The Generator
The generator was installed around 2005 after the area experienced some lenghty delays (Days) due to some severe blizzards that swept across the region. Since then the supply has improved greatly with the bracing of the poles and the fitting of wire spreaders along the lines as well as more tree pruning.
However, there is always the chance that a failure can still occur, and that is made worse when repair crews and their trucks are delayed in fixing the fault by the weather conditions and the road closures due to the snow and ice.
The operation of the generator is pretty simple and only requires a few basic rules to be followed.
1. Prior to starting:
Make sure the fuel tap on Fuel tank on the outside wall is in the open/on position. Being a diesel motor, should it stop because of lack of fuel, air will enter the fuel system, and the motor will not restart until the entire fuel system is bled and re primed.
2. Move the Lawnmower, Wheelbarrow etc outside: Ensure the area around the generator is clear so as to provide the necessary air circulation for the radiator on the motor to operate.
3. Always have the Generator operating prior to either switching the power over to the house or return the power board to mains power before shutting the generator down. The number one rule to follow (Even by Snowy Hydro) is that a generator must be producing power before using any of it's power, and must not be under any load when stopping, otherwise a great strain is placed on it's circuitry in the winding up or winding down process and may overload or strip the magnetism from the armature causing failure of it's ability to produce power next time .
4. Monitor Usage:
There is a set of electrical gauges mounted inside and above the kitchen window and these operate from both mains and generator power and indicate the Voltage (240) Hz (50) and Amps (Power being consumed). when running from the generator if the Amps go up to a level where the 50Hz begins to drop below 50, then turn off heating/cooking appliaces immediately as you are over running the power of the motor. If you are running on generator power, and the Green light on the panel comes on, then that indicates that the mains power is now available.
Below are a number of videos that show the set up, start up, and switching over process.
General Overview and Description
Starting in Cold Conditions
How to switch over to Generator Power
