Tips to Prepare for Power Outage

Natural weather conditions like hurricanes, rainstorms, heat waves, tornadoes, and even ice storms can cause your home or even your entire city to lose power. Depending on your location, this type of weather can occur often, leaving you without power more than you would like. When it comes to storms like this hitting, you want to make sure you are ready for power outages and you have everything already in place – you need an licensed electrician near you! While Mr. Electric doesn’t offer generator installation, we want to make sure you have all the necessary knowledge to make sure you are ready for a power outage during your next big storm.

As a homeowner in an area that experiences power outages often, you should always make sure you have a working backup generator in your home. This will ensure you and your family stay safe and protected during whatever storm you are dealing with. If you don’t already have a portable generator, we highly recommend you go out and get one before it’s too late – you don’t want to be left with no electricity or a bunch of rotten food in your fridge, do you?

Once you have your portable emergency generator, you’ll want to make sure it is always ready for use during your next power outage. Here is what you should do…

5 Tips for Keeping Your Emergency Generator Ready for a Power Outage

1.  Learn how it works

The most important thing to do once you have a portable generator is to make sure you know how it works. If you have no idea how to get it started or how to work during your power outage, what good is it really doing you? Make sure to take time to read the instructions and power it up so when the time does come, you know exactly what to do.

2.  Always be safe

When using your portable generator, you always want to be extremely careful when fueling it or adding oil to it. These are flammable and you never want to put you or your family’s safety at risk. Be extra careful with your portable generator!

3.  Run it once a month

As a team that offers electrical service, we want you to test your generator and run it once a month. This will ensure it always works in case you need it. If you don’t run it for 4+ months, odds are it won’t work immediately when you do need it. Don’t just run it when you need it, make sure it works at least once a month!

4.  Understand the switches

Mr. Electric wants to help you understand the different switches on your portable generator. They typically have three different positions – off, generator power, and line power. You should know what each switch means and when it should be on. Call an electrician today to have them explain these switches to you.

5.  Consider your ventilation

Having the generator is one thing, but having proper ventilation is another thing. You should never use a generator in a space that doesn’t have proper ventilation for carbon monoxide gas.

Are you looking for an electrician or an electrical service team? While we don’t offer generator installation, the team at Mr. Electric can help you understand your portable generator so you will always be prepared for your next power outage. Call our office today to learn more.