Quote:
Originally Posted by lawn psycho
Another way to approach this is to have the generator hook up ready to go. If you encounter a prolonged powere outage you can then buy a generator (assuming there still available at that time). The cable is about $75 for a 20-25 ft long cord that's good for 30A. An electrician should charge maybe $150 to install the cord into the panel. You then get to use the existing breakers in your panel as to what you want to power up. It's also a selling feature if you ever decide to sell the house. I'll take a picture of mine and post how it's set up.
Cheap insurance IMO.
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Hooking up $75, 20-25 ft long cord to your existing circuit panel without a transfer switch is not recommended. I don’t know of any licensed electrician who will just hookup a power cord directly to your circuit panel.
A transfer switch is necessary to isolate the generator from the utility system when you install a back-up generator to your house’s wiring system. Failure to properly transfer your power places, you, your family, and utility workers at great risk of electrocution. Connecting a generator directly to any point of the home’s electrical wiring without a transfer switch is dangerous due to the possibility of “back-feeding.” Back-feeding happens when you connect your back-up generator directly to the home’s wiring without having a transfer switch. Without a transfer switch, your generator’s electricity can be sent back into the power grid from your house. This will energize the utility’s power lines in your street. This poses an electrocution hazard for utility workers and your neighbors who may not know that your voltage is present on the shared lines. If utility power is restored, your back-up generator and house wiring may be severely damaged.
I wired a transfer switch to my main circuit panel @ 15 yrs ago and I paid @ $300.00 for the transfer switch, wire and cable. I don’t know what the hardware and labor to install one would cost you.