Backup power in Québec
Electricians for generators and transfer switches.
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What applies across Québec
Hydro-Québec says a permanent backup power system must be installed by a member of the Corporation des maîtres électriciens du Québec (CMEQ), connected with equipment that isolates the home from the grid; the master electrician checks the transfer switch and notifies Hydro-Québec. Without it, power fed back into the grid can put line crews at risk.
In the January 1998 ice storm, 78 mm of freezing rain fell by 9 January and 1,393,000 Hydro-Québec customers were without power on 10 January; the last customer was reconnected on 6 February.
After the freezing rain of April 2023, which left up to 30 mm of ice and brought trees and branches down on the lines, Hydro-Québec reported that nearly 1,125,000 clients had lost power.
Hydro-Québec warns that a portable generator must only be run outdoors, away from doors, windows and air intakes, never in a garage even with the door partly open, because its carbon monoxide can kill within minutes.
Before you hire
A generator wired into your home needs an approved transfer switch, fitted under a permit, so it can’t feed power back into the lines. Plan it before you buy.
Get written quotes from at least three contractors for the same work, and check references from recent clients.
Put it in a written contract: the work, price, deposit, start and finish dates, warranty, permits and clean-up. Paying cash to skip it leaves you no recourse.