REWahoo
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It takes more than a 'little generator' for my 230v pump set 500 feet down my 820' deep well...
Making over my cash reserves plan
- Thread starter Alex in Virginia
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Yep, You'd need to spend a pretty penny on a generator that could handle that draw. I've never had a well, city boy that I am.
JoeWras
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This post got me thinking, so that's a good thing.
I've put a few hundred in my safe in case. If they take the safe, oh well...
Beyond that, I want to talk about disasters. You need to know your situation. Hurricane Andrew was over 20 years ago. Things have changed somewhat, but cash is still king. I will not discount that.
However, I've worked with businesses since then who were bit by Andrew and have satellite services (for commincation) with generators just for that possibility. We helped install them. Now, not every business has that, so there will be shortages. Cash is king.
South Florida is also unique. You are "at the end of the world" down there. A hurricane in the east coast is different than South Florida. But yeah, cash is still king. But they need power. They need power to get the gas out of the reserves. So there will be shortages since new supply trucks cannot get in. We saw some of this with Sandy and Katrina.
Earthquakes? Could be really bad. Have some cash.
Know your situation. I have some cash, but here on the east coast, I always have gas in the cars ready. I have cars on the street and in the garage. We are on a hill, not flood prone. Good chance a tree will take out one but not both. But maybe the streets are blocked? So the neighbors worked to clear it. Are they ready next time?
So, yeah, cash is king. But think bigger, and think of your typical situation. Blizzard? Flood? Earthquake? Hurricane? Gas up. Know the typical limits. Bring your cash to get out with your full tank.
Beyond that, it is harder. War? Nuke hit? Government meltdown? I'm not ready for those. I'm absorbing that bad possiblity.
I've put a few hundred in my safe in case. If they take the safe, oh well...
Beyond that, I want to talk about disasters. You need to know your situation. Hurricane Andrew was over 20 years ago. Things have changed somewhat, but cash is still king. I will not discount that.
However, I've worked with businesses since then who were bit by Andrew and have satellite services (for commincation) with generators just for that possibility. We helped install them. Now, not every business has that, so there will be shortages. Cash is king.
South Florida is also unique. You are "at the end of the world" down there. A hurricane in the east coast is different than South Florida. But yeah, cash is still king. But they need power. They need power to get the gas out of the reserves. So there will be shortages since new supply trucks cannot get in. We saw some of this with Sandy and Katrina.
Earthquakes? Could be really bad. Have some cash.
Know your situation. I have some cash, but here on the east coast, I always have gas in the cars ready. I have cars on the street and in the garage. We are on a hill, not flood prone. Good chance a tree will take out one but not both. But maybe the streets are blocked? So the neighbors worked to clear it. Are they ready next time?
So, yeah, cash is king. But think bigger, and think of your typical situation. Blizzard? Flood? Earthquake? Hurricane? Gas up. Know the typical limits. Bring your cash to get out with your full tank.
Beyond that, it is harder. War? Nuke hit? Government meltdown? I'm not ready for those. I'm absorbing that bad possiblity.
ERD50
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My pump, set at ~ 180' is rated 6.8-8.0 @ 230 V. It is on a 20A breaker. The 'locked rotor' current is 40.7 Amps.
I know the start-up current on these is much higher than the run current, maybe not the full 40.7A though. But I know breakers can handle short term draw several times their rating, so 20A would handle 40A for a while (tens of seconds I would guess, but you can look it up).
So while 8*230 is 1840 watts, the generator would need to provide a surge wattage much higher. Ahhh, I found the email correspondence I had with the motor manufacturer in 2006 - he said 4500 watts (~2.5x run watts) to run/start that motor. But I assume a 4500W generator has some surge capacity. I doubt that a 4500W inverter could do it.
-ERD50
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10 seconds of 20 amps (the 20 above what the generator is producing) is a lot of energy...that circuit in itself (mondo capacitors) would be big money! Maybe just planning on drinking out of the water heater isn't such a bad idea after all.
ERD50
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
They wouldn't do it with caps. The generator would just need to have some 'burst' capacity. Mechanically, that would be some flywheel effect, and just an engine that can put out more power for a few seconds, but couldn't handle that long term - just like your car engine. And big enough wires in the generator to pass that current for a short while.
For an inverter, every component would need to be sized to handle that peak, the only thing they can really skimp on for peak versus a 10 second burst would be heat sinks and fans. Most of the inverters I see have about a 2x peak/continuous rating, so that's probably what is practical. You'd just need a BIG inverter.
-ERD50
