3 Reasons for Using a Transfer Switch with Your Generator

While automatic transfer switches are most often used with standby generators, they can also be used with portable generators that have electric starters. Another option, if a portable generator is being used for backup power, is to install a manual transfer switch.

Whether you have a standby or a portable generator, there are several reasons to incorporate a transfer switch. Here are three of the big ones:

1) A transfer switch eliminates the need for numerous extension cords – Rather than running extension cords through the house, a transfer switch allows for appliances to be powered by the home’s circuitry.

2) You can power up your hard wired items – Furnaces, air conditioners, lighting and other appliances in many cases cannot be hooked up to a generator with an extension cord. They can be powered through the home’s circuitry if a transfer switch is in place.

3) Using a transfer switch is only way to safely connect your generator directly to the circuits in the home – Transfer switches effectively separate generated power from electricity coming from the main. This prevents back-feeding, which can occur when power is returned and the excess electricity coming from the generator is transmitted back to the power lines. Back-feeding can both start fires and cause severe injury via electrocution of people working on power lines.

While having a generator will allow you many benefits during an outage, installing a transfer switch can add an extra layer of convenience as well. The safety of transfer switches is another benefit, the value of which is impossible to calculate.

3 Tips on Preventing the Theft of Your Snowblower in the Offseason

As the owners of snowblowers may be getting ready to put their machines in storage and forget about them until the first snowfall of the next season, there are several measures that should be taken to prevent the theft of what is for many people a substantial investment. Additionally, these measures can also make it far more difficult for thieves to steal anything else that may be stored nearby.

These measures include:  

* Storing snowblowers in a space that is attached to the home – Thieves are far less likely to steal from a storage area, such as a garage, that is attached to the home than one that is a distance from it. As far as thieves are concerned, the lower the likelihood of running into the people that live in the home, the more interesting the target becomes.
* If you’re storing a snowblower and other equipment in a separate shed, make sure it’s locked up – A storage space that is surrounded by a backyard fence is the best way to go, especially if you have dogs in the backyard as well. Secure the storage shed with a key access, a dead bolt, a padlock or a combination of the three.
* Light your storage area – Regardless of the target, lighting it up will discourage thieves. You can use either a lighting system that operates on a timer or motion-activated lights. Either way, make sure that your lighting cannot be reached by someone standing on the ground as reachable lights provide the opportunity to disconnect them and work in the dark.

Follow these tips and thieves that might have been interested in your snowblower will seek other targets that provide a better environment for theft.