Like all internal combustion engines, generators spew carbon monoxide, so they must be sited well away from doors and windows. An installer can size the unit, or you can use the calculator at /shortcuts.īefore writing the check, however, make sure you get the nod from your town's building inspector on where to park the unit. A 7-kilowatt generator, for example, can be had for around $1,700.
But if you limit yourself to necessities-the sump pump, air conditioner, heating system, fridge, and a few lights-you can get away with something much smaller. People who want the whole house to run as if nothing were awry will pay dearly for the convenience: A 35-kilowatt unit will set you back $10,000 and incur high fuel and maintenance costs. The hard part comes earlier, in trying to figure out how big the generator should be and where to put it. Illustration by Harry Campbell Practical Considerations For generators that burn natural gas, you don't even need to do that.
You don't have to do a thing, except perhaps keep an eye on the fuel tank if the engine runs on propane or diesel. When the power returns, the switch signals the generator to stop and restores the house's connection to the grid. This switch senses when the power goes down, alerts the generator to turn on, and shunts its electricity through the load center, the subpanel for all the house circuits that need emergency juice. The brains, otherwise known as the automatic transfer switch, reside inside and connect the generator to the house's main breaker panel. The brawn-the engine and the alternator that generate the electricity-lives outside, in a weather-shielded, sound-deadening box anchored to a concrete pad. That's why more and more people, left in the dark by natural disasters or, increasingly, by the frequent hiccups of an aging electrical grid, are making the investment sales of standby generators went up fivefold between 20. Standbys are more expensive than their portable cousins-about $3,000 versus $900-but they're also more powerful, longer-lived, quieter, and safer. Unlike the portable, gasoline-powered models trotted out by emergency crews, these mini power plants are always "standing by," ready to turn on automatically in the event of an outage, even if you're not home to flip the switch.
With a standby generator parked in the yard, you'll never have those worries. Surviving the aftermath-when the power lines are down and the roads are impassable-is a longer struggle to keep your food from spoiling, your basement from flooding, or your pipes from freezing as you wait for service to be restored. Surviving a disaster in the form of a hurricane, ice storm, or earthquake is mostly a matter of luck. Illustration by Harry Campbell Standby Generator Setups
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