Generator indicator light/buzzer

[Lilgecko]

I found this forum while looking for an indicator light/buzzer for my 14kw back-up generator. Power goes out quite often on the little island, Great Giana Cay, Abaco, Bahamas. My last guest had the generator running when they went to bed and power came back on sometime in the night. Bottomline, fuel is really high there and to fill a 100lb tank is time consuming(freight boat it to big island) and $150 to fill plus freight.
I need an indicator light/buzzer(bell) that can be wired into toe Bahamas Electric side of the throw switch and come on when power is returned.
Any suggestions ?

Problem #2 is brown outs. I lost some good electrical/mechanical stuff. How to protect against.

Few, that's a lot to ask all at once.

 

[Gary S]

You can put neon indicators across the incoming lines so you know when power is present, but to do it safely, you will need to have the power company pull the meter while you do it.

 

[nehog]

There are now units that you can install for this (so no need to 'roll your own'.) I believe the latest Northern Tool catalog lists one such device--they do require batteries but that is a small price to pay to save fuel.

Of course, an automatic transfer switch would be great too. One that can shut down the generator would be ideal.

 

[theoldwizard1]

The solution to both is an Uninterpretable Power Supply. It is very expensive, but if solve both problems without human intervention.

Check this out : Outback Commercial Back-up Power System with Inverter and Batteries

OutBack’s inverter/chargers provide clean reliable back-up power almost instantaneously in the event of a power outage. Our system is designed to work with larger battery banks providing much longer back-up times than typical uninterruptible power supplies (UPS). Our inverter charger is also designed to work in conjunction with a generator for longer run times

 

[Gokart]

1. The proper way to accomplish this is to install an automatic transfer switch, with an aux contact that would send a signal to the generator to start/stop if equipped. Or this contact could be tied into a bell.

2. In order to protect your home from surges, I would suggest a whole home circuit protector, similar to the Schneider Electric HEPD80RK

 

[charged355]

Automatic transfer switch with a UPS would be the best. I agree.

 

[Gokart]

A UPS is overkill in this situation if you are simply looking to suppress transient surges.

 

[lametec]

He's wanting something to deal with brownouts, not surges. If the brownouts don't last too long, a UPS with power conditioning is just the ticket. For longer lasting ones, fire up the genset.

 

[nehog]

That 'power restored' alarm is:

www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200485259_200485259

which seems like a good product.