<p>I think my mom said that the unit itself was around $2200 (IIRC). On top of that, add installation costs…not sure how much that would be. </p>
<p>Thumper, we have a tank too, it was installed along with OUR gas fireplace last year. The line that would feed the generator has to be a heavy duty line (not sure the specifics, I’m sure you could upgrade the line if needed) - we had that kind of line put in with our tank just in case, down the road, we cave and decide to put in the standby. Mom is our “test case”.</p>
<p>Oldfort, if I were in your position and could afford it, I would look into a standby natural gas powered generator (a box that sits outside the garage) for three reasons: (i) it kicks on automatically when power goes out; (ii) the reason (i) makes it much safer and less hassle for older folks than a gasoline-powered portable generator - there is nothing to drag out, pour flammable liquid in, connect electrical cords to; and (iii) gasoline-powered generators are extremely noisy and generate dangerous levels of carbon monoxide (unlike cars, they do not come with catalytic converters). Every year several people in my state die or get hospitalized of CO poisoning due to running generators too close to the house or starting some sort of a coal-burning grill, like a hibachi, in the garage or indoors.</p>
<p>The install will have to be done by a professional, and once or twice a year the generator needs to be tested, which can be done by the install company. Six years ago we looked into that option, and the price was $5K for our large 3000-sq ft house house. We are able-bodied adults, our power goes out once or twice a year, we live close to a public school (which means outages are dealt with promptly), and our house had been wired for a portable generator, so after giving it some thoughts, we decided to save money and did not install one. </p>
<p>For anyone considering a gasoline-powered portable generator, I highly recommend installing a separate electrical panel where the generator will be plugged in. That way, you can run appliances that cannot be connected to the generator with a power cord; for example, our furnace (nat. gas, but requires electricity to run) is wired into the panel. Honda makes the best and quietest portable generators, but they cost a pretty penny, and come with all drawbacks of portable gasoline-powered generators (need to be run far from the garage, gas needs to be added once in a few hours, etc.).</p>
<p>Thanks BB. The cost will be split among the siblings. I live in NYC and they all live far away. I couldn’t even get to my parents this time because I couldn’t get a car, and there was no public transportation out to NJ. They are not getting younger, so we want something that’s safe and easy.</p>
<p>I just spoke with them. A friend of mine brought over some firewood and food for them today. My mom was extremely touched by the kindness.</p>
<p>Total cost for 8000 watt including installation would be $4000 to $6000. DH says that even with this, they would need to be careful how they use appliances during a power outage…in other words…don’t do the laundry, bake a cake and run all your electrical things at the same time!</p>
<p>oldfort, nice to hear that you have trusted friends who are able to keep an eye on your parents. Yes, Lowes etc. offer installation, but they most likely contract it through some other company. I anticipate that the demand for generators is so high right now that there might be long waits and/or price gouging.</p>
<p>Another thing to consider with the stand-by generators, it would be a HUGE selling point for a house in that area I would think so it’s something that they would probably see a rapid return on the investment. Since they are getting older and their house is so big, I am going to venture a guess that they may want to sell in the next how many years.</p>
<p>We have a generator called The Guardian, aptly named, that sits on a concrete slab next to our garage. It has its own propane tank, a large one, and our propane company called us before Sandy to make sure we had enough fuel to ride out the storm. It starts itself up every Friday and runs for a few minutes. It also starts itself up within about a minute of any power outage. I can’t begin to express the feeling of security this has given me. My H travels a lot and we have frequent blizzards and power outages. I love my generator! It will basically power anything in the house, but I am always frugal about power usage, whether on generator or not.</p>
<p>5000 watts divided by 120 volts = 41.66 amps. Add the amps in the appliances of interest and you get your total. I don’t think a 5000 (probably 3500-4000 after start) watt will be remotely adequate in running a large house. My house is 6000 sq ft and has 400 amp service, 2 200 amp panels. When we sized it we were looking at 10,000 watts minimum, for one refrigerator, one heater, etc. Probably something plumbed into and running on natural gas. Definitely not a DIY job :)</p>
<p>As I write this I’m listening to the hum of our portable gasoline powered generator and I am so happy to have it! Our power has been out for five days now (Long Island) but the gennie has kept the furnace, fridge and a few lights on. We are in a lot better shape than the rest of the neighborhood who have cold dark homes. Totally worth the money.</p>
<p>The only thing I would add is that if you do go with a gasoline powered model, plan to stockpile some gasoline before predicted storms. The gas shortage here developed very rapidly and I had to wait in line seven hours yesterday to get gas. (The first five hours waiting in my car, only to have the station run out when I was almost at the front of the line; the last two hours in a walkup line with gas cans.)</p>
<p>The small portable generators take a lot gasoline to operate. Too, many people in emergency times transport gasoline for their little generators in all sorts of dangerous containers. I’ve seen morons pumping gasoline into open tubs with no lids in their car trunks to take back home. Also, if you set up a generator outside in front of your house in a driveway, chain it with big chains and locks…low lifes love stealing them!</p>
<p>Yeah, I saw several people on line for gas with non-approved containers, but the attendants didn’t seem to care.</p>
<p>Our generator’s specs say it gets 9 hours of run time out of five gallons of gas. We’ve stretched that a lot by keeping the electrical load to a minimum and are getting 11 or 12 hours. We also are conserving gas by turning it off while we are in bed.</p>
<p>And, yes, we noticed someone looking at it with interest the first day (our fence had blown down) so it’s chained up now!</p>
<p>Our first house in NJ had a sump pump. After a big storm knocked out power and our basement flooded I had an “ah ha” experience: There is a high correlation between loss of power and needing a sump pump, ie the big storm that knocks out the power also brings rain that floods your basement. So realizing this was not a 100 year event, but more likely an annual event, I bought an inexpensive gasoline powered generator. The thing was really loud but would have been able to power our sump pump and maybe the fridge. Certainly not something I would expect an elderly person to use to get them through a week without power. We moved across town to a dry house on high ground and never used the generator in 15 years. When we moved we gave it to our neighbor. I hope they are putting it to good use.</p>
<p>We have a portable generator that we got when we had an ice storm and didn’t have power for a week. I would not recommend it unless you were handy and very well versed in how it worked.</p>
<p>My H has co workers who have generators that have been talked about. They live in remote areas and lose their power more than we do. He said they were $3-5000 and that sounds about right from what others are reporting.</p>