PEARLAND, Texas – A powerful storm can spark interest in having a generator for your home.
“I guess the biggest impetus for me to really consider a generator seriously was the freeze that we had last year,” resident Richard Perwien said. “Being without power and having busted pipes and everything that goes with that.”
So, Perwien started making calls, but he didn’t love what he heard.
“I don’t know that we are in a situation where our supply chain is reliable enough to have it in the times when you need it most,” he said.
Over on Blalock Road, the co-owner of GenPro Ashton Tennant says their turnaround time has changed.
“We used to turn projects around in 30 days,” Tennant said. “Now, we are looking at 20 to 25 weeks.”
Tennant says because of supply chain issues and the pandemic, they’ve seen delays for a while. However, rising costs are the new hurdle.
“There’s a lot of things driving increased costs,” he added. “Fuel is twice as much as it was a year ago. Raw materials like copper and lead, all those materials that go into batteries or copper that they use for wiring a home, that’s all increased.”
For perspective — Tennant says in 2019, a generator for an average-sized home would cost around $8,000. He says now it’s around $10,000 to $12,000, and those costs are expected to increase.
He says last year, they pre-ordered a few million dollars in stock. A good amount of it was quickly accounted for by new customers.
“We’ve seen a 30% increase just from the manufacturers for the purchase of what we sell, generators,” Tennant said. Meaning their profits are narrowing.
He says right now it’s an industry-wide issue. “It affects everything you do,” he said.
Tennant says it’s important to remember it’s not solely a supply issue, permitting and inspections for the installation can also lead to delays.