Back Up Generator to Quadrafire Mt Vernon Orig. Sine Wave ???

[qwikstart]

I have read through most posts about back up generators.

I am a little confused as to whether my Original Style Mt Vernon needs a pure sine wave connection.

And, I have two generators (one for fire protection in summer and the other to the well). I read through all that I could find and no mention of sine wave. Googled them...and got back sales prices etc.

UPS are out of my bank range. The inverter stuff is also another $300 plus, yes?

What would happen if I plugged in a pellet stove and literature stated pure sine wave - does it throw sparks, damage the generator, or just do nothing?
I know this subject has been beaten to death and I appreciate your patience.

I would be so relieved if someone could tell me if my stove would function plugged into one of the 2 generators I already have. So, I am crossing my fingers. Pics below.

 

[Pelleting In NJ]

Firstly, all mechanical generators put out pretty much pure sinewaves.....its just the physics behind how a generator works. High distortion sinewaves are really only an issue with simple inverter electronics, which convert DC into an approximated sinewave waveform. More sophisticated electronic inverter circuits can produce low distortion sinewaves. In the case of a UPS (an inverter plus a battery)), the cheaper ones put out somewhat distorted sinewave, while the more expensive ones, labeled as "Pure Sine Wave" put out a cleaner waveform. Distortion is measured as a %. A low distortion figure would be 5% or lower.

Your pellet stove should be OK with any type/brand of mechanical generator. If you ran your pellet stove from a cheap inverter, the stove will most likely work OK, but the motors may make some audible buzzing noises, and the motors may run a little hotter.

 

[qwikstart]

Firstly, all mechanical generators put out pretty much pure sinewaves.....its just the physics behind how a generator works. High distortion sinewaves are really only an issue with simple inverter electronics, which convert DC into an approximated sinewave waveform. More sophisticated electronic inverter circuits can produce low distortion sinewaves. In the case of a UPS (an inverter plus a battery)), the cheaper ones put out somewhat distorted sinewave, while the more expensive ones, labeled as "Pure Sine Wave" put out a cleaner waveform. Distortion is measured as a %. A low distortion figure would be 5% or lower.

Your pellet stove should be OK with any type/brand of mechanical generator. If you ran your pellet stove from a cheap inverter, the stove will most likely work OK, but the motors may make some audible buzzing noises, and the motors may run a little hotter.

Wow, thanks for all the information.

I really wasn't understanding. Not that I have complete understanding yet, but I hope to after reading more.

Thanks again. Deb

 

[UpStateNY]

As my Electrical Engineering professor said, you really need to learn and understand the Fourier Transform to understand sine waves.

Here is Fourier Transform. video that makes it all so easy to understand sine waves and Fourier Transform. I wish I had this video when I was in college many decades ago. This video with classical music makes it easy to listen to and makes it all so obvious.

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If you find that video is not so obvious then all you need to know is this.

The harmonics and distortions that are generated and fed into that precious pellet stove when a tree falls on the power lines near your house and temporarily makes the house lights flicker is one ugly sine wave and is 1000 times worse than any sine wave distortion from your backup generator. If your pellet stove can survive and occasional light flicker than I personally would not worry about your generator with one exception. If your generator is under power and you try to draw more KWs than the generator can produce now you got some ugly sine waves. Ugly is bad for sine waves.

Note to self square waves bad for pellet stove. .

Once you have that all figured out try learning Quantum Mechanics

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[Connecticut Yankee]

Fascinating video, Upstate. Especially loved the graphics, which made everything much more comprehensible. Can't wait to see what they can do with quantum mechanics, but I think I'll let my brain cool off a bit, first!