The interlock is not to stop you from getting power from 2 sources. It protects the linemen from getting electrocuted from your generator when your power is out and you are running your generator

I built the same setup 4 years ago. Work great without any issues. I then installed the soft start on my home AC 3 weeks ago. After hurricane Beryl My Westinghouse 12500 watt generator ran great for a day and a half. After that it overheated because the extra load (8000 watt balanced over 240v) was generating so much heat that the fan I had could not exhaust the heat fast enough. Lesson learned I have to buy a new generator and set it up outside the storage unit when in use to have proper ventilation. Also only use generator to run the whole house AC for a short period of time. Generators are not designed to kick on and off a whole house AC with a slow start every 20 minutes when it reaches temp inside the house. Too much of a load. Going with an inverter generator and using a midsize window unit for the next storm. I regularly changed the oil with 10w-30 Royal Purple. Compression lobe locked, the surging started, bearings failed, now a dead Westinghouse generator with no power output. Be careful with the loads you put is all i am saying. Make sure you have proper ventilation. I was not using the zombie box but had 2 fans to keep the generator cool and that was not enough in 100+ degree weather in Houston.

I did the same to my house in California. I hired an electrician to install the generator transfer switch. However, my electrical panel couldn’t accommodate one. So they installed a sub panel and moved all my circuit breakers and the transfer switch in there. I have the same ZombieBox enclosure for a Champion 11,500 watt gasoline only generator. I also put a micro air soft start on my 3 ton AC unit. Everything runs fine off the generator and my immediate neighbors can’t hear my generator from inside their homes. The only issue is the APC battery backups I had on my PCs wouldn’t charge from the generator. It’s not an inverter generator and the battery backups couldn’t tolerate the THD (Total harmonic distortion). No big deal, the computers ran fine without them. After watching your video, I may consult a plumber to run a Natural Gas line to my generator and install the kit from Champion. That seems like a smart idea.

Well, nice setup and good explanation of everything. As we all know there are numerous ways to provide backup power. I did a similar setup but used a Reliance Transfer Switch box. Since I did all my labor my expenditures were under $2000. The Reliance system is much easier for my wife to do if I am away. I also did the same for my daughter's house.

Spot on! Did basically the same thing. Added a propane outdoor hot water shower. Keeps the high draw tankless water heater off the generator. Works great. You can also do things like turn your ac off to run your dryer for 30-40 mins. Ease the gen load. Looks like you have it handled!

I've ran my house with portable Generac 17500kw with 26k surge once, with selective caution, on a single 50A output. The generator is a POS, don't buy one. But it started my 5T A/C without issue or soft start as the surge is very high. A word of caution if you are generator shopping, know if what you are looking at is continuous watts or surge watts. Both numbers matter but some manufacturers put surge as the top number in their rating, others (like this particular generac model) list continuous as the main number. It matters. You have a misunderstanding of the amp draw for your 5T a/c and what your generator is capable of. Neither fan in the A/C system are 30A draw as you mentioned. They draw a few amps each once running. It's only the compressor that is high draw. If you have an LRA of 90 you have a fairly efficient unit as many 5T still in use are higher, just a note to others. It was good to see you made some clarifications in your write up under the video for others to understand what you meant. I was in Beryl too and out of power for 6 days. I now use a 5500w (surge) Champion propane inverter generator running on a 250g tank to power two emergency inverter window A/C's that actually cycle when set to 74 degrees. They keep 1500sf downstairs - with 19ft ceiling in half of that - quite comfy, plus it powers two inverter refrigerators and a deep freezer. This inverter generator rarely goes over 50% output. I appear to use about 8 gallons of propane a day. I also have strips of radiant barrier I cut and tape over the SW facing windows and one glass door. That makes a huge difference. This year has been crazy with power outages. Best of luck. To anyone reading this: You cannot replace a 200A service with 50A and have "business as normal". You can selectively decide what you want to run and still leave all breakers on, unless you are all electric. Think about your common 120v small stuff. Microwave 8-10A, coffee pot 8-10A, hair dryer 10-12A, small space heaters 12A each ...... Etc. (divide amps by two for apples to apples since these are 120v and you are using 240v@50A capacity) Two hairdryers going while you make morning coffee and run a couple space heaters, now click the microwave to heat your breakfast and use a toaster at the same time. You are consuming 60-80% of that circuit. Trick is for a family to communicate and understand you can use all the lights and fans you want, but need to be selective using high draw small appliances at the same time, especially if the central A/C is running. If you are all electric at your house, only turn on ONE 240v breaker at a time. (licensed electrician)

2 weeks ago, we here in northern Ohio had 5 confirmed tornados, one of which was only 2 miles away. Which caused 400,000 people here, including my house to lose power for 3 hours short of 5 days. I have 2 Honda inverter generators so we had almost everything except the central air. But my gas meter is at the front of the house and my utility meter is on the back of the house, so I'd probably have to spend some serious money plumbing in a gas line to the back yard. But this was an excellent video! Food for thought!

Excellent system breakdown! I'm going to look into that AC soft start kit for my AC units. Much appreciated!

Your selection of generator setup has so, so many variables and I appreciate the quality setups folks like yourself have put in effort to share. Everything from budget to your equipment requirements to availability of resources, locations, and size constraints, there is NO one size fits all. Educating yourself is the key to a successful and SAFE selection. Thanks for sharing!!

I serviced and installed standby gen sets for near 25 years and the one thing nobody talks about is the cost to operate. Yeah, we all toss numbers around about how many gallons per day it might be, but breaking it down to cost of producing Kws, will make your head spin. If you think 25 cents is high from your utility, any smaller set will be 4-6 times more. That's right.... over a buck per Kw to make your own. Oh, and that's not figuring the up-front costs of the installation. We're basically talking about fuel here.

I already have a Honda EB6500, generator inlet on the back porch and multiple 5 gallons gasoline cans. I upgraded to a Kohler 38KW whole house unit powered with natural gas. No problems running everything at the same time in 100+ degree weather. Peace of mind.

Very informative!! ❤Loved the whole presentation! Went through the storm as well but didn't have a Generator. We have one NOW! Thanks again.

I have the Champion tri fuel 9000w inverter generator. On propane it can start my 3 y/o American Standard 5 ton AC but on NG it can’t. It will start and run my 3.5 to. aC w/o a soft start. Need to install the soft start kit on my 5 ton. My neighbor had a different 4 ton AC but couldn’t start his AC with my generator. All and all, I Love it! Did the electrical myself as I’m an electrical engineer but hired a plumber to install a NG quick connect on my gas meter. Spent $2500 for everything including a 50 ft 3/4 gas line and thick 50 ft, 50 amp extension cord. Oh the plumber said it would cost $8500 to run gas underground 85 feet to where my breaker box is so I run a long gas line and extension cord which cost about $500 for those two items instead of

Love this setup. You did it right! I have had a similar setup (without the awesome quick connect NG connection) for many years and it worked great. A 5500-watt portable with an NG conversion ran my entire house, except for central air, but I have a portable AC in the bedroom to sleep at night. Saved me many times. (I live in Houston too) The only issue, although minor, is the power normally goes out when the weather is really nasty or in the middle of the night. I don't want to be out in the blowing rain or at 2 am trying to hook all of this up. In addition to the purchase price of a Generac (10k - 14k range), the natural gas cost is about $100 per day (24 hours). The fuel cost for a portable generator runs about $25 - $40 per day (24 hours). Whichever way you go, or even if you don't have a generator the Micro-Air EasyStart is a compressor saver. Thanks for the show-n-tell, nice work.

Speaking as an electrical engineer, its critical to keep the generator cool (within operating temp specs) especially when heavily loaded and if outside temp is 95+F. Keep it out of direct sunlight. Shade it under an open air tent that is at least 6ft above the generator to shade it from direct sunlight and use box fans to keep air flowing through the generator engine and electric generator motor. Once you have generator temp under control, it can cycle your AC as often as you like. 20 min duty cycle is no big deal. The active cooling box (zombie) is a perfect cooling system for the generator. It does all the above in one box. Since generator engines are air cooled, the engine will always die first on a poorly air circulated, loaded generator.

Well done. I am currently waiting on the insurance adjuster so I can start making repairs after that hurricane. Studying up on generators which brought me here.

Many thanks amigo, good stuff! Live in Harris County as well and am in the market for a generator enclosure. Heard what I needed to hear about zombie box and got some bonus learning material regarding the soft start. I appreciate you sharing this.

I have the same setup, Zombie box, MicroAir and generator! However, after doing additional research on generators, the Duromax open frame generators produce very dirty power! The Total Harmonic Distortion is 12 to 20% depending on load. That will damage sensitive electronics, such as, Computers, TV's, Furnace electronics, and any computerized modern appliances. I am selling the Duromax and going with the Westinghouse WGEN 115000 TFC. It produces more power at less than 5% Total Harmonic Distortion. This is considered clean power and safe for electronics. You might want to check it out, it would be a better choice! Great video by the way!!!

the fan motor pulls around 3 amps, same with blower motor inside, which is around 3 to 4 amps max. the compressor is the only main part that pulls high amps

thanks for this video....nice setup and shoutout to the electrical company. appreciate it as i begin my houston area generator journey

I think microair would disagree with your explanation! 'EasyStart is designed to connect directly to the compressor motor and reduce the power surge that occurs on start. It does this by controlling the power supplied to the windings of the motor on each AC cycle. EasyStart gradually increases this power until the compressor is running. This increases the time it takes the motor to get up to speed and creates a very smooth start that reduces the peak current by 50 to 70%.'

Thank you sir for your very detailed video. I was thinking of a whole home Generac that i was quoted $15k but with this setup is much more economical.

Where I live we go for a 4 days sometimes even 2 weeks once without elect . What becomes crucial is Fuel and 30 weight Moter oil - I suggest you get a small generator that will run your refrigerator only. Think about it when you have no fuel for an hour ride away - and everybody and I mean everybody is scrounging for gas. It happened to us a couple of times.

Thank you for your time and video. Very informative content. 👍🏽🇺🇸

I have a 6500W genny. Got the disconnect and shoreline to the breaker box. I live by myself. So I had a port-a-cool AC for one room. So I live during a power outage in my ham room. Can run cooler, Ice Box, 100w and 50 watt ham radios, charge laptop, some lights and fans. Enough at least to be able to sleep at night. I got my genny on the $80 garden cart from HFT. As one living in H-Town, flooding is an issue. The cart gets the frame 16-18 inches off the ground. Also improves air flow. Having a neighbor build for me a shed which will protect unit from rain, sun, and heat.

I solved my electric back up with a 12K diesel generator / 70 gal fuel tank for about $12k. It a fully enclosed unit that I run from inside my garage. I also have 4KW solar and a 6KW inverter with 15KW battery storage. I use the solar / battery for quiet operation and use the diesel for whole house 240v when needed.

I have a similar setup as well for 2,000 ft² house and 3 ton unit I was averaging around 10,000 running Watts off peak and around 12 to 13,000 on, and decided for a 15,000 max peak tri fuel generator with 10,000 running on the natural gas which will definitely power everything in our house. The inlet cost 500 bucks, the generator was about $2,500 and the plumber is around 3 to 500, depending upon the type of work the plumber has to do. it's a much more efficient way to power your home in an outage for a fraction of the cost

Cool set up, but just a fyi they do make lp/ng combo generacs they don't only run on ng. Also you can buy a generac 22kw lp/ng guardian with a 200amp automatic transfer switch for $6k from Sam's club it I don't see why it shouldn't cost a whole lot more for an electrician and plumber to install it prob could do the whole thing installed for $10k or less not no $20k as you claim. And just so you know all generators require routine/annual maintenance not just generacs.

Great tutorial! Especially for those not otherwise in the know about electricity & generators. Nice set up with the natural gas. I did the same thing with a roll out generator like yours. Instead of the Gen Max I went with the Uber premium Honda EU 7000is. Not the newest one but the earlier model with out the CO minder & the blue tooth. I wanted an inverter to power up my home instead of a regular genny. The inverter delivers clean 60 cycle power just like the power company. Yours may not? I can run sensitive electronics on mine without any issue. Also it sips fuel in economy mode. Mine will run half load on 5 gallons of gas for 18 hours. I have an interlock for my CB panel just like you. However I had a custom fabricated enclosure made for mine that is vented on 2 full sides. It’s made of 306 stainless steel. My genny is set up inside my enclosure like yours. I have the inlet inside the enclosure. My enclosure is on a poured in place concrete pad that is attached by screws to the concrete. I have a ground Rod for my cabinet as well to safe guard anyone touching it. I have the trickle charger hard wired to the battery. I bought the same soft start kit. My genny is ready to go with 3 switches & 1 push button. It is set up for my wife to use. She is not electrically savvy but knows a lot more than me. She has written instructions as well as refresher classes on restoring power to the house in an emergency when I’m not home. I store over a hundred gallons of pre-treated gas at my house. That’s enough fuel to last three weeks. Enough time for services to be restored. I have it stored on a metal rack that is grounded to another ground rod. Like you we did our homework. Hopefully with your audience well educate the KZfaq crowd? I look forward to more videos! I’m a utility lineman for a living. When the power is out at my house I never get any calls on my phone as I’m busy getting everyone else’s lights on. I consider a generator at home a safety item. It’s an insurance policy incase the worse case happens. Our genny is super quiet & my neighbors all think I must have a “special line” at my house because they all know I work for the local power company. Generators are going to become a necessity with global warming & more violent storms. I see it on my end at work.

good vid. I am about 45 ish mins north east of H and have a 9k predator harbor freight deal but im off grid on solar. we dont really have CNG gas out here and SJC sux for power outages so if you wanted to do something like that itd be gasoline or LP only. yall city slickers got all the good stuff, LOL thx for the vid, hope it helps some people out.

Went through the storm as well. First time with a generator. Looking to run on natural gas like your setup with the soft start. Had not seen the zombie box. That is cool. Nice setup. 😊

One thing missing from your setup is a power back restoration alarm. I got one and it’s nice to get a alert when the powers on and I can shut the generator off.

Ok brother well done, but your 5 ton unit does not use 90 amps! Blower fan about 5 amps, condenser fan less than 5 amps. Compressor fan may spike to 80 than drops down to less than 10 to 14 Amps if it is a scroll compressor. The condenser and blower fans start up current is typical 10 time running current and those induction loads are not nearly as intensive as the compressor. So that point should be clarified for those viewers not familiar with the tech spec side of AC or electrical for that matter. The zombie box portion did not touch upon air flow. It would help if you had detailed the box on air flow. Was it a passive vent system, did you add a fan and so one. Glad you survived the storm as well my friend. I hope you ponder all the comments and maybe do a part two with the details clarified. After Beryl many will be looking to prep for the next.

I have a Generac 24kW whole house setup and it runs on both NG and propane. In fact the electricians did some startup testing with a propane tank before the plumber ran and hooked up the gas. But I’ll agree that having a 3rd fuel option isn’t a bad thing. But during a storm event where you might need to go get gas or propane refill, good luck! My generator ran 8.5 days after beryl without a hiccup. But that is a nice setup, and certainly less than the $14k I spent on the Generac whole house that I had installed a few months ago. I initially thought about going with a more DIY setup but then realized my wife would never want to do that on her own and having the piece of mind that the house is taken care of even if I’m away was worth it. Especially with little kids at home.

We even use soft start kits for Tesla batteries for Solar. Now they have a built in cranking power output for AC to start. I think everyone in FL and TX should be watching this. Never saw so many wealthy people without power and looking like a hot mess when hurricane Irma came. They had nice car that was over 50k but never even had a 1,200 decent generator. Everyone should get an inner lock kit generator that doesn’t cost a lot. People willing to pay anything when power is out but not pay to prevent something. Prevent is key

When you said you were out of power for 3 days, I was wondering if you were impact by Beryl. And then you confirmed my suspicion. Nice setup! I had a generator, but I ended up having to use extension cords. Not to mention the generator was woefully underpowered. I have a new generator on-order. Had been thinking about getting a Zombiebox. Seeing that setup... now I'm really leaning more towards getting one. Thanks for the video!

Great video. I have a very similar set up after the power outage in May. No power for 6 days.

Nice video! Just a thing on the soft start, I talked with some electricians and AC guys who actually suggest not using the soft start, but the hard start instead as the soft start over time will cause unit issues. I just wanted to let you know as I was just about to buy the soft start and my AC guy said no, let's do the hard start. Hope that helps. Love the box!

Hurricane Beryl had us without power for 9 days. 5 of those days with no generator. It was hell to say the least. This video is perfect for someone new to generators like myself. It’s easy to get overwhelmed in this type of purchase. This video made it simple and easy for us to jot down what we need, and you gave accurate estimates so we don’t get messed around. Thank you good sir and God Bless

I was just thinking about doing something similar to this and thought I’m sure someone else has done this and came to KZfaq and you was the first video I seen thank you

I have been in the HVAC business for nearly forty years and I have never seen natural gas run with galvanized pipe, but maybe it's a local code thing. Other than that pretty good video

I'm a HVAC contractor, it does not take 90 amps to start your AC in cool mode. Maybe 30 amp

It also extends the life of the compressor. Less wear and tear on your whole system.

Before i looked at the description, just based on the look of your house, the street and the weather, I was thinking: *I wonder if this guy is in Houston* and you are. I'm in NW Houston near Cypress and my set-up is virtually identical to yours but I have a pergola in my backyard so I don't have a generator shed. I'm using a Westinghouse 14,500 peak wat tri-fuel generator and I also got a plumber to install a natural gas quick disconnect T-line and an electrician to install the same soft start kit. I ran my generator for almost 2 days straight (had to get gasoline once) and then we got power back. It performed flawlessly. Additional thought: I wholly agree on your sentiment and your strategy against the Generac and Kohler stationary whole-home generators- they are RIDICULOUSLY over-priced and yes, if the natural gas network stops working then you have a $20,000 pile of junk. I saw a comment on KZfaq where a guy bought a Generac and had it installed around 2017 and it only cost him $8,000 and now the same unit is, as mentioned, close to $20,000.

hi Runa, could I please request that you record a video of the generator turned on, while inside the zombiebox? I wanted to see how loud this particular generator was inside of the zombiebox, and I cannot find anyone else on youtube that has the duramax 13000 inside of a zombiebox. thank you!

I’m running everything off of a diesel generator. When all the stations run out they still have diesel. Plus it burns very little fuel. I find it hard to believe that little pup will run a 5 ton AC even with a soft start. It puts out less than 8000 on natural gas.

Great information & great setup, exactly what I’m looking for… thanks!

Great video I got a generator about the same size as that and the generator hook up and the breaker and all that for hurricanes here in Florida, it works good I’m itching to get a good hurricane so I can actually use it😆

This is a cheaper gen set up. But in regards NG, everything is relative. Interruption of NG is extremely unlikely, but to purchase gas or propane when no one has power generates it's own problems.

Thanks for the detailed walk through. This was a great video.

Very well spoken and informative. You must be close I have same trash company

Your outdoor condenser fan and furnace blower don't use very much power at all, like a couple amps or so each. You must just be looking at the circuit breaker size that serves them.

Nice set up. I’d have a blower fan set up that turns on when your generator turns on to get good airflow

I have been advising people for a decade to buy at minimum a 4k generator, dual fuel, to keep the fridge freezer fans and charge phones, run a heather. So many people scoff at me. yet they drop 1500 on a phone, 5k on vacations, and yet, just cannot find the money to buy a $500 generator. Buy one now. What are you waiting on? I have a 4k and then moved up to the 13k. Dual fuel version, and snagged it with warranty on Amazon for under 1k. Price goes up, and down. But really, what are you waiting on? I live in FL by the way.

About the 3 items... the compressor alone is the huge draw. A condenser fan draws an amp running as does a typical blower motor (ECM is 1-3 amps). They are not the main concern. Yes, they have a start-up surge too but we are talking very small amounts. The compressor is the big draw. 75-125 amps of surge while steady state may 17-30 amps depending on the size. So strictly speaking sequentially starting those 3 items you mentioned does not solve the current draw using a generator. You have to do much more on the startup of the compressor which is what the microair does getting that inrush from the compressor at 120 amps range down to a reasonable 25-40 amp inrush. Not sure why you ran that pipe all the way to that area and then used a hose. Your hose could have just gone to the ball valve area just as easily and not have all that pipe installed. Looks to be the same distance essentially. Also that gen has a lot of power but I would not characterize it as running like you were on the grid. You should mark your circuits so you know which ones it can power because i am pretty sure it would have issues running a 240 V oven (3,000-5000 watts alone), electric cook top (2000-3000 per burner) and 5 ton AC (6,000 running watts) amongst all the other circuits available. Guessing you have mostly gas applicances which helps a lot. Just realize there is a limit. Nice set up you have. Great job on the package

Thanks for sharing. Id suggest to have all openings (like gas inlet, hose) covered/plugged with something. If a mud wasp finds its way in it will make a mess thats a pain to clean.

Just putting this out there.....any "plumber, gas fitter" worth his/her salt would NOT use galvanized pipe to run a feed for your generator.

You need to replace the foam on the freon line

Nice setup.

Heres some great advice. And I tell you this because I have dealt with so many homes being affected by surge\lightning and utility surging the home. If you look up installation for square d hepd50/80 it will tell you to esnure your surge breaker is closest to your Main breaker and that the wires are twisted as they go to the breaker for best perfomance. Also helps from surge going through all your arc fault breakers before getting to the surge breaker. Im a houston electrician and my specialty is dealing with homes that get affected by surge

I was in Beryl without power for 8 or 9 days, I don't rememeber But 4 of those days we ran my van with a 1500w power inverter for the fridge and Wi-Fi so we could actually see what was going on Middle of the 4th day I decided I want a damn generator because this is ridiculous! I got a 9k Predator from Harborfreight (I wanted the 13k tri-fuel but none were available) And I tapped into the breaker panel using the drier breaker as the power in. It worked to power the entire 2 story 2600sqft home without issue, even with someone accidentily powering both 2.5ton AC systems at the same time Needless to say I won't ever be left without power again, that sucked. I'll at some point do something similar Thank you for the video!

Very interesting setup! I'm in Houston as well, and you have my mind gears turning, haha. Would be interesting to look into creating a setup that essentially turned the enclosure into a refrigerated unit (maybe solar-powered?) to help with dissipating heat. Like retrofitting the coil setup from a window-A/C unit into an enclosure somehow. Hmm...

Thanks for your review on your home generator setup. Very nicely done and a good thorough explanation of how the system was put together and the aspects n components of the system that need to be done and which part of it should be done by a certified electrician, etc. BTW, just wondering if the DuroStar Genie you have is a "Inverter" Generator model ? Thank you again Runamukker. Very informative and helpful..

Excellent video! Thanks for taking the time and sharing

It looks promising, but I'm not sure how well it would hold up against significant challenges over time. I don't have enough expertise to determine its long-term reliability. I do like the idea of just one plug into the home rather than the separate cords.

Generacs also run on propane also and it cost 12k -13k everything is also automated

Dont forget a gas regulator.

I set my ranch home up with a dual fuel Westinghouse 12KW generator with remote start/ stop, much like you did, then I installed a Honeywell 200 amp automatic throwover between the meter and the breaker box. (And yes, the remote is wired into the Honeywell ATO.) My system runs on propane, so there is definitely a limit to how long I can run my generator. But, since I live in rural country I can source non ethanol fuel in larger quantities. Mostly used for the ranch equipment, but during storm season, I make sure my ranches gas storage tank is as close to full as I can get it. I love my Zombie box, and so do the chickens and goats. I prefer to run the generator on propane, but having a duel fuel will pay off. Plus, I have some solar on the house. Not enough to run the entire home, lighting mostly, but my Motorcoach has enough solar on it that it can add to solar generation should there be an extended national outage. Plus, I can plug my RV with big battery bank into the home as a backup to the generator. For an intown set up you've got it right. And for those of you thinking about doing this to your home, check with your local utility and see what your maximum peak usages have been in the summer and winter so you'll get a handle of how big a generator you really need. Calculate what you have to have running in the house based on those past usages. Some of you may have the ability to see what you've used online. (I'm a retired Power Lineman / Technician! BTY, my home has propane heat, but we also have a fireplace and a cast iron stove for heat, so the 12KW generator is sized to run my ac units easily. Oh, and we have 2 water heaters. One propane and one electric, so hot water from the well isn't an issue. And I should mention our 12K gallons rainwater harvesting storage also makes us a little less dependent on the Utility Companies. Oh, and the reason I wanted to comment. I prefer the portable generators over the permanent installed ones in case we ever have to Bugout. We'll just take this big generator with us to wherever we bugout to! Again, that's a great intown system, and the lockput panel is greatly appreciated by your local power lineman!

Great Video! I just had my breaker box outfitted with the interlock to use the Generator but now I am ready to do the natural gas hook up was unsure if I wanted to go thru with it but after watching your video it just makes sense. Plus I don't have to worry about running to the gas station for gas etc. Not sure if I am gonna do the Zombie box enclosure a little pricey but its a good option gonna have to continue my research for the enclosure. Thanks again for the info very useful.

That Zombie box is nice.

Thank you because I don’t have 20k. I appreciate this video.

I think if you try running that 5 ton a/c and your "normal" living appliances on your set-up in the Houston area for an extended period of time your going to run into problems.

Nice Set Up, Great Job!!!

Generac’s don’t “just only run on natural gas”. Propane works for them as well.

Appreciate it my guy!

My gas meter/line is 150 ft from my electrical box so I either have to extend the gas line, or extend the electrical cable, which I'm guessing is pretty expensive. You are fortunate to have all located fairly close to each other

Good thing about that generator is easy and cheap to replace if it fails where Generac at the mercy of them. I hear Generacs are junk the air cooled ones over heat after long extended runs in high heat when you need the thing.

Slick setup.

The problem is most generators are not designed to be run on an extended basis. Something like a Kubota Lowboy II diesel is a more reliable option. It is liquid cooled.

Your cond fan motor won't pull more than 5 amps, the blower motor won't pull more than 8 amps. Your compressor will pull close to LRA for a couple of seconds but come back down to run load amps around 17-25 amps. Get a soft start and it will run with the generator.

I had a much longer run at low psi, so I ended up running a 1.25" line to the back yard. I can run anything I need in the future.

Generacs run on both natural gas and propane. By the way, you have to connect the gas and electrical when the lights go out. In my case I don’t have to go through that. Power goes out, transfer switch kicks in and the generator fires up and powers everything in my house within 15 seconds. If I’m not home my family is covered or if we’re on holiday we don’t have to worry about our food in the refrigerators being ruined. All automatic and covered by a ten year warranty for everything for under $15k.

Great video, thanks. What breakers did you turn on first after throwing open the 50amp generator breaker? e.g. furnace blowers, AC, followed by smaller amps, or does it matter based on the size of your generator? Thanks!

So many parasite draws when powering the whole house. I need to power chest deep freezer, and the fan portion of the furnace. I went with a small inverter gasoline generator & spent less than $800. Portable generators are rated at 50% duty, & you will need to change the oil in the generator often.

Great video, thank you

Thank you man for this video ❤

Personally, as a side note, depending on location/flood history, I'd raise that generator a couple of feet...but, that's just me. Weally 😎

Unlike your home with the breaker box inside the gargage or home, I have the main breaker located outside the home, where switching to a backup using a mechanical interlock on a panel would leave me exposed to the elements. I'm still trying to find a way to accomplish something similar without the use of a transfer panel. Still thinking about it.

Add a Starlink and you really wouldn't know anything happened. I have the gen setup and during the "Big Freeze" in Texas a few years ago, like you , I hardly knew anything was happening, including full high speed internet. FYI, during a power outage most internet goes down because the distribution boxes lose power also. So get Starlink and/or a good antenna for local stations. BTW, nice setup.

Awesome set up! Did you have to have a larger natural gas meter installed? What is your CFH capacity on your meter?

Good job! 👍

All that work just to still be grid dependent. I don't get gas generators... unless you are in more rural area and have a tank off site that can hold months+ supply. If not rather just go solar and not have to smell fumes in my backyard and hear it running.

They run on propane too!

Awesome video 👍🏼

Galvanized gas lines are going to cause issues in the future. The galvanizing will flake off with age and clog up the jets in your carb/regulator that's why we use painted black iron or csst outdoors Just want to make sure you're not stranded in an outage

GREAT JOB THANKS FOR THE INFO

Can you post a list of all that was used in the set up.

I've seen Generac whole house generators for $5500 (19500 watts), although I'm sure you could spend $20k on a huge one. I've also seen the tri-fuel generator like yours for around $1500. I just looked up the Zombie Box you have to keep it outside and it's $2000, so you've got at least $3500 into it without gas plumbing and electrical labor. Generacs are made to be outside and for a couple grand more it's not a bad option.

Check the capacity rating per fuel, gasoline always has the highest capacity , then comes propane and then comes natural gas. If you buy a portable rated for 14.5 kw, bear in mind that on Propane may do 13 kw and on Natural Gas may do probably only 11.6 kw, so check if running your generator on Natural Gas will run your home or A/C(s), or you need to go back to gasoline. All heat more than the other the generator , gasoline, less , propane more and NG more, all to the nature of combustion and heat efficiency on each. Also check the distortion voltage, that kills sensitive electronics, computer, internet router, etc so get a good one for distortion. ZOMBIE BOX does not guarantee a fixed sound decrease, they even post this on their website, videos show people that it may be only 10dB decrease, you are normally around 75 - 80 dB without it, box may drop it to 65 or 70dB, you would still hear the noise, your generator, your neighbors would still hear the noise., less louder, but you hear it, probably not as annoying to sleep but you would hear it.