The other Sandy& generators

[EX Carnival man 223]

unless for whatever reason they shut off gas service.

That happen up by the beach.

[mcm308 0]

If the gas has to get shut off .. then you don't belong in that area

 

Molon Labe

 

 

[AlDente67 563]

I was sitting in my dark house on day 3, listening to NJ101.5 on a small radio when the store manager of Sears in Watchung called in to say they just got 100 generators delivered. I figured that by the time I even figured out how to get there, they'd be gone, so I drove over to the Quakerbridge Sears (figuring maybe they got some too).

Of course there were none to be found, so I'm dejectedly heading back to the exit when I pass a guy wheeling in a brandy-new 5500 gen and cables down the main aisle. I asked him where he found it and he said he was returning it since his power was back on. I walked him the return desk and bought it on the spot. He even helped me load it into the car. We were happy having a few lights and TV until day 8 when our power came back on.

 

Thanks for this thread, as it reminds me to check the gas and oil, since it has been sitting unused for 6 months now. I tend to ignore the machines and suffer for it when I need them.

 

One hot find last month was a battery backup for the sump. Stopped in the Depot for some other things and noticed a clearance table in the aisle that had a full kit and huge marine battery marked down from $400 to $90.

[1LtCAP 4,265]

That happen up by the beach.

 

i know, that's why i mentioned that.

[plode 0]

 

Thanks for this thread, as it reminds me to check the gas and oil, since it has been sitting unused for 6 months now. I tend to ignore the machines and suffer for it when I need them.

 

 

 

After checking gas and oil, start it up and run it. Keeps oil circulated and covering metal parts that could rust, and keeps the gas fresh in the carb. It will gel up and clog the jets if it sits too long. Fuel stabilizer will help. Fresh gas too.

[ryan_j 0]

If the gas has to get shut off .. then you don't belong in that area

 

Molon Labe

 

Happened to my wife's coworker in lawnguyland. Problem is that a tree uprooted the line. Natural gas generator did not work of course.

 

Even if you have a natural gas whole house generator, buy a cheap portable as a backup.

[ryan_j 0]

I should have clarified, what I called an outlet is actually an inlet. We have two main breakers that we shut off prior to backfeeding from the generator. One is on the main panel, the other is at the meter box which has a provision for using a pad lock to keep it shut off.

 

An inlet has male prongs, and the interlock is to ensure that main and gen breakers can't be on simultaneously. They should never be. The interlock physically assures this.

 

Anything else is not code compliant, and illegal actually.

 

Thankfully linemen nowadays ground the lines they are working on so any fool who backfeeds into the grid just ends up burning up his own generator.

[ryan_j 0]

I agree that the safest way is to have an interlock, but if you are careful to kill the main before doing anything else it is safe. You just need to be very meticulus.

 

Meticulous wouldn't cut it. It's actually illegal to backfeed without an interlock or approved transfer switch.

 

You could be doing it meticulously for years but it only takes one incident to injure or kill linemen, or burn up your generator.

 

With our transfer switch setup, my wife who knows nothing about electricity could use the generator. She just plugs it in and starts it up. No worries at all.

[ryan_j 0]

After checking gas and oil, start it up and run it. Keeps oil circulated and covering metal parts that could rust, and keeps the gas fresh in the carb. It will gel up and clog the jets if it sits too long. Fuel stabilizer will help. Fresh gas too.

 

I'd say run it once a month for about 10 minutes.

 

It circulates the oil, moves fuel through the carb and evaporates moisture which may be in the oil.

[mcm308 0]

In an instance like Sandy...I don't give a hoot what is illegal.

 

Luckily I was able to bring home the big honda from work for Sandy. I went 7 days but was expecting to go for much longer. Getting gas was the real problem. My neighbor and I came up with a plan and long story short, managed to get 140 gallons stored. Had to drive to exit 4 on the turnpike to get it.

 

 

 

Molon Labe

 

 

[EX Carnival man 223]

In an instance like Sandy...I don't give a hoot what is illegal.

 

Luckily I was able to bring home the big honda from work for Sandy. I went 7 days but was expecting to go for much longer. Getting gas was the real problem. My neighbor and I came up with a plan and long story short, managed to get 140 gallons stored. Had to drive to exit 4 on the turnpike to get it.

 

 

 

Molon Labe

 

 

I can now store enough gas to run my EU6500 for a week. If I run my two EU2000's together I could run even longer. I think a week should be good enough for gas stations some where to get backup and going again. One good thing about a storm if there is a good thing is that you get a warning its on its way.

[Walt of Destiny 412]

After Irene and the 8 days with no power, I swore it wouldn't happen to me again.

 

This was the obsessive center of my life during the 13 days of Sandy:

 

 

 

She ran like a top. Way beyond expectations. My kids didn't even notice, DirecTV worked while no one here had cable for a week.

 

She gives me peace. If you have the means and the wherewithal I highly recommend one.

 

I am no longer obsessive about her when the lights go out. She does her job with no drama. With a little care she will easily run for 2 weeks, and then some, on 4 120 gallon propane tanks.

[djg0770 481]

In an instance like Sandy...I don't give a hoot what is illegal.

 

We all know the safety aspects of "illegally backfeeding your panel" etc. But when push comes to shove, I do what I need to do as well.

[jrfly3006 42]

After Irene and the 8 days with no power, I swore it wouldn't happen to me again.

 

This was the obsessive center of my life during the 13 days of Sandy:

 

 

 

She ran like a top. Way beyond expectations. My kids didn't even notice, DirecTV worked while no one here had cable for a week.

 

She gives me peace. If you have the means and the wherewithal I highly recommend one.

 

I am no longer obsessive about her when the lights go out. She does her job with no drama. With a little care she will easily run for 2 weeks, and then some, on 4 120 gallon propane tanks.

she's a beast Walt!

[Walt of Destiny 412]

she's a beast Walt!

 

Yes sir. I was going to have the kids in front of her as our Christmas pic but the wife kibosh'd it.

 

36kw. Hums along at 9% all day. Quietly.

 

I have a friend that does wraps, I'm thinking of getting some Camo for her.

[Malsua 1,422]

36kw. Hums along at 9% all day. Quietly.

 

 

Whew, that's a big one. I installed my 14kw last year...bought it in June...got it finished about Oct 15. Did much of the work myself but had an electrician do the panel. I did the pad, junction boxes and the gas trenches. The gas co added a regulator and finished the connection. Ran like a champ through Sandy for 25 hours.

 

[10X 3,320]

We all know the safety aspects of "illegally backfeeding your panel" etc. But when push comes to shove, I do what I need to do as well.

 

We were out 9 days with Sandy, 8 days for Irene. Neither time did it strike me as a 'push comes to shove' situation...more of an inconvenience. Hardly worth endangering the house wiring or the linemen working to restore power. The family got through the first one with an ice chest, the gas grill on the porch, and a couple of propane lanterns. Got through the second one with 4 hours a day of borrowed generator, and short, heavy gauge extension cords to the oil furnace and the fridge.

[njpilot 671]

Thanks for the good word Bob! I just wish it went faster than it did. I would never have imagined that I would have so many of these things to install so fast.

NJPilot, you are still on my list!

Ken

 

Thanks Ken.

[mcm308 0]

 

We were out 9 days with Sandy, 8 days for Irene. Neither time did it strike me as a 'push comes to shove' situation...more of an inconvenience. Hardly worth endangering the house wiring or the linemen working to restore power. The family got through the first one with an ice chest, the gas grill on the porch, and a couple of propane lanterns. Got through the second one with 4 hours a day of borrowed generator, and short, heavy gauge extension cords to the oil furnace and the fridge.

 

Just an Inconvenience?? You must be retired or something. With a 2 month old newborn in the house, all bets were off.

 

Molon Labe

 

 

[10X 3,320]

Just an Inconvenience?? You must be retired or something. With a 2 month old newborn in the house, all bets were off.

 

Molon Labe

 

Most of the humans to ever inhabit the planet were born and raised without benefit of electricity. So it can be done.

 

It's just inconvenient... :-)

[EX Carnival man 223]

After Irene and the 8 days with no power, I swore it wouldn't happen to me again.

 

This was the obsessive center of my life during the 13 days of Sandy:

 

 

 

She ran like a top. Way beyond expectations. My kids didn't even notice, DirecTV worked while no one here had cable for a week.

 

She gives me peace. If you have the means and the wherewithal I highly recommend one.

 

I am no longer obsessive about her when the lights go out. She does her job with no drama. With a little care she will easily run for 2 weeks, and then some, on 4 120 gallon propane tanks.

Now thats a big generator.

[ryan_j 0]

With a little care she will easily run for 2 weeks, and then some, on 4 120 gallon propane tanks.

 

Yikes! I hope you're rich. At $2.50 a gallon, 480 gallons of propane will run about $1200. And that price estimate is on the low side...

[ryan_j 0]

Most of the humans to ever inhabit the planet were born and raised without benefit of electricity. So it can be done.

 

It's just inconvenient... :-)

 

Yeah but much has changed over the years. Home construction for one. Now your house must be within a small temperature range or your drywall will start to crack. We have indoor plumbing now too and pipes can freeze. We also have a well and need electricity to power the well pump. We don't have a hand pump for a 190' well (but we plan on getting one as a SHTF item). Some homes don't have a backup for their electric range or hot water heater. I took cold showers when I was growing up but I don't think I could do that in the winter. We also need electricity for the septic pump and vent fan for radon.

[olderguy 0]

Now thats a big generator.

 

"Generator envy" hits New Jersey

[EX Carnival man 223]

Yeah but much has changed over the years. Home construction for one. Now your house must be within a small temperature range or your drywall will start to crack. We have indoor plumbing now too and pipes can freeze. We also have a well and need electricity to power the well pump. We don't have a hand pump for a 190' well (but we plan on getting one as a SHTF item). Some homes don't have a backup for their electric range or hot water heater. I took cold showers when I was growing up but I don't think I could do that in the winter. We also need electricity for the septic pump and vent fan for radon.

Amen Brother. A Generator and a Glock go hand in hand in my home

[Walt of Destiny 412]

 

Yikes! I hope you're rich. At $2.50 a gallon, 480 gallons of propane will run about $1200. And that price estimate is on the low side...

 

I don't know about rich. But I may have been unclear in my post. The 120 gallon tanks only hold 100 gallons. She uses about .7 gal/hr on average if we are judicious. So figure about $2 an hour. With the ability to run a/c etc if I had too( at much higher cost of course). H/HW are oil. And keep in mind she ran 24/7 with about an hour down daily for checks on oil and coolant and radiator clearing.

 

Fair price considering. IMHO.

 

What does an 5-8k portable gas genny use? .5-.7 gal/hr?

 

I know a Honda 2000 runs 8 hrs on a gallon or something like that. But that ain't running my house.

[djg0770 481]

 

 

Hardly worth endangering the house wiring or the linemen working to restore power.

 

At no time did I "endanger" the house wiring or the linemen restoring power. Please tell me how u don't load your guns in your house cause its "unsafe".

 

In fact I'd posit that using extension cords provides a GREATER risk than anything I may have done. More fires occur due to extension cords than generators.

[10X 3,320]

I wasn't running the extension cords to power strips running all kinds of crap. I said one short cord to the furnace and another to the fridge. Nothing else plugged in. Very modest loads on the 12g conductors

 

When you referred to an illegal backfeed, that usually means wiring up a suicide plug, plugging it into the nearest 15 amp outlet, and maybe remembering to turn off the main breaker. The problems with that setup is that the conductor from the outlet to the panel isn't sized to handle the output of the generator (which can overheat wiring buried in the wall) and there is nothing to force you to throw the main breaker, or prevent another person from throwing it back.

 

If what you did avoids those problems, great. Otherwise, transfer and interlock switches are cheap and easy to install. It's a no-brainer.