Carolyn from Middletown, NJ has been a Green Sun Energy Services client since September of 2020. The generator was commissioned in February of 2021: a 13 kW Generac Guardian on natural gas, with a 200-amp service disconnect and the transfer switch mounted indoors. The load calculation came out at 13 kW for the 2,060 square foot house, and the heat pump is the reason – it draws hard at startup, far harder than its running load suggests, which is what sets the size of the machine that has to start it. Two refrigerators, a washer, an electric dryer, a dishwasher and a sump pump make up the rest of what has to keep going. The generator is supported by annual maintenance, an extended parts-and-labor warranty, and monitoring we manage.
Project Facts
- Location
- Middletown, NJ
- Services
- Standby Generator Installation, Standby Generator Service
- Client since
- September 2020
- Manufacturer
- Generac Model # 7175
- Rated output
- 13 kW LP / 13 kW NG
- Fuel
- Natural Gas
- Home sized for
- 2,060 sq ft
- Electrical service
- 200 amp
- Transfer switch
- 200 amp
- Load management
- Managed Whole House
Standby generator questions from Middletown homeowners
Can it start during a brownout when the power is not fully off?
Yes. The controller monitors whether the utility supply is acceptable, not merely whether voltage is present, so it can start while some lights and appliances still appear to be working. That is usually the explanation when a generator runs during severe utility-voltage problems.
Why do outages last longer on some Middletown streets than others?
Mature tree cover over overhead lines is the usual reason. Limbs coming down in wind, snow or ice take the lines with them, so heavily treed streets tend to see both more frequent outages and longer restoration times than open ones. It is one of the honest arguments for standby power rather than a portable generator.
How level does a generator have to be?
Within the leveling tolerance specified in its installation manual -- applicable air-cooled instructions have used roughly a half-inch overall. A poorly prepared base can settle after installation and bring on drainage, vibration or enclosure problems that were not there on the day it went in.