Where it goes
- Outdoors only, more than 20 feet from the house, with the exhaust pointed away from doors, windows and vents (CDC).
- Not on a porch or in a carport (CPSC).
- Never in a garage, basement, crawl space, shed or on a covered porch, even with doors open. Carbon monoxide has no smell.
- Keep it dry. Use a generator tent or canopy made for it, not a tarp that traps exhaust.
Alarms
Put battery-powered or battery-backup carbon monoxide alarms on every floor and outside sleeping areas. If one sounds, or anyone feels dizzy, sick or weak, get everyone into fresh air and call 911.
Cords
Use outdoor-rated, heavy-gauge extension cords long enough to keep the generator 20 feet away. Thin cords overheat. Check the cord’s amp rating against what you plug in.
Never backfeed
Plugging a generator into a wall outlet with a male-to-male cord (sometimes sold as a “suicide cord”) sends power backward into your wiring and out onto the utility’s lines. It can kill a lineworker or a neighbor, and it can start a fire. The safe way is a transfer switch or an interlock kit installed by a licensed electrician.
Refueling
Turn it off and let it cool before refueling; gasoline on a hot engine can ignite. Store fuel in approved containers away from the house and from any flame.