# Powering refrigerators with a generator



## Clevor (Feb 23, 2017)

How many amps does an refrigerator eat, in general? Does it do a surge on startup (of the compressor) like with air compressors?


I have a 2200 watt Honda EB2200-X. Will it be able to power two refrigerators?


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## aandpdan (Oct 8, 2012)

It depends on the refrigerator. There should be a data plate that indicates how many amps or watts it uses. 

Yes, refrigerators also do a start up surge. Motor loads do. The surge load can be 2-3 times as high as the running load.

As to your last question, maybe. If one is already running it may be able to start the other. It probably can't start both at the same time. 

If you check your owners manual the "rated" output of your generator is 2000 watts. The 2200 watt rating is the max - think "surge" rating. You really don't want to run a portable generator near 100% load for very long.


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## OldMasterTech (Jul 25, 2014)

When wiring a house we install a dedicated 20 amp circuit for the refrigerator, roughly that equates to 2,340 watts available.
If you create a voltage drop with two reefers that cycle on simultaneously you will risk damaging the compressors. Not good for the generator either.


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## thehandyman1957 (Feb 11, 2017)

The best way to know is to find a friend that has a meter that can measure the start up load and read it back to you.
Do this on both units and you will then know if your gen set will start and run them both. The thing you also need to remember 
is if they are self defrosting and they try to both defrost at the same time or one's defrosting while the other tries to start then you run into other issues. Usually the data plate will give the max amp usage for the unit including the defrost elements.


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## exmar (Jun 29, 2015)

In an "emergency" situation, you could run them one at a time, 10-12 hours each, thus saving the contents. However, your genset is going to be running at close to it's max which typically leads to early failure. I'd be looking for a 5500W unit which would handle both and have some left over for lights and things. However, you know your finances and how often you experience outages vs replacement cost of frig contents.


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## davevans (Apr 14, 2017)

*Powering a refrigerator*

Refrigerators can vary quite a bit when it comes to the wattage/amps they require depending on age, energy rating etc. In short I do believe you would be able to power your fridge with a 2200watt generator. 2200watts is usually the upper limit for fridge requirements and most of these are used just for startup (surge watts). Once the fridge is running it should only require a few hundred watts. 

This website does a pretty good job of explaining surge vs running watts and has helpful 'usage charts' 

Best Quiet Power Generators 2017! Review and Compare Between the Best Quiet Power Generators Available 

Good luck!

Dave


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