Hello Everyone,
Hope you all are well.
I installed a Powerline 10/1 about 6 years ago and I may finally have the opportunity to give it a real test. I could not have gone this far without the help of the nice folks on this forum.
We may be getting hit by a hurricane here in NC and may be without power for several days. I have never run the generator longer than about an hour so I am a little hesitant to run it 24 / 7 especially during the times that I am not there to monitor it. My wife will be there. I have never run more than a couple of baseboard heaters in order to exercise the generator and now I am going to run lights, computers, TV, fans, freezer, refrigerator, etc. I understand about managing load because I install generator transfer kits for a living. I am mostly worried about the generator getting hot, about it suddenly cutting off and damaging electronics, about it catching on fire (it is in my garage).
Should my biggest concern be the generator overheating? I believe that I measured 200+ degrees on the generator once. I have a huge liquid radiator mounted a little higher than the generator however I do not have a circulator.
Should I take steps to protect the electronics in the house? That would mean protecting most everything because about everything has a PC board in it.
I once damaged the board on our gaspack one freezing cold winter when I did not give the gas generator enough time to warm up. Once it warmed up the setting of the throttle was mismatched and the generator cut off. When that happened it damaged the gaspack.
The generator has a 7kw head, is there a way to estimate how many gallons of fuel it will consume? This way I can refill the tank before it runs out.
Thanks for letting me put my thoughts on paper. If you would not mind making a recommendation or two I would appreciate it.
Best regards,
Jim