Rooftop solar panels overloading electricity grid

[DumbAss Tanker]

Thank you, we just bought a used generator and have been round and round about this.

My fear is that if not installed correctly some person repairing downed power lines will get fried. This switch you mentioned sounds expensive, does it need a Master Electrician to install it ????

All we really need is for the gas furnice to run, I can by pass the electronic gizmo to the  gas stove and if food is lost in freezer and refrige, so be it.

Main concern here is for the safety of others and naturally our own,  don't want the darn thing to blow up and burn down the house.

First thing I can think of is can we take it to a repair shop and have them check it out-----the darn thing is about 15 years old and the pull start was too much for the seller to handle.  Will the cost be more to have it checked out then a few days in a motel??   Only 1 shelter that will take pets within 25 miles of us.

Second is the cost to hire an electrician to hook it up, do I need to ask to see some kind of license or bonding to insure they are capable to do the job????

Third question is, what ever happend to Whale Oil lamps and how did folks before they received electricity survive??

BTW the original sales receipt came with the generater, back then the cost was $1600 bought on sale for $900. We paid $200 for the sucker.   We trust the seller.

Any ideas??????

Manual transfer switches are fairly inexpensive as electrical equipment goes, automatic ones not so much but still not crazy.  The cost of paying a licensed electrician to install it is larger than the equipment cost for all but the absolute highest-end ones that do a lot more than just switch you off mains power.  And no matter how much anyone in the family might think they know about electricity in integrating a generator to your home system, this is the one job that more than any other does indeed call for a licensed electrician.

[NHSparky]

Actually, DAT--unless you're totally inept with electricity, mounting and wiring a manual transfer switch really is do-it-yourself.  You don't have to add on any breakers in most cases.  And having someone come in and wire one for you might cost you $150-200, depending on their hourly rate.  Either way, whichever makes you more comfortable.

WHATEVER YOU DO, NEVER, EVER, EVER PLUG THE GENERATOR INTO AN OUTLET, EVEN WITH THE MAIN BREAKER OPEN.

[Gratiot]

I wonder if a lot of these people installing PV kits in their homes are more interested in the "free money" from the power company than actually getting off the grid.

In a number of commercial cases my work dealt with, that is the exact reason.  We actually had a large commercial customer spend a few hundred thousand on solar panels, and call us to hook them up to the electrical grid so that they could start being paid by the local utility.  They had a great plan; if only they had consulted the local utility, local regulations, and were sold the proper control equipment... Of course, they contacted the local news to complain about how unfairly they were treated, for not following any protocols or engineering competency what so ever.

Second is the cost to hire an electrician to hook it up, do I need to ask to see some kind of license or bonding to insure they are capable to do the job????

It will vary significantly, on the where you live, but at a minimum it will likely be a few hundred ($3-400) for a licensed and bonded electrician to install.  Licensing, bonding/insurance, is an absolute requirement for your own protection as well as their professionalism.

NHSparky, is right, it's fairly simple for someone with an electrical background to install.  However the regulations are different in every jurisdiction or municipality, and even insurance policies, in some cases you could be required to have an electrician install this.  If you're looking at someone else to perform a small engine check up on the generator, I'd highly advise you to also have an electrician install this switch.  Just a quick Google search, and I see some electrical outfits offering the transfer switch with installation in the $500-1000 range.

[TVDOC]

Actually, DAT--unless you're totally inept with electricity, mounting and wiring a manual transfer switch really is do-it-yourself.  You don't have to add on any breakers in most cases.  And having someone come in and wire one for you might cost you $150-200, depending on their hourly rate.  Either way, whichever makes you more comfortable.

WHATEVER YOU DO, NEVER, EVER, EVER PLUG THE GENERATOR INTO AN OUTLET, EVEN WITH THE MAIN BREAKER OPEN.

I actually built my own generator isolation system.......I have a mains disconnect switch wired between the meter socket and my panel, I purchased 240V/40A guarded twistlock outlet, and mounted it in the disconnect housing (to plug in the generator).  Then I built a simple low voltage interlock that will not allow the generator to be plugged into the outlet (the outlet cover won't open), until the disconnect is in the "off" position (low voltage provided by a gel-cell battery, and a simple trickle charger from an old alarm system panel).

My generator is a 6 kW Honda on wheels, so I have to roll it out of the garage and connect the cable at both ends to place it on line.

Granted, if I didn't already have most of the stuff to do this, it would have likely been as expensive as simply buying a transfer switch, but as it worked out, the entire thing cost me about $50.

doc

[Eupher]

Actually, DAT--unless you're totally inept with electricity, mounting and wiring a manual transfer switch really is do-it-yourself.  You don't have to add on any breakers in most cases.  And having someone come in and wire one for you might cost you $150-200, depending on their hourly rate.  Either way, whichever makes you more comfortable.

WHATEVER YOU DO, NEVER, EVER, EVER PLUG THE GENERATOR INTO AN OUTLET, EVEN WITH THE MAIN BREAKER OPEN.

Well, you can put me in the "inept" camp. Four years ago, I had a Kohler 17kW propane generator put in, with an automatic transfer switch. I paid an electrician and a couple of his guys about $800 to transport the generator from where it had been shipped to him, install it, and the transfer switch. That, and he installed another panel according to my emergency (read, generator ON) needs. I felt a lot better about the whole thing -- he did a good job, and nobody got hurt.

The local propane company was pushing Generac home generators. No thank. Those require valve adjustments every 500 operating hours or so, and I just don't want to have to deal with that. The Kohler's valves require no adjustments.

[DumbAss Tanker]

Actually, DAT--unless you're totally inept with electricity, mounting and wiring a manual transfer switch really is do-it-yourself.  You don't have to add on any breakers in most cases.  And having someone come in and wire one for you might cost you $150-200, depending on their hourly rate.  Either way, whichever makes you more comfortable.

WHATEVER YOU DO, NEVER, EVER, EVER PLUG THE GENERATOR INTO AN OUTLET, EVEN WITH THE MAIN BREAKER OPEN.

Yeah.  Consider to whom it was addressed, though.  She may be a PITA from time to time, but I sure wouldn't want to have any part in saying anything that might lead to her hurting herself.

[LC EFA]

I wonder if a lot of these people installing PV kits in their homes are more interested in the "free money" from the power company than actually getting off the grid.

The way the vast majority of the urban installs here are set up - the PV system feeds the grid - and you take power from the grid.

Grid outage and you're out too.

No "storage" capacity installed either.

It has nothing whatsoever to do with being off the grid and everything to do with the "free money" (or for the smaller setups - reduced bills).