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To: patton
Dear patton,

No, even a 20KW generator just doesn't do much than keep on the essentials, and a few extras.

The house is all-electric. A big part of it is the heat pumps. They can take a lot of power. During the winter, if it gets really cold, the “electric furnace” comes on, and a single heat pump (we have two) will take something like 50 or 60 amps (I forget the exact numbers) at 240 volts.

As well, the clothes washer - electric - is a pig, so are the double-wall ovens and the cooktop, and I have a lot of computers, including my corporate server, that need to be up, etc. Even the well and the water conditioning system are not inconsiderable loads.

The average usage isn't very much, but the problem is that when certain things come on, they need a whole bunch of juice for the short period of time that they're on. We have 400 amp service into the house.


sitetest

1,820 posted on 08/27/2011 8:43:46 PM PDT by sitetest (If Roe is not overturned, no unborn child will ever be protected in law.)
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To: sitetest

Wow. A 400 amp service?

Just wow.


1,841 posted on 08/27/2011 8:55:13 PM PDT by patton (I am sure that I have done dumber things in my life, but at the moment, I am unable to recall them.)
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To: sitetest; patton
I've got a 15KW turned by a 30HP diesel tractor and I can't carry the whole house. Certain things kick on at the same time and you have a problem. Central air has a big start up surge current by itself, you can hear the diesel load up just with it kicking on.

Lots of people ruin their generators after a storm by trying to power up too much, especially the smaller 5 and 7.5KW units or they ruin the engines by not changing oil every 24 hours (engines without oil filters).

1,858 posted on 08/27/2011 9:02:52 PM PDT by The Cajun (Palin, Free Republic, Mark Levin, Rush, Hannity......Nuff said.)
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