# Interlock kit power question



## Dark Knight (Jan 6, 2016)

Robbie Rob said:


> Hey everyone,
> We install a lot of interlock kits for panels in residential houses. The question I get all the time is how can I tell when power comes back on. I wish I could install something that could give an indication light for buzzer to show when utility power has been restored.
> Any thoughts on this?


The lights will come back on. That’s how you know.


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## Robbie Rob (May 14, 2017)

What lights? The interlock kit control the whole panel with a portable generator.


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## Dark Knight (Jan 6, 2016)

Robbie Rob said:


> What lights? The interlock kit control the whole panel with a portable generator.


The street lights?


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## HackWork (Oct 2, 2009)

https://www.amazon.com/Reliance-Con...ocphy=9003489&hvtargid=pla-348785756387&psc=1


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## HackWork (Oct 2, 2009)

Robbie Rob, I hope you’re not stepping in on my territory :vs_mad:


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## sbrn33 (Mar 15, 2007)

Look at your neighbors house.


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## gpop (May 14, 2018)

That was one of the reasons i installed a 30 amp transfer switch instead of the panel interlock. 

When the power is out its hard in my area to find a reference light to tell if the power has been restored. My right hand neighbor is on a different power pole than i am and my left neighbor has a whole house generator i can not hear running. I kept going out after the storm (6 days) to see if the meter was powered up. I really didn't want to miss 5 minutes of ac as the house was hot as hell. 

Now i know that power has been restored as the ac will start and a few other circuits that are not backed up by the generator will come on. I looked for some type of buzzer but once you started to add up everything then the transfer seemed the best value for money especially as i do not have to teach the wife how to use it. (for some reason the interlock kit for my panel was the most expensive so that skewered the numbers more towards the transfer)


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## HackWork (Oct 2, 2009)

gpop said:


> That was one of the reasons i installed a 30 amp transfer switch instead of the panel interlock.
> 
> When the power is out its hard in my area to find a reference light to tell if the power has been restored. My right hand neighbor is on a different power pole than i am and my left neighbor has a whole house generator i can not hear running. I kept going out after the storm (6 days) to see if the meter was powered up. I really didn't want to miss 5 minutes of ac as the house was hot as hell.
> 
> Now i know that power has been restored as the ac will start and a few other circuits that are not backed up by the generator will come on. I looked for some type of buzzer but once you started to add up everything then the transfer seemed the best value for money especially as i do not have to teach the wife how to use it. (for some reason the interlock kit for my panel was the most expensive so that skewered the numbers more towards the transfer)


The most I have ever seen an interlock cost is $150 plus $10 shipping from interlockkit.com, but I have other sources of solid and listed interlocks for half that if anyone is interested. Send me pics of the panel and I will find you an interlock. Even at the high price of $160, it is less than a 6 circuit transfer switch, which sucks.

I install a lot of interlocks for women and they never have an issue. I used to put red stickers next to breakers that they should shut off, but stopped doing that because they reported that they never had to shut them off, it all ran fine for them.

As for knowing when the power comes back on, Reliance has made the alarm that I linked to for at least 6-7 years, that's when I first started selling them.


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## mikewillnot (Apr 2, 2013)

Robbie Rob said:


> how can I tell when power comes back on. I wish I could install something that could give an indication light for buzzer to show when utility power has been restored.
> Any thoughts on this?


Put the critical circuits in a sub panel and put the interlock on that panel.


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## Cow (Jan 16, 2008)

Robbie Rob said:


> Hey everyone,
> We install a lot of interlock kits for panels in residential houses. The question I get all the time is how can I tell when power comes back on. I wish I could install something that could give an indication light for buzzer to show when utility power has been restored.
> Any thoughts on this?



Does your area have smart meters installed?


See if the display is lit up.


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## HackWork (Oct 2, 2009)

Cow said:


> Does your area have smart meters installed?


Mine does. Why? Is there something that can connect to it? Tell me, tell me! I feel like a kid on Christmas :biggrin:


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## Bird dog (Oct 27, 2015)

HackWork said:


> Mine does. Why? Is there something that can connect to it? Tell me, tell me! I feel like a kid on Christmas :biggrin:


Still trying to figure out how to get your refrigerator to make a rum & coke for you on the way home thru your smart phone? :biggrin:


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## Cow (Jan 16, 2008)

Bird dog said:


> Still trying to figure out how to get your refrigerator to make a rum & coke for you on the way home thru your smart phone? :biggrin:



You know, just this morning I was looking on Amazon to find a replacement electric toothbrush(a sonic care, which was recommended by my dentist), and they have toothbrushes now that communicate with apps on your phone.


I could only think, "if a toothbrush needs an app, what's next?"


I didn't even bother to see what the app was for, I'm sorry, but I don't need smart technology in my toothbrush. They put it in our TV's and phones now, and now I have to randomly power cycle both of those every once in a while when they freeze up. 



All I know is, phones and TV's didn't use to freeze up before all this technology was added to them....


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## WronGun (Oct 18, 2013)

Robbie Rob said:


> Hey everyone,
> We install a lot of interlock kits for panels in residential houses. The question I get all the time is how can I tell when power comes back on. I wish I could install something that could give an indication light for buzzer to show when utility power has been restored.
> Any thoughts on this?




Power return alarm.. 

Easy 199- optional accessory on all my estimates 

Along with whole house surge suppressors and analog or digital watt meters. 

The extras often allow you to bid competitively and then end the job with much larger profit. 

75% go for the alarm , I would say 40% go for surge suppression 


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## HackWork (Oct 2, 2009)

WronGun said:


> Power return alarm..
> 
> Easy 199- optional accessory on all my estimates
> 
> ...


Which alarm do you use? $199 for the one I linked to?

Oh and you should also add emergency battery lighting to your upsell list, that’s pretty much the only one I use anymore. A $13 LED bugeye battery light mounted by the panel. Sometimes one in the garage too. Even did a few on the wall of the basement stairwell.


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## WronGun (Oct 18, 2013)

HackWork said:


> Which alarm do you use? $199 for the one I linked to?
> 
> 
> 
> Oh and you should also add emergency battery lighting to your upsell list, that’s pretty much the only one I use anymore. A $13 LED bugeye battery light mounted by the panel. Sometimes one in the garage too. Even did a few on the wall of the basement stairwell.




Good idea !

Yes the link you showed me , I’ve sold lots of them.


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## CTshockhazard (Aug 28, 2009)

HackWork said:


> Oh and you should also add emergency battery lighting to your upsell list, that’s pretty much the only one I use anymore. A $13 LED bugeye battery light mounted by the panel. Sometimes one in the garage too. Even did a few on the wall of the basement stairwell.



JFC, being the idiot that I am I've always gone out of my way to stress having a flashlight handy with fresh batteries. The whole time I could have been selling them the "flashlight".



That spiel will now be replaced with that upsell, thanks!


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## WronGun (Oct 18, 2013)

I’ll sell them emergency backup fixtures... bedrooms, kitchen, living room.....let’s take it further and up-sell exit signs... yaaaa buddy 


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## HackWork (Oct 2, 2009)

CTshockhazard said:


> JFC, being the idiot that I am I've always gone out of my way to stress having a flashlight handy with fresh batteries. The whole time I could have been selling them the "flashlight".
> 
> 
> 
> That spiel will now be replaced with that upsell, thanks!


Yeah, it's super easy. I just come out of the panel or any outlet/light switch nearby. $20 in material and 20 minutes of work for $150-200.


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## paulengr (Oct 8, 2017)

WronGun said:


> I’ll sell them emergency backup fixtures... bedrooms, kitchen, living room.....let’s take it further and up-sell exit signs... yaaaa buddy
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk




$20 buys you a glow in the dark sticker with 8 hour life that is a legal exit sign and takes 2 minutes to “install”.


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## L J (Sep 28, 2018)

@HackWork

I have been asked "how will I know when the power is back?" multiple times and the product you linked sounds like it works. 

Have any of you ever used it on a flush mounted panel? If so, how did you mount the alarm? It doesn't seem practical to use the 1/2" connector it comes with.

Thanks in advance.


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## HackWork (Oct 2, 2009)

L J said:


> @HackWork
> 
> I have been asked "how will I know when the power is back?" multiple times and the product you linked sounds like it works.
> 
> ...


This device is rather large so sometimes finding a KO with enough clearance around it is hard. The same goes for flushmounted panels. So in those instances I have just ran the cable thru a plastic button connector and mounted the device to the wall with some doublesided tape. 

If you want to make it really neat you can always mount it to a handybox and then run some type of short flexible raceway into the panel.


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## lighterup (Jun 14, 2013)

...you guys...:vs_laugh:

Per OP's Q...

get a $5.00 120 volt indicator light...

Use a uni-bit and drill a hole somewhere , anywhere , on the top
of the main breaker panel to match the diameter of the indicator light.

In your main breaker panel , on one of the line side feeder lug , 
land the little black wire in there with your feeder.

Land the white neutral on the neutral bar.

When the power comes back on , the indicator light will come back on.

:vs_OMG::vs_OMG:Lighter Up's double tapping!


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## B-Nabs (Jun 4, 2014)

lighterup said:


> ...you guys...:vs_laugh:
> 
> Per OP's Q...
> 
> ...


Throw in an inline fuse and it's almost legal! 

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## lighterup (Jun 14, 2013)

legal shmeagel


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## WronGun (Oct 18, 2013)

Are there any other power back alarms or smart devices? 

I have a situation where the client has exotic pets where the panel is and doesn’t want a 105db alarm on that room. 


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## splatz (May 23, 2015)

WronGun said:


> Are there any other power back alarms or smart devices?
> 
> I have a situation where the client has exotic pets where the panel is and doesn’t want a 105db alarm on that room.


I looked at the PowerBack device, it is nice because it's non-contact battery operated device. If you don't mind doing some electronic arts and crafts, you could definitely modify that device to relocate the speaker. 

It works with a current sensor you wrap around a service conductor. (This does make me wonder a little, if the interlock transfers everything to the generator, what current would be flowing for it to sense? Wouldn't you want it to alert on presence of voltage, not current?) 

But you could install a current switch on the service conductor, have that operate the coil of a relay, and power a doorbell with the contacts. 

You could go higher tech and monitor that switch with any number of smart systems, and get notifications from an app, text message, or a million other things - if you trust the other components of the smart system will be running during the outage (cellular service, internet service, etc.).


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## WronGun (Oct 18, 2013)

splatz said:


> I looked at the PowerBack device, it is nice because it's non-contact battery operated device. If you don't mind doing some electronic arts and crafts, you could definitely modify that device to relocate the speaker.
> 
> 
> 
> ...




I’ve installed a number of these and they seem to work by testing voltage not current. I could be wrong, but many times I’ve had all branch circuit OCPD’s off and the main would trigger alarm with no load.

It seems to be nothing but a tick tester. 

Yes , I could run some speaker wire and relocate the just the speaker. Maybe , if it’s not too much headache. 


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## HackWork (Oct 2, 2009)

The main is off so no current will flow even if the branch circuit breakers are on.

I too thought it was just a tick tracer type device which alarmed on the presence of voltage.


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## Naman Verma (Mar 22, 2018)

Hey There....
You can use the Timer in the panel which will work in this way if there is power cut and when after the cut when power restores the supply after the energy meter will get into the house after several seconds and before the timer you can use the buzzer or indicators .
Good Luck....


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## HackWork (Oct 2, 2009)

Naman Verma said:


> Hey There....
> You can use the Timer in the panel which will work in this way if there is power cut and when after the cut when power restores the supply after the energy meter will get into the house after several seconds and before the timer you can use the buzzer or indicators .
> Good Luck....


What?


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## readydave8 (Sep 20, 2009)

HackWork said:


> What?


need chandigarhish-english translation:wink:


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