load. Originally, I looked at a 20KW diesel unit but some of the house's load needed to be shed which also needed to be automatically done. If I'm gone and the generator cut's in on a power outage the excess load has to be removed automatically or the genset could trip off line. So, by the time I added the load shedding capabilities and all of that wiring it really ended up being about the same cost as a whole house 30KW unit. The unit is comparatively quiet; much quieter than the air cooled units. Probably due to the generator runs at 1800 RPM vs the air cooled units running at 3600 RPM. It has a Perkins 2.2L turbocharged intercooled 4 cylinder engine. It's just really big.
Plus I figured if I buy this generator we will never have a storm that requires it........
View attachment 87539
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Holly S$&@ Batman, that’s a generator.
 
That's a big dang generator! I think if we every build or buy new house, especially if I retire close to the coast I would get a whole house generator. For now this is my power backup plan - and this little guy has saved the bacon (literally) several times already this year.

IMG_1804.JPG
 
RBB said:
Great! Had one for years . Oil change every year , can’t remember doing a tune up. Very quite uses little fuel. Will not live without one.
Cost depends what size. U do not need one that runs everything at once since that never happens here. 2 ovens , magnetic cook top, 2 fridges and deep freeze. Central heat and air. Never had a issue and I have 2 200amp boxes.
Click to expand...
What size is your unit? Ours must be able to run Central AC plus electric water heater, grinder pump, electric range and all the other stuff. I was thinking 22kw unit.
 
We lose power 2-3 times a year. We live in an old neighborhood with a tremendous tree canopy of old oak and ash. With every strong storm some come down. A month ago we lost power for 2.5 days. Worse off a neighbor three blocks away died when a tree fell on his house. The 1 day outages I can deal with. The last one caused a three fridge loss of food. Thinking about a Generac. Approximate cost of a 20kw installed?
 
JimT said:
We lose power 2-3 times a year. We live in an old neighborhood with a tremendous tree canopy of old oak and ash. With every strong storm some come down. A month ago we lost power for 2.5 days. Worse off a neighbor three blocks away died when a tree fell on his house. The 1 day outages I can deal with. The last one caused a three fridge loss of food. Thinking about a Generac. Approximate cost of a 20kw installed?
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Hard to say; a lot depends upon the installation location and fuel source. Assuming you are installing close to the house power meter and circuit breaker panel and close to a NG meter then I would guess between $9 and $10K with an automatic transfer switch. If you have to shed load and would need that to be automatic then add another $3k; or install a propane tank $?. Many Variables are in play which will add to the installation costs. Another important thing to consider in selecting a brand, just like boats, is having several certified service centers in the area.....
In our area a lot of homes have Kohler or Briggs & Stratton as well as Generac and they are most either propane or NG air cooled units.
 
Bridog said:
What size is your unit? Ours must be able to run Central AC plus electric water heater, grinder pump, electric range and all the other stuff. I was thinking 22kw unit.
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22KW generac here with natural gas. Wouldn’t change a thing. To AC units and it will run the entire house. If you have an electric water heater, one of those instant ones, that can draw a ton of power but otherwise buy it an don’t look back. Right now Generac has a 7 year warranty on parts and labor. The new units come preinstalled with a gadget that alerts you and the service provider if there are any issues. The app does that as well. Mine runs every Wednesday for about 2 minutes and I get an email, text and app alert that she’s ready to go. The batteries are supposed to be changed every two years. I do mine yearly. The one time I didn’t it died when I needed the unit. Know I keep a spare in the gag the and trickle charge it.
Down in Florida a 22KW will run you around 10K fully installed. The units itself is only around 5K but all the permits, gas and electric add up.
Good luck, holler if you have questions.
 
JPGator said:
22KW generac here with natural gas. Wouldn’t change a thing. To AC units and it will run the entire house. If you have an electric water heater, one of those instant ones, that can draw a ton of power but otherwise buy it an don’t look back. Right now Generac has a 7 year warranty on parts and labor. The new units come preinstalled with a gadget that alerts you and the service provider if there are any issues. The app does that as well. Mine runs every Wednesday for about 2 minutes and I get an email, text and app alert that she’s ready to go. The batteries are supposed to be changed every two years. I do mine yearly. The one time I didn’t it died when I needed the unit. Know I keep a spare in the gag the and trickle charge it.
Down in Florida a 22KW will run you around 10K fully installed. The units itself is only around 5K but all the permits, gas and electric add up.
Good luck, holler if you have questions.
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Perfect! I have someone coming to house Monday to discuss.
 
JPGator said:
22KW generac here with natural gas. Wouldn’t change a thing. To AC units and it will run the entire house. If you have an electric water heater, one of those instant ones, that can draw a ton of power but otherwise buy it an don’t look back. Right now Generac has a 7 year warranty on parts and labor. The new units come preinstalled with a gadget that alerts you and the service provider if there are any issues. The app does that as well. Mine runs every Wednesday for about 2 minutes and I get an email, text and app alert that she’s ready to go. The batteries are supposed to be changed every two years. I do mine yearly. The one time I didn’t it died when I needed the unit. Know I keep a spare in the gag the and trickle charge it.
Down in Florida a 22KW will run you around 10K fully installed. The units itself is only around 5K but all the permits, gas and electric add up.
Good luck, holler if you have questions.
Click to expand...

Same setup here minus the remote monitoring. I concur would not change a thing. My wife wasn’t thrilled about the cost, but she sure didn’t complain when the power was out for five days during hurricane Harvey.
 
Quote came in at 9850.00
22 KW Generac, pad, meter, transfer switch, new gas line etc. I think he said they cost about 120-130 a day in Natural Gas to run. Does that sound about right?
 
$120-130 in dollars. Can't be that much. Maybe in cubic feet of NG.
 
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