When making a significant investment in your home, it’s only natural to want to know how much (and how long) you’ll get for your buck. When it comes to standby generators, many factors contribute to the final answer; but the easy answer is, most have a lifespan that averages between 1500-3000 hours (or 20-40 years).
Sure, those numbers vary significantly; but there are a few easy ways to ensure your unit lasts on the longer side of that spread.
Brand
Getting the longest life out of your backup power system starts with purchasing a quality unit and having it professionally installed by a reputable technician. “One truck Chuck” operations may promise the same product and offer steep discounts on installation, but unfortunately, in the generator industry, the old adage “you get what you pay for” rings true.
After installation, two factors primarily contribute to the lifespan of your unit: usage and maintenance.
Usage
Of course, it’s great to have the peace of mind that even during an extended outage, your home or business can continue to operate as usual; however, a standby generator should never be used as the primary power source for a building. Although burnout/overheating is more common with portable generators, standby generators are also susceptible to problems that occur with overuse.
Maintenance
Standby generators are often marketed as “set it and forget it” systems. And as it relates to their operating purpose, this is largely true! But like any machine, they still need the human touch to make sure they’re in optimal operating condition.
The simplest way to keep your unit in tip-top shape is to just look at it!
On a weekly basis, make sure there isn’t any dirt, debris, or other buildups on or around your generator that could decrease its functionality.
Next, add it to your monthly home cleaning schedule to check the unit’s fuel lines, coolant/fuel levels, and air filters.
Some systems are programmable to automatically run a weekly ‘exercise mode’ to keep the engine active. For those that are not, manually running your unit for 30 minutes every 7-14 days will greatly extend the life of your generator.
Finally, once a year, a certified Generac technician should perform an annual maintenance check on your unit. Even if your generator isn’t a Generac system, our technicians service all brands; your safety is our priority.