bapple

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What else will this plant make besides fertilizer? Or what else can the ammonia be used for?

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One of the potential technologies involves co-firing the ammonia with coal and cleaning up emissions. I don’t know the full ins and outs of that process but Asian countries have very large coal power plants and see the utility in getting this ammonia, hence their desire to help fund the project.

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I've anecdotally heard of Kohler being a more reliable engine, but one dealer mentioned Kohler is "smarter," as in there is more technology in the generator and transfer switch.

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I own a Honeywell (Generac) and know most of the functionality of my transfer switch. I looked up the datasheet of a typical 200A Kohler auto transfer switch (ATS) and have a few observations. Link below:

LINK

1. The ATS has a small LED display on the front to show error codes for different types of errors. The Generac doesn't have that but may give error codes through the motor screen or on the control board inside the ATS enclosure. Either way, the Generac won't give you error codes unless you open something.

2. The Kohler ATS allows you to exercise your generator with or without load, meaning, rather than just run the motor, it can also transfer to your house and put load on it. The Generac ATS only transfers during an outage unless you wire a separate switch on the "sensing" wire. For me to run my generator loaded, I have to go flip the switch I wired in.

3. The Kohler exercise cycle is 20 minutes instead of 5 minutes for the Generac. I'm not sure how quickly an air-cooled motor gets up to speed but it runs longer.

4. The Kolher ATS allows you to adjust the delay settings with an optional accessory board. I'm not sure how much control is really needed for a residential application but you can have it start the engine and transfer more quickly than a Generac. Standard delay settings on Generac are 5 seconds to start engine after loss of utility, and 5 more seconds to transfer (10 total). According to the datasheet I'm looking at, you can have the Kohler started and transferred in less than 5 seconds but not sure why you'd want to.

5. The Kohler has an optional alarm module and utility surge protector. These aren't standard but I doubt they are add-ons with the Generac ATS.

In my personal experience, I like having a Generac for universality of parts. About 75% of standby generators on houses are Generac and most service companies can work on them and keep spare equipment in their trucks. I would say Kohler is #2, Cummins #3, and Briggs & Stratton #4 (just my personal opinion). But as someone else has stated, if your preference is Kohler I think it's a safe purchase. Doubt you'll ever have issues.

Hope this helps. :cheers:

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He was likely talking about how efficient they are…

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Agreed if this is what he’s referencing. Replaced an R22 reciprocating compressor unit a new R410 scroll compressor unit (Rheem 14 seer) and it pulls 1/2 the current of the old one. The old one regularly pulled around 15-18A depending on temperature outside. The new one usually stays below 10A but typically runs around 8.5A. Amazing leap in efficiency.

I also agree with a previous poster who said new units are larger. I imagine the newer ones have a lot more surface area on the coils to transfer heat better.

Completely agree that seeing a 32kW liquid cooled unit on the side of a 2000 square foot house always makes me giggle. That is a massive over budget on what is needed. Air cooled ones are fine for standby duty. If they’re looking for prime duty, a liquid cooled would make sense.

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If money is no object, sure a liquid cooled 1800rpm machine that is sized so that the steady state house load is about 75% of the machines rating is optimal.

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The tricky part is that there is not a big difference in price between the higher capacities and the mid tier stuff. I have a 22kW Honeywell and will never get above 50% loaded but I also can add on to my house and have extra capacity to cover for it. There’s also the fact that most places regularly stock the higher capacities but not the middle ones so lead time could also play into it.

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They need to be building a new nuclear plant. Riverbend is getting old.

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I agree but we are probably at a minimum 5-10 years out on a true nuclear buildout. SMRs are the new thing and have a ton of potential but need time to standardize abd construct. That will take a while.

Gas is the cheapest energy we have outside of coal right now. But with how far behind we are with China on building new power stations it wouldn’t surprise me to eventually see a tech company stand their ground a build a new coal generator for it’s reliability and cheap cost. Coal plants can also store months worth of fuel on-site. Modern scrubber systems have cleaned up their emissions significantly.

But can’t be having any of that “cheap” and “reliable” energy for our state.

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Whats the running load of the heater with the heat strips on?

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This. You need to get a worst-case scenario number with the heat strips and blower motor running. Then you can start your calculations for generator sizing.

If you get a propane furnace, you can easily power it with that small inverter generator. Just make sure to bond the neutral and the ground so you don't have a "floating neutral" and it'll run.

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Check the springs to make sure they haven't lost tension.

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+1. This is the most common that I've seen. I installed my own garage door springs so am comfortable using the torquing bars but the spring can stretch out over time. Usually just one extra 1/4 turn is enough to make it continue and not stop when opening.

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Why is everyone so afraid

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Creating barriers to prevent unwanted people from getting close to the beings that I value the most in my life? Yea, that's crazy talk. I'm with you. :lol:

Is is nat gas? Diesel? Propane? Liquid cooled?

Lots of details needed. Most people manage just fine with an air cooled unit since it’s emergency duty only but if you can swing a liquid cooled they don’t burn as much oil and can run for a longer duration. But more maintenance is involved since there is a radiator and cooling system as well. Up to you to make the determination.

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I have a 2015 Ram and it has a similar feature where it “knocks out” some of the cylinders for better fuel economy. I’m not mechanically inclined so idk how it differs from a Chevy? My Ram has 120k miles on it and I haven’t had any issues.

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I'm assuming you have the Hemi V8? I'll admit my ignorance to Mopar V8s but I imagine the cylinder deactivation is similar to the GM V8s.

If it's actually a V6 I have even less of a clue. Maybe someone here can chime in.