Generac 6852 Transfer Switch installed (to power my house from the Pro Power 240V plug)

[Thunder1809]

Thanks. Did you switch all breakers over to Square D to be uniform or just mix the Square D and Siemens for ones you wanted to replace/ swap out?

I did an intermix of Square D and Siemens. Looks a little inconsistent but that's about it.

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[Lilburnedbear]

Thanks makes sense.

 

[N8-G]

I've had this exact issue. I'm going to do my best to go through the steps to identify the problem below but it's possible I miss a step since I'm going by memory, which is not good. Be safe. Don't test a hot panel. Assume it's hot until you confirm it's not. You are testing for continuity, not current. Anyway...

The problem is there's a neutral touching ground somewhere when the switch is in the Generator Power position. It's that simple. You need to figure out where that is happening.

1. Make sure you lifted the correct neutral wires from your main panel. It would be an easy mistake to make to reroute the wrong wire, especially if your panel was full, like mine was.

2. Test continuity between the neutral bus and the ground bus in the switch panel with the switch in the Generator Power position. There should be no continuity.

3. If there's continuity between the ground bus and neutral bus in the switch panel, lift individual neutral wires from the neutral bus and test continuity between the individual neutral wire and the ground bus. There should be no continuity.

4. If you identify a circuit with continuity to the ground bus you have isolated the circuit where neutral and ground are touching. Figure out exactly what outlets/lights/etc. are on that circuit and start investigating. Unplug everything on the circuit and test again. If you still can't find it start inspecting outlets, light hookups, and whatever else is hooked up to that circuit. That's how I discovered a miswired fireplace fan.

If you are brave enough to face internet scrutiny, post photos of your installation here. If there's something that's screwed up it will be identified and you can address it.

Good luck! It's frustrating but if you are methodical, thorough, and safe you'll figure it out and be happy with the switch when it's put back together.

Just wanted to hop on here and say Thank You for this piece of gold. I have been trying to track down this problem for a couple of months and this post provided everything I needed to fix my issues. I found that one of the switches on a circuit I relocated to my Generac panel was in the same wall box as another circuit that was still on my main panel. The neutrals for both of those circuits were all connected together in that box. Once I separated them my truck does not trip and I can now power my critical loads if my power goes out. Thanks again!

 

[Maquis]

Just wanted to hop on here and say Thank You for this piece of gold. I have been trying to track down this problem for a couple of months and this post provided everything I needed to fix my issues. I found that one of the switches on a circuit I relocated to my Generac panel was in the same wall box as another circuit that was still on my main panel. The neutrals for both of those circuits were all connected together in that box. Once I separated them my truck does not trip and I can now power my critical loads if my power goes out. Thanks again!

Just an FYI for anyone who comes across this….neutrals from different branch circuits should never be connected together.

 

[Truckdriver1880]

carys98 thanks for posting this. I would not have found this solution without your post and it saved thousands in equipment costs.

 

[bmwhitetx]

I am considering this option and have a couple questions. My main 200A is absolutely full. So full it has a 50A breaker feeding a small 50A subpanel immediately to the left with (9) 15A circuits.

1. If I install the Generac and move over 8-10 circuits, can the existing breakers for those circuits in the main panel disappear?

2. If yes, then ideally I would replace the 50A sub-panel with the Generac and could use the 50A breaker to power the Generac instead of the sub-panel. Correct?

The sub-panel doesn't have the exact circuits I would want but I could move those back over to the main panel now that breaker space was free.

The sub-panel is right next to the main panel.

 

[DiveMan911]

I am considering this option and have a couple questions. My main 200A is absolutely full. So full it has a 50A breaker feeding a small 50A subpanel immediately to the left with (9) 15A circuits.

1. If I install the Generac and move over 8-10 circuits, can the existing breakers for those circuits in the main panel disappear?

2. If yes, then ideally I would replace the 50A sub-panel with the Generac and could use the 50A breaker to power the Generac instead of the sub-panel. Correct?

The sub-panel doesn't have the exact circuits I would want but I could move those back over to the main panel now that breaker space was free.

The sub-panel is right next to the main panel.

If I understand your question correctly…yes, General 6852 Transfer Switch panel could replace your sub panel. It would be the same 50 amp CB powering the Transfer Switch Sub Panel. As you had alluded…you can move circuits between the sub and main panel to give backup power to priority circuits.

 

[Pioneer74]

I've never seen so many tandem breakers installed in one panel in my life.

 

[bmwhitetx]

I've never seen so many tandem breakers installed in one panel in my life.

I inherited it from previous owner and said the same thing. Doesn't help that it has (8) 240V breakers (oven, cooktop, dryer, 3 A/C, subpanel, and EVSE (formerly a jacuzzi we had removed). The circuits they put on a single breaker are maddening. There are dedicated circuits for a countertop microwave, an ironing closet in the master BR, a TV cabinet, garbage disposal, a small pantry, etc.

 

[Henry Ford]

I've never seen so many tandem breakers installed in one panel in my life.

It's new code. Every outlet requires it's own breaker.

 

[Pioneer74]

It's new code. Every outlet requires it's own breaker.

We're gonna need a bigger boat.

 

[chl]

There is a YouTube video that explains how to use the ProPower On-Board, and a section about powering your house and needing a transfer switch that will transfer the neutrals so you don't have the GFCI on the truck popping and shutting things off.



And one about one way it was done.


From reading the manual for the Generac 6853+ they definitely switch the neutrals, but it has to be wired properly according to the instructions - disconnecting the both the hot and the neutrals for the circuit to be protected inside the house panel and rerouting them through the transfer switch.

I have seen some reviews that indicate there might be a quality control issue with some of the Generac transfer switches - or maybe they were just wired wrong, hard to tell.

I saw the Generac's for sale on Amazon, but always check the reviews of the seller especially, some are iffy.

This review of a transfer switch caught my eye since it was used with a Ford F-150:

We purchased a 2023 Ford F150 Powerboost. It has the capability to provide 7.2Kw of power from the bed of the truck. The Generac 6853 HomeLink Upgradeable 30 Amp Transfer Switch Kit allows us to plug in the 240v 30 amp service from the F150 to provide power in emergency situations. So living in Florida I have a generator that I can use anywhere power is needed. Great interface for power outages that occur.

Just be sure the electrician does everything correctly when installing it.

Do NOT solve the GFCI tripping by disconnecting the ground connection between the Lightning and the generator inlet to the transfer switch - that is a no-no code wise, AND it is hazardous too.

 

[Jodokk]

Excellent!

 

[thequackenbush]

This thread was an inspiration. The selling point of the lightning acting like a portable generator was amazing to me, but the price point of the home integration system was a no go

After reading through all this, had the install done the past two days. Ignore the panel labels; we also freed up a ton of space, identitied a bunch of unused circuits (house was built in the 30s) and cleared a bunch of room to install the FCSP


Love this truck

 

[Maquis]

This thread was an inspiration. The selling point of the lightning acting like a portable generator was amazing to me, but the price point of the home integration system was a no go

After reading through all this, had the install done the past two days. Ignore the panel labels; we also freed up a ton of space, identitied a bunch of unused circuits (house was built in the 30s) and cleared a bunch of room to install the FCSP


Love this truck

The cable/satellite guy(s) sure left a mess.

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