Generators

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marcat
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RE: Generators

Post by marcat »

Rickw the correct formula is amps X volts(X 2.5 to 4). Electric motors require more to start up than they do to run. That 2.5 to 4 is kinda a bunch of guess work that only an electrical engineer can do. Best to go with 4 when deciding on a generator to buy.
MarCat
rickw
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Re: RE: Generators

Post by rickw »

marcat wrote:Rickw the correct formula is amps X volts(X 2.5 to 4). Electric motors require more to start up than they do to run. That 2.5 to 4 is kinda a bunch of guess work that only an electrical engineer can do. Best to go with 4 when deciding on a generator to buy.
MarCat
Thanks, I didn't take into consideration the start up amperage requirements for the pump. I realize that more amps are required to start the motor (pump in this case), but I didn't think it would be 2.5 to 4 times the amperage. A 5kw generator with a surge of 6250w will output 22.7 running amps of 220v with a surge of 28.4 amps. All I know for sure is that a 5k generator will run a 2hp pump (I checked mine and it is a 2hp instead of 1 1/2hp like I stated before). I ran the pump this way for almost a week in 2004 and 2005 with no pump problems so far. Anyway, when I get around to getting a whole house generator, I'll probably go overkill like I do on everything else; got to keep the ac running.
Bamboo Outlaw
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RE: Generators

Post by Bamboo Outlaw »

Type of pump has a lot to do with it also. Jet verses submergable. Water table depth. A pump has a pump curve it runs on. Tank pressure, piping size, all this effects these centrifical pumps. Depending on where your system runs on the curve makes a huge difference the amps pulled. Wire resistance. What size wire from your breaker to the pump combined with distance. If your motor is already seeing low power due to wire size and distance and add a generator that bogs down due to low surge power you may never see the pump motor spin up and recover on start up. The thermal overloads take out my motor on the one well. Therre is a little more to it than a single simple formula off the net. The same princiles apply at home as do the large pump/motors we have in the industrial world. You have to look at you entire system curve.Rules of thumb are out there to get you in the ball park. The reason they are used is because they work MOST of the time.
Steve Carter
Carter Bamboo
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cell (979)665-1897
Brazoria, Texas
marcat
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RE: Generators

Post by marcat »

Key work "MOST"
Actually I got those numbers from my generator manual.

MarCat
Flashburn
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RE: Generators

Post by Flashburn »

I was looking up some generators last night on the web. Man they cost bucks.

big bucks at 10k watts +


Not a lot to choose from either.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Gentron-PRO2-10000- ... dZViewItem

says J.D. motor I would want to know that is in fact a john deer. price ir right tho

Gentron makes a smaller unit in the 7500 range. aslo
JeffreyDV
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RE: Generators

Post by JeffreyDV »

I picked up a Coleman 5500 watt generator and a transfer panel off E Bay last year. The whole package cost me under $1000. The transfer switch panel will power 6 circuits and not back feed the power grid. The generator is a pull start unit on wheels I keep in the garage. Thankfully I haven't had to use it but I feel better knowing I can have heat, lights, kitchen appliances, and of course the internet if the power goes out. I was most concerned about the heat after hearing about all of the ice storms in the midwest last Winter. I have two small children, 5 and 2 and this setup up gives me piece of mind.
Jeff
rickw
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RE: Generators

Post by rickw »

I didn't get the PIE formula off the internet, it came from one of the seldom used folders in my brain. It was one of many formulas that is stuck in my head from the Coast Guard Aviation Electronics school in 1980-81.

NorthernTool.com has some pretty good deals on generators. 16kw standby generators complete with a 100a transfer switch for $3700 and 6kw portables for $700. If you catch the 10% off sales at Home Depot and Lowes, you can also get some good deals on bigger generators.
dudley
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RE: Generators

Post by dudley »

bought a generator just for my well b4 we built our house. it was stolen by the pool contractors crew in 2000 but by then we had electricity. have not needed a generator since, thankfully.
if i had a generator it would have been sitting unused for eight years and probably wouldnt start if i needed it.
"Plants are people just like us"
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RE: Generators

Post by boonut »

I waited... and waited... hoping for the electricity to come back on after the hurricane (Dolly). The day I purchased a generator, the power came back on after I plugged in the TV and fridge. I got a $350 generator from Pep Boys... it is a 3500 Watt UST generator. I let it run to get all the fuel out and then put it in the garage. It started and worked just fine with the limited things I plugged in. I also had a high power fan plugged into it.

Glad I have it now. Hopefully, we won't need it for another 49 years.
Allen D. Aleshire
Bamboo Nut Farm

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dewman
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RE: Generators

Post by dewman »

I found this product and it looks safe.

http://www.generlink.com/about_generlink.cfm#
Dewey
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