HURRICANE SEASON GENERATOR CHECKLIST
Atlantic hurricane season runs June 1 to November 30, and every year follows the same script: a named storm enters the forecast cone, and suddenly every generator, electrician, and propane truck within 200 miles is booked. The households that ride out the grid going down comfortably are the ones that did this checklist in the calm.
If you own a standby generator
- Run a manual test now — not the automatic weekly one; press the button and watch a full transfer. Confirm the house actually picks up.
- Check the maintenance clock. If you are near an oil/filter interval, do it before the season, not after a 72-hour run. Maintenance kits ship free.
- Fuel: propane owners — top off the tank NOW; post-landfall delivery queues run weeks. Natural gas owners — you are covered, that is the point.
- Clear 3 feet around the unit. Check for nests, debris, vegetation.
- Check the battery (most no-start calls after storms are dead batteries).
- Confirm remote monitoring works on your phone — you want alerts if something faults while you are evacuated.
- In our NC/SC area: book annual service before August. Call 704-641-1600.
If you own a portable
- Start it this week. Stale-fuel carburetors are the #1 storm-day failure.
- Stock fuel safely — stabilized gasoline rotated every few months, stored away from living space.
- Cords and connections: heavy-gauge outdoor cords, or better, a proper inlet box and manual transfer switch so you can run circuits safely instead of running cords through windows.
- CARBON MONOXIDE KILLS. Portables run OUTSIDE only — 20+ feet from the house, exhaust pointed away, never in garages even with the door open. Battery CO detectors inside.
- Know your limits: a portable keeps the fridge and a window unit alive. It will not run central AC — see standby vs portable.
If you have no backup power yet
Honest timeline talk: a standby generator is a quote → permit → install pipeline measured in weeks. Started in June, you are protected for the season's peak (August-October). Started when a storm has a name, you are buying a flashlight.
- Run the sizing calculator — 60 seconds.
- Request the free quote — NC/SC gets an on-site visit; nationwide ships free with installer guidance.
- Use 0% APR financing so the budget is not the blocker the week you need it most.
The rest of the storm kit
Water (1 gallon/person/day), meds, batteries, document photos for insurance, tree limbs off the service drop, and a full propane grill tank — the generator covers the house; the checklist covers everything else.
Frequently asked questions
- How do I prepare my standby generator for hurricane season?
- Run a manual transfer test, get current on oil and filter, top off propane (or confirm NG service), clear 3 feet around the unit, check the battery, verify your monitoring app, and book annual service before the August rush.
- How much fuel should I store for a hurricane?
- Propane standby owners: enter the season with the tank full — a typical 500-gallon tank supports several days of heavy use. Portable owners: store only what you can keep safely and rotate, with stabilizer, and plan for roughly 12-20 gallons per day of significant generator use.
- Can I get a generator installed after a hurricane is forecast?
- Realistically, no — once a storm has a name, demand spikes and install calendars fill instantly. The pipeline from quote to running install takes weeks in the best case. The right time is the calm months; the second-best time is today.
- Where should a portable generator run during a storm?
- Outdoors only, at least 20 feet from the house, exhaust aimed away from windows and never in a garage or enclosed space — carbon monoxide from portables kills people every storm season. Working CO detectors inside the home are non-negotiable.
Not sure where to start?
Run our free 60-second sizing calculator or talk to a generator pro for a no-pressure quote.