Write down the details
Note the location, timing, and anything that has changed. Photos and rough measurements make the first call more useful.
Understand what the grid has already done here
Grid reliability has been a real, documented issue in the Naperville area, not just a marketing point. The derecho that crossed the wider Chicago region on August 10, 2020 left more than 800,000 customers without power at its peak, with an EF-1 tornado confirmed near Wheaton as part of that system, and the March 31-April 1, 2024 tornado that reached EF3 strength in Naperville itself damaged roughly 230 residences along with utility poles and trees. A severe storm line on July 15, 2024 again brought high winds through the western suburbs. Standby power sizing and transfer-switch planning both depend on a home's actual electrical panel and fuel access, which vary by era of construction.
Ask what gets covered up
Connected load, fuel supply, transfer equipment, pad elevation and drainage, clearances, utility coordination, permits, startup testing, and maintenance access shape a dependable installation. A proper written scope explains the prep and checks that will not be visible once the job is done.
Line up the bids
Check for site protection, access, materials, permits, testing, cleanup, exclusions, warranty terms, and change-order pricing.
What official local sources add
A standby generator is permanent equipment on a pad, so two things apply. Setting that pad is ground disturbance, which is what Naperville's land-disturbing permitting governs. More consequentially, where the parcel falls inside the DuPage County floodplain regulations the city has adopted, elevation of the equipment is a requirement rather than a preference — and getting it wrong means relocating a unit that has already been set, connected and commissioned. The on-site stormwater control facilities requirement matters mainly in that a pad should not be placed where it obstructs a route the site depends on.
Sources were reviewed 2026-07-26. Confirm your parcel's floodplain status and current permit rules with the city before authorizing any work.