m Ransley wrote:

With a transfer panel you wont have the possibility of making a mistake
with the wrong circuits open. The 2 watt meters allow you to know the
load. A 6 circuit should cost 4-500 installed complete, the Generac kit
even has the exterior box, cable , sockets and plugs, it is pre wired
for HO instalation.

Knowing the exact load is far less important than you might think,
knowing what is on which circuit is far more important. If you
accidentally overload the generator you just pop a circuit breaker on it
or worst case stall it, annoying, but not a big deal.

The best thing you can do is map out every circuit in the panel and what
is on it normally. In my case I have a full CAD print of the house
layout with every outlet, appliance and fixture indicated along with the
circuit number it's on. Add in the data for the normal current draw on
that circuit and it will make load management very easy.

Generally you'll want to leave all of the lighting circuits on since
they typically represent very little load, particularly if you use a lot
of CF type lamps. The refrigerator and the circuit that covers your TV
would also typically be left on. Only large loads like well pumps,
furnaces and window A/C generally require load management.

Pete C.