Monday, July 20, 2009

The Lowdown on Electric Generators

Portable electric generators are very useful either indoors or outdoors. They are quite easy to use and environmentally friendly. There are quite a few different models and brands available on the market. All brands have various safety features in addition to being convenient to use.

Electric generators
are useful devices when your regular power source is unavailable or extra power is needed. They are available in different sizes and in different levels of performance or quality.

In an emergency, they are capable of running almost any electrical appliance in your home. Another good use for them is when you are away on a camping vacation. You will also find them used in construction sites as well.

In order to connect your portable electric generator to your appliances, you will require the use of a transfer switch. While the generator is in operation, the transfer switch will take the house offline from its traditional power source.

The switch protects the generator when the utility workers restore power. In order to use a transfer switch, a qualified electrician must install it and the local utility company must inspect it.

How do you know what sized electric generator you should get for your home? The idea is to size it based on your emergency needs. Some appliances in your home use a lot more power at start-up than they do when they are running.

Some appliances in this category would be freezers, washing machines, furnace motors and refrigerators. Due to this, it can be a little difficult to size electric generators for the home. The total amount of wattage that will be connected to the generator at one time needs to be determined.

Most motors and appliances will have the amount of watts they use on a label somewhere on the device. Some appliances, such as an air conditioner or a heat pump should not be connected to a portable electric generator as they use too much power.


http://www.articlesbase.com/tools-and-equipment-articles/the-lowdown