Generator Handbook

Stage: Understanding property constraints See where this sits in the decision

Home load priority worksheet

Every contractor will ask what you want to keep running. Answering that in the moment produces a different list each time, which is one reason quotes come back describing different projects.

Turn a vague sense of what matters into a written, prioritised list plus an explicit inventory of what you still have to look up.

What this produces, and what it will not

It produces:

  • Loads grouped into what must run, what should run, and what can wait.
  • The equipment whose nameplate details you have not recorded yet.
  • Questions about equipment that starts with a higher demand than it runs at.
  • Questions about what would run at the same time.
  • Future loads that should be part of the conversation now.

It never produces:

  • A generator size, capacity, or kilowatt figure.
  • A load calculation, or anything described as one.
  • A total demand figure of any kind.
  • An equipment recommendation.
  • A statement that the list is complete or sufficient.

Where your answers go

Nowhere. Everything you enter stays in this browser tab. Nothing is saved, sent, or recorded, and closing the tab discards it. Print or copy the result if you want to keep it.

Build the list

One row per piece of equipment. Use the name your household uses for it — the point is a list you recognise when a contractor asks.

Equipment 1

Limitations

  • This is not a load calculation and does not replace one. A load calculation is performed by a qualified professional from the actual equipment at the property.
  • A list assembled from memory misses loads. The panel directory and the equipment nameplates are the real source.
  • Priority is a household judgement. Whether a priority can be met is a professional determination.
  • Whole-home backup or essential loads only? — How much of the house this household is buying coverage for, stated precisely enough that two proposals can be compared.
  • Standby generator or portable generator? — Whether this household needs equipment that operates without anyone present, or can rely on equipment a person sets up and runs.
  • Generator or battery backup? — Whether this household's exposure is to short interruptions, which stored energy handles well, or to long outages, where the deciding question becomes how the system gets replenished.