Whelp, first world status was nice while it lasted.  I wonder what power distro stations are on fire.

At around 1815, power went out then came right back on at 60V.  That lasted about 30 minutes, then, POP, all out.  JCP&L estimates restoration by 2100.  We'll see.

24 minutes ago, Scorpio64 said:

Whelp, first world status was nice while it lasted.  I wonder what power distro stations are on fire.

At around 1815, power went out then came right back on at 60V.  That lasted about 30 minutes, then, POP, all out.  JCP&L estimates restoration by 2100.  We'll see.

You have to wait 79 years for the power to be restored!!???  

Sorry, couldn't resist.

33 minutes ago, Scorpio64 said:

Whelp, first world status was nice while it lasted.  I wonder what power distro stations are on fire.

At around 1815, power went out then came right back on at 60V.  That lasted about 30 minutes, then, POP, all out.  JCP&L estimates restoration by 2100.  We'll see.

No power loss here. Big storm coming now though, from the West watching it roll out into the bay from the front porch.

no power loss in my little corner of this shiithole. i'm in camden county about 25 minutes from philthy

We had a brief but strong cell come through around 8:30.  Was gone by 8:40. Just long enough to scare the F out of my dogs.  Still have power. 

We had pretty good lightning storm all around but not a drop of rain……

30 minutes ago, voyager9 said:

We had a brief but strong cell come through around 8:30.  Was gone by 8:40. Just long enough to scare the F out of my dogs.  Still have power. 

I was out walking mine when it rolled through here. I was 100% soaked to the skin including boots that squelched as I walked because they had filled from the water running down my legs. Tons of lightning and my GSD just DGAF.

2 hours ago, Scorpio64 said:

That lasted about 30 minutes, then, POP, all out.  JCP&L estimates restoration by 2100.  We'll see.

Aren't you a good boy scout, who's prepared, with multiple ways to get power? Based on the situation and condition of the grid in this country, everyone should think and plan seriously on how to live with minimal power.

 

Shit ton of rain, wind and lightning down my way in Gloucester County.  I was grilling Filet Mignon tor dinner for me and my wife under a metal awning!  I survived, the steaks survived but I'm still wet! Well worth it though! The steaks were perfect!

18 minutes ago, JohnnyB said:

 

Shit ton of rain, wind and lightning down my way in Gloucester County.  I was grilling Filet Mignon tor dinner for me and my wife under a metal awning!  I survived, the steaks survived but I'm still wet! Well worth it though! The steaks were perfect!

Should have used a crockpot just to be safe

31 minutes ago, Sniper said:

Aren't you a good boy scout, who's prepared, with multiple ways to get power? Based on the situation and condition of the grid in this country, everyone should think and plan seriously on how to live with minimal power.

You don’t have to be better prepared than your neighbors.  Just better armed  

 

 

16 minutes ago, voyager9 said:

Should have used a crockpot just to be safe

Yeah....With pineapple on the side...NOT!

One of my lawn accounts is in the same neighborhood as me, he sells residential and commercial solar power systems.  The customer has solar panels on his roof, makes sense, right.  Practice what you preach.  Today, when I opened the gate to the back yard, there was a big 'ol 7kW wheeled generator in my way.  It was plugged into an inlet that ostensibly goes to a transfer switch in the garage.

1 minute ago, Scorpio64 said:

One of my lawn accounts is in the same neighborhood as me, he sells residential and commercial solar power systems.  The customer has solar panels on his roof, makes sense, right.  Practice what you preach.  Today, when I opened the gate to the back yard, there was a big 'ol 7kW wheeled generator in my way.  It was plugged into an inlet that ostensibly goes to a transfer switch in the garage.

Most of the time, and I suspect all of the time for residential, to be able to hook your solar up to the grid to store your production until you need it you must sign a connection contract that forbids solar generation unless there is power on the incoming line. This is one of the ways the power company makes it less likely that there is anything back feeding the grid while linemen are making repairs. There are ways of tricking your solar system into thinking your generator power is street power, but it's not what you are supposed to do - and you'd still need a generator anyway.

I believe storage by way of battery is also not permitted.

AND THESE are good reasons to not go solar.

12 minutes ago, 1LtCAP said:

AND THESE are good reasons to not go solar.

The reason to go solar is to eventually save a lot of money on your electricity bill. So what if it doesn't help you when street power is out? Not having solar doesn't help you then either.

I have solar. My rate for electric is locked in at what the current rate was and will never go above that. My current electric bill is typically under $10 a month - hell, it’s usually under $5. Add that to my payments for the loan to pay for the panels and I am still well under what my power bill was alone before the panels. I also get a nice chunk of $$ for selling my SRECs.

When the panels are paid off in another 4ish years, I will be saving a significant amount of money monthly.

I didn’t get solar to be “off-grid” or to have power during outages. It was to save money on our monthly electric bill.

2 minutes ago, High Exposure said:

My current electric bill is typically under $10 a month - hell, it’s usually under $5.

It amuses me when I get the scam calls about making my electric bill cheaper.

Scammer: Is your electric bill over $100 every month?

Me: My bill is usually two ninety three

It is actually only $2.93 for the connection fee every month that I generate more than I use. Anything excess is stored as a credit on my bill for future months when it is less sunny and I don't generate as much solar power.

6 hours ago, Mr.Stu said:

Most of the time, and I suspect all of the time for residential, to be able to hook your solar up to the grid to store your production until you need it you must sign a connection contract that forbids solar generation unless there is power on the incoming line.

This is the error most people make when getting systems. The don't understand the terms, and don't realize, when the power goes out on your street, you're dead too. Doesn't matter how many panels you have on your house, when the power goes out, get the flashlights out.

4 hours ago, Mr.Stu said:

The reason to go solar is to eventually save a lot of money on your electricity bill. So what if it doesn't help you when street power is out? Not having solar doesn't help you then either.

The reason to get solar is to lower your electric bill AND have power in an outage. This is why you BUY the panels and equipment PLUS a battery storage system. Never lease them. You'll still get the benefits of SRECS and tax credits, but aren't at the mercy of whatever solar company you used.

37 minutes ago, Sniper said:

This is the error most people make when getting systems. The don't understand the terms, and don't realize, when the power goes out on your street, you're dead too. Doesn't matter how many panels you have on your house, when the power goes out, get the flashlights out.

I didn't misunderstand anything. I knew exactly what I was getting and what the terms were. I own my panels, therefore own the SRECs.

38 minutes ago, Sniper said:

The reason to get solar is to lower your electric bill AND have power in an outage. This is why you BUY the panels and equipment PLUS a battery storage system. Never lease them. You'll still get the benefits of SRECS and tax credits, but aren't at the mercy of whatever solar company you used.

That can be A reason, but isn't really very common. For a secondary power source it is very costly and has a very limited lifespan. The batteries will need replacing every 7-10 years at best regardless of how many hours your power is out over that period. An ICE powered generator will outlast batteries many times over. If your objective is to have power in a long lasting SHTF scenario maybe it is worth it as gas/diesel/propane fuel will likely be hard to find. It all depends on how much you are willing to spend for a backup plan. It is likely out of reach for many.

For a long term power outage, I have a wood stove for heat and cooking as well as a fire pit and charcoal grill for summer cooking when it doesn't make sense to run the stove. I also have a spring on my property for a supply of water so I don't have to run the well pump. It wouldn't be terribly comfortable, but I can get by without electricity.

My understanding that the NJ PUC will not allow battery storage/backup for residential solar systems. I’m not sure why..probably lobbyists for the utility industry, but it’s verboten in NJ (and some other states). May be due to fire risks associated with lithium ion battery charging, I don’t know. 
 

I haven’t researched this too deeply, this was from my master electrician neighbor, who has a solar system. 
 

Personally, I wouldn’t go solar if there is no option for personal battery storage. In my mind, that largely defeats the purpose, but that’s just me. 
 

 

4 minutes ago, Displaced Texan said:

In my mind, that largely defeats the purpose, but that’s just me. 
 

It's not just you.  I have seen a few Generac exterior mounted battery banks pop up on houses over the past couple of years.  Mostly on million dollar + homes.  I guess the rules are different for wealthy folks.

A prohibition on storing solar generated power is utterly ridiculous.  The backfeed argument is preposterous, otherwise nobody would be allowed to hook up whole house gas-diesel-ng powered generators.

I want a Mr. Fusion Home Energy Reactor, like the one Doc Brown made!

Fuck PSE&G !

31 minutes ago, Scorpio64 said:

A prohibition on storing solar generated power is utterly ridiculous.  The backfeed argument is preposterous, otherwise nobody would be allowed to hook up whole house gas-diesel-ng powered generators.

Generators are supposed to be interlocked to prevent backfeed into the grid. Most whole house generators have a ABT switch, and many people use MBT switches on portable  generators. 

1 hour ago, Displaced Texan said:

My understanding that the NJ PUC will not allow battery storage/backup for residential solar systems. I’m not sure why..probably lobbyists for the utility industry, but it’s verboten in NJ (and some other states). May be due to fire risks associated with lithium ion battery charging, I don’t know. 
 

I haven’t researched this too deeply, this was from my master electrician neighbor, who has a solar system. 
 

Personally, I wouldn’t go solar if there is no option for personal battery storage. In my mind, that largely defeats the purpose, but that’s just me. 
 

 

that would be the ONLY reason i'd ever go solar. but......i also wouldn't buy a system. i'd search out a do-it-yourself kit, and pay an electrician to set me up. with battery backup.

on that note though....my house is tiny. relatively speaking, so is my electric bill. regardless of how i did a solar system, it'd take years for it to pay itself back.

 also, finally got the genny back up n running, so that'll do me fine.

15 hours ago, Mr.Stu said:

It wouldn't be terribly comfortable, but I can get by without electricity.

That is the first plan to put into motion. Learn to live with minimal power.

6 hours ago, 1LtCAP said:

that would be the ONLY reason i'd ever go solar. but......i also wouldn't buy a system. i'd search out a do-it-yourself kit, and pay an electrician to set me up. with battery backup.

That's the best way, and the way I did it. Built my own system versus using a outside company. First, the markup is nuts from them, plus you can build it anyway you want with the battery backup. It's the battery backup that's the most important part, even if you only use it rarely.

Being able to power your general needs off a battery bank, versus running a genny 24/7 is the way to go. Then, you only need to fire up the genny to top off batteries and use as backup to the solar.

8 hours ago, Displaced Texan said:

Most whole house generators have a ABT switch,

Exactly my point.  A whole house battery bank can also be connected to an ABT.

11 minutes ago, Scorpio64 said:

Exactly my point.  A whole house battery bank can also be connected to an ABT.

I agree, but the NJ PUC doesn’t seem to see it that way. 

47 minutes ago, Scorpio64 said:

Exactly my point.  A whole house battery bank can also be connected to an ABT.

Or, through the same manual transfer switch as the genny uses, and pick which circuits to power. No big deal to manually choose which input to use and which circuits to power.

Like I said above, learning how to live and manage with limited power is the first part of the equation.