For someone that never attempted anything like this before, you did a better job than most professional installers. Hopefully you will not have to use it very often, but when it comes on and you have lights and ac, it will be satisfying.
As a Kohler generator installer, it’s always fun to watch some videos. You don’t need that specialty wire you just need a shielded two pair from the ATS to the generator for communications. Copper is the way to go. Aluminum is for beer, cans, and soda.
I agree! Yes... its double the price but the difference for me when installing my generator and running 60 feet of copper vs aluminum was only 100 bucks more. Consider the price of the generator, all the physical labor in pouring the pad, digging the trenches etc I decided it was worth it. Besides, years ago I had a a house I was trying to sell fail inspection due to the feed being aluminum. Never again!
@@nspro931 Yes it cost more... but in the scheme of things (like this whole house generator install) its a nit. Aluminum wiring expands when it gets hot and shrinks when it cools, resulting in loose wires that can potentially lead to a fire. Although its still in use today it requires careful maintenance. Granted its not a deal breaker and can be safe when installed correctly. That said I would have felt better if he had applied Noalox or some other form of antioxidant paste to the feed wires before he connected them.
Excellent video; you did an extraordinary job for a DIYer! I installed a natural gas aspired 40Kw Generac at my home over 24 years ago. It is maintained twice a year and runs like a bear. Where I live (Northeast) the codes are much stricter for 200A service. Electric company required all electrical cables buried 6' down. Building inspector wanted to see the trough at a minimum of 6" wide for visual inspection purposes. Thank God my run was only 12' long. (I dug it all out by hand). For obvious reasons, natural gas line has to be buried in its own trench. Gas company engineers/inspectors required I dig 48" down, 14" wide; I had to line the bottom of the trench with 4" of sand, use 6" clear schedule 80 PVC pipe to sleeve 1" Gastite brand gas pipe through. Gastite had to be a continuous run with no coupling splices. Prior to hooking up to the service manifold, risers and line had to be pressurized to 15 p.s.i. on a 30 lb. test gauge and had to hold pressure for a minimum of 30 minutes. All trenches had to be left open for inspection until approved and signed off on. Magnetic tape had to be used 6" below grade for both utilities as well as a tracer wire on the gas line. Back filling gas line required 4" of sand 1st, then covered by non-metalic underground tape, followed by 6" of dirt covered by another layer of non-metalic tape, then rock and dirt. (gas pressure had to be increased to 2-lbs. to accommodate the generator, gas furnace, water heater, pool heater, and cooking stove.) Back filling the electrical conduit was similar with the exception of not having to use a tracer wire or sand. Of course, non-metallic and magnetic tape had to be used at their respective depths. Being a water cooled generator, the gas connections to the engine are black pipe connected with 1" industrial size shut-offs and drip legs.
If you install solar: With solar on the roof and no battery, installed a generac 20KW, was told by solar installer that if the dirtier generator power got into the inverter, that it could damage the inverter and the generator, so the generator installer (reluctantly) installed a separate panel so that the generator power, coming in above the main panel, couldn't possibly feed into the inverter. Contention was that running them both into the main panel was a risk. Your performance and willingness to undertake this yourself are impressive and inspiring.
Just get a relay from PSP Products that will isolate your PV array if the generator ever kicks on - to prevent the back feed issue. They specifically make the relay to be controlled by the ATS.
I was in the generator industry for over 35 years, and I'd take a Kohler with no warranty over a Generac with 10 years of warranty any day. You'll be fine....
Great job. Notes for next time. Tap your concrete forms to bring the cement to the board to reduce cavities/voids. Lugs in breaker boxes should be torqued to spec using a torque wrench. I got some great tips for when I do mine. T to catch debris and drip loop, something I wouldn't have thought of.
Just an FYI thats the wrong way to install the drip leg. Run the supply into the bull of the tee drip leg on the bottom supply out top. The code changed a few years back.
Good video over all! Man your utility feeders are crazy only 8" wow! Wires (in conduit) and gas must be 18" depth. Wires and gas CAN be in the same trench (we all hate digging!) and in a wet location (for sure underground) sheathed cable (wires with a jacket like you used) must not be in a conduit! Either use direct burial cable (no conduit required but deeper hole unlike your utility) or use THWN cable (individual conductors water resistant rated).
Your warranty is not voided, you still get the five years if you register it. The only difference is that it starts from the date the generator was shipped, instead of the date it was installed. I did my own install also.
@@TurkeyLakePublicWorksthey lied, there is a kohler forum on Facebook, I would suggest you join it. The problem you may have is your local dealers will put you at the bottom of the pile for warranty work since you didn’t buy from them. I would also suggest you go ahead and buy some of the maintenance kits for your model
@@TurkeyLakePublicWorks If they really wanted to be nasty about it, they could have refused to supply the registration code unless you had one of their installers come out to inspect your work for the cost of their installation service.
Just experienced hurricane Milton in Florida and used a basic portable generator for the first time. Now that power is restored I'm in the generator researching mood. Love this video you made. I really appreciate your keeping up with the video taping. I would have given up on moving around a camera while doing that hard work 😆. I was nice to see everything come together and work. Good job man.
I respect a man that steps up! not to mention a better job than “so-called” pro installers. thx for taking the time to record and hope you paid your help good! yes, I’m a dog lover! ha
You're a beast to dig all that with a square nose shovel. I would have coated the aluminum wire ends with Noalox anti oxidation paste. Well actually I would have used copper wire. That short of a run wouldn't be too much more expensive. When I did my solar I bought 70' of copper 4 guage entrance cable for $300. Far cheaper than the 3/4" ID rubber gas line I bought for my generator. Crazy expensive for a custom hose
I am a propane delivery/service guy in Black hills of SD. 97% of my customers use Generacs, also they use our service to get propane connected to generators. you did a good job getting things plumbed in. the only other thing I do on installs is connecting to second stage regulator with a side tap, and testing for leaks that way, its only 3 minutes and if passed, no spray bottle needed.
>50% of the voters in the US vote Democrat too, but that doesn't make them correct. The Kohler small gaseous fuel powered whole-house generator is far superior to the Generac. This isn't a Chevy VS. Ford debate... anyone who has ever worked on both will likely also agree.
Good to know about the Kohler generator warranty. I'll be buying Generac! Great how-to video, I feel quite confident I have all the info to do mine also...
Great you have backup power now. We had it in our house in Gulf Breeze, (22KW Generac water cooled) when Sally hit it sure came in handy. AC is devine after a storm knocks the power out. In 2004 3 storms crossed Orlando Charley, Frances, and Jean. Nobody is safe in Florida from Hurricanes.
I haven't had any problems with my Generac. My house is off grid and I have a 15kw EcoGen warrantied for off grid use and can be used at high altitude.
Bro, you did great work for a DIY and dealing with gas....Too bad about the warranty. Btw, Kohler gens have great reviews (better then G-Rac). Hopefully no storms come ur way!
I would definitely get rid of all that pine needle stuff up against the house. It is a real big fire hazard. Great job. I believe that Generac requires certified installation also.
Thanks for the video. Nice to see how a Kohler installs. BTW - you are supposed to get locates before you dig (811 in most places in the US - free service) and that way you would know where those buried utilities are before you hit it with a shovel.
You did an amazing job, especially as it's just you and team dog lol. That vacuum cleaner sucking the string through is genius! Always a bit risky dealing with gas AND electricity in close proximity, makes you check everything multiple times..
At 22:02 For future reference, conduit does not need primer nor do you use regular PVC glue. You use the grey electrical cement and no primer. Primer is only needed in pressure applications. Some jurisdictions may require primer on DWV, however the manufacturer says if they don't require it, it's okay to go non primed. Also, you can use regular PVC glue but they make the dedicated electrical cement. Also, I'm surprised the inspector didn't tell you to add a union closer to the appliance. This is required in the FBC. The only thing I don't know is if that flex going into the generator is able to be freely spun as to allow you to disconnect it for servicing easily. If so, then you wouldn't need a union.
Good to know, i will get a Generac then. Kohler want it installed by a pro, like the clown that installed your main power line, rather than a concerned homeowner who wants it done clean and right. Nice work, man. Love the dogs.
Great Job Well done 38:38 When looking at the generator itself, I saw some people building a kind of dog house on top of if to decrease the noise when running it, especially overnight to keep the neighbour happy.
Depending on the electrical code where you live, you may be required to apply an anti-oxidant coating to the aluminum electrical conductor terminations (Noalox is a popular brand). Even if it's not a code requirement, I would recommend applying it to the gen set and the changeover switch termination. It's a small cost, and will prevent oxidisation of those conductors and increase the service life of all the terminations, and the back-up system will work when it's needed..
@@arguedscarab7985 The spelling depends on the country. The British spelling is oxidisation. We may share a common language, but we spell many words in different ways🙂
@@paulhammond7489 Ohh that makes sense. I know theres different spelling for countries, just figured youtube algorithm would kinda keep in in the states? Thats cool none the less
I agree with your comment that Kohler is not DIY friendly. Nor do they back up their products. I had a Kohler 10RESVL installed and after only 4 years, we had a very cold winter with an ice storm. Our power went out and like it had a couple if previous years, the generator kicked in and powered up the house. Then after 30 minutes, it shut down. I went to investigate and started it up again a couple of times. Each time, it shut down after 20-30 minutes. I decided to check a little closer and took off the cover of the cooling fan/disk and found it had broken free and was destroyed by the flywheel and parts had melted on the engine. Since it was an ice storm, we had to move out into a hotel until the utility power came back on 6 days later. I called my Kohler service provider to get warranty coverage to repair the generator and Kohler's response was that because I had started it up several times (before I knew why it stopped working and while we were freezing in our house), they considered it "customer abuse" and would not honor the warranty. I will never buy another Kohler product again. They do not stand behind their products. This video shows the faulty Kohler design and outcome: th-cam.com/video/zPN42vrPWhE/w-d-xo.html
Wow! Yeah, I see some people in the comments saying I do actually have a warranty, but that doesn't mean anything if they don't honor it. The lady on the phone who gave me the reg code told me "no warranty" unless installed by a Kohler tech
I laughed at how easy it was for you to dig your trench. My wife and I tried the same, and after only being able to dig about 15 feet over several days and after breaking multiple shovels. The ground was simply rock hard clay, filled with rocks. I finally rented a ditching machine and finished the work in about 20 minutes. I will note that i don't see an locate marks. Hopefully you called before you dug.
You are so lucky, all I’ve got here where I live in South Texas is Black hardpan Clay. I need a trencher to do what you just did by hand. By the way, your dogs are hilarious !
In the programming there is a setting for LP. It is generally only important to be changed (not that it shouldn't be changed to reflect the supplied fuel) if you have load shedding installed.
exactly what I want to do, I have cheap natural gas so I would love that. Yeah Generac is what I would install even if I had someone install it. Isn't that crazy with the AC compressor? mine was the same way after 1 year after built. I dug down to put center blocks under it to level it. You're ready for hurricane season now
Nice install, as a former electrican I would have used individual conductors and not wasted the money on direct burial cable if I had taken the time and expense to install raceways. I like diesel in FL because of the difference in operating costs, youre gen set will use about $750/week as a replacement power source vs about $275-325 for a diesel powered gen set but the convinence of not needing a diesel tank makes your choice very reasonable. Good luck, I'm sure this install will provide for many years of piece of mind for you and your family. Ray
We have a Kohler 20kw, as well. In our state code requires at least five feet distance from the outside wall. Also, if the lights flicker or brown out when the A/C condensor kicks on you might want to get a load balancer.
had an older used (from publix) 10Kw when i lived in FL, after hurricanes frances and jeanne blew right over me in 2004, i call it 18 days in September, I upgraded to a 30Kw, water cooled, direct from Generac, with a ford V6 running 1800 RPM for longevity and ability to run for a week, 24 hours a day with low wear.. 20 years later, still running strong, the latest unpleasantness with hurricane helene, it ran about 16 hours straight thru.. those cheap air cooled 2-cylinder rigs seem very fragile and not up to a week powering my house BUT if all you need is lights and refrigerator i suppose those are OK for short duration power outages.. Two is One and One is None, so maybe I add one as backup to the backup.. :-) looking at other comments below, the power from the generator is NOT a true siine wave but then neither is the power from georgia power.. a bank of solar panels and a hefty inverter should deliver whatever the inverter will give in the way of AC sine wave.. i never had issues even aboard my two 65 ft. boats with what the onboard generator delivered.. i used a big inverter on the motor yacht powered by 6 8D batteries to supply 24/7 AC for the refrigerator and IT was a stepped "sine" wave..
Great video, incredibly intriguing. A few things I learned about Kohler, and you pointed those out. I have always wanted to get a Kohler, now I'm on the fence with Kohler. I wonder if the electric contractor installed the Kohler transfer switch knowing well about the warranty, thinking beforehand of getting the gennie install job. I'm thinking of having the gennie drawings in the house drawings. Have all the lines put in with the house., gas, and elec. Have the Kohler installed during the house build and pay the elec contractor for the Kohler gennie install as a separate service work.
One thing I'd add. On the aluminum wiring I'd put Noalox on the connections under the lugs. Technically not required, but I think it's good practice on stranded wiring outside.
We are in Marion county and when I retired I insisted we have a Whole-house genset installed. Ours is a Cummins and the most problem we've had is the battery going out. It has been replaced twice now (!). During Milton ours ran for 12 hrs before the subdivision power came back. The contractor tech that did the last service said the air-cooled motor is "cheap china junk", bleech!
Always read the instructions before you start digging. That way you know how much of this and that wire you need. I'm pretty sure Generac/Kohler makes an all in one cable to go between the transfer switch and the generator.
The 1/2" gas line runs at a higher pressure than your 2nd stage regulator, that's why they can get away with 1/2". Once you go to water column pressures (low pressure) the length and diameter really count when it comes to BTUs.
You have done a better job than the contractor that built your house. I had to lol at the 1/2 gas line tied into a 3/4 where you can see it. I would be concerned about the rest of the house.
I have a Cat set 48 KW 3 phase got it very low priced with about 400 hours on it a electrician buddy put in a transformer to make 240 volt single phase it’s a manual transfer switch I built a metal building for it and the coal fired water furnace where the power comes In underground so it powers the whole farm . One thing I would do is cage it to prevent theft same for your AC unit ! Sadly these days with the lax prosecutors it’s a problem in some areas .
I believe i would have shown the inspector the kohler manual and told him to shove it with the drip loop. There is more functional reason for that. Also, add an inverter and some eg4 outdoor batteries and you’ll have no downtime between cutover. Also the hvac condenser manual will tell you in bold to make sure it’s level or premature fan failure will occur. Nobody ever levels them. Good job and welcome to the world of inspectors!
@@JNHEscapes I've been considering adding some batteries to act as a whole house UPS, and maybe one day even put up some solar, but if I have 2 ATS because of 400a service, can you point me in the right direction of some docs to read on how to bolt in some batteries between the generator and the house/ats/panels? Seems like a totally normal use case to me but I can't find a lot of info about it
@@networkcrasher the 2 ats’s increase the complexity and since you’re running 400a service my only recommendation would be to hire an electrical engineer to draw the schematic on how to properly connect / install.
@@JNHEscapes Oh absolutely I'd work with an eng to draw it up - I was mostly wanting to try and decypher what systems on the market would even work in such a situation. It seems to be that having the batteries be charged by the UPS to put them on a duty cycle would be better than just bridging them and then letting the generator take over, cutting out the batteries.
When he said hand dig, i said, "Oh shit" 😮. Wherever he's at is some easy digging, mainly sand, it looks like. Try that shit in Oklahoma he would've broke a couple of them shovels on some red dirt lol
Great job. I don't understand why you did not ask Kohler about the warranty, if you installed it yourself. However I would get a Kohler installer at your local Hvac company to check your connections. Then get a letter from them that the installation was done correctly. You also have the city inspectors reports. Everything was done to code. Kohler is full of malarky.
No, just an awful lot of not understanding. Letters that say a unit passed an inspection have nothing to do (literally) with whether a machine was ACTUALLY properly installed.
7:18 wow sandy soil without large rocks. Can't do that in North Texas, about 4" below grade you hit rocks (not little rocks either) and then 5" down you into clay and rocks... 👍😁
For someone that never attempted anything like this before, you did a better job than most professional installers. Hopefully you will not have to use it very often, but when it comes on and you have lights and ac, it will be satisfying.
We had a storm last week and I was disappointed when we didn't lose power
@@TurkeyLakePublicWorks 😄
@@lar4305 yea it would have been perfect had he not used aluminum wire.
100%
I bought the same generator ! This was the best do it instructive video, I'll watch it several times when I put my own in
😊
As a Kohler generator installer, it’s always fun to watch some videos. You don’t need that specialty wire you just need a shielded two pair from the ATS to the generator for communications. Copper is the way to go. Aluminum is for beer, cans, and soda.
Copper is for those that have extra money they need to get rid of. We stopped using copper for these years ago, the price differential is extreme
I agree! Yes... its double the price but the difference for me when installing my generator and running 60 feet of copper vs aluminum was only 100 bucks more. Consider the price of the generator, all the physical labor in pouring the pad, digging the trenches etc I decided it was worth it. Besides, years ago I had a a house I was trying to sell fail inspection due to the feed being aluminum. Never again!
@@eltonnoway7864 That is ridiculous, an aluminum feeder is perfectly acceptable
@@nspro931 Yes it cost more... but in the scheme of things (like this whole house generator install) its a nit. Aluminum wiring expands when it gets hot and shrinks when it cools, resulting in loose wires that can potentially lead to a fire. Although its still in use today it requires careful maintenance. Granted its not a deal breaker and can be safe when installed correctly. That said I would have felt better if he had applied Noalox or some other form of antioxidant paste to the feed wires before he connected them.
@@eltonnoway7864 Nonsense, aluminum wire is installed everywhere and never looked at again for decades.
Excellent video; you did an extraordinary job for a DIYer! I installed a natural gas aspired 40Kw Generac at my home over 24 years ago. It is maintained twice a year and runs like a bear. Where I live (Northeast) the codes are much stricter for 200A service. Electric company required all electrical cables buried 6' down. Building inspector wanted to see the trough at a minimum of 6" wide for visual inspection purposes. Thank God my run was only 12' long. (I dug it all out by hand).
For obvious reasons, natural gas line has to be buried in its own trench.
Gas company engineers/inspectors required I dig 48" down, 14" wide; I had to line the bottom of the trench with 4" of sand, use 6" clear schedule 80 PVC pipe to sleeve 1" Gastite brand gas pipe through. Gastite had to be a continuous run with no coupling splices. Prior to hooking up to the service manifold, risers and line had to be pressurized to 15 p.s.i. on a 30 lb. test gauge and had to hold pressure for a minimum of 30 minutes. All trenches had to be left open for inspection until approved and signed off on. Magnetic tape had to be used 6" below grade for both utilities as well as a tracer wire on the gas line. Back filling gas line required 4" of sand 1st, then covered by non-metalic underground tape, followed by 6" of dirt covered by another layer of non-metalic tape, then rock and dirt. (gas pressure had to be increased to 2-lbs. to accommodate the generator, gas furnace, water heater, pool heater, and cooking stove.) Back filling the electrical conduit was similar with the exception of not having to use a tracer wire or sand. Of course, non-metallic and magnetic tape had to be used at their respective depths. Being a water cooled generator, the gas connections to the engine are black pipe connected with 1" industrial size shut-offs and drip legs.
Building inspectors here in Florida are more of an extortion racket than a benefit to public safety
I bet it felt so good the first time you "simulated" a power outage and it popped on. Love it
If you install solar: With solar on the roof and no battery, installed a generac 20KW, was told by solar installer that if the dirtier generator power got into the inverter, that it could damage the inverter and the generator, so the generator installer (reluctantly) installed a separate panel so that the generator power, coming in above the main panel, couldn't possibly feed into the inverter. Contention was that running them both into the main panel was a risk. Your performance and willingness to undertake this yourself are impressive and inspiring.
Wow, that's interesting. I will check that out before I do solar
Just get a relay from PSP Products that will isolate your PV array if the generator ever kicks on - to prevent the back feed issue. They specifically make the relay to be controlled by the ATS.
Great job. You are so lucky to have ground that you can dig in, My yard is nothing but rock.
I came to say the same. That would NOT be a 1 day job in our soil. !
Great job. Your one out of a thousand to take this install on without previous background. Bravo!
I was in the generator industry for over 35 years, and I'd take a Kohler with no warranty over a Generac with 10 years of warranty any day. You'll be fine....
Thinking about installing one for my house. Great work. Good to know about Kohler vs Generac.
For a first time you didn’t only did a great job you also did a fantastic video for DIY. 👍💯
Great job. Notes for next time. Tap your concrete forms to bring the cement to the board to reduce cavities/voids. Lugs in breaker boxes should be torqued to spec using a torque wrench. I got some great tips for when I do mine. T to catch debris and drip loop, something I wouldn't have thought of.
Just an FYI thats the wrong way to install the drip leg. Run the supply into the bull of the tee drip leg on the bottom supply out top. The code changed a few years back.
Wow that was a ton of work. Nice job. Sorry about the warranty BS. Thanks for sharing.
Good video over all! Man your utility feeders are crazy only 8" wow! Wires (in conduit) and gas must be 18" depth. Wires and gas CAN be in the same trench (we all hate digging!) and in a wet location (for sure underground) sheathed cable (wires with a jacket like you used) must not be in a conduit! Either use direct burial cable (no conduit required but deeper hole unlike your utility) or use THWN cable (individual conductors water resistant rated).
Good thing you have the doggos to help! ❤
Dude, that was a lot of work... very impressive!!! What a joke that the warranty was voided by Kohler, good to know!!!
Your warranty is not voided, you still get the five years if you register it. The only difference is that it starts from the date the generator was shipped, instead of the date it was installed. I did my own install also.
That is interesting. The told me the warranty is void unless it was installed by an authorized person.
@@TurkeyLakePublicWorksthey lied, there is a kohler forum on Facebook, I would suggest you join it. The problem you may have is your local dealers will put you at the bottom of the pile for warranty work since you didn’t buy from them. I would also suggest you go ahead and buy some of the maintenance kits for your model
@@TurkeyLakePublicWorks sue em
@@TurkeyLakePublicWorks They either lied, or they didn't know any better.
@@TurkeyLakePublicWorks If they really wanted to be nasty about it, they could have refused to supply the registration code unless you had one of their installers come out to inspect your work for the cost of their installation service.
I am impressed with all the digging very nice job!
Just experienced hurricane Milton in Florida and used a basic portable generator for the first time. Now that power is restored I'm in the generator researching mood. Love this video you made. I really appreciate your keeping up with the video taping. I would have given up on moving around a camera while doing that hard work 😆. I was nice to see everything come together and work. Good job man.
Your Inspectors are very thorough. 🐕
I respect a man that steps up! not to mention a better job than “so-called” pro installers. thx for taking the time to record and hope you paid your help good! yes, I’m a dog lover! ha
You're a beast to dig all that with a square nose shovel.
I would have coated the aluminum wire ends with Noalox anti oxidation paste. Well actually I would have used copper wire. That short of a run wouldn't be too much more expensive. When I did my solar I bought 70' of copper 4 guage entrance cable for $300. Far cheaper than the 3/4" ID rubber gas line I bought for my generator. Crazy expensive for a custom hose
I am a propane delivery/service guy in Black hills of SD. 97% of my customers use Generacs, also they use our service to get propane connected to generators. you did a good job getting things plumbed in. the only other thing I do on installs is connecting to second stage regulator with a side tap, and testing for leaks that way, its only 3 minutes and if passed, no spray bottle needed.
>50% of the voters in the US vote Democrat too, but that doesn't make them correct. The Kohler small gaseous fuel powered whole-house generator is far superior to the Generac. This isn't a Chevy VS. Ford debate... anyone who has ever worked on both will likely also agree.
@@basketballjones6782 I work on both, also Honeywell and few others. But least problems encountered is with generacs
Good to know about the Kohler generator warranty. I'll be buying Generac!
Great how-to video, I feel quite confident I have all the info to do mine also...
Great you have backup power now. We had it in our house in Gulf Breeze, (22KW Generac water cooled) when Sally hit it sure came in handy. AC is devine after a storm knocks the power out. In 2004 3 storms crossed Orlando Charley, Frances, and Jean. Nobody is safe in Florida from Hurricanes.
I have a 15 k Generac. And runs on Propane. Believe me you made a Better Choice with the Kohler ! And great job on the instillation👏👏👏 and video.
I haven't had any problems with my Generac. My house is off grid and I have a 15kw EcoGen warrantied for off grid use and can be used at high altitude.
Make sure you do the maintenance, I had Kohler's in my boats and they were a pain, but regular maintenance will for sure help.
This is a very impressive installation. Thank you for the video.
Hey guy, thanks for the Generac advise!!! I was going to go with Kohler for the slightly lower price, but Generac it is!!
Bro, you did great work for a DIY and dealing with gas....Too bad about the warranty. Btw, Kohler gens have great reviews (better then G-Rac). Hopefully no storms come ur way!
Love your helpers!
I would definitely get rid of all that pine needle stuff up against the house. It is a real big fire hazard. Great job. I believe that Generac requires certified installation also.
No, generac does not require a "certified" installation.
Nice work! I never knew Kohler made generators, I'll still go with Generac. Thanks for the detailed video, love the dogs!
Kohler has been making generators and small engines for a century.
Your dogs are hilarious, great job too.
Thanks for the video. Nice to see how a Kohler installs. BTW - you are supposed to get locates before you dig (811 in most places in the US - free service) and that way you would know where those buried utilities are before you hit it with a shovel.
I applaud you first for your work and for your knowledge.
Thanks for warning about the "reg code" .. I'll definitely look at getting the Generac instead! Very helpful video. Thanks for making it.
I think the Kohlers are put together better than Generac. Just my opinion. I have installed both and I just like the Kohlers better.
I love your torque screw driver and socket wrench 🤣
You did an amazing job, especially as it's just you and team dog lol. That vacuum cleaner sucking the string through is genius! Always a bit risky dealing with gas AND electricity in close proximity, makes you check everything multiple times..
I had never heard of the vacuum trick. Good one!
works even better with a little bit of a plastic bag tied to the end it zips right on through
Good ol parachute
The piece of pipe sticking down is called a drip leg ..! Nice job 👍
Dirt leg.
Great job! Thanks for sharing! 👌👍
WOW, great job! Learned so much from you.
This is a very impressive video! Thank you for posting it.
Nice video! I watched it from beginning to end. Entertaining and Informative.
At 22:02 For future reference, conduit does not need primer nor do you use regular PVC glue. You use the grey electrical cement and no primer. Primer is only needed in pressure applications. Some jurisdictions may require primer on DWV, however the manufacturer says if they don't require it, it's okay to go non primed. Also, you can use regular PVC glue but they make the dedicated electrical cement.
Also, I'm surprised the inspector didn't tell you to add a union closer to the appliance. This is required in the FBC. The only thing I don't know is if that flex going into the generator is able to be freely spun as to allow you to disconnect it for servicing easily. If so, then you wouldn't need a union.
Good to know, thanks!
Impressive! Thank you for the video.
I have had two kohl genorators best thing I ever bought for my house
Awesome job! I really want to do this one of these days!
Good to know, i will get a Generac then.
Kohler want it installed by a pro, like the clown that installed your main power line, rather than a concerned homeowner who wants it done clean and right.
Nice work, man. Love the dogs.
Yes! I'm tired of paying pros to do poor quality work
Great Job Well done
38:38 When looking at the generator itself, I saw some people building a kind of dog house
on top of if to decrease the noise when running it, especially overnight to keep the neighbour happy.
How do you think that would affect the cooling?
I've seen that with portable generators. My neighbors are pretty far away
Depending on the electrical code where you live, you may be required to apply an anti-oxidant coating to the aluminum electrical conductor terminations (Noalox is a popular brand). Even if it's not a code requirement, I would recommend applying it to the gen set and the changeover switch termination. It's a small cost, and will prevent oxidisation of those conductors and increase the service life of all the terminations, and the back-up system will work when it's needed..
Oxidation* just fyi
@@arguedscarab7985 The spelling depends on the country. The British spelling is oxidisation. We may share a common language, but we spell many words in different ways🙂
@@paulhammond7489 Ohh that makes sense. I know theres different spelling for countries, just figured youtube algorithm would kinda keep in in the states? Thats cool none the less
@@arguedscarab7985 This one was a recommended video by YT, it was shared half a world away :)
Not a NEC code requirement, but not a bad idea either. So is torque verification from time to time.
Very well done sir! First time? Impressive.
The Dog heard you were going to run a gas line and wires .. was wanting to dig the trench
I agree with your comment that Kohler is not DIY friendly. Nor do they back up their products. I had a Kohler 10RESVL installed and after only 4 years, we had a very cold winter with an ice storm. Our power went out and like it had a couple if previous years, the generator kicked in and powered up the house. Then after 30 minutes, it shut down. I went to investigate and started it up again a couple of times. Each time, it shut down after 20-30 minutes. I decided to check a little closer and took off the cover of the cooling fan/disk and found it had broken free and was destroyed by the flywheel and parts had melted on the engine. Since it was an ice storm, we had to move out into a hotel until the utility power came back on 6 days later. I called my Kohler service provider to get warranty coverage to repair the generator and Kohler's response was that because I had started it up several times (before I knew why it stopped working and while we were freezing in our house), they considered it "customer abuse" and would not honor the warranty. I will never buy another Kohler product again. They do not stand behind their products.
This video shows the faulty Kohler design and outcome: th-cam.com/video/zPN42vrPWhE/w-d-xo.html
Wow! Yeah, I see some people in the comments saying I do actually have a warranty, but that doesn't mean anything if they don't honor it. The lady on the phone who gave me the reg code told me "no warranty" unless installed by a Kohler tech
poor doggos are sweatin hot and that cool dirt is heaven on their bellies!
Great video/ work! Gino and his partner trying to help dig..😂
I laughed at how easy it was for you to dig your trench. My wife and I tried the same, and after only being able to dig about 15 feet over several days and after breaking multiple shovels. The ground was simply rock hard clay, filled with rocks. I finally rented a ditching machine and finished the work in about 20 minutes.
I will note that i don't see an locate marks. Hopefully you called before you dug.
Clean install! looks good!
You are so lucky, all I’ve got here where I live in South Texas is Black hardpan Clay. I need a trencher to do what you just did by hand.
By the way, your dogs are hilarious !
Yeah, the sand is pretty easy to dig, it just likes to fall back into the hole
Outstanding installation.
Dude! You’re a machine💪🏼
Great job man, and I love your helpers. I have two shepherds too
Great job and interesting video
Tie a small strip of shopping bag to the surveyors line to help encourage the vacuum to pull the line faster.
Very clean!! Work ❤️👌😎✌️
Nice install! FYI there is a spot in the generator controller to switch from NG to propane as well.
In the programming there is a setting for LP. It is generally only important to be changed (not that it shouldn't be changed to reflect the supplied fuel) if you have load shedding installed.
never seen anyone use a truck bed as a woodworking bench before. cool idea
exactly what I want to do, I have cheap natural gas so I would love that.
Yeah Generac is what I would install even if I had someone install it.
Isn't that crazy with the AC compressor? mine was the same way after 1 year after built. I dug down to put center blocks under it to level it.
You're ready for hurricane season now
Nice install, as a former electrican I would have used individual conductors and not wasted the money on direct burial cable if I had taken the time and expense to install raceways. I like diesel in FL because of the difference in operating costs, youre gen set will use about $750/week as a replacement power source vs about $275-325 for a diesel powered gen set but the convinence of not needing a diesel tank makes your choice very reasonable. Good luck, I'm sure this install will provide for many years of piece of mind for you and your family. Ray
Thanks Ray, I would do a few things differently the next time around for sure
We have a Kohler 20kw, as well. In our state code requires at least five feet distance from the outside wall. Also, if the lights flicker or brown out when the A/C condensor kicks on you might want to get a load balancer.
had an older used (from publix) 10Kw when i lived in FL, after hurricanes frances and jeanne blew right over me in 2004, i call it 18 days in September, I upgraded to a 30Kw, water cooled, direct from Generac, with a ford V6 running 1800 RPM for longevity and ability to run for a week, 24 hours a day with low wear.. 20 years later, still running strong, the latest unpleasantness with hurricane helene, it ran about 16 hours straight thru.. those cheap air cooled 2-cylinder rigs seem very fragile and not up to a week powering my house BUT if all you need is lights and refrigerator i suppose those are OK for short duration power outages.. Two is One and One is None, so maybe I add one as backup to the backup.. :-)
looking at other comments below, the power from the generator is NOT a true siine wave but then neither is the power from georgia power..
a bank of solar panels and a hefty inverter should deliver whatever the inverter will give in the way of AC sine wave.. i never had issues even aboard my two 65 ft. boats with what the onboard generator delivered.. i used a big inverter on the motor yacht powered by 6 8D batteries to supply 24/7 AC for the refrigerator and IT was a stepped "sine" wave..
Great video, incredibly intriguing. A few things I learned about Kohler, and you pointed those out. I have always wanted to get a Kohler, now I'm on the fence with Kohler. I wonder if the electric contractor installed the Kohler transfer switch knowing well about the warranty, thinking beforehand of getting the gennie install job. I'm thinking of having the gennie drawings in the house drawings. Have all the lines put in with the house., gas, and elec. Have the Kohler installed during the house build and pay the elec contractor for the Kohler gennie install as a separate service work.
One thing
I'd add. On the aluminum wiring I'd put Noalox on the connections under the lugs. Technically not required, but I think it's good practice on stranded wiring outside.
Nice install, thanks.
We are in Marion county and when I retired I insisted we have a Whole-house genset installed. Ours is a Cummins and the most problem we've had is the battery going out. It has been replaced twice now (!). During Milton ours ran for 12 hrs before the subdivision power came back. The contractor tech that did the last service said the air-cooled motor is "cheap china junk", bleech!
Very nice job!!!
Well done mate great job
Your dog just wants to help. He doesn't know you don't need a hole anymore. Adorable.
the square shovel is super helpful when digging trenches
It doesn't matter much in the sand
Nice job looks good. I would suggest that you put an Inhibitor on the al connections.
I plan to add Noalox and use a torque wrench to tighten to spec when I do the next service on the generator
Portable is the WAY to go, you can put them in the back of a pickup to take for repairs
Always read the instructions before you start digging. That way you know how much of this and that wire you need. I'm pretty sure Generac/Kohler makes an all in one cable to go between the transfer switch and the generator.
The 1/2" gas line runs at a higher pressure than your 2nd stage regulator, that's why they can get away with 1/2". Once you go to water column pressures (low pressure) the length and diameter really count when it comes to BTUs.
You have done a better job than the contractor that built your house. I had to lol at the 1/2 gas line tied into a 3/4 where you can see it. I would be concerned about the rest of the house.
Did you apply the antioxident gel to the aluminum #0 cables??
I forgot to, but I plan to add it and torque lugs to spec at next service
I use
I used Black pipe for gas line. Flex gas line to easily damaged. I placed both gas and electrical 3 feet underground.
Great job. I was wonder if you put a whole house surge protector.
I have a Cat set 48 KW 3 phase got it very low priced with about 400 hours on it a electrician buddy put in a transformer to make 240 volt single phase it’s a manual transfer switch I built a metal building for it and the coal fired water furnace where the power comes In underground so it powers the whole farm . One thing I would do is cage it to prevent theft same for your AC unit ! Sadly these days with the lax prosecutors it’s a problem in some areas .
You do damn good work. Could watch all day.
I believe i would have shown the inspector the kohler manual and told him to shove it with the drip loop. There is more functional reason for that. Also, add an inverter and some eg4 outdoor batteries and you’ll have no downtime between cutover. Also the hvac condenser manual will tell you in bold to make sure it’s level or premature fan failure will occur. Nobody ever levels them. Good job and welcome to the world of inspectors!
I meant there is “no” functional reason for him to require that.
@@JNHEscapes I've been considering adding some batteries to act as a whole house UPS, and maybe one day even put up some solar, but if I have 2 ATS because of 400a service, can you point me in the right direction of some docs to read on how to bolt in some batteries between the generator and the house/ats/panels? Seems like a totally normal use case to me but I can't find a lot of info about it
@@networkcrasher the 2 ats’s increase the complexity and since you’re running 400a service my only recommendation would be to hire an electrical engineer to draw the schematic on how to properly connect / install.
@@JNHEscapes Oh absolutely I'd work with an eng to draw it up - I was mostly wanting to try and decypher what systems on the market would even work in such a situation. It seems to be that having the batteries be charged by the UPS to put them on a duty cycle would be better than just bridging them and then letting the generator take over, cutting out the batteries.
Drip loops are only needed for electrical wires..
This video is awesome
When he said hand dig, i said, "Oh shit" 😮. Wherever he's at is some easy digging, mainly sand, it looks like. Try that shit in Oklahoma he would've broke a couple of them shovels on some red dirt lol
Awesome job!
Bang up job. 🤜🤛
Well done !!!
awesome job
nice install
Great job. I don't understand why you did not ask Kohler about the warranty, if you installed it yourself. However I would get a Kohler installer at your local Hvac company to check your connections. Then get a letter from them that the installation was done correctly. You also have the city inspectors reports. Everything was done to code. Kohler is full of malarky.
No, just an awful lot of not understanding. Letters that say a unit passed an inspection have nothing to do (literally) with whether a machine was ACTUALLY properly installed.
the dog said i'll just start on that trench now
7:18 wow sandy soil without large rocks. Can't do that in North Texas, about 4" below grade you hit rocks (not little rocks either) and then 5" down you into clay and rocks... 👍😁
Yeah, that's about all we have in Central FL. Digging is pretty easy unless you find tree roots