Hookup at home, Part Two

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Maddie

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Jan 1, 2013
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My question is whether instead of drawing power from the house (which hasn't been a problem), whether in a storm I could reverse the procedure and run my generator in the coach to the house.
Several months ago we almost bought a 5500 for the house because we have occasional outages that usually don't last long but no toilet, etc.
Then we bought this new MH that has a great 5500 Cummins and just wondered if it could be used the other way.
We have the 220 outlet (inlet) to the house already installed but wouldn't know if this would be possible or wise or what kind of adaptor we would need.

Well when you quit learnin' you start dyin'....
 
I know it's possible because a friend of mine had an electrician wire something up in his home.  It's a special plug he has by his breaker box, but he has a cord that is run directly from his generator that goes to the house.  A good electrician should be able to hook you up.
 
i could be wrong but i don't think most motorhomes have any 220 outlets on them like a larger generator would. this would limit you to 120. what your house needs is a disconnect transfer switch that disconnects the power coming from the pole. this prevents backfeeding hydro out of the house to the pole possibly electrocuting someone trying to repair the outage. also prevents restored hydro from feeding to your generator causing damage. some switches are automatic or can be manual depending on what you install. best left to an electrician if you are not familiar with electricity.
 
It can be done, but not using the shore power cord and without a qualified electrician installing appropriate switch gear, it would be very dangerous. Better off to run in an extension cord from the outdoor GFCI outlet on the rv just to power a couple of lamps, or other small items.
 
this is true but he probably is running off the 220 outlet on his genny. unless you have a 220 plug in on your mh all you would get is a single circuit 120 which wont run much except a few lights and maybe your fridge. you install a disconnect switch and a subpanel in the house and rewire things like main lights, fridge, freezer, pump ect into the subpanel. when the hydro goes off , the disconnect shuts off the pole supply of hydro and directs the generator power to the subpanel. you can manually plug in the generator or have an auto disconnect and auto generator start installed. most of the houses we build have a generator system installed with the build so if the hydro goes off the disconnect engages and the generator automatically starts itself. when power is resumed the disconnect senses the outside hydro and shuts off the generator and reengages the pole hydro. like i said  a manual one can also be installed with a subpanel but you have to shut the disconnect off yourself and plug in and start the genny yourself. manual version is much cheaper.
 
Water Dog said:
It can be done, but not using the shore power cord and without a qualified electrician installing appropriate switch gear, it would be very dangerous. Better off to run in an extension cord from the outdoor GFCI outlet on the rv just to power a couple of lamps, or other small items.

NO! NO! NO! Do not hook up to any house wiring unless you have a transfer switch at the input to the house as you can feed back into the power line.  You can hook up to and individual appliance that is not plugged into the wall outlet.  Never feed power into an outlet unless disconnected from the power line.
 
Some RV generators can be hooked up so that they provide 220 but it is easy to screw it up and there would be serious consequences, loss of generator, fire, etc.  Think worst case electrical problems!. 
 
muskoka guy said:
this is true but he probably is running off the 220 outlet on his genny. unless you have a 220 plug in on your mh all you would get is a single circuit 120 which wont run much except a few lights and maybe your fridge. you install a disconnect switch and a subpanel in the house and rewire things like main lights, fridge, freezer, pump ect into the subpanel. when the hydro goes off , the disconnect shuts off the pole supply of hydro and directs the generator power to the subpanel. you can manually plug in the generator or have an auto disconnect and auto generator start installed. most of the houses we build have a generator system installed with the build so if the hydro goes off the disconnect engages and the generator automatically starts itself. when power is resumed the disconnect senses the outside hydro and shuts off the generator and reengages the pole hydro. like i said  a manual one can also be installed with a subpanel but you have to shut the disconnect off yourself and plug in and start the genny yourself. manual version is much cheaper.

I didn't see him at church on Sunday, but he lives across the street from me, so I'll ask him exactly what is needed, and about how much it should cost.  He travels a lot, but next time I talk to him, I'll update this thread.
 
A 5500 Onan doesn't have any 220 output. Depending on the exact configuration, it has either twin 30A, 120v feeds or a 30A/120v + a 20A/120v (the latter is most likely in an RV).  You could probably still feed the house main load center if a suitable isolation (transfer) switch was added, but no 220v appliances would work. No electric water heater, for example.  It's probably easier to run a couple extension cords from the coach and directly power the important things, e.g.  refrigerator. If its a long black-out, you might add a few more things, but it is usually a better idea to just keep the house fridge running to save food and move the people into the motorhome for the duration.

By the way, the venerable Onan Quiet Diesel 7500 (and the more recent Onan QD8000) don't generate any 220v either. You still get twin feeds that are roughly 32A/120v each.

 
most portable generators we use for construction have a 220 outlet. these would be in the 5000 watt range and up which is probably the least amount you would want if trying to run your house temporarily during a hydro outage. these would still only power the bare necessities. you can buy transfer switch kits for your house but unless you are familiar with electricity would strongly recommend hiring an electrician. not a job for greenhorns. worst case scenario if you want to use the mh genny just run a cord into the house directly to the fridge and maybe a few lights ect.
 
Do you suffer enough power outages to justify the expense of having an electrician wire in a transfer switch?  If yes, then do it.  And maybe one a year is enough to warrant doing so.....varies for everyone.

I have a 5000 watt contractors generator.  During power outages, I just roll it out of the garage and run cords in for the freezer and fridge.  Oh....I always toss a cord over the fence for my next door neighbor too.....great guy, and we help each other out. 
 
Regardign transfer switches for your house (Stick type).. Though I have a reason for not liking it there is a relative new auto transfer switch for house use on the market,  It goes between the commercial power meter and it's base.  Takes only moments to install, and in many cases the power company (Since they need to seal the installation anyway) will do it for you at no or little charge,,, You do have to buy the hardware, alas Not having a stick house any more I failed to bookmark the links to it.

Why I don't like it.

It transfers the whole house, no exceptions.  This is not all that much problem if your generator is big enough however...

When I wired my transfer case I only put selected circuits on it, What is more important than what I put on it is what I did **NOT** put on it.

The house had a short hall, perhaps six feet long, There was a light in this hall we almost never used as light from the rooms "Spilled over" into the hall.

That light was NOT hooked to the transfer panel.. So when power went out and I had to power the sticks and bricks off teh motor home (120 volt items only) I turned that light ON.. When it finally came on. Was time to switch back to mains.

Several hours later I could still hear generators running around me,  I was back on mains however.

I had the Emergency transfer panel installed as part of a general upgrade so the cost was not that great.
 
I highly suggest you have a proper transfer switch and second load panel designed for your home. Then you can properly hook your generator to the house. Like myself my stick and bricks is solar, hydro, and gas generator powered. Yes I've got city power to but in the winter its common to lose power for well over 24 hours and as long as 11 days.

Adding a second power source you must be protected with proper transfer switch and breakers because if city power happen to come on and back feed the generator you might find your RV in BBQ. Then the reverse could happen if the generator is hooked up and the city of wasn't isolated properly and service personal could get electrocuted.
 
Before you put in a transfer switch and sub-panel check out the GenerLink unit.

My brother had one installed in Ohio. If I remember it was about $300. In Ohio you get them installed by the power company.

If you have any questions, I have the spec sheets and install instruction in PDF but the files are too large to attach here.
 
Jim Godward said:
NO! NO! NO! Do not hook up to any house wiring unless you have a transfer switch at the input to the house as you can feed back into the power line.  You can hook up to and individual appliance that is not plugged into the wall outlet.  Never feed power into an outlet unless disconnected from the power line.
Jim, I think you misread Water Dog's post. He was saying exactly what you do, just run an extension cord into the house and hook up a few lights and things. That's all we do here, not really worth the full transfer switch setup.
What I have done to facilitate things:
If the freezer and fridge completely cover up the outlet, use a small heavy extension cord to make the male plugs available during an outage. When the power goes out, I can plug the appliance into the extension cord and keep the food from spoiling. Most fridges will be alright with a (3) 2 hour runs a day and keep the door closed, same for upright freezers.
Chest freezers are much better and can go a day at a time without power in a moderate climate.
As for the rest, I keep enough heat going to keep the pipes from freezing, and move into the 5th wheel and live in comfort :)
 
Maddie said:
...because we have occasional outages that usually don't last long but no toilet, etc.
It would be a lot cheaper, easier and safer to simply move into the motorhome during a power outage. If it is only going to be for a few hours then no big deal.
 
that's a new one on me. i wonder if it is available in Canada .they have installed smartmeters here in the last two years and bill you by the time of day that you use hydro. more expensive during high demand hours and less after hours like at night.  i think the ad is a little bit misleading as far as regular people wont know how to calculate the wattage reqd . i suppose with a little homework you can figure out the amount of hydro used by each item to know what you can run at the same time. some people would think you just plug it in and you can have  a hot shower while the turkey finishes cooking in the oven, you would still be limited by the wattage of your generator which is what the electrician calculates when he wires your emergency circuits into the transfer sub panel. that unit does sound like a simplified way to inexpensively wire your house for emergencies.i would think you still need a 220 outlet from a generator to run it though.
 

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