Planning on having a back-up generator installed

[Rudy Vey]

My wife is on me for quite some time now to get a back-up generator for our house. I have no clue what costs are involved. One can really not find much online, most want to sell you something.
Our house is not big at all, say 1000 sqft, and its only the two of us and three small dogs.
In the past I had used a standby generator, which I think was about 6 kw. It was enough for a few hurricanes where we lost power to keep the whole house running, including our AC system. We do not use electric for cooking, just gas for it. So, the generator would run ac, lights, tv, radio etc.
My thought is that a 10-12 kW generator might be fitting our needs. Gas line is close by, so there will be not much cost for running a new line.
Anybody here has an idea what we could expect for cost for the generator and the installation?? We have also a solar system, so I guess this would need to be taken into consideration when the generator comes on in power loss, panels should not be shocked or fried up.....
Any guidance would be appreciated. Thanks

 

[Kentos]

I believe @luvmysuper has recently installed back up generator.

 

[njpaddy]

We were in our house for over 9 years when Hurricane Irene hit, in 2011. It came close to flooding our finished basement, but we had a good neighbor behind us and we avoided flooding by running 200' of extension cords from my sump pump to his generator. Afterwards I looked into a "whole house" generator, but the electrician talked us out of it saying we'd never make enough use of it in our area to justify the cost. Instead I bought a Honda Generator and had an electrician install a 10 circuit transfer switch to the panel box. He charged me around $1k, although I had quotes from others up to $4k (for a 6 circuit). It allowed us to run sump pump, well pump, fridge, kitchen appliances, furnace (heat, not A/C), computers, and room lights. It worked really well for Sandy the next year, although I didn't have enough gas stockpiled for those 9 days of no power. Running it 3 hours on and off helped conserve gas.

The electrician was probably right. We were in the house almost 19 years and Irene and Sandy were the only times we needed or used it. After Sandy I kept the generator gas tank drained and ran a can of pure gas thru it every year or two, changing the oil. After Sandy I did invest in more 5 gal metal, or jerry gas cans, keeping at least 10 gal (treated) on hand and stockpiling more for threats. If not needed, I would use it in our cars and replace the gas every 6 mos. After Sandy I never used the generator again and left the generator for new owners when we sold the house in 2020.

 

[luvmysuper]

My wife is on me for quite some time now to get a back-up generator for our house. I have no clue what costs are involved. One can really not find much online, most want to sell you something.
Our house is not big at all, say 1000 sqft, and its only the two of us and three small dogs.
In the past I had used a standby generator, which I think was about 6 kw. It was enough for a few hurricanes where we lost power to keep the whole house running, including our AC system. We do not use electric for cooking, just gas for it. So, the generator would run ac, lights, tv, radio etc.
My thought is that a 10-12 kW generator might be fitting our needs. Gas line is close by, so there will be not much cost for running a new line.
Anybody here has an idea what we could expect for cost for the generator and the installation?? We have also a solar system, so I guess this would need to be taken into consideration when the generator comes on in power loss, panels should not be shocked or fried up.....
Any guidance would be appreciated. Thanks

About 2 years ago, we had a whole house Generac natural gas 22kw generator installed. It was about 3000 for the generator and about 2000 for installation.
for a smaller generator of 12kw, you'll pay a little more than half what I did and installation costs is probably about the same. This depends on location, as some areas are higher than others.
My installation included gas piping to the generator which is near my gas meter. They need to increase the size of piping to the generator so you don't starve any gas appliances during start-up.
Electrical included an automatic bus transfer which disconnects the incoming power line and engages the generator after it starts up.
When power is restored, it automatically swaps to line power, then shuts down the generator.
For me this was electrical cabling to the opposite side of the house, and a panel installed next to our electrical meter.
Installation took one day.
With the 22kw generator we can run all lights, televisions, two 4 ton AC Units, electric washer and electric dryer, electric stove, fridge and electric hot water heater. Generators like to run loaded, and it's not good to get a generator that is oversized as it is very inefficient to run a generator at low loads.
If I can be of any help, let me know and I'll be happy to answer questions.

 

[Rudy Vey]

About 2 years ago, we had a whole house Generac natural gas 22kw generator installed. It was about 3000 for the generator and about 2000 for installation.
for a smaller generator of 12kw, you'll pay a little more than half what I did and installation costs is probably about the same. This depends on location, as some areas are higher than others.
My installation included gas piping to the generator which is near my gas meter. They need to increase the size of piping to the generator so you don't starve any gas appliances during start-up.
Electrical included an automatic bus transfer which disconnects the incoming power line and engages the generator after it starts up.
When power is restored, it automatically swaps to line power, then shuts down the generator.
For me this was electrical cabling to the opposite side of the house, and a panel installed next to our electrical meter.
Installation took one day.
With the 22kw generator we can run all lights, televisions, two 4 ton AC Units, electric washer and electric dryer, electric stove, fridge and electric hot water heater. Generators like to run loaded, and it's not good to get a generator that is oversized as it is very inefficient to run a generator at low loads.
If I can be of any help, let me know and I'll be happy to answer questions.

That's good information. Only our washer is run on electric, stove, water heater, dryer is all gas, ac is 2 ton unit. I also heard about the load, that the contractors like to talk you into a much bigger system as needed. I think something in the 10-14 kw range should be sufficient. Access to panel and the gas line is also close by, same side of the house; so this should keep cost down. I have heard prices for the units in my range to be about $2.5-3.5 k, and I expect installation to be around $2500, so a total of $5k.

 

[luvmysuper]

A generator running on natural gas isn't as efficient as a propane or gasoline generator, so output on natural gas is a little lower than generator rating.
The upside is that you don't have to fill tanks and you don't worry about running out.
We had an outage after generator install that lasted 2 days, and we wouldn't have even known if it wasn't for the sound of the unit running, and it's pretty quiet considering.

 

[Rudy Vey]

A generator running on natural gas isn't as efficient as a propane or gasoline generator, so output on natural gas is a little lower than generator rating.
The upside is that you don't have to fill tanks and you don't worry about running out.
We had an outage after generator install that lasted 2 days, and we wouldn't have even known if it wasn't for the sound of the unit running, and it's pretty quiet considering.

Definitely go with natural gas, a gas line (used for a gas fired bbq) is close by. I had it capped when we got the house as we did not use a nat gas grill. There is one benefit for nat gas, its already in the house as a lot of our appliances run on gas and the line capacity is good. For either gasoline or propane one needs to have tanks and supply large enough on hand to go through a longer outage. I will report back here what I was quoted; one guy comes Monday and the other one two weeks later. My only concern is the solar system, I do not want it fried when the generator comes on. But, I was told by both companies that they have done quite a few backups with solar systems as they are quite frequent here in NJ.

 

[Lightcs1776]

Timely post. Power went out six days ago at 8:45 pm and didn't come back until almost 10:30 the next morning. Yes, first world problems. It was sticky hot and I didn't sleep well. I have a portable camping generator which would not start. Power is not out often, but I am now seriously considering a whole house generator. I am also considering a heat pump mini-split, as the only AC in the house is the bedroom.

 

[Columbo]

I can tell you from experience, the transfer switch arrangement can be more important than the genset itself. A bad transfer switch layout can become a headache if the installer doesn’t know how you and your particular house runs.

Depending on the budget, the backup output will likely not match the service drop amperage in many residential installs. The high end residential freestanding gensets used to be NG water cooled multi cylinder engines, and top out around 100 amps. For a big modern home with 200 amp service, that‘s good. But it’s not everything.

And on the lower end installs, the transfer switching but may be limited to 6 primary circuits or less. Barely enough to keep the food fresh and the pipes from freezing in some cases. Count on living with lanterns, flashlights and cold food in those setups.

The transfer panel layout requires some forethought on what constitutes “essential service” to you. Keeping the water, fridge and HVAC/heater running is always nice. But seeing your way through pitch dark bedrooms and baths at night is nice, too.

What we opted for is a transfer switch right at the meter. This eliminated the traditional transfer switch panel altogeter, and creates a very short delay on outage (about two minutes). The main service panel is the transfer panel. But it forced very prudent use of the main service panel to route the power within backup capacity. If you overload a genset, it will shut down, and in extreme situations, suffer damage. We calculated our essential circuit loads, and the approximate remaining genset power.

The advantage was we select the essential circuits (clearly marked), and then have the remaining capacity “follow us” around the house as we go from kitchen, to basement, to bedroom for the night. The genset can reach anywhere you want it. Even an outbuilding, if it runs back to that meter.

We kept the most sensitive equipment on UPS. They‘ll either be energized back up during the outage (phones), or will gracefully shutdown as the outage runs them down.

I would keep the Internet service going on Wi-Fi, and we’d watch TV up there at night, as if there were no outage at all. Mrs. C was even able to run a few loads of laundry through washer and dryer, or run a baked ziti through the oven during the longer outages.

Just pay attention to what you have left on line, and what you’re asking, as you flip the breakers on and off.

 

[Columbo]

My wife is on me for quite some time now to get a back-up generator for our house. I have no clue what costs are involved. One can really not find much online, most want to sell you something.
Our house is not big at all, say 1000 sqft, and its only the two of us and three small dogs.
In the past I had used a standby generator, which I think was about 6 kw. It was enough for a few hurricanes where we lost power to keep the whole house running, including our AC system. We do not use electric for cooking, just gas for it. So, the generator would run ac, lights, tv, radio etc.
My thought is that a 10-12 kW generator might be fitting our needs. Gas line is close by, so there will be not much cost for running a new line.
Anybody here has an idea what we could expect for cost for the generator and the installation?? We have also a solar system, so I guess this would need to be taken into consideration when the generator comes on in power loss, panels should not be shocked or fried up.....
Any guidance would be appreciated. Thanks

In the under 15kW range, there are still a lot of bigger portable options. A premium/commercial grade portable in that range can go up to 24 hours on a tank, and many are electric start. They won’t be exposed to the wear and tear of the elements year round; only when you need them.

And they are under 1/2 the cost of a fixed genset install. Less required maintenance. And you can take them with you to the next house. For 1,000 feet of living space, that may be all you need.

Check with your utility for install approval, but for a smaller genset under 40 amps (10kW), these might give you some flexibility and are a drop in installation. Some models also include integrated whole house transient protection. That protection can be a big equipment saver both before and after outages.

GenerLink, Backup Generator | Global Power Products

Solar panel feeds can complicate any transfer switch install, so you absolutely need an electrician to examine and correct any backfeed issues.

 

[Rudy Vey]

So, the first two quotes are in and we are quite surprised....The one (just over the phone) was quoting $8999.99 (plus tax, permits etc, etc.) for a 10 kW unit. Then we had a guy in today, and I must say he was extremely knowledgeable and nice, and explained everything in detail. Gas line we have right now to the area of the house we plan on putting the unit needs to be bigger....and the unit needs to be sitting not where I had planned for, but where my wife's beloved bush rose is...but this could be moved.
For 14 kW system, everything included would be $13250 and 13800 for an 18 kW system. Much more than we anticipated. But is is pretty much in the range I had found in online research for our area here. Two more quotes are coming next week.
One thing is sure, the cost of install and generator is about equal.

 

[Tirvine]

After SNOVID when the Texas grid crashed during a heavy snow followed by extended single digit temps, loads of folks bought generators. We and a number of friends had Generacs installed, using automated switching and hooked into natural gas lines. They generally ran around $12,000 for everything. In whole house generators, buying incrementally more power is not very much more expensive. It was handy last winter for another extended freeze and ice storm that clobbered local power distribution and this summer for brownouts, too.

 

[Barbarian80]

I've seen prices for whole house generators in central NJ between 8 and 14k. 8k was on the really low end and somewhere in between is what you should expect to pay, on average.

Depending on your needs, and especially if its just you and one other person, another option is to hire an electrician and install a bypass switch and use your own gas powered generator to service parts of the home while your power is out. The bypass switch is very inexpensive and the electrician will ask you to pick 4 or 5 circuits from your panel hat will bypass your electrical service and plug into your generator. I think that will run you somewhere in the neighborhood of 2k. It's enough for some lights, a refrigerator, and an AC window unit- but that's about all you need if you're running natural gas appliances.

 

[gpjoe]

So, the first two quotes are in and we are quite surprised....The one (just over the phone) was quoting $8999.99 (plus tax, permits etc, etc.) for a 10 kW unit. Then we had a guy in today, and I must say he was extremely knowledgeable and nice, and explained everything in detail. Gas line we have right now to the area of the house we plan on putting the unit needs to be bigger....and the unit needs to be sitting not where I had planned for, but where my wife's beloved bush rose is...but this could be moved.
For 14 kW system, everything included would be $13250 and 13800 for an 18 kW system. Much more than we anticipated. But is is pretty much in the range I had found in online research for our area here. Two more quotes are coming next week.
One thing is sure, the cost of install and generator is about equal.

In my area the average cost seems to be $8-10k for a whole-house standby generator running on natural gas, which is in line with your first quote. I'd love to get one for $5-6k.

I was quoted $900 just for an exterior outlet and 50a breaker for a portable generator, so I installed it myself - for under 100 bucks - to run my 10kw, dual power (gas/propane) portable.

On propane it easily powers everything we need including the well pump, sump pumps, A/C, lights, fridge, TV. Our stove, dryer, heat, and hot water are natural gas but still require power to operate.

 

[Whisky]

I've seen prices for whole house generators in central NJ between 8 and 14k. 8k was on the really low end and somewhere in between is what you should expect to pay, on average.

Depending on your needs, and especially if its just you and one other person, another option is to hire an electrician and install a bypass switch and use your own gas powered generator to service parts of the home while your power is out. The bypass switch is very inexpensive and the electrician will ask you to pick 4 or 5 circuits from your panel hat will bypass your electrical service and plug into your generator. I think that will run you somewhere in the neighborhood of 2k. It's enough for some lights, a refrigerator, and an AC window unit- but that's about all you need if you're running natural gas appliances.

This is what we did here. We have NG furnaces/cooktop/water heater so all I need to keep running are the blower motors and exhaust fan. I have a 2p 30amp for the sewer grinder pump, both furnace blower motors, water heater exhaust fan, kitchen/LR lights and receptacles. I can run the portable generator outside the garage and plug into the transfer switch using a #6 “extension cord” that I made. Our neighbors have told us in the 13yrs they’ve lived here the longest the power has ever been out was about 16hrs so it’s more for my wife’s peace of mind than anything.

The only hitch was that when I ordered the transfer switch/panel it took almost 8 months to get it. This was in 2020 though so things may have improved.

 

[luvmysuper]

Ultimately, folks will do what they think is best.
For me, almost everything is electric here at my house. The only things that run on gas are the furnaces and the garage heater - but they won't run without power.
We are also on a well, so emergency power is a MUST.
I figured as long as I was doing it, why not have enough that I am not inconvenienced in any way.
For me, the generator will do just fine if I run everything in the house simultaneously.
I have a UPS for my main television, Network attached storage and internet gateway so I can still browse the internet, watch TV, and stream TV shows and Movies over the internal wifi network, even if my pay services are interrupted.
I have power to two furnaces, two AC units, TV's, computers, all the lights, the two fridges, the microwave, the dishwasher, the electric stove etc.
If we lose power, it is as if it never happened except for the 5 seconds or so that the generator needs to start up and shift the electrical load from line to generator. Because of the UPS, this brief period does not restart those devices.
The switch back is seamless, and occurs instantaneously when power is restored. After a short period, the system shifts back from generator to line, and then shuts down the generator.

 

[Old Hippie]

We have a smallish generator, about 8KW. It's out back in a little shed with two 100-pound bottles of propane because we have no gas lines. Transfer at the panel to run most house lights, external plugs (from when we had chickens that needed power in the cold), and all the freezers and refrigerators. I reckon I can get about two days out of a full bottle of gas, then it's switch the tanks and try to get into town to fill it.

We have a wood stove for heating and a wood cookstove. Like Phil we also have a well so power is pretty crucial. We live a ways from town and often have small power bumps of less than five minutes. I don't even get off the couch. We've had a couple of extended outages, but usually BC Hydro gets on the stick and manages to fix things within a few hours. Most of the time that's not even long enough to need to crank up the gen.

O.H.

 

[Hopalong]

I had a Kohler 20kw put in about a year and a half ago. California is a third world country now and they shut the power off whenever the wind blows because of fire hazard, but they claim they want wind power. It was about $5k for the generator, $1k for the switch, $5k for the electrician, $1,500 for the 250 gallon propane tank, $500 for the propane fittings and valves, and $900 for 200 gallons of propane. The generator is about 75 feet from the house in a horse pasture behind some trees and bushes. It's loud, glad it's not next to the house. I dug the trenches (there is also a 10ft trench between the generator and propane tank) I put the pad in as well. I'm all electric so this unit is capable of handling everything. The thing cycles once a week for 20 minutes. When the power goes out it switches so fast the only way I know the power went out is that I can hear the generator come on.

 

[Columbo]

We are also on a well, so emergency power is a MUST.

Same. People on municipal service don’t understand the “one flush doctrine” for well users when the power drops out.

 

[Rudy Vey]

Got two more quotes. The second was a good $1.5k less than the first one we got. However, the one we got today was $5k more than the first one.....We are just surprised how much the quotes differ from company to company. The first two we got, in one case the owner came to do the work, in the second case the owner's son, who is also the main guy for the install. The guy today was probably more like a sales man with a good tech background. But this does not warrant so much more cost. All proposals were pretty much identical, so there nothing added that would explain the price difference. However, the main difference I saw was that Q1 had a $1200 higher price for the generator itself than Q2, with the machines being the same.
Had a similar experience years ago with windows. I had called three companies. Not knowing much then, two had sent sales guys, and ion both cases they did not know much when asked a specific question. The third one was the owner, main installer and sales person....he works all the jobs himself with the help of two of his countrymen. His quote was half the cost of the other two. Guess so-called home-improvement companies had quite a bit of an overhead that needs to be fed.