I've been through Ice storms...this one was the worst I've ever seen. Definitely worthy of pictures. It was pretty on Saturday.
Posted on 12/19/2008 2:47:49 PM PST by AJKauf
Now THAT’s a heating system you can rely on when the power fails and your generator runs out of fuel. Sweet.
That’s very interesting...I will pass this along to the pellet stove owners in my circle...thank you.
Agreed...but for those in rental units/apartments; that can be quite difficult.
I survived the blizzard of ‘93. I’ll survive the next big thing. I have a battery backup and an air card.
You’re welcome.
you can still have a store of food, candles and lamps - and drinking water...and a tub of water for ‘flush’
And we do rely on it.
Our back up is a 2KW elelctric register heater/fan in the livingroom, with the thermostat set to 60. That lets it kick in at night, if the fire burns down too much. Also, a 250W infrared in the bathroom, just on a switch.
I’d rather burn the wood in the stoves and get some use out of what I can’t mill, than just pile and burn it as slash.
German, Welch, French and English, but an observer would swear I was Scots. ;-)
I've been through Ice storms...this one was the worst I've ever seen. Definitely worthy of pictures. It was pretty on Saturday.
My wife thinks I’m a bit nutty on “survivalist” kind of topics...till the power goes and we’re stuck. My town was literally closed. No way in or out. All roads were closed due to downed trees and line. We collected rain water to flush and drank bottled. Some of it was past date, but sealed so we boiled it on the stove. We cook with propane. One 50gallon tank lasts all year so we’re set there.
I keep at least 15 gallons of gasoline on hand for the generator. If we get down to the last jug, we’ll run it in bursts...then start siphoning from the vehicles. that’s another 35 gallons there if it comes to it. I could stretch it out for 2 weeks.
The insert will burn and heat but you have to choke it down so it doesn’t get too hot. Still keep you from freezing, no issue.
I also have two 5 gallon BBQ propane tanks and a Mr. heater. It mounts on the top of the tank and is 15k btu. I’ve measured the CO emissions, it produces exactly zero. Unmeasurable levels and is great for supplemental heat.
So yeah, I prepare. Some other folks were in tents in their living rooms huddling around candles. I’ll bet they prepare more in the future.
It is odd that the power company does do a better job of tree trimming, they are very aggressive up here - if your tree is within 5 ft of the wires, it get trimmed or removed. The power co pays for the work of professional trimmers - do they charge the customers there?
During the infamous Ice Storm of 1998, I was without power for 19 days. all fine except for the water situation. I'm hoping to have an all-weather pump put on my well in the not too distant future.
One time, before I had my wood stove, the power went out on a very cold - below zero - night. My house temp was 70 degrees (that's what I keep for daytime.) I thought: "Well now, let's see. I wonder if I use my kerosene lamps if that will at least keep me from freezing?"
I have two heat registers in the living room, two in the kitchen/dining area and one in the bathroom. (And a feather bed and down comforters in the bedroom.) So I put two lamps in the loving room, two in the kit/din and one in the bathroom. An hour later, the house was at 72 - and stayed there, even with the wind howling at the house. Thing is, the heat coming out of the lamp chimney is much hotter that the heat from the furnace = and it is steady, not off and on. So one could keep from freezing with lamps. Even if they only used two and stayed in one room = of course, I prefer to keep the pipes from freezing too.
So I keep a stock of lamp oil and wicks. And if it came to neighbors wanting me to "give them oil" = I don't know's I would...remembering the parable in the Bible. If they had shared their oil with those who ignored the admonition to carry extra oil = then No one would have made it. So I coax folk to set aside emergency stuff - and then it's up to them.
Bottom line: You may not need it - but you'll be darn glad you got it if you should need it.
Lucky you weren't around for the '98 100 Year Ice Storm.
I cried, hearing the trees explode for 3 days and nights. It sounded like a battle zone with constant explosions and then the crashing of tree tops breaking off and tumbling down with breaking ice.
After it was over, the landscape looked like pictures of WW11 landscapes after major battles. Devastation everywhere you went. Thank God I will likely never see that again.
Sorry - DIDN’T DO A BETTER JOB OF TRIMMING - fixed now.
Todays indoor low: 38 degrees. (15 outside)
Yeah, I turn 11 next week ;).(It just didn't hit this far south)
I cried, hearing the trees explode for 3 days and nights. It sounded like a battle zone with constant explosions and then the crashing of tree tops breaking off and tumbling down with breaking ice.
That's exactly what it was like here. It sounded like we were getting shelled...London during the blitz or something. I lasted about 15 hours around here. From Thursday night until about Noon on Saturday. It also looked like a war zone. All the utility poles in some areas were down. We're still cleaning up and this storm last night dropped about 6-8 inches and that's not going to help.
This scenario is very real and far more likely than an enemy using and EMP weapon. Scarier still is how President Obama would respond to such a crisis. Certainly he would be begging the UN and European allies allies for aid. Likely only the Brits and Aussis and maybe the Canadians would respond. The inadequacy of now gutted US military forces to respond to the crisis or protect the country would also be very apparent. If an Islamic terrorist group claimed credit for the attacks, I am sure some appeasement of the terrorist’s demands would be made.
Sounds like NYC 1965. It was only 9 PM and it wasn’t particularly cold, but the Manhattan skyline looked eerily strange, blacked out against the full moon.
One who was interviewed talked about his well, and the lack of electricity to run the pump.
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