Generator

[TheMightyAtlas]

I want to get a generator just to run my furnace fan if the power goes out during the winter. We are in the Boston area, and the snowstorms are pretty fierce. I know that 3750kw will be plenty of power for what I need, but is this as simple as running the generator outside, running an extension cord into the basement and plugging my furnace fan into it. Or I guess, plugging everything in, and then starting teh generator.

Does the generator run even when no power is being drawn from it. Also, would the thermostat work without power? What about the furnace itself?

[Oscar_Lives]

I don't think the furnace would work without power.

[CJ]

Last month we bought a generator and had a 10 circuit Transfer Switch Panel installed (about $600). If we lose power, the generator cord plugs into the Transfer Panel and we can choose which circuit(s) and how many of them we want to run at the same time. This type of set up was the safest and easiest for us to operate. The size of the generator depends on how many circuits you want to run at one time. The Honda web page has some good information on it. We were told that Honda was the quietest generator made, but it is very expensive (we bought a Briggs & Stratton) and our needs didn't justify the high cost. The generator directions recommend that the owner provide protection for three sides of the generator while it runs to protect it from the weather elements.

[Toller]

Of course the generator runs even when no power is being drawn from it; does your car motor run at traffic lights? The thermostat normally draws power from the furnace, so if you hook it up properly there should be no problem. Furnaces can be forced to run without power, but without the fan running you will trash it pretty fast. Running an extension cord is certainly the cheapest and most idiot proof way to go, but also the most clumsy. Your furnace probably doesn't have a plug on it; you will have to do something about that, and I suspect you are not the person to do it. My furnace will run on a 500w generator; yours might not. Investigate that before buying one. Furnaces have been ruined by poor quality electricity coming off cheap generators; but a lot of people do it without any problems. A judgement call.

[mm]

What kind of furnace are we talking about? No one has said.

Maybe gas will burn without electricity--I don't know-- but oil won't.

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[Edwin Pawlowski]

Maybe it will if the thermostat has a battery

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Gas will burn, but most furnaces today have electronic ignition and electronically operated gas valves. Of course even if you defeat all of that, the limit switches won't be working.

[RBM]

Your furnace will run just like it normally does. You need to have an electrician install a male plug at the furnace, connected to a single pole double throw switch. In one position the furnace gets its power from your electrical system, and in the other position it will get its power from an extension cord plugged into your generator.

[L. M. Rappaport]

On 12 Dec 2005 20:40:42 -0800, "TheMightyAtlas" wrote (with possible editing):

Yes.

Doesn't matter - if it's really a furnace, it needs power to run the fan. If you meant a boiler, it still needs power to run the circulator. Both need power if you're burning oil; most need power if you're burning gas. A thermostat is essentially a single pole, single throw switch. If it's programmable, it might have a battery.

[HeyBub]

Sure. Figure a gallon of gasoline per hour. Plan on getting up in the middle of the night to re-fuel.

[Toller]

My generator will go 8 hours on a gallon with just the furnace on it.

[BocesLib]

You might want to get a real good generator....

Your furnace has a electronic control board in it. Fry it and you screwed with or without power!

Cheap generators provide dirty electricity, this will have a problem with electronic equipment. Should be fine though with refrigerators etc.

If you filter the power through a UPS, that will do ok. Otherwise honda makes a fine line of generators that can do it. Expensive though.

[Joe M]

If a thermostat has a battery, it's probably a small one that provides enough current for the thermostat to maintain electronic memory (and possibly run a clock). It would be much less than is required to run the fan. Also, an electronic thermostat is often electrically isolated from the furnace.

[trader4]

"I know that 3750kw will be plenty of power for what I need"

That ought to run not only your house, but a few thousands of your neighbors too!

[Mark Lloyd]

How much power does the gas valve need? Perhaps something could be arranged, like on a gas water heater?

[Toller]

Standard UPSs produce square waves. I wouldn't want to send that to my furnace.

[mm]

Sure. He just needs to power the whole furnace and not just the fan. Powering just the furnace fan is a bit like toasting marshmallows over a campfire that isn't burning.

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[TheMightyAtlas]

Sounds like I need to engage an electrician for this. Since I am in Boston, it's going to add a few hundred dollars to the cost, even if he just drops by for fifteen minutes! I was hoping to avoid that, but it sounds like I am way out of my depth here.

[philkryder]

Do you know how much electricty your furnace needs?

That would be a good place to start.

I have an interesting story - which unfortunately probably doesn't apply to your situation - but it illustrates that you want to KNOW what is really happening before making assumptions.

In January 1978, a blizzard hit our area of the mid-west and left us without power for 3 days.

Being a good neighbor, I fired up my coleman stove and made some soup and took to the octegenarian next door. She thanked me for the soup and asked me to sit for a bit. I noticed her home was toasty warm.

She explained to me that our homes had had coal furnaces with gravity air feed that had been converted to natural gas. She was sure that mine was the same as hers. She said that she just switched the furnace to "manual" and let it run. If the house got too warm, she turned the furnace off. I did the same. We were warm and cozy. Many folks had frozen pipes.

My wife and I read "The Long Winter" by Laura Ingalls Wilder aloud to each other and enjoyed the time off.

-----

Find out what you have, before trying to figure out what you need.

------- Good luck! P.S. Consider getting a Propane or Natural Gas powered Generator. Gasoline stinks and is flamable to store and pour. Phil

[mm]

Yes, but more slowly, right. Don't they have speed regulators that somewhat depend on the load. Cars use far less at idle than they do when moving the car.

If he says so, I'm sure heybub is right. All the more reason to conserve on heat use Close vents and doors to unused rooms, etc. (although I'm told there is a limit to that.) Turn down the heat. Use an electric blanket. And maybe your wife will only have to fill the tank once during the night.

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