So, who is up for yet another ice storm tale of woe?

[Siwsan]

At 11:30, Sunday morning, 5 hours after the storm ended, I lost power. Still don't have it back. My house is as cold, if not colder than my refrigerator so I guess the good news is, nothing should spoil. I have a sump pump in the basement, and spent Sunday, Monday and most of Tuesday lugging gallons and gallons of water up the basement stairwell, to dump where ever convenient. Non stop. No actual sleep. Finally got a generator, and even though it is out on a screened in porch, WHEW, those fumes!! I haven't felt that kind of light headedness and cotton mouth since the 70's, and back then, it was intentional!! But I did get that under control.

On the bright side, I have a fireplace and lots of firewood. And, tonight my brother is at my house, tending to the generator and cats, so I can spend the night at my Mom's, get clean, and eat. Yea, I hadn't showered or changed clothes since Sunday. And, I won't go into my diet, for those days. Pretty sparse.

Fingers crossed the power will be back by the end of the week (gasp). And, on Saturday I have an electrician coming over to plot out the wiring for a new, state of the art built in generator.

[NutmegYankee]

1. The generator produces carbon monoxide, which is deadly.

Move it farther away from the house. That might be where the lightheaded feeling is coming from. Otherwise, I know the no power suck. I've done it for a week several times.

[Siwsan]

2. It is located right in front of a HUGE open screen window and the door is also wide open

And I'm using a big box fan to suck the fumes out the door.

I suspect the gas fumes, coupled with no food, no sleep, and massive stress load is a bad recipe for the holidays.

This is my longest power outage. And, I really wouldn't mind it if I didn't have that damned sump pump to worry about. A flooded basement is never a fun situation.

[NutmegYankee]

4. I really would move it out from the porch.

I try to keep mine 15 feet from an open window and keep the exhaust pointed away. Are you using extension cords?

[Siwsan]

6. Fortunately, my brother has a lot of experience with power outages and using generators.

We talked about moving it right out the door it is in front of, to the deck. It would still be next to the screened in porch - no discernible difference. I do know that when I opened the door and set up the fan, the gas fume odor was gone.

I noticed some of my neighbors who are using generators are leaving the garage door open only about a foot. That seems pretty risky since the generators are all in attached garages. At least mine is full facing clear to the outside. And, since I slept there, last night, and am still alive and kicking, fingers crossed carbon monoxide, if it's there, is being blown to the back yard.

We are using one cord to the sump pump and one to the den, for a light and/or hot oil radiator, but I'm trying to keep any power usage to a minimum. The sump pump is the priority.

[Galileo126]

3. Noooooo thank you

Right after the Blizzard of 1978, about a week later we had an ice storm. I was living in RI.

Power and services stopped once again, and I swore (at the age of 13) to move to warmer climes. Freezing to death is not on my bucket list.

Hope all is well soon,

-g in SoCal.

[ConcernedCanuk]

5. Deep cycle battery and an inverter of 800 watts will handle a sump pump quite nicely.

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I have run my sump pump with a 450 Watt inverter - but I estimated on the high side because your sump-pump may be a higher wattage than mine.

Total cost for battery and inverter? - Less than $300 ( add $50 or so for a small battery charger - no need for more than a 10 amp charger) - no wiring necessary - clip the battery to the inverter, plug the sump-pump (or whatever) into the inverter -

bingo! -

hydro on demand.

Rethink that expensive generator thing, you are gonna pay through the as electricians are going to be swamped right now.

Wait, research on-line, check with people who have systems ( my house is permanently backed up with an 8500W generator - power goes out, fire up the generator (electric start) - flip the inside breaker switches - business as usual).

Know what you are dealing with before you get a contractor in there - they'll bamboozle you with technical terms you won't have a clue about.

Take your time - you won't regret it.

CC

ps: I'm going to convert my generator to propane (most can be converted). Propane burns cleaner, and no smelly gas/cans to deal with.

[Siwsan]

7. I have an emergency back up system on the pump - total waste of money

The water level sensor is in the "sucking" device, not the float. So, the damn thing runs pretty much non stop since once the water goes below the sensor, it immediately rises again, re-activating the device! Now the alarm is going off, for no reason, and I'll be damned if I can turn it off! I keep hitting the 'alarm reset' button, but it keeps beeping.

Fortunately, I'm not going to be the one paying for the new generator set up, and the electrician is a family friend. And, although I'm pretty loopy from lack of sleep, I am pretty sure I was told this system does not use gasoline.

[PADemD]

8. Power Outage

When Hurricane Sandy hit and we had no electricity for days in PA, I used a ceramic candle chimney to heat my coffee mug and to cook/warm food. It takes a few minutes longer, but works great.

There is also this gadget from the Frugal and Energy Efficient Living group that I would like to have around the house.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/11282821