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Sep 18, 2023 · How to Hook up a Generator to Your House: Installation, Safety, & More. Let’s face it, power outages are inconvenient and stressful. Thankfully, portable generators can provide emergency electrical power to a home when the main power source, or the national grid, goes out.
There are two ways to hook up a generator to the home’s electrical system: transfer switches or a mechanical interlock. These devices prevent the home from receiving both utility power and generator power at the same time.
Learn the safest and easiest way to connect your portable generator to your home's electrical grid using a transfer switch. Find out what you need, how to install it, and how to use it during a power outage.
- 3 min
- 2023
May 17, 2020 · Learn how to connect your portable generator to your house safely and correctly with a transfer switch or a Generlink meter mounted transfer switch. Find out the benefits, costs and installation steps of both options.
- 3 min
1-2 hours. Steps for Hooking Up a Portable Generator: Heath explains some of the ways that a portable generator can be professionally wired to a house. First, never place the generator indoors or in a garage, as it generates carbon monoxide and is fatal. Always place it just on the outside of the house.
- 120 min
Move the generator outside (min. 10ft away from openings). Connect generator to indoor appliances by one of the following ways: Run one gen cord from the generator and connect multiple appliances. Run several extension cords from outside to connect to appliances. Start the generator.
In this video, This Old House master electrician Heath Eastman helps a homeowner install a generator transfer switch in his home.SUBSCRIBE to This Old House:...
- 9 min
- 230K
- This Old House
