Lights That Go Dim in the Night

Have you ever noticed your living or family room lights dim for just a second or so when your refrigerator, AC or hvac unit or washing machine turns on? The dimming of the lights is caused by the reactive load of the major appliance that was starting up. Have you ever had to push a car? It takes a tremendous force to start it rolling. However, once it is rolling, the effort to keep it rolling is reduced. Electric motors and refrigeration compressors are no different.

The reactive loads can be double the running load! Wattage demand can soar! Unfortunately, you must account for this when sizing a generator. You will find out very quickly that if your power is interrupted, and you depend on a portable generator, the experience will remind you of a backpacking trip. You will have some fun, but for the most part your life will be miserable until the power is restored.

Portable electric generators are very nice. When I lost power for three days in a winter storm, my kids had fun for the first eight hours. You don't realize how much you depend on light bulbs, TV and even the toaster each day. It is also very depressing to go to bed at 7:30 p.m. when the sun goes down. Flashlights are no substitute for a table lamp. Buy as much generator as you can afford. You will never ever regret it!

You are going to be surprised in just a moment. Wait till you see how much electricity some common household appliances use on a regular basis. What's more important, machines or appliances that have a motor require a "push" to get them going. The extra electricity that is required to get the motor spinning or the compressor pumping can be significant. This extra electricity demand is called a reactive load. Once a motor is spinning, the load becomes an ordinary resistive load. Certain things in your house do not have reactive loads. Light bulbs, radios, electronic clocks and coffee makers are examples of things that do not have a reactive load.

When you decide to purchase a portable electric generator, you MUST size it keeping in mind the reactive loads of the things you will power. If you don't size your generator properly, it simply will not do the job. The generator will fail and/or your electrical appliances will suffer. Don't forget this important aspect of generator sizing.

The wattage draw of an appliance or tool is usually printed on a plate where you find model and serial number information. However, the manufacturer may make you do some math. Instead of watts being listed on the plate, you may find amps. Amps and watts are not the same thing, however, they are directly related to one another.

How Much Electricity Do Appliances Use? This chart from the U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Savers - Tips on Saving Energy & Money at Home booklet.

The following lists show appliances and tools you might find around your house or business. The first number after each name is the resistive Load. The second number that follows is the reactive load. The numbers listed are ordinary watts. Where there is no second number, there simply is no reactive load. An example of this is a light bulb. Once turned on, it is already at full power.