On Jul 7, 11:29*am, wrote:
Hello,
I have a desire to backup my refrigerator during power outages. Let's
say I buy a generator with sufficient power to do so. *A whole house
transfer switch is not appropriate because the small generator is
nowhere near big enough to handle the whole house. *The cord on the
refrigerator is very hard to get to because the refrigerator is built
in. *If I were to run the 12-2 line that currently runs from the
outlet to the breaker box into a new box containing a SPDT switch and
wire it to connect the hot wire from the outlet to either the original
breaker or a heavy duty extension cord plugged into the generator,
would that meet code? *(By code, I mean NEC, not local variations. *I
don't want to ask a local inspector if the answer is going to be "no
way".)

If the above is not acceptable, how about cutting the line running to
the refrigerator outlet and then installing an outlet near the breaker
box and a plug to connect them back together? *During a power outage,
I would remove the plug from the outlet and plug it into the extension
cord coming from the generator. *Would having a plug and outlet in the
line violate code?

Here's a crude attempt at an ascii drawing (please view with a fixed
width font): *== is 12-2 w gnd normal house wiring. *-- is the
refrigerator cord plugged into the outlet behind the refrigerator. *

Today:
Breaker-Box======================outletPlug-----Refrigerator

Idea #1:
Breaker-Box====SPDT-Switch=======outletPlug-----Refrigerator
* * * * * * * * * *||
* * * * * * * * * *||
* * * * * * * * * *||
* * * * * * * *Generator

Idea #2:
Breaker-Box===new-outletnew-plug====outletPlug-----Refrigerator * *

TIA for any advice,
Pat

If you are loosing power for long enough for a fridge to get warm then
I suggest you might as well get a generator that can supply you with
more power. I comfortably run my whole 3000 sqft house with the
exception of major appliance such as the hvac, electric oven, and
electric dryer off of a cheap 4400 watt generator. Since I only use
it for power outages I don't care that it won't last for thousands of
hours. You can get a used one for a few hundred dollars on craigs
list, a new one for 5 or 600.

I backfeed it and there are code compliant ways to do that. All you
need is a pair of breakers at the top of your main panel and a
mechanical lockout for the panel main. http://www.interlockkit.com/
I open the breakers to the major appliances I don't want to run. It
will run both my air handlers since I have gas heat.