In the past decade I’ve crossed paths with many enthusiastic “inventors” of these cords.
We’re not talking about simple lack of knowledge here. The users have all shared a combination of arrogance and desperation. The arrogance comes from a belief that they are above the rules, that they’re smart enough to figure things out for themselves, that they need not bother learning. The desperation comes from a belief that everything costs too much, that there’s some shortcut to economy.
One element behind this attitude is a constant exposure to “perfect” solutions. All they’ve ever heard of were massively oversized systems with all the bells and whistles: 200A natural gas fed generators with automatic transfer switches, load shedding, automatic exerciser circuits— and inspections!
Never have these folks heard of other safe and legal work-arounds. Here are three:
1) Just run an extension cord!;
2) Construct a power “inlet” with a dedicated outlet inside the house, Plug your furnace into this “special “ receptacle when using the generator; and,
3) Install a MANUAL transfer switch.
Indeed, the way the NECis written one would think there was no sauce thing as a manual transfer switch. Likewise, breaker ties and coupled breakers are not readily available (especially for older panels).
Get used to finding these cords. Combine $200 generators with increasingly unreliable PoCo grids and folks will quickly tire of freezing every time there’s a storm. Add to that “guerrilla” solar and there’s your demand. A final push comes from the simple fact that so many rent.
Speaking of solar: It’s been fifteen years since “micro-inverters” were first UL listed. Where are they? All I find are massive, brand-specific engineered systems. Deny folks access to safe equipment and the unsafe solutions will thrive!
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