Mains failure gennie switching

[Chris Wilson]

I am looking for advice on the easiest way to wire up a modified
electrical distribution panel here at home, to allow a generator to be
fired up and take over power supply to the house during one of our fairly
frequent mains failures. Ideally I would like a self powered contactor to
isolate the mains input to the board and make available a socket into
which the generator output is left plugged. Once power is re-established
from the mains this socket would be automatically isolated and the mains
takes over the running again. I need to (obviously...) avoid the scenario
where both mains and generator are connected at the same time! I would
like it automated so if I am not here the wife only has to check no
excess loads in the house are still on, albeit not working due to power
outage, go outside and start the gennie, with no switches to fiddle with.
I intend to have an LED on the inside fuse box to allow her to see when
the mains is back, so she knows when to turn off the generator. Possible?
Schematics? Web site showing this? I am sure it must be a fairly common
thing for people living with iffy mains supplies.

Thanks. I am in the UK. Mains is normal 240v single phase.
--
Best Regards,
Chris.

 

[Gary Tait]

Whereas On Mon, 13 Oct 2003 12:36:45 +0100, Chris Wilson
<chris@formula3.freeserve.co.uk> scribbled:
, I thus relpy:

I am looking for advice on the easiest way to wire up a modified
electrical distribution panel here at home, to allow a generator to be
fired up and take over power supply to the house during one of our fairly
frequent mains failures. Ideally I would like a self powered contactor to
isolate the mains input to the board and make available a socket into
which the generator output is left plugged. Once power is re-established
from the mains this socket would be automatically isolated and the mains
takes over the running again. I need to (obviously...) avoid the scenario
where both mains and generator are connected at the same time! I would
like it automated so if I am not here the wife only has to check no
excess loads in the house are still on, albeit not working due to power
outage, go outside and start the gennie, with no switches to fiddle with.
I intend to have an LED on the inside fuse box to allow her to see when
the mains is back, so she knows when to turn off the generator. Possible?
Schematics? Web site showing this? I am sure it must be a fairly common
thing for people living with iffy mains supplies.

Thanks. I am in the UK. Mains is normal 240v single phase.

You need something coomerical, contact an electrician to get the
auto-transfer switch, and install it per your local electrical codes.,
--
Gary J. Tait . Email is at yahoo.com ; ID:classicsat

 

[Ian Stirling]

Chris Wilson <chris@formula3.freeserve.co.uk> wrote:

I am looking for advice on the easiest way to wire up a modified
electrical distribution panel here at home, to allow a generator to be
snip
Thanks. I am in the UK. Mains is normal 240v single phase.

The name you want is "transfer switch".

Search on google for
"transfer switch" uk generator
And you should come up with something.

--
http://inquisitor.i.am/ | mailto:inquisitor@i.am | Ian Stirling.
---------------------------+-------------------------+--------------------------
He who lives in a glass house should not invite he who is without sin.