back feeding your electrical service.

[xjjunkie]

need some advice on this one.
in the process of building a house, out in the contry-5 acre wooded lot. not the first place the snowplows or electric company comes. anyway need to deside if backfeeding the service box through my 22 welding plug in the garage with a generator when poer goes out is a good idea, or should i lay down the 200/250 bucks for a trannsfer switch. some preople say just turn off the main braker then fire up the generator and
some say no way it's not safe to do it that way and shoukd be done by a transfer switch. any input....

thanks, scot

 

[5-90]

If you're going to pop for the system, do it right and get the transfer switch. You may overload your welder socket trying to feed backwards thru it, and you are still going to have to deal with the breaker panel anyhow.

If you are building, all the better reason for doing it right in the first place! Considering what it would cost for major electrical repairs if something goes awry, the transfer switch is a bargain!

5-90

 

[Glenn B]

Gotta do it with a switch. You need to disconnect completely from the grid.... linemen and their families would appreciate it.

 

[Eagle]

Another vote for the switch. It's required by the electrical code. The problem with relying on the main disconnect is that someone could inadvertantly flip it one while you're using the generator, and while the guys are working on the pole outside on your street.

What you have in mind will work, but could cause problems when you get your electrical inspection, and could cause problems with your insurance down the road. Much better to do it right. The transfer switches are not expensive -- prices have dropped tremendously because demand for them has risen.

 

[Ivan]

Here's what we (PG&E) have to say on the issue of generators...

Generator Info

 

[Matthew Currie]

I add the vote for the proper hookup, especially if you're building anyway. Check out Northern Hydraulics and similar outfits, which have pretty good deals on the switches. Since you'll be building anyway, there shouldn't be much additional labor or problem putting it in. What's a couple of hundred bucks absorbed into the cost of a house over the long run?

It is possible to backfeed safely if you absolutely and always remember to disconnect your main breaker. But if you forget you could fry your generator, electrocute a lineman, and get sued for more than you're worth.

The other problem with backfeeding is that you will never know whether or not your power is back on unless you turn off or disconnect your generator and switch back over (or if you can see a neighbor's lights). A double-pole switch allows you to do this with the generator still running. Another alternative is to get a transfer switch box that powers selected circuits without disconnecting others. These are actually often cheaper than the simple main switches. This is especially good if your generator is not powerful enough to run the whole house. You can switch the lights, furnace controls and refrigerator and the like and leave out things like water heaters, dryers, ranges, etc. This setup also makes it easy to monitor when the grid power comes back on.

An additional advantage of a proper hookup is that you will be able to run the generator easily between emergencies and make sure it is ready to go when you need it. If it's a safe hookup you can delegate the job to others too, and ensure that wives, kids, etc. can power up in an emergency when you're not home.

Of course I'm a fine one to talk. I've been backfeeding my tractor-powered generator through the dryer outlet for 15 years! But I cannot recommend this to anybody else, especially if there is a chance someone unversed in the procedure might start it up. If you choose to do this, don't trust anyone but yourself, and define a strict order in which things are always done. You can't afford to let your attention lapse. Remember, that if you backfeed it is ABSOLUTELY, 100 PERCENT, NO-SECOND-CHANCES IMPERATIVE that you remember to disconnect the main!

 

[seanR]

I did what you were planning on doing once. I lived waaaaaaaay out in the boonies, literaly the last house on the line. I had a Gen in my barn and fed the power back to the house using the CB panel in the barn. I thought it was a good way to do it, but an electician friend of mine told me differntly one day when he saw hat I had done. He was strait to the point when he told me and there were no questions when he was done "explaining" to me!

Do it right, you might kill someone if the switch were to be turned on while using the Gen. Not to mention what it will do to your Gen. and appliances.

 

[Matthew Currie]

On reflection, here's another way to look at it. A backfeed is like a gun. Safety is relative, but if you don't feel comfortable leaving a loaded gun on the kitchen table, don't backfeed.

 

[seanR]

Good responce!

 

[Faux4X4]

Does Pa have meters that spin backwards like Cali? Or check out gorilla solar for more info about getting off the grid.