Best Time of Year to Buy a Generator?

The best time to buy a generator for your home is in the fall. Price drops occur when manufacturers prepare for the winter. Read on to find out the main reasons.

Generators come in handy when there’s a frequent power outage or lack of power supply. Also, with the different causes of power outages such as natural disasters (a major storm, floods, tornadoes, etc.), generators are fast becoming one of the essential appliances for every household.

A generator comes to our aid in times of extended power outages. When buying a generator, you want to be sure that it is capable of powering your appliances such as air conditioners, your coffee maker, water heaters, power tools, and other electrical equipment for long periods of time.

If you are looking to buy a low noise level generator that would power your entire house, you should check out our other posts. By the end of this post, you will discover the best time of year to purchase a generator.

When Is the Best Time to Buy a Generator?

The best time to buy a portable generator is when there is no natural disaster such as a hurricane. During this period, demand for generators is relatively low, and retailers want to empty their left-over stocks from the hurricane period.

If you wait until the hurricane period when there’s power demand before buying a generator, that is the worst time. You may likely buy at an excessive rate. During this period, a generator is the popular source of power, and many people are rushing to buy one.

Are Prices Affected by Season?

Generator prices are affected by season. The cost of a generator changes, especially during winter when there are more cases of power outages. As a result, people are trying to get generators on short notice, which increases their price.

It’s Best to Buy In the Fall and Late Summer

The best time to get sweet generator deals is in the fall or late summer. During this time, generators are not in high demand.

There’s a stable weather condition during this period and a low probability that there’ll be a disaster. Summertime is therefore considered the best time to purchase one as opposed to during winter.

Why You Shouldn’t Panic and Buy One In an Emergency

The straightforward answer is that you can get sweet generator deals if you don’t panic buy. If you have been cut from the power grid, the only way not to panic and purchase a generator during an emergency is when you’ve purchased it before that time.

There are many downsides to purchasing a generator during an emergency. You might end up paying more than the average market price, or you might not buy the best generator or both if you’re particularly unlucky.

So, purchasing a generator during an emergency is somewhat illogical for someone that wants to get the best. 

Do Not Buy Based on Short-Term Needs

Spending the same amount of money to purchase the same generator that could work for long-term needs for a short term need is not the best idea.

If your needs are short-term, there are alternatives to meeting them instead of purchasing a brand new generator. There’s the alternative of renting a generator at an affordable price. It’s beneficial always to get the best generator deals when purchasing one.

Find Out How Much Power You Need

Before purchasing a generator, find out how much power the appliances and fixtures in your home consume. This way, you’ll have an idea of how big or how small your generator should be, and how you might run the cord into your home to your appliances.

Also, before purchasing a standby home generator, ensure that the generator’s wattage is higher than the wattage of the entire appliances in the home combined. This makes for better and more effective performance. You should also ensure that you have enough gas to run the appliances you need.

Think About the Type of Generators You Need

There are different generators on the market, and they each serve other purposes. There are:

• Regular generators
• Current generators
• Portable inverter generators
• Conventional generators
• Battery-powered generators
• Natural gas generators
• Diesel generators, and much more

Therefore, before purchasing a generator, you should research the type of generator you need. Among the many things you want to check are their fuel level, fuel capacity, fuel gauge, power capacity, watts of power, and fuel efficiency.

This will help you get the best for your budget while getting the exact one that meets your needs. We’ll now examine different types of generators below:

Home Standby Generators

As the name implies, a standby house generator is a backup generator that operates automatically immediately after a power outage.

It is designed to sense a power outage in the home’s main supply, and it comes on immediately. So, if the power outage can disrupt your day-to-day activities or business, then your best choice of generator should be a standby generator.

Portable Generators

Portable generators are also a source of electricity when there’s a power outage. However, its mode of operation is different from that of a standby generator.

With the portable generator, you can plug extensions and electric-powered tools directly into it. It often runs on a gas-powered engine. A portable generator can solve power outages, but it is only a temporary solution instead of a standby house generator.

Inverter Generators

An inverter generator also generates AC power with the use of an alternator. It runs on a fuel-powered engine to generate power. The benefits of an inverter generator are that there’s less distortion due to cleaner voltage, it doesn’t consume much fuel, and it doesn’t release much carbon into the atmosphere.

Portable Power Stations

Portable power stations provide backup power during a blackout. But the beauty of this generator is that it doesn’t emit any form of carbon and so you can use it indoors. Portable power stations make provision for different output options like the AC and USB.

A portable power station can last for as long as 13 hours if it’s fully charged. You can enjoy the benefits of this generator without the usual inconveniences that come with other types.

Solar Generators

A solar generator is a portable power source that makes use of solar panels to charge a battery pack. The process is simple: the unit absorbs light, converts it into electricity, and stores it in a battery. Solar generators are perfect for emergencies or when you need to charge small electronic devices. Despite this, they are not enough to run a power-hungry home, where only a gas-powered generator will suffice. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

How Big of a Generator Do I Need to Power My Major Appliances?

To power these appliances, your generator should rate between 5,000 to 7,500 watts generator. With this, you can run all the major appliances in your home comfortably.

However, before purchasing a generator, it is expedient that you’re confident of the watts of your appliances; that way, you’d be sure of the size of the generator to purchase. You can easily find that out as most devices are labeled with their watts of power.

Also, note that the size of your generator depends on the number of watts your major appliances amass. Therefore, you don’t have to purchase a heavy-duty generator for appliances that a small size generator can power.

Do Generators Have to Be Maintained?

Of course! To ensure the longevity of your generator, then you have to maintain it. I’m sure you wouldn’t love a situation where your generator breaks down and disappoint you when it’s supposed to be on standby.

To avoid such an unfortunate occurrence, you need to perform regular maintenance on the generator.

Generators can last from 20 to 30 years, but only if they are correctly maintained. And as such, you can rest assured that your generator will always be on standby when there’s a power outage or an emergency.

How Many Watts Does a Generator Need to Power a House?

It is essential to take into consideration all of your different appliances before making this decision. 

Note that this time, your generator would be powering the whole house and not just significant appliances. In light of this, to power a home, you’d want to acquire a heavy-duty generator. A heavy-duty generator usually gives an output of at least 7,500 or 10,000 watts.

That amount of output is capable of powering all major and minor appliances in the home. In addition, to avoid extra cost, it would be wise to calculate the total amount of wattage of your home appliances and home in general.

This would help you in making the best choice. Plus, to be on the safe side, get a slightly bigger generator than your needs.

How Much Does It Cost to Keep a Portable Generator Running?

Concluding the cost of running a portable generator can seem complicated. This is because of the many factors that need to be considered to estimate the total cost.

However, it is essential to note that coming up with an estimate depends mainly on the type of fuel your generator runs on. Most generators run on gasoline, propane, natural gas, or diesel.

These different fuels also come with different prices, which vary according to the market and your location. To estimate the cost of running a portable generator, you should first know how much fuel your generator consumes within a particular time.

What Month Do Generators Go on Sale?

Generators go on sale almost every time of the month; however, there are times when it’s best to get a generator.

If you want a better deal on your generator, you should wait until after a disaster(flood) about a month after so that generator manufacturers have had time to build more. Buying a generator at the exact time that the disaster happens could create a hole in your purse.

Because that’s the time generators are in high demand, and it might be hard to get them installed during that time.

Here’s a trick, get your generator during dry seasons when the need for an emergency or standby generator isn’t great, like rainy seasons.

What is the most reliable home generator on the market?

Portable generators are fast becoming the order of the day. Due to the current weather conditions and events, there’s the presence of different portable generators in the neighborhood.

So, if you’re searching for the most reliable portable generator on the market, you’ll only be able to find a lineup of portable generators that you can choose from.

This is because various companies are striving hard to outdo the other. That’s why it’s difficult to choose the best. Below is the lineup:

• Honda EU22ooi Companion
• Briggs and Stratton 3,500 portable
• Champion 5,500 Dual For
• Generic iQ35oo
• Goal Zero Yeti 3000X

You can purchase these portable generators at affordable prices.

Are Generator Prices Going Up?

Owing to the unprecedented extreme weather events in different parts across the globe, the price of generators is also skyrocketing.

Manufacturers can not meet up with the high demand for generators, which affects the price of the ones in the market. Therefore it is safe to say that the cost of generators keeps increasing, especially when it’s in high demand.

Marketers target the times during a disaster or emergency to hike the price because people have no other choice but to purchase it.

How many watts should I get for a generator?

Not all generators can power all the appliances in your home hence the need to figure out the exact watts of the generator to buy.

Before you can figure out how many watts you need for a generator, you need to know how many watts the appliances and fixtures in your home consume.

Most appliances are labeled with the exact wattage they consume, so this is simple to determine. Then proceed to get a generator that is higher than the combined wattage of all the appliances and fixtures in your home.

A generator rated at 7,500 watts will power your home comfortably, but to be on the safe side, get one rated at 10,000 watts or more.

Can a Generator Be Installed in the Winter?

Installing a generator during winter can be a difficult task to achieve. During winter, there’s a heavy downpour of snow which consequently makes the ground frozen. This makes it difficult for the generator to be installed because it sometimes requires some concrete to be poured to hold it in place, which is not feasible if the ground is frozen. As a result, you should plan out the type of generator to purchase and the best time to install it during winter.

Can You Leave the Generator Outside in Winter?

There is usually a warning in the manual of a generator that it should not be operated in wet weather conditions. Electrocution or other accidents are prevented by doing so. Therefore, it’s not a good idea to leave the generator outside in winter, and it’s even more dangerous to use it in wet weather.

At What Temperature Will a Generator Freeze?

A generator will begin to malfunction when the weather temperature dips below 40°F. Most generators were not designed to function in such conditions, and as a result, they start to malfunction when the engines and other components are too good.

How Cold Can a Generator Run In?

Your generator can function in the cold, but it will have difficulty performing in extremely cold weather. As stated earlier, if the weather temperature is below 40°F, the generator does not function smoothly.