Whether you live in a high-risk area or simply want to be prepared, having a whole house generator can make a big difference. It’s an investment that pays for itself through years of reliable power.
A whole house generator is also a great way to improve your home value. They are permanent fixtures, which means they need to be installed by a professional to meet local building codes and ordinances.
Automatic Transfer Switch (ATS)
The Automatic Transfer Switch (ATS) is one of the most important parts of a whole house generator. It essentially monitors your home’s power and turns on your generator when it senses there’s an issue.
ATS panels with built-in mains detection monitor your electricity supply and when they detect an interruption, close off the mains connection and send a signal to the generator to start.
Once the generator starts, it will send an “available” signal back to the ATS to switch the connection to generator power.
In this way, the ATS can ensure that your generator never back feeds your mains supply and potentially burn it out.
Having your ATS tested periodically is crucial to ensuring its safety and reliability. Industrial Tests, Inc. is the industry’s leading supplier of ATS testing to manufacturing facilities, power plants and industrial businesses.
Automatic Blackout Detection (ABD)
A blackout is a complete loss of power to an area. It’s the most dangerous type of outage and can last a day or longer, depending on the severity of the situation.
When whole house generators are set to detect a blackout, they automatically begin the power transfer in seconds, so you can get back to normal life immediately. That’s a huge benefit because darkness and confusion usually happen right after power outages, making it difficult to find your way around your home.
With a whole house generator, you’ll also be able to keep your food fresh and prevent freezers from freezing up. That’s important because if the power goes out for an extended period of time, frozen foods can spoil quickly.
In addition, if you have someone in your family with medical conditions that require electronic devices to monitor their health or control their medications, you’ll want to ensure they can continue to use those devices during blackouts. That’s something you can’t do with a portable emergency generator.
Fuel Tanks
Having a reliable fuel supply can help a generator operate smoothly in the case of power outages. It can also save you time and money by not having to travel to a fuel station or other offsite location for frequent refueling.
A fuel tank is a container that stores liquids in large quantities. They can store diesel, gasoline, or other fuels that are flammable and hazardous.
There are many different types of fuel tanks. Some are above ground while others are underground.
These fuel tanks can be made from plastic polypropylene, high-density polyethylene, reground plastic, or a combination of different materials. These tanks are a safe and cost-effective way to store fuels on site.
They can be designed to accommodate any amount of fuel, and they are flexible and durable. They can be used for a variety of applications, and they are easy to install and maintain.
Wiring
The wiring of your house is what helps electricity reach every room and appliance. It consists of three basic wires: a live wire, a neutral wire and a ground wire.
Electricity is delivered to your home through these wires and the electrical panel that connects them together. There are also circuit breakers in your breaker box that disconnect or break the current flow when they sense excessive power, protecting appliances from damage and keeping them safe.
When you need power back up, whole house generators can be a life saver during blackouts or surges in the power supply. However, you should ensure that the generator is properly hooked up to your electrical system so that it is able to deliver electricity to all your essential circuits when needed.
One way to wire a generator into the home is with a transfer switch. A transfer switch will allow you to manually or automatically cut off power to your electrical system and hook the generator up instead, letting it run when you need it most.