Generator sales and installation
Safety and compliance focused
Backup power for varied needs
Options for qualified customers
Generator sales and installation
Safety and compliance focused
Backup power for varied needs
Options for qualified customers
Looking for generator installation in St. Catharines? The right system depends on which part of the city you live in. Port Dalhousie and the streets around the old downtown have century homes on narrow lots. Merritton grew up around the old Welland Canal and its mills, so many houses there are older too. The north end, around Grantham, is largely post-war and later subdivisions, while Glenridge climbs toward the Escarpment and Brock University.
As a Generac dealer and licensed electrical contractor, Platinum handles the whole job: the load calculation, the home standby generator, the automatic transfer switch, the electrical permit and ESA inspection, and the maintenance that follows. The generator sits outside on its own base, runs on natural gas or propane, and takes over within seconds when the grid goes down.
Compare our Generac home generators, read how generator installation works, or request a free consultation and tell us what you need to keep on.
Alectra Utilities is the electricity distributor for St. Catharines, and natural gas may be available where Enbridge Gas service is available at the property. We confirm the service and fuel details for your address during the consultation.
Older homes are where the planning takes the most care. A house from the 1920s may have a 100A service, a panel that has been added to more than once, and a basement with low ceilings and no easy route for new wiring. None of that rules out a generator. It does decide whether a whole-home transfer switch makes sense, or whether a smaller unit on a focused list of circuits is the better buy.
Post-war bungalows and split-levels in the north end are usually simpler, but they have often changed a lot since they were built. Central air, a finished basement, a hot tub or an EV charger can push a modest house well past its original load. We count what is in the house today, using the nameplates, so the size is based on what you actually run.
Narrow lots decide a lot here. An air-cooled Generac can sit as close as 18 inches from the wall, as long as it stays clear of windows, doors, air intakes and the gas meter, and meets local requirements. On a tight downtown lot, that may leave one workable spot, or none at all. We measure first and tell you plainly.
Water is the other local concern. Twelve Mile Creek and the old canal lands run through the city, and storms off Lake Ontario can bring heavy rain and strong wind together. If your basement relies on a sump pump, a generator keeps it going when the same storm takes out the power. Homes on the Escarpment slopes have a different drainage picture, so we also look at where water runs before choosing a spot for the base.
Most households here start with the same short list: sump pump, furnace or boiler, fridge and freezer. Older homes often have hot-water boilers, and these stop circulating without power even though the gas is still on, which matters a great deal in a January cold snap.
Next come internet, phone charging, some lights and the kitchen. If you own a rental around Brock or downtown, think about the tenants too. A house divided into several bedrooms may have more people depending on it than a family home, and possibly more than one panel.
Freezing rain and summer thunderstorms are the usual culprits, often through tree limbs on overhead lines in the older neighbourhoods. A standby generator handles these on its own, at night or when you are out, and it removes any need to run a portable unit beside the house, which is a real carbon monoxide risk on a narrow lot.
Keep essential heating systems running during cold-weather outages.
Help reduce the risk of basement flooding during storms.
Keep refrigerators, freezers, and essential appliances powered.
Protect Wi-Fi, computers, and home office equipment.
Keep lighting, alarms, cameras, and basic home systems operating.
Power more of your home with the right generator size and transfer switch.
Platinum offers maintenance plans and generator service for Generac standby generators across St. Catharines, including units installed by other companies. A visit covers the oil and filters, the battery, the controller and a live transfer test. Batteries are a common reason for a standby unit failing to start, so regular checks pay off.
Automatic backup power for essential circuits or whole-home coverage.
Professional help choosing the right Generac model for your home.
Safe automatic transfer between utility power and generator power.
Annual service, diagnostics, repair, and warranty support.
Generator solutions for businesses, farms, offices, and essential facilities.
Site assessment, load review, placement planning, and a clear quote.
Start by sending photos of your panel, your gas meter and the side yard you have in mind. Tell us the age of the house, if you know it, and whether the wiring or service has been updated.
For an older home, we also check how the panel is labelled and what is actually on each breaker, since a generator can only protect circuits that have been properly identified. If you own a rental, tell us how the units are metered.
If the job also needs a service upgrade, ask about financing or monthly rental so that both can be handled together.
A smaller older home with gas heat and no central air may do well with a 10kW or 14kW. A typical bungalow or two-storey house with central air and a finished basement often lands between an 18kW and a 22kW. Our guide on how to choose the right kW size shows how the numbers work.
Natural gas is the likely fuel for most of the city, and the rating on gas is the one that counts. A 22kW delivers 21 kW on natural gas and uses up to 8.80 cubic metres an hour at full load, on top of your furnace and water heater, so we check the meter and piping as well.
If you want a whole panel covered without stepping up a size, load management modules can hold back a dryer or an EV charger until there is room for it.
Often considered for furnace blower, fridge, sump pump, lights, internet, and selected circuits.
Supports more appliances, comfort systems, and broader home coverage.
For homeowners seeking more complete automatic backup power.
Site assessment required for larger homes, farms, businesses, or specialized systems.
Platinum Electrical Contractors has been a licensed Ontario electrical contractor since 1991, is an ESA Authorized Contractor and is a five-time #1 Generac dealer in Canada. Older Niagara houses reward careful electrical work, and our own electricians do the design, the wiring and the testing themselves.
Supply and installation of Generac standby generator systems.
Professional installations with safety and compliance in mind.
Residential, commercial, and industrial backup power needs.
Clear help with generator size, placement, fuel source, and cost.
Flexible options may be available for qualified customers.
Maintenance, repairs, warranty support, and ongoing care.
Experience with Ontario weather, homes, and outage concerns.
Licensed electricians plan, install, test and service every system we sell.
We look at your photos or visit the home, work out the load and send a written quote that lists everything included. After you approve it, we look after the permit and ESA inspection, set the base and the generator, wire the transfer switch and connect the gas. We finish by cutting the power for a real transfer test, setting up Mobile Link on your phone and showing you how it all works.
We review your home, goals, fuel source, and backup power needs.
We recommend a system for essential or whole-home requirements.
Placement, electrical, transfer switch, and fuel planning.
The generator and related components are installed professionally.
We test the system and explain how it operates.
Annual service and continued generator support are available.
Yes. Platinum is a five-time #1 Generac dealer in Canada and a licensed electrical contractor. We sell, install and service Generac generators throughout St. Catharines and Niagara Region.
The main factors are the generator size, the length of the wire and gas runs, the type of transfer switch, and whether the panel needs work. You get a written quote after we review your home, and financing and monthly rental are available.
Usually, yes. We check the service, panel and wiring first. If something needs updating, we explain why, and we can include it in the same job.
Often, but not always. It needs clearance from openings and the gas meter, and it has to meet local rules. We measure the site and tell you honestly if it will not work.
It can make sense if heat, a sump pump or a secondary suite would be at risk during an outage. We look at how the building is metered and what the tenants rely on before suggesting a size.
It keeps the sump pump running through an outage. It will not stop sewer backup or overland water, which call for a backwater valve and proper drainage.
Yes. Platinum does commercial electrical work and installs larger liquid-cooled Generac units, including 3-phase models, for shops, offices, greenhouses and farms. We begin with what cannot stop.
St. Catharines sits on Lake Ontario between Lincoln and Niagara-on-the-Lake, with Thorold to the south. Platinum also serves Niagara Falls, Hamilton and Burlington.
Send us a photo of your panel and tell us what you want to keep running. Call 1-844-443-6776 or request a free consultation. Platinum installs and services Generac generators across St. Catharines and Niagara Region.
A member of our team will be in touch shortly to discuss how we can help to meet your needs.
