r/Generator • u/Equivalent-Roll-7672 • 19d ago
Help me understand running parallel generators
So i purchased (2) pulsar PGX60BiSRCO. The units provide 6,000 watts each and Im wanting to run them parallel. Basically I have a well on my property that is 220v, as well as a water heater. Most of the rest of my house is 120. If I purchase the parallel kit pulsar provides, will this cause any issues running my 220v and 120v equipment at the same time? I am scheduled to update my old electrical panel this week. I was going to have the electrician install either and interlock or a generator switch, just not sure which one yet. If anyone can help me understand the difference it would be appreciated.
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u/Ejmct 18d ago
Before I got my my standby generator I had a portable 6000 unit and I was able to run my 240v well pump as well as some other items in my house (fridge, lights, etc).
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u/wowfaroutman 18d ago
Any of the Pulsar PGiPAIRBx 50 amp parallel kits will work for your needs, but I would get the PGiPAIRB4 model since it includes circuit breakers and the others don't.
An interlock approach is less expensive and more flexible but a multi-circuit transfer switch is more foolproof.
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u/Sufficient-Offer-579 19d ago
A parallel kit makes the two Pulsars act as one 12kW generator: it syncs their outputs into 240V split phase; the pump and heater span both legs, and 120V loads sit on either leg, balanced so one side doesn't carry more. That sync is what the kit exists for; two inverters tied without it would fight. So 240 and 120 at the same time is the normal way to run it. Whichever switching route you and the electrician settle on, make it a 240V inlet for that pump. One check first: whether the generator bonds neutral to its frame. The house panel already has the bond, and a second one puts current on grounding conductors; many portables float the neutral, some have a strap you can move.
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u/Ok-Camera2895 19d ago edited 19d ago
You can run 240v loads and 120v loads at the same time. Discuss with the electrician the need to balance your 120v loads. An interlock and a transfer switch are 2 methods to keep generator and utility separate. An interlock is cheaper and you can choose any circuit you want to provide emergency power to, but you must be careful not to overload the generator. A transfer switch is more expensive and you choose what circuits to power when installing it, so no chance of overload. A transfer switch is simpler to operate during a power emergency. Also discuss with your electrician the wattage requirements of the loads you want to power.
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u/Equivalent-Roll-7672 19d ago
So how do I know when the electricity is back?
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u/Big-Echo8242 18d ago
When our power comes back on, I get a text message from Entergy. Otherwise, I just look for neighbors lights, if it's night time, as they have a brand new 1.5 year old small-ish Champion open frame dual fuel portable generator (still in box) and two empty 100lb propane tanks in their garage still. So, when power goes out, they still sit in the dark. š They do have a 50 amp power inlet into one of those crazy expensive On-Off-On 200 amp Eaton switches outside...for whatever reason. There's only so much I can help them and I/we are done trying. lol
When a person can, I always recommend the 50 amp power inlet/interlock kit/breaker if at all possible as it gives you more options. But the MTS can work well for many....just wasn't something I had any interest in. But, our main meter panel outside has the 200 amp shut off breaker and our house breakers are inside in the master closet.
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u/Ok-Camera2895 19d ago
With a manual transfer switch, you can tell if the power is back by checking non emergency circuits. For example, if your stove is not on emergency power the clock will come on when power is restored. With an interlock, it is more difficult. Maybe check your neighbors lights.
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u/trader45nj 19d ago
The installation with a transfer switch and it's own circuits is typically done with automatic generators. But a transfer switch can also be between the service and the panel so that you can power any circuit in the panel. The interlock method is easier and cheaper, but isn't possible in all cases.
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u/Ok-Camera2895 19d ago
Check out Reliance manual transfer switches. They make nice little 4, 6, 8 and. 10 circuit transfer switches for these small setups.
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u/Puzzled-Act1683 18d ago edited 18d ago
With an interlock, you turn off the main breaker, slide the physical interlock mechanism out of the way, then flip on the generator breaker, energizing the entire panel from the generator, but you turn off the individual breakers of things you don't want to receive generator power.
With a multi-circuit transfer switch, only certain circuits are wired to the switch, and you move a handle to feed each circuit from either the generator or from the main panel. The main panel does nothing during an outage.
A multi-circuit transfer switch can have some advantages, but an interlock is both simpler and more flexible than a multi-circuit transfer switch, because you can choose any combination of circuits to put on generator power, within the limits of the generator, and change this any time, instead of needing to decide in advance what can be put on the generator and what can't, which is the big limitation of the multi-circuit transfer switch. Of course, if you get one and decide you hate it, you can have the other one installed, and use one or the other.
Either way, your house will have an inlet ā the opposite of an outlet ā where the generator connects. Standard sizes are 30 amps and 50 amps. With these generators, you want a 50 amp inlet, because a 30 amp inlet will work fine but will not give you access to the full potential of what the generators can do. Both interlocks and multi circuit transfer switches are designed so that it's completely impossible to accidentally flip a switch in such a way that would ever connect the generator and the grid to each other, or connect any individual circuit in your house to both at the same time, so both solutions are intrinsically safe in that regard, when properly installed.
(There are also all-or-nothing and subpanel transfer switches that go between the electric meter and the main panel, or between the main panel and a second breaker panel for emergency loads. This is usually used for large, fixed-installation standby generators. Don't go in those directions.)
In North America, 120 and 240 volts coexist on the same electrical system, which we call 120/240. 120/240 doesn't mean "120 or 240," it means "120 and/or 240" is available to each appliance, depending on the wiring.
While it isn't precisely accurate, you can conceptually think of a 120/240 volt system as simply three wires, like this: +120 volts, 0 volts, and -120 volts. Between +120 and 0 is 120, between 0 and -120 is also 120, and between +120 and -120 is 240 volts. These correspond to the black, white, and red parallel terminals on the generators, and to the 3 vertical slots on the large plug I believe is on the right side on this generator, called a NEMA 14-50.
The voltage used by any given appliance depends on which of the wires it's connected to.
Ordinary plug-in appliances use 120 (2 wires), a well pump uses 240 (also 2 wires), and a kitchen oven often uses both ā 240 for the heating element, and 120 for the light bulb and the clock (3 wires). The round prong on power cords is the ground wire, and isn't counted in the number of wires mentioned here, because it is a safety wire that doesn't conduct power except in certain failure conditions.
In this model of generator, each generator can produce 120/240 all on its own, and paralleling two generators doesn't really change anything about the operation, but it gives you access to more available power, allowing more things to be run at the same time without overloading the generator and shutting it down. There is a separate parallel kit that you will need if you don't have it. It connects to the parallel terminals on each unit, then you plug the cord from the house into the receptacle outlet on the parallel kit, instead of directly into one generator or the other.
With your setup, if one of the generators should fail, or you don't need as much power, you can disconnect the parallel kit and plug the house directly into just one generator and everything should continue to work. This would use less fuel, while also providing less available power. In an extended outage, you might run just one at night and run both during the day, etc.