Living in the mountains my generator has come in real handy during a snow storm! I once went 17 hours without power. Where I live when the power goes out you can hear generators going all over the area. If your concerned about a spike in electricity, do what I did. Start slow and work your way up with the lights.

Also, I found out that all the power strips around my house were costing me a lot just to have them on.... Feel how warm the little plug in things are? Anything that generates heat is costing you much more than you might think!