Generator installation in Thousand Oaks.

Why here is different

The Conejo Valley's edges burn, and the hills lose power first.

Thousand Oaks is a suburb, but its southern and western edges are open hills, and the Woolsey Fire of 2018 came through them from Oak Park to the ocean. Dos Vientos, Lynn Ranch, the neighborhoods above Westlake and the ranch properties toward Lake Sherwood are on Southern California Edison circuits that get shut off in wind events, and the rest of the city sees the ordinary outages of an aging grid under summer load. Most of Thousand Oaks has natural gas, so a Generac standby generator here usually runs on the gas main with no tank to manage.

Permits inside the city, including Newbury Park, come from the City of Thousand Oaks building division; a few unincorporated pockets are Ventura County. County Line has pulled generator permits with both for years and knows the inspectors.

Thousand Oaks generator questions

In writing

What the estimate lists, line by line.

A generator estimate that says "installed" and a number is not an estimate. County Line's names every part, so two bids can be compared on the same page.

• The unit: Generac model, kilowatt rating, air-cooled or liquid-cooled, and the load calculation it was sized from
• The automatic transfer switch: amperage, whole-house or critical loads, and where it mounts
• The pad and the location, with the clearances to windows, doors and the property line
• The fuel: natural gas line size and run, or the propane tank, regulator and line, and who does that work
• The electrical: conduit, wire, breakers, surge protection, any panel work the house needs first
• The permit and inspection, and the HOA submittal where there is one
• Startup and a simulated outage with you present
• The twice-yearly service plan: $600 a year, both visits, and what each visit covers

Timing

When to buy a generator, honestly.

The right time is spring and early summer. Shutoff season in Southern California runs from September into December, when the Santa Ana winds arrive, and that is when everyone calls. Lead times on Generac units and on permits stretch, gas work gets booked out, and a generator ordered in October may not be running until the season is over. A unit ordered in April is installed, inspected and exercised before the first red flag warning.

County Line says this on every generator page because it is true and because a customer who plans ahead gets a better installation: time to size it properly, time to place the pad well, time to get the HOA and the permit done without a rush.

Service

The $600 service, and why the price is on the page.

A standby generator is an engine that waits outside for years, and the twice-yearly service is what keeps it ready: oil and filter changes, the battery, a load test under real load, the transfer switch contacts, the exercise schedule and any fault codes in the controller. County Line charges $600 a year for both visits. Jeff Tucker's own comparison, which anyone can check with two phone calls, is that the large generator installers in Ventura and Los Angeles counties quote about $1,000 for the same work.

The price is published because a price that has to be asked for is a price that can change. It applies to units County Line installed and to units installed by someone else.