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Message
re: Whole House Generator
Posted on 9/5/21 at 5:25 pm to Gold Tiger
Posted on 9/5/21 at 5:25 pm to Gold Tiger
How much do they cost to run?
1
Posted on 9/5/21 at 5:37 pm to Gold Tiger
Myself, parents, and in-laws all had generac 22kw installed last year. Ran like a charm for storm. 7 days in total. I checked oil daily on all 3 and gave them a couple hour break every morning. I bought all 3 for $5400 with transfer switches included. Poured my own slab and pulled my own wires. All in for mine Was below $8k
Posted on 9/5/21 at 5:51 pm to Gold Tiger
Kohler
NOT Generac (if under 20kw)
Cummins and Cat are very good also, but you don't see too many at houses.
Buy a liquid cooled if you can afford, the air cooled units work great, but you have to baby them a little bit.
Keep FULL SYNTHETIC oil and filters on hand.
Do not let the installer place the unit too close to your house. They have a diagram in the instructions showing the offset.
Keep a carbon monoxide alarm inside house near generator.
NOT Generac (if under 20kw)
Cummins and Cat are very good also, but you don't see too many at houses.
Buy a liquid cooled if you can afford, the air cooled units work great, but you have to baby them a little bit.
Keep FULL SYNTHETIC oil and filters on hand.
Do not let the installer place the unit too close to your house. They have a diagram in the instructions showing the offset.
Keep a carbon monoxide alarm inside house near generator.
This post was edited on 9/5/21 at 6:07 pm
Posted on 9/5/21 at 5:53 pm to footballdude
I think the Generac is fine as long as you stick to a water cooled model.
Posted on 9/5/21 at 5:55 pm to sec13rowBBseat28
quote:
I think the Generac is fine as long as you stick to a water cooled model.
Liquid cooled Generac's are ok.
The bigger the Generac the better.
DO NOT BUY AN AIR COOLED Generac.
DO NOT BUY A Generac under 20kw.
Posted on 9/5/21 at 5:56 pm to footballdude
Agreed.
Posted on 9/5/21 at 6:01 pm to Gold Tiger
I paid $9000 for a 22kw Generac and install in March 2020. There was an 8 week wait time to get it installed. I imagine the cost is probably $15k+ now since demand is literally never been higher, and wait time 8-12 months.
Posted on 9/5/21 at 6:02 pm to cssamerican
quote:
How much do they cost to run?
For Gustav I think it was about $20 per day. About $100 total for 5 days. My electricity is usually about $7 per day
12kw Air cooled Kohler on Atmos natural gas in Ascension Parish, running whole house and 4 ton central A/C. Running about 20 hours a day.
I am expecting about $25 per day for Ida?
This post was edited on 9/5/21 at 6:04 pm
Posted on 9/5/21 at 6:07 pm to Gold Tiger
Buy 3 inverters and 3 window units and spend the rest on coke and blow
Posted on 9/5/21 at 6:10 pm to footballdude
Right now I’m running a 11kw gas generator. It’s using just a little less than a gallon an hour. We are running three window units, refrigeration, and lights. No water heater or other appliances.
This is expensive to run.
This is expensive to run.
This post was edited on 9/5/21 at 6:13 pm
Posted on 9/5/21 at 6:43 pm to NoSaint
Never run and air conditioner.
Posted on 9/5/21 at 7:03 pm to pwejr88
Bookmarked
Posted on 9/5/21 at 7:05 pm to tigerinthebueche
quote:from what I have read, the quality has gone down at general the past few years and they contain a ton of plastic parts. So the newer generals are failing while the older generals are just chugging along.
People who say that generac standby generators are crappy, don’t have a standby generator.
Actually, the people I’ve heard saying Generac generators are crappy had Generac standby generators.
Posted on 9/5/21 at 7:07 pm to Gold Tiger
I am almost done building a 2800sq ft home. For a 22kw natural gas powered generac installed with all accessories was 10,700$.
Posted on 9/5/21 at 7:10 pm to Gold Tiger
If you have a good electrician and plumber.
Buy the generator and ATS yourself
Pour the slab and set it yourself
Hire the electrician to make the electrical connection
Hire the plumber to make the NG line connection
You will save money doing it this way:
Buy the generator and ATS yourself
Pour the slab and set it yourself
Hire the electrician to make the electrical connection
Hire the plumber to make the NG line connection
You will save money doing it this way:
Posted on 9/5/21 at 7:11 pm to 756
quote:
I would suggest you get a water cooled unit
This
Posted on 9/5/21 at 7:16 pm to footballdude
Liquid cooled is the way to go
With that said, the people bashing air cooled Generacs are the ones that think you can set it and forget. You can’t, they need some babysitting. It’s pretty damn easy to babysit though. Shut it down once a day for 1-2 hours, too off with fresh oil, and keep the sound panels off during the day and you won’t have problems. Make sure it gets serviced once per year. I’d bet 90% of the time you’d be fine with an air cooled generac if you followed those steps.
With that said, the people bashing air cooled Generacs are the ones that think you can set it and forget. You can’t, they need some babysitting. It’s pretty damn easy to babysit though. Shut it down once a day for 1-2 hours, too off with fresh oil, and keep the sound panels off during the day and you won’t have problems. Make sure it gets serviced once per year. I’d bet 90% of the time you’d be fine with an air cooled generac if you followed those steps.
Posted on 9/5/21 at 7:27 pm to pwejr88
quote:
Buy a $1,500 generator
If you see a whole house generator for 1500 it’s gonna be 30 years old
Posted on 9/5/21 at 7:33 pm to TigerTatorTots
Yeah, there are so many Generac air cooled backup generators out there these days that you hear of the failures a lot more.
Just left a 22KW in NOLA that is on 7 days straight with one break for an oil change. Full synthetic 5W-30. No modifications to normal living either.
Just left a 22KW in NOLA that is on 7 days straight with one break for an oil change. Full synthetic 5W-30. No modifications to normal living either.
Posted on 9/5/21 at 7:37 pm to Blutarsky
quote:
If you have a good electrician and plumber.
Buy the generator and ATS yourself
Pour the slab and set it yourself
Hire the electrician to make the electrical connection
Hire the plumber to make the NG line connection
You will save money doing it this way:
Depending on the municipality in which you live, you will need to get a plot plan, riser diagram, project plan and submit all that to the permit office for approval. In EBR, that takes 2-4 weeks. If there is a problem in the plan, you have to amend it, etc. etc. Chances are high that you will also need a new gas meter, which won't happen until you have everything installed and inspected. Sometimes it's better to have a company that is experienced with the process do it for you. They know how to grease the wheels. I stopped doing it years ago because I don't have the time or patience to spend days playing phone tag with inspectors, etc. etc. Just my observations.
As for Generacs, my dad and I installed one at his house post Katrina (2006) and it has worked like a champ for 15 years. This go round it ran low on oil, but the sensor shut it off before any damage could be done.
If you can get by with a couple of window units and you are willing to line dry your clothes, you can get a good portable generator with an inlet connected to your main panel.
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