Honda generator and electrical grid

Dusty R wrote:

steveh27 wrote:
I lost power and used my Honda 2000 for 3 1/2 days. I ran an extension cord into my house & ran more from it to power the fridge, sat dish, tv, computer & a light. I also ran a line into my neighbors so they could power their fridge & a light. I used a 5 gallon external tank with a second genny cap to go for extended use without having to refill the genny too often. I have thought of doing the transfer switch to be able to run the furnace if power went out in the cold. Or I could rewire the furnace from direct to a plug so it could be run with an extension cord.

I saw a furnace in a home once that had a short cord with a male cord cap on it, hanging out of the disconnect switch on the furnace.
What had been done was a 3 way switch was used as a disconnect switch for the furnace and also as a transfer switch. So if there was a loss of power from the utility, one could flip the switch and plug the furnace into a portable generator.
It looked a little strange, but I saw nothing wrong with it.

In that spirit I modified an elderly relative's propane furnace shutoff switch (near the furnace) to include a receptacle and then put a 20amp standard plug on the furnace's power wire.

It normally stays plugged into the switched receptacle, but in a pinch we can run an extension cord to the furnace from a generator, or even from a fire company in a real emergency to power their furnace.

We've used it twice that way over the past 15yrs.

I'm soon to replace OUR electrical box and plan to include an interlock with 60 amp 220V plug for a generator, just in case. It is really convenient to have working lights anywhere in the house. Just know your load when on the genny.