Am I the only one who just enjoys bigclives approach to everything could watch him cook, take apart, explain, make explosions , drink stupid stuff. Just enjoy the laid back atmosphere technically sound videos. The only thing bigclive misses is a playlist but that’s just nt picking

I never thought about the back-feeding on personal generators. As a note, I remember Reddit getting angry (so surprising!) about Florida not allowing personal solar installations running after the recent hurricane. I'm pretty sure that back-feeding is the reason behind that choice, and not many people were thinking about that on reddit. Very interesting and definitely something I'll remember!

Thank you for a well presented and complete explanation of the system. I bought a switch from China but it came without installation instructions. Fortunately I found your site and the excellent explanation. Thanks again from South Africa where we have continuous power outages due to the unfortunate government policy of self enrichment rather than equipment maintenance. Yesterday (Sunday) we had 10 hours of no electricity during a 12 hour period and this has motivated me to connect the generator to the house. Power outages are a daily experience here. Thanks again

Clive - thanks for this. I recently installed one of these for my motorhome to switch between mains and inverter. I was able to get a 4-pole version for the princely sum of £22. Your opinion on this equipment was invaluable. You made what could be quite a dry discussion both entertaining and informative. Great stuff!

The fact that if the relay coil fails it would automatically switch over to the generator, but not automatically switch back again, that tells me that it's a failsafe design. It will at least switch over automatically to the generator, but it won't automatically switch back, giving the operators the ability to at least make sure that mains energy is restored before manually switching back over to mains and cutting the generators off.

Am I the only one who loves how smoothly that dial turns? I could watch that all day!

I really enjoy your stuff Big Clive! Your explanations are always clear and unambiguous, and you manage to inject just the right amount of gentle humour into every post. I salute you!

A very interesting and well presented explanation.....thanks. I have installed a manual change over system with manual interlock and have written a set of procedures to switch off load as I don't believe the Chinese breakers I bought can be relied upon to make or break load. So I change over off load. I found your explanation of back feeding the 11kv brought back loads of memories as an Operation Engineer on the Southern Board' hv networks up to 132kv Now I am talking of the 1960s/ 70s !! The standard was to test and Earth the lines at all hv levels of work before issuing a Permit To Work As indeed there had been fatalities. I recall testing at an old 33 kg sub station to find the back feed was from a neighbouring Lviv network back up through the 11 kg and finally back up to 33 kv. However later I experienced amazingly scary hv practices in Canada and the USA ...but that's another story.

Great warning. never thought of the danger from back feeding. This video should be shown to anyone who uses a generator for their home that was not installed by an electrician. Thank you. I know at least 3 people I will pass this on to.

Thank you, very well explained. Simple, plain English and a demonstration anyone can follow and understand 👍

Man Big C you da man I'm currently an apprentice auto mechanic and as a hobby I do minor electrical stuff and man I feel like I'm in a classroom when I watch your videos SO much know how you're passing on to people keep doing the vids I love watching you tear shit up and reverse engineer it.

Love your accent, but even more so your calm and measured approach, which keeps your commentary interesting all the way through.

When we had a generator (US here), we had a cord hardwired into the breaker box that would plug into the generator. In the breaker box, there was a sliding metal plate that would block the breaker for the generator if the mains power was on, and vice versa if the generator was on, so that they can't both be on at the same time.

Thank you clive. Interesting tear-down. I hope that who ever designed this one day sees your video.

Clive, I like your warning that if it wasn't approved by your jurisdictions and something went wrong you on the liability. There is a lot of things coming in from China to the US that's awfully smart if one only installs certified or listed products.

After watching this video I bought one of these and I must say it has worked extremely well. It is for my camper and switches between the solar system (inverter) and shore power. I forgot what the green terminals were for so I returned her to find out. Super glad I did. It is 3 years now and still works great. Not bad for $14. Now I see that the green terminals are just for indicator lamps. Perfect. That will go on my control panel which is remote to the switch.

Your videos are a great big manly comfort.

Phenomenal as ever Clive. Love your teaching style.

I was just asked to do a video on the transfer switch for one of my recent backup power testing videos. I couldn't have done a better job than bigclive! Big thumbs up!

this guy is awesome...a complete explanation of how these transfers switches work. this is where you learn!!!!!!! Thank you Big Clive from California

I only recently came across this video from 2017. About 20 years ago, a friend of mine who is an actual electrician, helped me (who is NOT an electrician) design a generator-based backup power system for our residence. Our residence is in a rural location and subject to frequent power interruptions during summer thunderstorms. These are typically brief (between 1 second and 1 hour). These are not really a huge concern. We use battery-bssed UPS on our computer equipment and flashlights ('torches' on your side of the pond, I believe). In winter, power interruptions are less frequent, but when these outages do happen, they can go on for days. This is because these outages are often caused by ice storms. These can do massive damage to a utility's distribution lines. Repairing these lines is much larger task than is typical with a summertime outage. When power goes out in the winter, you typically also lose your ability to heat your residence. This quickly makes your residence unlivable within just a few hours. We had been chased out of our residence several times by this. We had limited funds but wanted a way that we could ride out these situations in our own home. We knew we could not afford a backup power system that let us pretend there was no outage. We could have afforded a generator capable of supplying much more power but then we would not have been able to afford the other changes we wanted to make. We eventually settled on a 5kv Honda generator - gasoline driven. It was less than what we wanted, capacity-wise. But it allowed us to add a totally manual xfer switch, a recepticle on the back of our house,a second hand-pumped well, and a wood fireplace in our basement. These fireplace can heat our entire residence even on the coldest days. About 12 years after we completed work, we had a 13-day outage. Most of our neighbors were forced from their home. We stayed in ours the entire time. It was primitive but not terribly uncomfortable

Interesting Video. In the USA it is law with most utility companies that a mechanical interlock has to be installed on a panel which is connected to a generator. The generator is generally connected to a 40 AMP or more breaker that is in one of the top positions. When mains is turned on the interlock prevents that physical breaker switch being turned on unless the mains power is turned to the off position on the panel.

A widowmaker lead, priceless comment Clive . We call that a suicide lead in New Zealand. The risk of backfeed does exist. but Testing and Earthing is mandatory as well as using PPE. Normally a private generator

A great sports commentator is able to describe the action so well you can watch it on your radio, well you are that good, I watched the whole thing being away from the screen, by just listening to your great commentary! I’m sure the video is just as good! Awesome

When I build my own house, I’m totally putting one of these in there. Too cool.

Wow I still remember watching this the day you uploaded it can’t believe it’s been that long already time had gone so quickly

My friend in USA bought a more expensive version of this and he has a pretty good diesel generator, and it does it's job and switches with quite a bang! It's well made and works great. Power went out...BANG....generator started up and the lights and everything else came back on. :) Power came back on another loud BANG from the changeover switch and generator shut off, the sound is because of the GIANT contact points in this thing it's no joke.

As far as preferred source, like you mentioned in the entertainment industry. Most decent, new transfer switches allow for settings that monitor the primary source (utility) quality. If it has transferred to emergency/generator after a utility outage, it will monitor the utility (for over/under voltage and frequency, as well as phase imbalance) once power is available again. Then once the power quality settings are satisfied, a transfer delay timer starts. If utility falls outside of those voltage, frequency, or balance parameters within the delay timer (say 15 or 30 minutes), it will reset the timer, monitor for correct quality again, then repeat the cycle.

Nifty device! Bought a rather more sophisticated (and more expensive!) one from the UK, but it's still in its box. Far easier to switch off the incoming power, and PADLOCK the distribution Board! The keys to the padlock are on the same ring as those for the Gennie - so anyone HAS to stop the Gennie (key-start diesel) to get the keys for the padlock - pretty much a fail-safe arrangement.

That's a genius of design.

So relevant now!!! There are a bunch of these on ebay. All look like 63A! A lot of folks are gonna be running their generators this winter when the blackouts and Brownouts kick in. Welcome to 2020+2!!

This is the very first video I saw & now I am hooked, you as well as Adam Welch have got me interested in electronics & making products better that they come. I found this video because I am building a Tiny House (on wheels -24' trailer) for my wife & I and really want to automatically switch from mains (aka shore power) to back up generator & these look REALLY good with the isolated breakers switched mechanically. Keep up the great work! Your videos are very watchable & informative. ~C&L~

For our American panels, you can get what is called a generator interlock kit, where you have the breaker from the generator input (and also a proper twist-lock male power connector on the side of the house that actually plugs into the generator), as well as a piece of metal that will go on the main breaker and the generator breaker, and prevent both from being on at the same time, so you can't backfeed and can't get a shock from the exposed metal on the male power connector.

Very cool device. I have no need for it, but I want it 😜😺. Another very interesting video

bigclivedotcom , Had to pause at ~ 5 : 00 and compose a comment here - from across the pond - to say that you are another one of those high value propositions, high ROI of my time watching your videos - right up there with Techmoan, the Essential Craftsman and so many others I'd have to take more time to recollect; yet, and still there's not seemingly enough of the like and wanted to tell you your content and its presentation is top notch as I don't give a hoot about production value near as much as the message content and spirit, diligence on practice of topical scope and relevant theory infill , perspective and therein a richness and whether or not I came away a better mind for the experience. Can't say enough without droning on - thank you! I appreciate your preparation and explanation / teaching methods!

Interesting thank you, I may use this information with my solar system. Thanks for all of your videos.... also for your brother's... love the spirits!!!

I've got one of these auto transfer switches. I modified it slightly, so the green terminals on the bottom are to enable switching in either direction rather than output signals. I mounted a relay board right off the terminals and from there goes to an arduino outside of that box. this way, I can have the arduino decide when to transfer power to or from the generator with a delay. transfer doesn't happen until power is stable from utility or from the generator.

That's clever, and the use of ordinary breakers makes it quite safe :-D No microcontroller or any other junk required :-D

i do enjoy your videos. your explanations are understandable and you cover a very wide range of topics. thank you for your good work

Thanks Clive for yet again another superb tear down 👍

That's one thing I want to buy. Not because I could use it but because the mechanism is awesome. The problem is 28 bucks are not in the price range of "Ill buy it just because" things.

Great video. Something that would be interesting to take a look at would be those 3000w 230v solar power inverters. Can they really deliver 3000w without noise etc?

After watching this i can now design one of my own. Really helpful stuff on the channel

Hi Clive, recently subscribed. I enjoy watching your videos and the detail you go in to helping us understand the devices you are inspecting.

Wow, in the US and have had a generator for years and not once have I thought of back feeding the entire house through the 220v dryer connection. Scary. And no, not gonna try it, no way. I'll let you do that one so we don't have to...

Thank you i have installed like over 40 but i never get intention to open it to see the mechanism inside the item. Watching from Kenya

So glad I found this video, I was looking at buying one of these to have my fridge switch back to mains when my inverter drains the solar batteries

thanks! bought on on ebay for my food truck power, you helped me seeing how it works!

When I was growing up my dad backfed the house. He had a padlock on the breaker panel and during generator operation he kept the key on his person at all times. Not completely foolproof but pretty idiot proof.

The only thing I don't like about this unit is the "break before make" is very slow, it would be nice if it switched over quick enough for the devices connected to it would not lose power. However you could solve this problem by using a UPS (battery backup) in between the ATS and the connected devices.

Wanted to say that I watch every video you make.... but the ones that include "(with schematic)" get top billing in that evenings selections.

Happy to see that I‘m not the only old man still having the 12y old „let’s ripp it apart“ mentally. At least from time to time. But at least for cars I‘m saved by a company car. 😎

You should keep the camera on any time you sit down so we can see you getting zapped

You must have come across JIS screwdrivers, Clive? Japan Industrial Standard. Much better fit for far eastern screws also work well on Philips screws. No climb out. You can get Vessel brand JIS drivers of all sizes on Spamazon. Not cheap, but a real investment.

Not quite what you are showing here, but it brings me back to my apprenticeship and having to manually synchronize three-phase generators with the main incoming 415 volts supply. We, as in a VERY large factory and very large generators, would sometimes back feed AC back into the grid as a load test of our standby generators, this was all done with the electricity supplier's agreement and I think the company got paid for the electricity it supplied back into the grid. While we were being educated on how the principle worked by sinking a small three-phase generator to the main AC supply, I remember one prat of an apprentice deliberately switching over when the generator/mains were not synced and boy was there a loud bang and the generator/mains fuses were blown, I don't remember what happened to the generator, but nothing good that's for sure. With the very large generators, I can't remember how it was done now, it was 45 years ago, but the system we were being shown and educated with was using was very crude, but worked. There were three incandescent lamps, and all three lamps had to be of equal brightness before you threw the switch to sync the little generator to the mains. I'm sure the very large generators were not synced by using incandescent light bulbs, but for the life of me, I can't remember how that was actually done now, old age catching up. Regards, K Watt and yes that is my name and yes I was an electrical engineer

Wow. This is great. I bought a similar switch last week. Glad we got it wired correctly. Ours didn't have the white indicator arrow though. I'll make one so it is clear :) :)

In the US backfeeding into your home without disconnecting it from the mains will result in huge fines and possibly jail time depending on if you get caught. Though getting caught will be pretty easy with the new smart meters that consumers has installed. They monitor for blackouts and record if and how much power is backfed into the system from your house in real time via two way link. There is some leniency in the system for a noisy computer or sump pump backup or things of that nature where you might get a couple watts of energy, bot something large and they are going to send a hefty fine your way. We are in a trial area for the smart meters, they also have the added feature of daily usage reports through the online portal.

I’ve always heard of the double male cords called “suicide cords”

If there is a code on those breakers, then it will be on their bases. Thanks Clive. Very simple and interesting.

very interesting video - possibly looking to run generator backup in UK in future and your video is so helpful

"This is neat so far, I am liking this inside"

You raise the issue of backfeeding the incoming supply from a generator during a powercut. Of course, sometimes this is desired - eg solar panels or other local generation - so are there systems which will prevent these from feeding in when the mains power fails? But of course it would be neat to continue to be able to access any power they are generating despite the mains supply having been dropped.

Subbed, only because you go in depth with explaining, right down to the core of everything. See you around!

3:50 I'm slowly shaking my head. Why am I surprised though? People are amazing when it comes to "innovative solutions".

You might as well pull one of those "circuit breakers" to bits now you've already bust the circuit board for the relay .....

I'd be worried about that relay being mounted hard against the PCB. Depends on the construction of the relay, but that's almost certainly a bad idea. With the relay mounted hard against the board, even if it's a single-sided board, as the joint cools the relay pins will contract slightly as they cool. This puts strain on those leads which, in that style of relay, means it can cause slight contact misalignment and/or loosening of the entire structure. It also means (going by how you drew it) that pads on the relay base are in contact with the PCB leading to moisture traps (which encourage corrosion and fungal growth). Don't mount components hard against a PCB if you want the design to be reliable. As an aside, wicking of the solder up the through-plated hole is not only normal, it's *desirable* in high-vibration environments because it stops both pushes and pulls on the component leads peeling the track away from the substrate. In aerospace applications you may find PCBs with all the tracking on one side but still using double-sided board with TPHs just for vibration resistance. BTW, I find a good solder sucker is better than braid for removing components on double-sided or multi-layer PCBs. It sucks the solder through the hole, removing it from both sides of the PCB.

I am looking for something alike, to install in my flat to power 3kW storage heater using night tarrif as main, and normal (day) power as backup. In my mind backup will always be on, but "night/main" power will be switched. Great videos Clive, like watching and picking up knowledge.

This transfer switch Works great in my RV. Thank you for the recommendation.

I wish that you had pulled the breakers apart to see whether or not they were indeed MCB's or not. I shouted at my screen, but I don't think you heard me. :(

where is the other video gone? I just watched it half way through...

touching the leads while both the plugs are unplugged.... You're a daredevil! even though I'm quite confident in my knowledge of "low" voltage circuits and electronics in general... I'm always assuming that I'm delirious and that I might have forgotten to unplug it.

Yesterday I was looking for a schematic of these and today you put up a video about them... Coincidence?!?!

Good work Clive... Could a guy use a double pole double throw switch ? By connecting the two ( P ) terminals to the INPUT side the the breaker box, and then connecting the two ( T 1 ) terminals to the main feed coming from the pole transformer, and then connecting the two ( T 2 ) terminals to the generator. That way the house can only be feed by either the mains or the generator,,, but not both... I was going to do this to feed my furnace. I have a 3kw inverter, and a very large motor home battery. But , alas, , once I figured out that it could be done,,, why do it... Keep up the good work. ..

If you use the wrong plug, You turn into fanny flambo. LOL

Absolutely Beautiful & Detailed Explanation!!! Just Great Work!!!! 👏👏👏👏👏👏 👍👍👍👍👍👍

In the US, if you've got the right kind of breaker panel, you can get a mechanical interlock which mounts over two breakers. One breaker is the main utility and the other is for the generator. It prevents both from being on at the same time and thus prevents backfeeding. Very inexpensive compared to proper transfer switches which are quite expensive. I can't use one, so I just use 12ga extension cords for fridge, microwave, lights and electronics. except for my gas hot air furnace which has a small transfer switch.

got a vid notification went to watch it and its not there ? im confused what happend?

We just lost power in my house, and we had to manually run an extension cord from our generator to a power strip in the kitchen which we plugged the refrigerator to, and then we ran an extension cord from there to the freezer across the room, and we had to move the microwave to plug that in, and had to get a standing lamp for light, and everyone had to be in the room to charge their laptops and phones, and it was aweful, so sad. We need to get one of these, but unfortunately I don't think our insurance will like it if we got it from eBay.

Hope you enjoyed the 2nd G&T Clive. enjoyed the breakdown thanks.

My grandparents backfed (probably still do) their house through the 220v dryer plug here in the US. I was taught once when there was a power outage to disconnect the main breaker to keep the generator from blowing up.

speaking of breaker failing dramatically kzfaq.info/get/bejne/nbWFhqd1sbGtc58.htmlm30s

What did u do to ur thumb? It keeps distracting me 😂

I used to manage the IT operations of a small company that hosted everything onsite for compliance reasons. Our automatic generator cutover switch was poorly installed and almost never worked, probably the worst event coming when it couldn't make up its mind if the mains power was back up or not, leading to a situation where it just flapped between mains and generator until I manually killed the generator. Finally, after three visits from our "qualified" electricians, culminating in a full day-long shutdown of the facility the issue was resolved. These were the same electricians who wired 220 to an unmarked NEMA5 outlet, leading to my AC guys plugging a 110v appliance in to it and throwing a breaker.

Would love to see you do some hydroponic equipment. Im sure hobbyists using that kinda stuff could learn alot from a break down like this.

What happened to the other vid :(

Chinese characters and safety equipment. Those don't go together. I wouldn't install that in my house.

Thank you so much for the precise to-point informative orientation. Can you also do the practical video clip of the wiring process from the panel control to the generator auto battery connection for ATS

I installed my own wiring and generator inlet and ran it to the electric panel with an interlock kit, you just have a metal plate that physically blocks you from powering the panel with the generator until you switch off the main. Simple and cheap like $45 or so and practically accident proof from back feeding. The down side is that the generator will not power on by itself when the power is out but for me it is a rare event to lose power, a bad snow storm in 2018 and 2019 left us without power for 1-2 weeks and always ready in case of an earthquake.

Hi Clive, yeah we across the pond call it a 'suicide cord'. I do this Clive, BUT before I even go to the shed where the gen is, I go to the pole and beneath the meter is a double breaker. I shut it off and put a lock on the box. I also shut off MAINS in panel in house. This way there is NO way to backfeed to the grid. ALSO some utility companies might decide to to NOT give service to that house if they find a gen improperly hooked up, backfeeding into the grid.

Very very helpful video. I could understand the logical use when you dismantled it. Awesome! Only my question is the average wire AWG connections for the input/output. I need #8 awg

Searched KZfaq for your video on this transfer switch. (bought one on Amazon from china, curious to how its engineered) sure enough here it is. Thanks for saving me the trouble of having to send you one for a video 🤣

Impressive job for 2 hours of work!

Indeed, nice design, kudos to the reverse engineer on duty :D

I'm with you on the always-powered relay; not something I like to see in practice, when some logic (µC or other) can accomplish the same thing, using a lot less power.

Thanks for this great Video, now i understand the funktion of this easy mainswirch! Danke für dieses großartige Video, nun habe ich die Funktion dieses einfachen Umschalters verstanden!

Entertaining, informative and even a bit charming.... not a term usually applied to men who have favorite soldering irons :)

Exelent job 👍from Argentina

An interesting video. I suspect in the future many of us will be generating our own power from solar cells. So we'll need something to switch from mains to home generated power.

I've trained as a Canadian Electrician so I'm not familiar with the USA's NEC. In Canada, ALL Residential Generators MUST be connected to the Circuit Panel (Breaker Box) with an Interlocked switch that physically disconnects the City feed when the Generator feed is active. This prevents the Generator from back-feeding into the City Grid and thus keeps it from Electrocuting any Hydro Linesmen (the Electricians Licensed and Trained to work on the multi Kilowatt Power Lines). I believe the NEC has a similar Regulation.

Astounding video Clive..