The weather in Northwest Arkansas can get pretty rough. Over the course of a year, you’ll face a variety of weather occurrences that have the potential to knock your power out for hours or even days. In addition to strong storms and other weather-related causes, you can lose power due to problems with power generation and distribution. Whatever the cause, you should consider outfitting your home with a standby generator, both for safety and comfort’s sake.
What Is a Standby Generator?
Not to be confused with gasoline-fueled portable generators, standby generators are permanently installed near your home, usually on a concrete pad. Fueled by natural gas or propane, a standby generator produces electric power that flows directly into a home’s electrical circuits. These systems don’t have to be refueled, since they’re directly tied to your natural gas line or propane tank. This eliminates the messy job of periodically pouring fuel into a tank. These systems also start automatically as soon as they sense a loss of power in your home, and continue delivering power as long as necessary. When power is restored, the standby generator automatically shuts off.
These systems come in a range of sizes and capacities, from large whole-house models to units that just power a few essential circuits. Some provide rotating power, with electricity flowing only to circuits that need it at a particular time. You’ll basically have to weigh your budget against what you want out of your new standby generator.
Why Do You Want a Standby Generator?
If safety is your main concern, you can probably get by with a smaller version that just powers essential circuits. Your refrigerator, lights, cell-phone charger, laptop, perhaps one or more fans, or a portable A/C. If you don’t want to lose any of your home’s functionality during a power outage, you should probably opt for a whole-house system.
If you’d like to discuss what type of generator is best for your northwest Arkansas home, please contact us at Paschal Heat, Air & Geothermal. We provide commercial and residential generator service, repair and installation.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Springdale, Arkansas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about standby generators and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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