Explainer
Not every requirement is a building-scale installation. A shop keeping its lights and a refrigerator running through a cut, a home backing up a few essential circuits, or a small office needing clean power for computers is a genuinely different problem from sizing a set for an institution, and the right equipment looks different too.
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A starting shortlist, not the only options — every one of these can be sized up or down once we know your exact load.
This covers the small end of the range — what an inverter generator actually is, and when a small standby set suits better than a portable one.
A conventional generator produces power at whatever frequency the engine happens to be turning. An inverter generator produces raw power the same way, then electronically conditions it into a clean, stable output regardless of engine speed — which is what makes it safe for sensitive electronics that a rougher supply can damage: computers, phone chargers, LED drivers, small appliances with their own electronics inside.
The trade-off is capacity: inverter sets in this range top out at a few kilowatts, sized for a handful of circuits rather than a whole building.
A portable inverter set is moved to where it is needed, started manually, and connected to specific loads with cords — straightforward, no installation, and it can travel between a home and a shop if needed.
A small standby set, wired into the building with a changeover switch, stays in one place and can cover a defined circuit or two automatically. It costs more to set up but removes the step of manually connecting a portable unit every time the power goes.
The same rule applies at this end of the range as at the large end: add up what genuinely needs to run, and account for anything with a motor — a small refrigerator or a well pump draws a real surge on starting even at this scale. Most residential and small-shop requirements land clearly within this range once actually listed out.
Sizing is done against your actual load, not a rule of thumb. Send us the list of what has to keep running and we will work out the rating.
