how do you connect a generator to your house?
OK, so you have a generator (or you’re thinking of getting one). You want to be able to potentially run any of your normal equipment from that generator. Lights, heating, fridge and freezer, water pumps, charge your phone etc. How do you do that?
You could just plug an extension lead into the generator outlet and then plug a few things into that. But it’s limited, dangerous and messy, with leads all over the floor. To limit the length of the lead maybe you could bring a portable generator close to where you want to operate, but then you’ve got to worry about moving the thing, fumes and noise, and you’d have to be quite selective about what you can power like that. Powering the cooker hob, water pumps or the septic tank could be quite challenging.
You need a Transfer Switch – Automatic or Manual
A transfer switch performs two main functions:
- Disconnect your property from the mains supply cables
- Enable your generator to be connected directly to the internal wiring of your property – so electrical items can be operated normally.
You need to disconnect your property from the incoming mains supply cables, because otherwise when your generator starts up it will be attempting to provide power to your whole locality, which will instantly overload the generator. It might also injure a linesman working on the line.
Automatic Transfer Switch (ATS)
An automatic transfer switch detects the mains power outage and can switch to your generator without human intervention. Generally there is a 30 second delay just in case it is a temporary glitch and the power returns. The generator has to be pre-connected and ready to go with fuel etc. An ATS can also start the generator if it has that capability. When the mains power returns, the ATS will wait 30 seconds again and then switch back and stop the generator. ATS are generally more complex to set up and thus more costly to install than a manual switch.
Manual Transfer Switch
A manual transfer switch … requires a human to flip the switch and start / stop the generator. The generator does not need to be permanently connected, when the power goes out you can prepare the generator at your own pace, start it and then connect some heavy-duty extension leads from the generator to the switch to get the power into the property.
Manual transfer switches are commonly a rotary design, with positions for Mains, Off and Generator. An example of these from Kraus & Naimer is shown below. It would be housed in suitable case.
