Transfer switch for generator

I had a retired electrician do one for me. $500 in labor plus the cost of materials (power inlet box, interlock kit, appropriate gauge power cable from genny to inlet box).

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I would do a lockout kit and 30A plug instead of a transfer switch, then you could pick what circuits you want power to.

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I would think that would be the easiest and least expensive route to go, and what I did at my house (well I should say I had a electrician do it).

I have the main breaker box outside (with a disconnect switch from Entergy) that supplies the inside breaker box that has all the individual house circuit switches. I added a separate outside box with a disconnect switch that accepts the power cable from my 5500 watt honda generator and connects to the main outside breaker box below the Entergy cutoff switch. I disconnect from Entergy before switching to generator power. I trip the inside fuses for water heater and A/C and run the whole house on generator power. Only takes a few minutes to switch the home power source. I use what is known as a 'suicide cable' to get from generator to the separate outside switch box. I understand electrical circuits and somehow I've avoided suiciding myself the last 18 yrs.

My neighbor is an electrician who helped with wiring which took about an hour. The 2 outside boxes were a couple hundred total.

If you go to an electrical supply store and tell what you want to do, they can explain how, sell you the needed parts, and even suggest an electrician who could do it. I did the changes after Katrina and it was a great decision.

I had an electrician come by last week to work me up a quote for my 6250 watt generator. He said an interlock switch would be more cost efficient, but he had to check. My breakers are in the garage and I want to run a conduit to an outside wall of the garage. My main disconnect is at the back of the house.

What determines if an interlock switch will work or not?

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I have space for a 2 pole breaker, but my main breaker is at another location. I don't know why they do this up here.

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Its code, it just started down here. Have to have a main disconnect on the exterior.

You could replace your main disconnect with a manual transfer switch and just put a 30A or 50A receptacle below the switch or where ever you want for your generator. You would have to manually switch it over and turn some breakers off if you wanted to do something like that.

LINK

I got my quote for a 10 circuit transfer switch, conduit to outside wall and outdoor plug in for $2,291. It was more than what I was expecting.

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I have a 5700kw generator

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OK, I'll be that guy... at nearly 6 megawatts, you're going to need something a bit beefier than you'll find in the bins at Home D.

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quote:I have a 5700kw generatorOK, I'll be that guy... at nearly 6 megawatts, you're going to need something a bit beefier than you'll find in the bins at Home D.

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I am aware that my 5700 watt generator will not run the entire house. I’m just looking for an option that is more efficient than having extension cords running through the house.

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I would do a lockout kit and 30A plug instead of a transfer switch, then you could pick what circuits you want power to.

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This is the way. Mark the breakers you want to keep on now so that when you lose power, you're not trying to find em. Interlock kit is code compliant (in most applications). The only thing you may need to re-configure is your panel if you dont have enough spaces for a 30A breaker (not a hard fix).