Generators (Some information for Anchorage residents considering a emergency generator installation)
After about 4 weeks of hearing our recently install “whole house” generator come on once a week for its 20 minutes weekly test, it finally came on for real as all of Anchorage (and Bay Ridge) suffered one of our all-to-frequent power outages during the week of Jan 25th last year. I’ll have to admit, it was a good feeling knowing it was there to do the job and then doing the job well when it was “called on”. That feeling is shared by about a dozen of my fellow Anchorage residents who have units ranging from about 8,000 watts to 20,000 or so watts.
Service Line Upgrade: We (my wife and I) loss the battle with the public service commission and BGE. They did not feel that our frequent power outages in Anchorage were sufficient for BGE to pay for the service line upgrade necessary to support a “non essential” generator. As a result, we, like a few others in Anchorage, shelled out the funds for BGE to increase the pipe size of the service line coming from the street to our home, and for a new higher capacity meter. The generator we selected, resulted in a flow rate of gas needed for all gas users in the home, higher than the ¼ inch (inside diameter) line supplying gas to our homes in Anchorage. While it is true that all gas appliances wont be on at the same time, BGE calculates the requirements as if they will be, and that they will be operated at full load!! I do not have every one’s information, but a price range of $1700 to $3500 for the service line upgrade seems to be the general range for Anchorage homes. Generally speaking, lower wattage generators (around 8000 watts) will not require service line upgrades!
Aside from this upgraded service issue, the answer most people who are considering automatic emergency generators installations are interested in is, what is the total cost going to be Like most things, it depends! The major factors involved are, the size selected, the location of the unit, the number of household circuits you want to be powered during a power outage, and your contractor. The following is some information hopefully helpful to those considering emergency generators.
Size of Unit: If you want to just insure that you will be able to pump water from your well, run your furnace, run your basement sump pump, do limited cooking, and have selected lights and TV on, then a 8 kilowatt unit would be about right. A unit that size runs in the range of $2500 to $3000 just for the generator. If you want to be able to have your air conditioner operate and have essentially all of you home circuits available to operate, you are probably going to need a 12 to 18,000 watt unit. Their costs are in the $3500 to $4500 price range. If you have a gas cook stove, then cooking is not a problem during outages. However, an electric stove with numerous burners and oven on, is a very large power draw. The two primary manufacturers of household generators are Kohler and Generac. Both manufacturers have excellent websites for additional information. My research and discussions led me to a Kohler 18,000 watt unit.
Number of Circuits: Most generators are generally sold with a power transfer switch and a separate circuit breaker box. You will be asked by your contractor what house circuits you want to be powered by the emergency generator when the BGE power goes out. As a general example, an 8000 watt generator is usually sold with an 8 or 10 circuit panel box and transfer switch. When your emergency generator system senses the BGE supplied power go off, the emergency system sends a signal to the emergency generator to start and in a few seconds when it is up to speed, the power transfer switch transfers power to the selected circuits from being powered by BGE to being powered by the emergency generator. Of course with particular circuits on, you can always plug into an “active” receptacle with an extension cord and power up some additional items in the house.
With the larger generators (usually 12-15,000 watts and above) you have the option of changing out your entire panel box and connecting all of you home circuits to the generator. This means that everything in your home can be operated with the generator, but some discretion must be used not to overload the generator. For an example, you might not be able to operate all of you cooking stove burners and oven, your washing machine and air conditioner at the same time, but you will be able to run them selectively. A whole house panel box and transfer switch will run (the material cost) of the installation up by $500 to $1300 dollars and also increase the installation labor costs. In discussing installations with several Anchorage residents, those who have chosen a lower wattage generator with a limited number of circuits, I have found they are pleased with their decision. Two recent installations (including mine) included the whole house panel box and transfer switch. Both of these installations are very satisfactory to the homeowners.
Location of Unit: Primary factors influencing the generator location include, cost of the gas line run, proximity to electrical panel box, and noise. The gas line location can significantly influence cost and should be discussed with your plumber. A separate gas line will probably have to be run from your gas meter location to the generator location. The line can be run through the home or in the ground outside the home. The generator is connected via several wires to the circuit breaker/transfer switch panel box. The closer the generator is to the circuit breaker panel box the lower the cost. Noise is a consideration, and, it is reasonably accurate to say that most of the generator installations wind up being towards the bedroom end of the home. However, they are reasonably quiet, but there is no doubt that you know when it is on!
Generator installation, startup and wiring: The generator is usually set on a synthetic material base on a bed of stones. An automobile style battery is placed in the generator cabinet and the system is electrically connected to the new circuit breaker box and transfer switch in the house. Cost: $600 to $1500 depending on how many circuits are involved in the installation. Fundamentally, if the new system detects loss of utility company supplied power, it sends a signal to the generator engine to start using the automobile battery power, and in a few seconds, sends the generator power to the “chosen” circuits via a transfer switch. When the system detects the availability of utility company power restored, the transfer switch shifts the “chosen” circuits back to being powered by BGE and the generator is directed to shut down.
Most installation companies will provide a yearly service contract. This usually includes a careful inspection, change of oil on the generator engine, change of air filter on the engine and a check of the battery. The battery is on a trickle charger at all times to insure it is ready to start and run the system for the weekly 20 minute automatic test runs and when the utility company power is lost.
General bottom line: An 8000 watt generator with 8-10 circuit breakers, not requiring a service line upgrade will run in the range of $5-6000. A 15-18,000 watt (all circuit) system that may require a service line upgrade will run in the range of $9-10,000. (If you do not have a gas dryer, multiple gas log fireplaces, and/or gas cooking stove, you may not need a service line upgrade. Therefore, the cost would be more like $7-9,000 for the whole house capable 15-18,000 watt generator installation)
If I can answer any questions about generator selection, installations or contractors, please feel free to call me at 410 267 6537 or cell 443 822 4770. Dick Schoeller
PS Our decision for selecting a larger unit capable of running our 4 ton A/C was “vindicated” when we (part of Anchorage) lost power for 24 plus hours last summer.