Moving Forward With A Whole House Generator (And Finding Out Our Electrical Systems Aren’t Up To Code)
Matt and I have been talking about having a whole house generator installed for some time now. It’s one of those things that we talk about, and then forget about. We only seem to remember it when our electricity goes out, which happened twice during the month of May. But then once the electricity is restored, and we get on with normal life, the whole house generator is not top-of-mind anymore.
But ever since the last time it went out a few weeks ago, Matt has been very adamant that we need to put this at the top of our priority list. If our electricity goes off during the heat of the Texas summer, it can be very dangerous for Matt. Because of his M.S., he is incredibly sensitive to heat, and any increase in temperature makes him very weak. So the whole house generator is now top of mind, and I’ve made steps towards making that happen.
I considered purchasing a generator from Home Depot and then finding someone locally to install it. But then I ended up on the Generac website trying to learn more about exactly what we’d need to purchase. I finally realized that I’m way out of my depth with this, and I really do need a professional to help me with this decision. So after looking at their list of Generac dealers and installers in our area, and then looking up all of those companies and reading reviews, I finally decided on the electrician I wanted to use to help me decide exactly what I needed and get the job done.
Well, he came over yesterday to look at the house and look at all of our electrical stuff and determine what we need. I really liked him, and he seemed to know his stuff. The good news is that the cost of the generator and installation is about what I expected. He recommended a 26kw generator for our house, which runs about $7,000. We’ll be getting this Generac (affiliate link), and I had already heard from many people that you can expect the cost of installation to be about the same as the cost of the generator. So when his estimate came to $13,500 for the generator and installation, that’s about what I expected.
But what I wasn’t expecting was all of the other bad news he had for me. So let me back up a bit and tell you about our electrical service upgrade that we had done. When we bought this house, it didn’t have central heat and air. It had a huge, scary furnace that made a big KABOOOOMMMM sound that rattled the entire house about 50% of the time when it came on. It sat in what is now my studio half bathroom.
And then it had about four window unit air conditioners, like this beauty in the living room.
It took us about two years to be able to get a new HVAC system, but in 2015, we were finally able to do that. We selected the company we wanted to work with, and they sent their person out to look at the house, measure stuff, and determine what we needed. And then he gave us three different options — a top-of-the-line system, a middle-of-the-road system, and a bargain system.
Naturally, we thought the top-of-the-line system would be the best, so we signed the papers for the top-of-the-line Trane HVAC system. That’s a decision I’ve regretted so many times since then. We spent $18,000 on our HVAC system, and it has been one headache after another. Matt hates it. He has suggested several times that he wants to have the thing removed and get a very basic, no bells, no whistles Lennox system (which is what I have in my studio, and have never had even the slightest problem with it), but that won’t happen. We’ll keep that frustrating Trane until it won’t run anymore, which may be sooner than later.
Anyway, that’s a whole different topic (and clearly source of frustration for us 😀 ), but another thing that frustrated us about that whole experience was that the company we were working with failed to determine if our electrical system was even adequate to run a brand new Trane HVAC system. And…it wasn’t. At that time, we only had 100-amp service to our house.
So at the last minute, before our new HVAC system could be installed, they scrambled to find an electrician to come out and upgrade our electrical to 200-amp service so that our new HVAC system could even run. It was an added, last-minute expense that we weren’t expecting, and it wasn’t cheap. I don’t remember how much it was exactly, but we were scraping our pennies together to make it happen.
Well, fast forward nine years to yesterday, and the electrician asks to see our outdoor panel. He had already explained to me that the building code in our city requires a whole-house kill switch so that the entire electrical system in the house can be shut off with one flip of the switch. He wanted to be sure we had that, and he wanted to be sure all of the outdoor electrical stuff looked okay.
As soon as we rounded the corner of the house and he saw the boxes on the side of the house, he said, “Those aren’t up to code.” I had already told him that we were planning on adding on to our house, and he said that there’s no way that the city would pass those boxes as they are. They would require that I have them fixed before they pass them. He said that the electrical inspectors are some of the toughest inspectors, and they’re sticklers for having things done precisely to code.
So what was the problem? They’re installed way too high. These boxes — the boxes that were installed by the electrician hired by our HVAC company nine years ago — are supposed to be installed between 4 and 6 feet from the ground.
I’m five feet tall, and this is as high as I can reach on the box.
The one on the left is especially important. That’s our whole house kill switch. I struggle to reach the box and get it open.
But then once it’s open, there’s no way I could ever reach the actual switch. That thing is at least 7 feet from the ground. My reach maxes out at about 6’2″. I would need to have a ladder or step stool to reach that kill switch, and in an emergency, that’s the last thing you want to be thinking about.
So those two boxes, according to code, should be about two feet lower than they are now. I told him it was done nine years go, and he assured me it was the code nine years ago, and they should have known better. So I guess that means that the HVAC company didn’t have their electrician’s work inspected. I’m not happy about that, and I’m especially not happy about the fact that it’s now going to cost us $2,500 to have it fixed.
But wait! There’s more! He also noticed that we were running out of room in our indoor breaker box. That wasn’t new news to me. Not only can I see it with my own eyes, but everyone who looks at it tells me that we need to upgrade to a bigger box, especially if we’re doing an addition that will require a separate HVAC system. Our current breaker box is almost at its max capacity.
So while his suggestion to swap to a bigger breaker box didn’t surprise me, what did surprise me was his news that the city now requires every single circuit in a house to be on an AFCI breaker. It doesn’t matter if that circuit only has a few light switches on it, it has to be on an AFCI breaker. And of course, AFCI breakers are several times the cost of the standard $5 circuit breakers that we have now.
He had some very strong opinions about this change (he’s not a fan of the requirement and thinks the AFCI circuit breakers are overkill in most situations), but again, he assured me that if electrical inspectors are going to be in my house, they’re going to require them. So the cost of having the breaker box upgraded, and having every single circuit breaker upgraded, is another $5,000. And that brings us to a grand total of $21,000.
It’s not quite what I wanted to hear. The only good news he had for me is that he doesn’t think the city will make us move our breaker box. The contractor that we’re using for our addition thought that the city might make us move it because the building code no longer allows breaker boxes to be in closets. And ours is in what used to be a closet. It hides behind the mirror on the right in our home gym. (It’s kind of hard to see, but it’s to the right of the TV and the “Sweat The Crazy Out” sign.)
But the electrician yesterday said that he thinks they won’t make us move it because that area clearly isn’t a closet anymore. It’s just part of the room. Of course, they wouldn’t be thrilled that I hide it with a mirror, but they don’t have to know that. 😀 So I was at least relieved to learn that it can stay where it is. I sure hope he’s right about that, because if we have to move it, that will add about another $5,000. I’m just not quite prepared for that.
Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do physical work, so I do the majority of the work on the house by myself. You can learn more about me here.
With home ownership it seems like it is always something. And it’s always expensive.
When I bought my house 32 years ago, my brother-in-law said, “You’ll never have to wonder what to do with your weekends or your money again.” He was so right!
Yikes. The joy of owning a house, eh? All of those expenses that you never even thought of. I’m curious about your furnace that made a KABOOM sound. Did you ever figure out what the furnace’s issue was that caused that noise? I have a fridge that makes a smaller kaboom sound about every half hour or so. Not really, really loud, but loud enough that I hear it one floor up when I’m in bed. It’s 31 years years old (that’s how long we’ve lived here), so I expect it to give out at any time.
We never figured out what was causing it. My brother-in-law tried to fix it, but it just never worked quite right. I think scared me so much that we completely disconnected it, and during our second winter in this house, we had no furnace at all. We heated our entire house with space heaters. It was expensive and miserable. 😃
Wow. You really got hit with some bad news but it’s good to know that it will be corrected and you and Matt will be safe in your house.
If the boxes outside are a difference of two feet, could you build a small platform with stairs to make up the difference for a more cost effective fix? I’m not sure it would be cheaper, but thought perhaps you’d have some extra lumber around your house that maybe you could do that and then those would be to code.
That’s discouraging news, but getting it all done at the same time is the safest way to go and it’s always good to have it up to code for your home insurance too.
I don’t know abound TX or Waco, but our electricity provider has some great discounts for the upgrades that you’re doing. Rebates were financed through State & Federal Energy program. Additionally, they discount the monthly charge for electricity when there’s a medical need certified by a physician. (the whole house generator might qualify) We were reimbursed about $7,000. on our new air conditioner a few years ago! It certainly helped! Good luck with your upgrades!
Good information! I didn’t know that at all! But will keep it in mind while upgrading things for my aging mother!! Thank you
We just installed a Generac whole home generator this past week. You don’t mention the fuel you will use for the generator. Do you already have a very large tank for the propane gas or a natural gas meter already installed to operate the generator? We had to install a 250 gal underground tank for propane gas to get everything up and running. We live in the country and do not have access to natural gas. And we get our water from our well. This generator will provide peace of mind for us during hurricane season as we live in Florida. 😊
I live in Texas so I am also interested in getting a generator. Will be following this for comments. Appreciate you writing about it, including costs. Please update with any new info you learn about generators.
Hi Kristi- I would like to buy soap from your sister, but I forgot the name of her site. Can you post a link or let me know the name?
Thanks,
Cornelia
My Mom always say you don’t own a house. It owns you. I feel she was right after redoing my house for the last 3 years.
Kristi, this happens to a lot of homeowners. Finding out what the homeowner had installed by whom they thought were competent, and honest, professionals turns out the work they done was ‘not in code’ is heartbreaking….especially years later. I feel for you on this. Our son is an electrician and he runs into this a lot and he says it is sad to tell people the bad news. A lot of homeowners don’t know that any electrical work, and other professional work done, has to be inspected and approved by the city ordinance of the city they have the work done in. If the inspectors don’t think it is up to code, they don’t pass it until it is. The professional contractors and/or business professionals doing the work at the time are the ones responsible for getting the work done correctly…not the homeowner. So terrible to find out years later the inspections weren’t done.
At least now you seem to have and honest electrician and what you need to have done to bring things up to code can be done. Your pocket book funds will be drained, but it is better to be safe than sorry. Godspeed to you and Matt Kristi.
It’s ALWAYS something….Our basement is not legal to sleep in or even to use as a recreation room – no egress window or outside access. We found this out AFTER we finished it for our kids to have their own play space and the town /state/feds changed its codes. I say just bite the big bullet and do it. When we first got our Generac about 7 years ago -we had lost power maybe 5X in 20 years. Now it’s more like 5X a year.
Among electricians, it’s well-known that Generac over-charges. 21k is ridiculous, and so is the original 13.5K estimate. I would go back to the drawing board and read some of the electrician-generator- texas threads on reddit.
Will you have a separate box etc for the addition?
For the amount of money this is going to cost I strongly suggest you get two other quotes. Each vendor typically points out different areas of concern that help educate you as to best and final course of action. It will be really worth the extra effort I assure you!
Great point!
It seems they change all the rules every few years so no one’s home is always 100% compliant. I can’t stand that!!! I would also suggest something other than Generac. A lady I know had one installed, here in Tennessee, and we had a hard winter. Her generator did not come on when the power went out. Why you ask??? Because the lines froze up. You know what the tech told her husband to do? Thaw the lines with a hair dryer…. duh, if the power is out, how are you supposed to run a hair dryer? Not to mention they spent a ton of money on this system. She was not happy, and she was working on getting this resolved the last time I spoke with her. Good luck, electrical issues are hard!
I wonder if you could get some assist as a medical necessity. Might be worth looking into
I read through all the comments and I agree, getting additional comparison quotes is a good idea. Having said that, I have a Generac, and we are very satisfied with it. NeverDark did our installation and they come out once a year for a maintenance check.
I also think it is a real shame the electricians that performed the shoddy work aren’t liable. Was there any warranty provided with the HVAC installation? Have you any recourse? I’m not usually litigious, but this seems like they failed in their duty of care and negligence on the part of the HVAC installers since (from your post) they hired the electricians. Do you still have the contract you signed with the HVAC company? Perhaps a consult with an attorney would be enlightening.
Thanks for all that info. Very informative. Fixing to have same project and May have exact same issues it looks like. Ugh !
We had a whole house generator installed last year. We went with a Honeywell generator, which was recommended by several electrical companies. It automatically kicks on once a week for 15 minutes to test the system. We have known other families suddenly discover their generator didn’t work. Honeywell was actually less than a Generac. You need to vet the electrical company doing the installation- our neighbors had one installed and it was not done properly and she is always having problems.
I don’t disagree with anything he suggested, I would consider getting a 2nd opinion/ quote….just to make sure every thing this guy says is accurate.
I live in the midwest and maybe things are different, but why is your kill switch outside/ Anyone could walk up and turn off your electric to the whole house. Ours is in the basement and anyone w/out a basement then it’s in the garage. I guess none of your old breakers could be grandfathered in as existing wiring? I guess since you need to either enlarge your breaker box or add an additional one they will all have to be brought up to current code. Such a disappointment
when we think something will cost one thing and then it ends up being much more.
Don’t you just hate it when you get one costly surprise after another? It is good to be educated on house stuff, however. Considering the addition did the electrician figure in the whole house generator for the proposed “whole” house or just the size of the house now?
It is so shocking how much “codes” have changed and some of them are so silly. (In my opinion). I guess some are mostly for safety reasons which are really important.
Hope the rest of you week smooths out.
I live in the midwest. Five years ago I had my electrical updated. Besides the AFCI outlets, I, also, needed Tamper Resistant outlets to meet code. All outlets have a TR on them.
You don’t have to replace your current box. You can add a new one next to it, and put more breakers there. That’s what I did (permitted and inspected), and it cost me under $100, I think. Just watched a couple videos. Nothing too complicated. Google “electrical subpanel”
We bought a Generac whole house generator 7-8 years ago. We had to have our breaker box switched out as it was equipped to handle the addition of the generator. It was very expensive. Our breaker box is located in our utility room with the furnace, water heater and washer/dryer. When we had an offer on our late parent’s house, we had to bring the electrical box up to code because that box was located in the master bedroom closet. It was moved outside the closet to the other on the house exterior. The buyer’s electrical request cost us $6,000. I totally understand the expense and the issues but we love our Generac. Every time we lose power, we are the only house among the houses around that have full power. Power goes off, and the Generac immediately starts up and runs until the power comes back on. It was a GREAT investment.
Have you considered solar panels and a backup battery? I live in Michigan and we also lose power frequently – I chose solar over a generator to solve the problem. You get a 30% tax refund on parts and labor (Federal, your state may have additional incentives!). I had to have my panel upgraded as part of this work and the tax refund applied to that as well. It’s a bigger initial outlay than a generator, but it does eventually pay for itself! Google has a site (Project Sunroof) that allows you to enter your home address and assess your home’s suitability for solar power.
We had to use those pricey circuit breakers in our house when we built a few years ago. They’re terrible for power tools- they kept tripping the breaker, so we changed some out after we moved in.