Whole house generator pricing

[Rusty Heap]

This unit looks sweet for $1K, and is fuel injected! never seen that option before so no Carburetor Issues.


https://www.costco.com/generac-8,500w-running-/-10,000w-peak-efi-generator-with-electric-start.product.100646706.html

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by rfuerst911sc

A few weeks ago we lost power for 21 hours . Anyone living in the south knows how fun that 21 hours were ! There is something to be said about comfort . My wife and I are 65 and at a point in our lives where comfort is something we enjoy .

Me dragging out the Honda 3000 generator and running extension cords up the stairs from the basement has lost its joy . I am now just trying to get the most bang for our buck . Power outages are not going to magically disappear and we are not going to get younger .

Says the guy who just dropped over 20K for concrete

By all means DIY, but pay James (redbeard) a small consulting fee or buy a unit from him and get all the advice you need.

I love it when someone chimes in about the transfer switch. With all the posts on all the forums (tens of 1000's), duh.

Richard, I installed my own transfer switch. To pay an electrician a grand plus parts seems like a good deal. If your propane outfit is doing 100% of the gas work IDT you need to worry about finger pointing.

[rfuerst911sc]

Milt I shopped around for the concrete also . My wife and I worked hard to be able to retire early . I lean towards frugal with our money . But when you have to pull the trigger it is what it is .

But you make some valid points and I appreciate the feedback . I am waiting on one quote and then will make a decision. I am leaning towards being the QB and assist with planning and completion of the project . I talked with an electrician yesterday that could be my last piece of the puzzle .

[rwest]

Originally Posted by rfuerst911sc

^^^ No by piece meal I mean me being the job coordinator . So I call/schedule and pay my propane provider to install the proper size lines and regulators .

Then I purchase the generator of my choice . Then finally find/hire an electrician to wire it all up . With the proper ATS switch .

By doing it this way it looks like I can save about 5k . That is vs just hiring one company to do everything . By hiring one company turn key if anything goes wrong they are responsible .

By doing it piecemeal if anything goes wrong there could be a finger pointing exercise for blame . That's where I am at , making that decision .

good thing there has never been a contractor that leaves their customer high and dry when a big problem happens!

There is no guarantee that you will be better off with one contract than if you are the general, I say go for it and save some money and get what you want.

Another thought is getting a diesel generator so you are completely off grid if needed. Gas seems to be more reliable that electric, but you never know.

[zakthor]

Trick is finding an installer who is less of an idiot than you. There's actual people that are competent experts and will save you time, money and convenience in the long run, but sure as heck won't find them without examining their prior work.

As far as I can tell around here the competent people simply don't do residential. Its just idiots trying to charge a lot for a little bit of work.

[rfuerst911sc]

I have considered diesel but it seems most I find online are ex military and 3kw to 6kw which isn't enough to power an entire house . A diesel that produces 17-20kw is physically a behemoth and doesn't fit a residential look .

I think I am smart enough to coordinate the subcontractors but before I pull that trigger I need to think about this a little more . I am taking in all the feedback here and forming my game plan . Thank you

[stevej37]

I found this in my email box today....

https://links.menard.mkt1946.com/servlet/MailView?ms=MzUwMDE0ODAS1&r=Mjg5OTEwNzgxNDE4S0&j=MjQ0MzY5Nzg2NQS2&mt=1&rt=0

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by rfuerst911sc

Milt I shopped around for the concrete also . My wife and I worked hard to be able to retire early . I lean towards frugal with our money . But when you have to pull the trigger it is what it is .

But you make some valid points and I appreciate the feedback . I am waiting on one quote and then will make a decision. I am leaning towards being the QB and assist with planning and completion of the project . I talked with an electrician yesterday that could be my last piece of the puzzle .

Did you see that was in green?

Yes, put the gear in place and get fuel to it. Then get sparky to wire up what it will handle. That's the main thing, having things sorted out so you know what breakers to turn back on after the genset is up and running. Labels are very important even if you do an auto transfer switch. If you are saving money, skip that. Turn your breakers on as needed. Less turned on the longer it will run.

You also might want to run 120v back to the unit for a trouble light and a trickle charger. Someday you may need a battery charger out there. Always nice to have an outlet wherever there is equipment. It's a requirement for pool equip and A/C units inside and out.

[red-beard]

I'm not sure you can get the electrical done as cheap as you think. The issue is where the transfer switch is installed vs. where the generator is installed.

Around here. You have to notify the electric company you are installing a generator and transfer switch. They want the make and model and which electrician will be doing the install. They have to send out someone to pull the meter during the transfer switch installation.

One other thing, you will need to get Soft Starts for your Air Conditioners. And even with 20kW, you need to be careful on electrical usage. Don't use an electric dryer or an electric oven/stove if the Air Conditioners are running.

https://eltwin-hyper.com/

[Zeke]

At around $230 ea., those soft starts seem like a good thing to have. I could see using those generator or not. Do they strain the starting caps?

[rfuerst911sc]

Milt yes I saw the green . I had just come inside from handling 2000 lbs of rip rap stone and I hadn't had time to cool off . No issues here .

Red beard the transfer switch will be installed aprox 20 ' from the generator . It's funny/odd/concerning ? that NONE of the 3 generator companies that gave me quotes talked soft start on the AC . One did suggest one be used for the electric water heater .

[rfuerst911sc]

I took a baby step forward this morning by dialing 811 for cable locator service . Regardless of if I coordinate this work or contract out to one company I want to make sure where lines are before trenching .

I think I know how the main power cable and phone lines are based on common sense . But common sense is not good enough for me when power trenching is needed . It looks like they will come out next week . Stay tuned 😉

[red-beard]

Originally Posted by Zeke

At around $230 ea., those soft starts seem like a good thing to have. I could see using those generator or not. Do they strain the starting caps?

They actually reduce the strain on the whole system. If you have light flicker during a start, this will reduce/eliminate it. They are nearly essential for a generator. The only thing better is buying a true Variable Speed Air Conditioning unit. 2 speed units are also very good with generators since they usually start on the "low speed" setting.

They should be built into the units! Just like the "hard start" capacitors. If installed during manufacturing, you might add $150-200 to the cost.

[red-beard]

Oh, back to one of the original questions. Generac, Kohler and Briggs and Stratton are all equal. Just match the transfer model switch to the unit.

On the Transfer switch, make sure it is a "Service Entry Disconnect", which means a breaker on the TS on the utility side. It is a good way to test the unit to see if it is working properly.

Once you have your propane tank, now is the time to re-think electric water heaters, electric stoves/ovens and clothes dryers.

[rfuerst911sc]

Redbeard my AC/heat pump is a 2 speed . Would you still recommend a soft start ?

[ltusler]

Minneapolis area, Generac 26KW, 10 year warranty, 3 year maintenance, transfer switch, 15k all in. I was surprised that they now have dual fuel built in for natural/propane gas. Also has a app that I can see its status and error codes and such.

[red-beard]

Yes - Soft start. I have a soft start on my two-stage.

[red-beard]

Originally Posted by ltusler

Minneapolis area, Generac 26KW, 10 year warranty, 3 year maintenance, transfer switch, 15k all in. I was surprised that they now have dual fuel built in for natural/propane gas. Also has a app that I can see its status and error codes and such.

They are all Propane/NG. There is a valve you turn to set the fuel type.

[rfuerst911sc]

RB please check your PM . Thanks

[rfuerst911sc]

Mother nature must be pushing me for a generator 😁 . We lost power at 5:15 due to a tremendous amount of lightning and it just came back on . So we were lucky it was only down for 1.5 hours .