Backup power that stays on when the grid doesn't — installed, permitted, inspected, and serviced by a licensed master electrician.
When Hurricane Beryl knocked out power to roughly 2.2 million CenterPoint customers in July 2024, plenty of Bay-area families went days in the dark. A whole-home standby generator is how you make sure that's the last time. We size it to your home, install it to code, pull the permit, schedule the inspection, and stand behind it.
No obligation, no upsell. Call or text for a same-day callback.
We'll be straight with you: we're not always the cheapest quote you'll get. We pull the permit, do the gas and electrical work to NEC 2023, schedule the inspection, and warranty what we install. Licensed master electrician · TDLR EC #EECELE00037785 · 27+ years · serving the Galveston Bay and South Houston corridor.
Real installed whole-home generator + automatic transfer switch hero photo (an actual TriCoast job site — generator on its pad with the ATS, not stock imagery).
The decision that matters
If you lived through Beryl, you don't need anyone to sell you on backup power. You already know what eight days without it feels like. The decision that actually matters is whether your backup power is automatic — and this is where most of the regret happens.
Here's the difference, in the words of a Houston-area homeowner who'd thought it through: "Last thing I want to do in a storm is go out and fiddle with transfer switches."
That's exactly the choice:
For a whole-home install, automatic is the recommendation for almost everyone — it's the whole point of "set it and forget it" backup power. That's the difference between a generator that protects your family and one that asks you to suit up in a hurricane to use it.
Straight talk on price
Whole-home generators aren't cheap, and we're not going to pretend otherwise. Most Houston-area whole-home installs land in the ~$10,000–$15,000 range, depending on the size of the unit and how far the gas and electrical runs have to go.
Confirm TriCoast's actual installed price range against this customer-stated ~$10k–$15k figure before publishing it as our own. Until confirmed, the page references the customer-stated corridor range generically and routes specifics to the quote. Do NOT present a number as TriCoast's quote until verified.
The way our customers who've been through a storm tend to frame that number is the right one: it's peace of mind, just like homeowners insurance. You don't buy insurance hoping to use it — you buy it so a bad day doesn't become a catastrophe. Backup power is the same idea: you're insuring the house against the food in the fridge, the medical equipment that has to run, the air conditioning in a Gulf Coast August, and the days of your family's life that an outage otherwise takes.
We don't want the number to be a wall, either. If spreading it out makes sense for your household, ask us about financing. And whatever the unit costs, you get the real number for your home before any work starts — no surprises, no "we'll figure it out when we get there."
Complete scope
A complete, accountable scope — not a partial box-store package that leaves the gas tie-in, the permit, or the inspection as "your problem":
Permanently installed on a pad, fueled from your gas line, ready to run automatically.
Including ~200A service-rated ATS units, so the whole house switches over hands-free.
(More on this below) — so the unit fits your home's real demand.
Pad and placement, and clean connections back to your panel.
We pull the electrical (and gas, where applicable) permit and schedule the inspection.
Where the job calls for it.
BRAND DECISION — confirm whether TriCoast is a Generac authorized dealer / installer (or another brand's authorized installer) before this page targets "Generac installer Bay Area." Do NOT claim Generac dealer status unless confirmed. Until confirmed, placeholder copy reads: "We install major standby generator brands and size each one to your home."
A generator project often surfaces panel or capacity needs — see panel upgrades.
No oversizing
A whole-home generator is a big-ticket purchase, and the easiest place to get overcharged is the size. Sell you a 26kW unit when an 18kW would run your house, and you've paid thousands more for capacity you'll never use.
So before we quote, we run a load calculation on your actual home. We add up what your house really draws — the AC, the well or pool pump, the kitchen, the must-run circuits — and size the generator to that. If a 22kW unit covers you, we don't talk you into a bigger one. If you'd genuinely rather power only the essentials, we'll size for that instead and tell you the trade-offs honestly.
This is the opposite of the conflicting-quote runaround — one installer pushing the biggest unit on the truck, another lowballing on capacity you'll regret. We'd rather show you the math.
We'll size it to your home first, then quote the real job.
Repair & upkeep
The cruelest way a generator fails is the most common one: it sat for two years, the battery died, and on the one night the grid goes down, it won't crank. A generator only counts as backup power if it starts when you need it.
So we do two jobs here:
If your standby generator won't start, throws an error, or just hasn't been touched since it went in, we can service it. ("Generator repair Clear Lake," and across the corridor.)
Battery checks, oil and filters, a real test under load — so it starts on the night that matters, not just on a sunny afternoon. This is also where we close the gap on the worry every honest generator owner has: the battery and the upkeep. A well-maintained natural-gas standby unit can run for days on your gas line — the homeowners who've leaned on theirs through a hurricane talk about running nine straight days without trouble. That's a real capability, not a guarantee for your specific install, but it's the reason a maintained generator is worth what it costs.
And we'll train you on how to make the switchover and what to expect during an outage, so nothing about your own backup power is a mystery.
Confirm TriCoast offers a generator maintenance plan and its actual cadence/terms (e.g., annual checkup, battery replacement interval, price) before describing the plan in specifics. Do NOT publish TriCoast plan terms or pricing until verified — until then, copy describes the capability ("we service and maintain generators") without claiming specific plan terms.
This is the part box-store sellers and one-and-done installers skip — and it's exactly why a local, licensed team you can call back matters more on a generator than on almost any other job.
By the book
Generator work is gas and electrical, and both have to be done right. We pull the permit, schedule the inspection, and do the work to NEC 2023. Here's why that matters — these are real, documented consequences, not scare tactics:
That's the honest case for doing it by the book: a permitted, inspected install costs a little more up front and saves you from a much bigger bill later. (Do you need a permit for electrical work in Texas? →)
Behind it all: a licensed master electrician, TDLR EC #EECELE00037785, 27+ years, with a workmanship warranty and no upsell games. (If your install is on Galveston Island, coastal jurisdiction can add WPI-8 windstorm requirements — we handle that; details on the Galveston Island page →.)
Proof
I had a generator inlet and sub panel installed by Jason at TriCoast. The work was great, cleaned up their mess and tested everything before they left. I would absolutely recommend them to anyone looking for a professional electrical project. Pricing was extremely fair for the work that was done. Give them a call, you will not regret it.
Excellent communication in setting up the appointment! Donald is awesome. He explained the work, started immediately and ensured that the work was done correctly. The job site was spotless after the work was completed, and I was impressed that he has a checklist that will ensure a thorough job from start to finish. Outstanding company. Highly recommend.
Both techs were very knowledgeable and professional from start to finish. They left the job site clean and all work was tested and reviewed with us before they left. My wife and I were extremely impressed. I would recommend TriCoast to all my friends and family.
Service area
We install, repair, and maintain whole-home generators across the Galveston Bay and South Houston corridor — League City, Friendswood, Pearland, Texas City, Webster and Clear Lake, La Marque, Dickinson, and Galveston Island. (Whole-home generator installation in League City →)
We also cover the surrounding communities — Santa Fe, Hitchcock, Kemah, Seabrook, Nassau Bay, El Lago, Taylor Lake Village, Bacliff, San Leon, Bayou Vista, Tiki Island, Clear Lake Shores, Jamaica Beach, Alvin, Manvel, and south Pasadena. Don't see your town? We likely cover it — just ask. (See all areas served →)
FAQ
Yes. We pull the electrical permit — and the gas permit where applicable — and schedule the inspection; it's included in the job. It matters because work done without a required permit and inspection can lead to a denied insurance claim, a stalled home sale, or paying twice when it fails inspection. A good contractor pulls their own permit, and a permitted job stays with the house.
Most Houston-area whole-home installs land around ~$10,000–$15,000, depending on the size of the unit and how far the gas and electrical runs have to go. We size the generator to your home's real load and quote the actual job — you get the number for your home before any work starts. If spreading it out helps, ask us about financing.
For hands-off backup, yes. An automatic transfer switch starts the generator and moves your home to backup power in seconds when the grid drops — even when you're not home — then switches back when utility power returns. The alternative is going outside in the storm to switch over manually. As one homeowner put it: "Last thing I want to do in a storm is go out and fiddle with transfer switches."
We run a load calculation on your home so you don't pay for more generator than you need. We add up your home's real demand — AC, pumps, kitchen, must-run circuits — and size the unit to that. If a smaller unit covers you, we won't upsell you a bigger one.
Yes. We repair and service standby generators across the corridor (including "generator repair Clear Lake"), even units another company installed — and we keep them maintained so they start on the night you need them.
A natural-gas standby unit fueled from your gas line can run for days — Houston-area homeowners have reported running nine straight days through a hurricane. That's a real capability rather than a guarantee for any specific install, and it's why regular maintenance matters: the runtime only helps if the unit starts.
FAQ "How much does a whole-home generator cost to install?" — confirm TriCoast's installed range before publishing (the ~$10k–$15k figure is customer-stated, not TriCoast's confirmed quote range).
FAQ "Do you repair or service generators you didn't install?" — confirm maintenance-plan terms before describing the plan in specifics.
Licensed master electrician · TDLR EC #EECELE00037785 · permit and inspection included · workmanship warranty · NEC 2023 code-correct. We're not always the cheapest — but we're always the one that's permitted, inspected, and warrantied. Prefer to talk? Call or text (832) 315-5772 for a same-day callback.
No obligation, no upsell. We size the generator to your home first, then quote the real job, so there's no guesswork and no oversizing.