It’s difficult to overstate the virtues of propane as a fuel source for your home heater, appliances such as clothes dryers, grills and more, but one of the best uses for home propane is often overlooked until it’s really needed: propane-powered generators.
Propane generators are a reliable, clean and efficient way to guarantee emergency backup power for your home, but the benefits go further still. You’ll be happy to have that generator when the rest of the block loses electricity.
1. Worse weather = more outages
Data from NASA and the National Weather Service is clear – extreme weather patterns and extreme weather disasters, like hurricanes, tornadoes, stifling heat waves and devastating winter storms, are all becoming more frequent and more severe.
Along with extreme weather comes a higher possibility for power outages, and the severity of an outage is left to little more than the luck of the draw. Should critical electrical infrastructure suffer tornado damage, or should a summer heat wave and drought cause rolling blackouts, it could be hours, days or even longer before power is restored.
Especially if you already use propane to power your heater and other indoor and outdoor appliances, a propane backup generator is a great way to ensure your home and your family against the uncertainty of weather-related outages.
2. Propane: for the long haul
Should the worst happen, power outages could last an extended period of time. Even something as benign as a construction accident could cut a line and leave you without power for days.
Propane – as compared to natural gas or gasoline – can provide power longer, more efficiently, and with far less hassle. Extra propane tanks are easier to store than surplus natural gas or liquid fuel, and propane pumps don’t require electricity to work. Even if you do run out, re-fueling is still easier than with other fuels.
If you want a backup generator to truly serve as your backup, with demonstrated dependability, propane is the answer.
3. Clean generation
Propane is, by far, a much cleaner fuel source for generators than other options.
Of course, propane is still considered a fossil fuel, or rather a byproduct of fossil fuel production, but unlike gasoline, natural gas and coal, propane reaches near complete efficiency. In other words, when burned as a fuel source, most of the energy can be captured and used to generate electricity.
Furthermore, propane generators produce little-to-no particulate matter, grime, gunk, or smoke, they don’t leave behind carbon deposits like other generators (or any other engine you can think of), and they require less maintenance over time due to their cleanliness.
Struggling to start a lawnmower that’s sat idle since last season is frustrating enough – you don’t want the same situation with your backup generator while your family is cold inside and without power.
4. Not just for emergencies!
It’s great to have your propane backup generator on standby, ready to power your home and appliances on a moment’s notice should you lose power, but it can also be a great way to fuel the best parties and outdoor events. Portable generators, in particular, can power the gamut of fun outdoor activities: bouncy houses, outdoor sound equipment, electronics on a camping trip and so much more. Just remember to refill it once you’re done so it’s still ready for emergencies!
If you’re interested in equipping your home or business with propane backup power generation, give Butch’s Propane a call at 605-857-1111. We’ll assess your current propane usage or, if you don’t use propane at all, how doing so could improve your home and your energy expenses. It’s clean, reliable and mess-free – you have nothing to lose except worry for future outages.
