Argyll · Three-Phase
23kVA Three-Phase — Joinery Workshop
A workshop full of three-phase machinery and no supply to run it. A 23kVA set became the supply, with changeover for whole-property standby.
Read case studyGenerators
Standby and primary generators, installed and certified.
Single- and three-phase sets for homes, farms, estates, workshops and remote commercial sites — sized to the real load, installed, commissioned under load and certified by one contractor. Design through to the first service, all in one place.
- Sets
- Standby & primary
- Supply
- Single & 3-phase
- Transfer
- Automatic or manual
- Commissioned
- Under real load
The two jobs a generator does
Almost every generator decision starts here, and it's the bit nobody on page one of Google explains. A generator is doing one of two jobs, and they're specified differently.
Standby. There's a mains supply, but it fails — and when it does, heating, water, freezers, security and essential circuits need to carry on. A standby set sits waiting, starts on its own within seconds of an outage, and hands back to the mains when it returns. Nobody has to be home.
Primary. There's no adequate mains at all — a remote property, a new build off the network, a site at the end of a spur too weak to be useful. Here the generator is the supply, often running real hours, and it's specified for continuous work rather than occasional standby.
Which one you need changes everything downstream — the set, the fuel arrangement, the changeover, the servicing. So it's the first thing we pin down on a site visit, not an afterthought.
Sizing: the running load isn't the number
It's tempting to fit the biggest set the budget allows and call it safe. It usually isn't good engineering — and it can be the reason a generator fails early.
The figure that matters isn't the nameplate rating of your biggest appliance. It's the real combined load that has to run at once, plus the surge that motors, pumps and compressors draw the instant they start — often several times their running current. Size to the running figure alone and the set stalls the moment the borehole pump kicks in. Size to a wild over-estimate and you get an oversized diesel that spends its life lightly loaded, wet-stacks (unburnt fuel glazing the bores), wastes fuel and wears out sooner.
We measure the loads that genuinely matter, allow properly for starting surge and diversity, and land on a set that runs in its efficient band. Sometimes that's smaller and cheaper than expected — the 8kVA Banffshire install is exactly that: sized to the essentials, not oversold.
Changeover
Automatic transfer — and when you don't need it
An automatic transfer switch (ATS) senses the outage, starts the set and switches the load over on its own — essential where nobody's on site to do it, or where freezers and heating can't wait. But it's not always necessary.
Where someone's usually about and a few minutes' interruption is fine, a manual changeover does the job for a fraction of the cost. We'll tell you honestly which one your site actually needs — saying "you probably don't need ATS here" is the most useful sentence we can give you.
Siting, fuel and noise
Where a set goes matters as much as which set it is. We plan the base or slab, the distance from the dwelling, exhaust routing and acoustic housing so it's not living under a bedroom window. And we size the fuel arrangement to the job — long-run tanks where a remote site needs to ride out days, not hours — and tell you plainly what run-time that actually buys.
Who it's for
Sized to the site, not the catalogue.
01
Homes & crofts
Standby cover for properties on long rural spurs, or a primary supply where there's no mains at all.
02
Farms & estates
Three-phase for machinery, standby for the farmhouse and steadings, sized around a working operation.
03
Workshops & commercial
Where downtime costs money and a supply has to be dependable, not just present.
04
Remote sites
Long runs, difficult access and harsh conditions — the jobs built around getting there and finishing.
Installations we've done
Real sets, real constraints.
Banffshire · Standby
8kVA Standby — Farmhouse
An 8kVA long-run set with automatic transfer, sized honestly to a real budget to keep lights, heating and freezers running.
Read case studyOff-grid yard · Revival
30kVA — Repaired, Not Replaced
A site's only power source arrived dead. Repaired, serviced and modernised with remote start rather than replaced at several times the cost.
Read case studyLet's talk about your project.
No obligation — tell us about your site and we'll be straight with you about what makes sense.
Get in Touch
Prefer to talk it through? Call +44 7356 289964
Get in Touch
Talk through your installation.
Tell us what you're trying to power and whether there's a mains supply — we'll come back with honest advice on the right set and a clear price.
Contact details
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Phone+44 7356 289964
✉️
Emailinfo@usherwoods.com
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Service AreaRemote and rural UK — Scottish Highlands to the South Coast
What happens next? We'll reply to every enquiry — usually with a phone call to talk through your project, then a site visit and a clear written quote.
FAQ
Common questions.
Do I need a standby generator or a primary one?
It comes down to one question: is there a mains supply? If there is and it fails, you want a standby set that takes over automatically. If there's no adequate mains at all — a remote property, a new site, a building at the end of a long, weak spur — you need a primary set that is the supply. They're sized and specified differently, so it's the first thing we establish.
What size generator do I actually need?
Not the number on the biggest appliance, and usually not the biggest set you can afford. The figure that matters is the real combined load that has to run at once, plus the surge that motors and pumps draw the instant they start — which can be several times their running figure. We measure that properly and size to it, so the set runs in its efficient band and lasts.
Can you service a generator you didn't install?
Yes — that's a big part of what we do. If you've inherited a set with a property, bought one from another supplier, or been quoted for a replacement you're not sure you need, a one-off visit and an honest diagnosis is the right starting point. See our generator servicing and repair page.
Do you supply the generator, or fit one I've bought?
Either. We can supply, install and commission a set matched to your site, or install equipment you've already sourced. Either way it's commissioned under load and handed over properly, not just switched on and left.
Will you travel to remote sites?
Yes. Remote and rural properties are the core of what we do — the Highlands, the north-east, Argyll and the islands included. We plan around access and weather so a trip finishes the job. More on our work across Scotland.
How long does an installation take?
It depends on groundworks, access and whether changeover and new cabling are involved — anything from a day for a straightforward standby set to several for a three-phase primary install with a base and distribution work. We give you a realistic timeline with the quote, not an optimistic one.