I want to get into the power generator business... But where do I start?

My dream job would be going into sales... Installing generators in millions of homes that might be threatened by power outages because of the weather (or other possible threats like uhhhh.... the NWO) It could possibly save lives, or at the very least help people feel a little bit of comfort durring a bad situation.

but where do I start?

I know I could convince the average homeowner to buy one of these generators to feel a little bit more secure in today's world of uncertain times... especially up north where the weather gets really cold.

We just saw 400,000 homes lose thier power for several days... who was prepared?

There is a business opportunity that needs looking into, because I have never in my entire life seen a home with a back up power supply. Have you?

Every home that is constructed starting in 2009... should now be equipped with a power generator. (an extra $5,000 added to the value of the house).

Ofcourse I haven't done a whole lot of research on the subject, so I'm hoping ATS could help me out with some knowledge.

It is my dream that one day, if you an average American citizen says "I don't have a generator in my house"... it will be the equivelant of saying "I don't have a TV in my house"... I see no reason why more and more home owners start buying these if the can easily afford them.

Please.... Reply to this thread.

Or maybe I should look into the solar power business instead?

yea... solar power.

cant really tell you ware to start maybe take some industrial electronics classes. If it was me would do both plus add in other alternative like wind.

generators are good for short outages, but solar and wind are the new money makers. "green consultants" their called, it was listed as one of the to 5 fastest growing jobs in the world. also with solar on-grid what ever power is produced feeds back to the grid and the power company has to pay YOU.
but what i'm thinking is you should do both, start a business that provides green power with gen back up systems.
for that you would need to be a licensed electrician and contractors licences.
there are plenty of companies that already do this stuff, so it's not a new area. generators got real popular around Y2K

Originally posted by AgentBlack
generators are good for short outages, but solar and wind are the new money makers. "green consultants" their called, it was listed as one of the to 5 fastest growing jobs in the world. also with solar on-grid what ever power is produced feeds back to the grid and the power company has to pay YOU.
but what i'm thinking is you should do both, start a business that provides green power with gen back up systems.
for that you would need to be a licensed electrician and contractors licences.
there are plenty of companies that already do this stuff, so it's not a new area. generators got real popular around Y2K

Yea... I'm starting to realize that maybe solar is the way to go... I won't be the electrician... I want to hire them.

I guess I could start with my house first,... but I'm sure there are many rules and regulations in regards to having solar panels on top of your roof.

Thanks for the post...


And I am serious about this... I'm currently a graphic artist, and I've realized that sitting on a computer all day is not what I desire for the rest of my life...

Any help or info you can give about solar power houses... or power generators would be very helpful...

I'll be doing a serious amount of research on this myself.

I don't have a backup generator but i do have backup power.

I have 6 large cat batteries and a inverter.

No fuel needed and i can recharge my system with solar or any 12 power system like a car generator.

Under normal conditions the batteries are keep charged by power from the power company.

When the power goes out the inverter takes over and runs lights computer and my TV.

Under normal conditions this will give me 3 days of power.

where i live this will give me two days more then i have ever needed.

here's a start

www.alpinesurvival.com...
www.alpinesurvival.com...
www.solarhome.org...
www.wholesalesolar.com...

I work as an Electrician for a generator company in Australia. The way I got into the industry is by being an Industrial Electrician with good knowledge of diesel engines. Mostly I do commissioning and breakdowns etc but the head salesman has expressed interest in me moving into sales. He is an Electrical Engineer. Basically you need people skills and a very indepth knowledge of the product you sell, like any sales position really.
The average person probably wouldn't be interested in a generator unless power outages etc become a real problem. It's a comparitively expensive way to generate power and requires maintenance of the engine which is a bit of a hassle for your average Joe. Commercial buildings such as office blocks, factories etc are a different story. Despite (because of?) this so-called economic downturn sales in these areas have skyrocketed recently.

My advice : Solar for single houses or units, diesel generator for anything above that (unit blocks even). Either way you need to know your product well. Do a course and just make the sudject a personal interest. This coupled with a friendly outgoing personality and I'm sure someone will give you a chance. After a few years in the industry you could look at going into business yourself. Hope I didn't ramble too much! (Actually I held back)

reply to post by Doomsday 2029
As far as a recomendation I would suggest china diesel to start with.They have a decent line of generators gas and diesel.My main reason is that they sell generators that run at 1800 rpm as oposed to most sold run at 3600 rpm.Generally speaking the 1800 rpm uses less fuel (half) and you have twice the life span.Ge has a fuel cell that runs off of propane the only emissions are heat and water.Honda and Baldor also carry a decent line although they are 3600 rpm.As far as you having to have a electicians liscense thats only if you do the installation,you could subcontract to an existing electrician if you choose.If your interested check the net for nearby distributors,call them and talk about selling the line or lines they carry strictly on a commision basis or ask for wholesale pricing,in this economy a company would be foolish to turn away a potential sale.Good luck

Hi doomsday, I think your on to a winner there mate, although i think you should stick to your original idea as the prospects for the next 5 - 10 yrs ( or if the s-h-t-fan ) are looking a little bleak & folks wont have the cash for expensive solar projects whereas a geni that can be topped up with deisel is a relatively cheap & instant fix. As for going into business i cannot offer any suggestions on how to start but if your looking to hardwire them in i suppose an electrical qualification might be needed. Or just run long leads to a stand alone geni.

I'm in the market for a generator and installer. I'm simply starting my search but I know I need a professional. The first sites I looked up told me any electrician may not get it right. Some places require different policies and I realized fast that it's a specialty kind of thing. Something you cannot mess around with. They say it's about the same price as the generator to have it installed with the correct switches with the correct size generator . That says a lot to me about the gaurentee you get with certain installers. They are something that should be on any new home. And it makes a good selling point for any home. I am also getting a solar panel beginners kit soon that can be added to it easily. I have all electric and get high winds and crap Ohio weather. YA I chose this somehow. I will look up those links agentblack. Op. You have a great idea. This is a profession I wish I could have learned and dedicated to. Everyone needs a custom power source.

I sell , install and do all the pesky government paperwork for solar panels on a domestic scale,

In my humble opinion your original generator idea is best , when those rolling black outs hit a backup will be a must and as some people above had said generators are in demand atm

solar installers are losing companies at about 1500 per year (UK) due to the over saturation at the start of the boom,

a reply to: Doomsday 2029

I think your right that's why people are getting into solar and hydro electric. A lot of property owners have been installing ponds too.

Generally speaking it's sustainable living. I'm waiting for an opportunity to build my first aquaponics garden.

originally posted by: onequestion
a reply to: Doomsday 2029

I think your right that's why people are getting into solar and hydro electric. A lot of property owners have been installing ponds too.

Generally speaking it's sustainable living. I'm waiting for an opportunity to build my first aquaponics garden.

Its NOT sustainable in a SHTF situation at all

hydro maybe solar NO

the problem is the battery bank, although your panels may last 50-60 years the batteries will need replacing every 5-7 years and are expensive, also your inverter wont last forever. If SHTF were will you buy replacements?

hydro good but you will effect the course of the water by transferring energy out of it , wind is always their but location and longeivity also an issue.

Generators and a massive fuel tank will last a lot longer..

But all of the above will eventually run out or breakdown ...

Maybe a hybrid package is way to go .

a reply to: Quantum_Squirrel

You can say that about anything. 5-7 years you'll be lucky to be alive in the same location.

To many what ifs, I can what if anything.

I have 4 houses on solar with battery backup. I sell the power back to TVA for a $0.3/KW premium of what I pay for electricity. The numbers for a house system that can easily be switched to run off grid when the power is off is about $30K with panels, inverters, batteries, and labor. You get a 30% federal tax rebate and can depreciate 30% of the system on your taxes as well, bringing the cost to about $10K. On a typical 10KW system in my area the utility pays me about $2,300 per year, so in 4.5 years the system is paid off and I have sustainable power back up.

originally posted by: onequestion
a reply to: Quantum_Squirrel

You can say that about anything. 5-7 years you'll be lucky to be alive in the same location.

To many what ifs, I can what if anything.

your right of course but he said he wanted to do it as a 'Career' and as i do Solar as a career i was basing my view on Selling points (and hopefully many years of selling) not Ultimate survival ... was mentioning the pitfalls whilst attempting to sell such products.

Q

Haven't had time to read all the comments yet but i am very intrested in the same! As well as im a tinkerer and have come up with many designs, my fav basocally turns the house into a rechargerable battery, with blinds that have on ome side are actually solar panels. When rolled one way it would split the incoming power between a large back up battery stored either in the attic or basement, and the remaining would go directly to help relieve grid use power. User can define the percentages, but it would allow for relief from grid power during the day and night (night will drain the batteries). Wjen rolled the opposite way they would look lile normal blinds, as not to take away from the "look". This could be put on timers, or operated via a mobile app.

My other design is what i call a RainBright Barrel. It would be a large plastic barrel with the internals set up to do the following: it would have a smaller but still powerful internal rechargeable battery AND small CLEAN filtered water storage compartment, aswell as a high efficiency "waterwheel" type generator. When rain falls throught the top it flows through spinnning the generator creating power, charging the batteries, then the power is retrievable via extention cord. The passing water would help keep internals cooled, as well as syphoning off a portion to be filtered and cleanwd for drinking.

It would have an optional attachement for a wind generator to be attached to the top. For best results, they would be attacheable to rain gutters, for massive water flow and higher power turnout.

I love in fl so the barrels would come in sooo handy during hurricane season, when the power gets knocked out there usually not shortage of rain nor wind.

If your intrested in more from me please feel freei love liked minded folks, and even not so liked minded to discuss possibilities and diffrences with.

GL Boss

The only viable solution to a full house backup generator is one powered by natural gas or a propane tank.
So, become well-versed on those.