SamDoe1

I don't think you'll be able to handle a brownout with a NG generator, pretty sure you'll need a battery of some sort to handle the voltage drops since the gas generator isn't a quick response machine unless it's running all the time.

svtmike

That is what I am expecting. The brownouts are more of a mild annoyance than a practical problem. Unless they are shortening the life of my motors.

SamDoe1

It will. If the voltage drops, the motor will up the current to compensate which is why they hum. Motors don't like higher current and would rather not do that.

svtmike

Just following up, I did have a 22kW Generac natural gas generator installed in the late winter. I have a single whole-house transfer switch, and added a second whole-house surge protector in a location that protects the generator as well as the house. The unit tests itself weekly and sends results to my phone.

Last week when the derecho swept through, and EF1 tornado went through along the highway about 1/4 mile south of us. Power and cable are strung along that road on poles; our power utility was out for 16 hours. The generator kept us running without a hitch.

dallison