We live in a world where all the equipment, without which we can no longer imagine our lives, works by consuming electricity. And you are 100% familiar with its unstable supply and, apparently, are already thinking about buying a backup power supply (generator) in order to forget about power outages like a nightmare.
Have you ever encountered how, due to a failure at the station or during a thunderstorm, electricity disappears? At best, you are left without lighting. At best, because at worst – without water in the house, and it’s good if neither you nor any of your family members are in the bathroom at this moment. For some, this sounds like a joke, but those who live in private homes have faced this problem more than once.
As a result, thoughts about buying a generator begin to swarm in my head. It stops that this is an expensive installation and in order to choose the right and reliable generator, you have to study mountains of literature. The more we read, the more we get confused about what and why. Let’s go through it step by step and in detail.
A common reason that slows down the purchase of a fuel power plant is the question of its necessity and rational use.
More often, a backup generator is bought for
Private houses
power outages greatly worsen the living conditions of the owners. Appliances, water supply, lighting, and often heating – depend on electricity (even if the heating is gas – boilers and electric pumps).
For suburban area
Thunderstorm – in spring, snow – in winter: frequent factors of power outages and, as a result, lack of electricity for several days, because summer cottages are built in “green zones” and on the outskirts of cities: for example, Kiev and suburbs.
Offices
the work of the team stops through a power outage: a computer, a printer, and the Internet itself are the result of technological progress. And again – the joy when uninterruptibles work and important information or the result of many hours of work was saved.
Manufacturing plants and trade enterprises
here and idle production, and wages without the amount of work performed, and problems with electrical equipment. After all, production equipment is configured to work in non-stop mode (based on design features).
Construction sites
stretching additional wiring and supplying electricity to an object is not always convenient and possible.
Tourism and recreation
even an ordinary trip to the forest on a weekend can end with a dead car battery (the music played longer than it should), but there is no need to even talk about a serious hike. A portable mini-power station will become an indispensable assistant.
As a conclusion, some need backup power plants, and some need them. Which one is better to buy, and which one will be effective with minimal cash costs – this is the question. And you will find the answers to them below.
Three main selection criteria
- The unit will be used as an emergency power source, or as the main source of electricity.
- What electrical appliances will work from the generator.
- How much and what kind of electrical equipment will work at the same time.
This is the foundation from which to build. But for maximum compliance with the requirements, we will clarify the features of the configuration, power supply, power, etc.
The cost of generators affected by
Rising electricity prices and frequent power outages only increase the demand for standby generators. In order not to depend on “tomorrow” and weather conditions. Three factors influencing the price formation:
- Prices directly depend on the type of fuel consumed and the power that can be reproduced.
- Manufacturer and supply.
Other factors and additional characteristics affect the price formation not so significantly.
Defining characteristics
There are characteristics and features, having understood which you can easily choose the device you need, even on your own.
By type of fuel and required power
Based on the type of fuel consumed, there are 4 types of generators on sale with a power range from 0.5 to 2000 kW. Max Power:
- Petrol – 20 kW;
- Diesel – 2000 kW;
- Gas (natural / liquefied gas) – 2500 MW.
- Hybrid. The name speaks for itself about the type of fuel consumed.
When choosing, check the efficiency (coefficient of performance), which is written in the passport of each device.
By phase: in all categories (by power consumption)
- single-phase – 230V, ensure the operation of only single-phase devices;
- three-phase: between zero and one of the three-phase phases – 230V, between two different phases – 380V, without load – 400V. They work with both single-phase and three-phase devices. The current frequency is 50 Hz. With deviations to one side, there is a possibility of failure of electrical equipment.
By type of cooling
During operation, the generators lose part of the generated “product”. The lost energy – converted into heat and heats the steel and copper elements of the power plant, which reduces its service life. Therefore, an appropriate cooling system is important:
- air (in power plants up to 10 kW) – at the installation site of the equipment there must be a constant flow (access) of air and the removal of hot air with exhaust gases;
- liquid (over 5 kW) – antifreeze or water used for more efficient cooling. And in this case, forced ventilation with exhaust gases not canceled.
Generator noise is the main problem
An absolutely silent power plant not yet been invented. So there only one thing left – to reduce the level of this noise to a minimum.
- an option is to “dress” the generator set in an anti-noise heat-shielding casing. It is purchased separately or as a set with the installation (see protected models).
- option – the organization of silent flow-exhaust ventilation (air ducts, ventilation shutters). Such a system will cost more – and justify its cost only on a production scale.
- method – installation of a soundproof system in a room with a generator.
The selected method should be based on the type of device and methods of operation.
Find more useful information about generators on our blog.
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