Genset

mmm.....@dilbert800 allocate some personal time and go to Evangelista Street in Quiapo (near the church). Many vendors there. Good brands? Robin, Honda or Kubota. What to get? Less than 3000 watt should suffice. Gasoline or diesel? Diesel gensets will cost more and are less noisy than petrol-fed units. Avoid mall-based stores as they sell theirs at premium prices. Water-cooled or air-cooled? I prefer water-cooled, if available. Manual start or battery start? I prefer battery, with manual option. You also need to add a double throw switch (consult a competent electrician).

@soloworx, 6.5 KVA bare minimum, 10 KVA for some headroom. Meralco has an Appliance Calculator (iOS, Android and Windows) App. This will help you calculate total usage. For example, 19 cubic ref, no-frost, consumes 800 watts of electricity. However, since refs are equipped with electric motors that switches on and off, the starting current is times 3. The same goes for water pumps. Also, compute not on the maximum output of the genset. The actual output is about 80% of rated output. The headroom is to protect the dynamo from malfunction (rewinding is expensive).

You are right: using rubber to mitigate vibration-caused noise helps. I've used old truck tires (properly secured) just for that purpose.
　
　
　
　

 

thanks for clarifying this. I guess that is why the US carrier (powered by nukes) were allowed inside Phils.

 

@raypin does this mean that the portable pertrol-fueled gensets with auto start button and presumably are silent in operation fare less than the diesel-powered and heavier gensets?

i think i will have to change my priority now to looking for diesel-powered gensets, and yes, in quiapo they are cheaper...

 

Unfortunately a small genset won't cut it. It needs to power at least 2 refs, a few lights and fans. My room aircon is 3hp so I'm not considering to include that in the load. Since I don't/can't bring my work with me, the only productive thing I could do at home during outages is reproduction which I'm quite sure I can do with or without power. Looks like spending a night at the nearby hotel is an attractive option (which is what my family occasionally do).

 

Best is to get those power on delay boxes for the ref. These will not automatically power on the ref when power is restored but will have a delay that you can set like 5 mins or so just to make sure that the power doesn't trip again as what happens sometimes when power is restored. And usually the initial power surge when power restored can sometimes kill ref and aircon compressors.

 

mmm....it is up to you but, in all the years that I've had gensets (since the '70s), one thing I've learned is this: it is better to have spare capacity. Mas mabuti na sumobra, huwag lang kumulang at kapusin ang genset (at masira kaagad). Off topic, what is it about the Aquinos and energy crises? FVR for President in 2016!! Para walang brownout!......................and, of course, snap elections is what I'm thinking.

 

ehh, both are really, really dumb?

 

I guess we need to be prepared for 2015....after 2015, the problem is supposed to be solved because the new power plants should be operational by then...

 

I'm also planning to buy a generator and I've been seeing Ryobi Inverter generators with 2000 watts in Olx, whats the difference between the diesel powered ones? Is this brand good? Cost around 20k.

 

Inverter generators vary the speed of the motor depending on the load and will save you on the gas consumption. Diesel and other conventional generator has a fixed motor speed no matter if its a full load, half load or no load at all.

 

Any experience with inverter generators? The Hondas are quite expensive, can you recommend other brands?

 

i started to build my home offgrid solar power setup. right now, i just have 3 x 100 watts PVs, solar charge controller and 100AH deep cycle battery.
enough to power 3 electric fans, 5 Led bulbs, 1 LED TV, and charge all the electronics.

Good thing about solar setup: the more you use, the more you save. plus no noise, no foul smell, no emission.

 

How much did the setup cost? ROI figures?

 

mmm....yes, and if Elon Musk's Tesla succeeds in mass producing (thereby reducing initial capital outlay) its newest battery product, it will go a long way in making converts out of skeptics. The battery technology is called power walls and it can store and draw power from solar panels for use when power is most needed: at night time or store power from the grid during night time for use at day time when rates are higher thereby lowering electricity cost (sort of like a time-of-use scheme that big industrial users of Meralco are presently enjoying). As of now, a 7 kilowatt-hour Tesla power wall costs USD3,000.00. Not bad at all. I hope that it will be offered here sometime in the near future.

 

i'm waiting for elon's power wall as well. should be good for those with solar setups.

 

I'm using Kipor brand inverter generator. It's the only inverter type available when I'm looking for a genset 4 years ago. Im not sure if its good or not, but I'm happy with it. The 6,000 watts can power 2 inverter aircons (2.5 hp and 2 hp), inverter ref, all the lights and tv.

 

Where did you buy the Kipor if you don't mind. I'm trying to canvass which would work best with my needs. Thanks!

 

I bought them here http://www.petronne.com/gener.php They were the cheapest that time.