An Everyday Occurrence
Imagine sitting at home, relaxing after a hard day. Your aircon is keeping you as cool as you like, your freezer is full of good stuff to eat for the next few weeks ... then, 5 miles away, a lightning bolt strikes a power cable ... CRACK ... the power line is cut and you're plunged into darkness.

Latest statistics show that around 3.5 million Americans suffer a power outage each and every week, normally due to severe weather conditions (lightning, storms etc.). That's a lot of people fumbling around in the dark trying to find a torch ... with batteries that still work!

But you don't need to be one of them. Installing a standby generator for your home will ensure this kind of thing doesn't happen to you.

So What Are Home Generators and Why Would You Want One?
Power outages can be caused by lightning strikes, freak weather, construction gangs or even vehicles colliding with power poles or installations. However they are caused, these outages needn't cause you severe problems if you have a home standby generator.

Home generators (or standby generators / emergency generators / backup generators as they are also known) are permanent fixtures that are designed to restore power to a home or office within seconds of a power outage.

There are various types of generator which run on different fuels, for example, diesel fuel, natural gas, and propane. By far the most popular are the natural gas and propane types as they run off fuel that doesn't have to be changed or 'cycled' every few weeks.

Connecting Up
The generator is connected to your home's main electrical panel - you need a qualified electrician to do this. In the event of a power outage, if your generator has an Automatic Transfer Switch, the generator will automatically start and restore power to your home within seconds.

The units are normally set up outside your home and can produce anywhere from 7 kW to several hundred kW. Larger stand-by units can power an entire home, while smaller models will power selected appliances.

There are many types and brands to choose from, but here's a list of the most popular generators for the home around at the moment.