Try lining up the plug with the inlet at night. Take a marker and make a line on the plug & socket, line up the two before you twist it. Keep battery charged. Install emergency lights that come on when power goes out. Install them where you set up the generator and at the panel. Maintenance is easier when using natural gas to power the generator.

A few suggestions: before starting your generator, plug it in, but leave the breaker off. That way the generator is bonded to your panel. On the power cord, paint either a white or black dot on the top, so that you know the proper orientation as you attempt to plug it into the power inlet box. Start your generator, let it warm up, then close the generator breaker.

Your videos are great - I bought all the same gear (didn't DIY the panel work though) and will be ready for our next grid collapse. You probably know this already, but having some really bright headlamps available are absolutely invaluable for keeping hands free for other work.

You need to have a plan in place buy a couple of headband lights to throw around the house leave braker box partially open when you know theres gonna be an ice freeze theres things you can do!

Cool setup. Hope everything came out ok

Hi Jonathan, these surprise power outages teach us a lot the hard way. I'm glad you were able to overcome the freezing rain problems enough to get the house powered up. I have been interested in home backup power since the 1980's. I recommend multiple backup techniques because affordable backup power available to the average person is not that reliable. Also (as you noticed), since you are making your own power, there is a definite limit to what you can power so, you will need to budget/prioritize what gets turned on. There are many camping accessories that are useful during extended blackouts, such as campstoves. One thing you might like to try are LED bulbs with a Lithium backup battery that keeps the light on when power goes out. Get the 5W size because they run cooler and run longer. I have been using these for the past 3 years and they were only available from Amazon, but now I noticed Walmart is starting to carry them. You will want to optimize your generator setup to make it as easy as possible to pull out, start, and connect up when power goes out. With these open frame generators, to quiet them down a bit, you can take a very large cardboard box and build a wall around the generator, keeping it at least a foot for cooling purposes. This is cheap and makes a noticable difference in the noise level your neighbors will hear. Don't ever use standard car gas with ethanol, it can damage the carburetor in as little as 2 weeks. Always use ethanol free gas, or better still, the natural gas. Never leave your generator out in the weather, it deteriorates the unit very quickly. Refrigerators have a very high surge current during startup; 10 to 20 amps! (1,200 to 2,400 watts). HVAC units surge current is 5 to 10 times the run current. Make sure the compressor does start, if it stalls, it can damage the compressor and the generator. Start your high surge current appliance first. Water heaters typically consume 4,500 watts so, will use most of your power budget. With the hard freezes combined with the power outages in Texas, I also recommend installing a diesel heater designed for RVs. They run off 12 volts (car power) and come in 2 sizes; 3 kW and 5 kW (10,000 and 17,000 btu). These heaters are super low cost, make high quality heat, will run off a Marine Battery all night, and sip so little diesel, they can be more economical to heat your house than the HVAC system you are presently using.

Almost had to do this. Back around 2008, we would have regular power outages as the transformers would overheat and corrupt themselves. I was pretty frustrated with the whole deal. All the power lines are underground and nothing for a storm to takeout. Imagine putting a engine together in the garage when it's over 90 in there with no power or ac. I was pissed. Looked at Generac and almost ordered one, but called the power company first and lady told me they didn't know why the transformers kept burning up with only 20 houses on the line. I told her that was 20 houses back in the 90s. The complex now has over 70 houses built. She took notes and the next week or two, they replaced the two transformers for our neighborhood with larger units and no more issues. If I lived in Texas with the screwed up power network, I would have a Generac system installed and not worry about it.

Stay safe. Luckily it didn’t make it this far down in Texas. I have a similar setup and for the price you can’t beat this.

ive watched literally hundreds of videos on generators.. this is the first and only one ive seen in a real live situation . now we know to expect the unexpected.. great video.. curious why you didnt use the NG and opted for gasoline

I live in Pflugerville and just got a Westinghouse 12500w 9500w running dual fuel at Sam's Club for $800. I'll hire an electrician to do the outside hookup soon. I'm planning on getting space heaters and a portable AC so I don't have to worry about my main HVAC and just leave off in case we have another black out.

Why did you end up running it on Gasoline vs. NG when you had the conversion? I have the WEN version of this generator and a Motor Snorkel as well. Have you done a power/load test on gas with the MS?

So I've watched a few of your videos and i was just wondering if i have this exact set up do i need to ground my generator and if not why? My electrician buddy is saying i need to buy im Not seeing that yours is or many other guys are doing it either.

How did it cost to install the interlock and outside plug to the generator?

Why didn’t you use alternative fuel?

How many hours did the gasoline last

What do we really not have power