Generator & refrigerator

[JimWest]

Tried my new Westinghouse generator 7500/9500 - 20 amp last week during a power outage. Plugged in one Samsung Refrigerator/Freezer french door. 10 amps draw. Frig ran fine for about 20 minutes then clicked off due to GFI fault. New heavy duty extension cord, #10 gauge by 25' that ends with three outlets. Generator has two 110 VAC outlets and both did same. Reset the GFI and same. 20minutes and off again.
Wrote Westinghouse and they dais to use an UN-grounded cord. You can't buy an un-grounded extension cord these days.

Wrote back and this time they replied ; it is more than likely due to the multi-outlet-not necessarily the grounded extension cable. Check the total harmonic distortion level (THD) requirement of the Samsung device. Some require cleaner power generators. The WGEN7500DF has a THD of 23%.

Does this make any sense ? Didn't know I'd need an Electrical Engineer to just run a refrigerator on a $1,000 generator.

Samsung RF4287HARS.
Generator Westinghouse Wgen7500DF dual fuel on gasoline 75-- running watts 9500 peak

 

[JohnG]

Certain designs of equipment require good sine wave, distortion free power. Which is why I decided to go with an Inverter/generator Honda. 23% distortion seems like an awful lot, but I'm no electrical engineer.

Maybe you can retrofit your generator. I'd be calling Westinghouse.

 

[mk378]

Did you ground the generator? Always ground your generator.

I would replace the GFI with regular outlet before lifting the ground on the fridge. An ungrounded fridge can be dangerous since the user is touching metal.

 

[WhyMe]

with that large of a generator i would consider just doing a whole house panel. have had mine for 20 years and its always worked well.

 

[JimWest]

I would, but the panel is far from the garage, and a none-crawable crawlspace.

Did not ground the generator. Instructions say too but not necessary.

 

[Rand]

you could just break off the ground prong on an extension cord. to run "ungrounded"

I was running mine ungrounded with the tornado power outage we had last week tues.

my stormpower 700 ran it for about 6 hours.. then I used inverter hooked to running car battery.

while also charging the stormpower unit.

fridge draw was about 250-300watts running. with a power factor of .65
startup draw was around 1500-2000w for defrost was 650w

I have a cheapo builder grade conventional GE fridge.

That THD seems extremely high but that might be the "MAX" and not the normal.

 

[Dave Sherman]

Originally Posted by mk378
Did you ground the generator? Always ground your generator.

I would replace the GFI with regular outlet before lifting the ground on the fridge. An ungrounded fridge can be dangerous since the user is touching metal.


This. Electrical engineer here. Refrigerators aren't supposed to be on GFCIs anyway. My 4000 watt non-inverter generator came with GFCIs, and I couldn't run my laptop and amateur radio equipment for Field Day without the GFCIs tripping, although the generator was grounded. Seems like they would trip if I even looked at them funny. Rather than having ungrounded equipment, I just replaced the GFCIs with regular outlets.

 

[UncleDave]

Yes it make sense - 23% is terrible.
Classic single pole " Chin-C" electrical end of the genset.
Ad to that what typically happens is under load the voltage sags, and with a lower load is high.

Sub 10% is probably where you need to be.

Some of our test equipment at the shop requires 5%


UD

 

[Pete]

Another epow engineer here: As previously advised: Make sure you are solidly grounding your generator. That's basic safety not to be overlooked.

Generators are notorious for putting out imperfect sine-wave power...they're "noisy" in more than one way. If your only choice of outlets are GFCI-type, you could try a power filter/conditioner, which usually comes along with a surge arrestor, on the outlet that has a sensitive device.

You should also consider surge protection at your home's breaker panel, if you don't have any--everyone should. There are whole-house arrestors (more energy-absorbing--name brand would be Surge Breaker Plus Whole Home Surge Protector), and also plug-in surge arrestors which are like breakers, plugging into your panel, 2-spaces-wide (2-pole; a name brand would be the Square D QO Surgebreaker). My brother's electronics were saved a few years ago, after his utility performed maintenance work: his whole-house arrestor blew out, but his electronics lived on...not so for his neighbors, although they were reimbursed for new appliances. Saved him the hassle, I guess, but he was reimbursed for a new Surge Breaker+.

 

[Tman220]

I would definitely start by hooking a tach up to make sure you are as near 3600 rpm as you can possibly be under various loads. you need 3600 rpm to get 60 Hz frequency. Definitely couldn't hurt by looking into it.

 

[Kawiguy454]

The electronics in the fridge are tripping the GFI, Replace the GFI outlet's with std outlets and ground the generator. Grounding the Generator will allow a chassis short in the fridge to trip the overload breaker. AC is inherently safer than DC. Breaking off the extension cords ground lug and running that way will only be dangerous if the fridge directly shorts to its chassis and then you touch it while standing in a puddle. Even then you just get a strong "Tickle" alerting you to the condition.

 

[Rand]

Now that people mentioned it.. yes fridge shouldnt be on GFI outlet.

Originally Posted by Tman220
I would definitely start by hooking a tach up to make sure you are as near 3600 rpm as you can possibly be under various loads. you need 3600 rpm to get 60 Hz frequency. Definitely couldn't hurt by looking into it.


Much easier than going and buying a tach..

a multimeter or kill-a-watt meter will tell you hertz.

 

[benjy]

my Everlast inverter mig welder REQUIRES clean generator power says the manufacturer. damage can be now or later depending on use, or pay me now or lots more later!!!

 

[Amkeer]

A portable generator that is not clean power such as a inverter generator will burn up your refrigerator. Either invest in a Generac whole house generator or spend some money on a proper generator with clean power. I have a small inverter generator here specifically for the refrigerator and some electronics. I will use it until I get my Generac installed. The Generac with a 500 gallon propane tank is between 12000-13000 installed for 22kw which will power over 90% of the homes out there.

 

[JimWest]

Normally the frig is plugged into a non-GFI outlet. Do you mean you replaced the outlets IN your generator with ordinary household-type grounded, but not GFI outlets ? Dif you have to find special ones to fit ?

 

[JimWest]

If money was no object I'd go that route.

 

[Dave Sherman]

Originally Posted by JimWest
Normally the frig is plugged into a non-GFI outlet. Do you mean you replaced the outlets IN your generator with ordinary household-type grounded, but not GFI outlets ? Dif you have to find special ones to fit ?


Correct. Nothing special about the outlets. The GFCIs that were in the generator were no different than ones you find in your house. I just replaced them with the outlets that go into a rectangular hole the same size as a GFCI.