to answer the question, we ought to do a thorough analysis of both utility power cost vs home produced power
on the utility side of things
how much do they charge per kw/hr or course,
factor in all added taxes, fee's, and other addon's
also factor in on average, how many hours or days does the grid go down, and what does
it cost you to rent a generator and buy gasoline to cover the outage.
calculate all this to come up with an adjusted and true cost per kw/hr
then home produced power
how much do you pay for your fuel
how much does it cost to pick it up, be honest with yourself
how much does it cost to process, filters, pump costs, etc.
how many hours does it take to process enough fuel to make a kwatt/hr of power
what is your time worth?
what is the lifespan of your generator, what does that work out in depreciation cost per kw/hr
what does the maintenance and repairs cost per kw/hr
then compare the two, and you will find in the vast majority of cases utility power is the clear winner, however
there is another step to consider
how many btu's can you harvest from the coolant and exhaust, and have a use for that would
save you in power you would otherwise have to purchase, we need a value for that as well.
if you can use the excess heat, then the pendulum swings in favor of the home generated power in a significant number
of cases, also
if you have a detached green house, the added heat will be of definite value in cooler and cold months, as will the exhaust
CO2 and nitrogen compounds provide you vent well before any human or animal life is allowed to enter.
i don't know if i have read a complete analysis for greenhouse use, but i would not be surprised to find that such a setup
would be well under what the power company can provide.
bob g