Use onboard Onan to power house in emergency?
So I was thinking, hey, I got a fancy schmancy Onan, built right into the camper, so why would I need to buy some portable unit to run various things in the house during an emergency?! So I grab my...
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I have enough 10 gauge cord to run from the RV to the house. I take the power straight from the 3,600 watt Onan.
When it gets to the house, I have a home made splitter into two 15 amp circuits. I used a J-box, two 15 breakers, and two 15/20 amp duplex.
I did a little mod to my home forced air furnace. It was initially hardwired but I changed it to a plugin. Now I can unplug from house power and plug into generator power.
I run cords to the refrigerator and two freezers as needed. None of them need to be powered 24/7. I can also run a cord to the entertainment center or other loads as desired.
Of course I also have 3 portable generators to be used as needed.
If you want to rely on your generator as backup power don't forget fuel. In a power outage or disaster fuel may not be available. I keep two 15 gallon drums of gasoline in the garage treated with Stabil and replenished once per year at least.
When it gets to the house, I have a home made splitter into two 15 amp circuits. I used a J-box, two 15 breakers, and two 15/20 amp duplex.
I did a little mod to my home forced air furnace. It was initially hardwired but I changed it to a plugin. Now I can unplug from house power and plug into generator power.
I run cords to the refrigerator and two freezers as needed. None of them need to be powered 24/7. I can also run a cord to the entertainment center or other loads as desired.
Of course I also have 3 portable generators to be used as needed.
If you want to rely on your generator as backup power don't forget fuel. In a power outage or disaster fuel may not be available. I keep two 15 gallon drums of gasoline in the garage treated with Stabil and replenished once per year at least.
