Standby generators & Pacemakers

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Jack5481

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I have installed a lot of residential standby generators and my father wants to have a 22kw Generac generator installed at his primary home. Installing it is no problem but I have some concerns due to him having a pacemaker. He has been told by his doctor he can’t use a some types of equipment like a chainsaw because of the frequency it puts off. What about the magnetic field/frequency of a standby generator or any generator for that matter? I will be reaching out to his primary physician to ask about this but I was hoping that someone has been down this road before. If anyone has any knowledge on this or specific questions I should ask, I would appreciate the advice.
 
The question I would ask is if there is an issue with approach distance limits to the generator.

I suspect that if there is an issue (and I don't know one way or the other), then there will be a restriction on being close to the generator when it is running because of being up close and personal with the magnetic fields of the alternator.

-Jon
 
No more concern than with sitting next to a fan motor, making a smoothie, vacuuming the house, driving that electric car.
And the frequency of the generator is 60 HZ just the same as all the wiring surrounding him in his home.
I highly doubt any reason for alarm
 
mopowr steve said:
No more concern than with sitting next to a fan motor, making a smoothie, vacuuming the house, driving that electric car.
And the frequency of the generator is 60 HZ just the same as all the wiring surrounding him in his home.
I highly doubt any reason for alarm
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I've had 3 MRI's and all they did was disable my defibrillator and have a RN there in case something went wrong, but I think that turning it off was more of a precaution than requirement. With that magnetic field not being a problem I wouldn't think a generator would be. Although that may be a totally different thing.
 
It's possible that the concern with a chainsaw is the impulsive EMI that's emitted by its spark ignition system. Maybe such impulsive noise could interfere with the detection of cardiac waveforms by the pacemaker. And a chainsaw would be no more than an arm's length from the chest of its operator, making this more likely to be a problem.
As long as your father is not bending over the generator when it's operating, I don't think there will be an issue.
 
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He might be able to use a battery chainsaw if he wants to chainsaw. If me, I would ask the doctor.
 
synchro said:
The document at the link below is an electromagnetic compatibility guide from Boston Scientific.
Chainsaws and generators are mentioned on pg. 21.
You might want to use the search term "do not" in the document to find out what is verboten.

https://www.bostonscientific.com/co...s/BSC_Electromagnetic_Compatibility_Guide.pdf
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I often wondered would a first responder feel the shock if my defibrillator shocked me while they were working on me.
Yes, but it will be a very small tingle. Nothing that will harm them.
 
If they did cause problems with pacemakers, I'm sure this would be on the generator or documentation.

PM7009_Pacemaker_Strong_Magnetic_Field_Sign__69167.1524069618[1].jpg
 
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