Customer Reviews

Reliance Controls PB30 L14-30 30 Amp Generator Power Cord Inlet Box For Up To 7,500 Watt Generators

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Reliance Controls PB30 L14-30 30 Amp Generator Power Cord Inlet Box

Product Review:

This Reliance Power Inlet Box is excellent quality. It has easily removable knockouts on the back and sides; ˝" or 3/4". Since it was to be mounted on a cinder-block wall, I used PVC conduit from the back of the box through the wall, and ran 10/3 (w/ground) from the Inlet Box to a 30-amp 240 volt receptacle on the home's interior. See Customer Images.)

Three Tapcon 3/16" x 1 3/4" masonry screws securely attach the box to a cinder block wall. Once mounted, there is a 1/8" air gap between the back of the box and the wall; that air gap allows the unit to dry-out after rain. The gap also allows the cover assembly to be easily slipped over the box frame and be secured with the single stainless steel screw shown in the photo. Do NOT caulk where the box meets the wall or the cover won't be removable. DO caulk where the wire or conduit goes through the wall (if that's how it's wired), to prevent insect and water infiltration.

The unit's screw-down wiring connectors tightly hold 10-gage (or 8-gage) wires.

The integral hinged receptacle door acts as a rain guard when the receptacle is in use, and when it isn't, seals the inside from weather, bugs, and dirt.

Excellent product!

Product Use:

Consumers typically use portable generators to power their homes in one of several ways.

1. The least expensive and most common method is to simply run long extension cords through open windows or doors directly to where power is needed inside the home.

2. The best (and costliest) approach is to connect the generator's output power to a "transfer switch"; a device that switches electrical circuits between main power (i.e., from a utility company) and a backup generator. These switches can be automatic, monitoring incoming power from the utility and switching to a backup when the utility power goes out, or manual which requires you to physically make the changeover. Whole-house permanently installed (e.g., natural gas) generators utilize automatic switches, while portable gasoline-powered generators commonly employ a manual cut-over switch. This Power Cord Inlet Box is often used with a manual transfer switch.

3. You could also use a Power Mechanical Interlock; search Amazon on that term.

4. An intermediate approach avoids running cords through windows or doors and the high cost of installing a transfer switch. It requires one or more 110v and/or 240v Power Inlet Boxes mounted on the dwelling's exterior, directly wired through the wall to receptacles in the dwelling's interior, with no connection to house wiring. From those interior (generator-powered) receptacles, extension cords go where the power is needed.

I chose the intermediate approach.

During a power outage, our generator is wheeled into place and three cords are run from the generator to the house, as follows. Takes under 10 minutes to set up.

- A 30-Amp L14-30 240v Generator Power Cord connects to a Reliance Controls PB30 L14-30 30 Amp Generator Power Cord Inlet Box (product being reviewed)

- Two 20-amp (12-gage) 120v cords connect to Leviton 5278-CWP 120v Power Inlet Receptacles

- A grounding cord is connected.

very sturdy box, easy to mount, and the plug will accept 8 gauge wire if you are so inclined (as I was).

I'll preface this by saying I am a licensed electrician and have installed close to 50 of these boxes over the past couple years. These boxes are nema 3r and are of good quality I have yet to have any of them fail. This inlet fits the 30amp 220/11v twist lock cord commonly found at the Home Depot. Couple this unit with a transfer switch and you have a very safe and reliable way of feeding your home with a generator. This is the exact same unit most electrical supply houses sell.

My only complaint of this box is you can't feed it with conduit from the top as the way the cover comes off both the front and top come off as one piece. You HAVE to do your wire entries either from the side or bottom. This is not a deal killer but the installs look much better with the outlet below the panels rather than off to the side.

i used this product for a portable generator connection mounted on the house to feed the circuit panel , using a lock out tag out system instead of a transfer switch because i wanted to energize to whole circuit box instead of just a select few breakers . i'm running an 8k watt 10k peak output generator with 10/4 gauge wire , and this product meet my needs and expectations . . . heavy duty and good quality product that i would recommend for use !

This Reliance Power Inlet Box worked excellently for me. Appears to be good quality - no issues with its installation. You might want to consider a box with the outlet in the bottom if you need it to be truly weather-proof, but this one did the trick for me.

I ordered this receptacle after looking at Home Depot without any luck. I bought a generator and I needed a way to hook it up quick, before Hurricane Irene got here. I installed it in about 30 minutes. Great quality product. Plenty of room in the box, clear detailed instructions. Highly recommended.

I bought this box as part of upgrading the connection for a portable generator at our house. I have 10-3 running to the box and connect a portable generator to the box. Like many electric boxes it could use more room to make it easier to work inside but it is adequate.

Nice box for what it does. It is cramped though when working with four x 8 awg wire. I agree with other reviewers that it is difficult to get the lid on with the unit box flush to your exterior siding. Plan it's location ahead, becuase if you have lapped siding you need to place the far enough below the lap to get the lid on.

If your circuit breaker box isn't in your garage or close to a window this product is a must for getting power from your generator to inside your home. I bought this for use with a transfer switch so that hooking up the generator is as easy as plugging it into this box outside and flipping a few switches inside. Definitly the way to go. Nice heavy duty box with several knock-outs and weather tight cover.

This inlet box worked out very well. No problems with building inspectors. Simple straight forward design. Good product.