Why You Should Install a Standby Generator Before Winter – Part 1
Winter is the season for severe weather, stressing the services of your local utility. Snow and heavy ice from winter storms are capable of taking down power lines and causing extended power outages. However, installing a home standby generator will keep your family from experiencing most of the dangers and inconveniences from losing utility power during the colder months.
Basics of Standby Generators
When you lose electricity from a utility, you often have no idea when they will be able to restore services. Having a standby generator will keep your home powered up whenever the grid goes down in your neighborhood. Your home unit will be able to quickly detect when the electricity has been cut and will start generating power within seconds. If it is well maintained, a standby generator can run nonstop for up to a week in winter without requiring to be refueled.
Benefits for Winter
Heating Available – Installing a standby generator will help ensure your furnace continues heating your home, so your family stays warm and comfy. If the outside temperature is around freezing or below, your house’s interior will quickly feel like a refrigerator without heat. A fireplace in a room will keep it warm, but the other parts of your home will have no heating.
Essential Appliances Are Powered – If there’s no electricity, beverages, and food in your refrigerator will quickly spoil. You do not want to drive out in the middle of a snowstorm to shop for groceries so there is enough food to eat. If you have a sump pump, you know it requires a consistent power source to stay functioning to prevent your basement from flooding. A licensed electrician can advise you on getting the right size standby generator to ensure all of your essential appliances stay powered.
Automatic Transfer Switch – As opposed to portable backup generators that need to be manually started, a permanent home standby backup generator will automatically turn on when utility electricity is lost. This feature is especially important if you are away from home when there is a power outage. A standby generator will also turn off automatically when utility power is restored. Its automatic transfer switch will ensure that reconnecting to the grid is handled safely.
Part 2 will cover more reasons why you should install a standby generator before winter.
Electrical Peace of Mind
Providing professional electricians since 1988 in Maryland, Cook Electric is the company you can rely on for all your electrical service needs. For knowledgeable, fair, honest, reliable, and conscientious service, call Cook Electric today at (410) 266-9040. We will be very glad to help you.