Generator Size in kW, Starting Surge, Fuel Burn, Runtime, Installed Cost, and Carbon Monoxide Rules

Generator sizing planning tool on published residential standby load bands, NEC 440 and 700 practice for a generator as a separately derived system with the neutral grounded at the transfer switch, NFPA 110 practice for a listed emergency power supply system, EPA and manufacturer emissions and sound ratings, and manufacturer fuel consumption curves at partial load. Utility interconnection rules, a required automatic transfer switch, a required manual transfer switch with an isolating neutral, a required inlet box and a cord rating, a required 2 pole breaker with a handle tie, a required main panel rating, a required service upgrade, a required load-shed panel, a required demand-response program enrollment, a required generator permit, a required combustion air and exhaust routing, a required clearance from a window, a door, an opening, a soffit, a property line, a walkway, a air intake, a neighbouring building, a required sound ordinance, a required decibel limit at a property line, a required fuel tank set-back, a required LP tank placement, a required tank permit, a required above-ground and underground tank listing, a required gas line sizing on the utility pressure, a required meter capacity, a required exhaust termination, a required carbon monoxide alarm placement, a required CO alarm with a battery at a sleeping area, a required NFPA 211 and NFPA 720 alarm listing, a required exercise and maintenance schedule, a required O&M plan, a required standby for a fire pump, a required standby for an elevator, a required standby for a egress lighting system, a required standby for a healthcare occupancy, a required Type 10, Type 8, Type 1, and Type 5 listed generator, a required generator for a legally required standalone system, a required generator in a flood hazard area with an elevation, a required generator in a wind-borne debris region, a required generator in a high-seismic region, a required generator for a fixed medical equipment circuit, a required generator for an oxygen concentrator, a required generator for a dialysis machine, a required generator for a sump at a residence with a fuel priority, a required standby on a wind turbine and a solar battery system, and a required generator at a commercial, industrial, institutional, assembly, and multi-family occupancy are all authority-having-jurisdiction, utility, licensed-electrician, licensed-mechanical, and manufacturer questions. A generator is never connected to a wall outlet with a cord, never back-fed, never run in a garage, a carport, a porch, a basement, a closet, a room, under a deck, or near an operable window, and a portable generator used as a permanent standby with a cord through a window is an insurance, a code, and a life-safety failure. Generator, transfer switch, tank, pad, exhaust, fuel, and installed prices vary by region, brand, fuel rate, utility tariff, and interconnection, and a generator sized on a worksheet is a generator that runs a house, while a generator sized on a nameplate is a generator that stalls on a compressor.