Generator

[Anonymous]

Looking for advice on getting a generator. What did you get and how much did it cost? Any recs on who to call would be great, too. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

The better the generator, the more it will cost. We got one at Costco 2.5 years ago for about $900-$1,000. The retail on it was a few hundred dollars more. We used it after the derecho for 3 days and a handful of other times, but only for a few hours, not days.

Things that make one generator better: noise from the engine (Honda engines are much quieter than others). Total kw capacity/output (basically - how much do you wan to run at a time). My husband (who is an admitted techno nerd and also quite handy) got whatever part is necessary such that he can plug the generator into our circuit breaker and power the refrigerator, deep freezer, ceiling fans, some outlets/lights, etc. It can't do the clothes dryer, but can do the washer. We did run the DW once after the Derecho (were out for 3 days). Basically, you have to manage the KW the appliances will be using and then make your decisions.

You can get generators from Home Depot and Lowes. And Costco (like we did).

[Anonymous]

You can also install permanent generators that run on natural gas. Ours will run almost everything in the house except the ac. We had it installed when we built the house.

[Anonymous]

How much for the natural gas generator?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How much for the natural gas generator?

I think they're in the neighborhood of $8k to $15k, depending on how much it can power.

[Anonymous]

You can also get a whole house generator that runs on propane if natural gas is not available- InLaws have one, It cost about $10,000

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The better the generator, the more it will cost. We got one at Costco 2.5 years ago for about $900-$1,000. The retail on it was a few hundred dollars more. We used it after the derecho for 3 days and a handful of other times, but only for a few hours, not days.

Things that make one generator better: noise from the engine (Honda engines are much quieter than others). Total kw capacity/output (basically - how much do you wan to run at a time). My husband (who is an admitted techno nerd and also quite handy) got whatever part is necessary such that he can plug the generator into our circuit breaker and power the refrigerator, deep freezer, ceiling fans, some outlets/lights, etc. It can't do the clothes dryer, but can do the washer. We did run the DW once after the Derecho (were out for 3 days). Basically, you have to manage the KW the appliances will be using and then make your decisions.

You can get generators from Home Depot and Lowes. And Costco (like we did).

I need to do this too. I think you need 2 'male' parts to power from generator to dryer voltage, and do the appropriate fuses on fuse box (and shut down main). What parts did you buy? And where? Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Please do it the right way with a manual transfer switch and not back feed the ghetto way and kill some poor line worker