Pinging for possible prepper interest.
Outstanding read.
Thanks.
(bookmarked)
I'd be worried others would hear your generator running and be beating down your door.
I find it highly doubtful that a Laundromat owner would find it profitable to purchase a generator with enough capability to power all those washers and dryers, and have it on-site/ready to go.
Years ago in Portland, we had an ice storm that coated the walls, making it impossible to even open a garage or shed door. I soon bought a wood stove.
Valuable read, be safe.
Glad to know I am not the only one who is prepared for bad times.
During the last ice storm we were without power for four days. I lit oil lamps and lanterns I haven’t used in 25 years.
I do not have generators as they have a tendency to walk off when you are not around to watch them or keep them locked up.
There is something refreshing about stepping outside and not hearing traffic, trains or any other noise during ice storms. Just complete silence except for tree limbs breaking and crashing down.
Outages can be just plain fun. The traffic lights are out. The coffee shops are full and people are smiling ear to ear as the computer raised cashier tries to add 2 + 2....
/johnny
“In this case, it was actually predicted that there could be scattered power outages. News on Wednesday evening had pieces about people stocking up in stores. IN A NUMBER OF CASES< THE STORES WERE ALREADY SOLD OUT OF THE DESIRED ITEMS!!!! “
I don’t understand. When it happens, I’ll just go to Sam’s and Walmart and stock up on all of the items that I need. Have you ever seen just how much food, toilet paper, and other stuff is in a single Sam’s Club? Not a problem.
...LOL.
A place for storing dead batteries.
I’ve had longer backpacking trips.
Thanks for sharing your experience! I have paper plates and also a camp shower (it’s black and can absorb heat from the sun) on hand.
Bookmark as good advice for those of us in the hurricane prone areas. Thanks :)
POWER OUTAGE - User experience
Generac 18,500 WATT fixed-in place generator. Runs three houses.
We were out for 5 days during the Halloween freak storm in New England. There were pockets for miles in MA/CT where you couldn’t find gas (no power/ran out)for a day or two - at the best - sit in lines for hours (like the 70’s:>) - if you could drive out 50 or so miles away from the storm damage area you could fill up.
Generators came in from other areas - they were being snapped up quickly (many sold after power came back up - had a ‘be-prepared’ vibe in the areas weeks after the storm)
We survived nights (even with the generator) listening to my Y2K purchased BeyGen crank radio - WTIC-AM radio out of Hartford, CT. Only decent information source for those out of power.
I plugged my computer,etc. into a power strip-to the generator once and blew up my modem, computer and fax machine (don’t do that)low voltage fried them. The pellet stove didn’t like the generator either -fried the motor.(ended up using space heaters)
We still had the kitchen gas stove top (propane gas - open stove top burners - lighter)Oven ignitor was closed- couldn’t light it.(I special ordered this open cooktop burner stove)
Lessons learned:
Get a wood stove (for back up - just leave it in the shed)We like our pellet stove.
Buy more crank appliances - flashlights-radios (batteries degrade and eventually run out)
Always fill up the vehicles before storms
Make sure there’s enough ‘fresh’ fuel for the generators (have 2 now)
Soundproof the generators (as best as can be done)
Keep a good stock of Sterno and Candles.
(be mindful of CO poisoning - people did die from that during the outages)
We’re hoping to change over to Natural Gas appliances, may expand to our area. The new products are closed systems - power goes out - you’re out of luck. Would like to find as many ‘pilot open’ appliances as possible to not use generator power. (keeping propane tanks for back-up, flop over if SHTF)
Redundant systems are a must - as technology advances redundancy decreases...leaving you cold and in the dark.
Back in the day, when the power went out, your gas water heater still worked - the new ones now -won’t.
My experience is, if the power outage lasts a full 24 hours or more, the material in the freezer will start to thaw.
If you have friends or relatives with power I would give them the food from your freezer, or let them store it for you, if it looks like the power is going to be of more than a day. - Tom
I picked one up on Amazon for about $700.00 bucks. Since we heat with propane I have a giant tank of fuel that's always being replenished. I had the propane company install an outlet that my generator could hook up to if needed.
The result is that I'll have power without having to buy or store gasoline. Propane generator maintenance is also much much easier than maintaining a gas generator.
When VA had its "SNOWMAGGEDON," I had plenty of firewood chopped and ready for the wood burning fireplace and the generator on hand. I lived on a dirt road that didn't get plowed (well normally about three days after snowfall, someone contracted by the county would use a farm tractor to clear the road)
Anyway, I would drive my truck down the driveway (driveway was 1/8 mile long and I didn't have a plow), down the road, and to the highway to keep the road open in case of emergency. The neighbors across the street were overweight and the husband wasn't in good health. So, like any good neighbor, I shoveled the several feet of snow from the road to their door and told them to call if the needed anything; they were fine.
Well, the power went out. They ran out of water because the well pump was electric, so they put snow in the toilets to flush them. Snow doesn't melt when there isn't heat. So, like any intelligent group of people would do, they closed off a room in the house and lit a propane heater. This idea worked great!!! When they were falling asleep, the CO detector went off and kept them all from dying.
To vent the house, they opened the windows, which caused a whole bunch of snow to call into the house....my cell phone rang.
I drove down the driveway to pick them up and bring them to my house; I had a 9 month supply of food for a family of four and about 50 gal of water on hand (and four feet of snow to melt). They arrived with several large bags of food that HAD TO BE EATEN, because of course, their freezer defrosted.
4 feet of snow outside and no way to keep frozen food frozen? Don't worry, she's a public skrewl teacher.
Shortly after this, a neighbor down the way walked up my driveway. He was crying and obviously upset. They were low income with no tv, and no internet. They didn't know it was going to snow. They had a deaf autistic kid and no heat. They were trying to keep a fire going in a burn barrel in order to cook hotdogs, but weren't having much luck.....would I give them a ride into town to the grandmother's house?
When I returned, some idiot in a 2wd pickup was goosing the gas pedal and driving like an idiot behind me (pickups are invincable and should be driven as such BTW; even when there is no weight in the back, chains on the tires, etc).
He was arriving to "assist" another neighbor that panicked and tried to drive his Civic down the unplowed road and now of course was stuck. The idiot in the 2wd truck hooked up the car (nose to nose with a chain) and floored the truck in reverse.....into the ditch and almost snapped the rear axle. I offered to move the car back out of the way and then retrieve the pickup.
"No." They wanted me to pull the car further along, which if something went wrong would trap me between the Civic and the F150. I told them it was my way or not at all. It was their way (so, in other words I didn't bother with them). Before drivng up to my nice warm house, I informed them that I had spent quite a bit of effort and time keeping the road open for emergencies...any cars blocking the road would be pushed into the ditch. Anyone that posed a danger to me or my family would be shot.....
Folks this was after 24 hours. They say it takes 72 for social order to break down. 24 hours in a small farm town where everyone knows everyone and panic already ensued.
Keep your powder dry.
that's why i have a diesel generator... i have a fuel oil furnace as a backup to my coal stove and always have at least 200gal in the tank i but a couple 5gal cans worth of fresh diesel from the gas station in december in case i need the generator but can switch to the fuel oil if the station is out of power, then i pour it into my fuel tank in the spring if i don't need the generator