Plug your appliances into the generator with heavy-duty extension cords made for outdoor use. Each cord’s rating has to be higher than the total watts of everything plugged into it, and the cords have to be long enough to keep the generator outside, far from windows, doors and vents. Never plug the generator into a wall outlet.
Carbon monoxide
Generator exhaust contains carbon monoxide, which you can’t see or smell. Run a portable generator outdoors only, at least 20 feet from the home and far from windows, doors and vents, with the exhaust pointed away from buildings. Never run one inside a home, garage, basement, crawlspace or shed, even with the doors and windows open.
Put battery-operated carbon monoxide alarms, or plug-in alarms with battery backup, in your home, following the alarm maker’s instructions, and test the batteries monthly. If you feel sick, dizzy or weak while a generator is running, get to fresh air right away.
Choosing the cords
- Heavy-duty and made for outdoor use. A W in the letters on the jacket is the outdoor (weather) rating. Check the cord or its tag for the outdoor marking too. See what the letters on an extension cord mean.
- Rated for more watts than everything plugged into that cord adds up to. The rating is on the cord’s tag or packaging. If the tag gives amps, turn the total watts into amps with the watts to amps calculator. You can type a sum there, such as 1500 + 800 + 60.
- Grounded, with all three prongs on the plug.
- Free of cuts, tears and fraying along the whole length.
A shorter cord with heavier wire loses less voltage between the generator and the appliance. For the gauge, use the extension cord gauge chart.
Where it’s wet or damp, use GFCI protection. Extension cords with a GFCI built in are sold at hardware stores. In wet weather, keep the generator dry under an open, canopy-like structure, on a dry surface where water can’t reach or puddle under it, still outdoors and away from windows and doors, and dry your hands before touching it.
Never into a wall outlet
Plugging a generator into a wall outlet to power the house wiring is called backfeeding. It can electrocute utility workers and neighbors served by the same utility transformer, and it bypasses some of the house’s built-in circuit protection.
Connecting a generator to a home’s wiring takes a transfer switch installed by a qualified electrician.
Don’t overload the generator. Overloading can make it overheat, which is a fire hazard.