natural gas generator

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Along with a new ZTR mower, my dad is now looking to buy a 20-22kw natural gas generator, the ones that turn on automatically when the power goes out. He's about to sell a truck he has, and the money will go towards the generator. He has a 12 year old 8kw Blackmax with the 13hp GX390 Honda that has a natural gas kit on it, it has been flawless and never missed a lick in 12 years. Bought it right before Katrina, but he just wants an automatic one now(as opposed to having to drag the blackmax out, hooking up the natural gas hose and cranking everytime the power goes out.) I dont blame him. We have looked at a GE, with a Briggs Vanguard engine, a Kohler, A Generac with a Generac OHVI engine, and a Briggs and Stratton with a Briggs Vanguard engine. Which one of these, generator and engine, would be the best buy and give the most reliable years of service? I'm not fond of the Briggs engines taking 5W30 oil and them being air cooled, but if thats what they require for warranty then I guess we have no choice.
 
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Winco makes a better generator than Generac. I have taken most of the Winco I have apart to replace the generator head as the previous owner ran it 24x7 for months on end and overloaded it. It's well built and no scrimping.

20kw is probably still air cooled in most cases.

Be aware that the auto transfer switch can cost a lot and need an electrician to wire it.

Some generators are packaged with a auto transfer switch.

I see some on CraigsList where the hours are all weekly tests.

Many engines can be switched between propane and natural gas.
 
dad has the generac, and it's also an air-cooled Vtwin, that specs 5w30.

hasn't had any issues with it, but honestly not much use either...
he has a maintenance contract with the company that put it in (and the furnace, AC, Water heater, etc), and they come out twice a year, change the oil and filters on the Gen, and the furnace filters.

I'm fairly certain they use M1 5w30. and the official generac filters. ugh..
I know it uses the same battery as my old neon, and if IRC, the Filter crosses to the same ones as the 1zzfe(toyota engine) the Vibe in my sig takes.

tried to convince dad he could save a ton of money and let me do the maintenance, but... he'd rather pay them.
 
Ive sold a few for jobs at work and I hear through the grapevine that Kohler make good units. Ive sold a few Generac but have heard mixed things.
 
Briggs Vanguard engines (used to be) as good as a Honda. They WERE made in Japan... are they still?

Generac is "just OK".
 
20-22Kw can be quite a draw on your natural gas service. Hopefully your system and other gas appliances can cope.
 
Are long power outages frequent in Louisiana?

When I lived in NY we would have quite a few from ice storms, etc.

But since I moved to Texas, most of the electric utility wiring is underground and we have had a few dips in power but no outage for more than an hour in five years.
 
Yes, especially during hurricane season. We haven't had a bad storm in years. For Katrina we didn't have power for 2 weeks if I recall correctly
 
Originally Posted By: mobilaltima
I'm not fond of the Briggs engines taking 5W30 oil and them being air cooled, but if thats what they require for warranty then I guess we have no choice.
It should work fine using 5w30 full synthetic which is probably the recommendation. You could also use 10w30 full synthetic, which would be acceptable by B&S. If you don't like neither, B&S newest recommendation is Vanguard Full Synthetic 15w50.
 
I'm a neighbor of yours up in Gonzales. Have had a Generac 20kw with the auto panel now for 4 years. Has only kicked on 3 times for outages from 2 to 5 hours. Cranks right up after about 10 seconds.

So far, I would give it a recommendation. I change the oil and filter once a year with Rotella 15/40 and a Fram Ultra XG4967 on the V-twin 999. Good luck
 
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Plan to spend about a grand on a big a$$ gas meter. At least that's what Consumers Energy charged here in Michigan.
 
Originally Posted By: jkasch
Plan to spend about a grand on a big a$$ gas meter. At least that's what Consumers Energy charged here in Michigan.

Here they just upped our pressure to 2psi, and installed a regulator on the gas appliances. The cost was about half what you were charged.
 
Has anyone done the needed calculations as to how many KW are actually needed for the critical loads?

If power outages are few and far between then maybe get enough to power the critical loads?

A peak-hold AC clamp-on ammeter would be handy.

If your Dad lives in LA he needs to determine if AC is a critical load.

Around here, my critical loads are water pump, heat, and power to cook on gas range or microwave. Maybe a couple of lights in the kitchen.

Water pump is the largest load.
 
My former job had a gas generator and while the gas meter was "sized" for a certain flow it could do 150% of that rating, per the gas company. Might be worth asking them. They'd love to sell you more gas.
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They put effort into residential gas delivery in a crisis (so you can heat the house) to a point that they cut off industrial users if there isn't enough.
 
Agree with above, original gas meter was used. No issues after 5 hour run with high loads.

Donald, the auto panel is equipped with power shedding. Mine has run both central A/C units together though.
 
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Check out the math on fuel costs for these beasts; you had better hope that you never need to run them. Natural gas powered units may be fine for that just in case, peace of mind kind of feeling, but diesel is the only way to go if you expect to loose power for a couple of days.
 
Have done the math, about $30 a day for NG around here. When compared to a hotel stay(if you can find one in a storm situation), thats a steal.

Most hurricane outages last a matter of days, not weeks. In 2005, Katrina only had the power out for a week. In 2008, Gustav had the power out for 6 days.
 
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