smo Posted September 17, 2008 Share Posted September 17, 2008 I might be requiring power in a workshop with no power soon - what are my options for providing power to run compressor/small welder (150A) and other usual workshop gubbins?? Are diesel genny's best, what size do i need, are the portable ones on eBay any good??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete3000 Posted September 18, 2008 Share Posted September 18, 2008 If you are looking to do all this at once you will need a 7kva-10kva set. 3hp just about works on a 13amp plug (150amp welder). compressor again 3hp. If you need lights and a kettle you may need more juice. silenced sets are worth considering if you don't want to upset the neighbours. Have you thought about a road towed diesel compressor/welder/generator. This may fit your final bill better than buying seperate components. Plenty about on ebay, dont buy the cheapest lombardini/lister older sets as they aren't silent. Only disadvantage is that if it packs in you have lost all three. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smo Posted September 18, 2008 Author Share Posted September 18, 2008 Well i already have my tools so only really need a Genny - 10Kva is a LOT of juice. I'm only running 1 but of kit at a time so didnt think i'd need tooo much??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sotal Posted September 18, 2008 Share Posted September 18, 2008 I think my father in laws is 7kva and it just runs the welder, I'd say it was on the limit though. Works well with the grinder etc but his isn't silent and makes quite a noise. A 10kva would be perfect but a 7kva should just do the job Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FridgeFreezer Posted September 18, 2008 Share Posted September 18, 2008 Bear in mind most things are not pure in the way they consume power, an electric motor will take a big startup kick, many times more than it uses when it's running - especially if it has to start under load. There's a guideline which is something like to start a 1hp motor you need about 2-3hp worth of power, I'm sure an adult will be along in a minute. You can get some quite neat towable gennys, we used some ~10kVa ones recently that were pretty quiet, small, and light enough to manhandle about on rough ground with one pair of hands. They turn up used on eBlag quite regularly. You could always try-before-you-buy and hire one locally for a few quid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonr Posted September 18, 2008 Share Posted September 18, 2008 I have a 3kva silenced 'Kipor' generator which I use at shows. However, during power cuts, I've used it to run all kinds of stuff including my welder. It might not be able to drive the welder at full power - but in practice, I've only used it on full power once! It's petrol, fairly economical and is of an 'inverter' design which spits out a true sine wave - so will run motors. The Kipor generators come in red and yellow cases. The red ones spit out a 'modified sine wave' which will not run a motor happily. The yellow ones are very good. The set never fails to start (it has a copy of a Honda engine inside which apparently takes standard Honda parts) and compared to most generator users - it has had a lot of use. Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BogMonster Posted September 19, 2008 Share Posted September 19, 2008 We have a 7kva Lister TS2 trailer generator on the farm which I used to use in the garage years ago before we installed a 12kva dedicated generator, and the 7kva was enough to run the welder but not with much in reserve. I would look for an ex MOD cast sale trailer generator, thats where ours came from and IIRC it was pretty cheap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Posted September 20, 2008 Share Posted September 20, 2008 Probably bigger than you are looking for, but ex-utilities backup generateors can be had for sensible cash, and they have very little hours on them. Often they are diesel too, so you can run them on red... We have a 20kVA 3phase one that came out of a telephone exchange, that we use to run our bus lifts, and the welder has never bothered it. As I say, bigger in all ways than what you are looking for, but may be a good direction to look... hth Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trapper Posted September 29, 2008 Share Posted September 29, 2008 I might be requiring power in a workshop with no power soon - what are my options for providing power to run compressor/small welder (150A) and other usual workshop gubbins??Are diesel genny's best, what size do i need, are the portable ones on eBay any good??? I have always been told when I asked about using a generator for welding, that it is not a good idea. I was advised by a number of people that the electrical spikes that comes with welding kills generators. So I never bought one. Worth investigating before hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paddy_SP Posted October 25, 2008 Share Posted October 25, 2008 I have a little-used 7.5KVA 3-phase genny in an acoustic box that I'm considering selling... I bought it to run some large textile machinery (my business is the development of blast-mitigation and ballistic-protection textiles), but then found that it wouldn't work with the equipment's complex control systems... I thought I'd hang on to it as a back-up unit, but haven't needed it in over 3 years, so would rather have the space. I paid £750 for it, and would just like my money back - shout if it's of interest! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pinny Posted October 25, 2008 Share Posted October 25, 2008 we have a diesel 10kva genny and a 6kva petrol the petrol generator although 4kva less produces a more constant power especially for welding and is a lot better when you strike arc than the diesel anyone else experienced this or is it just me, chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BogMonster Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 I have always been told when I asked about using a generator for welding, that it is not a good idea. I was advised by a number of people that the electrical spikes that comes with welding kills generators. So I never bought one.Worth investigating before hand. The best generators are the old sort with brushes, there is some truth in the fact that generators don't like welders but it is the newer brushless alternators with an electronic AVR (automatic voltage regulator), the 20+ year old Lister HR2 brushed generator in the farm workshop is quite happy with welding though I guess they will be getting pretty thin on the ground these days! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RangeyRover Posted October 30, 2008 Share Posted October 30, 2008 depends how much you want to spend. This looks good at 8.5 KVA 3 phase Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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