Starting with kwh, look at KW usage (peak power usage) to size your generator. So, if you used all that 47 kwh in one hour, that is a peak kW of 47 KW. If it took 10 hours, that is a (rough estimate) of 4.7 kW. If you are able to not run clothes dryers/saunas / etc., you can probably cut that estimate by 1/3 to 1/2, so your peak KW usage is somewhere between 2.4 kW and 3 KW. That is the minimum size generator you should be looking for. You can check all your equipment KW ratings to get a more firm estimate (particularly for your AC units), or get more beer to your energy savvy friend.Looks like we used 47 kWh per day per last electric bill. Not sure if this is how one estimates load?
FYI, I have a 7 KW gasoline portable generator (on wheels) stored in my garage. When I need it, I move it to the backyard near my breaker box. For me, that is an oversized generator, but still is only 3x3 feet in size. For house wiring, an electrician installed a transfer panel and moved critical circuits to the transfer panel. Usage is infrequent (only once this year so far).
For piece of mind, I understand that motivation. Still, I believe you can achieve piece of mind for a lot less than a Tesla PowerWall. Friend of mine had a full Tesla PowerWall setup installed at his home 2 years ago, and has not used it other than just testing it out. Plus, I seriously doubt when you sell your home you would get back the money on a $23k or more system.
Good luck.
Statistics: Posted by Colorado Guy — Sun Jul 07, 2024 9:26 am — Replies 23 — Views 1549