This may not be on tourist brochures but the United States experiences some of the most extreme weather on earth. As a consequence, it is normal for homes all over the country lose power at least one time each year. The typical outage lasts for about three hours but they can last for hours, days, or even weeks. These outages can cause no problems or people can lose their frozen and refrigerated foods but some homes can be flooded and that can lead to mold. This is one reason many families opt to have a generator installation done in their home. This is also why generator size calculators are so popular. Keep in mind that if the power goes out for four hours or more, any food in the refrigerator or freezer can start to thaw and go bad.
Experts agree that to avoid these problems, getting a generator can be a great preventative measure. There are a lot of options and sizes. You can get emergency generators or small units that cost less — some can cost only several hundred dollars. Other, larger units that can cover an entire house cost a lot more. That is one reason, people turn to the generator size calculators. It is good to get the smallest that you can to handle your needs. This is, of course, less expensive and will allow you to get away with having a smaller amount of fuel on hand.
There are some things you need to think about when you are picking out the right generator for your home:
How often does your power go out? There are different sizes for different situations. If you live in a part of the country where bad weather and other conditions cause you to lose power a lot and if those power outages last longer than a few hours, you may need a heavy duty unit to get you what you need. If this sounds like your home and situation, there are a few kinds of generators you should look at standby generators, large Inverters, and portable models.
The beauty of all three can handle the power needs of an entire home. Using generator size calculators would show how seamlessly they can be integrated into the home. These generators are plugged into the home’s circuit breaker. This makes it possible to run everything in the home as if the power never was shut off. These whole house generators need to be put in by professional generator installers.
If you have your power go out from time to time but not frequently, you may not need to get a huge, standby unit for your home and can look at the big inverters and portable units. While these are not as easy to get up and running, these are not the kinds that stay plugged into the home’s electrical system. These units are stored and brought out only when they are needed the most. These units are much less costly but can be lifesavers when the power is out due to a storm or another kind of natural disaster.
Does your power only go out rarely? If this is the case, you would do well buying a recreational inverter or a medium sized inverted unit. These kinds of generators will not be able to keep your whole home running as if the power is still on but they can do a lot to save your food and protect you from freezing or becoming overheated. These are often referred to as “recreational” because they are often used for camping and tailgating.
As great as generators can be, care needs to be taken whenever they are used. People all over the world have died due to carbon monoxide poisoning from units that were not run as listed on the machine. If you have any questions about how to best run the unit you buy, you should ask the professionals who installed it for you. Even if you have used the best generator size calculator, you need to follow the manufacturer’s instructions to the letter to keep everyone safe while you are providing power, light, and heat (or cooling) to your home.
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