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stoverr2
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# Posted: 29 Feb 2016 07:59
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Good day everyone! I have what I believe will be an extremely simple question. I have a small cabin that is lit by solar panels. I'll use an inverter for making coffee and small tasks as needed. I am going to install two 110 outlets powered by a generator for very occasional use; space heater and/or portable air conditioning unit. May also use these outlets for an emergency recharge of the battery bank if necessary. My question is this: should I bother with installing a breaker box or simply rely on the breakers built into the 5k generator?
Thanks for your time!
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PA_Bound
Member
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# Posted: 29 Feb 2016 10:58 - Edited by: PA_Bound
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I'm not an electrician, so don't take this as "expert" advice. I'm assuming your generator has breakers (I don't know of any that don't, but just to be sure). So if this were me, and I was going to only wire in two outlets, I would skip the breaker box and use the breakers on the generator. Just make sure you use the correct wire size and outlets to match the breaker's on the generator.
What I mean is that my Honda 3500 generator has two 20A 110 outlets. Since they are 20Amps, make sure you install 12G wire and 20A outlets in your cabin. In fact, I would do that even if your generator only has 15A breakers, for you never know when you may get a bigger generator in the future.
If there is any chance you are going to want more outlets in the future, then I would probably go with a breaker box.
My $.02
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bldginsp
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# Posted: 29 Feb 2016 12:03
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Agree w/ PaBound. If the generator circuits are completely separate from the other circuits that come off the inverter, it stays dirt simple. But if you want to power some or all circuits with solar sometimes and generator sometimes, it gets very complicated (for the inexperienced). You'll need a subpanel and a transfer switch to switch between power sources, and you need to know how to ground/bond the whole setup correctly or else the breakers won't trip in a ground fault.
If you keep it simple with the generator circuits entirely separate from the others, be sure your generator bonds neutral to ground and/or frame so breakers will trip in a ground fault.
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toyota_mdt_tech
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# Posted: 29 Feb 2016 14:38
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What PA said, except you can use 15 amp outlets on a 12AWG 20A circuit. The 15A outlet itself is the limiting factor.
If it was me, I'd still add the breaker box and circuits from that.
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stoverr2
Member
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# Posted: 29 Feb 2016 20:11
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I appreciate the input! I don't envision putting in additional outlets, it was a stretch to even put these two in. The only reason we're doing so is for exceedingly hot days for the air conditioning and the rare times I'll need a space heater. I think I'll install the breaker box, the expense is negligible.
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