Do You have The Right Generator for Your Farm?
Q&A WITH JEFF SHIPLET, CLEVELAND BROTHERS POWER SYSTEMS SALES ENGINEER
When it comes to agriculture applications, proper generator sizing is crucial to keep your poultry, cow, horse or pig farm, greenhouse and more running. But how do you know if you have the right-size generator for the correct amount of power needed? Jeff Shiplet,Cleveland Brothers Power Systems Sales Engineer, provides helpful insight into choosing a generator size that’ll keep your farm operations running smoothly.
Q: What is the first step in determining the size of the generator needed?
A: You should look at the size of your loads and the sequence in which they are being started. The general rule is to start your largest (or most difficult) load first. This is when the alternator has the most sKW and sKVA available. Cat® actually has sizing software – Cat Electric Power SpecSizer — that provides users with the ability to model the sequence and size accordingly.
Start thinking about how you, as the user, can step your loads, whether it’s through multiple Automatic Transfer Switches, controls or manually. The most important factor involved in sizing is load size, load stepping and load type.
Q: Are there any loads in the agriculture industry that are a challenge to size?
A: In many ag applications, your most challenging loads are large motor loads in pumps, fans or in processing equipment. How you start the motor plays a big part in generator sizing. Often, a small investment in a motor starter can save you considerable cost on the generator set. These devices work to limit current drawn at start up, thus reducing the size of your generator.
Again, the SpecSizer software from Cat allows the modeling of many different starter types.
Q: Why shouldn’t you buy a generator that’s too large?
A: If you buy a generator that is too large, you’ve wasted capital on a gen-set that is oversized. Also, it’s not always good to run a diesel gen-set lightly loaded; the engine can experience wet stacking.
Q: Now the opposite — why shouldn’t you buy a generator that’s too small?
A: You don’t want to undersize a generator. You’ll end up with a generator shutting down due to overload and this can cause damage. Pushing a generator to its limits can also cause power quality issues, resulting in sensitive loads tripping off line. You need your generator to be reliable, and when it’s too small, it’s not reliable.
Q: Now that we know how to choose the right size, are there any other features of generators that work well in agriculture applications?
A: Cat has many options and features that lend themselves well to ag. Cat units are designed specifically to meet the onsite demands of each unique application, like poultry, pig and dairy farms. These units have an enclosure design or have features specific to the engine, like air filtration for dusty places, that’ll work in each environment.
For more information on generator sizing for your unique application, contact your local sales rep for more information or call (866) 268-1717.