Skip to content
HANDMADEELECTRIC LLC
Metro Detroit

Generac generator installation in Metro Detroit

Handmade Electric installs Generac home standby generators across Metro Detroit. A standby generator sits outside the house, watches the utility power, and starts on its own when the power drops, usually within seconds. We size the unit to what you actually want to run, set it, and wire it to an automatic transfer switch at your panel.

Get a quote(248) 787-0071
What a correct install means
Sized
By load calculationNot by square footage, and not off the neighbour's unit.
Switched
Automatic transfer switchThe house disconnects from the utility before the generator picks it up.
Signed off
Permitted and inspectedAn independent check on equipment that runs while you are asleep.
Scope

What an installation covers

  • A load calculation, so the generator is sized to the circuits you want running rather than to a guess
  • Placement that respects the clearances a standby unit needs from windows, doors, vents, and the property line
  • A level pad for the unit to sit on
  • An automatic transfer switch tied into your electrical panel
  • Coordination of the natural gas or propane supply the unit runs on
  • Startup, and a live test that drops the utility power to confirm the generator picks the house up
Symptoms

Reasons people put one in

  • An outage takes out the sump pump or the well pump and the basement is on a clock
  • The furnace goes down with the power in a Michigan winter
  • Someone in the house depends on powered medical equipment
  • You work from home and an outage is lost income
  • A freezer full of food will not survive a long outage
  • You are done dragging a portable generator out in the rain and running cords through a window
Process

How the work goes

  1. Step 01

    Walkthrough

    We look at your panel, your gas supply, and where a unit could sit, and talk through what you want running when the power is out. Whole house and essential circuits are different jobs with different costs.

  2. Step 02

    Sizing

    The load calculation sets the generator size. Undersizing means the unit cannot carry what you asked it to. Oversizing means paying for capacity that never gets used.

  3. Step 03

    Permit

    A standby generator installation is permitted work in most municipalities, and the permit is pulled before the work starts.

  4. Step 04

    Installation

    The pad goes in, the unit is set, the transfer switch is installed at the panel, and the fuel supply is connected.

  5. Step 05

    Startup and inspection

    The unit is commissioned and tested under a real transfer, and the work is inspected by the municipality.

Questions

Common questions

How does a home standby generator actually work?
It is wired to your house permanently and monitors the utility power. When the power drops, the transfer switch disconnects the house from the utility and the generator starts and picks up the load, usually within seconds. When utility power comes back and stays steady, the switch transfers the house back and the generator shuts down. You do not have to be home for any of it.
What size generator do I need?
It depends on what you want running during an outage. Some people want the whole house to behave normally. Others only want the furnace, the sump pump, the refrigerator, and a few outlets and lights. That decision, plus the electrical load of the equipment involved, is what a load calculation measures. Sizing off a neighbor's unit or off a square-foot rule of thumb is how people end up with a generator that cannot carry the house.
What is a transfer switch, and do I need one?
Yes. A transfer switch is what separates your house from the utility grid while the generator is running. It exists so generator power cannot travel back out onto the utility lines, which is a serious hazard to the line crews working to restore your power. An automatic transfer switch does it by itself. A manual one requires you to be home and throw it. A standby generator is not a legal or safe installation without one.
Does a standby generator run on natural gas or propane?
Either. If the house already has natural gas service, the unit usually runs on that and there is nothing to refill. If there is no gas at the house, the unit runs on propane from a tank on the property, which does need to be kept full. Which one makes sense is mostly decided by what is already at your house.
How much does it cost to install a Generac generator?
There is no one number, because the install is most of the job. What moves the price is the size of the unit, how far it sits from the electrical panel and the gas supply, whether your existing panel and service can support it as-is, what the pad and the trenching involve, and the permit your municipality requires. The honest way to answer it is to look at your house. Call or text and we will come out and put real numbers to your situation.
Do I need a permit for a generator?
In most municipalities, yes, and the finished work is inspected. That is a good thing for you: the inspection is an independent check that the transfer switch, the grounding, and the fuel connection were done correctly on equipment that is going to run unattended while you are asleep or away.
How long does an installation take?
It depends on how much electrical and fuel work the house needs, and on how quickly the municipality turns the permit and the inspection around. We will tell you what to expect for your specific job when we quote it, rather than quoting you someone else's timeline.
All services
Quote request

Ask about your generator

Send the basics and we will pick it up from there. For the full form, including address and property type, use the quote page.

Serving Metro Detroit

Tell us what is going on

Describe the problem or the project and we will pick it up from there. Handmade Electric works across Metro Detroit on residential, commercial, and industrial electrical, and on Generac home standby generators.

Get a quote(248) 787-0071

Prefer to text? Send a text to (248) 787-0071

QuoteCallText