17 Mar What Are The Best Home Backup Power Options in Dallas?

Power outages are one of those things you generally don’t think about too much—until you’re left sitting in the dark, wondering why you didn’t prepare for this sooner. Whether it’s a storm, a grid failure, or just another Texas summer pushing the electrical system to its limit, losing power is inconvenient at best, miserable at worst, and essentially certain to happen when you’re not expecting it.

Texas homeowners—especially those in places like Dallas as well as the Houston area—know this struggle all too well. The 2021 winter storm Uri put millions in the cold for days, and every summer brings the possibility of rolling blackouts when the grid gets overwhelmed.

If you’re looking for a way to keep the power on when the grid lets you down, there are a few different options. Some are more reliable than others, but it all depends on what works best for your home and budget.

Whole-Home Standby Generators

The Most “Set-It-and-Forget-It” Backup Power Solution

If you want backup power that kicks on automatically and keeps your entire house running, installing a whole home standby generator is the way to go. These systems are permanently installed outside your home (like a central AC unit) and wired into your electrical panel. When the power goes out, they fire up automatically and run on natural gas, propane, or diesel.

Pros:

• Seamless operation – No messing with extension cords or manually starting a generator. It just works.
• Powers the entire home – Keeps the fridge cold, the AC running, and the lights on without you having to pick and choose.
• Long runtime – As long as you have fuel (natural gas is ideal because it doesn’t run out like a propane tank), you’re good to go.

Cons:

• Upfront cost – A fully installed whole-home generator is an investment for most homeowners.
• Needs regular maintenance – Like a car, it needs occasional servicing to stay in top shape.
• Permits and installation time – This isn’t a quick Amazon purchase. You’ll need an electrician and possibly a plumber if running a gas line.

Alternatives to Whole Home Generators

Portable Generators

If you’re looking for a cheaper way to keep some essentials powered, a portable generator can do the job. These run on gasoline, propane, or diesel and can power some appliances if plugged in properly—though they need regular refueling and careful placement to avoid fumes. Note that they typically can’t run power-hungry essentials like central AC, electric water heaters, or an entire home’s lighting and outlets all at once.

Note: Some higher-wattage models (8,000–12,000W) can technically run central AC or a well pump if properly wired into a transfer switch, but this is not common for most homeowners due to fuel constraints.

Pros:

• Lower cost – A good one can be had for $1000 to $2,000+, depending on power output.
• Good for short outages – If you just need to keep the fridge running and charge a few devices, it’s enough.

Cons:

• Manual setup – You’ll need to start it yourself, plug things in, and refuel it regularly.
• Limited capacity – You won’t be running central AC or an electric water heater.
• Gas storage and fumes – Storing enough fuel for an extended outage can be a challenge, and carbon monoxide is a risk if not placed properly.

Battery Backup

Home battery backup units (like Tesla Powerwall, EcoFlow, and more recently Anker’s Solix units) are a compact solution that can work well for people with solar panels. These small power stations connected to large extra batteries (if connected) store power and generally provide quiet, clean backup electricity which you can connect to by plugging directly into the unit or running extension cords.

They have a much more limited capacity, and rely on recharging the unit via solar panels or via a wall outlet—obviously not possible during an outage. Since they cannot generate power with a fuel source, you will find that with the exception of the largest units they are typically not enough to keep an entire home running during a prolonged outage unless you invest a lot of money into this kind of setup.

Unless you have an unusually huge capacity (such as multiple high-capacity batteries which can run thousands of dollars on their own), power must be carefully managed, and running a space heater (typically 1500w) or other power-hungry appliance—if they can run them at all—can drain stored backup power at a faster rate than many homeowners might expect.

Most solar panel + battery backup systems aren’t going to keep an entire home running during an extended outage unless they’re extremely overbuilt (and expensive).

Achieving a true whole-home solution often requires investing as much as a standby generator—if not more—plus installation. Even with multiple battery units, they’re still limited by capacity and recharge times, making them more suited for short outages rather than prolonged outages. Therefore, if you want real whole-home backup power for extended outages like we had with the storms here in Texas a few years back, a standby generator (natural gas, propane, or diesel) is generally a much better solution.

Pros:

• No fuel needed – If charged up, they provide power with low noise or emissions.
• Can integrate with solar – If you have solar panels, batteries help store energy for outages.
• Silent and low-maintenance – Unlike generators, there’s no engine to service.

Cons:

• Expensive for whole-home use – A large battery system to power your entire house can cost as much as a standby generator or more.
• Limited runtime – Once depleted, you’re out of power unless you have solar or another way to recharge.
• Not ideal for extended outages – If you lose power for days, a generator with fuel is more reliable.

Manual Transfer Switch + Portable Generator or Power Station: A Middle Ground

For Texas homeowners who want something more reliable than a few extension cords but aren’t ready to spring for a whole-house generator, a manual transfer switch is worth considering. This kind of setup will let you plug a portable generator (or even a large battery backup system) directly into your home’s electrical panel, letting you power a few selected circuits.

A manual transfer switch only supplies power to pre-chosen circuits, and large appliances like central air conditioning, electric water heaters, or heavy-duty kitchen appliances are often left out in favor of only powering the absolute essentials (for example a few lights and the refrigerator, etc.). While it’s more streamlined than running cords around the house, it still requires manual operation to start the generator and switch over power. If you are asleep or away from home, your home will not have power if no one is there to hit the manual transfer switch. For that matter, by the time you invest in a larger generator or battery system to get closer to whole-home coverage, the cost can start approaching what you’d pay for a fully automated, whole home standby generator solution.

Pros:

• More convenient than running cords – A manual transfer switch gives you proper power to hardwired essentials like lights and your fridge.
• Flexibility – You can use it with a portable gas generator, and some setups can support large battery power stations. These have to be paired correctly

Cons:

• Still requires manual operation – You’ll have to go outside, start the generator, and switch over manually.
• Limited power – You still won’t be able to run everything, just whatever circuits you pre-select. You’ll still need to carefully manage what you can run at any given time.
• Not fully automatic – Unlike a standby generator, this won’t kick on by itself in the middle of the night or if you are not home at the time of the outage.

Takeaways

• If you just need occasional, short-term power for a few appliances and don’t mind dealing with noise, fuel storage, and manual setup, a portable generator can get the job done—just don’t expect it to power much.
• If you want something more integrated but don’t want to commit to a full standby unit, a manual transfer switch setup is a step up from running extension cords, though you’ll still have to manually start your generator and won’t be able to power everything.
• If you’re into tech-forward and don’t mind the limited runtime, and dependence on recharging, a battery backup might seem appealing—but it’s typically not a true whole-home solution unless you invest thousands and thousands of dollars in equipment and installation costs at a minimum. At that point, you might as well install a standby generator.
• If you want the most reliable solution that can power everything in your house, installing a whole-home standby generator is the best bet.

Given Texas’ history of grid failures and snowstorms, investing in backup power is just being prepared. Whether you “go big” with a whole-home generator or try a manual transfer switch setup or just running extension cords, having a plan in place means you won’t be left scrambling the next time the lights go out.