Guides
What to settle before you buy: how much power the house needs, which fuel holds up after a storm, and what has to be installed by an electrician.
Generators
Gas, propane or both: generator fuel for a Tampa Bay hurricane season
Why gas lines after Milton make dual-fuel worth it, how long gasoline and propane keep, what a 20-pound tank actually runs, and where natural gas fits.
How big a generator does a Tampa Bay house need?
Running watts, starting watts and the sizes that cover most Florida houses: the essentials, the essentials plus one cool room, and central air.
Power stations
Power station or generator? What a battery actually runs in a Florida outage
How to work out a power station's runtime, what a refrigerator, a CPAP and the internet really draw, and when a battery beats a generator after a Tampa Bay storm, and when it doesn't.
Recharging a power station after the storm: solar, the car or a generator
The ways to refill a battery when the grid is down in Tampa Bay, how long each takes, and how to set them up so the station keeps up with the outage.
Mini-splits
DIY mini-split kit or installed? What Florida actually requires
Pre-charged mini-split kits are sold as do-it-yourself. Here is what EPA, Florida's contractor law, Tampa Bay permit offices and the manufacturers' warranties say about installing one.
Running a mini-split on a generator or a battery
Why a variable-speed mini-split is the easiest AC for backup power, what a 12,000-BTU unit draws at full output, how a generator reaches a hardwired unit, and battery runtimes at four loads.
Solar and batteries
Solar panels for a power station: what a Tampa Bay day refills
Tampa's sun-hours by month, how many panel watts refill a 1 kWh or 2 kWh power station, why rated watts aren't what you get, and how to wire two panels without exceeding the input.
Will rooftop solar keep the lights on in a Florida outage?
Why most rooftop systems shut off with the grid, what it takes to keep power through a storm, and what Florida's net metering rule, tax exemptions and HOA law say in 2026.
EV charging
Can an electric car power your house in an outage?
Vehicle-to-home backup is real, but only with specific cars and specific equipment. What Tesla and Kia require, what a car's own outlets can run, and why it's always an electrician's install.
Level 1 or Level 2: charging an EV at a Tampa Bay house
How many miles an hour each level adds, how the circuit is sized, the GFCI rule, J1772 and NACS plugs, load management for older panels, and the permit.