What You Should Know About Having A Backup Generator Installed In A Hurricane-Prone Area

Posted on: 10 September 2020

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If your area is often in the path of tropical storms and hurricanes, then you might be thinking about installing a backup generator. After all, you might be used to power outages during and after these major storms, and you might be hoping that you and your family members can live in relative comfort after upcoming storms. These are some of the things that you will probably want to know about having a backup generator installed in a hurricane-prone area.

Have it Installed Well Before Hurricane Season

If you want to be able to count on your backup generator during hurricane season, you'll need to make sure to have it installed in time. Companies that sell and install backup generators can often be very busy during hurricane season, so it might be tough for you to get someone out to your house when a hurricane is heading in your direction. If you go ahead and have your backup generator installed before hurricane season, you don't have to worry about not being prepared for a storm. Therefore, it's smart to start thinking about buying and installing one of these systems well ahead of time.

Make Sure It's Big Enough to Power Your House

Of course, you'll probably want to be able to keep you and your family members as comfortable as possible during an upcoming storm. Therefore, you should choose a backup generator that is big enough to power your entire home. If you aren't sure of which size generator you should be looking at, ask a professional. They can look at the size of your home and the amount of power that your family typically uses to help you determine what size your backup generator should be.

Test it Out Before Hurricane Season

If you have your backup generator installation well before hurricane season, you'll want to test it out before hurricane season arrives. Then, if there are any issues, you will have time to resolve them before your area is threatened by a storm.

Make Sure You Have Enough Fuel

Even if you have a backup generator in place, you won't be able to count on it to power your home if you don't have enough fuel. Downed trees or power lines, flooding, and other similar issues can leave you unable to leave your home for days or weeks in some storms, so you might not be able to get out to buy more fuel in the days right after the storm. Therefore, you should make sure that you have plenty of fuel on hand so that you can keep your backup generator up and running.