After losing 'a bunch of food' to power outage, one homeowner weighs backup power options

A power outage might make a generator seem optional, right up until the refrigerator warms up and the sump pump stops working. 

That was the breaking point for one homeowner, whose social media post about losing food and nearly ending up with a flooded basement sparked a discussion about when it makes sense to invest in backup power.

Here's what to know

After spending two years avoiding generator prices, the homeowner turned back to the question in a post to Reddit's r/Generator community.

This original poster wrote that, after an outage, they "lost a bunch of food from the fridge/freezer, and couldn't run the sump pump, which came way too close to being a much bigger problem." 

The experience drove OP to compare portable, inverter, and whole-home standby generators and ask the subreddit for advice on the five options they had initially narrowed it down to.

One sticking point was power requirements, especially at startup. OP wrote that "The biggest thing I didn't realize before starting was how much the running watts vs. starting watts matters, especially if you're trying to run a fridge, sump pump, a few lights, etc. at the same time."

For shoppers focused mainly on sticker price, missing that distinction can lead to buying a generator that cannot keep the appliances that matter most running.

Fuel choice came up repeatedly in the replies. One commenter advised, "Buy dual fuel. Propane doesn't go bad nor gum up the carburetor over disuse." 

Another stressed why that can matter even more in a large outage: "No electricity anywhere also means no gas. So yes, get a generator that either runs on propane or connects to your NG line."

Some commenters said the extra expense of standby backup can be justified by convenience. 

One Redditor described their family's 20-kilowatt Kohler whole-home generator and said that during an outage in freezing weather, their spouse "barely had enough time to register that the power was out before it kicked in."

More background

The cost of an outage can easily exceed the price of the generator itself. Spoiled groceries, water damage from a sump pump failure, and the risk of losing heat or refrigeration can quickly make a delayed purchase look much more expensive.

For most homeowners, the first step in backing up your home is making a short list of must-run appliances and devices, like a refrigerator, freezer, sump pump, furnace fan, a few lights, and phone charging. From there, it becomes much easier to estimate both running watts and startup surges, helping avoid paying for more capacity than needed, or buying a generator that cannot handle the essentials.

Households trying to keep upfront costs down may find that a portable or inverter generator is enough if the goal is simply to keep critical items running. A dual-fuel model may also make ownership easier by reducing maintenance concerns and giving homeowners another option if gasoline becomes hard to access during an outage. Battery backups are becoming especially popular too for homeowners who want backup power without any nasty fumes.

Many buyers may also want to think about how the generator will connect to the house. A transfer switch can provide a cleaner and safer setup, whether it is installed by a professional or handled by an experienced DIYer, and homes with natural gas service may have additional fuel options worth comparing.

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