Generator size

[masseyman74]

I was woundering if any one could give me some advice on generators. I am looking for a remote start generator that needs to power lights for a 60x45 shed. The lights that I will put in will be led but haven’t decided on which ones yet. I may also want to boil a kettle as my house is a few miles away from the shed. I have absolutely no idea on what size is required. So any help will be very much appreciated.

 

[Lincs Lass]

LEDs wont use much juice ,A kettle needs 2.5-3 kv ,,are you planning on power tools ,welders ect

 

[masseyman74]

I think the only power tools will be a pressure washer. Sheep shears. I won’t be doing any welding in the shed.

 

[Lincs Lass]

Hot washer needs a 3 kv ,cold ,half that ,,sheap shears are next to nowt ,,maybe a 350-500w motor ,,I would say an 8 -10 kv would be adequate ,covers all the bases ,,not like you will be running everything at once .

 

[steveR]

I was woundering if any one could give me some advice on generators. I am looking for a remote start generator that needs to power lights for a 60x45 shed. The lights that I will put in will be led but haven’t decided on which ones yet. I may also want to boil a kettle as my house is a few miles away from the shed. I have absolutely no idea on what size is required. So any help will be very much appreciated.

From what you describe, a small and cheap 2kw gennie will do your power needs. Drop the power washer and you'll get away with battery and solar panels, or a little 600W* generator for the lighting/shearer.

Get a camping gas stove for your tea... Let you have one for nowt if passing...

*Lidl do them a couple of times/year. About 70-80 quid. Not remote start mind...

 

[masseyman74]

Brillant many thanks for that advice. No I won’t be using lots of things at the same time.

 

[steveR]

PS. Based on my experience, avoid LED strip lights... I had my farm buildings rewired 2 years ago and had several of them put. Flakey and unreliable and bloody expensive!

I am now reverting to CFL's or LED floods which are as a cheap as chips

 

[masseyman74]

From what you describe, a small and cheap 2kw gennie will do your power needs. Drop the power washer and you'll get away with battery and solar panels, or a little 600W generator for the lighting/shearer.

Get a camping gas stove for your tea... Let you have one for nowt if passing...

I did think about putting up led lights on the side of the shed instead of up high and run them off a leisure battery. But some people don’t think the battery would last that long?

 

[steveR]

Hot washer needs a 3 kv ,cold ,half that ,,sheap shears are next to nowt ,,maybe a 350-500w motor ,,I would say an 8 -10 kv would be adequate ,covers all the bases ,,not like you will be running everything at once .

Thats a big old gennie from what the OP described he needed to run.

I've run my house on 3.5kw gennie in an emergency for 4-5 days!

 

[steveR]

I did think about putting up led lights on the side of the shed instead of up high and run them off a leisure battery. But some people don’t think the battery would last that long?

I have a building away from power (at present) and have cheap 12V LED floods run off a battery. No panel as it is easy to swap a fencing battery as required and charge it overnight. Drain can easily be calculated based on the draw of the lamps.

All I will say is 3-4 10w lights give good illumination. The larger floods are in my view better left, and go for my smaller ones along the wall. Easy job to wire up as you can daisy chain them with a bit of lighting flex. Does depend a bit on what you need the lighting for I guess. Mine is to assist with calving/lambing wen needed

 

[masseyman74]

Mine will be for lambing. I only have about 30 ewes because I don’t own that much land. The reason I thought of a generator with remote start as I am in a wheelchair so thought I could start the generator via a remote and the lights would be on ready for me. I have left it quite late to sort this out as I’m due to start lambing at the end of the month.

 

[ewald]

Pressure washers take a bit of load to start - I have a smallish single phase cold washer which occasionally blows 13a fuses on startup. I would go for an old 5 or 6 kva genny with a Yanmar diesel - built to last, will boil your kettle and run the odd power tool

 

[steveR]

Mine will be for lambing. I only have about 30 ewes because I don’t own that much land. The reason I thought of a generator with remote start as I am in a wheelchair so thought I could start the generator via a remote and the lights would be on ready for me. I have left it quite late to sort this out as I’m due to start lambing at the end of the month.

Understand the need for a remote then Not sure how "remote" you want to be for startup?

Maybe a battery powered LED lamp, switched with a PIR to allow you into the shed, then use a electric start gennie?