Emergency Generator Prices
Figuring out prices for your emergency generator can range from simple and straight forward, to tricky and complex. It all depends on your needs, and more specifically, the needs of whatever you are trying to power.
For residential home owners, it’s generally a straight forward process.
Things that would be useful to know:
– What voltage do you need? Most home owners will only need 120 VAC, the standard U.S. voltage. Some, however, may have 3 phase power to run a shop in the garage, or something similar. In those cases, you’ll end up needing a much different generator.
– How much amperage does your house use? The majority of your power consumption will come from air conditioning, electric heating, electric water heating. You may also want to look at the refrigerator and washer and dryer. With the amp usage for those main things, you will have a good idea of what size your generator needs to be to handle the load of everything in the house.
– What type of fuel do you prefer? For residential, most home owners prefer to use natural gas. It’s simple, you don’t have to worry about refueling and most home owners already have a gas meter installed. We do have some that prefer diesel or propane, and if you are in that category, it’s important to let us know right from the start.
– Do you have a preferred manufacturer? If so, it’s important to say something at the outset. This can play a major role in the process, as prices may be wildly different for the same size unit from different manufacturers.
If you have the above questions answered and information ready to go when you call, the emergency generator prices should be fairly easy to calculate.
For commercial and industrial generators, the process can be much more complex.
The questions will be the same, however, they may not be as easy to answer. When trying to power a large building or other item, it can be much more difficult to figure out the load size. Some customers find success by looking to their power company for the peak loads that the building has used in the past. This will tell you your highest load, and give you a good idea of the minimum you want to size your generator.
Often, businesses also have other requirements, as dictated by the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA). For example, facilities that, without power, could incur a loss of life will be required to use a unit that has fuel storage capabilities. This rules out natural gas. You’ll have to use either propane or diesel power generators.
Also, voltages tend to be much different for businesses than for residential. A normal residential unit will be single phase and 120 VAC. Commercial and industrial generators are more likely to be 3 phase, with a voltage of 208 VAC all the way up to 480 VAC.
No matter your requirements, the more of this information you have ready to go, the quicker and easier it will be for us to find the emergency generator prices. If you don’t know what you need, we’d be more than happy to do a consultation to go over your requirements and help you figure all out!