I feel your pains & admire your ambition... I struggled for years whether it be from snowstorms here in Minnesota, tornadoes or high winds, etc... I ran a portable generator, UPS's , battery back-ups, inverters from batteries and finally this year we bought and had installed a 16k whole house Generac generator. YES it's an investment but if you own your home It will increase the value, but the better part is "peace of mind" when power does go down - this kicks on and runs everything. I've had it less than 3 months and it's come into play twice now. I let neighbors on either side of me run extension cords to my garage so they can plug their freezers in. My 16kw cost $7800 installed and has been worth every penny.