Marty from Scotch Plains, NJ has been a Green Sun Energy Services client since July of 2013, which puts this among the oldest generator relationships on the site. The machine was commissioned that September: 20 kW on natural gas, on a 200-amp service-entrance switch with two priority management modules. The load survey lists two electric ovens, two sump pumps, two refrigerators, a washer and a gas dryer across 3,800 square feet – the calculation came to 11 kW, so the generator was specified at nearly twice the requirement. Two sump pumps is the detail that justifies the margin: both may want to run at once in the sort of rainfall that also takes the power out. Thirteen years on, an annual maintenance plan and an extended parts-and-labor warranty still sit behind it.
Project Facts
- Location
- Scotch Plains, NJ
- Services
- Standby Generator Installation, Standby Generator Service
- Client since
- July 2013
- Manufacturer
- Generac Model # 6244
- Rated output
- 20 kW LP / 18 kW NG
- Fuel
- Natural Gas
- Home sized for
- 3,800 sq ft
- Electrical service
- 200 amp
- Transfer switch
- 200 amp
- Load management
- Managed Whole House
Green Sun Energy is very efficient and great communicators. I have been very pleased with their service for the past 10 years.
Green Sun Energy Services replied
Thank you, Marty. Communication is the part of this work that is easiest to let slip and hardest to recover, so we take it seriously. The 20 kW Generac at your home in Scotch Plains has been serviced by us since the install, and a relationship that long is built out of ordinary appointments handled properly.
Standby generator questions from Scotch Plains homeowners
Can the existing natural-gas service in a Scotch Plains home supply a generator?
Often yes, but the gas system has to be evaluated first. The review covers the generator's BTU demand, meter capacity, available pressure, regulator capacity, pipe diameter and length, and every other gas appliance in the house -- furnace, boiler, water heater, range and fireplace among them.
Does a 200-amp service need a 200-amp transfer switch?
A transfer switch installed in the service path has to be rated appropriately for the service and the configuration. A 200-amp service commonly uses a 200-amp service-rated switch, but the actual design is confirmed by the electrician rather than assumed from the service size.
Why does the generator run when the power is on?
It is performing its automatic exercise cycle, which confirms basic engine operation and keeps the machine ready. A generator can also start because utility voltage has become abnormal even though the power has not gone off completely -- the controller watches the quality of the supply, not simply whether it is absent.