This is a followup to the Fire Protection post, where I contemplated using my petrol generator to power my water pump in a fire emergency, rather than using a separate petrol powered fire pump.
I have tested my generator with the main electric water pump, and it works fine. I turned on the sprinklers, and the fire hose outlets, and the generator was able to drive the pump.
So, this saves us about $900. I actually think its a better solution because both the pump and generator are ‘on demand’, rather than permanently on like a fire pump. With the fire pump, once its on, then you are pumping water, even if you don’t need it right then. With the electric pump, it come’s on when the line pressure drops. And, the generator can run in ‘eco’ mode for about 6-8 hours on one tank of fuel – much better than a fire pump.
My water pump is quite sizable for a domestic pump – its a 2kva pump, and its water output is comparable to the fire pump we would have bought.
So, we will go with that till someone convinces me otherwise.