putting the loader to work

[thebuildist]

The exciting news is that I have found a natural gas powered standby generator and transfer switch large enough to run my air conditioning and my critical electrical needs.

The unit weighs a little bit over 400 lb. And I initially loaded it onto my trailer pulling it up the trailer's ramp using a handcart.

But once I got up to the top of the ramp and leaned into it to pull, my feet slipped out from under me and the cart with the generator on it dropped right on my left calf muscle.

I'm fortunate that it hit the meat of the muscle and not the bone. If it had been the bone I think it would have broken. But as it is I just have a very sore and bruised left calf.

Once I got that sucker home , though, the hard part is behind me. Time to hook the counterweight up to the three-point, install the loader assembly, swap out the bucket for the pallet forks, and let the machine do the work for me.

Much, much better!

Bob

[propane1]

Your lucky Bob. Lucky you didn’t get hurt worse and lucky to have a loader to get it off the trailer.
That should work out great once all hooked up.
Reminds me to test fire my propane generator.

Noel

[Eugen]

Bob, glad to hear you did not get hurt. Natural gas generator, interesting. What does it have for engine?

[DavidBarkey]

Nice score Bob . Glad you didn't get hurt bad . No doubt you will still feel it for a few days . Eventually we want a fart gas house genny . What is the output of that one ?

[thebuildist]

It's made by generac, rated for 12,000 Watts on natural gas.

Generac makes their own engines, under the brand name OHVI. This one is a v-twin labeled 32hp. I don't know if that hp rating is on natural gas or on gasoline.

I haven't yet heard it run, but I'm assured that it was in perfect operating condition when it was pulled. I paid 650 for both the generator and the automatic transfer switch, which mounts indoors next to the main breaker box and has its own 10-slot breaker panel. I figure I can't go too far wrong at that price.

So next I have to run some 1" gas pipe to it so I can hear it run. And once I've done that, I'll pour the pad and hook up all the electrical.

The trickiest part that I can foresee is whether I have adequate gas pressure/flow to the unit. Especially if the furnace and water heater are both running at the same time. But all I can do is hook it up and see.

Bob

[propane1]

Big engine hp in that unit.

Noel

[Harry]

Glad to hear your leg didn’t break Bob and the generator got to its new home. I hope the rest of the install goes better. It will be a great improvement to your house. I know we love ours, especially when the power goes out. Harry

[thebuildist]

Plumbing parts are a lot cheaper online than they are in person and I need a bunch so I've ordered them.

While I'm waiting for them to come in I might as well get the new pad poured for the generator. It needs a 5 ft offset from the house based on how my windows are laid out. Two and a half feet by 4 and 4 1/2 ft, More or less 4 inches deep.

That calls for six bags of concrete 80 lb a piece. And I have to say this is the easiest unloading and transporting of concrete that I've ever done!

I'm getting a better feel for the loader's capability. I think it could raw lift at least another 3 or 400 lbs beyond the 480 that's on that pallet. But driving around, especially up and down hills, with the ground being as smushy as it is, is another matter. This load was fine, taken nice and easy. But I think about another 150 or 200 lbs would put it over the limit for driveability and maneuverability.

I suppose I could add another couple hundred pounds to the counterweight. That would probably make a huge difference.

And I may have to dial up the relief pressure on the orbital power steering valve. Because sitting still with a load like this, the wheels absolutely refuse to turn. It's fine if you're moving but sitting still the steering valve just bypasses. The first I need to establish what are the manufacturer's recommended limits. And it's kind of a pain to access.

Bob

[Chad]

Glad this portion of the install went better for you Bob, and no serious injuries. It'll be a great addition once you're finished. Nice to see the loader in action!

Sent from my Pixel 4a using Tapatalk

[Eugen]

Bob, do you think adding the poor man steering bearings would help?