I just got a generator. The owner's manual says not to run it in the rain. If I run the generator under a card table, will that be enough protection?
Generator Question
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P38X2
Minister of Fire
If I needed power? And it was raining? I would do what I had to do...
The table will stop the direct rain fall. But with the high winds? I dont know? I run my car in the rain. I run my pressure washer down wind (and often clean it, with it..)
Faced in the situation. One will do whatever necessary to keep lights, heat, and food frozen.
The table will stop the direct rain fall. But with the high winds? I dont know? I run my car in the rain. I run my pressure washer down wind (and often clean it, with it..)
Faced in the situation. One will do whatever necessary to keep lights, heat, and food frozen.
subsailor
Minister of Fire
infinitymike
Minister of Fire
Its just a insurance bean counter warning. Just in case some one has a bad cord or something.
I would stick with the muffler facing out and close the garage door on it. That is if you have a garage.
I think a card table would be a good idea just tie the legs to the frame of the generator.
But don't you think it will be noisy while you're playing cards, besides getting wet.
I would stick with the muffler facing out and close the garage door on it. That is if you have a garage.
I think a card table would be a good idea just tie the legs to the frame of the generator.
But don't you think it will be noisy while you're playing cards, besides getting wet.
infinitymike
Minister of Fire
Subsailor made me think a little. Be careful that you don't have a door leading into your house from the garage, you may get fumes blowing in.
My garage has no direct access to the house.
My garage has no direct access to the house.
subsailor
Minister of Fire
I wouldn't run it in a garage. Outside or not at all.
Bioburner
Moderator
Got a pair of 4x8 sheets of plywood or similar? Make a quick A shelter with a wood side being against the wind and the gen in the middle. Throw a tarp over plywood to keep it semi dry. A pair of clamps or some screws should do to attach the top of the plywood. Weight the bottom down with something heavy like cement blocks, rocks to keep the thing from blowing away. Sorry I cant be more help but I have no idea what you have to make an inprompto shelter. Good luck
I do what InfinityMike suggested - I leave it in the garage with the door just above the top of the generator. The exhaust is aimed out.
When Irene hit, I used my parent's generator. The problem we had was that we ran the extension cable through the door from the garage into the house. As a result, we couldn't shut the door. The exhaust sucked right into the house. I ended up drilling a hole near the floor of my garage. The hole went through to the crawl space in my basement. I ran the cable through it and then stuffed the rest of the hole with cloth. After the storm, I filled the hole with that expanding crack sealer stuff. It's easy to cut out for next time....er...ah....this time.
When Irene hit, I used my parent's generator. The problem we had was that we ran the extension cable through the door from the garage into the house. As a result, we couldn't shut the door. The exhaust sucked right into the house. I ended up drilling a hole near the floor of my garage. The hole went through to the crawl space in my basement. I ran the cable through it and then stuffed the rest of the hole with cloth. After the storm, I filled the hole with that expanding crack sealer stuff. It's easy to cut out for next time....er...ah....this time.
Got a pickup truck with a bed cover? Put it in there outside.
We had driving rain and lost power a few weeks ago. It showed me the flaw in my usually just for snow storms genny shed. Built a new one three weeks ago and sure am glad I did. Generators hate water and carbon monoxide will make ya real dead real fast.
We had driving rain and lost power a few weeks ago. It showed me the flaw in my usually just for snow storms genny shed. Built a new one three weeks ago and sure am glad I did. Generators hate water and carbon monoxide will make ya real dead real fast.
Shadow&Flame
Minister of Fire
It is a pain that most generators are not to be run in the rain...but you sure dont want to run one where the fumes can get into your home. Try and build a make-shift shelter for now and in the future build a small shelter for it...
I do my best to work around the weather. A fridge that is properly loaded in preparation for a storm, and kept closed as much as possible, should be fine for up to 24 hours, a freezer, up to 48 hours.
That said, look at the weather and chose you time to operate that genny. What I find, is too many people wait too long to fire it up, then the poor fridge, freezer, and house heat have to play the catch up game. I'll wait a hour or two after the power goes out, and if the weather isn't terrible yet, fire things up then to maintain them rather than waiting 12+ hours. That way, even with a 1/2 hour or 45 min break in the weather, I can keep things in good shape. If the fridge/freezer has warmed up already, a short burst of run time won't hardly do squat.
In the end, as Dex said, do what it takes when it takes it as smartly as possible. Just don't put something near that genny that the exhaust could catch fire.
The genny pictured below is one that I fixed last night to help a buddy out. It belonged to his step-father who was a contractor. I worked with the man in the past, and can say that the looks of this generator doesn't tell 1/2 the story of what it has been through in it's 5 years in service. The owner died one year ago, and the buddy was hoping to get this genny going to help out with the siblings. Even after being operated through rain, mud, snow, etc, etc, the only real problem this unit had was that the magneto cover, housing the pull start, came loose some time ago and was allowed to operate that way. As such, it basically vibrated the small actuating tabs on the plastic dogs for the pull start down to little to nothing. That abuse, accompanied with the wet conditions / dirt / dust / mud just kept them from flying out and turning the engine over. After some cleaning, and playing tinknocker, riveting new steal on to secure the housing, the genny is good to go for this storm, but should have a new cover / pull cord mechanism purchased for it.
I doubt, considering you are concerned enough to ask, that your genny will ever be in the conditions that this one has seen (or the use).
![[Hearth.com] Generator Question](https://www.hearth.com/talk/data/attachments/79/79089-123f18908ed5127305e721e137b76647.jpg?hash=PxnZf08_GX "[Hearth.com] Generator Question")
That said, look at the weather and chose you time to operate that genny. What I find, is too many people wait too long to fire it up, then the poor fridge, freezer, and house heat have to play the catch up game. I'll wait a hour or two after the power goes out, and if the weather isn't terrible yet, fire things up then to maintain them rather than waiting 12+ hours. That way, even with a 1/2 hour or 45 min break in the weather, I can keep things in good shape. If the fridge/freezer has warmed up already, a short burst of run time won't hardly do squat.
In the end, as Dex said, do what it takes when it takes it as smartly as possible. Just don't put something near that genny that the exhaust could catch fire.
The genny pictured below is one that I fixed last night to help a buddy out. It belonged to his step-father who was a contractor. I worked with the man in the past, and can say that the looks of this generator doesn't tell 1/2 the story of what it has been through in it's 5 years in service. The owner died one year ago, and the buddy was hoping to get this genny going to help out with the siblings. Even after being operated through rain, mud, snow, etc, etc, the only real problem this unit had was that the magneto cover, housing the pull start, came loose some time ago and was allowed to operate that way. As such, it basically vibrated the small actuating tabs on the plastic dogs for the pull start down to little to nothing. That abuse, accompanied with the wet conditions / dirt / dust / mud just kept them from flying out and turning the engine over. After some cleaning, and playing tinknocker, riveting new steal on to secure the housing, the genny is good to go for this storm, but should have a new cover / pull cord mechanism purchased for it.
I doubt, considering you are concerned enough to ask, that your genny will ever be in the conditions that this one has seen (or the use).
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I just made a shelter with 4 x 8 sheets of insulation board. I used duct tape and then threw a tarp over it. Works great so far. I put the whole thing in a sort of stone wall corner n mnbackyard, so it is surrounded enough to keep the major wind off it.
Left one end of the shelter open for the exhaust and air flow, and the back part has an opening at the bottom for air to flow in.
Sandy is going to test my shelter tomorrow for me. I will update if I can.
Left one end of the shelter open for the exhaust and air flow, and the back part has an opening at the bottom for air to flow in.
Sandy is going to test my shelter tomorrow for me. I will update if I can.
It doesn't make sense that companies that build generators absolutely know they're to be used outdoors for emergency situations and being used under the worst weather conditions they have to run as they're supposed to. I wouldn't leave it outdoors like a cheap lawn mower. So I wired my circuit panel with a 30 amp switch over to power the whole house sparingly with a 6500w generator and a 30 foot cord I made to run the generator far from the house. I plug into the weather protected outlet on the outside opposite the circuit box. I do however surround the 3 sides of the generator with camouflaged plywood to baffle the sound and chain and lock it down to the cement slab it sits on to deter theft. During desperate times of power outages longer than 5 days it doesn't take much for thieves listening for the hum of the motor to take your generator at 2-4 AM and leave a junk lawn mower running so you won't hear any difference.
Running the generator away from the dwelling with a good distance is an excellent idea. My neighbor a 51 year old woman died in her sleep during the Oct snow storm power failure when she had the generator running outside her garage door, cord running under the garage door.
Running the generator away from the dwelling with a good distance is an excellent idea. My neighbor a 51 year old woman died in her sleep during the Oct snow storm power failure when she had the generator running outside her garage door, cord running under the garage door.
Bioburner
Moderator
There is a differance between standby and portable. Standby being less portable and encased for outside. Portable not have the case and not weather proof and a lot less $$$
I asked the same question in another thread today, and a good makeshift idea was to set up the saw horses and cover with plywood. Good luck
As a electrician we always just tossed a 4x4 sheet of plywood on the top of it and either used a cinder block or ratchet strapped the plywood to the generator.
Well, I am glad the OP started this thread. I've reconsidered my plan.
I have a couple of sheets of plywood that are 3' by 4'. I found 4 pieces of 2x3. I also have a tarp and a pile of bricks. The manual for my generator doesn't say it shouldn't be run outside, but I'll make a top for it and move it out past my garage.
I have a couple of sheets of plywood that are 3' by 4'. I found 4 pieces of 2x3. I also have a tarp and a pile of bricks. The manual for my generator doesn't say it shouldn't be run outside, but I'll make a top for it and move it out past my garage.
Wildo
Minister of Fire
Of course living in W. WA, when the power goes out here there is usually rain/wind. No need to buy plywood, I keep a couple of spare pallets from my pellets at all times. I then use the pallets to build a shelter with a tarp over the top of them. This gives the generator "breathing room". Also a simple and free way to have a shelter ready to go at all times. I usually lean a pallet against the exterior wall of my garage, park the genny next to it, then another pallet on the other side propped up by a garbage can. Tarp held down with cinder blocks or bricks. The pallets are tall enough to give enough headroom to refuel the genny without taking the shelter down. I had a manual transfer switch wired into my main circuit breaker with a plug on the exterior garage wall to plug the genny into. With my 7000W Honda, I can turn on every light, fan, microwave, furnace (nat. gas), pellet stove, 2 fridge/freezers and etc. The only thing I can't run simultaneous with all of the above is the electric dryer.
One thing that is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT....LOCK YOUR GENERATOR DOWN! During extended power outtages up here thieves were going around stealing generators that unsuspecting homeowners had left unattended and unlocked. Pretty easy to tell who has one...just listen. Mine stays behind a locked gate and the generator gets locked down too. Not foolproof, but I figure the more work it is for thieves, the better chance they will pass.
One thing that is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT....LOCK YOUR GENERATOR DOWN! During extended power outtages up here thieves were going around stealing generators that unsuspecting homeowners had left unattended and unlocked. Pretty easy to tell who has one...just listen. Mine stays behind a locked gate and the generator gets locked down too. Not foolproof, but I figure the more work it is for thieves, the better chance they will pass.
Only if I had a backhoe. I like the pallets, tarp, cinder blocks, and bungie cord idea. Stuff you probably have around anyway and easy to disassemble and store when not needed. I would never run in my garage, even with the door open. Not worth taking the risk you could poison your family. Hope everyone stays safe and the forecaster are wrong about this storm.
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