Expert Generator Installation in Bowie

Why Everyone in Bowie Should Have a Generator

You never really know what Maryland’s weather will have in store, and it can easily lead to power outages that significantly disrupt your life.

This can be prevented with the help of a whole-house generator expert in Prince George's County. Here are a few challenges you can avoid by making a one-time generator investment with Belair:

• Low Home Value: Adding a whole-home generator makes homes in Crofton and Annapolis more desirable. Estimates suggest that adding a generator can slightly boost your home's value.
• Food Spoilage: There may be hundreds of dollars' worth of food in your refrigerator right now. If you lose power, it will all go bad quickly. With a standby generator installed by Belair, that’s not a worry.
• Sump Pump Failure: Stormy weather can both knock out the power in Bowie and cause flooding. If you have a finished basement to keep dry, you can’t afford to have your sump pump be offline. A standby generator can kick in during an outage to keep the sump pump running.
• Medical Equipment Failure: Does someone in your home rely on critical medical equipment like an oxygen concentrator or a CPAP machine? A standby generator ensures this vital equipment can keep running during a power outage.
• Lost Pay as a Remote Worker: Can you work online when the power’s out? Probably not. A standby generator can help you keep up with remote work responsibilities, even during a power outage.

Trusting Belair to Install Your Generator Makes Sense

Have you decided to add a generator to your home in Bowie or Crofton? Belair Engineering and Service Company, Inc. should be your first choice for installation. Qualities that set us apart from other companies in Bowie include:

• 64 Years of Experience: Belair has been serving Prince George's County since 1962. We’ve installed countless generators in Bowie and understand the various challenges that can come up during the project. Don’t trust an unproven contractor when Belair’s skills and experience are just a phone call away.
• 100% Satisfaction Guarantee: When you trust us to install your new generator, expect to be happy with the finished product. We stand firmly behind all of our work. If anything falls short of your expectations, contact us to explain the problem, and we’ll make it right.
• Woman-Owned Business: If you like supporting women-owned businesses in Prince George's County, you can feel good about working with Belair. Owner Debbie Risher has built a long career out of HVAC, plumbing, and generator service.
• Invested in the Community: We also take our role in the community very seriously, supporting many organizations that make this a better place to live and work. Some of the causes we have supported over the years include the Rotary Club, the Bowie and Crofton Chambers of Commerce, the Lions Club, and Kiwanis.

The Generator Installation Process

One of the many benefits of working with Belair is just how many times we have completed generator installations in Prince George's County. We have a proven process that leads to great results. Our process looks like this:

1. Home Assessment: Our technician will evaluate your home’s electrical system and help you determine which circuits you want to have backed up by the generator. This will inform the generator selection and help us order the right size.
2. Placement Planning: We’ll also work with you to determine the best location on your property for your new generator. There are code requirements to be met, in addition to practical considerations such as noise, drainage, and accessibility.
3. Installation and Connection: With the prep work out of the way, the unit will be installed on a proper pad, connected to the fuel source, wired to the transfer switch, and correctly configured.
4. Full Testing and Inspection: The new generator will be thoroughly tested during a simulated power outage to make sure the automatic transfer switch engages and the unit powers up correctly.
5. Homeowner Explanation: Before we clean up and leave, we’ll talk you through everything you need to know about your new generator and how it works. This is a great time to ask any final questions you might have. It's at this point that you can leave a review.

Placement of the Generator Matters

Generator location is important. Our electrician won’t just find the first patch of level ground near your home and drop the generator there. Instead, careful thought and planning go into this decision, including:

• Code Requirements: There are local safety codes that establish minimum distances that a generator must be from windows, doors, and property lines. The installation will fail inspection if these code requirements are not observed. Working with an experienced installer like Belair will ensure your generator location is up to code.
• Drainage and Elevation: It’s important to keep water from pooling around the generator to avoid corrosion and electrical problems. It should be positioned on level, stable ground that is higher than the surrounding area.
• Noise Considerations: While modern standby generators aren’t too loud, they still aren’t silent. Positioning your generator a reasonable distance from bedroom windows and outdoor living spaces will make running it less disruptive.
• Accessibility for Service: Your generator is going to need periodic maintenance for things like oil changes, filter replacements, and battery checks. It should be located where electricians can easily access it for service visits and repairs.

Fuel Type Needs to Be Considered

• Natural Gas: This is the easy choice if your home is already connected to a natural gas line. That existing utility connection will allow you to draw as much natural gas as is needed to power the generator, and no tank will be necessary. The only downside to using natural gas is that your generator’s performance is tied to the utility infrastructure. It’s possible that natural gas service could be disrupted, although this is very rare.
• Propane: For homes in Bowie and Crofton that aren’t connected to natural gas, the next option to consider is propane. Homes in more rural parts of Prince George's County with backup generators tend to rely on propane as their fuel of choice. A supply of propane can be stored in an above-ground or buried tank. That supply of propane is finite, so it’s important to keep the tank topped up. This ensures the generator always has the fuel it needs to perform during an outage.

What You Need to Do to Make Sure Your Home Is Ready for Generator Installation

When you trust Belair with your generator installation in Prince George's County, the technical work will fall on us. Drawing on years of experience and training, our technicians will complete the job and leave you with a new generator that meets all code requirements and will perform for years to come.

With that said, there are a few things you can do to help this process run smoothly:

• Clear Access to Installation Areas: Make it easy for our team to access the points around your home we need to visit to finish the job. That means making sure there is nothing blocking the electrical panel and that the outdoor location for the generator is clear. Our team will be able to work more efficiently with these areas unobstructed.
• Check HOA Requirements: This is a good thing to check as early in the process as possible. Confirm any rules that your HOA has regarding the installation of a generator so we can avoid any conflicts.
• Disclose Any Electrical Issues: Since the generator will be integrated into your electrical system, we need to know whether you’ve had trouble with your panel or had any electrical work performed recently. It’s better to deal with these hurdles in advance than to find out about them on the day of the installation.