Wife read somewhere that if the grid goes down or out, we won’t have a place to charge.....she asked me about a generator.....said I would look into it....Anybody have any suggestions as to what generator is best for the application and can I use the charger cable in the car with the right adapter....I know the generator has to have a ground for the car to accept charge but I am lost as to if this can even be set up and work.....thanks in advance for any suggestions.....
-
Want to remove ads? Register an account and login to see fewer ads, and become a Supporting Member to remove almost all ads.
Hackers knock out the gird, which Generator to get instead of solar
- Thread starter r1200gs4ok
- Start date
beatle
Active Member
There are a lot of generators out there that run on gasoline, diesel, propane, or natural gas. What you get depends on what you want to power and what resources you have available to you. Most large household generators are setup with a transfer switch that allows you to disconnect from the grid and use your generator to power your house directly without running stringing extension cords all over your house. These are a heck of a lot more expensive though.
doghousePVD
My grandfather’s car
The cheap construction generators are REALLY noisy, cantankerous, and generally a PITA.
Generac whole house consumer generators have a long history of failing soon, especially by burning up all their oil then self destructing. During "Hurricane" Sandy in NJ at least 8 of my mother's neighbors had Generacs that failed.
I've had good luck with Kohlers. One was from 1946, the most recent was installed about 3 years ago.
Depending on how much you expect to use the generator, propane is a good fuel. It lasts forever and doesn't degrade like gasoline. Note that a full house generator will need something MUCH larger than a BBQ tank, or even a 100 lb tank. Natural gas should be good, but look what happened this winter in Texas.
My preference has been for diesel since you can fefuel from a jerry can, but consumer diesel generators seem nearly extinct. Kubota makes excellent small-medium diesels and make a (expensive) generator that looks excellent. Should be very good. I've had half a dozen Kubotas tractors (some for 20+ years), and all were extremely reliable. None died, and only one has been retired (Friend took it and restored it).
I have used several diesel Kohlers for off grid use over the decades. My present emergency generator is a propane Kohler.
If you want gasoline and portable, Hondas are the best. Fairly quiet, very reliable. Have had about half a dozen over the years for various properties. Make sure you get an actual Honda generator, not a Honda engine attached to a crappy generator.
Generac whole house consumer generators have a long history of failing soon, especially by burning up all their oil then self destructing. During "Hurricane" Sandy in NJ at least 8 of my mother's neighbors had Generacs that failed.
I've had good luck with Kohlers. One was from 1946, the most recent was installed about 3 years ago.
Depending on how much you expect to use the generator, propane is a good fuel. It lasts forever and doesn't degrade like gasoline. Note that a full house generator will need something MUCH larger than a BBQ tank, or even a 100 lb tank. Natural gas should be good, but look what happened this winter in Texas.
My preference has been for diesel since you can fefuel from a jerry can, but consumer diesel generators seem nearly extinct. Kubota makes excellent small-medium diesels and make a (expensive) generator that looks excellent. Should be very good. I've had half a dozen Kubotas tractors (some for 20+ years), and all were extremely reliable. None died, and only one has been retired (Friend took it and restored it).
I have used several diesel Kohlers for off grid use over the decades. My present emergency generator is a propane Kohler.
If you want gasoline and portable, Hondas are the best. Fairly quiet, very reliable. Have had about half a dozen over the years for various properties. Make sure you get an actual Honda generator, not a Honda engine attached to a crappy generator.
beatle
Active Member
FWIW, I have a small Honda generator (bought to run a saltwater fish tank during power outages) and it will not charge the Tesla due to the ground issue. Interesting video here comparing the Honda generator I have with a newer Generac portable:
I'm not sure a backup generator in Irvine, Ca would be all that practical for what you're trying to achieve in charging your Tesla during a powergrid hack-attack. You'll also want to take note at the rate of output the generator can produce and whether or not you plan to power your entire house plus charging the car. It seems the trend in Socal is pair a solar array with a whole-house battery bank since power interruptions are typically less than 2 hours. It's still something to be concerned about given all the cyberhacks these days.
While I think that's a really over-the-top fear, there have been plenty of threads discussing charging from generators here. I'll link several to get you the most information about this.
teslamotorsclub.com
teslamotorsclub.com
teslamotorsclub.com
teslamotorsclub.com
teslamotorsclub.com
teslamotorsclub.com
teslamotorsclub.com
Using a generator to Charge Tesla 3 in a pinch
As a backup, I would like to use a generator to charge my Tesla 3. First thing was to get an adapter for the 240 plug to fit into the 240 outlet of the generator. Done. However, when trying to charge (reducing the charge rate to 24V to ensure no problems or breaker trips), the warning light came...
teslamotorsclub.com
Charging From a Whole House Generator
I was getting an estimate today for a whole house generator. He looked at my panel and noticed the breaker for Tesla Charging and told me not to charge the Tesla while on the generator. Asked him why and he just said because sometimes weird things happen. Anyone know why he would say that? I...
teslamotorsclub.com
Charging with a gas generator?
I have ordered the truck but have a question . We will be camping with the truck for extended periods and wonder if you can charge the truck with a standard gas generator (220VAC)? The sine wave output isn't nearly as clean as house current. Will Tesla's electronics allow this? Anyone try this...
teslamotorsclub.com
Emergency Charging
I am interested in having a backup generator so that I can top off my car if I have to leave the city (Boston) when power is out for any extended period of time. This might be a huge Blizzard, natural disaster, zombie apocalypse, etc. II live in the city and do not have a garage, so I'm unable...
teslamotorsclub.com
Generator support
Folks, are there any updates on generator support? We're finishing up building a new house, and I'd love to add powerwalls to the solar design, esp. now that the supply seems to be available. However I have a 30 KW generator (it's a big house) for backup power, as well as the associated...
teslamotorsclub.com
Charging by generator possible, in a pinch?
Please, I'm looking for knowledge, not guesses. I'm planning a trip in a couple of weeks to a friend's cabin, and I'm wanting to know what happens in "worst case scenario". First off, I can't make it from the nearest charger (Tesla or other public) and back again. Just not possible. So I...
teslamotorsclub.com
Charging a Model S with a Small Petrol Generator
I know it goes against the grain but I tried to charge my Tesla with a portable petrol generator(inverter) with no success. My UMC kept flashing 3 times indicating there's a problem with the UMC itself. But I can use it with a 10amp power point just fine. I even tried earthing the generator. Has...
teslamotorsclub.com
Gadget-X
Member
We have a whole house Generac generator. Live in a hurricane prone area. I had the electrician tied the 60AMP Tesla Ver 3 connector into that. We actually had use it late last year. So in our case no separate generator needed.
M
M
doghousePVD
My grandfather’s car
Please note that all the small generators cannot output full wattage continuously. A gasoline 5kw probably can only output 2.5 kw continuously, ie, for hours at a time. It will wear out crankshaft bearings, get oil leaks, etc. So advertised 7.5 peak, continuous 5kw won’t last long at 5kw.
In my experience running a 3kw generator continuously at 2.5kw basically failed at 20 -30 hours. Couldn’t restart due to lack of compression. Don’t know if it was valves, pistons or what.
Well treated one should get 1000-2000 hours of life. So a $1000 generator for 1000 hours is a buck an hour just for depreciation. Don’t forget to change the oil every 50 hours, too. Charging a full 100kwh X at 2kw = another oil change.
As always YMMV
In my experience running a 3kw generator continuously at 2.5kw basically failed at 20 -30 hours. Couldn’t restart due to lack of compression. Don’t know if it was valves, pistons or what.
Well treated one should get 1000-2000 hours of life. So a $1000 generator for 1000 hours is a buck an hour just for depreciation. Don’t forget to change the oil every 50 hours, too. Charging a full 100kwh X at 2kw = another oil change.
As always YMMV
We went with a dual fuel champion 3400 watt that we run exclusively on propane. Propane is easy to store and doesn't go stale. We bought it for backup to critical household loads though. Not for charging the Tesla. We exercise it once a month using the Tesla as a variable load. 12 to 24 amps on 120 volts. Never tried to put a serious charge for ay length of time on the car but I'm sure it would work. Electric start. Super quiet. East to store. Oh, and don't forget to use a bonding plug or the EVSE will fault out.
doghousePVD
My grandfather’s car
I would strongly suggest you try a "real" charge to gain 50% before you go on trip where its use is likely. Worse than not having a lifejacket is one that sinks.
Similar threads
