Back up Generator

[BrettGC]

So you want to power everything in your house in the case of a brown/blackout?  Short of a major disaster there's probably not going to be a need for it.  Write a list of things that are essential for 6-12 hours, eg:  radio (for messages regarding disaster), fridge/freezer, lighting, cooking appliances if you're not already on gas for this etc then work up from there.

Here's a chart of approximate power requirements: 

APPLIANCE	WATTS		APPLIANCE	WATTS
Clothes Dryer	2,400		Television Set	75 - 200
Hot Water Service	2,500 - 3,000		Toaster	250 - 1,250
Iron	900 - 1,200		Washing Machine	500 - 3,000
Kettle / Jug	800 - 1500		Air Conditioner (Non-inverter)	1,000 - 2,500
Lights	25 - 200		Domestic Water Pump	See Electric Motor below
Radio	60		Electric Motor 0.25 hp* 0.5 hp* 1 hp* 2 hp*	187 375 750 1,500
Radiator	1,000 - 2,500		Welder, 140 Amp(Non-inverter)	5,000
Refrigerator	100 - 800		9"Angle Grinder	2,300

 

Another option is solar panels fed into Li-ion batteries. Reasonably expensive to set up but has the benefit of saving you on electricity all year around and can give you power for up to two days in the event of blackouts.  I'm not sure how readily available these systems are in PI though.  

 

 

 

 

[Dave Hounddriver]

8 minutes ago, BrettGC said:

Another option is solar panels fed into Li-ion batteries.

Agreed, but it is gets complicated.

Steve (AlwaysRt) has a nice system set up for back up and it is automatic.  It depends on batteries and can be charged from the mains when the power comes on OR from solar when its a sunny day OR from a back up generator when all else fails.

Problem is he had to do all the research and set up himself (and fortunately he shared his research and set up with me).  If you get a Philippine "make -a-buck" company to do that for you they will charge a lot of money and do not really know what they are doing as they do not have time and tech background to research the newest things and try them out.

So since the Op said:

10 hours ago, PaulB said:

me, who can barely put the plug in, 

I would say an easy to run generator is surely his solution.

[BrettGC]

7 minutes ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

I would say an easy to run generator is surely his solution.

True, I guess these things have been so prevalent in Australia for so long now I take for granted the expertise here and tend to project it.

[Dr. Shiva]

A good generator should have a power spike compensation build in. There are enough stories about bigger and cheap generators (3 to 6 kVA) not being able to handle the power on spike of a smaller (about 1 hp to 1.5 hp) non inverter AC unit.

[robert k]

If your power is really crap where you will be, consider a water cooled generator. Air cooled are efficient, for their weight, efficient for the cost of their engine but they are not efficient at KW per X amount of fuel. Water cooled are also much quieter. Not likely to walk off either. LPG would be my fuel of choice for low maintenance, no gummed up carburetors for the truly lazy who doesn't want to drain carbs after use or clean carburetors because they didn't. I should add that water cooled generator is a significant investment but if you use it a lot, it could be a smart move. Where my apartment is, we once had a 3 day power outage, we ate everything in the freezer over 3 days and I was considering going to a hotel, then the power came back on. Most of the power outages have been an hour or less or scheduled all day. Not really worth getting a generator while I can charge things up in the car or get a room in the city for 1k php a night.

Edited March 17, 2018 by robert k

[i am bob]

I agree with forgetting about a generator.  I don't even have a fridge anymore.  The caranderia cooks with gas, the sari across the street ices their beer.  And I know at least 3 of the closest 7-11 stores have generators so coffee, drinks, their food, just about everything is going to be the same.  I can even charge my phone there.  

[Gerald Glatt]

On 3/18/2018 at 10:08 PM, i am bob said:

I agree with forgetting about a generator.  I don't even have a fridge anymore.  The caranderia cooks with gas, the sari across the street ices their beer.  And I know at least 3 of the closest 7-11 stores have generators so coffee, drinks, their food, just about everything is going to be the same.  I can even charge my phone there.  

No wonder you lost all that weight walking across  the street for every beer.

[bastonjock]

To set it all up for an automatic change over you will need a Genny that can be started by battery

Next thing you will need is a local sparky who understands control's ,he will need to know about contactors with mechanical interlocks unless you want to blow your house up ,having a knowledge about voltage sensitive relays ,run on timers will help 

[Dave Hounddriver]

2 hours ago, bastonjock said:

you will need a Genny that can be started by battery

you will need a Genny that will start by battery. 

Many say they will but few will do it without screwing around with the choke and most have to have the gas line manually shut off and turned on again before starting.  If you don't then the eventually the gas starts leaking out, or such is what happened to me when I decided "I don't need to shut off no stinking gas lever".  Very expensive repair job because the gas leaked somewhere it shouldn't have..

Edited March 22, 2018 by Dave Hounddriver

[PaulB]

All

Thank you for the great answers. This is my reason for being on this forum. You get first hand, lived it, been there, knowledge and experience.

I am thinking I might work an extra month here and go Solar! more expensive but reliable and ongoing.

Thanks all.

 

Paul