Straight answers to the questions Nassau and Suffolk homeowners ask before hiring a generator installer. For pricing detail, see the cost guide.
Local companies' own published prices put a typical installed standby system roughly in the $8,000–$18,000 range: Long Island Electric Co. lists a 22 kW system at $11,000–$16,500, and Marra Electric lists $8,000–$11,000 (Babylon), $9,000–$16,000 (Laurel) and $13,000–$18,000 (Eastport) for 14–22 kW systems, permits and inspections included. See the cost guide for the full breakdown and what drives a quote.
New York has no statewide electrician license. Nassau and Suffolk counties license electricians separately. Only two companies in this guide publish a license number on their own website: Long Island Electric Co. (Nassau #E-1194A, Suffolk #54221-ME) and HomeOps Electric (#5153ME, county not specified). Ask any other installer for its number and which county it belongs to.
In practice, yes — a standby installation involves electrical and gas work that is permitted and inspected. Marra Electric includes permits and inspections in its published prices. Ask each installer who pulls the permits and handles the inspections, and get it in the written scope.
It depends on your home's size and on what you want to keep running — a few essentials, or the whole house. Installers size the system from a load calculation done at your home. Ask each installer how it sized your system, and compare quotes at the same kW, not just the same price.
A standby generator is permanently installed, wired into your panel, and starts automatically when the power goes out. A portable generator is moved into place and powers selected circuits through extension cords or an inlet box. Most installers in this guide focus on standby systems; MJ Electrical Contracting lists both portable and standby installation.
Generac is the most common brand in this guide — Long Island Electric Co. is a Generac PowerPro Elite dealer, and Stone Electric, HomeOps, A1, Celi and All Wright list Generac. Kohler appears with Strong Island Electric and Marra Electric; Briggs & Stratton with Strong Island Electric and Long Island Emergency Power. Ask who services your brand locally after the sale.
Far-west Nassau (Great Neck, Port Washington, Glen Cove, Long Beach, Valley Stream, Freeport) has no local company in this guide and is covered only by island-wide companies. East Hampton has no local company (served from Flanders and Mattituck); Shelter Island has none either (served by All Wright and GJS); the North Fork east of Mattituck and Riverhead are thin as well. If you live in one of these areas, ask an island-wide installer whether it serves your town before assuming coverage.
Compare the same scope: kW size, brand, transfer switch type, permits and inspections, gas line work, pad and placement, and warranty — parts and labor, in writing. A quote that leaves out the switch, the permits or the gas line will look cheaper and cost more later. Request up to three quotes with one form and compare them side by side.