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#21
posted to rec.boats
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Flurries
On Thu, 4 Jan 2018 15:23:28 -0500, "Mr. Luddite"
wrote: I definitely agree that not everyone should do this. The best way is to have an automatic transfer box installed to code by a licensed electrician. That said, I've done this several times, including the house we had in Florida after Wilma. I have sufficient knowledge of what I am doing but even so, I stop, check and re-check before firing up the generator and throwing the breaker that it backfeeds through. It's illegal, but safe if you pay attention and know something about house wiring. Here's a little test that I've even tried on licensed electricians to see how knowledgeable they a Your house service is usually 240vac, split phase. Split phase means two "hot" leads, a neutral (used with both hot legs) and a ground (which really is tied to the neutral leg. Across the two "hot" leads you have 240 volts which is used for stoves, large AC units, etc. Between either hot lead and neutral you have 120 volts which is used for your outlets, lighting, refrig and small appliances. Your panel box is supposed to be wired to balance the loads as best as possible. So, here's the question. Let's say: Leg "A" of the 120 volt supply is drawing 40 amps. Leg "B" of the 120 volt supply is drawing 30 amps. How much current is flowing through the common neutral leg that is used for both legs? The answer is 10 amps. Many people assume it is the sum of both current draws or 70 amps in this example and it's amazing how many "electricians" don't know that. They don't realize that the two "hot" legs are 180 degrees out of phase, so the current in the neutral adds algebraically. That's why the neutral feed from the street to your power panel is the same size wire as the two hot leads. It will never carry more than what one hot leg is rated to draw. I can't imagine any real electrician does not know that. In fact with the right engineering, the neutral really only needs to be sized to the maximum unbalanced load. For example You are allowed to use 70% for ranges and dryers in dwelling calcs. OTOH on 3 phase, you may end up actually using a neutral of close to 200% of the ungrounded conductor load because of triplin harmonics. This became an issue with electronic ballasts and switcher power supplies. |
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#22
posted to rec.boats
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Flurries
On Thu, 4 Jan 2018 13:01:34 -0800 (PST), Its Me
wrote: That's because electricians are schooled on the mechanics of wiring, but not theory. If a device's tag says it draws 30 amps, they know what size and type wire for the run to it (or where to look in the NEC book to find it), breaker size and type, conduit or not, etc. I'd bet close to half don't understand that the two legs are actually 180 degrees out of phase. Their exposure to theory is very brief, then it moves on to mechanics. Nothing wrong with that. The book tells them what size neutral, too.  That was true in places where training is left to the unions but places that get actual continuing education for the new guys (and the old guys) will be exposed to a lot more theory. Union training is basically the old guys dribbling out what they know to the new guys over 4 years. Very little new ever penetrates that cycle. I remember trying to explain triplin harmonics to a bunch of union GSA electricians and having them tell me how long they had been wiring and how I was just a snot nosed kid who didn't know ****. A week later when their neutrals were burning up, the manager told them they needed to listen to me. Nobody had ever seen electronic ballasts and switching power supplies before the 70s and 80s but they learned. |
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#24
posted to rec.boats
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Flurries
On Thursday, January 4, 2018 at 6:01:32 PM UTC-5, wrote:
On Thu, 4 Jan 2018 13:01:34 -0800 (PST), Its Me wrote: That's because electricians are schooled on the mechanics of wiring, but not theory. If a device's tag says it draws 30 amps, they know what size and type wire for the run to it (or where to look in the NEC book to find it), breaker size and type, conduit or not, etc. I'd bet close to half don't understand that the two legs are actually 180 degrees out of phase. Their exposure to theory is very brief, then it moves on to mechanics. Nothing wrong with that. The book tells them what size neutral, too. That was true in places where training is left to the unions but places that get actual continuing education for the new guys (and the old guys) will be exposed to a lot more theory. Union training is basically the old guys dribbling out what they know to the new guys over 4 years. Very little new ever penetrates that cycle. I remember trying to explain triplin harmonics to a bunch of union GSA electricians and having them tell me how long they had been wiring and how I was just a snot nosed kid who didn't know ****. A week later when their neutrals were burning up, the manager told them they needed to listen to me. Nobody had ever seen electronic ballasts and switching power supplies before the 70s and 80s but they learned. I guess I'm thinking more about residential electricians who rarely touch industrial, 3 phase power systems where triplen harmonics really cause problems. SC has no CE requirements for electricians/electrical contractors. An electrical engineer should be designing the distribution system for that power, and the electrician installing it by the print, IMO. I can certainly understand the union shop being snotty... I've experienced it firsthand. |
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#25
posted to rec.boats
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Flurries
Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 1/4/2018 1:07 PM, John H wrote: On Thu, 4 Jan 2018 12:42:29 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 1/4/2018 12:20 PM, wrote: On Thu, 04 Jan 2018 08:54:03 -0500, John H wrote: On Wed, 3 Jan 2018 17:19:35 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 1/3/2018 2:28 PM, Its Me wrote: Light flurries now, the predictions range from a dusting to 1-2 inches. Worse the closer to the coast you get. My BIL at James Island (Charleston) sent a picture earlier of maybe 1/4 inch and still falling. Very unusual for them. It's out of here in a few hours and headed up the coast. Good luck! Damn. I was hoping it would dump a foot in Mt. Pleasant, just to shut my son up. Last I heard it is supposed to "explode" as it comes up the coast, becoming essentially a winter hurricane. "Bombogenesis" is the technical term, and the popular "bomb cyclone" is a shortened version of it, according to our weather folks. They do seem to just make up names for things these days. I think the classic was "Super Storm Sandy" to talk about something that was not even a hurricane, it was just "super" for people who were not used to tropical weather. It is far from unprecedented tho. There was a real Cat 3 there in the 30s. I have certainly seen that weather pattern in DC tho and this is not even the worst case. The snow would actually be more of a problem if the "eye" of that low was farther west so your wind was drawing wet gulf stream air up into the cold front north of you. That is what gives DC over a foot of snow a day and if it stalls, you "Knickerbocker" snow. Up here a Cat 1 hurricane in the summer might be preferable over what is going on right now. When you look at this storm on radar it is developing a very defined rotation as it is winding up and getting bigger. Snowfall rate here is 2-3 inches/hr and the temp is dropping like a rock since this morning. Pretty much a white-out out there. Major flooding in Justin's former town with 4 disabled cars with people trapped inside, one a woman with 2 kids. Water is over the wheel wells. Fire and National Guard are responding. My old stomping grounds in Scituate is really getting clobbered ... worst in over 30 years despite improvements in sea walls, etc. A TV reporter nut was standing on the porch of a house about 30 feet from the seawall and he was getting soaked with spray, along with dodging sea ice that is being thrown up onto the roofs of houses. So far we haven't had any power glitches here but I fully expect we'll lose it in the next hour or so. Wind where I am is gusting 55-60 mph. Best of luck in all that. I think I'd be getting out the extension cords and prioritizing my electricity requirements! Did that yesterday ... that's why I was firing up the Honda to test. I have a new plan. If power goes out I am going to shut off the main breaker and then backfeed the generator output through a 15 amp outlet that's in the shed. It's on the same branch of the split 240v house supply as the furnace and a couple of rooms. All my lighting is LED, so that's a tiny load. The generator will run those plus the furnace system with no problem and I don't need to have extension cords running anywhere. Only problem with that is it's hard to tell when the power is back on. |
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#26
posted to rec.boats
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Flurries
John H wrote:
On Thu, 4 Jan 2018 13:16:34 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 1/4/2018 1:07 PM, John H wrote: On Thu, 4 Jan 2018 12:42:29 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 1/4/2018 12:20 PM, wrote: On Thu, 04 Jan 2018 08:54:03 -0500, John H wrote: On Wed, 3 Jan 2018 17:19:35 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 1/3/2018 2:28 PM, Its Me wrote: Light flurries now, the predictions range from a dusting to 1-2 inches. Worse the closer to the coast you get. My BIL at James Island (Charleston) sent a picture earlier of maybe 1/4 inch and still falling. Very unusual for them. It's out of here in a few hours and headed up the coast. Good luck! Damn. I was hoping it would dump a foot in Mt. Pleasant, just to shut my son up. Last I heard it is supposed to "explode" as it comes up the coast, becoming essentially a winter hurricane. "Bombogenesis" is the technical term, and the popular "bomb cyclone" is a shortened version of it, according to our weather folks. They do seem to just make up names for things these days. I think the classic was "Super Storm Sandy" to talk about something that was not even a hurricane, it was just "super" for people who were not used to tropical weather. It is far from unprecedented tho. There was a real Cat 3 there in the 30s. I have certainly seen that weather pattern in DC tho and this is not even the worst case. The snow would actually be more of a problem if the "eye" of that low was farther west so your wind was drawing wet gulf stream air up into the cold front north of you. That is what gives DC over a foot of snow a day and if it stalls, you "Knickerbocker" snow. Up here a Cat 1 hurricane in the summer might be preferable over what is going on right now. When you look at this storm on radar it is developing a very defined rotation as it is winding up and getting bigger. Snowfall rate here is 2-3 inches/hr and the temp is dropping like a rock since this morning. Pretty much a white-out out there. Major flooding in Justin's former town with 4 disabled cars with people trapped inside, one a woman with 2 kids. Water is over the wheel wells. Fire and National Guard are responding. My old stomping grounds in Scituate is really getting clobbered ... worst in over 30 years despite improvements in sea walls, etc. A TV reporter nut was standing on the porch of a house about 30 feet from the seawall and he was getting soaked with spray, along with dodging sea ice that is being thrown up onto the roofs of houses. So far we haven't had any power glitches here but I fully expect we'll lose it in the next hour or so. Wind where I am is gusting 55-60 mph. Best of luck in all that. I think I'd be getting out the extension cords and prioritizing my electricity requirements! Did that yesterday ... that's why I was firing up the Honda to test. I have a new plan. If power goes out I am going to shut off the main breaker and then backfeed the generator output through a 15 amp outlet that's in the shed. It's on the same branch of the split 240v house supply as the furnace and a couple of rooms. All my lighting is LED, so that's a tiny load. The generator will run those plus the furnace system with no problem and I don't need to have extension cords running anywhere. Well, you know more about electricity than I do. That's something I'd never try. Came across this while looking for info. Don't know if it'll help or you already have it down. http://www.tcscooters.com/backfeed.htm I like steps 1-3: If you are going to backfeed your home, you must be very carefully and follow the directions below. If you fail to follow them you can kill a line worker, kill yourself or blow up your generator. Again I'll say, get a licensed electrician. Step One, the most important step of all is to turn off the main breakers. Step two, turn off the main breakers. Step three, turn off the main breakers. Do you get the idea? Step four, remember to plug the generator end in last. If the generator is running and you are using two male ends the house end plug is live! Killing a line worker is why they don't recommend it but they don't recommend a lot of things because there are dumb people out there. The other problem would be sending power to the neighbor's homes. That would cause and immediate overload on the generator. |
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#27
posted to rec.boats
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Flurries
Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 1/4/2018 2:53 PM, John H wrote: On Thu, 4 Jan 2018 13:16:34 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 1/4/2018 1:07 PM, John H wrote: On Thu, 4 Jan 2018 12:42:29 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 1/4/2018 12:20 PM, wrote: On Thu, 04 Jan 2018 08:54:03 -0500, John H wrote: On Wed, 3 Jan 2018 17:19:35 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 1/3/2018 2:28 PM, Its Me wrote: Light flurries now, the predictions range from a dusting to 1-2 inches. Worse the closer to the coast you get. My BIL at James Island (Charleston) sent a picture earlier of maybe 1/4 inch and still falling. Very unusual for them. It's out of here in a few hours and headed up the coast. Good luck! Damn. I was hoping it would dump a foot in Mt. Pleasant, just to shut my son up. Last I heard it is supposed to "explode" as it comes up the coast, becoming essentially a winter hurricane. "Bombogenesis" is the technical term, and the popular "bomb cyclone" is a shortened version of it, according to our weather folks. They do seem to just make up names for things these days. I think the classic was "Super Storm Sandy" to talk about something that was not even a hurricane, it was just "super" for people who were not used to tropical weather. It is far from unprecedented tho. There was a real Cat 3 there in the 30s. I have certainly seen that weather pattern in DC tho and this is not even the worst case. The snow would actually be more of a problem if the "eye" of that low was farther west so your wind was drawing wet gulf stream air up into the cold front north of you. That is what gives DC over a foot of snow a day and if it stalls, you "Knickerbocker" snow. Up here a Cat 1 hurricane in the summer might be preferable over what is going on right now. When you look at this storm on radar it is developing a very defined rotation as it is winding up and getting bigger. Snowfall rate here is 2-3 inches/hr and the temp is dropping like a rock since this morning. Pretty much a white-out out there. Major flooding in Justin's former town with 4 disabled cars with people trapped inside, one a woman with 2 kids. Water is over the wheel wells. Fire and National Guard are responding. My old stomping grounds in Scituate is really getting clobbered ... worst in over 30 years despite improvements in sea walls, etc. A TV reporter nut was standing on the porch of a house about 30 feet from the seawall and he was getting soaked with spray, along with dodging sea ice that is being thrown up onto the roofs of houses. So far we haven't had any power glitches here but I fully expect we'll lose it in the next hour or so. Wind where I am is gusting 55-60 mph. Best of luck in all that. I think I'd be getting out the extension cords and prioritizing my electricity requirements! Did that yesterday ... that's why I was firing up the Honda to test. I have a new plan. If power goes out I am going to shut off the main breaker and then backfeed the generator output through a 15 amp outlet that's in the shed. It's on the same branch of the split 240v house supply as the furnace and a couple of rooms. All my lighting is LED, so that's a tiny load. The generator will run those plus the furnace system with no problem and I don't need to have extension cords running anywhere. Well, you know more about electricity than I do. That's something I'd never try. Came across this while looking for info. Don't know if it'll help or you already have it down. http://www.tcscooters.com/backfeed.htm I like steps 1-3: If you are going to backfeed your home, you must be very carefully and follow the directions below. If you fail to follow them you can kill a line worker, kill yourself or blow up your generator. Again I'll say, get a licensed electrician. Step One, the most important step of all is to turn off the main breakers. Step two, turn off the main breakers. Step three, turn off the main breakers. Do you get the idea? Step four, remember to plug the generator end in last. If the generator is running and you are using two male ends the house end plug is live! I definitely agree that not everyone should do this. The best way is to have an automatic transfer box installed to code by a licensed electrician. That said, I've done this several times, including the house we had in Florida after Wilma. I have sufficient knowledge of what I am doing but even so, I stop, check and re-check before firing up the generator and throwing the breaker that it backfeeds through. It's illegal, but safe if you pay attention and know something about house wiring. Here's a little test that I've even tried on licensed electricians to see how knowledgeable they a Your house service is usually 240vac, split phase. Split phase means two "hot" leads, a neutral (used with both hot legs) and a ground (which really is tied to the neutral leg. Across the two "hot" leads you have 240 volts which is used for stoves, large AC units, etc. Between either hot lead and neutral you have 120 volts which is used for your outlets, lighting, refrig and small appliances. Your panel box is supposed to be wired to balance the loads as best as possible. So, here's the question. Let's say: Leg "A" of the 120 volt supply is drawing 40 amps. Leg "B" of the 120 volt supply is drawing 30 amps. How much current is flowing through the common neutral leg that is used for both legs? The answer is 10 amps. Many people assume it is the sum of both current draws or 70 amps in this example and it's amazing how many "electricians" don't know that. They don't realize that the two "hot" legs are 180 degrees out of phase, so the current in the neutral adds algebraically. That's why the neutral feed from the street to your power panel is the same size wire as the two hot leads. It will never carry more than what one hot leg is rated to draw. I didn't know it was illegal - at least not here. If you are effectively, and correctly, taking yourself "off the grid" you should be able to do whatever you want. |
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#28
posted to rec.boats
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Flurries
John H wrote:
On Thu, 4 Jan 2018 15:23:28 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 1/4/2018 2:53 PM, John H wrote: On Thu, 4 Jan 2018 13:16:34 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 1/4/2018 1:07 PM, John H wrote: On Thu, 4 Jan 2018 12:42:29 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 1/4/2018 12:20 PM, wrote: On Thu, 04 Jan 2018 08:54:03 -0500, John H wrote: On Wed, 3 Jan 2018 17:19:35 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 1/3/2018 2:28 PM, Its Me wrote: Light flurries now, the predictions range from a dusting to 1-2 inches. Worse the closer to the coast you get. My BIL at James Island (Charleston) sent a picture earlier of maybe 1/4 inch and still falling. Very unusual for them. It's out of here in a few hours and headed up the coast. Good luck! Damn. I was hoping it would dump a foot in Mt. Pleasant, just to shut my son up. Last I heard it is supposed to "explode" as it comes up the coast, becoming essentially a winter hurricane. "Bombogenesis" is the technical term, and the popular "bomb cyclone" is a shortened version of it, according to our weather folks. They do seem to just make up names for things these days. I think the classic was "Super Storm Sandy" to talk about something that was not even a hurricane, it was just "super" for people who were not used to tropical weather. It is far from unprecedented tho. There was a real Cat 3 there in the 30s. I have certainly seen that weather pattern in DC tho and this is not even the worst case. The snow would actually be more of a problem if the "eye" of that low was farther west so your wind was drawing wet gulf stream air up into the cold front north of you. That is what gives DC over a foot of snow a day and if it stalls, you "Knickerbocker" snow. Up here a Cat 1 hurricane in the summer might be preferable over what is going on right now. When you look at this storm on radar it is developing a very defined rotation as it is winding up and getting bigger. Snowfall rate here is 2-3 inches/hr and the temp is dropping like a rock since this morning. Pretty much a white-out out there. Major flooding in Justin's former town with 4 disabled cars with people trapped inside, one a woman with 2 kids. Water is over the wheel wells. Fire and National Guard are responding. My old stomping grounds in Scituate is really getting clobbered ... worst in over 30 years despite improvements in sea walls, etc. A TV reporter nut was standing on the porch of a house about 30 feet from the seawall and he was getting soaked with spray, along with dodging sea ice that is being thrown up onto the roofs of houses. So far we haven't had any power glitches here but I fully expect we'll lose it in the next hour or so. Wind where I am is gusting 55-60 mph. Best of luck in all that. I think I'd be getting out the extension cords and prioritizing my electricity requirements! Did that yesterday ... that's why I was firing up the Honda to test. I have a new plan. If power goes out I am going to shut off the main breaker and then backfeed the generator output through a 15 amp outlet that's in the shed. It's on the same branch of the split 240v house supply as the furnace and a couple of rooms. All my lighting is LED, so that's a tiny load. The generator will run those plus the furnace system with no problem and I don't need to have extension cords running anywhere. Well, you know more about electricity than I do. That's something I'd never try. Came across this while looking for info. Don't know if it'll help or you already have it down. http://www.tcscooters.com/backfeed.htm I like steps 1-3: If you are going to backfeed your home, you must be very carefully and follow the directions below. If you fail to follow them you can kill a line worker, kill yourself or blow up your generator. Again I'll say, get a licensed electrician. Step One, the most important step of all is to turn off the main breakers. Step two, turn off the main breakers. Step three, turn off the main breakers. Do you get the idea? Step four, remember to plug the generator end in last. If the generator is running and you are using two male ends the house end plug is live! I definitely agree that not everyone should do this. The best way is to have an automatic transfer box installed to code by a licensed electrician. That said, I've done this several times, including the house we had in Florida after Wilma. I have sufficient knowledge of what I am doing but even so, I stop, check and re-check before firing up the generator and throwing the breaker that it backfeeds through. It's illegal, but safe if you pay attention and know something about house wiring. Here's a little test that I've even tried on licensed electricians to see how knowledgeable they a Your house service is usually 240vac, split phase. Split phase means two "hot" leads, a neutral (used with both hot legs) and a ground (which really is tied to the neutral leg. Across the two "hot" leads you have 240 volts which is used for stoves, large AC units, etc. Between either hot lead and neutral you have 120 volts which is used for your outlets, lighting, refrig and small appliances. Your panel box is supposed to be wired to balance the loads as best as possible. So, here's the question. Let's say: Leg "A" of the 120 volt supply is drawing 40 amps. Leg "B" of the 120 volt supply is drawing 30 amps. How much current is flowing through the common neutral leg that is used for both legs? The answer is 10 amps. Many people assume it is the sum of both current draws or 70 amps in this example and it's amazing how many "electricians" don't know that. They don't realize that the two "hot" legs are 180 degrees out of phase, so the current in the neutral adds algebraically. That's why the neutral feed from the street to your power panel is the same size wire as the two hot leads. It will never carry more than what one hot leg is rated to draw. I would have guessed 35. But, that's just proof of how little I know about electricity, off the top of my head. Harry would have got it right. Maybe not. It's probably not an easy Google search and his union buddies wouldn't know the answer. |
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#29
posted to rec.boats
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Flurries
On Thu, 4 Jan 2018 18:17:01 -0500 (EST), justan wrote:
John H Wrote in message: On Thu, 4 Jan 2018 13:16:34 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 1/4/2018 1:07 PM, John H wrote: On Thu, 4 Jan 2018 12:42:29 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 1/4/2018 12:20 PM, wrote: On Thu, 04 Jan 2018 08:54:03 -0500, John H wrote: On Wed, 3 Jan 2018 17:19:35 -0500, "Mr. Luddite" wrote: On 1/3/2018 2:28 PM, Its Me wrote: Light flurries now, the predictions range from a dusting to 1-2 inches. Worse the closer to the coast you get. My BIL at James Island (Charleston) sent a picture earlier of maybe 1/4 inch and still falling. Very unusual for them. It's out of here in a few hours and headed up the coast. Good luck! Damn. I was hoping it would dump a foot in Mt. Pleasant, just to shut my son up. Last I heard it is supposed to "explode" as it comes up the coast, becoming essentially a winter hurricane. "Bombogenesis" is the technical term, and the popular "bomb cyclone" is a shortened version of it, according to our weather folks. They do seem to just make up names for things these days. I think the classic was "Super Storm Sandy" to talk about something that was not even a hurricane, it was just "super" for people who were not used to tropical weather. It is far from unprecedented tho. There was a real Cat 3 there in the 30s. I have certainly seen that weather pattern in DC tho and this is not even the worst case. The snow would actually be more of a problem if the "eye" of that low was farther west so your wind was drawing wet gulf stream air up into the cold front north of you. That is what gives DC over a foot of snow a day and if it stalls, you "Knickerbocker" snow. Up here a Cat 1 hurricane in the summer might be preferable over what is going on right now. When you look at this storm on radar it is developing a very defined rotation as it is winding up and getting bigger. Snowfall rate here is 2-3 inches/hr and the temp is dropping like a rock since this morning. Pretty much a white-out out there. Major flooding in Justin's former town with 4 disabled cars with people trapped inside, one a woman with 2 kids. Water is over the wheel wells. Fire and National Guard are responding. My old stomping grounds in Scituate is really getting clobbered ... worst in over 30 years despite improvements in sea walls, etc. A TV reporter nut was standing on the porch of a house about 30 feet from the seawall and he was getting soaked with spray, along with dodging sea ice that is being thrown up onto the roofs of houses. So far we haven't had any power glitches here but I fully expect we'll lose it in the next hour or so. Wind where I am is gusting 55-60 mph. Best of luck in all that. I think I'd be getting out the extension cords and prioritizing my electricity requirements! Did that yesterday ... that's why I was firing up the Honda to test. I have a new plan. If power goes out I am going to shut off the main breaker and then backfeed the generator output through a 15 amp outlet that's in the shed. It's on the same branch of the split 240v house supply as the furnace and a couple of rooms. All my lighting is LED, so that's a tiny load. The generator will run those plus the furnace system with no problem and I don't need to have extension cords running anywhere. Well, you know more about electricity than I do. That's something I'd never try. Came across this while looking for info. Don't know if it'll help or you already have it down. http://www.tcscooters.com/backfeed.htm I like steps 1-3: If you are going to backfeed your home, you must be very carefully and follow the directions below. If you fail to follow them you can kill a line worker, kill yourself or blow up your generator. Again I'll say, get a licensed electrician. Step One, the most important step of all is to turn off the main breakers. Step two, turn off the main breakers. Step three, turn off the main breakers. Do you get the idea? Step four, remember to plug the generator end in last. If the generator is running and you are using two male ends the house end plug is live! A friend of mine bought a kit to do it safely; simple but genius. Install a 220 breaker right below your 220 mains. They provide a simple slider that won't let you switch on both breaker sets at the same time. The newly installed breaker set feeds a new panel box with a 50 A jack like your RV plugs into. Make up a cord to connect your genset and you're done. Turn off all load breakers. Connect the cord at both ends and start the genset then you can switch the power. That is the interlock I am talking about |
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#30
posted to rec.boats
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Flurries
On Thursday, January 4, 2018 at 3:23:33 PM UTC-5, Mr. Luddite wrote:
Many people assume it is the sum of both current draws or 70 amps in this example and it's amazing how many "electricians" don't know that. They don't realize that the two "hot" legs are 180 degrees out of phase, so the current in the neutral adds algebraically. That's why the neutral feed from the street to your power panel is the same size wire as the two hot leads. It will never carry more than what one hot leg is rated to draw. That reminds me... I've had the "discussion" with more than one intelligent person about a car (or insert motorized vehicle here) battery and it's role in running the car. Had more than one person assert that, once started (cranked), the battery runs the car and the alternator charges the battery. Of course, that's just not the case. The alternator runs the car's systems (lights, ignition, etc...) while it recharges the battery for the next cranking cycle. It's not as if the electrons are smart and go to the battery first, then back out to the car! For the charging to occur, the alternator's output potential (voltage) is higher than the battery's, so it supplies the current to the car's systems and the leftover goes to the battery. Once charged it reduces its output voltage, and if it goes below the battery's voltage the battery would take over, but then become discharged and the alternator would ramp up and take back over. That shouldn't happen in a properly designed system, it should just go to float mode which is just slightly higher than the battery. |
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