I don't know if I will get a generator. But, if I do, I might consider something like Craig's list or keep an eye out for some clearance / end of season blow-out deals.
I can't justify $1,000 on a generator.
A very little light is helpful, but with all the great LED products on the market, we did well enough on light.
Wal-mart sells these little AAA and AA battery push on and off stick anywhere LED lights with 3-5 led bulbs that provide good light, are cheap and we haven't yet replaced the batteries after over a week of heavy use.
Refridgerator would be nice to keep running for a number of reasons. Obviously, to save food from going bad. But, just as an on-going major convenience over needing ice for milk, eggs, orange-juice, cold drinks and things I "Like" to have daily if possibly.
We can go a long time on dry and canned foods. But, refridgerated meats, for dinner and sandwhiches, ice for drinks and more. The fridge is easily over-looked - until you loose it.
But, make for a great opportunity to clean out and disinfect.
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A lot of people here have window units in storage that they break out for generator use. Those can be picked up for as little as $100 - $200 on clearance and would be nice in the bedroom at night. But, they draw a lot of power.
If not needing a window unit, I could easily get by with a smaller 5000 watt or so generator.
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A few problems that are common for people with generators:
**** GAS *****
They use a LOT of gas over a week or so period of time.
Most people who don't use them much don't realize, but even if turning them on and off through-out the day to conserve, most people seem to run about 12-16 hours per day and still use 5 gallons or so per day in gas.
So, if no electricity for 2 weeks, you could need as much as 70 or so gallons of GAS. That is a lot of 5 gallon jugs of gas. Most people don't have NEAR enough jugs of gas for long term needs. We were lucky that gas stations started getting some gas earlier on because most people would have had generators sitting dead and dry.
Also, that gas is expensive compared to electricity usage. Most people I know are paying $300 - $600 a month for electricity right now - which is VERY expensive in my book.
But, a generator with VERY limited ability to power your home could easily cost $20 per day = $600 per month at WAY less ability that power from utility co.
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Also, I am not sure entirely how this works. Most generators seem to have "some" auto throttle control. But, they don't really conserve gas very well no matter how much you draw. So, they tend to be VERY inefficient.
So, a big gas-guzzling generator could eat your lunch if you don't use and need all of the energy.
There is probably a tendancy to weigh two factors when shopping for a generator: cost of generator vs. total wattage output.
It might be well worth considering what the minimum reasonable requirements are to run what you need in your house and estimate the minimum wattage you can get by on (??????). It is our nature to try to get at much bang for the buck on that type of purchase. Which can be good to have the extra power. But, you will pay for it in gas. And not likely to be able to conserve the gas as easily as you hope.
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