Stand By Generators - anyone have one

[fasteddie]

We had a power outage today and after waiting an hour and checking the sump pump decided I had better hook up the gas generator . Ran it for a half hour and the power came back on . We always have water in the sump hole and if the power goes out for too long and no one is home , we have a flood .

I am seriously thinking of getting a Whole House Standby Generator so if the power goes out I can be rest assured that the basement and freezers are safe . Does anyone have one ? I am considering a Generac Model . They range quite a bit in price depending on the need / requirements of the home owner . I have seen prices from $2000 to $5000+ and then there is probably a substantial installation cost . 

Afraid to go on any lengthy trip as we have had at least 4 power outages this year . 

[Jeremy K]

Is a sump jet an option? The house we bought had one installed already ,the piece of mind is wonderful.

[cdmckane]

Knock on wood, we haven't had an outage here in a couple of years.  I have a Honda gas generator that I can plug my fridge, freezers, and coal stove into if I need to, but that all depends on me being home when the power goes out.  My wife can fire up the generator and plug stuff in, but she hasn't mastered lighting the coal stove yet.  I need to get a standby, but they're out of my price range at the moment.

 

[Lawdwaz]

So far the answer to the question is NO.  Nobody has one..........................

 

Edited December 25, 2015 by Lawdwaz

[BizCT]

No

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[fasteddie]

I have a Generator that I can run and hook things up to only if I am at home . I used it today and 3 other times this year . If no one is home to run it , I am up the creek . I looked into various back-up sump pumps and they aren't very reliable . I can afford a stand-by generator . 

[ELMER J. FUDD]

I have a Ridgid 8500 watt portable. Never took it out of the box. Bought it last fall in a snowstorm. Power was on when I got home. Power hasn’t been out since. Anyone wanna buy it? Lol.

[sbuff]

We bought a whole house generac generator, best thing I ever did. Being a lineman before taking an in house job I would always be working during storms and power outages . No chance my wife would be starting an outside generator when it's 2am and 0 degrees out with no power and two little ones inside . It will do the entire house except the dryer and Central air which I am fine with . It cycles once a week just incase there is prolonged time between outages. All modern led lights and digital display. If it saves your basement from flooding once consider it money well spent .

[mlammerhirt]

What size did you buy....and the cost??

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[peepsight]

I've had a Generac (propane) for over 10 yrs. I have it serviced professionally every 2 yrs. It's been great. It came with a 12 position transfer switch so we hooked up only the essentials (furnace,water pump,beer frig, TV, etc). They do use a significant amount of propane if runs for an extended amount of time but it sure beats sitting in the dark like the neighbors.

[sbuff]

Mine is on natural gas,8kw and it was about 3 grand installed if I recall. Mine sits on a nice concrete slab and I do the basic yearly oil changes and the dealer checks the rest when needed.

[wolc123]

I also live in a low-lying area where a sump pump is critical.   I had a bad experience with a water-backup sump pump during the infamous "October-storm" in WNY a few years back.   I got stuck out of town for work when the Buffalo Airport was closed.   Rochester remained open, so I got a flight to there, then rented a car, finally arriving home about 5:00 am.   The power was out when I arrived.  I was dead tired, having been up more than 24 hours.  I trusted our water backup pump and crashed for a few hours without checking the basement.  That was a big mistake because the storm was widespread enough that it caused problems at Erie county water authority, knocking out the big pumps and dropping the water pressure so low that our water backup sump-pump only added more water to the flooded basement.

 

The water got about 3 feet deep down there, taking out the furnace, hot-water heater, and our big freezer.  Fortunately, there was not much meat in that yet because it happened right before deer season.   We were also very fortunate that the freezer, furnace, and hot water heater all came back to life after they dried out.  That Montgomery-Ward upright freezer in the basement, that my grandparents purchased nearly 40 years ago, continues to run today like it did when new.  They sure don't make them like that anymore.  

 

I sold the water backup sump pump cheap at a garage sale my wife had the next summer, and bought a battery backup model.  I did not have much luck with that either.  It was cheaply made and only lasted a couple years, costing us a couple of soaked carpets in a minor flood one time when the primary pump failed.   Now I just use a 5000 watt portable generator, and keep an extra 120 volt sump pump next to the installed one in case it fails.   I instructed my wife how to set it up if I am away.  It will easily run the sump pump, 2 refrigerators, a big freezer, lights and a TV or two.  This has worked well for us.   I do keep it regularly used and maintained, operating electric string trimmers at the far corners of our yard, and also power tools in the woods working on stands, blinds, and such.   A stand-by, installed generator might be a bit better for power outages, but far more expensive, harder to maintain, and less versatile for our uses.    

[hunter49]

We bought a whole house generac generator, best thing I ever did. Being a lineman before taking an in house job I would always be working during storms and power outages . No chance my wife would be starting an outside generator when it's 2am and 0 degrees out with no power and two little ones inside . It will do the entire house except the dryer and Central air which I am fine with . It cycles once a week just incase there is prolonged time between outages. All modern led lights and digital display. If it saves your basement from flooding once consider it money well spent .

   Same here, being a lineman for 40 yrs. my wife says every time our power was out I was gone working on everyone else's to restore power.  After I retired the first time the power went out I bought a full house Generac generator!  My wife said she sat in the dark for 40 yrs. with 2 kids . I did it once & because I couldn't watch Tv I got the generator! lol  If you want a quiet gen look at the Hondas you can't hear them running. Jmo but I don't believe a person needs a full house gen. because how often do you have everything on at the same time??  I just put the really needed items & for sure the Tv!   At first I felt guilty when I looked out the window & everyone else in the area was dark, but I got over it!

[Kot2B]

I'm a dealer for generac. The whole house service entrance rated ATS is the way to go. They have changed the settings in the generators so they exercise weekly, bi-weekly or monthly. 30 second delay when the power goes out and a cool down period after the power comes back. If you are not in a hurry watch Home Depot or Lowes around holidays. Their sales are so cheap I can't even compete with my dealer cost or if you purchase on one of their cards you can get 10% off.

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[fasteddie]

If I was to get one from Home Depot or Lowes , I would have to shop around for someone to install it . 

[Kot2B]

some electrical contractors like myself do both the electrical and plumbing for natural gas, propane providers will only allow their techs to touch their equipment.

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[mlammerhirt]

If I was to get one from Home Depot or Lowes , I would have to shop around for someone to install it .

Pretty sure you can get a package deal from them. Look online they both list what install services they provide. They just sub contract the work out, but if there are any problems the nice part is you deal with the big box store, and since they don't like bad press they won't jerk you around if things were done wrong.

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