A changeover switch is designed to transfer a house (or business) electricity from the commercial power grid to a local generator when n outage occurs. Also known as “transfer switches,” they connect directly to the generator, commercial power supply or line, and the house. When the homeowner or business owner experiences a power outage, he or she can switch over to the generator via a changeover switch.

Although there are dozens of different types of changeover switches, most fall into one of two different categories: automatic or manual. With an automatic changeover switch, the home’s power is automatically switched over during an outage, eliminating the need for manually switching. But with a manual changeover switch, the homeowner must flip a switch to turn the power draw from the commercial grid to the generator.