OT- need a small 240v generator or means to step up a 120v to 240 genset.

stoneaxe · Apr 14, 2019

I am looking for a small 120/240 volt generator, about 2000 watt, or a means to step up a 120 volt to 240 volt, to power a well pump. This will be a portable unit,mostly to power up tools around the yard, but also as a well pump backup. Should I just buy a small 120 to 240 inverter, put it in the well house and use that? The well pump is a 1/2hp 240 single phase.

Rob F. · Apr 14, 2019

step up to a genny that has 240 outlet.

jmead · Apr 14, 2019

I have 2 Honda inverters, a little bigger at 5000 & 6500, also used for backup and tools. I’m very happy with the Hondas, nice and quiet and not bad on fuel.

I’m sure the day will come when you’ll wish you went bigger than 2000.

stoneaxe · Apr 14, 2019

I have a 5000 watt Honda inverter. It weighs a LOT, and is 120-240. It cannot be rolled across rough ground. I want something hand carry-able, to run tools in the back 40, but also to use as a backup to the Honda.

Comatose · Apr 14, 2019

Out at the property (middle of nowhere WV, nearest neighbor is a mile, no power, the "road" is an old logging right of way from 1900, no power) I have a generator and small solar setup, which is two 300W panels, two walmart 100ah deep cycle batteries and a 2500w inverter.

The solar is fantastic, and all told was pretty cheap. Certainly comparable in price with a honda inverter generator. Quiet, reliable, works whether you're there or not and doesn't require gas.

Put that on/in the well house, then just run extension cords from the well house wherever you need to go.

APD · Apr 14, 2019

You aren't going to find a 240v generator under 4 Kw...which means its not going to be one of those little portable "suitcase" types.
You could get two portable inverter generators and parallel them for 240 operation
Or you could use a step-up transformer for the well pump, this used to be common in off-grid solar homes where they only had 120volt inverters.

adama · Apr 14, 2019

APD said:
You aren't going to find a 240v generator under 4 Kw...which means its not going to be one of those little portable "suitcase" types.

Honda EU22I common as anything over here and 240V, have one as a backup power source mainly for the grandparents. Sweat little thing.

plastikdreams · Apr 14, 2019

adama said:
Honda EU22I common as anything over here and 240V, have one as a backup power source mainly for the grandparents. Sweat little thing.

Not offered over here...only thing offered is a parallel kit.

Rob F. · Apr 14, 2019

adama said:
Honda EU22I common as anything over here and 240V, have one as a backup power source mainly for the grandparents. Sweat little thing.

Everything is 240 over there isnt it? For household power anyway, no 120v like over here.

stoneaxe said:
I have a 5000 watt Honda inverter. It weighs a LOT, and is 120-240. It cannot be rolled across rough ground. I want something hand carry-able, to run tools in the back 40, but also to use as a backup to the Honda.

If the generator you have won't roll in the field it just needs better/bigger/fatter wheels.

john.k · Apr 15, 2019

Seems like you need to contact forum member Redlee before he scraps the 120 to 240 V transformer he is asking about.(tranny question?)

gustafson · Apr 15, 2019

My 3000 watt generator will NOT power my well pump.

It's a cheapie from Lowes bought 9 years ago, so it owed me nothing, but I think you will find the startup current with a column of water is larger than you think.

SteveBausch · Apr 15, 2019

The well pump is how far away from the house??

Or is it for a barn?

Leave the generator in the building, and use a transfer switch.

Personally, I doubt this situation is real.

If close enough for reasonable plumbing, then it’s close enough for a transfer switch or an extension cord.

Quit bothering us with theoretical stuff, please.

Dumpster_diving · Apr 15, 2019

An observation: I use an ancient Coleman Powermate 5,000 watt (continuous) generator with 240v output to drive a 2hp well pump. Cost $250 used and runs the pump just fine. Easy enough to throw in a cart and tow behind an ATV or lawn tractor or whatever to get to a remote well. That would be my recommendation.

A question: I too have looked for off-grid non-generator solutions. I have a 3 panel PV array and a couple of car batteries for storage. I've spent a ton of time on-line looking for inverters large-enough to put out 240v with anything close to enough power to drive the well. As far as I could tell there's virtually no practical way to affordably generate 240v at close to 5,000 watts to drive the well off-grid without a generator. The size/cost of a 240v inverter and battery bank sufficient to deal with the initial surge load of the well seems like the limiting factor ($2,000+ or more). Is anyone aware of a sub-$2,000 PV set-up capable of powering a 2hp well-pump?

Rob F. · Apr 15, 2019

Dumpster_diving said:
An observation: I use an ancient Coleman Powermate 5,000 watt (continuous) generator with 240v output to drive a 2hp well pump. Cost $250 used and runs the pump just fine. Easy enough to throw in a cart and tow behind an ATV or lawn tractor or whatever to get to a remote well. That would be my recommendation.

A question: I too have looked for off-grid non-generator solutions. I have a 3 panel PV array and a couple of car batteries for storage. I've spent a ton of time on-line looking for inverters large-enough to put out 240v with anything close to enough power to drive the well. As far as I could tell there's virtually no practical way to affordably generate 240v at close to 5,000 watts to drive the well off-grid without a generator. The size/cost of a 240v inverter and battery bank sufficient to deal with the initial surge load of the well seems like the limiting factor ($2,000+ or more). Is anyone aware of a sub-$2,000 PV set-up capable of powering a 2hp well-pump?

Grundfos sq flex pumps runs just fine off virtually any power you send to it, ac or dc, from something like 75v to 300v made specifically for solar or generator operation in remote locations, but work just fine using grid power as well.

Dumpster_diving · Apr 15, 2019

Rob F-

That's interesting. I'll have to check, but I'm pretty sure I have a Grundfos. Unfortunately I didn't focus on specifically what type of pump at the time I had it installed.

I'll go research, but are you saying there's a particular version of Grundfos (ex. a 'sq flex') designed for multiple voltages as well as A/C or D/C input...or that Grundfos pumps in general are pretty flexible in terms of accepting multiple power sources?

Much appreciated.

-DD

stoneaxe · Apr 16, 2019

SteveBausch said:
The well pump is how far away from the house??

Or is it for a barn?

Leave the generator in the building, and use a transfer switch.

Personally, I doubt this situation is real.

If close enough for reasonable plumbing, then it’s close enough for a transfer switch or an extension cord.

Quit bothering us with theoretical stuff, please.

Steve , I am not making this up.

I will spell out all the DETAILS. Do I need to provide photos, or will you require a site visit to ascertain these facts?

#1. I have - A- a well, B- a 5000 watt 240 volt generator, C- a pumphouse, D- a transfer switch.

#2- this combination works fine.

#3 -I have a stack of cedar 2x10's a 100 yards away I want to cut up.

I don't want to use a hand saw. The 5000 watt inverter generator is heavy.It would be damned near impossible to roll it over the field. Therefore, I want a light easily portable generator to use as a power source.
It would also be nice to have a BACKUP to the 5000 watt unit,to run the well, because where I live, things go wrong sometimes. Even Honda 5000 generators. And that is why I want a 120- 240 ability. We lose power here a lot, and sometimes it does not come back on for a while. 10 day's, once, in the snow.

Regarding the well- it is 50 deep, 1/2HP 240 volt pump.Not much water column.

Rob F. · Apr 16, 2019

SQ flex is a specific line of grundfos submersible pumps.

From the second link:

The Grundfos SQFlex solar pumps can be directly powered by solar or wind power or can be run on an inverter, a generator, a battery or the utility grid, or any combination of these sources. Virtually any source of power, 30-300 VDC and 90-240 VAC, can be used to run the pump. They can operate on a series string of PV modules with a total peak power voltage over 30 volts, but the pumps efficiency will be much higher at voltages over 100 VDC. SQFlex 3 and 6 pumps will fit into a 3" well.
Seven pump models can deliver from 2 gpm at 600 feet to 65 gpm at 20 feet of head with a 1 kilowatt solar array or less. Helical rotor pumps (models 3, 6 and 11) for high head applications and centrifugal pumps for low head applications assure a pump that is efficient for any use. The SQFlex has built-in protection from dry-running, overload and overheating.
The Whisper 200-150 V wind generator can be connected directly to an SQFlex pump.

SQFlex renewable energy solution – submersible pumping system | Grundfos

Grundfos Submersible Solar Well Pumps | Grundros SQFlex 11 SQF-2

rbent · Apr 16, 2019

Why not stop at the rental place and rent a 2kw Honda inverter and find a 120/240v transformer somewhere and see if the rental will start the 1/2hp pump. I'd be a little surprised if it couldn't.

On the inverters, fire it up and let it run with no load for 5-minutes to warm up, then you can hammer it. You'll probably have to flip the switch to take it out of Eco mode to start the pump though.

You could always get 2 of the 2kw units and the pair kit, tote one around to do small stuff and if you need to run the well you can pair them.

jim rozen · Apr 16, 2019

Do the honda inverter generators provide a good enough sine wave to run a transformer?

stoneaxe · Apr 19, 2019

rbent said:
Why not stop at the rental place and rent a 2kw Honda inverter and find a 120/240v transformer somewhere and see if the rental will start the 1/2hp pump. I'd be a little surprised if it couldn't.

On the inverters, fire it up and let it run with no load for 5-minutes to warm up, then you can hammer it. You'll probably have to flip the switch to take it out of Eco mode to start the pump though.

You could always get 2 of the 2kw units and the pair kit, tote one around to do small stuff and if you need to run the well you can pair them.

How would I do this? I was under the impression the units that advertise "pairing" just added more watts at 120v? If this was a plug and play method to get 240 it would be an attractive idea.

OT- need a small 240v generator or means to step up a 120v to 240 genset.

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