Fields

Title	How Do I Shut Down My Generator When It’s Powering My House (During an Outage)?

URL Name	How-Do-I-Shut-Down-My-Generator-When-It-s-Powering-My-House

Content

Public Answer

Read the manual thoroughly and understand all of the instructions, cautions, and warnings before using this equipment. If any section of the manual is not understood, contact your nearest authorized dealer, or contact Generac Customer Service at 1-888-436-3722 (1-888-GENERAC), or www.generac.com with any questions or concerns.

Shutting the generator down during an outage

When running the unit during a long-term outage, it is vital to shut the unit down every 24 hours to do a visual inspection of the unit and add any fluids it might need. Allow the unit to cool down for 30 minutes after 24 hours of continuous run per the owner's manual.

Environment

This article applies to Generac home standby generators. To see this procedure for portable generators, see the How should I safely shutdown and power up my portable generator? article.

Shut down procedure

IMPORTANT – To avoid equipment damage, follow these steps in order during utility outages.

Video Instructions

Important: After flipping the breaker to remove loads from the generator, allow the generator to continue running without loads for a minimum of 5 minutes, then allow the generator to cool for an additional 5 minutes. Immediate shutdown after running under load can cause damage to engine components.

Written Instructions

It is very important to remove the load (devices and equipment pulling power from the generator) prior to shutting it down.

1. Set the main utility disconnect to OFF (OPEN).
2. Set the generator MLCB (generator disconnect) to OFF (OPEN).
3. Allow the generator to run without load for a minimum of 5 minutes.
4. At the controller, set the generator to OFF. Then allow the generator to cool down for additional 5 minutes.
5. Remove the 7.5A fuse from the controller.

Once the generator is safely shut down, continuous maintenance checks should be done: Continuous use maintenance for home standby generators

Turning the Generator Back On

1. Install a 7.5A fuse in the controller.
2. Confirm the generator MLCB (generator disconnect) is OFF (OPEN).
3. At the controller, set the generator to AUTO mode.
4. The generator will start and run. Allow the generator to run and warm up for a few minutes.
5. Set the MLCB (generator disconnect) to ON (CLOSED).
6. Set the main utility disconnect to ON (CLOSED).

The system now operates in automatic mode.

After completing these steps, the control panel may go through the initial setup menus. All of the settings should be held, simply hit Enter (or make any adjustments needed) and get to the main screen. Switched to off, hours of protection or system will be flashing.