What do YOU do when there is a hurricane approaching

[markjames68]

“ We'd typically start our prep in May, and start adding a case of water per shopping trip etc. Same with fuel for the generator, charcoal, propane and pretty much everything else that would be completely gone a full week before a hurricane hit.”

This is sage advice - make sure you get basic non-perishable prep supplies before hurricane season, and when it looks like one could hit SWFL get gas and other items. If you wait until the day before it will be a madhouse.

[Tripower455]

Originally Posted by markjames68

Tripower - glad the Dewalt made the trip with you to CFL. Ironically since moving to N GA I haven’t had to use it yet but I had my house wired with an interlock kit and did a test. Love that my net new cost for 2 sub panels, install, surge protectors and 50a inlet was around $2k. Reminds me that I need to fire it up again soon!

I ran mine the day before I dragged it up here in Oct.. I am gonna be moving it to a storage unit this coming week, so I'll run it for a while under load before doing so.

You might also want to look into soft start kits for your central AC. I installed the Micro-Air EasyStart 368 on 2 units and they will start and run on the Dewalt no problem. I can actually run 3 units at the same time plus lights, appliances, TV, etc. without maxing the generator out (pulling around 8kw).

These kits are different than hard start units and found they reduced the LRA from over 100 to around 30. Another side benefit for these aging compressors is that they start smoother and hopefully buy me another year or 2 before I need to replace them.

I am definitely gonna look into that when we get into the electrical upgrades. The AC unit in this house is a little over a year old, and seems pretty efficient. I don't have any way to easily plug my generator into this house yet, unless I back feed it through the dryer outlet, so haven't had a chance to see if the generator will run it.

My electric bills are half of what we were paying in Naples. Much of that is probably because we don't have a pool here, and it is typically about 10-15 degrees cooler here than in Naples. Since October, we often go days without it even kicking on. This house also has a white metal roof, which keeps the house much cooler overall, even in the summer with 65 year old drafty windows. This time of year, it is often cooler inside the house in the middle of the day than outside, the exact opposite of our Naples house, which was always hot inside.

[markjames68]

Originally Posted by Tripower455

I am definitely gonna look into that when we get into the electrical upgrades. The AC unit in this house is a little over a year old, and seems pretty efficient. I don't have any way to easily plug my generator into this house yet, unless I back feed it through the dryer outlet, so haven't had a chance to see if the generator will run it.

Take a look at the specs on the outdoor unit and the LRA rating. Assuming there’s not already a hard start kit installed it will likely be 80+ amps which will either stall the generator or close to it. No harm in trying it first of course.

I wanted to be able to start and run at least 2 out of 3 AC units at the same time. The EasyStart lets me do it, and when I replace the units eventually I can swap them over.

[Tripower455]

Originally Posted by markjames68

Take a look at the specs on the outdoor unit and the LRA rating. Assuming there’s not already a hard start kit installed it will likely be 80+ amps which will either stall the generator or close to it. No harm in trying it first of course.

I wanted to be able to start and run at least 2 out of 3 AC units at the same time. The EasyStart lets me do it, and when I replace the units eventually I can swap them over.

That easy start is exactly what I am gonna need. I'll figure out the specs on the AC unit after it stops raining today. We're also gonna be adding another AC unit when we do the addition, so I'll be able to choose an efficient one.

Thanks for the rec, again!

[markjames68]

Originally Posted by Tripower455

That easy start is exactly what I am gonna need. I'll figure out the specs on the AC unit after it stops raining today. We're also gonna be adding another AC unit when we do the addition, so I'll be able to choose an efficient one.

Thanks for the rec, again!

If you get a variable speed compressor the LRA will be really low. A single or 2 speed will have a higher LRA.