In my humble opinion, 50 amp inlet box & interlock switch are the way to go, regardless of the current size of generator(as long as gen has a 50amp receptacle).
If the generator has a less than 50A output breaker then you can still use a 50A inlet to your house panel. The generator breaker will trip instead of the 50A and still protect your generator and wiring. 30A plug for the generator and 50A connection for the house is OK.
Wow, you crushed it! Thank you for sharing your knowledge and doing so with great accuracy and clarity. Super impressed and we thank you for using our products in your demonstration.
Carefully consider future needs when deciding this. A couple of years back, I had a tiny, cheap little generator but still got a 50 amp transfer switch and cord, because I knew I might eventually want more power. Sure enough, I just bought a bigger generator this week, because now I want to be able to run my new heat pump when the power goes out. The most expensive way to do this is to buy too little the first time, then have to rip it all out and redo it when your needs change. Size all this stuff to whatever the maximum amount of power you can ever see yourself needing, even if it is massive overkill for your current generator.
Great video. Explained very clearly. People also need to understand that most portable generators are neutral bonded. Important to remove that bond for feeding a home this way all ground and neutrals are only bonded at the first means of disconnect. I found and removed the bond on mine. I keep a make plug zip tied to the generator with a neutral to ground jumper in case I want to use the generator out in the field for powering lighting, tools, etc. i just plug in the jumper in that situation.
Great advice. I did the same on my generator. Finding the bond can be tricky. On some it is at the power head others in the outlet area. I have a HF 7,000W genie, the bond was at one of the 120V receptacles. The generator is pretty heavy so I don't intend to move it around but figured I'd make the jumper plug just in case the need every arose.
Always go bigger just in case. But in my case the 30 was the smart easy fix, all I needed was a 30 amp inlet box. The previous owners had a 30 amp 240 for a suntan bed. So all I had to do was move the breaker up to the top right side for a lockout. Remove the 240 outlet and pull the wires to the crawl space and drill a hole through the block into the garage. All I had in it was 20$ for a new inlet box.
We have an inverter generator with both a 50 and 30 amp plug. The Generator (Genmax 9000 IED) only puts out a Maximum of 32 amps, but it can be tied together with an additional generator to get the Full 50 amps in the future, so I was thinking that installing the 50 amp would be best. Thanks for the tip of using 6 gauge wire 👍.
I'd like to mention an issue I had with my generator during my outage here in Houston recently. I plugged in a portable A/C into the 20 amp outlet. The portable A/C was pulling 9 amps and kept tripping the gfci. It was the only thing on that plug and the cord was rated at 15 amps. Found out later that some newer appliances will trip gfci, regardless of the amps being used. When I moved the portable ac over to the non gfci 30 outlet, everything worked great. This issue happened using the outlets on the generator with extension cords only, and not via the home install.
Houstonian here also.. my fridge would trip my GFCI, so I went out and bought a 3-to-2 prong conversion plug (little over $1) and use that anytime I run it to my generator. Works like a charm. Not sure if this could potentially cause damage if something were to go wrong but I ran it like that for a combined total of 2 weeks (both storms) and had 0 issues with either device.
GFCI's are an absolute joke. They are an additional safety if something shorts and will generally trip faster than a breaker, which is why they are utilized. They go bad CONTINUOUSLY and are expensive!
@@jonathanvigil8526 The point of grounding metal appliances is so that if they have a ground-fault, then electricity will take the ground path instead of going through a person to ground! Grounding is required even if you bypass the GFCI (don’t).
THANK YOU! I take delivery of a DuroMax 9000ih this week, get my MicroAir soft start tomorrow, have an interlock kit installed and each time I open RUclips I see a very helpful video from you that answers questions that arise in getting this set up to run my 3 ton A/C. Thanks very much. Really well done without all the useless blabber on SO many sites.
Thanks for the good info. You have a gift for explaining things. You don't trip all over your sentences looking for the right word to explain something. Keep up the good videos!
The question should be about what you need during an emergency. It should not be everything in your house unless if you are going with a whole house generator. You can go big, but you also need to have the fuel on site to keep the generator running through the emergency. If you have natural gas, sure go whole house, or have a good sized propane tank, and automatic switching does have its advantages. But for a portable generator, you have to feed something that may need 1 gallon of gas per hour at a 50% load(12 KW). If you have a large load(well pump, electric stove, ground sourced heat pump, resistance heating, big AC unit), then you need big power to start it, but if you don't have that or need that, then keep it basic. My storage is 27 Gal of gas which combined with my planned generator usage should last a week in winter or summer. If I had that 12 kw generator, that would cover 2-3 days with my usage of 4 hr in morning and 4 hr at night.
Yes, it is best to run a #6 wire from inlet box to your breaker (or transfer switch) . If your generator is only 30 amps, when you UPGRADE to a 50 amp generator, you will already have the wire installed.
All of us commenting just run inlet, #6, 50amp inter lock, a quality whip line, and power it up. Customers, gotta put the safety in and idiot proof it.
This tutorial is very clear and concise. I watched it a second time as I get closer to ordering parts, and I suggest one more thing to consider when making a decision: Observe your household power consumption over the seasons, and really get a feel for how much power you've used, and how much power you'll need in a grid-down situation.
If I may suggest that you give the names of these connectors because when you are purchasing the power outlet box 30A/50A they have a description on them for each application. For example, the 30A connectors are NEMA14L-30P/L14-30R. Which is the connector that has one of the prongs that is shaped like an "L" facing inward. The 50A connectors are called NEMA14-50P/SS2-50R, the female end on this chord or connector has the "L" shape prong facing out. You have to match the connectors. It took me a while to figure this out. I visited websites to get the low down. Thanks for the content I liked the video!!
A good rule of thumb is to install the largest sockets and plugs, use crossover cables to interconnect if needed, ie. make a cable with 8Ga wire with a 50 socket to go to the house and 30 amp plug to the generator. When you buy a either a replacement, or buy a larger wattage gen set, simply replace the 30 amp plug with a 50 amp. Or have both cables so you can use the larger gen for the house, gotta keep the wife happy, and the smaller into either a adu or garage to keep pipes from freezing or wnat to simply keep working on a project!
Very kind of you. Really glad to hear you are finding value in the channel. God Bless and thanks a lot for taking the time to leave that feedback! Means a lot.
Any store that sells a generator should know this. 2 box stores and not even basic answers to my simplest questions. This clip makes me want to ask more questions…so I’ll watch additional videos.
Thanks for breaking it down to where I can understand the normal running watts vs the peak watts . The generator I’m hooking up does have the 50 amp outlet built into it but it’s a tri fuel gas being the highest wattage 7500 (normal operation) and 9400 peak by. So I will be using the 30 amp box to connect to my home so I can have some backup power
I have a similar situation, but is there a reason why I couldn't use the 50amp outlet on the generator and connect it to a 50amp input on my panel with a 50amp breaker installed? (thanks for all of your great videos. you have taught me a lot!)@@tomschmidt381
great video, think its fine based on 70 amp example you have but if I have a 30 amp, 9,000 peak watt generator and a 30 amp but 7500 watt receptacle, would that be a problem? given that the generator has more wattage than the inlet box ?
Great videos thank you. I currently have a generator that only has a 240-volt 30-amp outlet I am going to install an inlet box. I was thinking about upgrading my generator in a few years to a larger one with a 50-amp power supply. Can I install a 50-amp inlet and just run my current generator with a 30-50amp adapter until I purchase another. Or could that cause a problem? Thanks again.
I would really like for you to do a good video on tri-fuel conversion kits for generators. I really can't find a good one that explains things as well as you.
When I was putting in a generator interlock on my last house, I wanted to have a 50w outlet outside, but the big box stores in my area only stocked the 30w boxes. If you can get a 50w box, go with that and keep a 30w to 50w adapter on hand as most generators only have a 30w outlet at most. Be prepared beforehand because the govt. isn’t going to save you when it really counts.
Excellent explanation between the 30 and 50 amp circuitry. I do have a question about the math why do you use 240v in the denominator and not 120v since mostly all electrical loads operate on 120v ?
4 Questions: 1. What is the maximum length 50amp cable I can run from my house to the generator? 2. Can I connect two shorter, 50amp (25ft each) cables together to go 50ft? 3. When running a 50 amp unit, what gauge grounding rod cable do I need? 4. What is the maximum length cable I can use to earth ground the above? I would actually like to use a car jumper cable if possible. Thanks!!!
Actually as a Licensed CA. Electrician a #8 cable is fine at 6’ with the same connectors shown above. But to go over’ then I would agree with all the above. The same rule for the distance from the Breaker to the Alliance connection box. The actual NEC allowance for #8 wire is much longer than 6’ but the 6’ to 12’ cord is very hard to find. 25’ might be the next standard length, but in my opinion that is too long for #8 on a full load. The main reason I say 6 foot is due to some people wanting to go 25 foot with #8 for an EV charging extension cord. Which have different rules that apply due to the high continuous amperage load.
i just went from 30 to 50 amp and let me tell you i love it a lot more before i could run anything but my 220 i could run the stove or the water heater but not both at the same time. but we lost lights and i was out of town and my brother in law came over started it and flipped the switch. but forgot to turn off most of the 220 stuff and when i got home a couple hours later my old lady was drying clothes and the water heater was still on and she was even running the A/C. and it would never do that on the 30 amp. not saying i would do this every time. but its nice to know it will.
For the sake of being future proof, can you install a 50A box, but use a generator with a 30A outlet and use a 30A to 50A adapter? That way if you upgrade your generator in the future to 50A, you don't have to redo your inlet box and wiring again.
Adam, I really appreciate your videos. I really try to do a good job of researching things that I need to do before starting. Sometimes it’s hard to do the correct research if you don’t know the question to ask. With that being said I don’t blame anyone but myself but I really need your help locating a male 4 prong 50amp receptacle box to replace/install below my breaker box for my generator connection! I bought a suggested 3 prong 50amp box 2 weeks ago from amazon but all of the 50amp cords I’ve found locally have 4 prong connections on both ends. The generator connection for the 50amp is 4 prong and a 30amp on it is 3 prong. This is confusing to me but that doesn’t take much to do. Because of my disabilities and lack of tools and hard to find wire, which caused me to spend at least an hour and a half carefully stripping it from a cable, it took me 4 days sporadic work to complete! Not a lot of money but a lot of fortitude! I’m not sure if I can return this because I already installed it but I need to find a replacement now, if possible please!! GOD bless!
I replied to your first comment but now I’m confused on what you have. Did you install a 50 amp power inlet box or a 30 amp? If it’s 50 then the male end of the cord should have 4 prongs on the male side for the generator and 3 holes on the female side for the power inlet box. If it’s a 30 amp power inlet box then it will be 4 prongs on the male side and 4 holes on the female side.
Question - When running Liquid Tight Conduit From the Service Panel to the Generator Box. Do you need some type of Wire Strain Relief or just loose as it comes from the Liquid Tight Conduit Connector to the Boxes? My Setup is using 3/4" Liquid Tight Conduit with 90 degree connecters on each end. Yes, I screwed them into the panel and box properly with the nuts provided.
Hi. Wonderful videos. You are very clear and understandable. I really appreciate that. Here is my question. I have a 60 AMP Breaker installed because I power my Tesla EV. Do I need a 60 amp breaker for my generator as well? I believe so, but just wanted you to confirm/explain. Again, thanks a million...
I have a 5500 watt generator.. when plugged in to my 30amp service it can only run lights in the with maybe a fridge it has a hard time doing that... thank you for the great video...
This doesn't make sense. A 5500 W genset should have no problem running many lights, multiple fridges, TV, router, chargers, and even a heavier load or two like an air compressor, window aircon or portable aircon, well pump or sump pump, etc. Is it possible there was some other large load on that you hadn't noticed? Like maybe an electric water heater?
Excellent overview. I have installed a 30 amp box since my gen is 7000 max. I thought about installing a 50 amp so down the road I could upgrade to a larger gen. Is there a converter plug/adaptor that would allow my generator to hook up to a 50 amp box? Thanks!
Great video! Question: I want to have whole house back up for the rare power outages. The inverter kind is less powerful and far more expensive, but given that I have a gas furnace and refrigerators with control boards, some people seem to think they are necessary. Can I get away with a generator with higher THD or do I really need an inverter to run modern appliances?
great stuff sir. i learned a LOT from you. one question, could i put the generator on its side for storage or during transportation from one site to another?
I went with a 30 amp plug and a 50 amp manual Gen transfer switch. I do not need to run everything and with my generator+27 gal of stored gas, I can maintain the house for a week with my planned usage pattern. What I can't do is run the electric stove, electric clothes dryer, or whole house AC unit. In an emergency, I should not need those things. Note: backup cooking is a propane camping stove. If NG for heat runs out, there is 20 gal of Kerosene in storage for a Kerosun heater.
8 gauge THHN has a rated ampacity of 55 Amps, baring de-rating due to conduit fill calculations. 6 gauge THHN ramps that up to 75 amps which is overkill for most installs; I would consider #6 for longer runs but most of the time the generator inlets tend to be quite close to load centers, in the case of interlocks, or transfer switches. Buy once cry once and make things future proof; I usually recommend a 50 amp receiver as you can hook up a 30 amp plug via an adapter and you’re set if you size up in the future. I’m an electrician though and my time is about the same for north so the small cost increase in materials between 30-50 is a small drop in the bucket in the grand scheme of things. Anything over 7,500 watts should have a 50 amp receiver, otherwise you’re wasting generator overhead; that is unless you’re running other things from the generator while it’s hooked into the house. You should also do your calculations based on 250, not 240 volts, as 125/250 is actually the standard numbers.
I have a 30 amp inverter generator, but decided to go with a 50 amp inlet for greater durability and to expand to a 50 amp generator should I decide to use one of those in the future.
@@BigTone-S10 I have it here on my desk. It's the POWSAF Model: RV5050A-01. It has diagnostic lights on it to tell you the quality of the power and if the circuit is hooked up right.
I love your videos! Thanks so much, Bro! So, my generator is 30 amps (4500 watts) but my future plan is to get a larger generator (12,000 watt) 50 amp. So, can I go ahead and install a 50 amp receptacle to my home and then use a 30 amp adapter plug for now with the 4500 watt generator and then my home will already be set up for the 50 amp generator down the road. That will work, won't it?
Yup. You can always have the larger 50 amp rated wire and box installed and run a smaller generator on it but can’t do the opposite and have too small of wiring and box and run a larger one. Hope that makes sense. It’s good to plan ahead like you are. Thanks for the feedback!
Awesome break-down of the differences, thank you! Just curious, I'm looking into buying a Predator 9000 generator from Harbor Freight with a running wattage output of 7,250W, which would put it at 30.28333A. Would it still be safe to run a 30A power inlet box?
After you connect the correct gauge wire from the plug, how do you connect the wire in the transfer panel? Do you use wire nuts on the supply wire to the wires in the transfer panel? Do you use Burndys? I wish there was a bar with better connections than just 2 large wires that need to be connected. I have a reliance transfer panel system.
Generator cords, 50 amp, to connect generator to power inlet box. Is there a difference between a generator cord and a RV cord , to connect from generator to house ? Are they interchangeable? Some cords on female end have a twist lock, others have a threaded female ring ?
Get a cord with the connectors that match your application. The wire gauge should match, too: it’s based on the type of wire, the insulation (heat rating), and the maximum current capacity at a given distance (AMPS or Ampacity).
Love your videos!! If I am not sure which box to go with (30 amp vs. 50 amp) would there be any problem with just going with the 50 amp box? I figure that way I'm covered no matter what. The 50 amp might cost a little more but the difference in price is negligible. What do you think? Orlando R.
Thanks for the wealth of info you share. Very well explained. I would like to take on the job of installing a power inlet box and an interlock myself. I am new to Florida, and I don't know if I am allowed to do the work myself and have it inspected. Eliectrician wants an awful lot of money. ( what should be an average cost to do such an installation?)
Electrical stuff can scare people, as it should because of the hazard. It takes planning to design your own system. Asking a electrician to look over what you have may be a good investment for 1hr of labor and depending upon your budget and needs.
@@HowToHomeDIY I am having a 50 amp inlet installed. What I got from your video is the max amount of watts is 12000. So I’m guessing if I got a generator that can run at 12000 watts and peaks at 15000 watts would be a bit of waste correct? Great video and thanks!!!
Hello. Thank you for your helpful videos 👍 My question is, if it's possible to install the 30 Amp power inlet box in conjunction with a manual transfer switch, with the purpose of being able to connect and disconnect the power cord extention cable when generator or power station are not in use? 🤔
Thank you for this great video. Question: I am connecting an Ecoflow Delta 2 + extra battery(1800W) (Surge 2700W)(120V) To a 30A Reliance MTS. Will a 50’ 12-gauge extension cord be adequate to connect the two?
Great channel. I learn. Question: Why is my green light staying lit on my gfci when I trip it? There are two switches on same circuit (light switch above sink and garbage disposal). No other (outlets) on gfci just two switches. Line and load (seem to be correct) and even when I remove switches from gfci light still stays on when "tested." No power but light stays on. Odd.
In the video you said your system could run both generators at the same time. Did you mean in parallel or how you wired the inlets? Could you explain more or do you have another video showing how you did this. I just subscribed!
I have another video that kind of touches on it. But I have a power inlet box with interlock kit for my large generator and a 30 amp transfer switch for my little one. So if I want to run both I just hook up my little one to the transfer switch, transfer the power from the utility side to the generator on the transfer switch and it pulls everything on the transfer switch out of the main circuit. Hope that makes sense.
@@HowToHomeDIY it does. I didn't realize you had a separate transfer switch. Thank you for the reply. Your videos keep popping up on my feed and you are definitely one of the best when it comes to anything DIY home related. Didnt even realize I wasn't subscribed. Thanks again man.
my gen. is DS 13000 EH i have my 50 amp cord and my 50 amp metal Box what i like is you said # 6 is better than #8 on wire now i have to get brother in law to fix it up
hey, Thank you for all your content, it's huge for peeps like me, that know very little on currents, power etc. I'm curious, why are you dividing by 240 instead of 120 to determine the amps? I'm dealing with a Cargo trailer conversion and will only use 120 and 12v for my operations. Should I still use 240 when determining the generator and amp inlet? or should I go with 120. I was leaning toward 30amp, but if I buy a 4000 watt gen and use 120 it comes up to 33.33, which is too much for the 30 amp serv inlet. thanks a bunch
My generator has a 220v 20 amp receptacle on it. If I were to install a 30 amp inlet box on my house would it be ok to make a cord with a 20 amp male end for the generator and a 30 amp female end for the inlet box? Also, in your opinion would a 4000 watt 20 amp generator be enough to start and run a typical 1/2 hp deep well pump?
Great vid! I have a a 3.5 ton AC with a micro air soft start. About 27 amps start 11 run. I need a generator that can run that unit, a fridge/freezer and a deep freeze. I would like to add light but those are my must haves. How big of a generator would I need? I have been looking at the Duromax 13000kw tri fuel and the amps on it are 35 out of 50 with natural gas(which I want to hook it too). Thank you
How big of generator you'd need could only be known once you calculate how many amps you need for your situation. My only suggestion would be to look at getting a soft start kit for your fridge/freezer, which allows the appliance to start at lower amps, but make sure it's appropriate and suited to your particular appliance.
I can run my 4 ton AC with a soft start with a Champion 7200 watt generator. I even ran the oven with it for a short period, but I would not recommend that as it strained heavily on adding that load. The in rush on the 4 ton is about 20 amps. It ran my pool pump, lights, and two refrigerators. Certainly some light dimming and straining when the AC powers up. An inverter generator would be better but they are expensive.
@@bhbaker220I have a Wgen9500/12500 will this run lights, water heater, outlets, refrigerator, Freezer and stove? I want to add AC but I have two units covering 4500sqft. Thanks for any advice
@@garyponder7139an electric hot water heater typically consumes 4000 watts to 5000 watts so I would say don’t attempt that. If the stove is a cooktop with multiple burners, I would only use one burner as these are large electric consumers. My oven draws over 4000 watts, so I would typically not attempt running it unless it’s the only thing I’m running. The lights and refrigerator/freezers should be no problem. Things like blow dryers, shop vacs, air compressor could throw you over the top so I would not run them. You might be able to run both AC units if you have a soft start on each and don’t try and start both at the same time. Remember that the higher the load on the generator, the more distortion you’ll have which is bad for sensitive electronics unless it’s an inverter generator.
Thank you for your very good info great video can you tell me how to connect the AC unit to the transfer box ? I have separated the 30amp breaker from my regular subpanel is located in front of my house in the main braker hope you can help me with this
Question: I currently have a 30amp inlet box, 10 awg wire, and a 30amp transfer switch. I just bought a generator with a 9400 watt peak and 7500 watt running. The generator has both a 30 and a 50 watt outlet. If I only use the 30amp outlet, is that OK to use with my current set up to the electrical panel? Also if the running watts are more, like 12,000 in this video, would it also work on my set up if only the 30amp outlet was used? Basically what I'm asking, using the 30amp outlet regardless of the watts produced, does that outlet limit the watts sent from that outlet to a that of what is safe to be used for a 30amp setup? Thanks for your help.
Great video, so my question is. I have a generator that runs all three (gas, propane, and natural gas) highest is 9500 with 12500 starting. Natural gas is 7500 with 9500 starting. With this, would a 50amp breaker be ok if I decide to run natural gas. I might use the others, but natural gas will probably be my main source.
Thank you. I am looking forward to getting a portable Battery Powered charging system to power my whole home or most of the home without using the Air Conditioner Mini splits. I have been looking into the EcoFlow system the Delta Pro Ultra. It seems it can go up to 90wh would that use a 30 amp plug or a 50 amp one Thanks
Question for you: I want to install a power inlet box outside, but the most likely time I'll need to use it is during a storm - do them make one that is rated to having something plugged in to it during rain? A while-in-use box I think they call it?
Thats what I do with these. They are plugged in and running during the hurricane out in the elements. The female end goes quite a ways into the box and provides pretty good seal. Never had an issue.
I just bought my first generator Wgen 9500/12500 DF. I’m in recovery from Helena in GA area. Will this thing run the following all at once: water heater, all lights and outlets, refrigerator and freezer? I hope a AC unit but I have two units for my 4500sq ft home. Also can I run the 50 outlet. All work will be performed by a certified electrician after I help neighbors clean up. Thanks for any advice from anyone knowledgeable.
I am interested in this answer as well. My home has two panels and instead of moving critical circuits all to one panel I would like to connect both to my portable generator simultaneously using a 30 amp plug for one and 50 amp for the other.
My geenrator is a 3300 running watt generator, approximately 12 years old with maybe 50hrs of usage. I have used solely during power outages and running extension cords all over the home. I understand the years old of the unit are not to be considered over the hours of usage, and I was lead to believe that a generator has a life span of 10000 to 20000hrs. Now I am not the type to get rid of a functioning piece of equipment and watching your video, I understand that i could install a 30 amp onlet with a 30 amp transfer switch, but my question is, can I install a 50 amp inlet and 50 amp transfer swotch in case in the future I get a bigger generator?
I bought an old Coleman powermate 5000 generator - it has 4 receptacles , 2 being labeled 240 volts but receptacles are the ones you find in your house - I want to run an old craftsman welder 30 - 200 amps - how do I do it? I bought a joiner cable? 10 gauge - do I plug both into the 240 or do I do 1 in the 120,, the other in the 240 maybe increasing the circuit breakers ? Inquiring minds want to know
thanx for your video. I have a 60amp breaker for my welder in my breaker box. the plug is 30a- can i just change the plug ends to make them 50amp so i can connect a 13000 duramax generator to power my house in case of power outage?
When Milton hit Pinellas County Florida I estimate there were 20,000 running using an average of about 12 gallons of gas a day. So that’s an extra 240,000 gallons of gasoline needed a day to run just generators. Now if a gas truck carries 9,000 that means the county needed 26 extra trucks just for generators. There were people driving 100 or more miles for gas because most people, like my son only had 20 gallons. So I haven’t seen any reports about these gas shortages on the News. I actually think the number of generators were 40,000 to 50,000. So people think about small maybe 4000 or 5000 watts.
5:00 What do you mean by backfeeding the laundry outlet? I'm just curious because I had thought about making a cord for my generator to plug my dryer into.
Read table NEC 250.122 for information on required grounding gauges. 10 AWG cable is good (for the GROUND ONLY) up to 60 amps because it is a temporary (emergency) load.
I haven't watched all your videos, so you may have covered this somewhere. But there is an issue no one is talking about: Below 5500W, most generators only offer the 3 prong, 120V. TT-30R., single phase plug. These are common on RVs. The direct to panel interlock setups I've seen, even 30 amp, are NEMA L14-30R two phase capable (but are often notated as 120 capable also, I presume should you only use a single phase of that power in a transfer switch) And I am doing that on mine. QUESTION: Is there an arrangement for connecting a 120V TT30R to a main panel? Would it limit you to half the panel? Or can it be wired to serve the whole panel? I should think not because of some dual pole breakers in the panel. Yes/No?
The first thing I noticed was that the 50 amp receptacle had thicker prongs and ofc I didn’t notice it until I seen the prongs on the 30 amp receptacle and I did also notice right away the copper plate on the outer wall of the 50 amp receptacle.
Do you have a video that talks about making sure 1.) Hoe we make sure we don’t back feed power to the Poles & 2.) how we make sure when the generator is connected during an outage that the generator ground is done correctly?
1: Shut the main breaker OFF will prevent back feed to the pole 2: If you are wiring it up yourself you should know if its done right or you hire someone to do it.
You want to install either a transfer switch of the correct rating or an interlock kit that is designed to work with your current panel and breakers. If such a kit is not available, either install the transfer switch (manual or automatic) or else change out your panel and breakers so you can install an interlock kit. Every AWJ (local area) has their own read on what is required to satisfy local & national electrical codes. Usually any work of this type requires a clear written plan and a permit followed by an inspection. Proper work saves lives.
@@atlantajunglepythons1744 I "do" do what i want and will continue to do so whether you RUclips arm chair police agree with me or not. You can suggest whatever you want, i can care less. And my comment meant exactly what it meant, "you" RUclips arm chair police trying to critisize what everyone else does when it does not match "your" way, kinda like a Woke Liberal .... If we don't follow "your" method, we are the bad ones.
Question do they make a 100amp generator? And because my New AC unit has a 30amp for the outside unit and a separate 35amp for the inside unit it's a new 3ton unit, 🙏 thanks
Really glad to hear you liked it. Thanks a lot for the feedback Jim! I am originally from Ohio. Visit there from time to time as a lot of my family is still there.
Good learning videos, thanks. So just installed a 50A house inlet, which adaptor do I use to get it to a 30 amp 120v generator plug in? I’m baffled looking on Amazon Thanks again!
Can you explain how you connect both of your generators at the same time? I heard you mention that just over half way through this video, but I did not hear you describe “how” you did that.
In my humble opinion, 50 amp inlet box & interlock switch are the way to go, regardless of the current size of generator(as long as gen has a 50amp receptacle).
If the generator has a less than 50A output breaker then you can still use a 50A inlet to your house panel. The generator breaker will trip instead of the 50A and still protect your generator and wiring. 30A plug for the generator and 50A connection for the house is OK.
First time I have ever had this explained. Thank you.
Wow, you crushed it! Thank you for sharing your knowledge and doing so with great accuracy and clarity. Super impressed and we thank you for using our products in your demonstration.
This is the best video I've ever seen on the power inlet box discussion. It really helped when you did the equation at the end to get the amps.
Carefully consider future needs when deciding this. A couple of years back, I had a tiny, cheap little generator but still got a 50 amp transfer switch and cord, because I knew I might eventually want more power. Sure enough, I just bought a bigger generator this week, because now I want to be able to run my new heat pump when the power goes out. The most expensive way to do this is to buy too little the first time, then have to rip it all out and redo it when your needs change. Size all this stuff to whatever the maximum amount of power you can ever see yourself needing, even if it is massive overkill for your current generator.
That is why i never got a transfer switch, wasted $$, i just wired the cable direct to the breaker box with 2 breakers.
This is the very best channel for clear, concise & to the point information! No endless blather! Thank you so much!
Great video. Explained very clearly. People also need to understand that most portable generators are neutral bonded. Important to remove that bond for feeding a home this way all ground and neutrals are only bonded at the first means of disconnect. I found and removed the bond on mine. I keep a make plug zip tied to the generator with a neutral to ground jumper in case I want to use the generator out in the field for powering lighting, tools, etc. i just plug in the jumper in that situation.
Great advice. I did the same on my generator. Finding the bond can be tricky. On some it is at the power head others in the outlet area. I have a HF 7,000W genie, the bond was at one of the 120V receptacles.
The generator is pretty heavy so I don't intend to move it around but figured I'd make the jumper plug just in case the need every arose.
me too
Always go bigger just in case. But in my case the 30 was the smart easy fix, all I needed was a 30 amp inlet box. The previous owners had a 30 amp 240 for a suntan bed. So all I had to do was move the breaker up to the top right side for a lockout. Remove the 240 outlet and pull the wires to the crawl space and drill a hole through the block into the garage. All I had in it was 20$ for a new inlet box.
We have an inverter generator with both a 50 and 30 amp plug. The Generator (Genmax 9000 IED) only puts out a Maximum of 32 amps, but it can be tied together with an additional generator to get the Full 50 amps in the future, so I was thinking that installing the 50 amp would be best.
Thanks for the tip of using 6 gauge wire 👍.
I'd like to mention an issue I had with my generator during my outage here in Houston recently. I plugged in a portable A/C into the 20 amp outlet. The portable A/C was pulling 9 amps and kept tripping the gfci. It was the only thing on that plug and the cord was rated at 15 amps. Found out later that some newer appliances will trip gfci, regardless of the amps being used. When I moved the portable ac over to the non gfci 30 outlet, everything worked great. This issue happened using the outlets on the generator with extension cords only, and not via the home install.
Houstonian here also.. my fridge would trip my GFCI, so I went out and bought a 3-to-2 prong conversion plug (little over $1) and use that anytime I run it to my generator. Works like a charm. Not sure if this could potentially cause damage if something were to go wrong but I ran it like that for a combined total of 2 weeks (both storms) and had 0 issues with either device.
GFCI's are an absolute joke. They are an additional safety if something shorts and will generally trip faster than a breaker, which is why they are utilized. They go bad CONTINUOUSLY and are expensive!
@@jonathanvigil8526 The point of grounding metal appliances is so that if they have a ground-fault, then electricity will take the ground path instead of going through a person to ground! Grounding is required even if you bypass the GFCI (don’t).
Texas resended the 30a 2pole gfci requirement on A/C because the electronics on newer compressors tripped the gfci.
THANK YOU! I take delivery of a DuroMax 9000ih this week, get my MicroAir soft start tomorrow, have an interlock kit installed and each time I open RUclips I see a very helpful video from you that answers questions that arise in getting this set up to run my 3 ton A/C. Thanks very much. Really well done without all the useless blabber on SO many sites.
Were you able to get everything set up successfully?
I was! Thanks again
@@cliff9745you went 50?
Thanks for the good info. You have a gift for explaining things. You don't trip all over your sentences looking for the right word to explain something. Keep up the good videos!
Seems like the smart thing would be to install a 50 amp in case you want to upgrade in the future.
The question should be about what you need during an emergency. It should not be everything in your house unless if you are going with a whole house generator. You can go big, but you also need to have the fuel on site to keep the generator running through the emergency. If you have natural gas, sure go whole house, or have a good sized propane tank, and automatic switching does have its advantages. But for a portable generator, you have to feed something that may need 1 gallon of gas per hour at a 50% load(12 KW). If you have a large load(well pump, electric stove, ground sourced heat pump, resistance heating, big AC unit), then you need big power to start it, but if you don't have that or need that, then keep it basic. My storage is 27 Gal of gas which combined with my planned generator usage should last a week in winter or summer. If I had that 12 kw generator, that would cover 2-3 days with my usage of 4 hr in morning and 4 hr at night.
I say most people do not already own a generator!
Yes, it is best to run a #6 wire from inlet box to your breaker (or transfer switch) . If your generator is only 30 amps, when you UPGRADE to a 50 amp generator, you will already have the wire installed.
All of us commenting just run inlet, #6, 50amp inter lock, a quality whip line, and power it up. Customers, gotta put the safety in and idiot proof it.
Will a 30amp O/S plug box accept # 6 CU ,?
This tutorial is very clear and concise. I watched it a second time as I get closer to ordering parts, and I suggest one more thing to consider when making a decision: Observe your household power consumption over the seasons, and really get a feel for how much power you've used, and how much power you'll need in a grid-down situation.
One of the best channels on RUclips.
If I may suggest that you give the names of these connectors because when you are purchasing the power outlet box 30A/50A they have a description on them for each application. For example, the 30A connectors are NEMA14L-30P/L14-30R. Which is the connector that has one of the prongs that is shaped like an "L" facing inward. The 50A connectors are called NEMA14-50P/SS2-50R, the female end on this chord or connector has the "L" shape prong facing out. You have to match the connectors. It took me a while to figure this out. I visited websites to get the low down. Thanks for the content I liked the video!!
Another GREAT video.
Now my generator will produce 31.25 AMP so should I go with the 50 AMP?
go with 30amp.
50 Amp
A good rule of thumb is to install the largest sockets and plugs, use crossover cables to interconnect if needed, ie. make a cable with 8Ga wire with a 50 socket to go to the house and 30 amp plug to the generator. When you buy a either a replacement, or buy a larger wattage gen set, simply replace the 30 amp plug with a 50 amp. Or have both cables so you can use the larger gen for the house, gotta keep the wife happy, and the smaller into either a adu or garage to keep pipes from freezing or wnat to simply keep working on a project!
I have learned a whole lot from you, Sir. I really appreciate you taking the time to share your knowledge.
God bless you and yours 🙏 ❤️
Better believe it;
U can say that again!
Very kind of you. Really glad to hear you are finding value in the channel. God Bless and thanks a lot for taking the time to leave that feedback! Means a lot.
SO, can I just go with the 50 amp plug for over kill ?@@HowToHomeDIY
Thank you. Very clear. The Amp reading is also in the box.
Any store that sells a generator should know this. 2 box stores and not even basic answers to my simplest questions. This clip makes me want to ask more questions…so I’ll watch additional videos.
Thanks for breaking it down to where I can understand the normal running watts vs the peak watts .
The generator I’m hooking up does have the 50 amp outlet built into it but it’s a tri fuel gas being the highest wattage 7500 (normal operation) and 9400 peak by. So I will be using the 30 amp box to connect to my home so I can have some backup power
As long as you have a 30A breaker protecting the inlet that is fine.
@@tomschmidt381 I appreciate your reply thank you
I have a similar situation, but is there a reason why I couldn't use the 50amp outlet on the generator and connect it to a 50amp input on my panel with a 50amp breaker installed? (thanks for all of your great videos. you have taught me a lot!)@@tomschmidt381
great video, think its fine based on 70 amp example you have but if I have a 30 amp, 9,000 peak watt generator and a 30 amp but 7500 watt receptacle, would that be a problem? given that the generator has more wattage than the inlet box ?
Excellent video! Really appreciate the formula for determining 30 vs 50 amp.❤
Great videos thank you. I currently have a generator that only has a 240-volt 30-amp outlet I am going to install an inlet box. I was thinking about upgrading my generator in a few years to a larger one with a 50-amp power supply. Can I install a 50-amp inlet and just run my current generator with a 30-50amp adapter until I purchase another. Or could that cause a problem? Thanks again.
Yes, you can.
I would really like for you to do a good video on tri-fuel conversion kits for generators. I really can't find a good one that explains things as well as you.
When I was putting in a generator interlock on my last house, I wanted to have a 50w outlet outside, but the big box stores in my area only stocked the 30w boxes. If you can get a 50w box, go with that and keep a 30w to 50w adapter on hand as most generators only have a 30w outlet at most. Be prepared beforehand because the
govt. isn’t going to save you when it really counts.
You mean amps smfh 😅
We're talking amps here Not watts
You’re so knowledgeable and I certainly appreciate you sharing this information.
Excellent explanation between the 30 and 50 amp circuitry. I do have a question about the math why do you use 240v in the denominator and not 120v since mostly all electrical loads operate on 120v ?
Because that's the accurate formula the math wouldn't be correct
4 Questions:
1. What is the maximum length 50amp cable I can run from my house to the generator?
2. Can I connect two shorter, 50amp (25ft each) cables together to go 50ft?
3. When running a 50 amp unit, what gauge grounding rod cable do I need?
4. What is the maximum length cable I can use to earth ground the above? I would actually like to use a car jumper cable if possible.
Thanks!!!
Very helpful I have a 30 amp kit that I’m going to exchange with a 50 amp kit for the future.
I agree with you, 6 gauge wire is rated for 50 amps.
Actually as a Licensed CA. Electrician a #8 cable is fine at 6’ with the same connectors shown above. But to go over’ then I would agree with all the above. The same rule for the distance from the Breaker to the Alliance connection box. The actual NEC allowance for #8 wire is much longer than 6’ but the 6’ to 12’ cord is very hard to find. 25’ might be the next standard length, but in my opinion that is too long for #8 on a full load.
The main reason I say 6 foot is due to some people wanting to go 25 foot with #8 for an EV charging extension cord. Which have different rules that apply due to the high continuous amperage load.
i just went from 30 to 50 amp and let me tell you i love it a lot more before i could run anything but my 220 i could run the stove or the water heater but not both at the same time. but we lost lights and i was out of town and my brother in law came over started it and flipped the switch. but forgot to turn off most of the 220 stuff and when i got home a couple hours later my old lady was drying clothes and the water heater was still on and she was even running the A/C. and it would never do that on the 30 amp. not saying i would do this every time. but its nice to know it will.
For the sake of being future proof, can you install a 50A box, but use a generator with a 30A outlet and use a 30A to 50A adapter? That way if you upgrade your generator in the future to 50A, you don't have to redo your inlet box and wiring again.
Adam, I really appreciate your videos. I really try to do a good job of researching things that I need to do before starting. Sometimes it’s hard to do the correct research if you don’t know the question to ask. With that being said I don’t blame anyone but myself but I really need your help locating a male 4 prong 50amp receptacle box to replace/install below my breaker box for my generator connection! I bought a suggested 3 prong 50amp box 2 weeks ago from amazon but all of the 50amp cords I’ve found locally have 4 prong connections on both ends. The generator connection for the 50amp is 4 prong and a 30amp on it is 3 prong. This is confusing to me but that doesn’t take much to do. Because of my disabilities and lack of tools and hard to find wire, which caused me to spend at least an hour and a half carefully stripping it from a cable, it took me 4 days sporadic work to complete! Not a lot of money but a lot of fortitude! I’m not sure if I can return this because I already installed it but I need to find a replacement now, if possible please!! GOD bless!
I replied to your first comment but now I’m confused on what you have. Did you install a 50 amp power inlet box or a 30 amp? If it’s 50 then the male end of the cord should have 4 prongs on the male side for the generator and 3 holes on the female side for the power inlet box. If it’s a 30 amp power inlet box then it will be 4 prongs on the male side and 4 holes on the female side.
Question - When running Liquid Tight Conduit From the Service Panel to the Generator Box. Do you need some type of Wire Strain Relief or just loose as it comes from the Liquid Tight Conduit Connector to the Boxes? My Setup is using 3/4" Liquid Tight Conduit with 90 degree connecters on each end. Yes, I screwed them into the panel and box properly with the nuts provided.
Hi. Wonderful videos. You are very clear and understandable. I really appreciate that. Here is my question. I have a 60 AMP Breaker installed because I power my Tesla EV. Do I need a 60 amp breaker for my generator as well? I believe so, but just wanted you to confirm/explain. Again, thanks a million...
I guess that the Tesla charger will just go down from a 480 to a 240 charger. Am I right?
I have a 5500 watt generator.. when plugged in to my 30amp service it can only run lights in the with maybe a fridge it has a hard time doing that... thank you for the great video...
This doesn't make sense. A 5500 W genset should have no problem running many lights, multiple fridges, TV, router, chargers, and even a heavier load or two like an air compressor, window aircon or portable aircon, well pump or sump pump, etc.
Is it possible there was some other large load on that you hadn't noticed? Like maybe an electric water heater?
Excellent overview. I have installed a 30 amp box since my gen is 7000 max. I thought about installing a 50 amp so down the road I could upgrade to a larger gen. Is there a converter plug/adaptor that would allow my generator to hook up to a 50 amp box? Thanks!
Can I connect my 30 amp generator output to a 50 amp power inlet? I may want to upgrade my generator to 50 amp output in the future but not now.
Yes with an adapter
Can you do a video on changing out a electric panel?
Great video! Question: I want to have whole house back up for the rare power outages. The inverter kind is less powerful and far more expensive, but given that I have a gas furnace and refrigerators with control boards, some people seem to think they are necessary. Can I get away with a generator with higher THD or do I really need an inverter to run modern appliances?
How do you run two generators at once like you mentioned?
great stuff sir. i learned a LOT from you. one question, could i put the generator on its side for storage or during transportation from one site to another?
This video just answered my burning question! 😅 Thanks so much!!
Very PRO video Bub! You’re good at this and the editing is excellent.
I went with a 30 amp plug and a 50 amp manual Gen transfer switch. I do not need to run everything and with my generator+27 gal of stored gas, I can maintain the house for a week with my planned usage pattern. What I can't do is run the electric stove, electric clothes dryer, or whole house AC unit. In an emergency, I should not need those things. Note: backup cooking is a propane camping stove. If NG for heat runs out, there is 20 gal of Kerosene in storage for a Kerosun heater.
Your videos are always helpful and full of good details.
8 gauge THHN has a rated ampacity of 55 Amps, baring de-rating due to conduit fill calculations. 6 gauge THHN ramps that up to 75 amps which is overkill for most installs; I would consider #6 for longer runs but most of the time the generator inlets tend to be quite close to load centers, in the case of interlocks, or transfer switches.
Buy once cry once and make things future proof; I usually recommend a 50 amp receiver as you can hook up a 30 amp plug via an adapter and you’re set if you size up in the future. I’m an electrician though and my time is about the same for north so the small cost increase in materials between 30-50 is a small drop in the bucket in the grand scheme of things.
Anything over 7,500 watts should have a 50 amp receiver, otherwise you’re wasting generator overhead; that is unless you’re running other things from the generator while it’s hooked into the house. You should also do your calculations based on 250, not 240 volts, as 125/250 is actually the standard numbers.
I have never heard that 125/250 is the correct denominator.
I have a 30 amp inverter generator, but decided to go with a 50 amp inlet for greater durability and to expand to a 50 amp generator should I decide to use one of those in the future.
Yeah, I think that is a smart play. I assume you use a 30 to 50 amp adapter then?
@@HowToHomeDIY Yes, I use the 30 to 50 amp adapter with a surge protector to protect sensitive electronics (just in case). Works really well. 👍👍👍
@@audiophileman7047 which surge protector do you use?
@@BigTone-S10 I have it here on my desk. It's the POWSAF Model: RV5050A-01. It has diagnostic lights on it to tell you the quality of the power and if the circuit is hooked up right.
Good. Content..what's a good inverter gen for home. I have. 50 amp inlet box outside
I love your videos! Thanks so much, Bro! So, my generator is 30 amps (4500 watts) but my future plan is to get a larger generator (12,000 watt) 50 amp. So, can I go ahead and install a 50 amp receptacle to my home and then use a 30 amp adapter plug for now with the 4500 watt generator and then my home will already be set up for the 50 amp generator down the road. That will work, won't it?
Yup. You can always have the larger 50 amp rated wire and box installed and run a smaller generator on it but can’t do the opposite and have too small of wiring and box and run a larger one. Hope that makes sense. It’s good to plan ahead like you are. Thanks for the feedback!
I was thinking the same way. My generator only has a 30 amp plug. I was wondering if you go with a 50 and then get a bigger generator later
Awesome break-down of the differences, thank you! Just curious, I'm looking into buying a Predator 9000 generator from Harbor Freight with a running wattage output of 7,250W, which would put it at 30.28333A. Would it still be safe to run a 30A power inlet box?
After you connect the correct gauge wire from the plug, how do you connect the wire in the transfer panel? Do you use wire nuts on the supply wire to the wires in the transfer panel? Do you use Burndys? I wish there was a bar with better connections than just 2 large wires that need to be connected. I have a reliance transfer panel system.
Very clear video, thanks. Do you have any RV electrical videos?
Generator cords, 50 amp, to connect generator to power inlet box. Is there a difference between a generator cord and a RV cord , to connect from generator to house ? Are they interchangeable? Some cords on female end have a twist lock, others have a threaded female ring ?
Get a cord with the connectors that match your application. The wire gauge should match, too: it’s based on the type of wire, the insulation (heat rating), and the maximum current capacity at a given distance (AMPS or Ampacity).
Love your videos!! If I am not sure which box to go with (30 amp vs. 50 amp) would there be any problem with just going with the 50 amp box? I figure that way I'm covered no matter what. The 50 amp might cost a little more but the difference in price is negligible. What do you think?
Orlando R.
Thanks for the wealth of info you share. Very well explained.
I would like to take on the job of installing a power inlet box and an interlock myself. I am new to Florida, and I don't know if I am allowed to do the work myself and have it inspected.
Eliectrician wants an awful lot of money. ( what should be an average cost to do such an installation?)
Electrical stuff can scare people, as it should because of the hazard. It takes planning to design your own system. Asking a electrician to look over what you have may be a good investment for 1hr of labor and depending upon your budget and needs.
Yeah, can't go wrong doing that. Thanks Clarence!
@@HowToHomeDIY I am having a 50 amp inlet installed. What I got from your video is the max amount of watts is 12000. So I’m guessing if I got a generator that can run at 12000 watts and peaks at 15000 watts would be a bit of waste correct? Great video and thanks!!!
Hello. Thank you for your helpful videos 👍 My question is, if it's possible to install the 30 Amp power inlet box in conjunction with a manual transfer switch, with the purpose of being able to connect and disconnect the power cord extention cable when generator or power station are not in use? 🤔
Thank you for this great video. Question: I am connecting an Ecoflow Delta 2 + extra battery(1800W) (Surge 2700W)(120V)
To a 30A Reliance MTS. Will a 50’ 12-gauge extension cord be adequate to connect the two?
Great channel. I learn. Question: Why is my green light staying lit on my gfci when I trip it? There are two switches on same circuit (light switch above sink and garbage disposal). No other (outlets) on gfci just two switches. Line and load (seem to be correct) and even when I remove switches from gfci light still stays on when "tested." No power but light stays on. Odd.
In the video you said your system could run both generators at the same time. Did you mean in parallel or how you wired the inlets? Could you explain more or do you have another video showing how you did this. I just subscribed!
I have another video that kind of touches on it. But I have a power inlet box with interlock kit for my large generator and a 30 amp transfer switch for my little one. So if I want to run both I just hook up my little one to the transfer switch, transfer the power from the utility side to the generator on the transfer switch and it pulls everything on the transfer switch out of the main circuit. Hope that makes sense.
@@HowToHomeDIY it does. I didn't realize you had a separate transfer switch. Thank you for the reply. Your videos keep popping up on my feed and you are definitely one of the best when it comes to anything DIY home related. Didnt even realize I wasn't subscribed. Thanks again man.
ALWAYS GOOD SHARED INFORMATION FOR US SIMPLE HARD HEADED OLD SCHOOL SENIORS!! THANK YOU FOR SETTING US STRAIGHT!! KEEP UP YOUR CONTENT SHARING!!
my gen. is DS 13000 EH i have my 50 amp cord and my 50 amp metal Box what i like is you said # 6 is better than #8 on wire now i have to get brother in law to fix it up
hey, Thank you for all your content, it's huge for peeps like me, that know very little on currents, power etc. I'm curious, why are you dividing by 240 instead of 120 to determine the amps? I'm dealing with a Cargo trailer conversion and will only use 120 and 12v for my operations. Should I still use 240 when determining the generator and amp inlet? or should I go with 120. I was leaning toward 30amp, but if I buy a 4000 watt gen and use 120 it comes up to 33.33, which is too much for the 30 amp serv inlet.
thanks a bunch
My generator has a 220v 20 amp receptacle on it. If I were to install a 30 amp inlet box on my house would it be ok to make a cord with a 20 amp male end for the generator and a 30 amp female end for the inlet box?
Also, in your opinion would a 4000 watt 20 amp generator be enough to start and run a typical 1/2 hp deep well pump?
Great vid! I have a a 3.5 ton AC with a micro air soft start. About 27 amps start 11 run. I need a generator that can run that unit, a fridge/freezer and a deep freeze. I would like to add light but those are my must haves. How big of a generator would I need? I have been looking at the Duromax 13000kw tri fuel and the amps on it are 35 out of 50 with natural gas(which I want to hook it too).
Thank you
That is my setup.I plan on never putting gasoline in it. I am interested in your ac soft start. I wonder if my old AC is worth the effort.
How big of generator you'd need could only be known once you calculate how many amps you need for your situation. My only suggestion would be to look at getting a soft start kit for your fridge/freezer, which allows the appliance to start at lower amps, but make sure it's appropriate and suited to your particular appliance.
I can run my 4 ton AC with a soft start with a Champion 7200 watt generator. I even ran the oven with it for a short period, but I would not recommend that as it strained heavily on adding that load. The in rush on the 4 ton is about 20 amps. It ran my pool pump, lights, and two refrigerators. Certainly some light dimming and straining when the AC powers up. An inverter generator would be better but they are expensive.
@@bhbaker220I have a Wgen9500/12500 will this run lights, water heater, outlets, refrigerator, Freezer and stove? I want to add AC but I have two units covering 4500sqft. Thanks for any advice
@@garyponder7139an electric hot water heater typically consumes 4000 watts to 5000 watts so I would say don’t attempt that. If the stove is a cooktop with multiple burners, I would only use one burner as these are large electric consumers. My oven draws over 4000 watts, so I would typically not attempt running it unless it’s the only thing I’m running. The lights and refrigerator/freezers should be no problem. Things like blow dryers, shop vacs, air compressor could throw you over the top so I would not run them. You might be able to run both AC units if you have a soft start on each and don’t try and start both at the same time. Remember that the higher the load on the generator, the more distortion you’ll have which is bad for sensitive electronics unless it’s an inverter generator.
Thank you for your very good info great video can you tell me how to connect the AC unit to the transfer box ? I have separated the 30amp breaker from my regular subpanel is located in front of my house in the main braker hope you can help me with this
Question: I currently have a 30amp inlet box, 10 awg wire, and a 30amp transfer switch. I just bought a generator with a 9400 watt peak and 7500 watt running. The generator has both a 30 and a 50 watt outlet. If I only use the 30amp outlet, is that OK to use with my current set up to the electrical panel? Also if the running watts are more, like 12,000 in this video, would it also work on my set up if only the 30amp outlet was used? Basically what I'm asking, using the 30amp outlet regardless of the watts produced, does that outlet limit the watts sent from that outlet to a that of what is safe to be used for a 30amp setup? Thanks for your help.
Your 50 amp outlet might have a few extra amps in capacity. Maybe.
Yes the 30 amp outlet on the generator will only output 30 amps, so you are safe using the 30 amp inlet box.
Great video, so my question is. I have a generator that runs all three (gas, propane, and natural gas) highest is 9500 with 12500 starting. Natural gas is 7500 with 9500 starting. With this, would a 50amp breaker be ok if I decide to run natural gas. I might use the others, but natural gas will probably be my main source.
Thank you. I am looking forward to getting a portable Battery Powered charging system to power my whole home or most of the home without using the Air Conditioner Mini splits. I have been looking into the EcoFlow system the Delta Pro Ultra. It seems it can go up to
90wh would that use a 30 amp plug or a 50 amp one
Thanks
Thank you for this video. I always learn great information on your videos.
Hi thank u for the video! My food trailer came with a 50 amp cord, can I hook this up to a 30 amp generator using an adaptor safely ?
Question for you: I want to install a power inlet box outside, but the most likely time I'll need to use it is during a storm - do them make one that is rated to having something plugged in to it during rain? A while-in-use box I think they call it?
Thats what I do with these. They are plugged in and running during the hurricane out in the elements. The female end goes quite a ways into the box and provides pretty good seal. Never had an issue.
I just bought my first generator Wgen 9500/12500 DF. I’m in recovery from Helena in GA area. Will this thing run the following all at once: water heater, all lights and outlets, refrigerator and freezer? I hope a AC unit but I have two units for my 4500sq ft home. Also can I run the 50 outlet. All work will be performed by a certified electrician after I help neighbors clean up. Thanks for any advice from anyone knowledgeable.
Thoughts. Can you run two power inlets? One 30 and one 50 from the one generator
I am interested in this answer as well. My home has two panels and instead of moving critical circuits all to one panel I would like to connect both to my portable generator simultaneously using a 30 amp plug for one and 50 amp for the other.
Great Video where can I purchase a CAT portable generator
Great informative video! I’ve never been good with electric, so I leave most of it to the pros!
Hi, I currently have a 30 amp generator and my question is:
Can I use a #8 wire in the inlet box?
Great informative video for us uninitiated home owners!
My geenrator is a 3300 running watt generator, approximately 12 years old with maybe 50hrs of usage. I have used solely during power outages and running extension cords all over the home. I understand the years old of the unit are not to be considered over the hours of usage, and I was lead to believe that a generator has a life span of 10000 to 20000hrs. Now I am not the type to get rid of a functioning piece of equipment and watching your video, I understand that i could install a 30 amp onlet with a 30 amp transfer switch, but my question is, can I install a 50 amp inlet and 50 amp transfer swotch in case in the future I get a bigger generator?
Just depends what the application is. For a gen hook up it might be best going bigger.
If its just a dedicated circuit, the 30 should be good
I bought an old Coleman powermate 5000 generator - it has 4 receptacles , 2 being labeled 240 volts but receptacles are the ones you find in your house - I want to run an old craftsman welder 30 - 200 amps - how do I do it? I bought a joiner cable? 10 gauge - do I plug both into the 240 or do I do 1 in the 120,, the other in the 240 maybe increasing the circuit breakers ? Inquiring minds want to know
thanx for your video. I have a 60amp breaker for my welder in my breaker box. the plug is 30a- can i just change the plug ends to make them 50amp so i can connect a 13000 duramax generator to power my house in case of power outage?
When Milton hit Pinellas County Florida I estimate there were 20,000 running using an average of about 12 gallons of gas a day. So that’s an extra 240,000 gallons of gasoline needed a day to run just generators. Now if a gas truck carries 9,000 that means the county needed 26 extra trucks just for generators. There were people driving 100 or more miles for gas because most people, like my son only had 20 gallons. So I haven’t seen any reports about these gas shortages on the News. I actually think the number of generators were 40,000 to 50,000. So people think about small maybe 4000 or 5000 watts.
💥Great Video; My Generator said 30Amp locking but my House Outlet is 50Am... is OK to use an adaptor?
Yes, you will be inputting up to 30 amps into an inlet that can handle up to 50 amps.
Great info on amp capacity for a backflow to the cb box
Hello. I just had a 50 amp transfer switch box installed. I have an Ecoflow Delta Pro Ultra electric/solar generator. Is this compatible? Thank you!
5:00 What do you mean by backfeeding the laundry outlet? I'm just curious because I had thought about making a cord for my generator to plug my dryer into.
Read table NEC 250.122 for information on required grounding gauges. 10 AWG cable is good (for the GROUND ONLY) up to 60 amps because it is a temporary (emergency) load.
Though nothing says you have to do the minimum required.
I haven't watched all your videos, so you may have covered this somewhere. But there is an issue no one is talking about: Below 5500W, most generators only offer the 3 prong, 120V. TT-30R., single phase plug. These are common on RVs. The direct to panel interlock setups I've seen, even 30 amp, are NEMA L14-30R
two phase capable (but are often notated as 120 capable also, I presume should you only use a single phase of that power in a transfer switch) And I am doing that on mine. QUESTION: Is there an arrangement for connecting a 120V TT30R to a main panel? Would it limit you to half the panel? Or can it be wired to serve the whole panel? I should think not because of some dual pole breakers in the panel. Yes/No?
The first thing I noticed was that the 50 amp receptacle had thicker prongs and ofc I didn’t notice it until I seen the prongs on the 30 amp receptacle and I did also notice right away the copper plate on the outer wall of the 50 amp receptacle.
Do you have a video that talks about making sure 1.) Hoe we make sure we don’t back feed power to the Poles & 2.) how we make sure when the generator is connected during an outage that the generator ground is done correctly?
1: Shut the main breaker OFF will prevent back feed to the pole
2: If you are wiring it up yourself you should know if its done right or you hire someone to do it.
You want to install either a transfer switch of the correct rating or an interlock kit that is designed to work with your current panel and breakers. If such a kit is not available, either install the transfer switch (manual or automatic) or else change out your panel and breakers so you can install an interlock kit.
Every AWJ (local area) has their own read on what is required to satisfy local & national electrical codes. Usually any work of this type requires a clear written plan and a permit followed by an inspection. Proper work saves lives.
@@atlantajunglepythons1744 interlock/transfer switch arm chair police has spoken 🤣
@@ACommenterOnRUclips Do what you like: I was suggesting the common wisdom -- and your comment means what?
@@atlantajunglepythons1744 I "do" do what i want and will continue to do so whether you RUclips arm chair police agree with me or not.
You can suggest whatever you want, i can care less.
And my comment meant exactly what it meant, "you" RUclips arm chair police trying to critisize what everyone else does when it does not match "your" way, kinda like a Woke Liberal ....
If we don't follow "your" method, we are the bad ones.
Great video, very informative and easy to understand. Thank you
Question do they make a 100amp generator?
And because my New AC unit has a 30amp for the outside unit and a separate 35amp for the inside unit it's a new 3ton unit, 🙏 thanks
Jim from Ohio 🇵🇷
Good information 👍
Really glad to hear you liked it. Thanks a lot for the feedback Jim! I am originally from Ohio. Visit there from time to time as a lot of my family is still there.
Good learning videos, thanks.
So just installed a 50A house inlet, which adaptor do I use to get it to a 30 amp 120v generator plug in?
I’m baffled looking on Amazon
Thanks again!
You would need a 30 amp 240 volt outlet on the generator, not 120 volt. If you have the 30 amp 240 volt outlet, then you need NEMA L14-30P to SS2-50R
Can you explain how you connect both of your generators at the same time? I heard you mention that just over half way through this video, but I did not hear you describe “how” you did that.
One to a power inlet video with interlock kit. One to a transfer switch.