Standby generator install
A standby generator, installed start to finish
One quote and one crew for the pad, the switch, the gas, the permit and the inspection.
You choose the brand and the size with us, using a walk through what you want running. We handle the paperwork and the other trades, and you get the unit tested under load before we leave.
Natural gas or propane
Whole-house or essential circuits
Pad height set for your flood zone
When you need it
Signs it's time to plan one
You don't need all of these. Most people have two or three.
Outages last more than a few hours
A long outage after a storm puts food, heat and cooling at risk.
Someone at home depends on power
Medical equipment, a well pump or a sump pump can't wait for the grid.
You work from home
A day without power is a day without work.
You're in a flood-prone or coastal zone
Where the unit sits matters, so it is better planned than rushed.
The season is close
Pad and permit work take weeks, and the pad can't go in once the storm is named.
You already own a portable unit
A standby unit starts by itself and doesn't need a cord run through a window.
What the work includes
From the first visit to the test
Eight steps, in this order. Each one is on your quote.
- 01Day one
Step 1: Site visit
We walk the lot, open the panel, read the gas meter and add up your loads with you.
- 02After the visit
Step 2: Written quote
The unit, the pad, the switch, the permit and the inspection, each on its own line.
- 03Before work
Step 3: Site plan and permit
We draw the plan and file the electrical permit. The gas permit is booked alongside it.
- 04
Step 4: The unit is ordered
The deposit orders the unit. We tell you when it arrives.
- 05
Step 5: Pad and conduit
The pad is poured and cured, and the conduit is run to the panel.
- 06
Step 6: Switch and gas
The power is off for part of one day while the transfer switch is wired. The gas fitter connects the fuel.
- 07
Step 7: Inspection
The inspector looks at the pad, the wiring and the gas.
- 08
Step 8: Test under load
We start the unit with you there, run it under load, and show you the controls and the service schedule.
How pricing works for this job
What moves the price of an install
There is no price on this page, because the lot sets it. The written quote is the price.
The size of the unit
The run from the pad to the panel and the gas meter
Natural gas or propane
Pad height in a flood zone
Permit and inspection fees, passed through at cost
Questions
Questions about this job
What size generator do I need?
It depends on what you want running, not on the size of the house. We add up the air handler, the refrigerators, the well or sump pump and the lights you named, then pick a unit with room to spare. A whole-house unit carries nearly everything; a smaller one with an essential-circuits switch carries the list you chose.
Do I need a permit, and who pulls it?
Yes, for a standby generator. We draw the site plan and file the electrical permit with your town or the county, and the gas work has its own permit that we book at the same time. The inspector comes to the house before the unit is put into service.
Natural gas or propane?
If your street has natural gas, it is usually the simpler fuel: no tank to fill. If it doesn't, propane works with a tank set on your lot. We say which one we'd choose on the first visit and why.
Will it run through a hurricane?
A standby generator is built to run outdoors in bad weather, but nothing is a promise. Flooding, a gas supply that stops or a fault in the unit can all stop it. That is why we set the pad against your flood zone and test the unit under load before we leave.
Book the install before the season
Pad and permit work for new installs books from February. Send the details and we'll set a site visit.