Thinking of adding a standby electric generator to our home, Information from quote (Per Lowes & Generac): unit size 22kw w/200 amp transfer strip:$9,740, includes Propane 250 gal tank (Rented and installed w/full tank). the quote is for fully furnish and install the unit plus battery, Generac Gardian 22000 Stand By Generator.
My price from Lowes for that unit is $5,047, before a 15 per cent discount. It appears that the installation price is excessive, that's just my thought, what say you ? Should I go for another installer or someone to do it ?

How many times a year do you lose power, 10k can buy a bunch of nice air conditioned rooms at a hotel in the event of an outage. That's just my thoughts. The grid around my bussines is horrible. We have dropped power 4 times this month and generally it happens 10 or more times a year resulting in lost revenue. I just had a conversation about having one put on the roof. Cost to do what I need for 3 phase is in the 30k range Even loing 10 to 20k inbrevenue a year it's not worth it for me to do this.

See my comment on the THF

Do you have a natural gas? If so, you'd only need your supplier to provide a larger regulator and meter to supply additional gas fired generator BTU load.

I have small motorhome on a pad next to cabin. Two air conditioners, two TVs, residential fridge, queen bed...only 70 gallons of fuel, but for a short outage...I am good.

I'm quite used to running weeks at a time on generator power. I ran everything but my heat/AC on an all alectric house on a 7000W unit. My well runs off a 5,000 W unit but it's 400 feet from the house. I've always figured for my Heat and A/c 15-17KW should be enough.

I'm thinking 22KW sounds like overkill. Using common sense you won't have to run things at the same time.

On your labor bid I'd check Generac's website for local certified dealers/installers. Get some bids and feedback from customers. Lowes uses sub-contractors.

You will be SHOCKED how quickly a large generator will eat 250 gallons of propane. Get some legit info on hours/gallon and work out that price per hour and consumption rate. It will shock you. In a true disruption, you may not be able to get that tank refilled easily or cheaply, either. The burn rate on natural gas for a generator is even worse. You'd be wise to figure out how little you can get by with instead of thinking that going big is the right thing to do. A large generator running at near idle still consumes a certain amount - more than you'd like - because they are expected to be at load. Going small has its' advantages.

I have natural gas service for cooking, hot water, heat, and the clothes dryer. So, with that advantage, and dropping my central air conditioning in exchange for a window unit as part of my emergency plan, I am able to manage running all that I need on a 7500W generator (including a large refrigerator and a freezer). We did not even run the generator 24/7 because one must consider fuel supply logistics. (We chose to use a gasoline powered generator.) I know this plan is feasible as it was how we survived 9 days without power after Hurricane Ike.

I have technical knowledge in the area, so I admit that 7500W might be cutting it close for someone not managing loads as well as I do. It may be feasible to buy a 10,000W trolly based generator (4 wheel roll-around), and have an electrician install a manual 200A transfer switch. This would let you safely plug the generator into a special outlet, flip the transfer switch, and then be running your home from the generator. You'd need to figure out what to do about the air conditioning. My view is that only the ultra-wealthy can reasonably run central air conditioning systems on a generator - and then, on natural gas (possibly hundreds of dollars per week) due to fuel supply logistics.

On big-store installers: I've never seen one that wasn't a rip-off. Those guys PAY the store dearly for being on that installer list. You pay for that.

THANK YOU, That was information I was trying to find w/ little success, We have always survived w/ flash lights, lanterns, BarB Q, and a smaller stand by rolling generator,,, all things considered the addition of a large unit is not quite the best idea. Believe m e I do understand the "10 second", however after a lot of years spent in the Military Infantry I know ""It all Depends". Thanks everyone, your the greatest source of usable information.

For years I ran our country place during outages with a 7kw Honda, but nothing was automatic, and the outages seemed to be late at night or in the wee hours of the morning. Now I run that 20kw Generac, and all is automatic. It’s a marvelous upgrade. I could afford it, and I happily did it. What I don’t see is a huge drawdown of propane when it runs. And, heck, that’s what the propane is there for. You can look up the demand rate for a Generac unit online. The demand rate isn’t shocking to me. And I have never had a problem getting a propane resupply. I have never regretted spending money on the generator setup.

If the expense is a problem, an alternative is to go with a much smaller Generac setup where the automatic power transfer is limited to the systems you choose. It’s like having that 7kw Honda to run basic systems, but where everything is automatic.

The $9740 is about what I paid for the same setup.