Any electrical engineers in the house?

I have a large gas powered portable generator that powers all the outlets in my house through a transfer switch. Is it safe to run my 65" tv and modem straight out the wall outlet?

I've heard so much about the "dirty" electricity that gens put out but I didn't know if the "don't run LED tv on a generator" was still a thing or if the tech had advanced enough to not be as sensitive. Champion says that the "total harmonic distortion" of my generator is 12-20% whereas an inverter generator is typically around 5%.

I'm torn between spending the money on an Online UPS double conversion system to protect my tv and modem/router or just buying a cheap $100 pawn shop special tv and rolling the dice.

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Posted by weadjust

Member since Aug 2012

15480 posts

Posted on 9/6/20 at 7:26 pm to SpeckledTiger

If your running a modern refrigerator you are already running something with control boards and electronic sensors. The fridge is probably more high tech than your modem. I would plug in the tv and modem and let er rip.

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Posted by Volvagia

Fort Worth

Member since Mar 2006

52353 posts

Posted on 9/8/20 at 12:52 pm to SpeckledTiger

quote:
Champion says that the "total harmonic distortion" of my generator is 12-20%

Jesus.

That’s an exceptionally big number as for as electronics tolerance goes.

I definitely would consider getting a quality UPS to protect high dollar items.

Also be aware that as already meationed, there are a lot of hardware in your house that is prob microcircuited to hell.

Not saying to replace a perfectly working generator....but if protecting your electronics is a concern you might want to make THD a consideration in your next purchase.

In the meantime I’d use quality UPS to isolate sensitive circuits (TV, computers and routers if high end....modem shouldn’t be affected) and try to limit the number of big AC motors running at the same time. Your AC and variable compressor fridge can add a lot of additional noise to the generator’s baseline.

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