The 10 Important things you should know when buying a Generator for home use

Lets see what are the factors you need to see when buying a Generator for your house. 👇

A small generator manufactured by HONDA

1. Type of Usage

• Continuous usage (Grid not available)
• Backup for Frequent Outages
• Backup for Occasional Outages
• Backup for Very Rare Outages 

• Depending on the usage you will need to do an evaluation of the generator against price, brand, features and the specifications. This will need a little bit of research and experience.

• Also not to forget that you need to be careful about your appliances too. (Ex: Sensitive electronic equipment, appliances with higher starting currents, appliances that could be kept off during outages etc)

Lets see what are the other factors you need to be careful

2. Power Requirement

• Determine what is your actual power requirement. (In some cases you may not want to run some of the heaters, refrigerators or air conditioners during a power cut) So make sure you don't pay additional for the capacity. (However if you want a hassle free system, you will need to rearrange the main distribution board with an ATS and few additional circuit breakers which we can discuss separately)
• Remember an under-loaded generator will not be super efficient. So Don't oversize too much. 👎
• Don't forget, Some of your appliances with induction motors drain few times of rated current to startup.

3. Voltage

• Some countries use 230V AC while some countries use 110V AC. 
• Also check whether your requirement is single phase or three phase.

4. Type of fuel used

Diesel : Though diesel generators are little higher in price they offer higher efficiency compared to gasoline generators. Therefore a diesel generator would be a better option for frequent usage.

Gasoline : Gasoline generators would be ideal for intermittent usage or under-loaded conditions. And they provide less noise and emissions compared to diesel generators. In general gasoline generators are mostly used when there is a smaller capacity requirement and not used frequently.

5. Cost

• Probably one of the most important, needless to say. Should be evaluated against the specifications, features, after sales service and the brand. (Brand of the alternator and the engine)

6. Power Outlets

See the type of outlets it give. Some smaller generators will give few 13A outlets while large ones will come with industrial socket outlets and even larger ones will come with open terminals to connect with lugged cables.

7. What else come with it

Some manufacturers provide additional accessories like cord set which will come in handy depending on your setup and application, Some do provide canopies along with generators.

8. Monitoring Options

Decide whether you need to monitor generator through wifi or even connect it to a BMS (Building Management System) or an EMS (Energy Monitoring System) for monitoring purposes.

9. Installation

Check whether your supplier provide installation facilities. This will depend on the country due to certain rules and regulations. However it would be wiser to get it installed by a certified electrician or a company.

10. Safety

• Transfer switch is a must. 😠 (Unless it is couple of small appliances you can connect with a cord without connecting to the main installation)

If you have frequent power outages it would be convenient to install an Automatic Transfer Switch (ATS). It will automatically kick on the generator and power your house. However this to be installed your Generator should support Auto starting feature.

• CO poisoning  can kill you. Never place a generator inside your house or even in a garage. Keep it outside. 
• Check what else comes as protection with the generator. (ex: short circuit protection)

Some other facts worth not forgetting,

11. Maintenance (You will receive a maintenance manual when you buy the generator, have a look at it)

12. Size, Portability

13. Canopy (If you live in a populated area and sound is an issue or your environmental conditions are bad like in a coastal area.)

14. Feedback (Always remember to get some feedback from users before buying. remember catalogs are given by the manufacturers. 😏)


FAQ

1. What if you connect a generator to main power supply accidentally (That is why I said ATS is a must 😡)
• This could result fire as well as damage to the generator including alternator, AVR(Automatic Voltage Regulator) as well as the engine. (generator can even run into motoring region and damage the engine)