Be Prepared With A Generator California Home Insurance Customers
In recent history, there have been a number of power outages in our cities. Some power outages are caused by storms and some by human error. Any power outage can be an inconvenience, but extended periods of interrupted power often causes problems like loss of perishables (particularly frozen and refrigerated foods), damage to property that is vulnerable to temperature extremes and personal endangerment caused by overheating or freezing. Your California home insurance policy should cover damages caused by an outage, but won’t help with the inconvenience of losing power.
A great way to combat any extended period of power loss is to use a home generator. These generators can provide a temporary electrical power supply to run household appliances and utilities. Home generators come in two basic forms:
- Portable Generators – lower powered units that operate externally from a home’s wiring system.
- Standby Generators – high-power units that are attached directly to a home’s wiring system and take over automatically when utility power is interrupted
These are powerful machines, so regardless which type is used, precautions need to be taken to avoid accidents that can cause harm or injury.
With standby generators, a licensed electrician should make the installation and it needs to be inspected by an expert before initial use. Installations need to include a proper transfer switch and your local utilities company needs to be notified that an installation has occurred.
Portable generators have a number of procedures that need to be followed:
- generators need to be located outside the home, in an area that provides proper ventilation and which shields the unit from moisture, such as the garage, raising the door when in use
- don’t put generators near windows or doors, when in use, since carbon monoxide exhaust could seep into a home
- be careful not to get burned by hot generator parts
- do not plug generators into house outlets.
- proper, exterior-rated extension cords are the only kinds used with generators
- generator power should be matched with the most essential power needs (core appliances, heating/cooling) and not overloaded (which could damage the generator and powered appliances)
- fuel for generators needs to be stored properly and refueling should take place ONLY after the generator has cooled after being turned off
Generators are an excellent way to deal with temporary power outages but you need to take the proper precautions with them to insure they don’t generate more problems than solutions! If you have any questions regarding your California home insurance coverage, give our office a call today at 714)532-3341
Written by: Rhonda Remland
