Just Back Online After Hurricane Irene

[texdav]

Glad your ok. yes a generatro and enough heavy electric cords plus a fewe fans as at times it maybe the heat that is worse part in some.We keep like four fans that we are confortable with on genrator power.We rarely have ice storms etc but when we do we have natural gas for heaters and we always keep a portable unit plus have two permanent bathroom units.Funny that we are more prepared for cold than heat without elctricity really. I am goig to install a natural gas generator like many here have that is automatic transfer for minor hurricanes we do not evacuate for.Anyothing over a mild cat 2 and I am gone ;I saw the difference between ike;Humbeto and Rita in wind danger.

[SeaDreams]

Well... came home from work tonight to no water. Answering service for the water company said a leak had been reported on our road (only 9 houses on this road). Took a drive up to check it out and repair crew was there but said couldn't do anything tonight.

They turned water back on and will start work tomorrow and guess what their suggestion was? Fill the bathtubs and whatever else you can just in case! Not an emergency situation, but an inconvenience that might run longer than we like depending on what they run into.

Oddly coincidental with Nor's earlier post.

[jasper12]

Seems like the phones back there are not working too well. I have talked to several people on the East coast, and the landlines just are not consistent right now. Cell phone use is what people are relying on. I had a handcrank lamp, that had a cell phone charger on top. Cool little gadget for camping, and power outages.

[MissingAll4Seasons]

Glad you're ok. I've been through several hurricanes when I lived on the East Coast and in the South. The are never pleasant, but at least it's been a good test of your preps

Personally, if there is even the slightest worry that you're going to be without water... fill the tub and all available vessels, and FORGET about flushing the toilet -- that's what buckets and porta-potties are for! During on NC hurricane, we lost potable water for two weeks -- 3 days due to power issues at the main pumping station, then another 10 because the storm surge had contaminated the water supply (teach me to live in a swamp, eh?). When a vital utility could be cut off for an indefinite time period, always best not to waste what you have when there are other methods available

[Mac_Muz]

There is a really good gennie here, which runs the house and the shop, but it gives me a headache to hear it days on end. Being here is the first place I ever had access to a gennie, and I could live better with out it.

If I remain here longer I will have to build a portable gennie shed, to be out of sight in power grid days and be in sight with the gennie in it, to tone down that dull thump of a engine, or some how make it sound like a Harley I can sort of deal with that sound, but I have no harley.

I keep a car radio just for this reason, and have one of those battery jump start packs. That contains a 18Ah (Ah = Amp hour) battery, much like a bike battery, a computer back up battery, or a golf cart/lawn mower battery.

It will run 1 amp 18 hours, or 18 amps 1 hour.

With a few moments of tinkering you could use a pc back up battery in a storm for 12dcv as well. You can charge it back up with any car in around 10 minutes, or if you have a gennie charge it while you use it, with it's own acv adapter or a 12 volt maintainer.