When it comes to a whole house generator, size is an important factor. The wrong size generator can cause issues like not being able to power your central air conditioner or keep the sump pump running.
To get the right sized generator, you must first determine the total wattage needed for your home. You can use a power sizing calculator to estimate the wattage you need.
Power Requirements for Your Appliances
A whole house generator needs to be able to provide sufficient power for your appliances in order to function correctly. This includes air conditioning, a refrigerator, lights, a computer, and a sump pump.
Some of these appliances require a lot of energy when they’re first turned on, known as start-up wattage or surge wattage. However, they’ll use less energy as they’re constantly running.
Many appliances will also list their starting watts separately from their running watts, so be sure to look for both.
You can then use this information to figure out how big a generator you need for your home. To do this, add up the total running watts of all the appliances you have and then multiply that number by the highest starting wattage of those appliances.
This is a great way to figure out the size of your generator. However, be aware that some appliances like air conditioners will draw more wattage at the beginning of their cycling than they do when they’re running consistently.
Power Requirements for Your HVAC System
Your air conditioning system requires a lot of electricity. This is because it has a motor, which needs power to turn on and off, and also uses energy to keep itself running.
Your HVAC system’s wattage requirements depend on its type, the size of your home, and the number of people living in it. In addition, the number of appliances you use and the temperature regulation mechanisms you have will determine how much power your system uses.
The wattage requirement for most equipment is stated in the label. It can be in watts, kilowatts or volts.
Often, it is stated in both starting and running watts. Start-up wattage is higher than running wattage, and it usually goes down as the equipment starts to run continuously.
Your generator must be big enough to meet both starting and running wattage requirements for your AC unit. This will help you avoid any problems. It is recommended to contact an electrician to determine the exact wattage you need.
Power Requirements for Your Lighting Fixtures
A whole house generator is the best way to go about powering your stuff in the event of an emergency, but that doesn’t mean you should skimp on quality. The best way to ensure your generator lives up to its hype is to enlist the aid of an expert. A free no obligation quote from a top rated local pro will have you covered in no time. A reputable company will even let you sample their wares for free!
Power Requirements for Your Medical Equipment
Hospitals and medical facilities have a lot of high-end equipment that requires power to operate. Things like magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), x-ray machines, testing devices and monitoring equipment for patient vitals all need power to run.
When a hospital or facility experiences a power outage, these expensive devices may not function properly and can cause serious damage to equipment. This can lead to delays in diagnosis and treatment, which in turn costs the facility money.
This is why the power requirements of your medical equipment should be taken into consideration when deciding on a whole house generator. You want to ensure that the generator will be large enough to keep all of your medical equipment running until it can be repaired or replaced.