How To Install A Whole House Generac Generator And A 200 Amp Generac Transfer Switch.
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- čas přidán 22. 06. 2023
- In this video, I will show you how to install a whole house natural gas or propane Generac generator and a Generac transfer switch. I will also show you the papers that you will need to pull a permit for your whole house generator installation. You will learn how to place a generator for hook up and how to properly wire it per NEC 2017. I am not a professional electrician so you should consult one if you are not sure. Some of the things that I needed to know to reassure myself that I would pass the inspection to have our power restored were not clear to me on other people's CZcams videos. This video is to help my viewer to fix it themselves and to help instill confidence in one's own ability to do so.
Fix It John and affiliates are not responsible or liable for any loss or damage caused by your understanding or interpretation of the information in the videos. Always use safety precautions, and protective wear, and refer to manuals, other websites, books, or advice for projects contained on this website or in these videos. The videos are to be for learning purposes, but not guarantees, solutions, or answers. Always use precaution and safety in every project that you do. Fix It John recommends using safe practices when working on any project in every aspect. Any damage, loss, or injury resulting from the improper or incorrect use of equipment, tools, etc., or from the information contained in the videos at Fix It John or on fixitjohn.net is the sole responsibility of the user and not Fix It John - Jak na to + styl
First video I have seen where a torque wrench is actually used. Kudos to you!
Thanks.
Lots of great information.especially pertaining to not attempting without a hot cup of coffee. That should be in the instruction manual
I know, I should petition Generac to add that to the safety manual. Thanks for watching.
Great video so far, reminds me a lot of myself jumping in there to take the professional's paycheck and keeping it in my own pocket. Excellent safety tip too, to always have a hot cup of joe nearby to help prevent accidental electrocution. Can't imagine how many times that one's saved me from an early grave! Only reminder I'd add is to make sure it's in a cardboard or Styrofoam cup with a sippie lid, like shown. Thermoses can get gross and hard to clean, and ceramic mugs either draw in flies and/or suck the heat straight out of the coffee, rendering it useless usually within minutes.
Making some popcorn now for the final 50 minutes!
You are so right keeping that paycheck. And the danger of drinking coffee from a ceramic cup will cool off way to quickly. I like your style Rick. Thanks for watching.
You do a great job editing, not mention the project itself. Thanks for posting
I appreciate that!
Excellent. Not much info on doing this transformation so thank you for sharing your knowledge with us, Very helpful. Stay cool.
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching.
Man, what a great video. Wish I had seen it before I broke down and ordered one installed. I only wish you hadn't sped any of the video up. Your content is some of the best I've seen on here. Great job. I'm a fan!
What a nice thing to say. I think that you would have been bored out of your pants if I hadn't sped through. Thank you for watching.
Very nice job you have done. I'm getting ready to install one, good to see how to vids.
Oh good, let me know if you have any questions. Thanks for watching. Don't forget the coffee.
Hey John just wanted to say I appreciate you posting this video. I had a 24kw generac installed about 3 months ago professionally and it was interesting to compare what you did to what they did. It led me to believe they did a pretty darn good job as they paralleled yours pretty close. If I had been about 20 years younger I probably would have attempted to self install as well, but I'm at that point in my life where I can afford to pay someone else to do it vs killing myself trying to do the work alone. Not to mention I had a 150 foot attic run across the house for the power and signal cable to the other side of the house where my electric meter was. Much nicer to have a youngster do that kinda work than me!
I am such a tightwad. If I see a service truck slowing down by my house I go into a panic attack haha. I know that it is nice to have things done once in a while. Thanks for watching and I appreciate your comments.
This was just what I was looking for. Thanks John.
I am glad it helps. Thanks for watching.
this video is PERFECT. its exactly what i've been looking for. THANK YOU!
Good, I hope that It helps. Thank you for watching.
great video! now im off to watch about the whole house surge protector.
Oh wow thanks for watching. Please like if it helps.
Jay the Florida pool pump motor repair guy. When Service Calls Longwood approved ! that was good info 2 see👨🔧good job !! Fit it John
Thanks Jay
Nice thorough video John. Thanks!
I am glad that you appreciate it. Thank you watching.
Excellent work - appreciate your time and expertise!
Many thanks! Thank you for watching
Great video !! PErfect with details from the Service guy.
Glad you liked it!
Love to see them milwaukee tools in action... great choice and outstanding job
Thanks 👍 a bunch. That means a lot.
Great video! FYI - Costco is almost always the cheapest with the 200 amp xfer switch bundled in (they sell a Honeywell-branded Generac with unique part # to Costco so you can't price shop it with other stores online). Even if you're not a member, the savings will usually cover the membership cost.
Great tip! I saw one at Lowe's at a good price but it was not available. It also did not come with the Gen pad. Your great tip will definitely help someone shopping for a generator.
In NY they will only sell it to you when it is professionally installed. NO DIY.
Great video !! very detailed !! searched CZcams for a video just like this ! Great description on supplies used
I am glad that it helped.
I have the similar set up. I have a 200 amp service panel for my home and I was wondering what size wire can I run to my 22KW Generac generator that has 100 amp main on the generator and my home has a 200 amp main on the box. i’ve been reading mixed answers from different reviews. I have a distance of 10 feet and I see very sizes from a #8 all the way up to a number 2/0 gauge wire used for the power source from the generator to the transfer switch. What size wire did you use?
I used that Ziller all-in-one cable. It was 6 gauge copper stranded. I went to look it up and could not find it. My direction said to use 6 to 250 MCM. What is weird is everyone is talking about using the bigger cable but if you go too big they won't fit in the lug. Good luck.
Great job. Very detailed
Glad you liked it! Thanks for watching.
Great job! Very informative and nice presentation. Now, o reward yourself with “a nice cup of coffee”.
Thank you! Will do!
Thanks for another good video John.
I am glad that you liked it. Thanks for watching.
Great job! Noticed the now sub panel needs to be replaced! Old panel mixed breaker.
Good call!
Nice work 👍
Thank you! Cheers!
Just a heads up from a guy who did these for 25 years... local regulations do vary with distance to an electric meter or gas meter. In much of the country it's 5 feet away, not 3 feet. There's also a maximum height for that main breaker, which I believe is 67 inches from the ground you stand on. (NEC) Yeah, might be nit-picking, but get the details from your local inspector so you don't have to move things. Also, do a size / capacity calculation on your gas supply. I have seen people try to use NG and found they were on the hook to up-size the gas line for $10k. They went with propane for the gen set instead. Plan ahead and have fun!
Thank you for your comment. Always check with your local AHJ. In our AHJ nothing can be within 3 feet from the generator, and no ignition source of the generator within 5 feet of the regulator.
Great and actually helpful advice sir.
@@samsiryani9023 I am glad that it helped. Thank you for watching.
@fixitjohn I was also going to mention the breaker height issue just to help future installs. Breaker handle can not be over 6ft.
@@richardsavage02 I just looked that up again yesterday. Max is 6 ft 7 in or 2 meters from the floor / ground. NEC says anything higher needs a permanent platform to raise the floor height.
Thanks Great video!
Glad you liked it! Thanks for watching.
Great video 👍
Thanks a bunch!
Foam filled concrete pad. You’d be better off pouring a concrete pad. It would be stronger and heavier. Great video, I would have probably installed transfer switch, gas lines, generator lines, and new power lines into main box before having then meter pulled. Shortening the outage window. So you’d only have to pull out existing run, and wire new cables in its place.
There aren’t many videos showing this.
Great suggestion! I never thought of that but I don’t do it every day. But you are right that may help some one. And yes I thought about pouring a pad but I have been covered up here in projects. The gas lines were already in. Thanks for watching.
Great Video. I'm similar in that I have the skills, the tools and probably the time and money. I just need videos like this to get the motivation and essential info. Thanks for sharing. What would help would be a downloadable or some kind of comprehensive list of the essential and optional/tool items in your video. Wire, conduit, tools, wire goo, caulk, etc that you had to purchase to get this done.
Glad it was helpful! Sorry that I didn’t list everything. If you start your project I am only a shout away. Thanks for watching.
Yes gotta have that coffee and I've installed many generics
That is the most important part.
I have the same bucket boss bag that I use for my generator maintenance.
It makes a nice tool bucket. Thank you for reaching out.
Wonderful video, one of the best I’ve seen so far. Where did you purchase the seal tight ?
I got it on Amazon. Thanks for watching.
It's called duct seal, we call it dumb-dumb in the business. Everyone stocks it, Home Depot, Lowes. Comes in the small 1 pound like you see or a larger 5 pound brick, about $5 and $22 respectively.
Lots of good info, I'm installing one by myself. The only question you left unanswered is what brand of coffee is required?
The coffee is Starbucks Pike place. I am glad you asked you could of been electrocuted. Thanks for watching.
good job
Thank you Kenneth, that means a lot.
great vid!
Thanks.
Conduit must always be glued per code and use conduit clamp to mount pipe to wall, can not drill mounting holes inside LB for mounting. You are compromising the water tight requirment. Thats also why you have to glue the conduit to fittings. Other than that its a nice clean job.
@@georgehegedty7123 thanks for watching
I'm convinced people are overspending on these things because they aren't familiar with electronics / electric ( which is fine ), 24KW is such overkill for any house below 4000sqft. Your HVAC and heating system is the biggest load on your house, but even two 3-ton AC running on max will only use ~12,500 watts and that can cool a 4000sqft home, that leaves you about ~5,500 watts left ( if you get the 18KW model ) which is enough to run fridge's, lights, washing machines, etc.
I understand that most people will not care to spend an extra ~$3500 on the bigger unit, but I'm just saying most people are buying something they will not take full advantage of.
Thank you for your comments. I am sure that it will help someone decide on what generator to buy. Thank you for watching.
Are the generator supply cables connected to the correct terminals? Another video I saw showed the gen cables behind the house supply lines.
Yes they are. The city inspector came out twice. If you are uncertain you may want to hire a professional. But I think most people can do this job. If you have any more questions don’t hesitate to ask. Thanks for watching.
If you'd had a meter-main combo box (where the meter and main service disconnect breakers are in the same box but separated into breaker and utility meter-only sections, and the conduit that enters the residence is in the breaker section, could you have fed the wires from the ATS back to the panel through the meter-breaker combo box?
That is a good question. From what I have read you can’t run power through the meter box from a different power source. The different power source would be your generator. I would ask your local permitting department. Some will let you do it and others won’t. Thanks for stopping by.
@@fixitjohn ... that's an NEC thing. Once you get power out of the meter, you can't run it back in the same race or junction box.
Hey John great video and the light hearted comments add to it. I saw an article about Generac adding a wire. Newer unit now have a 4 conductor terminal block. You need to connect to neutral and T1. Did yours have this and do you know anything about it?
Thanks
Hi John, I have not heard of that. On mine T1 and T2 are for customers' load power coming from the transformer. The Neutral goes to its own busbar. They could have changed the ATS I don't know. Good luck and thank you for watching.
Can you run SEC/SER wire in conduit? I thought you couldn't do that because the individual wires usually aren't labeled?
Hi, if you are asking about the generic cable, I found this on ziller electric website.
UL THWN 600V
UL Type TC-ER-JP 600V
The insulation is acceptable for use in locations at 75 °C dry and 75 °C
wet. The cable is suitable for use in cable trays, aerial or direct burial
installations. The cable is JP rated for installation in accordance with
Part II of Article 334.
The 2017 NEC, allows this wire to be installed without a conduit or flexible raceway unless subject to physical damage. Consult your authority having jurisdiction prior to installation.
The other cable that I ran from the meter to the transfer switch and in to the electric panel was 0/2 copper THHN. I hope this helps. Thanks for watching.
what size is gen ?no load shed? and yes you do need that grd to panel its now a sub panel and you have to seperate neutral and grds in that panel
Hi Jakersyner, it is a 24 Kw. I had found another ground going to the water line. I could not figure out how the ground was able to get to the ground without the grounding wire. I have another video that shows me separating neutrals and ground. Thanks for your comment. We only have one a/c unit so I didn’t hook that up.
Hi sir,I am having challenges that's moving the navigator to select the 22kw LP,it's already at NG position from the manufacturer,the navigator is not moving for me to select to 22kw LP, I try starting it's only cranks indicating Low Idle speed on the display, all manual switches are in LP position
I tried to turn mine when I first got it. There was so much resistance that I stopped trying out of fear that I would break it as it was already set on natural gas and that is what I run. You may want to contact the manufacturer. Sorry I could not help.
hi littil john cool 200 amp generater two cool ass
Hi Seth, we have not needed it yet but it feels good to know that it is there if we need it. Thank you for watching.
What are somethings to look for if it doesn’t start when you turn off the switch at the end?
Signal wires may not be wired right.
Thanks for the video,can LPG be used to power the generator? In Africa we don't use natural gas in our homes
Yes, you can run propane LPG! The generator has a knob that you can turn to run either NG or LPG. It comes set to run on NG. I hope this helps. Thanks for watching.
@@fixitjohn thanks
Nice. Since the ATS ground and neutral is bonded, did you have to remove the bonding in your main panel between ground and neutral?
Yes I did. I have a video on how to separate ground and neutral wires. In the generator video you can see me taking the bonding wire off the neutral wires and ground. I don’t say anything in the video about it. Thanks for watching.
Hi Tyler, at 34:19 I am removing the bonding cable from the neutral bus bar. I hope this helps.
@@fixitjohn Awesome. Thanks for the update. Good work and thanks for doing the video.
@@fixitjohn - thanks, I watched this and the one where you prepped the main service panel for NO Bonding, great info
@@trp2413 Thank you for watching.
What size liquid tight flexuit are you using?
It is 1 1/2 “with plenty of room in the conduit but it was a tight squeeze through the elbow fitting. Thank you for watching.
Did you separate ground and neutral in your panel inside, given they are now bonded at the tranfer switch? Technically, the panel became a subpanel, with the transfer switch being a first point of disconnect?
Hi, Happy thanksgiving. I did.
I put up a video before this one on how to separate neutrals and grounds. I should leave a link to it. Thanks for watching.
@@fixitjohn thanks! Happy Thanksgiving!
what Size or gage i tis the wires come from the GENERATOR Red Black?
The black and red cables are 6 gauge multi strand. If you have any more questions just ask. I love to help good people out. Thanks for watching.
Can i connect the generator supply directly to a manual/automatic change over without the automatic transfer switch?
Yes, you can hook it up to a manual switch. There are some safety lockout devices that you will need to install on your electrical panel.
Hi,I am done with my installation of the Genset,do you have video or tutorials on how to configure from NG to LP? It's already programed to NG from the manufacturer
@@kojoadjei99 No I don't
How did you properly size the generator to your home draw?
It is a 100amp generator for emergency use. Service amps coming in from the transformer is 200 amps. You would go around your home and add up what the amp draw is from the appliances. If I was to turn everything on at one time like our two ovens on self cleaning mode all 5 burners on our range top, the dryer running the A/C running, microwave running, coffee maker on and so on it will not run the hole house nor will the 200 amps from the transformer. The transfer switch does have a feature that if you had let’s say 3 a/c units it will shut down the one unit automatically so the other units will continue to run. I hope that helps. Thanks, for watching.
@@fixitjohn ... that load shed module will control up to 4 items. 2 can be done directly via low voltage wiring and another 2 via relays. Read your manual for wiring details and the timing of the load shedding. I highly suggest using it for the AC because those are HEAVY start loads.
the inspector is wrong but being the AHJ its his call. The generac transfer switch is service rated meaning now that you changed the service it is the first point of disconnection where the grounds and neutral are bonded. you would then have a neutral and ground wire going to the breaker box and also need to separate the branch circuit neutral and grounds. Leaving them bonded at the breaker box now means that bare ground wire will be taking some of the neutral current back to the source which is a no no and could be dangerous. If you didnt have that ground wire and also separated the gounds and neutrals at the breaker box there would be no reference to ground since you used PVC to connect it all. Clearing a ground fault would not happen.
I do have a ground to the cold water line. But yes I am glad that I ran the ground. According to the instructions. Thanks for your input. I always appreciate the pro’s comments. Thanks for watching.
Well stated........Always run any project thru the AHJ first. They have the final say on approval of any project, even a dog house.
I agree with you on the grounds, and the bonding issue, I had an underwriter inspector who was ground happy, but I learned from him years ago, you can never have enough grounds, but watch the bonding. I found that if I ran a couple extra ground rods, like more than needed, he would leave an inspection happy ( and pass it )
@@bobwild9995ehhhhh. Too many grounds versus an improper path to ground are too different things. Path of least resistance. The grounds should be at the disconnect. Placing grounds at both the disconnect and a panel will make it fight to find that path of least resistance. This is kirchoffs law. If the ground is bonded at more than one location it makes it a current carrying conductor under normal conditions. It is literally in parallel.
So what happens when the power company works to restore the power. Isn't that going to be hot on the metter.
No. The transfer switch reroutes the electricity.
I bought one to Ghana. How can I get 240 volts from the genarator.
You have to wire it back to the service panel/breaker box
Did you need to remove the bonding screw in the main service panel since the transfer switch is bonded?
For the ground no. I am glad that I left it connected.
You are supposed to remove that screw. The panel is now a sub panel due to it no being the first means of disconnect.
Inspector is absolutely incorrect about your bonding jumper between the now main disconnect/ATS and interior sub panel. You should have also extended all existing GEC and bonding jumpers from cold water and gas out to your new main source of disconnect.
Hi Andrew, the water lines are bonded back to the sub and on out to the main panel. I did not have to ground the gas line because it is already grounded through the appliances. Thanks for your comment. I am sure that it will help all of us.
John. I'm going to be honest. Beautiful work. But you have the grounding wrong. The grounding should be at your first means of disconnect. Both the ground rods and the water meter should be bonded to the disconnect. Then ser to the main panel, ser to the sub panel. You are creating parallel paths to ground, in theory. Just because it starts up doesn't mean it's safe.
How do you hook to natural gas?
I didn’t hook ours up but it does not look hard. They hooked it up from the meter and put a shut off valve before the generator. The generator comes with a stainless steel flexible pipe to hook to the generator. Our state uses galvanized pipes. I know some states require black steel pipe. I live in Florida. Sorry but that is not much help.
What size of electric wire from Generac generator to transfer switch,what name is it,in this electric wire,aluminum SER wires???.
Good video Sir.
There are three sizes. The 2 hot and one neutral are 3AWG 1 ground is 8AWG stranded copper wire. The 6 control wires are 18AWG solid copper wire. Let me know if you have any more questions. I am glad to help. Thanks for watching.
that wiring is available directly from Generac and is UL rated for this use. (low and line voltage within the same jacket)
Correct me if I’m wrong but it looked like your multimeter was set to amps instead of volts when verifying that your service was de-energized. Stay safe out there!
WOW good eye. I actually had it set to read temperature. I never use that particular multimeter but I will be more careful in the future. Thanks for watching.
I must have bumped it and moved the setting.
Would have been nice to have parts numbers in the description. My Generac did come with the Transfer switch but It did not come with Oil, Battery or the Cable or any of the PVC piping and I am trying to save money on the installation. If I pay someone to install it they will charge and arm, a leg, 3 fingers and 4 toes. Nobody wants to know what the Propane company wanted to install piping and all of that either. It's insane. I managed to survive Hurricane season 2023, without my generator but I am on a Mission to have it installed before June 1, 2024.
The generator does come with oil. Everything else I picked up at Lowes using 2-inch PVC conduit. I hope this helps.
If this is any help........I'm helping an 'ole neighbor set up his stand-by generator, and the propane company's are insane today, so with some digging, he found a guy selling 5 each 420 tanks, market-place, he bought the 2 best ones for $300 for both. Yea, price out new ones. And he has an independent supplier lined up to fill them, but at a minimum quaintly, so in the future he would need to pay a premium or load up the tank and take it to a low cost re-fill station with in 15 miles from were he lives. Just a though for you.
20 Years ago, I did a big addition to a home, and we converted the all electric house over to propane heat with a new furnace and duct work, to save on the electric bill, and the propane company I found would provide a in ground 500# tank with a 2 year service contract, which also locked in the price........man, have times changed.......🤔
Good video, but did not hear how you knew which size generator to get.
Like I had mentioned in the other comments. You will have to figure out the amps being drawn in your house most of the time. If I try to run everything at one time it would flip the breaker. If I tried to run everything at one time on the 200 amp service, it would flip the breaker. I hope this helps. Thanks for watching.
Great video, and ya’ll before you like and subscribe dont do it without a cup of hot coffee🙌🏻😁
Exactly!! Thanks for watching.
SCOOOOOOP!!
Have a new video out with Scoop here is a link to the video. czcams.com/video/c7OK_8Nap6I/video.html&si=vax2GBKNq5peITet
All in 1wire... I know the place that makes it not far away from where I live
It was a time saver. Thanks for watching!
You .need primer if you want it to stay connected
Thanks, I was more concerned with the aluminum lugs. I will make a note of that though. What color do you recommend?
I use carlon clear primer and light gray solvent cement medium body and always try to twist the joint when putting it together. As for aluminum wire in aluminum lugs use lots of noalox .also never hurts to use noalox with copper wire. Personally I never use aluminum wire. Copper is worth the piece of mind.
that fitting should have came with a O ring on it
The fitting that I attached to the generator.
I thought LQ fittings with flanges come with an o-ring seal? Shouldn't need that putty-like stuff.
I like to use the duct seal to help ensure a water tight seal. Thanks for watching.
This is the first time I've seen a video with the genrac running... it's loud.
Yes, they are a little loud at full load. When they are exercising they are not noticeable. Thanks for watching.
Why coat copper
It will preserve it from discoloration. It is going into aluminum. I was wondering what you were talking about.
4 wire from ATS that's because it's your first point of service disconnect
Ok good to know.
Maybe you didn't get the gist of the comment. Your first point of disconnect meaning you old panel must not have the ground and neutral bonded. Neutral will be floating making no contact to ground. The 2 only bond together at 1st point of disconnect. Leave your main breaker in original box hooked up. This gives you extra safety when changing breaker.
@@mkidd8806 yes, thank you. I did all that in another video. Here is a link if you have time to watch It and let me know what you think. Thank you for watching.
czcams.com/video/CDhtW78QQ-o/video.htmlsi=pFIjVtYdpPq6phu1
Also your not supposed to run a razor around the wire called ring it.
Thank you for pointing that out. What else did I do wrong. Thanks for watching.
pretty sure that gas line is too small
I think it is 2 inches too the meter . 1 inch for the main runs and 3/4 to the appliances. The city installed the gas line so that is on them. The generator run good it doesn’t seem to be starving for fuel. Thanks for your comment.
@@fixitjohn .... your main concern with the gas will be the meter size and having a large enough line out to the street. Check the gen manual for cubic feet needed at 100% load and you will see it's probably well into the 300 - 400 CF range. Add up the other appliances and see if the total falls within the meter's capacity. It's on the spec plate, and usually highlighted in red. Most residential meters are only 200 - 300 CF unless you have a pool heater. BTW, for appliances rated in BTUs, converting to natural gas is 100,000 BTUs is 100 cubic feet.
@@rupe53 I will check that. Thanks
If you ever find yourself in Wisconsin sir, I owe you a beer. This video has given me the confidence to install my generator myself.
How about a coffee. I love to help out good people. You will need a generator up there in cold country. Thanks for watching.
RIP 😢 Dad. You never should have attempted that.
What size of cable did you use for that generator that supplies power to the transfer switch?
The hot cable that comes in that all-in-one cable is 6 gauge. Thanks for watching.
@@fixitjohn Not 6gague if the generator is 100amps, thats a fire waiting to happen. Also the grounding on this would not meet NEC codes unless i missed something.
@@MattOwens-so4fn Please notify Ziller electric and Generac as they are selling it to everyone for that generator.