When a hurricane knocks out power in Charleston or Myrtle Beach, it is not just the lights. It is the AC in 95-degree humidity, the fridge, the well pump, and medical equipment. A standby generator turns on by itself in seconds — if you have one installed before the wait list fills up.
Get a free quoteSee what it costsAverage installed cost nationally. On the coast, most turnkey packages run $9,500 to $30,000, with a typical 22 kW whole-home install at $10,500 to $13,500.
About how fast a standby generator senses an outage, starts, and takes over — automatically, whether you are home or not. No extension cords, no gas cans, no portable unit in the rain.
This is a plain-English guide built for coastal SC homeowners, not a dealer sales page. Read the real cost breakdown, figure out what size you actually need, then — if you want — request one free quote from a local installer. No homeowner fee, ever.
Two things collide here. First, demand: hurricane exposure, long summer outages, and the fastest growth on the coast — Myrtle Beach grew 21.8% in the survey period we reviewed. Second, supply: Charleston effectively has one dominant generator specialist plus a handful of electricians who install them, and Myrtle Beach has roughly six to eight installers. That is why timelines stretch to half a year while other home projects book in weeks.
The practical move is boring: get priced in the off-season, decide with real numbers, and hold a place in the install queue before storm season compresses everything.