Why Have a Home Generator? ROI and Property Value
Understanding why have a home generator is the first step toward securing your household against frequent outages and the inherent instability of the aging electrical grid.
A permanently installed backup generator ensures that your family will never lose power during severe weather, providing a seamless transition to backup electricity the moment the utility fails.
By choosing to provide backup power through a professional installation, you gain the peace of mind that your essential systems will remain operational 24/7.
Why Have a Home Generator
Having a backup home generator can be a lifesaver in case of a crisis or a natural disaster. Just one bad snowstorm or tropical storm can leave your family without access to electricity for days or even weeks.
You don’t want to be in a situation where you and your family have no access to lights, water, refrigerated food, and more. Every family should consider having a home generator as part of its emergency plan. Here are several benefits to having a generator in your home.
Power outages in southeastern Pennsylvania, South Jersey, and Delaware are not rare events. They are recurring, seasonal, and increasingly longer in duration.
The tri-state region sits in the path of Atlantic storms traveling up the Eastern Seaboard, nor'easters that arrive with little warning, summer derecho wind events, and winter ice storms that collapse trees and utility lines across entire counties simultaneously.
Hurricane Sandy alone left 2.7 million New Jersey customers and 1.2 million Pennsylvania customers without power — many for a week or longer. The March 2018 nor’easter series brought three major storms in two weeks to Chester County, Delaware County, and surrounding areas, leaving hundreds of thousands of PECO customers without power during freezing temperatures.
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What Is a Home Standby Generator?
A home standby generator — also called a whole house generator or whole home generator — is a permanently installed backup power system that automatically detects when your home loses power from the electrical grid and starts within seconds, restoring electricity to your home without any action on your part.
Unlike a portable generator that requires manual setup, refueling, and extension cord management, standby generators are permanently installed outside your home on a concrete pad, connected directly to your home's electrical panel via an automatic transfer switch, and fueled by your home's existing natural gas line or a propane tank.
When utility power is restored, the automatic transfer switch reconnects your home to the grid, and the generator shuts down — again, automatically. This setup is ideal for those looking for off-grid reliability during a blackout.
Home standby generators range in output from 10 kilowatts (sufficient for essential systems) to 48 kilowatts (capable of powering a large home with all appliances running simultaneously).
A properly sized whole home generator can power your lights, refrigerator, air conditioning, cooling systems, heating, sump pump, well pump, electric stove, and all essential appliances simultaneously — with no interruption and no intervention on your part.
Benefits of Having a Generator in Your Home
If you live on the East Coast, you know just how unpredictable our weather can be. An emergency home generator can prevent the following from happening in case of a loss of power:
- It can prevent you from losing hundreds of dollars' worth of food due to loss of refrigeration. Also, keeping your refrigerator running can help to keep your family sustained in times of crisis, and if the stores are low on supplies.
- A home generator continues to power all of your appliances, your central air and heating, water pumps, and security systems.
- Emergency home generators are easy to maintain, as most of them run on your home’s natural gas or propane source.
- A home generator is a source of high-quality energy, preventing erratic power surges to your electrical appliances.
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Kohler Generators
Kohler generators are the best option for powering your home or your job site in case of an emergency. A Kohler home generator sits outside your home, much like an AC unit, and comes on automatically in case of a power outage, whether you’re at home or away.
With Kohler generators, you have two options: a portable generator or a home generator. A portable generator is best for your job site, camping site, and tailgating activities. It powers individual devices, appliances, and lamps.
A home generator powers your entire home; your lights, fridge and freezer, appliances, heat and AC, and water. There’s no refueling needed because it runs on your home’s natural gas, and it delivers high-quality energy, so it won’t ruin your electronics.
Not only are Kohler generators ideal for homes or portable sites, but there are also options for powering your small business.
Note: While the equipment costs a few thousand dollars, the total investment also increases your home value, often yielding a high return on investment (ROI) in the real estate market.
Generator vs. Solar Battery Backup: Which Is Right for You?
This is the most important question for homeowners evaluating backup power in 2025 — and it's a question that no generic generator website will answer honestly, because most of them only sell one product.
| Factor | Kohler Standby Generator | Solar Battery Backup |
|---|---|---|
| How it works | Burns natural gas or propane to generate electricity | Stores solar energy in batteries; discharges during outage |
| Automatic start | Yes — within 10 seconds | Yes — instant switchover |
| Duration of backup | Unlimited (tied to gas supply) | Limited to battery capacity (typically 10–20 kWh per battery) |
| What can it power | Whole home, including air conditioning and major appliances | Essential circuits or whole home, depending on system size |
| Fuel cost during outage | Natural gas/propane (ongoing cost) | None — solar is free |
| Installation cost | $7,000–$25,000 installed | $10,000–$25,000+ installed (battery alone); more with solar |
| Ongoing maintenance | Annual service $300–$600/year | Minimal — no moving parts |
| Utility bill impact | None (only runs during outages) | Significantly reduces or eliminates electricity bill year-round |
| Federal tax credit | None | 30% ITC applies to battery + solar system |
| Home value impact | ~5% increase per Consumer Reports | Significant increase — solar + storage highly valued |
| Environmental impact | Burns fossil fuel; produces emissions | Zero emissions during operation |
| Best for | Extended multi-day outages; whole home coverage; homes without solar | Homes with solar; shorter outages; homeowners prioritizing energy savings |
Backup Power for Most Power Outages vs. Extended Outages
It's worth distinguishing between the two types of outages you'll experience in the mid-Atlantic region, because they call for different backup power solutions:
Most power outages in PA, NJ, and DE are short — 2 to 8 hours following a summer thunderstorm, equipment failure, or minor weather event.
For these outages, a properly sized solar battery backup handles everything automatically and silently, drawing on stored solar energy to keep your essential systems running without the generator ever starting.
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Extended outages — following major nor'easters, hurricanes, ice storms, or widespread equipment failures — can last 3 to 7 days or longer. These are the outages that strain battery-only systems and where a standby generator's unlimited runtime (tied to a natural gas line) becomes critical. Hurricane Sandy left some NJ and PA residents without power for 10–14 days.
Contact Us Today
Terrasol Energies is a local authorized dealer of Kohler generators. If you’re interested in learning more about home generators and how they can fit into your family’s emergency plans, contact us today.
Now you know why you should have a home generator on your residential property.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why should I have a home generator?
A home standby generator provides automatic backup power when the electrical grid fails due to severe weather, equipment failures, or other outages. For homeowners in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware, where storm-driven outages can last days.
A generator keeps your sump pump protecting your basement from flooding, your air conditioning or heating running, your refrigerator and freezer operational, and your essential medical equipment powered without any interruption or manual intervention.
How much does a whole-house generator cost?
While the unit itself is a few thousand dollars, the total cost includes professional installation, gas line integration, and permitting. It is a long-term investment in your home value and safety.
Will it run my entire house?
Yes. A whole-home generator is sized to handle your largest loads, from your kitchen to your central air conditioning.
Are they better than portable generators?
Absolutely. Because they are permanently installed, they exercise themselves weekly and trigger automatically, so you never have to drag out heavy equipment or fuel in the middle of a storm.
