How to run temporary power to a furnace

How to run temporary power to a furnace in winter before permanent power is to the building. New construction only!

[@markbabcock40205]

Thanks for the video and ideas. My power is out indefinitely and it's March! Running a fridge and now the gas furnace blower. Gotta love KZbin!

[@sdavidjohnson44]

If you are not using a transfer switch always trip the main whole house breaker during a power outage before powering off a generator or portable power source.

[@daddylogan]

I would imagine all he has to do is kill the circuit the furnace is on and not the whole home becasue he has bypassed any backfeeding (he capped off what come from the fuse panel). If I were him I would set up an outlet and a switch for a permanent solution and tie in a pigtail to the furnace that plugs into the switch. That way he could just turn off the switch, unplug the furance from that switch and then plug the furnance right into an extention cord or an indoor battery backup system. But yeah...this is a totaly temporary solution for those who do not prepare.

[@FooFahFoeFum]

A sketch or a drawing is worth 2000 words. Thanks

[@BrunoPup]

As the title says Temporary. Perfect way of keeping pipes from freezing. If you live in an area prone to power outages and don't want the expense of a home standby generator. Consider a transfer switch. Recently installed one at my nephews house (yesterday). As we were cleaning up our mess a storm came thru. Power has been out for 24 hours now but got a quick test of our little project. Kept the fridge and sump pumps going. 7500 watt generator. More than enough to run gas furnace and fridge. Sump pump is a battery backup system so only had to keep the low watt charger plugged in. Would have preferred better circumstances to test, but all worked great. No water in basement no spoiled food.

[@neilbrookins8428]

If you replaced that switch with an outlet connected to the hot supply and kept the black plug cord as is, then you could easily move the plug back and forth as needed to power the furnace from any power source. I fail to see any benefit to having the furnace hard wired. It just makes hooking it up to temporary power more difficult. I know there is code requirement for hard wired. That doesn’t mean I have to agree with it.

[@innergoof19]

Homeowner's insurance could deny a claim if it's not up to code.

[@MrStukaju87d]

Thanks for this video. It came in handy during this blizzard 👍🏻👍🏻.

[@gybx4094]

This is a very safe and cost effective way to keep from freezing during an extended winter outage. Nice video.

[@mrsheftalia1743]

Great video! In your video you pigtailed all ground wires into one cap. I looked at it today and noticed that my ground wires weren't pigtailed together but rather screwed onto the metal box itself...where should I put the plug ground wire?

[@freestylette]

I was able to put them into the same pigtail because one of them was screwed to the box. I would suggest getting a short piece of wire that you can attach to the box, then tie in with the others.

[@johnnykurplutzo6789]

Mine sparked. Now I'm in trouble. Wish I saw your video before

[@victorlopez2143]

I'm looking to do the same setup for my furnace - Why when adding this switch the first time , why not add a single outlet to plug in your extension cord when using s genset ? thanks for the video...

[@markharris207]

Good video can you make a video on how to replace the switch

[@charliecarter3469]

I purchased a switch/outlet combo and want to install it so I could plug in the generator to the outlet for temp furnace power. Can someone please explain how? I know to shut off the breaker first. And I know the male to male is a no-no. Low voltage guy. Thx

[@wesley20991]

During a power outage, should the furnace and or main breaker be shut off before doing this, just wondering for when the power did come back on

[@freestylette]

Yes, please shut off your breaker before doing this.

[@mrsheftalia1743]

So basically black and white wire coming from supply line needs to be replace with 14 gauge cord and ground wire ties in with all other ground wires...right?

[@raymondgarafano8604]

Since you are doing this to keep the furnace going during an outage, why not do it the right way the first time?and put a clamp in the knock-out hole. There is a Gen/switch al made up to do this .

[@markmilliken4625]

I have a Miller oil furnace. Same applies?

[@GK9094]

Will the furnace run off the wall thermostat when a generator is being used as the power source?

[@freestylette]

Yes. It will use the thermostat as long as a thermostat is installed, even if you are on temporary power.

[@Jayson90210]

This is a newbie question because I may be faced with doing this in the next few hours. Couldn't I just throw the furnace breaker and then I wouldn't have to pull the wires off of the switch I could just leave them in place and connect the replacement cord as shown?

[@freestylette]

Seems like that could work, as long as you have enough room in the wire nuts to fit all the wires.

[@Jayson90210]

@@freestylette that makes sense..I believe I do. Thanks for the quick response Simon! We're expecting 50 to 60 mile an hour winds and power outages here in Michigan in the next 6 to 8 hours. I bought the pigtail cord you suggested at Lowe's and have the plate off of furnace switch and ready to wire it in if I have to. Thanks again man!

[@richardgreen811]

If you leave the cord on after power has been restored, you will have a plug hanging around with 120v to it. Very dangerous. Something like this could help. www.homedepot.com/p/Leviton-15-Amp-125-Volt-Straight-Blade-Grounding-Power-Inlet-Outlet-Gray-5278-CWP/301304898?cm_mmc=Shopping%7CG%7CBase%7CAll-Products%7CAll%7CAll%7CPLA%7c71700000014585962%7c58700001236285396%7c92700010802552412&gclid=Cj0KCQiAtvPjBRDPARIsAJfZz0r4RdbjFutAxDdra1G5EMNUtqyEx7xIbFbnr8cqvWd4M8VPLC_7TlsaAlytEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds But if you forget to unhook power from your generator and throw the breaker you can kill a lineman. They do make transfer switches just for single purposes that run around $75.

[@sinsagoodmansbrother]

Do you have to ground it?

[@freestylette]

Yes, but it should already be hooked to a ground. Leave that permanent ground connected to the furnace. You can add the green ground wire from the plug to the wire nut or stud connecting the permanent ground to the furnace for added safety.

[@unoriginallogin8374]

Just wondering why you say New Construction only? Is there a functional reason this couldn't be done in an emergency or Is that just a CYA disclaimer?

[@freestylette]

No. It can be done either way. It's just generally needed during construction. Same process even for an existing home.

[@katherinebruno616]

@@freestylette I need help...I don’t understand where you wired that black plug to ??? Does all gas furnaces have a switch like the one you popped the hole in the side??? I don’t understand the video but I’ll watch it again...I need a step by step in instructions

[@ru2388]

When you said "You don't want to run anything smaller than" a 12 gauge, 100ft cord. Do you mean smaller than 12 gauge, or smaller than 100ft cord? I assume gauge but no sense in taking chances

[@freestylette]

Yes, nothing smaller than 12 gauge. The length can certainly be shorter than 100 feet. The longer the cord, the larger the gauge. Thanks for asking!