Your last generator Maintenance Run

[daugen]

grs, would you be retired by now if you charged everyone $20-22k for a no frills basic 22kw Generac install?
In California, electricians must see this as a modern Gold Rush.

 

[grsthegreat]

grs, would you be retired by now if you charged everyone $20-22k for a no frills basic 22kw Generac install?
In California, electricians must see this as a modern Gold Rush.

well I have heard from some Calif installers that in some areas of calif they can’t even install the units, even if there carb compliant, due to their severe restrictions inplace. GENERAC is just now entering the so called green energy market. They now have training in place for a new line of products coming out that integrates solar management and the like. But since I’m retiring I’m not interested in following up on this. Out here a 22 kw air cooled install runs between 7500-10,000 depending on the complexity of the install. So he are a real pain in the arse to complete, especially on houses where the builders placed the meter and panel on the opposite sides of the house.

 

[ultrarunner]

Even some of the most ardent all electric supporters in Berkeley have told me they wish the city would re-think all electric homes.

Working with a lot of homes built during the 1920's building boom many still have original gravity furnaces or floor furnaces in service... A few still have Wedgewood combo gas and wood white porcelain stoves... All the old homes had built-in kitchen chimneys suitable for wood stoves.

 

[Blaszer]

I stand corrected. I looked up last billing $1.40. Cheaper than I remembered. Still more $$$ than grid power. We pay $0.06 per KWH for electricity. No tier systems. Normally we fill it in summer and it lasts all year, but the wife was nervous about predictions for a sever winter and she had the tank topped off this month. When we had it filled late this spring it was just shy of a buck per gal.
View attachment 626895
What is the reason for calif high prices. I know some places in calif are outlawing natural gas. Is it 5he same for propane?

grsthegreat, When you do installs, how often are they a gaseous vs a diesel? Everyone around the northern VA region has the air cooled 3600 rpm generac models, very few with liquid cooled, and even less with diesel. My neighbor has a 35kw generac and he says he can get 5-7 days on a 1000gal propane tank, which makes that a very expensive week with propane rates in this area (just filled our tank for $1.659 a gallon, best price around).

 

[downsizingnow48]

(and.... when you go shopping, let us know what you choose !).

Rgds, D.

Decided that the simplest and cheapest solution was to buy more gas cans. Next time I go to the coast will have 30 gallons.

 

[ericm979]

Our current propane price is $2.75. Dunno how one would get to over 4 with even the most expensive propane. Stuff in this part of CA is expensive because it's expensive to live here.

I don't know of any CA county banning propane or even talking about it. There are a few large cities that have recently (or are considering) started requiring new construction to be all electric. Not in the rural areas though, and not for existing houses.

The whole home generators I'm considering use about 1.5 gallons of propane an hour. Running 16 hours a day that'd be about 25 gallons a day. If I get a 500 gallon tank which holds a practical 400 gallons, and assume it's half full when the outage starts, I'd have 200 gallons or 8 days minus what we use for heating.

 

[LittleBill21]

tell that to those without power in california. Generac stock has gone thru the roof. so many people now want whole house generators out there, there are not enough qualified installers. This is mainly due to californias monstrous epa regulations and permit nightmares. Generac is ramping up tech training and expect sales to be endless for next 10 years. Who really cares how efficient or noisy something is when there is no grid power for 5 days. Also how to effectively gauge cost per hour is impossible. they ramp up and down due to load applied. Mine can run from 1.5 to 3.6 GPH depending on load. Generac Holdings Sees Demand Power Up | The Motley Fool Generator demand surges as PG&E customers struggle to keep lights on | Fox Business

i just bought some of their stock lets hope it keeps climbing! I will hold you personally responsible if it doesn't :cool2:

 

[daugen]

If Generac is running at full capacity, more demand isn't going to make more money for them, or substantially make their stock go up.
Sure will help Champion, etc. If Generac can grow their business by a third, you bet.
I have owned Generac stock. What goes up comes down, though at least I rode a small wave. Definitely a bigger wave now.
And a lot of folks who bought portables are going to want an easier or more powerful solution, and quieter most likely too.

Most of us are dependent upon electricity for our heat in some way, whether fuel oil pumps or heat pumps or gas hot air systems, no juice no warmth.
So for me, in a state where it definitely gets cold in the winter, unlike South Florida, maintaining heat is most important to me. Less important, though not much, is a/c.
For folks up North who burn wood, you really can thumb your nose at this, but most of us can't. We are hostages to our electric appliances.
and therefore we surely shall maintain the generators that keep us going...

 

[grsthegreat]

grsthegreat, When you do installs, how often are they a gaseous vs a diesel? Everyone around the northern VA region has the air cooled 3600 rpm generac models, very few with liquid cooled, and even less with diesel. My neighbor has a 35kw generac and he says he can get 5-7 days on a 1000gal propane tank, which makes that a very expensive week with propane rates in this area (just filled our tank for $1.659 a gallon, best price around).

. i dont do any diesel units due to requirements for containment i was hit with on the last one i did. the containment pond ended up costing as much as the unit. we sit over an aquifer. id say i install 30-40 air cooled for ever liquid cooled unit. I have only installed 1 of the 22kw liquid cooled units and i really like the quietness of operation, but its over 2x the cost of the air cooled. as per your friends 22kw. Ive actually had a test of mine using a 7 pound propane cylinder. when at idle with nothing on but lights and refrigerator/freezers,tv it uses between 1 to 1.5 GPH. Generally when i have a power outage event for a long period thats all that would be running. in the summer i may have the ac on if its real hot (i did last year during a summer outage). in the winter my heat, water heater and stove are propane. my 22 kw powers my nearly 4,000 sf house and the water tank heaters in the horse barn. im not sure what the average usage would be in a winter power outage as i have not had one to actually test the draw thru the unit. Generac says to expect 2.5 GPH at 1/2 load (which i would assume to be an average winter load in my situation) up to 3.9 GPH under full load. I know that my unit will never continuously operate under a full load. it only ramps up for seconds during motor laods. so if i assume 2.5 GPH and ran it 24/7 id be using aprox 60 gallons of propane per day. My tank holds 900 gal (90% load) that would give me 15 days .....mind you im also heating my water and house with propane (unless i'm burning wood in the stove). so 15 days is the outermost time i would get. But i dont now or ever run mine 24/7 during outage. i run it in morning thru late morning, then turn it off until evening. Our association well is on a pair of generators so water isn't an issue. i probably only log 6-8 hours per day during extended outage in winter, probably only 3-4 in summer unless we want the ac on.

 

[grsthegreat]

If Generac is running at full capacity, more demand isn't going to make more money for them, or substantially make their stock go up.
Sure will help Champion, etc. If Generac can grow their business by a third, you bet.
I have owned Generac stock. What goes up comes down, though at least I rode a small wave. Definitely a bigger wave now.
And a lot of folks who bought portables are going to want an easier or more powerful solution, and quieter most likely too.

Most of us are dependent upon electricity for our heat in some way, whether fuel oil pumps or heat pumps or gas hot air systems, no juice no warmth.
So for me, in a state where it definitely gets cold in the winter, unlike South Florida, maintaining heat is most important to me. Less important, though not much, is a/c.
For folks up North who burn wood, you really can thumb your nose at this, but most of us can't. We are hostages to our electric appliances.
and therefore we surely shall maintain the generators that keep us going...

. the primary reason people up here go with whole house systems is for water. Most rural people here are on their own wells. Also, most of the rural folk have horses, cattle, sheep, etc. They cant go without water very long. The people can leave to go to a hotel in town...but the animals cannot.

I had one local well company owner tell me, when i called him about a sizing requirement on an association well house, that the most money his business ever made in a few months time was repairing well pumps that were destroyed by inadequate sized portable generators back fed into a well pressure switch during our last 5 day power outage. The higher and electronic, freq drive units didnt seem to be affected as much as the older units. I think the higher end units have good protection to lock it out if power quality sucks.