voltage drop

[builmord]

will it hurt my mep802a if I up the voltage output at the generator to compensate for voltage drop between the gen and my house panel. 150' or so

 

[Ray70]

How much are you looking to raise it? like 5-8 volts? What are you using for cordage?
You can raise the voltage a bit to compensate, but if you're seeing more than about a 5 or 6 volt drop, you might have something else going on.

 

[builmord]

I am considering #8 awg wire and 5 volts would be more than enough . just didn't know if it would hurt the genetator

 

[Zed254]

I have ~50 ft of cord with both my 803 and 802, so I routinely bump up voltage at the machine 1 or 2 volts. https://www.calculator.net/voltage-...ce=150&distanceunit=feet&amperes=26&x=48&y=23

Check the voltage at your house with your multi-meter to confirm proper setting.

Something to consider for wire size: That 802 can be configured for single phase 120 volts delivering 52 amps on a single hot conductor. This is the way I run mine for a small camper that does not have a 240 volt distribution box. If you go with #8 awg you will only be good for around 35 - 40 Amps . 4 conductor 6awg will give you a 45 - 55 amp rating: www.cmewire.com/catalog/sec19-FCX/FCX-Cu-01-AMP.pdf .

 

[Coug]

it won't hurt the generator to have the voltage up a little bit. There are voltage drop calculators online that will tell you the expected amount of voltage drop using what size cable/length cable/load and stuff like that, but general rule of thumb is 5% at the furthest electrical access point (house outlet) furthest from power source. That translates to meaning if the generator is set to 120VAC, there should be nowhere in the house you see anything lower than 114VAC

Pretty much everything inside your house should be fine anywhere between 110-120VAC with no issues, the only thing to really worry about is making sure the frequency is correct, and frequency doesn't get affected by length and size of wiring.

Using 8 gauge wires with the gen set to 120/240VAC, drawing 26 amps of 240V (which is going to be the same as 2 circuits of 26 amps 120V with a balanced load) the voltage will drop 4VAC over that 150 feet of wire. This is within the allowed 5% (6VAC), so you will most likely be just fine.


The gen specs say you can adjust voltage from 228-252VAC at 240V setting, which is 114-126 for the 120 legs.



If you run it set to 120VAC only, then you hit 5% voltage drop at 32 amps. You would have to go up to 6AWG copper wire to handle 50 amps power at 150 feet distance.

Voltage Drop Calculator

This free voltage drop calculator estimates the voltage drop of an electrical circuit based on the wire size, distance, and anticipated load current.

www.calculator.net

 

[Light in the Dark]

Even with that though, most modern appliances have auto switching transformers that will accept down to 50hz.

 

[Ray70]

Correct, but you only need to worry about the voltage dropping, the Hz will not change due to the cord size or length , only the voltage will drop.
Hz is solely dependent on engine RPM and will only change when the engine speed changes.

 

[Coug]

Even with that though, most modern appliances have auto switching transformers that will accept down to 50hz.

Some appliances will do that, but some won't. A lot of the cheaper modern electronics don't like anything other than being right at 60hz. These military generators have a lot cleaner sine wave than a lot of civilian units do, so electronics shouldn't be an issue as long as you are close.

 

[csheath]

My utility voltage measures 248 at the panel. My 803 sits right behind the house and is connected with 12' of 6 gauge wire. I set the gen voltage to match at 248.

Shouldn't hurt a thing IMO.

 

[technoid]

will it hurt my mep802a if I up the voltage output at the generator to compensate for voltage drop between the gen and my house panel. 150' or so

Up the size of your cable to prevent a drop. If your using #6 you should not see much of any drop at only 150'.