Generator Repair & Maintenance in South Jersey
Your standby generator didn't kick on when the power dropped, or the annual service light is on and you want it checked before storm season. That's the electrical side of the job, and it's exactly what we handle. We come out, run the diagnostics, test the automatic transfer switch, load-test the unit, and tell you what's actually wrong before we quote a repair. DK Electrical Solutions is a family-owned company led by NJ Master Electrician Derrick Kuchinka, License #17216, serving Burlington, Camden, and Mercer Counties since 2011, and you get upfront flat-rate pricing on every job, never billed by the hour.
Most of the generator failures we see in South Jersey trace back to the same handful of causes: a dead start battery, a stuck automatic transfer switch, a control board that lost its programming after a lightning surge, or a unit that simply never got its annual load test. A generator that sits untested for two or three years is a generator you can't count on when the summer thunderstorms roll through the Pinelands edge and take the grid down for a day.
Generator Repair: What We Diagnose First
When a standby generator won't run, we start at the electrical fault, not the fuel. On a no-start call we check the 12V start battery and charging circuit, the controller for stored fault codes, the start solenoid, and the wiring back to the panel before touching anything mechanical. That order matters because a dead battery and a stuck transfer switch account for the large majority of no-start calls we see across Burlington and Camden Counties, and both are electrical fixes. Note the one thing we do not do: gas-line work. If the repair involves the natural gas or propane supply line, we coordinate a licensed plumber for that piece, because gas piping is their trade, not ours. We handle every electrical part of the diagnosis and repair and manage the coordination so you're not left juggling two contractors.
Electric Generator Repair and the Transfer Switch
Here's the failure homeowners almost never expect: the generator itself is fine. It starts on a manual test, runs clean, and sounds healthy, but the house still went dark during the outage. Nine times out of ten that's the automatic transfer switch. The switch is the brain that senses when utility power drops, signals the generator to start, and then physically moves your home's load from the grid to the generator. When its contacts pit, its sensing circuit fails, or a lightning surge scrambles its logic, the generator runs happily to no purpose. We test the transfer switch as its own component on every repair call, because a generator that runs but never picks up the load is worse than useless. It burns fuel and gives you a false sense of security.
Generator Maintenance: The Annual Service Cadence
Standby generators are built to be exercised weekly and serviced once a year, and the units we service around Medford, Marlton, and Mount Laurel earn that schedule. A proper annual service is more than an oil change. We change the oil and oil filter, swap the air filter, check and replace the spark plugs as needed, test the start battery under load, inspect the charging circuit, verify the weekly exercise timer, and run the unit under real electrical load to confirm the alternator and voltage regulator hold up. That last step, the load test, is the one most skipped services leave out, and it's the one that actually proves the generator will carry your house. On the Pinelands edge in Southampton and Medford, we also check the enclosure and outdoor conduit, because units sitting in that sandy soil and summer humidity take more corrosion than most owners expect.
The Storm-Driven Failure Pattern in South Jersey
There's a rhythm to generator calls here, and it's tied to the weather. The summer thunderstorms that roll across South Jersey drive lightning surges through the JCP&L, PSE&G, and Atlantic City Electric lines, and those surges do the same damage to generator control boards that they do to meter sockets and panel main breakers around the county. Then the grid goes down for a day, every standby generator in the neighborhood is asked to run for the first time in months, and the ones that skipped their annual service are the ones that fail. After a widescale outage we get the calls from homeowners whose units either never started or quit partway through. The fix is almost always cheaper and faster when the unit was serviced before the storm rather than diagnosed in the dark after it.
When Generator Repair Is the Wrong Call
We'll tell you straight when a repair doesn't make sense, because sending you good money after a dying unit isn't how we work. If your generator is past 15 years old, has thousands of run hours, and the failure is the alternator or a cracked engine block, a repair often costs more than it's worth and you're better off putting that money toward a new unit. Likewise, if your unit is still under a manufacturer warranty and registered with the dealer network, call the dealer first, because an authorized warranty repair won't cost you what an out-of-warranty repair would. And if the only issue is that the weekly exercise timer was never set and the battery just needs charging, that's a quick service call, not a repair. We'd rather book the ten-minute fix and keep you as a customer than dress it up as something bigger.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often should a standby generator be serviced?
Once a year, plus the weekly self-exercise the unit runs on its own timer. A proper annual service includes an oil and filter change, air filter, spark plug check, battery load test, and a real load test of the alternator. Manufacturers spec this cadence, and skipping it for two or three years is the single most common reason a standby generator fails to start during an outage.
Why won't my generator start after a power outage?
The most common causes are a dead 12V start battery, a stuck or failed automatic transfer switch, or a control board scrambled by a lightning surge. In South Jersey, summer storm surges through the JCP&L and PSE&G lines corrupt generator electronics the same way they damage meter sockets. We start diagnosis at the battery and transfer switch, since those account for most no-start calls, and read the controller's stored fault codes to pinpoint the rest.
My generator transfer switch isn't working. Can you fix it?
Yes, and it's one of the most common generator repairs we handle. If the engine starts and runs but power never reaches your panel, the automatic transfer switch is almost always the culprit. Its contacts can pit, its sensing circuit can fail, or a surge can scramble its logic so it never signals the generator or never moves the load. We test the transfer switch as its own component and repair or replace it so the generator actually carries your house during the next outage.
Do you service generators anywhere in South Jersey?
We repair and service standby generators throughout Burlington County, Camden County, and Mercer County, including Southampton, Medford, Marlton, Moorestown, Mount Laurel, Willingboro, Mount Holly, Haddonfield, Cherry Hill, Trenton, and Hamilton. Same-day and next-day appointments are available for the electrical work.
Do you work on the gas line to the generator?
No. Gas piping is a plumber's trade, so when a repair touches the natural gas or propane supply line we coordinate a licensed plumber for that piece and handle every electrical part ourselves. You get one point of contact and no juggling two contractors.
Are your electricians licensed and certified?
Yes. Every electrician at DK Electrical Solutions is fully licensed in New Jersey, and our team includes Master Electricians who hold the highest level of certification in the field.
Do you offer financing for larger projects?
We do. DK Electrical Solutions offers easy financing options on panel upgrades, generator installation, whole-home rewiring, and other larger electrical investments.
What areas of South Jersey do you serve?
We serve all of Burlington County, Camden County, and Mercer County, NJ — including Southampton, Medford, Marlton, Mt. Laurel, Haddonfield, Moorestown, Cherry Hill, Trenton, Hamilton, and Willingboro.
How does your pricing work?
We provide on-site estimates with upfront, flat-rate pricing — so you'll know exactly what to expect before any work begins.