The Ins And Outs Of A Home Generator

Winter storms can make life really uncomfortable, especially if your home utilizes electricity for indoor heating and water heating. You don’t have to live in Northwest Arkansas long to understand how quickly a winter storm can cause a power outage! This is why many residents and area businesses choose to invest in a backup generator. It makes life a lot easier. Yet, there are a few things that you will want to determine before purchasing any generator. Doing so will help you to avoid mistakes that often occur during a “last minute” emergency purchase. Hence, consider the following. DETERMINING THE LOAD Never guess on the amount of wattage that you will need for your home or business. It is best to work with an electrician or a heating and cooling company, which will most likely have an electrical specialist on-hand. You will need to decide on which electrical devices that the unit will power when the main electricity is out.

TRANSFER SWITCH

Fixed generators require a transfer switch. This switch prevents electricity from traveling beyond a building by disconnecting it from the city’s power grid. This safety measure prevents others form being injured. Transfer switches are installed into a home or business’s electrical system and has a subpanel that activates individual circuits. The generator has a direct connection to the subpanel. Once you activate the main subpanel switch your building will go off of the power grid and rely on the unit. Subsequently, the generator will only supply electricity to the circuits that are live on the subpanel.

GETTING THE RIGHT UNIT

Determining your electrical needs will help you to understand the type of generator that you will want to purchase. For instance, do you have an individual in your home who requires medical equipment than is powered around the clock? Does your business have strict refrigeration needs that cannot fail? Or do you only need a few essentials to be powered in a pinch? Purchasing the wrong unit can result in you not having all the electricity you need during an outage or leave with an expensive unit than is an overkill.

If you need professional help with a generator system, give Paschal Heat, Air & Geothermal a call. We can help you to determine your load, install transfer switches to proper electrical codes, and select a generator that fits your exact needs.