Sine wave vs square wave

[sdondavis]

Could somebody please tell me how to research weather or not my 6300 watt craftsman generator is sinewave or square wave? Thanks

 

[Sillyputty]

6300 watt craftsman generator

What model number is it?

 

[Woody]

If you’re asking about a gasoline engine driven generator, they do sine wave. Will need better details posted on the generator to give a definitive answer.

 

[FilterGuy]

It is almost certainly sign wave..... but that does not necessarily mean it is a clean sine wave.

If it is a regular old generator (Not an inverter-generator):
* As the engine speed varies under load the frequency will also vary.
* Depending on the quality of the generator, there can be noise introduced onto the sign wave.

If it is a inverter generator:
* The Output of the generator turned into DC and fed into an inverter that then synthesizes a sign wave. (I guess the inverter could be a modified sign wave inverter, but I don't know of any like that).
* Depending on the quality of the inverter, there can be more or less noise introduced, but inverter-generators will generally have a cleaner sign wave than a regular generator. (THe whole purpose of inverter-generators is to produce a cleaner sign wave)

What is the model number of your generator? (Most inverter-generators are going to be lower than 6300W.)

BTW: Many (most? all?) home generators are advertised at their surge power but can not sustain the surge for a long period of time. Consequently your 6300W generator may not be able to sustain a 6300W load.

 

[sdondavis]

It is almost certainly sign wave..... but that does not necessarily mean it is a clean sine wave.

If it is a regular old generator (Not an inverter-generator):
* As the engine speed varies under load the frequency will also vary.
* Depending on the quality of the generator, there can be noise introduced onto the sign wave.

If it is a inverter generator:
* The Output of the generator turned into DC and fed into an inverter that then synthesizes a sign wave. (I guess the inverter could be a modified sign wave inverter, but I don't know of any like that).
* Depending on the quality of the inverter, there can be more or less noise introduced, but inverter-generators will generally have a cleaner sign wave than a regular generator. (THe whole purpose of inverter-generators is to produce a cleaner sign wave)

What is the model number of your generator? (Most inverter-generators are going to be lower than 6300W.)

BTW: Many (most? all?) home generators are advertised at their surge power but can not sustain the surge for a long period of time. Consequently your 6300W generator may not be able to sustain a 6300W load.

It is a sears Craftsman electric start 6300 watt, 9100 surge watts, 240/120volt 30amp, 60hz@3600 rpm, single phase. Model #580.326300. Thank you for responding.

 

[Bud Martin]

Is my Craftsman 6300 watt generator producing sinewave current?

As this generator is to power the entire house I would really appreciate an answer.

diysolarforum.com

 

[FilterGuy]

It is a sears Craftsman electric start 6300 watt, 9100 surge watts, 240/120volt 30amp, 60hz@3600 rpm, single phase. Model #580.326300

That is a traditional home generator (Not an inverter generator). It will be a sine wave output, but I do not know how clean the sign wave will be Furthermore, the frequency will have a variance from 60Hz. (What will happen is that when a load is first introduced the frequency will dip and then come back to something close to 60.) It will power most things. Modern electronics will have a switching power supply so they will work but for cheaper audio equipment you might get noise from the generator. Other appliances that have motors and or heaters are somewhat immune to frequency variance and noise but might have issues with high start surges that the generator can't handle. The most common appliance that has problems with 'bad' input power is the microwave and I can't say why. I just know that microwaves tend to be problematic for some reason.

Oh.... and a lot of clocks depend on the frequency so they will not be very accurate on that generator.

 

[sdondavis]

Thank you, very helpful.

 

[robby]

Oh.... and a lot of clocks depend on the frequency so they will not be very accurate on that generator.

It has been very rare in the last 10 years that I have bought an appliance or clock that has issues with grid or generator frequency. In the current market place most Appliances like Microwaves, stoves and even Washers and Dryers use boards with built in Crystal Oscillators. The reason is that they typically only want to make one control board that can work on models sold in any country, so DC power is the only thing going to the board. I just bought a GE washer dryer set and the timers works precisely on 50 cycle electricity. So do all my other appliances that I bought from the States.