Picking up a portable generator to temporarily restore power to your home during a prolonged outage is one thing, getting the juice to flow safely into the house is another.

Jon Hoch, founder of a ElectricGeneratorsDirect.com, an online retail outlet for generators, says recent hurricanes have knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of homes in the Gulf Coast. Record sales of portable generators indicate the appliance is the power remedy of choice for many who want to turn on the lights before the utility company gets around to it.

Extension cords are often the delivery system of choice to get the juice from the generator to the item needing power, but not always the best choice.

Properly gauged extension cords typically can supply power from the generator to one or a few specific items. Simply place the generator outdoors and run extension cords to the chosen appliance.

The problem with extension cords is they can't be plugged into a furnace, well pump or ceiling-light fixture, among other hard wired items.

Also, if the cords are too long or not the proper gauge, it could damage the generator or the appliance, or worse.

"Look on the cord to see amperage rate. The portable generator won't tell you and if you plug in an undersized extension cord, the electricity going through the cord will create friction that can get so hot it will melt the insulation on the cord and start a fire," said Cincinnati, OH-based Tim Carter, master contractor and publisher of AskTheBuilder.com.

All-weather cords, to plug into the generator's 20- or 30-amp outlet, are available in a style that splits into three 120-volt outlets into which to plug appliances.

A safer approach is to hire a licensed electrician (if you can find one in a blacked out area) to install a power transfer system that redistributes power from the generator to the home's circuit box without creating "back feed" which can injure utility workers working to restore grid power.

Such power transfer system can cost from a few hundreds of dollars to more but they reduce the need for multiple extension cords running from the generator to specific appliances.

"The idea is to keep separate the two power sources (the generator's power and power from the grid) to eliminate back feed. There are double pole, double throw switches to install dedicated to certain circuits you want to feed during a power outage," said Gus Kanakis, an electrician and owner of Anchor Electric in San Jose, CA.

"A lot of people think they can back feed the dryer outlet by plugging in a cord (from the generator) into the dryer outlet and then you have lights and you are generating power, but so is the local utility and that can wreak havoc," said Kanakis.

The system is installed beside the main electrical panel and connected to the circuits necessary to run during a blackout. When the power goes out, crank up the generator and run a single power cord from it to the transfer switch.

"Once the generator is running, you can choose which appliances and circuits you want to use by simply flipping the switches," said Hoch.

It's important to keep track of what's being powered, warns Hoch, because the transfer switch is often wired into more circuits than the generator can actually handle all at once.

"A typical power transfer system installation will take less than two hours and cost around $150-$300," said Hoch.

"But it's an investment that will be fully appreciated the next time the power goes out," he said.

Published: November 3, 2005

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A journalist for 35-years, Broderick Perkins parlayed an old-school daily newspaper career into a digital news service offering editorial content and consulting services. Perkins' San Jose, CA-based DeadlineNews Group includes the flagship news site, DeadlineNews.Com, offering real estate, personal finance and consumer journalism, and a backshop, the Deadline Newsroom.