subject: Information You Need About Transfer Switches [print this page] Having a generator has become very common today, not only for businesses but also for home customers. With adverse weather events such as early winter storms and hurricanes causing extended power outages in many parts of the country, more people than ever have installed permanent whole house generators on their homes. Not only that, but the increased reliance on electronics, from electric ignitions for fireplaces and cooktops to Internet telephones and cell phones, have all made it more important than ever before to have backup power.
If you have a whole house generator or other permanent hired-wired generator attached to your home or business, it is important to understand that your generator is not just going to seamlessly work. You may need to manually switch to your generator, or you may have an automatic switch that will allow your home to be powered by the generator in the event that power from your utility company is lost. No matter what solution you choose, however, you will need a transfer switch with your generator.
Key Information About Transfer Switches
A generator transfer switch serves a very important purpose. It prevents electricity from flowing backward, out of your home and into the line that power is supposed to come in on. When your utility company has a line coming into your home to provide power, electricity is only supposed to flow one way on that line. It is supposed to come into your home only. When your generator is producing electricity, however, the electricity from the generator could potentially feed backwards and do serious damage.
A generator transfer switch stops this from occurring. The generator transfer switch has three positions. The switch allows you to opt to have power coming from your generator or power coming from your utility company. In order to switch back and forth between the power sources, the generator transfer switch also has an off option. You will need to switch to off before switching from generator to utility company do that no power flows backwards when it shouldnt.
Understanding what transfer switches do is key to understand why these switches are so important. You should also be aware of one other key piece of information about generator transfer switches: they typically must be installed by a licensed electrician. In many cases, local building codes or national building codes will require this in order to ensure that the generator transfer switch is installed properly and provides the protection that it should provide.
If you have a generator on your home, you may have a choice between an automatic or a manual transfer switch. An automatic switch can be a top choice if you do not want to worry about manually switching the source of your power. This can be important if you are worried about the power going out when you are away from home and unable to manually make the switch. It can also be important when you absolutely cannot lose power for a long time, such as in situation where electricity is needed to power medical devices.
Regardless of whether you have an automatic or manual transfer switch, however, you need to understand the importance of a generator switch and make sure you have one properly installed on your home in order to make the operation of your generator safe.
