Does a whole house generator add value to your home?

January 10, 2021

Adding value to your property is a great way to get a return on your investment when you decide to sell your Seattle home. Some of the more common ways that people add value is with renovations, landscaping, and additions, but you can also see a greater return when you install a whole-home generator from Brennan Electric.

When most people think about buying generators, what comes to mind is an unattractive, noisy piece of equipment with limited power capacity. Whole-home generators are quiet and powerful enough to run your major appliances, lighting, and much more. The units are mounted outside your home, and look much like a central air conditioning unit mounted on a concrete pad. You can maintain the aesthetics of your landscaping by covering the pad with gravel or mulch.

What Is a Whole-Home Generator?

With changes to the climate, weather patterns are less predictable. You could find your family without power for several hours, days, or weeks. A whole-home generator is designed to keep your home operational during power outages. This means that your refrigerator, heating, cooling, lights, and other household essentials continue to work until power is restored.

How a Whole-Home Generator Keeps the Power On

Your whole-home generator from Brennan Electric is wired directly into the power supply. When the system senses a loss of electricity, the generator turns on automatically within a few seconds. You can find units that need to be switched on manually, but these are not ideal for most families. During storms and natural disasters, automatic units give you one fewer thing to manage. You can focus on keeping your family calm and comfortable.

Once power is restored, the unit continues to operate until it senses that electrical flow from the grid is stabilized. Best of all, you do not need to be home for the generator to switch over from your main power supply. Most whole-home generators are designed to operate for a few days, but you can increase capacity if needed. Our expert technicians wire the system to be safe and efficient, and we install generators that run on diesel, natural gas, or liquid propane.

Installing a Whole-Home Generator

As with other aspects of your home, having the generator installed properly by a professional ensures that you realize the value added to your property. At Brennan Electric, we set up a concrete pad for the generator and wire it directly into your existing electrical system. Home buyers recognize when a job was not done properly, and many Seattle residents are aware of the stiff penalties of having properties with generators that are not installed properly and up to code. As a full-service electrical contractor in Seattle, we work with city codes every day, so you can rest assured that there won’t be any problems when the time comes to sell your property.

Value Added With Whole-Home Generators

Several studies have been done to determine how much value is added to a property with a whole-home generator. In some instances, an increase of up to 5% was seen in property values for homes with whole-home generators compared to similar homes in the same area that did not have generators. You may see as much as a 1.5-time return on your investment when you install a whole-home generator from Brennan Electric in your Seattle home.

Whole-Home vs. Partial Generators

As you research generators for your home, you may be tempted to save money and to choose a unit that provides power to only part of your home. There are many important advantages to whole-home generators. You will spend more upfront for a whole-home option, but these units run more efficiently than partial generators. This means that your property will have electricity longer compared to a partial-home generator. Whole-home generators are also more reliable than partial-home units, and the power supply is more consistent. If you choose a partial-home generator, you may have to adjust your lifestyle until the electricity in your area is restored. This means shorter showers, less cooking, possible food spoilage in your refrigerator, and limited run times on kitchen appliances.

Why Property Buyers Prefer Homes With Generators

People who are considering your property share many of your same values. When it comes to whole-home generators, they see the same benefits that brought you to the decision to install this type of system. First and foremost, buyers like the peace of mind knowing that their families will be safe regardless of unexpected weather patterns, natural disasters, and rolling blackouts. The systems provide an extra layer of safety by design. Whole-home generators are installed outside the main structure, so there is no risk of carbon monoxide poisoning or other health concerns. When installed properly by the experts at Brennan Electric, whole-home generators require no maintenance and are very efficient in operation.

Choosing the Best Whole-Home Generator for Your Property

Whole-home generators are available from Brennan Electric in various sizes. Before you choose one for your property, you should consider what you want to protect during power outages. Some options include:

  • Lighting
  • Heating, cooling, and air purification systems
  • Refrigerator, dishwasher, washer, dryer, and other critical appliances
  • Computer equipment
  • Security systems
  • Entertainment equipment, such as televisions
  • Outdoor lighting
  • Garage door openers
  • Electric hot water heaters
  • Medical equipment

Ease of Maintenance for a Whole-Home Generator

Maintaining your whole-home generator is as easy as running it once each week. You only need to run the unit for about five minutes. During this time, go through your home, and make sure that appliances, lights, and other systems are working as expected. We also recommend that you schedule routine maintenance of your generator one time each year with a technician from Brennan Electric. We examine the unit and wiring to make sure that the parts are working properly.

Tips for Maximizing Your Return on Investment

Once you have your whole-home generator installed by Brennan Electric, there are some ways that you can protect your return on investment.

  • Professional, clean installation by a company that guarantees work and that offers excellent customer service
  • Keep installation, maintenance, and repair records to show potential buyers
  • Maintain operation logs to document the remaining expected lifetime of the unit
  • Keep up the appearance of the unit and installation site
  • Add external fuel tanks for longer operation
  • Opt for automatic operation during power losses
  • Choose a capacity to generate most of the electricity needed in your home

Learn More About Whole-Home Generators

Brennan Electric specializes in whole-home generators for Seattle homes. Call us today to learn more about these valuable units that keep your family safe and comfortable. Be sure to ask about our other electrical services. We can help with lighting installations, electrical panels, electrical repairs, surge protection, and smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. If you are installing a hot tub or outdoor lighting, we can handle all your electrical needs. If you are not sure about your electrical needs or the best generator for your home, schedule an appointment with one of our technicians for an in-home assessment.

Brennan Electric icon
Categories: