This is amazing. Ive worked in electrical engineering over 50 years. Two large school campuses, continuously upgrading. I also have a large ranch where just added a large gasoline/ propane generator. So been around. Never have I run across a house set up like this.
@@akshonclip Or simply greater capacity. I imagine many people figure on shutting off some non-essential power loads, when on backup power. Water heater and pool heater and pump, probably are not all that essential. The robo-maid could have taken care of it. Oops, are we still in the primitive backwards 20th century? Robo-maids are a thing at least in _The Jetsons_ universe.
You can indeed turn on a n APC smart UPS SUA series by pressing and holding down the on button, and you can permanently disable the buzzer using PowerChute Business Edition and a USB cable. Once you do it once, it stays off until you turn it back on in the software.
Yep! They are still a pain in the ass but not for that reason. APC and Eaton’s are pretty great, but I’ve learned (3-5 yrs after deployment) that the more economical CyberPower ones will completely fail if the battery reaches end of life. All power (fed from the battery outlets) fails even with grid power on.
@@DozIT actually what happens is they stay on until the first outage or sag in power causes it to try to switch to battery we had one that did that because the battery died 6 months ago and the it guy did not replace it but i just switched everything from battery side outlets to surge only to get up and running until the new battery was installed that day
@@apctech1 yep, it’s not ideal. I deployed around 30 at the same time. First outage was mayhem. Some of the outlets are not particularly accessible either - so telling clients to crawl under their desk and move plugs around was a no go. Ended up requiring a few emergency site visits and mass-replacement of UPS’ Now that I know it’s fine, they (cyberpower) are nearly $100 cheaper- they still have their time and place!
I've noticed my SmartUPS doesn't always let you turn it back on. When this happens you need to hold the off button until the relay clicks off, then you can turn it back on.
Hey Nic, very cool video. I have to warn you, the cause of the outage as I saw was a uhaul truck crashed into a power pole. Please do not approach these poles if they are down, even if they are just dangling, it is very unsafe. As I work as an installer and have seen fatalities before, the main HV line can carry from 25KV up to 150KV, if the line is down and touching the earth it is a massive hassard and extremely dangerous. The electricity can flow through the ground and into your body very easily. Be safe out there bud
With that UPS you have, If you accidentally turn it off as you did you should be able to hold down the power button for about 3 to 5 seconds and when you let go the unit should power back on even without utility power.
I no longer use computer UPS equipment intended for laptops and desktops. Their runtime is too short for extended outages. I now use EcoFlow River power banks to keep my network and laptop systems going for extended outages. They are more expensive than the ordinary "UPS-specific" units but more items can be connected to them.
These devices are not suitable as they do not have the appropriate ratings to sustain computer equipment within an uninterrupted load. That’s potentially a chance that when the power goes off they could cut the output very briefly and made disrupt some devices if you really want a UPS to run along you could easily just connect a couple of external lead acid batteries for most models and that would be plenty.
Whole home battery backups are getting so competitive in price that they rival generators now after tax incentives, and for the lack of maintenance they require compared to traditional generators, it's very appealing. Getting one myself soon along with solar to protect against outages, it will act as a UPS for the whole home that switches over without dropping power to the circuits at all. There's modular systems (EcoFlow, Anker, EP Cube, Bluetti) that you can honestly DIY, if you're comfortable working in a panel, too. Most of them can integrate with solar panels to charge themselves without the grid as well. Of course if you bought that generator recently, probably not something you want to do soon, but definitely something to consider for the future when that thing dies
For my setup I went with the generator as generators still produce more power for a longer amount of time at much less cost compared to battery systems the drawback being noise and fuel consumption.
@@akshonclip They might last for a day, if you are not consuming too much power. A standard refrigerator can not seem to stay cold for more than 7 hours without power, and that is if you are careful to not open the door even once. Probably a chest freezer would stay cold for a bit longer. Probably the majority of power outages are restored within a day? Unless you live in an outlying area that has a higher rate of power outages. Also check out the mini-split that is dual powered, both with a plug and inputs for solar. The solar input subtracts from what it wold otherwise draw from the grid, and I think it is variable power. Imagine the inside unit still blowing cold air even though the power is out. Probably its cooling power would fade when the sun hides behind some passing clouds? I think I would install one of those good weatherproof outlets for it, if it is going to actually be a plug, but then you could plug it into a generator or extension cord.
@@nics-systems-electric I like the idea of a sound quieting box, that also helps protect from the weather. How is your box ventilated? Generators are a problem for prepping, as who wants to stick out like a sore thumb, being the only house around with lights on, or having a noisy generator that could get stolen? Would a person also need blackout curtains?
@@yosefmacgruber1920 If you're thinking of EG4's AC/DC heat pump those seem to be aimed at people looking to just reduce their power bill. There's no provision for a battery hookup, so if you want to run them purely on solar you need to dedicate panels to the machine - meaning not only that you can't run it when it's dark, but also if the thermostat isn't calling for the heat pump to do any work, the panels are completely wasted. Supposedly the internals are all DC but with the MPPT being integrated it's not user-friendly to run them off of a normal DC system. Hopefully a future version includes provisions to run directly off of DC power at battery voltage (likely 48V or higher).
Seems like a reason not to buy a Midland emergency weather alert radio. Stupid thing beeps every 10 minutes, until somebody at work finally unplugged it. Yeah, really useful that way? Whose fault is it supposed to be, if it can not find a useful signal? Stupid computers with their bogus error messages, like somebody is going to tend to it as with a crying baby? When my Dad and I installed an audio output jack on my first computer, an Apple //e purchased in 1985, we did install a toggle switch to shut off the internal speaker. As it altered the circuit that we had tapped into an unsoldered wire from off the speaker, we just put a dummy load resistor to replace the speaker, which seemed to make the circuit happy rather than sounding abnormally distorted. My primitive video games did sound much better through my boombox rather than through that cheap tinny speaker. No need for a volume control, since my boombox already had one. We used a capacitor to insure isolation in case of any polarity problems. I was right in guessing it needed to be a higher capacitance so as to not suppress the lower notes or frequencies. Later models had the headphone jack for connecting to computer speakers. I imagine UPSes love to complain, because if power is not soon restored, their batteries will soon give out forcing some sort of shutdown. And probably most setups are not capable of transmitting a command telling the protected computer that it is time to do an orderly proper shutdown. Hopefully no data corruption will occur, but recording of security camera or whatever information may cease.
Anytime my power goes out at my house, the alarm system goes off saying "AC power loss please advise" anywhere from 1 to 10 minutes after power goes out. Once the code is punched in.......then it ends.
Maybe one day you might be able to pick up one of those old 6 kw light towers they go for 60 hours on a tank of diesel and are easy to automate my buddy got one used as a rental cheap and did this with it it’s just a 3 cyclinder diesel very reliable with a pancake generator head don’t need to build a shed for them either just leave t on it’s trailer it’s 30 amps 240 output on them so easy to wire a pony panel
This is better than my suggestion of a military diesel generator. Also 30* 240 is 7200 so 7.2kw but I wonder if they rate it with the power for the lights subtracted. He could even put the lights from the tower on some wires are use them for emergency lighting inside.
Your videos are great - not sure why RU-vid recommended your channel but I'll watch as long as your are putting out content. Might want to add the Stabil to the jerry can and give it a shake before refuelling, or add it to the generator first and then pour the gas in so it has a chance to mix fully.
Might want to consider a latching contactor for the pool heater and any other high current loads. These will keep grid power applied until you lose grid power. They will then drop power to the load until you manually reset them. That way, current hungry loads won't drop your generator off line.
@@nics-systems-electric You don't need any special holding relays, just connect the switched output of the contactor to its own coil power. For the pool heater you could put it in a box wired before the outdoor outlets.
Very nice! We had an extended outage due to an ice storm in 2013 and I managed to keep my house heated and lit as well as sending cords over to 2 neighbours... in total it was 3 fridges, 2 freezers 1 mini fridge, two furnaces, fireplace fan and some LED lights all on a 5500W generator.. Trick was starting them one at a time, biggest one first.. After a while the loading wasnt bad as not everything was trying to start and run simultaneously.. 3 days and 60L of gasoline later.. lol O ya, your UPS that will not restart without supplying it power first...... I have one that looks like the one you have, "APC" correct? Pushing and holding the " on / off" button for several seconds will sometimes force these UPS to start while unplugged..
There is a YT video showing how to replace that light switch that supplies power to your furnace, with an electrical outlet instead. Whatever for would somebody do that? Because then you can power up the furnace, with a generator or with a portable battery backup. It is normally just a standard 120-volt circuit to run the burner fan and all. I guess that would hopefully power the wall thermostat in the hallway also?
@@yosefmacgruber1920 Best to leave that switch in place. It is there both for emergencies and maintenance. The switch is designed to work when loaded, so it can handle arcing internally. Plugs are not! Not only can you easily burn the plug and receptacle, if you have a risk of a gas leak, you don't want to be creating extra sparks unnecessarily. Yes the furnaces have 24V transformers in them. Some thermostats run off of that power, but a lot (disappointingly) just use batteries.
@@holysirsalad You obviously have not watched the video. Of course it would have helped if I had supplied a link to it? When you replace the furnace light switch with a power plug, you can pull out the plug when you want to cut power. The idea is that a power outlet/plug combo is more versatile than the old basic installation, because now you have an easier way to plug your furnace into an extension cord run to a cheap generator running out side. Might be nice to have the furnace operating normally during a power outage, especially if you do not have gas logs. How exactly would I not be able to turn off the furnace before pulling the plug? The furnace is not operating during a power outage. There is this called called a thermostat in the hallway, that can turn off the furnace. It is hardly a light switch for the children to be playing with. My Dad's house came with central air connected to his old oil furnace. I think he added a time-delay relay, so that somebody fooling with the thermostat could not start the compressor when it was already under load from just running. It may take a few minutes for the refrigerant pressure to normally drop. Probably was freon, as old as it was back then. If that is your concern, you can simply add an outlet after the light switch. But then you are probably talking an extra or larger electrical box, and you are moving out of the realm of the easy DIY job. I am not planning that project anytime too soon, because nobody has hinted to me that I would be getting a generator for Christmas nor for my birthday. And I currently only heat with the gas logs anyway. They work like a gas water heater, and shrug their shoulders at the thought, "What is a power outage"? As long as the pilot light is lit, the gas logs thermostat in the hallway just works. It is just a special gas-logs thermostat that lacks any LEDs, or computer boards or resisters, just a basic thermal switch. The thermocouple or thermopile above the pilot light, it can not run all that fancy electronics. If there is a gas leak, then there is a gas shutoff at the furnace and another at the meter. Need a wrench for the one at the meter. I was not aware that basic cheap light switches are "explosion-rated" sealed? Are we going back to mercury switches? I was thumbing through a Grainger catalog the other day, didn't I see something about mercury switches still being a thing? No exposed sparks. I thought they had been phased out or banned? Maybe not? And I thought if you suspect a gas leak, you are supposed to be opening windows and doors before you start fooling around flipping light switches? Is even your flashlight safe? Well the one on your phone, probably does not make any spark. _Run off of batteries?_ What could possibly go wrong? A $100+ service call, just to replace a dead battery? The battery should do nothing more than backup all your clock and programmed thermostat settings. Or glow backlight the screen on it, which probably should be done by the transformer anyway. What joke if the thermostat can not run solely off of the transformer power. But I guess they like to put in tiny button cells that "might" last for a few years, because those computer boards these days, do not really need much power? Just another crappy way to mis-design things to require costly service calls.
I hate to admit it, but, these power outages (and all power outages for that matter when it comes to things failing) are the only way to be able to learn what happened and what needs to happen to make sure it doesn't fail again.
you can turn them back on with no ac just press and hold in the power button as long as it has battery power left it turn on i sell them if the unit i saw was APC
What you can do with a propane system is have a 11kg tank hooked up. That is equivalent to about 24l of gasoline and it doesn't go bad, even after 20 years. Also less smelly exhaust. 33kg tanks also exist
@@nics-systems-electric you could put a 24 vac transformer on the generator to a small relay to lock out the contactors on the heaters. this would probably be the simplest way. hopefully the short time the heaters saw power from the gen. would be to short to cause a problem. as long as the small relay is not energized it would operate normally.
@@nics-systems-electric Extremely easy to implement. I've been looking for a simple implementation schematic but all the images are overly complex. If you have a facebook page, I can post a schematic for you.
When you were deciding on the generator, did you consider the Honda EU7000iS 7KW Inverter generator? That thing is whisper quiet. I understand that your generator can't power everything, so you have to prioritize what things are on that gen circuit and what are not. I'm perplexed by your choice of including the pool heater, but not your UPS. I would have thought that your surveillance system, modem, and router would be more important than your pool heater.
Pool heaters are power off the panel in the garage which is what the generator supplies and the UPS in the house and is powered completely separate from separate panel in separate building
You could buy one of those military diesel generators from an auction. They are rated at like 3kw but can handle far more than that and have larger tanks to run for more hours than I think your gas would. Also using an ecoflow power station to backup one or two freezers instantly and silently.
The important thing to consider is cost of fuel they’re going to his calculations originally, but also he is in Canada or I do not believe the government auctions of such equipment on a regular basis
@@UKsystems Yeah they're pretty rare here compared to the US. Former light towers are much more common to see, and have better ratings! Near the end of the video Nic reveals that he runs 93 grade, which I think is equivalent to 99 petrol in the UK. Diesel is waaaaaay cheaper, though near the same price as regular gasoline/petrol (E10). With stabilizer and regular exercise he'd probably be just fine! Diesel of course has a massive fuel economy advantage in small generators that, in some cases, can alone justify the extra cost of the machine.
When it comes to elevators in power outages, most of not all modern elevators have backup batteries with enough power to lower and open to the nearest floor and shut down until power is restored. On those that dont, they stop in place. The emergency phones should still work because they likely they have internal batteries.
And how old are those batteries? Didn't I see at some place when there was a power outage, only around half of the emergency lights even came on? Of course if you are in a video game elevator, if it acts weird and makes strange noises, you have only seconds before the elevator falls. Better ump out or make your way to the elevator shaft ladder. Silly video game logic.
That’s good but you rely on infrastructure to make that work which could potentially be a problem as lots of gas systems are electronically pumped so a mass outage could potentially affect it
3:54 wrong button 3:09 start Next time when this happens, put a sign on it that says “unplug the pool heater before manually starting if generator fails to start”
You need to change the generator engine oil, now that it's had a bit of a break-in period. Second, it's better to shut it down by turning off the fuel, rather than the ignition, so the carburetor doesn't gum up. It's always best to store it with the carburetor dry. The only problem with that, is that the automatic start-up system would need to be able to actuate the fuel cutoff valve. If that's impractical, it might be best to fire up the engine up for 20 minutes or so every month or so.
It won't consume much at all only when it's recharging it's batteries other than that it's just running some electronics and keeping the batteries charged which won't take much I'm not sure of the exact amount
How to silence a cyberpower ups is to hold display then u will see “sens” press display till u see b on hold display then something will blink click display till it says boff then hold display till it makes a quick beep then is home it will say silent or something with a 🔇 above it if u have a cyberpower with screen btw
When you keep testing your generator and you disconnect the fuse when are you going to put a switch on it to save electric shocks you only need one good belt and death could come or be burned.
I said when he first put the fuse in, but he can build into a larger inclosure to tidy up the wires easy for testing if needed cris crossing cables in not good practice when fault finding the timers wont overheat. This is to help you fault finding in years to come and trace the cables better, Any new projects will look better if take onboard and for others to follow his wires better when showing on videos.
i would recommend putting a pi zero w on the ups's that are not plugged into a computer, that way you can install things like ups mon and shut off the beepers permantly or have them email you/integrate with something like homeassistant
Hey buddy I looked on the day on that power outage that was the same day that my boss and my best friend died on me because apparently he had another stroke and died in his sleep and I was like completely upset that I wasn't ready to say goodbye to him or even I knew what happened when my boss died it was the same day Tuesday August 6th 2024 and I'm still upset
I think AC power on the fire panel means utility power/generator power over battery? I think I'm right about that because you said on the video. Just would like to learn more.
You really need to get that pump on a stick thing to help pump the fuel into the tank from the gas can. Would be so much easier than trying to lift the jug up over it and spilling some around it.
is this a commercial building or is this code for you to have such an extensive fire detection system with exit signs and battery system for a private home?
I have two APC Smart UPS 1000VA and 1500VA but not longer in use due overcharging issue. Both of them hold battery voltage too high and reduce battery life about 9month until selftest failed and backup in that time is under 5minutes instead 45minutes with used load. Last time overcharged battery dried so much it melt both battery together and curl up them it was hard to take it out from UPS and extremly hot can't hold it in bare hand, smell in two room was unendurable. After this incident I stop using both because fear of it can start fire. I hear it is possible change charging voltage in internals for long battery life but not particulars about it.
@@UKsystems In most cases it would actually *rise* up because of the counterweight. But in any case gravity alone isn't enough. You need power to release the brake and to overcome the worm drive.
I think you should install another one of those generators to power the house in case of an outage and have it set up to do the same thing just like the one for the garage does. Just an idea.
Would have to be massive generator and there aren't any portable ones big enough and we don't have natural gas or propane so would have to be diesel I explained this in my video about it
Hey Nick love the content of your videos just a question about your wifi setup why don’t you have that and a few other essential devices running on the generator instead of that ups ?
That is an option, but it’s very expensive and they need replacement quite often so the minute you pack it out it’s already degraded after the first use
3:57 - Agreed, I hate the constant beeping of UPS. I already know the power's out, you don't have to tell me. 🤦♂ Not to mention the (tiny) waste of electricity beeping at me every few seconds; piezo is pretty efficient so it has a negligible affect on battery life, but still... 17:23 - You're paying $2.50/liter? OUCH! (Mental Note: don't buy gas in Canada.) I prefer Shell gas, never - and I mean NEVER - had a problem running Shell gasoline, we even bought a used minivan with P0300 Random Misfire codes that completely disappeared with its first tank of Shell 87 Octane - and the problem never returned. I occasionally run a full tank of "V-Power" (93 Octane) through all the family vehicles, never had issues with clogged injectors or excessive carbon buildup. A vast portion of the "family fleet" has over 200k miles (321k kilometers) so that's living proof that the quality of gasoline you use is vital to an engine's health. As a former employee of a Shell gas station, I can only confirm the super secret technology in "V-Power" is a proprietary blend of detergents that keep carbon buildup and injector sludge at bay. Also, good on you for using Stay-Bil, that's quite important in a gasoline device that doesn't see regular use. The ethanol-blended "Al Gore lied and said it was better for the environment in order to promise government subsidies to corn farmers in Iowa to get votes for the Democrat party" mandate in the US means our gas lasts anywhere between 30-60 days TOPS before it becomes useless! 19:08 - For the record, I have a strong dislike of these plastic gas can spigots. I have half a dozen plastic gas cans, and most of them leak through the cap threads after 3-4 uses. Don't keep them out in the sun for more than a few minutes, since the newer ones don't even have vents (WHY NOT?!) and they'll bulge outward due to vapor expansion. I actually have one with a permanent bulge, and that was in a storage shed, not in direct sunlight. I hate to sound like an Old Man, but give me one of those old "unsafe" metal gas cans any day. Suggestion: you might want to rewire the pool heaters through a contactor (NO contacts, not NC), and run your incoming service through the coil contacts. If you lose service from the pole, the contactor releases, the pool heater goes offline, and you won't run the risk of overload if the domestic hot water kicks on once the generator starts... Just a thought. Obviously, come winter, you'll need that pool heater to come on to prevent freezing, but this will give you a little time to figure out an alternative solution. Another suggestion: wireless thermometers you can keep in your freezers and fridges. You'll be able to monitor the temperatures inside without opening the doors and losing that precious cold air, and you won't be running them off the generator if you don't actually need to. My neighbor does that, and he has one of those diesel tow-along combination generator/welders that can pump out three-phase all day long (and probably run his entire house), but he only uses it to power the well pump and provide as-needed power to his freezers. He and his wife are in their eighties (and still healthy as horses, bless their hearts!) and they've been my neighbors my entire life. They remember back in the 80s when our power would fail or we'd have brown-outs EVERY TIME IT RAINED ANYTHING MORE THAN A DRIZZLE. I agree with your previous points about adding a whole-house generator. Without municipal gas lines, you'd need to either buy (or lease) an external tank in addition to the initial cost of one of those Big Boy Generators. It's an expensive upgrade either way you slice it, and if your area of Canada is anything like my area of Connecticut, there's the additional hassle of pulling permits and passing inspections, and you may be forced to shell out for "Environmental Impact Studies" and other bureaucratic red tape. Portable generators like the one you're using now is the way to go, because regulations regarding them are much more lenient. I don't think I've commented on your previous video regarding the ReoLink camera setup; I was planning on getting that exact same system myself with a few extra cameras. One of the problems I'm facing is cable runs; some of the cameras I plan on installing will be nowhere near the recorder, and I need to figure out the logistical headache of running a few Ethernet cables across the yard. 😆
Thanks for the comment. The gas prices are indeed not too nice. Shell is the closest to my house and where my gas always comes from including running 93 in the generator. That was the same idea I had for the pool heaters however they both sense failed so I probably just won't use any again.
@@wibwabz I am refraining from posting many things now. there has been a lot more criticism and constantly being told what to do that I avoid topics that may influence that.
@@nics-systems-electric im sorry. it's unfortunate that some people are like that. even though this might be difficult to do / not what you want to do, i think it's best to just ignore people that are telling you what to do, and do whatever YOU want! Afterall, it is your channel, you're the boss, you make the decisions. If you want to do something some way that people don't like, there's nothing wrong with that! If some people can't appreciate all the hard work you put into every video, then they can find someone else to watch. Great job as always Nic, and keep doing what you enjoy!
The generator says 8,000W so it should be able to handle 8,000 watts so unless that building, the pool heaters, and water heater use more than 8,000 watts combined then it shouldn't cause that
If you've got a basic load of 1.2kw plus 3KW hot water tank and heat pump running if you've got 4000 W of heaters on one phase that could be overloading one leg and remember 8000 W is only for 30 minutes after that you are derated to 6500w
