Generator Safety Tips

With the recent devastation in the Northeast, generators are becoming more of a home staple than a “nice to have” appliance. With power outages in excess of two weeks in certain areas they become a matter of necessity. However, there are several risks that need to be mitigated to make sure no one gets injured or suffers loss of life. Listed below are a few things to consider to safely operate a generator:

Carbon Monoxide Poising
Generators produce a deadly, tasteless, odorless, colorless gas called Carbon Monoxide or CO in the exhaust. To avoid exposure, the generator must be used outside in a well ventilated area away from any air intakes in the home or garage. To help keep you safe a CO monitor should be kept in the home that has battery backup. Some early signs of CO poisoning are headache, dizziness, lethargy or flu like symptoms. Did I mention CO can kill you and your family while you sleep?

Gasoline
Portable generators use highly flammable gasoline. Gas should be stored in an approved non glass container in a well ventilated area away from sparks and heat sources. Gas should not be stored in any living space or garage area. Use caution when transporting the gas from the gas station as gas vapor in the car can present dangers to the passengers in the vehicle. Make sure the generator is off and cooled down when refueling. The heat of a generator can ignite fuel if spilled.

Grounding
All generators should be properly grounded as per the manufacturer’s recommendation as found in the owner’s manual. If extension cords are being used make sure the extension cord has a ground wire or third prong on both ends of the cord. If it is a permanent connection your licensed electrician will make sure it is properly grounded and conforms to the national electric code.

Generator Connection
Many users are tempted to connect the generator to the main electrical panel or make a double ended plug and plug one end into the generator and the other into a wall outlet also known as back feeding. This is extremely dangerous and should not done as extreme harm to individuals will occur. If the generator power and electric panel is not disconnected properly from the main electrical feed the generator can back feed the main feed, provide power to the transformer outside, the transformer can step up the voltage and could hurt or kill a linesperson working on restoring power to your home. The safest way to connect the generator to the home is to have an electrician install a proper disconnect switch with a smaller “emergency” sub panel with selected circuits sized to the generators output.

Most people won’t take the trouble and expense of getting a permanent connection and disconnect switch. Therefore, the next safest way to connect the generator is to use properly gauged three prong grounded outdoor electrical extension cords and power the necessities in your home. Remember to keep the extension cords as short as possible to avoid increased electrical resistance, melting cords and voltage drops. In addition, the cords will need to enter the home and could create a path for that CO to enter. Make sure the generator is down wind, a carbon monoxide detector with battery backup is installed in the home and think about keeping the generator off while you sleep.

Power Rating
When connecting the appliances make sure the power rating of the appliances added together is less than the total output of the generator. Excessive power use from the generator will cause voltage drops which can damage appliances, cause overheated wires resulting in fire, damage the generator or trip the circuit breaker on the generator temporally leaving you in the dark.

In Summary
There are more ways to get hurt by improperly using a generator than one can imagine. Most homeowners don’t have experience keeping a small motor running for extended periods of time while manufacturing electricity. When the emergency is over spend some time evaluating your plan to safely connect the generator should a need arise in the future.

George Chowanec
Engineer
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