What Size Generator Do You Need For Your House

Every homeowner should have a generator on hand for times when the power goes out, or else it can be a nightmare. However, choosing the right generator for your needs can be tricky. Whether you’re in the market for a portable generator for the first time or want to upgrade your existing unit, this post will walk you through the tips to help you find the perfect inverter or portable generator for your home.

Decide First What You Want To Power

The first step is to decide what exactly you want your generator to power. Different appliances require different amounts of energy, so if you’re trying to run multiple things at once, make sure that your generator has enough juice. Generators range from 5 kilowatts (kW) to 7 kW. If you live in a two-story house or plan on running major appliances like an electric dryer or air conditioner, look for a model with higher wattage. If you’re only planning on running lights and small appliances, a smaller model will suffice.

Find The Wattage Of Each Appliance

Next, you’ll need to know how much power each appliance needs so you can get an idea of how many watts your generator should have. Doing so will ensure that it will meet all your requirements and not just your immediate needs. Both surge and running wattage of an appliance can usually be found on the back of the unit or in the manual book. But if you don’t have this information, fret not! Most major appliances will list their wattage on their labels or manufacturers’ websites; otherwise, it’s easy enough to find online using Google or your favorite search engine.

Calculate The Maximum Power Consumption

Determining how much electricity you need for your home depends on how many watts you will use in an hour. To find a device’s energy consumption, multiply its wattage or power by the amount of time you run it per day or week. Now divide this number by 1000 to convert it into kilowatts (kWh).

For example, if you use a 600-watt coffee maker for 30 minutes (0.5 hours) every day, multiply 0.5 hour x 600 watt/1000 = 0.3 kWh per day

Do the same for all appliances you would be powering simultaneously with your generator and add them up together to find the total power requirement.

Consider Your Family’s Needs

If you have a lot of people who use appliances frequently during a power outage, you may need a bigger generator than if you were just using it for yourself and your family. Also, think about how long certain appliances typically last between charges (or recharges). This will help you ensure that the generator won’t go down during an emergency situation and can handle all of your needs without a hitch.

Check The Noise Level

Noise is another important factor when choosing the right-sized generator because some are louder than others. You don’t want to wake up your neighbors or disturb those living nearby with loud noises from running your generator, including your family. There are two types of generators: those with overhead exhausts and those without overhead exhausts. The ones with overhead exhausts tend to be louder than those without them, especially at high speeds.

So, find out how loud the generators are before buying one so that you can pick one that won’t disturb anyone close by.

While we have covered the basics, you should consider to have one. For more information, you are always welcomed to coantct us in any time.