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A full refrigerator-freezer requires less energy to maintain temperature. If you don't keep a lot of perishables in the fridge, you can always throw in dry goods like uncooked rice, oatmeal canisters, coffee, etc. Not that those things will benefit from refrigeration, it won't hurt them either. Same goes for the freezer. The more you have in it, the longer it stays cold.

1911.

Is your real name Hank Hill by any chance? There have not been any issues since I started using stabilizer. With 32.5K more BTUs , gasoline is about 25% more efficient than propane. It's cheaper to run on gasoline. I wish I could afford a diesel generator, diesel is everywhere and packs 15K more BTUs than gasoline. I do have a propane kit for my genny. It will get installed if the need arises.

I understand that you have physical limitations and can't just lug propane tanks around. However, it wouldn't take much for the propane tanker to stop running, or get diverted by the government to a "more important' need. You could easily get a handcart for a 20lb tank which means you don't have to lift it at all. If there is a slope you have to navigate, rig a pulley system to take the load. Relying on powered stuff to get fuel when fuel is availability is very low (remember Sandy) is self defeating.

My compliments! First on your attitude and second on your generator choice! years ago, I would lose power at least 5 times a year. I saw a 3.5K generator at my local Home Depot on clearance for $150. For the next 5 or so years I never lost power! When I finally had a blackout, I fired up my generator and back fed my house using 2 male to male extension cords I made. With my main breaker off, my entire house was working on my $150 generator. I notice that all of my LED lighting was flickering and my main PC UPS was beeping and throwing fits. I did some research and went on to spend $1,300 on a larger Champion Inverter 6.25KKW generator and installed an interlock on my breaker box and a proper 230VAC feed input to the house. Everything runs great! It's much more quiet and no lights flicker. That purchase was 3 years ago and of course I have not lost power since. I do feel better though knowing I have it and that if SHTF, I now have a reliable power source.

Peel, that'd be a lot of inexperienced hens at that party. Maybe once the posse has assembled, give me a call to come over and help with some, uh, training. Yanno, motivational speaking.

Propane camp stove to cook. Uses the disposable tanks (Electric Range) useless during power outage I also have a grill and 4 tanks never let more than 2 empty at one time. White gas lantern and oil lamps for lights. Kerosene heater for space heating during winter months I keep 15 gallons of kerosene never going below 7 gallons as it lasts a long time. 6K genny that I run no more than 4 hours a day to supply water (well) chill fridge and freezer run oil burner heat (Electric Hot Water Heater) also useless during outage I keep 75 gallons of treated water for flushing when genny isn't running I keep 20 gallons of gas on hand and rotate it out every 4 months or so to run the genny. Cinthe pups and I could easily last 30 days without leaving the house in the winter. 3 months in warmer weather.

Not sure who you have for a provider, but in many neighborhoods there are switches, amplifiers, etc. that are powered off of the local power lines. If you look at telephone poles as you drive around, you'll see metal boxes mounted on some, some with green indicator lights, getting power right there. When the local power goes out, they do too, killing Internet, phone and cable service to that section of the neighborhood. During Sandy, our neighborhood was on Cablevision, and everything went out. A day or two later, I see a car and a guy parked by one of those poles with a portable generator, feeding that box, so they could get local service going.

Phenomenal seller. Buy with confidence!

Sorry forgot that. It’s a 380.

Another use for those backup 20lb tanks is as a heat source. You can get a tank mounted heater, which you can use to heat other areas of your house that the wood stove doesn't reach. And since the tank is portable, you can use it to heat different rooms or basement, to help keep pipes from freezing or just take the chill off. Here's a example of that heater: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Mr-Heater-15-000-BTU-Single-Tank-Top-Radiant-Heater-MH15T/304906557

Ya know.... a propane generator eliminates all that gas, stabilization, ethanol, storage, rotation, gunking, draining issues... Jus sayin...

To keep the frozen food frozen longer, fill the empty spaces with water...plastic bottles, bags of ice. It has a lot of thermal mass, so it will help the freezer stay cold longer, and it also provides yet another source of stored water. Liquids taking up space in the fridge serve the same purpose, higher thermal mass, holds the cold better than dry ingredients. Here you can substitute beer for water. Bagged ice should be double or triple bagged and stored near the bottom of the freezer in case it does melt--but that also provides an indicator should the temp in the freezer get to high (kinda like the old trick of putting two ice cubes in a ziplock in a seldom-used freezer, to show if the contents had thawed during a power outage, then re-froze). Of course, whatever filler you use has to be in there before the power goes out, otherwise the energy used to bring it down to temp is kinda counterproductive. If it wasn't already mentioned, start your generator (then attach a load) once a month or so, just to make sure it stays in working order. Some people use gas stabilizer, I store mine with the tank empty and put in a pint or two of fuel to test...I keep 20 gallons of generator gas that I rotate through the cars every 4 to 6 months to keep it fresh.

The extent of my knowledge ends at my awareness of their existence. I saw it mentioned exactly once on a DIY cable show. For more info, you have to get your stove model number and hit the interwebs.

So, you're optimistic that during an extended power outage, fuel trucks will be available to just run up to your house a "couple times a week"?

Trying to get my youngest to go to texas a&m. My father got his doctorite there. Got her an a&m polo for Christmas. Lets see if it makes any difference to sway.

Well, you've got me thinking now... most of my close friends live east of me - all are much closer to the city - where, frankly, it's more likely to get wild, don't you think? I seriously don't see myself heading towards them for that reason! And (surprisingly enough) I'm now the one with more of a "plan". So, my best bet actually might be to carefully select one or two of my (smarter) friends and appeal to them to head west to ME (and making sure they know to bring plenty of supplies with them, etc.). Seriously, I should be saying: when the SHTF, load up your cars, Ladies - bring every spare roll of TP and every canned good you can muster - the Survival Party is at my place.

This was BY FAR the most expensive part of my prepping, this puppy right here: https://www.duromaxpower.com/collections/digital-inverters/products/xp9000ih - it retails around 2600. This was a splurge for the following reasons: I opted for an inverter generator to protect my electronics (remember, I do work from home!) - I have a TV, a laptop, several other electronic items - and all in different parts of the house - so if I got a regular (non-inverter) genny, I would have had to buy several other gadgets to set up in multiple rooms to protect the electronics from surges - when I added that all up, it seemed to make sense just to buy the inverter generator and be done with it. I was really keen on the "dual fuel" aspect - it just seems so sensible - but that does seem to amp up the price of generators also. Due mainly to the heavy septic pump and a couple of other things, my electrician said to get at least 5000 running watts. To find a dual fuel inverter that also had decent reviews - well, this Beautiful Blue Behemoth (LOL) was the best option I found. It has 4 wheels, and can certainly be rolled around. But, because of it's size, I made a decision to buy a cover and store it outside (under my deck) rather than moving it in and out of my walkout basement (as there could be heavy snow, etc.). Again, just catering to my own unique situations. Edit: also, an electronic start was a "MUST HAVE" for me. I can't be out there yanking a pull cord, no way! For some of you, that might not matter. All in all, when everything is said and done - the equipment (genny, cover, chain/lock, cable, associated electrical work, used propane tank, installation of tank, and now probably a small grill, too!) will be about 4-4.5K (but with 80% of that investment portable to my next house, so I'm cool with that). I spent another 1-1.5K for non-perishable food, water, water filter, cleaning supplies, medications, paper products, etc. - but again, I was a bare cupboards kind of gal, so I was building from "zero". I also spread this out over the last 1-2 years - doing it through really good sales. I have about 4-6 months of meals in my house. And the ability, as stated, to produce potable water once the bottled stuff runs out. And, I spent quite a bit on ammo in the last few years (but nearly all of it was when prices were CHEAP). I followed good "buy it cheap, stack it deep" advice! Now, I know, that all probably sounds like a shit ton of money to some people, lol. But, honestly? That second category (the food/supplies) and the 3rd category (the ammo) are items I would buy/use over time anyway! I simply bought these items in advance - and at sale/bulk prices - so that I would have some in my own storage to draw from. So, I'm not sure I even count those 2 categories as an "extra" expense. I just completely changed my buying patterns, buying in advance and at sale prices rather than when I run out and at full price. It's really the 4+K of equipment that's "extra" - but I feel like I'm squeezing a lot of functionality out of that investment. I dare say, I think it's the best money I've ever spent - it's giving me peace of mind! And you know how when you water your grass, it finally rains?!... Well, now that I've made this investment, I'll bet I don't have a power outage for the rest of the time I'm here!

Absolutely, and the better the neighborhood "posse" you can put together, the greater your ABILITY to shelter in place. If your neighbors suck, you better have a robust plan B. Which may be to move to a new location to shelter in place with a friend. Bring guns, water, food and a board game.

Oh, no... I don't think they'd have MY best interests at heart. But, common sense and a sense of self-preservation might prevail... and they might realize that pooling resources in terms of shared duty at strategic checkpoints would be best for THEMSELVES, too.

Okay, you need a bigger and younger dog. LOL. You would be surprised how many people have guns. But just because people have guns doesn't mean they are prepared or have your best interests at heart. I have to say, I am VERY impressed by what you've done so far. It makes me realize I need to step up my game.

There is safety in numbers. In SHTF, you better have already vetted friends, neighbors, and even family. If things ever get "that bad" people become an asset or a liability. It does not hurt to talk about prepping. it will get people thinking about doing it themselves, just don't brag about it. If they do that, they are less likely to become a liability to you. Help them understand that if they come to you as an asset, they also gain the advantage of being able to offer shared resources. Come to you empty handed, well, that's going to be a liability, a burden. That's plan A. What is plan B?

Have a talk with your electrician about your gennys neutral wire and whether it is bonded (connected) or floating (disconnected) and how it should relate to the main panel when running live.

During an "extraordinary" challenge , such as the grid going down or extended (weeks) power outages, what makes you think that people are going to be at the gas station or at any local stores? If something catastrophic were to happen YOU ARE ON YOUR OWN. There's no going down to the gas station. Within a few weeks people will be killing each other for necessities. For a true SHTF event I think you need to limit your contact with people. And don't broadcast that you are a prepper with casual friends / co-workers. The typcial reaction from people is a silly laugh and a "We'll, I know where we'll be going if things ever get THAt bad!". Be sure to look those people square in the face and let them know they better not come empty handed. Or give them a "What makes you think you''ll be able to get to my place?" or "Oh, I don't plan on being at my place. I'll be long gone to my back up location FAR away from most people." I don't know how populated an area you live in. Or how far away the closest not so nice area / town is from your front door. But for an extended SHTF scencario I think you would want to be as far as you can from densely populated areas. If you have close family or friends that you can trust, who are further away from population zones and who share your self reliance mentality you may want to disuss "what if" situations. And start preparing a fall back area at such a place. And not to scare you, but as a single person you (or any individual person) trying to ride the storm out during a real SHTF event are at a disadvantage. You will become a target. You will need others to keep watch and be up when you are sleeping and they will need you to be up when they are sleeping. During such an event it's always better to have someone watching your back and you watching their's. If you don't have people you can count on or a back up location you can get to then you may want to consider getting a dog. A large dog. I see from reading some of your commnets you have the dog part covered. In reality it doesn't have to be a very large dog. Just a large bark. I guess the gist of all the above is how do you avoid being a target and reduce the odds of becoming a target in a real SHTF event. Which we all know the odds are pretty slim (hopefully) of one ever occuring.

Actually, there's a lot of ways to cook on a grill, besides "grilling". I cook a lot of things in foil, like french fries, vegetables, whole potatoes, etc. We've used a pan to grill peppers and onions for sausage and peppers. We wrap corn on the cob in foil and bake it. We reheat items in foil pans, like stuff that people bring for Thanksgiving (stuffing, beans, sweet potatoes, etc.). Like I mentioned before, even baked a pizza. I wrap ribs or pork loins in foil, and bake them on the grill. You can pretty much bake anything you do in an oven on the grill. I haven't tried baking cookies yet... Another fallback way to cook without a stove or oven is with wood. If you have any wooded areas or firewood nearby(from your stove), you can make a easy meal that the Scouts used to do, called "pocket stews". All you need are the hot coals from burning wood, then you take your meat of choice (beef, chicken, pork or fish) and cube it up. Then take a whole potato or any type of potato, and cube it up, then any vegetable like carrots, onions, peppers, squash, etc. and cut them up. Then take a piece of aluminum foil, put the meat, potato and veggies on the foil, fold it up into a pouch, season it to taste, and place the pouch on the coals. Give it 10 minutes, flip the pouch, and another 10 minutes, and you have an "all-in-one" meal, ready to eat! Best part, virtually no clean up, toss the foil in the trash!

I had a highly recommended electrician come in... and examine all the electrical systems in the house. Yes, I have an electric range/oven ... but more to the point, interestingly, it was my septic system (which has a fairly heavy duty pump) that really set the minimum requirements for the generator. He's installing a 30 amp generator inlet and "interlock" to main panel. I'm sure you know what that is more than I do, lol. I made him promise that when he installs it all, he'll give me a good tutorial so I can take notes & do up an instruction sheet for myself. And you know, interestingly, I have just recently wrestled with the idea of whether to get a small propane grill. Honestly? I'm not into grilling (obviously, since I don't own a grill). So, I'd probably never use it any other time. But, it's worth considering now that I'll have a propane tank. I always have cans of sterno - not just for entertaining (chafing dishes), but when I've lost power before, I just put three mugs upside down on my stovetop, put a sterno can between them and then set a pot on top. It's not great, definitely a "hobo move" - lol - but it's enough to warm up a can of soup to a palatable temp. I might consider a grill though. I'm going to give that some thought!

That's a good choice. Did you get a interlock, that powers your complete panel, or a transfer switch, that powers certain circuits? This is a transfer switch: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Reliance-Controls-30-Amp-250-Volt-7500-Watt-Non-Fuse-6-Circuit-Transfer-Switch-Kit-3006HDK/202213700 That was even a BETTER choice. It's all about options. Plus, you won't have to worry about stale fuel or gummed up carburators when running propane, and propane never goes bad. What size is it? That's also a great plan. If you have a electric range (which are usually 240 volt) that's going to be tough to run, unless you have a big generator that can power it. Cooking on the woodstove is a good option. But also consider, what if it's not cold and the woodstove isn't running, how will you cook without power? Or. if you're cycling the genny, your microwave won't be usable at certain times. If you have propane, a camping cookstove is an option or propane grill. You can also run the camping stoves on small portable tanks. I have a gas range, so stovetop isn't an issue, but oven is a no go. During Sandy, I was baking pizza and baking other things on my propane barbecue grill. I also have portable propane camp stoves and grills as backup. How about hot water, is your tank electric or gas. If electric, it's also 240 volt, which takes some power to heat water, and needs to be considered in the plan.

Yes, I did "splurge" for the convenience of the interlock, etc. - I don't want to be dealing with tons of electrical cords, etc. Yet, I also wasn't about to plunk down 10-12k for a whole house permanent generator.. or bigs bucks for those uber-cool, but pricey Tesla Powerwall gadgets. I would never recoup that money on the sale of my house! So, I made a "compromise position' - a portable generator, yet one that is as functional as possible. I got a dual-fuel generator, too - gas & propane. I really liked the idea that if there was a shortage of one fuel, I could shift to the other. My other "splurge" is a used 50-gallon propane tank that will be a (more or less) permanent install - because I understand that propane is cleaner, less likely to gunk up the carbaurator (spelling?lol), etc. So, I figure I'm hopefully protecting the equipment a little bit from needless mechanical issues. I intend to run if off of propane, using one of the local companies to fill it. If there's a problem with that, I then have the option to run out and fill up some gas cans. Honestly, this is where physicality became an issue, too. The thought of leaning over my car trunk, deadlifting portable propane tanks, dragging them through snow, etc... well, it just sounded like a recipe for disaster! So, that was something I felt was worth a couple hundred extra bucks - for my comfort - to get a tank that a truck would fill, so that I'm not killing myself to fuel the generator. I made a couple of strategic "chick compromises" - that I don't feel bad about at all! Yikes! That's a fair point. These were uber cheap... so I didn't waste much. But, I should invest in some nice old-fashioned thermometers. Added to the prep list!

I had a neighbor during Sandy running his generator all day long, a 6kW unit, from like 8 AM to 11 PM, to keep primarily his lights on. The amount of gas he burned through was huge, since we were without power 8 days, then a few days later, lost it another 4 days with that snow storm. With my system (I have a 3.2kW propane genny), I cycled it a few times a day, and was getting like at least 3 days per 20 lb normal propane tank. It was easy to have backup propane tanks, since they're easy to find, all over the place.

Not trying to be picky, but to illustrate a mindset change you should consider. Digital thermometers don't do so well without a power source. Regular thermometers will work regardless. If you're planning for survivability, try to choose tools that won't drain your time or resources more to keep them operational.

WATER - another important area and one that needs redundancy and backup systems. If people are on city water, they usually have some time, since municipal water usually keeps flowing... for a while. So having backup water available is the next step. We had city water the whole time during Sandy, but eventually their generators and purifying systems might have issues, so Plan B is in order. If on a well, then that brings some difficulty. Power is needed to run a well pump, and to keep a generator running all day, so you can wash your hands or flush the toilet, isn't practical. So, having storage containers that can be filled at the time the generator/well is running is necessary. Then, you can go to the containers for normal water needs. Having cases of water bottles is one of the best solutions, and cases of water are relatively cheap. Plus, if you drink bottled water during the day, you're rotate your stock all the time. Filling some of the bigger 5 gallon plastic water containers or even a water bob in the tub can give longer term water storage. If there is a swimming pool nearby, this is a great source of water for general use of washing, flushing, cooking and even drinking if it says clear. Then, if it gets more dire, having a manual hand pump and filter system, so you can fill containers from other water source (stream or lake), is next. Some of the backpacker water filtration/ pumps work well in this situation. We used them many times on remote camping. You can get iodine and purification tablets as a last resort. I've never used them (luckly) so I don't know how well they work. Also, if someone feels resourceful, a rainwater collection system from the roof, can be put together. Once again this can be good for watering gardens, etc., but needs filtration to make drinkable. The backpacker pump/filter can be used here. Of course, this system is depended on it raining, which is no guarantee. But I think, if it comes down to having to drink rainwater, we will be in Mad Max territory, and all bets are off.

That is the first really good step, since power is usually the most important of all the items. So being able to plan/run important electrical items has to be a first concern. But, as you see, those few items don't require a lot of power. Too many people go out and buy a 5Kw generator, and burn through tons of gas, just to keep a few lights on. Then, that requires LARGE amounts of stored gas. Unfortunately, that's not realistic. I'm actually glad we went through Hurricane Sandy, I gave me the opportunity to test and refine my systems/plans and see where there were "voids" in the plan. What I do for power is, first, I have a battery bank and inverters, and they power lights, charge cell phones and laptops, and other low power items. Then, periodically, I fire up one of my generators, to primarily cool back down the refrigerators and top off the batteries. I only need to run the generator like a hour or so, and that's only a few times a day. If it's cold, I can also cycle the furnace at that same time, to take the chill off. I've also ran the washer and dryer at that time. The key is to make use of all available power for that short time period, then shut off the genny and save fuel (and all the genny noise). Nothing attracts people better than a generator running during a quiet blackout. I also have solar panels, so I can top off the batteries and run some items from them too.

Buy only the best! Check out eBay in Afghanistan, They are selling them cheap!

Austin has always been the ‘special snowflake’ of Texas. The redeeming part of Austin was always the music scene (Austin City Limits)and all the eclectic bars and restaurants. In the past several years, it’s really gone to shit. The homeless population has exploded, and it’s become ‘East San Francisco’. The city govt has really worked hard to fuck up what used to make Austin fun. And they keep working to make it even more fucked up. Like many cities, they have really turned their back on law enforcement, which has led to most of the problems Austin is experiencing. The residents are starting to push back though…that’s a good sign.

you sure we'd hear about it? since when has a law or statute stopped the feds from doing anything? a buddy that used to be a home based ffl claims that the atf wanted to make electronic copies of all of his records. i have never known that guy to lie.

That wouldn't stop the federal government from doing it. Especially if it's 'for your own safety'.

Yep