# Hybrid generator & battery bank system .



## Guest (Feb 16, 2011)

I have unlimited free natural gas from a well on my property . My furnace , dryer , range & water heater are gas . My electric bill isn't that much but due to the fact that I would like to be more energy independent I would consider an alternative energy system .
What I'm wondering now is if I invested in a good natural gas powered generator & bank of batteries & related equipment if I could power my home with the generator only running maybe a couple or three hours a day to recharge the batteries ? Running the dishwasher , clothes washer & dryer could be done while the generator is running anyway .
So far I haven't done much of anything about conserving electric but I could easily switch to more efficient light bulbs , eliminate some phantom loads & even eliminate the furnace blower by installing individual heaters . I might even consider a gas refrigerator or a super efficient electric one .
I am figuring a good generator only running a few hours a day should last several years & the same for a good battery bank kept properly charged & taken care of . I'm not located in a decent spot for solar panels so that idea is out . I also realize I'm talking several thousand dollars & if my electric bill stays as low as it is now I'll probably never break even . I'm looking for things to go downhill in this country for the next several years & who knows what might happen to electric rates or our obsolete grid . Also my dollars are steadily losing value .
I assume there is a way to calculate average electric usage & recharging time for the batteries so I could get a good idea of how much the generator would actually have to run ?
Thoughts & advice greatly appreciated .


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## Darren (May 10, 2002)

You're probably paying about nine cents per kwh. I'm in the same situation you are with natural gas. It doesn't make sense to me to add batteries and the electronics just to have the storage capacity represented by the batteries. I'd rather spend the money on a top shelf natural gas fired diesel generator and use it when needed. If everything really goes to hell and the grid goes down you can forget about TV and the internet.

At that point you want something that will crank out the power for hopefully a diminshed electric load. I'd like a generator that will run welders, machine tools, etc. I don't see being able to do that using any justifiable battery pack. It makes more sense to me to put my money into the diesel generator and forget the batteries and electronics.


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## TnAndy (Sep 15, 2005)

I'd disagree. 

Even with free fuel, you don't want to fire up a generator to be able to flip on a light, or run an egg incubator, or 15 dozen other small uses of power I could name.....which is EXACTLY what you would have to do without a battery bank. 

So, yes, a small bank....say few hundred amp/hrs, and a small inverter, say 1500w or so, make perfect sense to compliment a generator.

You can buy really good batteries that will last 20 years if only lightly discharged between recharges. 

I picked up an AWESOME 1200amp/hr AGM ( sealed ) set that is 20 year rated from a cell phone company for less than a grand...do something like that, and you can go days between firing up the generator.

IF I had free natural gas, this is exactly the way I'd go....I wouldn't even LOOK at solar panels....but I don't, hence, my solar panels.


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## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

I like your term "our obsolete grid" . . . yup
very easy to be 'taken down'

Yes a good nat gas gen will run a 'long time'.. . . . . .

Yes batterys are available in *good*---*better*----*best* . . your $$$ choice . . . . .

No I don't want my 'very good' gen running in the middle of the night when all I need is a 40 watt light bulb to go to the bathroom.

You are to be envy-ed for having a unlimited supply of fuel.

Down the road I highly dought that you will regret spending the effort/buck for going as you mention............


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## TacticalTrout (Jan 7, 2010)

I am curious as this is two scenarios now that I have read about an unlimited supply of natural gas. If/when (choose your camp) everything went to hell will this well continue to supply gas? Does it require equipment to harvest the gas or anything or is it just a matter of some regulator and valves?


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## Guest (Feb 18, 2011)

Yes , my well will continue to produce gas . The gas in the well is under a great deal of pressure & I am tapped right into the line coming out of it . I have a valve that I can shut off if needed & I have a regulator in my line .


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## mightybooboo (Feb 10, 2004)

A gas genny with batteries,thats NICE!


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