| Can you place a generator on your house with a | | | | heat strip. |
| partial load? Code says it must handle the load it is | | | | When purchasing a whole house generator, you |
| under. You can size your unit to the load that is | | | | must consider the serge amperage that happens |
| necessary. If you have a 5000 sq ft house and | | | | with motor load equipment. Motor load equipment |
| place a 15 KW standby, you must decide what | | | | would be your refrigerator, microwave, well |
| load you want placed on that generator You can | | | | pump, garbage disposal, washing machine, dryer, |
| runs lights and your refrigerator, or maybe lights | | | | and dishwasher. A serge capacity is for 3 |
| and one central air conditioning unit. You can | | | | seconds. I have a generator that advertised |
| isolate the load to that generator. | | | | handling 6500 watts. That generator does not |
| You must size the load not according to the | | | | carry a load up to 6500 watts. It carries a load of |
| whole house but to the load it serves. If you | | | | about 4500 watts and will serge up to 6500 |
| want to run lights, then you must be able to run | | | | watts for 3 seconds. |
| the lights. If you start the generator and it dies, | | | | When purchasing a generator, you must be |
| then the unit is not capable of handling that load. A | | | | aware of the surge capacity. For instance, look at |
| generator must be capable of starting a central | | | | a propane verses natural gas generator. A |
| unit and handling that LRA (Lock Rotor | | | | propane generator is rated higher. An advertised |
| Amperage) of that unit. You can get a smaller | | | | 16 KW might actually run as a 14 KW if you want |
| generator but it won't run your whole house | | | | it in natural gas capacity. |
| especially your central air conditioning unit or your | | | | |