Standby generator for a home office: keeping work running through an outage

A standby generator for a home office keeps the computer, the monitors, the router and the room's cooling running when the grid goes down, so an outage does not end the workday. The office itself draws little power. What takes planning is the moment the power fails, the internet connection, and the air conditioning a San Antonio office needs in summer. This guide walks through each one. We sell and install Generac home standby and commercial generators.

Can a standby generator power a home office?

Yes. A home standby generator wired through a transfer switch carries whatever circuits are on its list, and an office is one of the easier loads to carry. Computers, monitors, a printer, lights and a router draw little next to an air conditioner, so the office rarely decides the size. The cooling usually does.

The generator sits outside on a pad, connected to your gas supply and to a transfer switch at the panel. When the utility fails, the switch senses it, the generator starts, and the chosen circuits move over to it. When the utility returns, the switch moves them back and the generator shuts down. Nobody has to be home to make it happen, which matters if you travel for work.

The sequence is laid out in our guide to what happens in a power outage with a standby generator.

What should a home office put on the generator?

Put on the list whatever you need to finish a workday: the office outlets for the computer and monitors, the lights, the modem and router wherever they sit, and the cooling for the room. Add a phone charging spot, the printer if you use it daily, and any equipment a person in the house depends on.

• The office outlets: computer, monitors, docking station and the printer.
• The modem and router, which are often in a different room from the desk.
• The office lights and the hallway you walk to reach it.
• The air conditioning or a heat pump that cools the office.
• The refrigerator and kitchen outlets, so lunch and coffee still work.
• Medical equipment or medication refrigeration, if anyone in the house needs it.

Check where the modem and router live before the sizing visit. They are often in a closet, a living room or a bedroom far from the office, on a circuit nobody thought to list. If they are not on the generator, the computer stays on and the connection still drops.

Do I still need a UPS if I have a standby generator?

Usually, yes. A standby generator starts after the transfer switch senses the outage, so there is a short gap before the office has power again. A desktop computer on a plain outlet shuts off in that gap. A small UPS at the desk bridges the moment, so the computer keeps running until the generator takes the load.

A laptop on a charged battery rides through the gap without help, but the monitors, the dock and the router do not. Putting the router and modem on a small UPS as well keeps a video call from dropping during the transfer. The UPS is a desk item you buy and plug in; the generator and the transfer switch are the installed part of the system.

Larger offices with a network closet and a rack mounted UPS are a different job, covered on our office and data closet standby generators page.

Will my internet work during an outage if I have a generator?

The generator keeps your modem and router powered, so your side of the connection stays up. Whether the internet service itself keeps working depends on the provider's network, which runs on its own equipment outside your house. We can power everything inside your walls, but not the provider's lines and cabinets down the street.

A phone hotspot is a useful second path for the times the provider's network is down too. With the house on the generator, the phone stays charged and the hotspot is there when you need it. Ask your provider how its network handles outages in your area, because that answer is theirs to give.

What size Generac generator does a home office need?

The office adds little to the load list, so the size is set by everything else you want running, above all the air conditioning and how it starts. A home that needs only essential circuits and the office may fit the smallest Guardian. A home that wants central air running too usually needs a larger size.

Generac rates the Guardian 14kW at 14,000 watts on both propane and natural gas, and the 18kW at 18,000 watts on propane and 17,000 on natural gas. The 22kW is rated 22,000 and 19,500. Those figures come from Generac's product pages, and the full set, up to the 26kW, is in our size guide.

Read Generac generator sizes explained for all five sizes, or start with the Generac 14kW generator page if your list is short. Every size we install is on our Generac generators page.

Can a standby generator keep a home office cool in a Texas summer?

Yes, if the system that cools the office is on the load list and the generator is sized for how its compressor starts. A compressor draws far more current for a moment as it starts than while it runs, and that start has to fit beside everything else already running on the generator.

There are a few ways to make the cooling fit. A soft starter on the compressor reduces the starting surge. Load management holds back a large appliance, such as the water heater or the dryer, while the air conditioner runs. And if the office is cooled by its own small system, putting that system on the list instead of the whole house's air can keep the size down.

Should a home office use a whole house or an essential circuit transfer switch?

Either works for an office. An essential circuit switch moves a chosen set of circuits to the generator, so the office, the router and the cooling must be on that set. A whole house switch moves the entire panel, with load management keeping the total in range. The choice follows your list and your generator size.

If you go with essential circuits, make sure the office outlets are on their own circuits, not shared with a bedroom full of space heaters or a garage freezer. If they share, the sizing visit is the time to say so, because moving a few outlets to their own circuit is easier before the switch goes in than after.

The options are compared in our guide to generator transfer switch types.

What does installing a standby generator for a home office involve?

The install is the same as any home standby generator. We set the unit where the setbacks allow, install and wire the transfer switch, connect it to your panel, and start the unit up and test it under load before we leave. The office circuits are checked on generator power as part of that test.

Gas line and gas connection are not included. That is a licensed plumber's work and we quote it separately. We schedule the plumber with the electrical work so the unit is ready on the same day. Inside San Antonio, the City's electrical permit application covers generators. Outside the city, we confirm what that city requires before we give you the price.

The full process is on our Generac generator installation page.

How much does a standby generator for a home office cost?

The price is the unit, the transfer switch, the wiring, the placement and the gas line, and the office adds little to any of them. Because each part changes from house to house, the number is a written price after the free sizing visit, with the gas line quoted separately by a licensed plumber.

Book a free Generac sizing visit and tell us the office is the reason. We list the loads with you, find the router, check the panel and the gas meter, and write the price. For anything else, our contact page reaches the office.