[Rhodes22-list] And now for something completely different -
Power outages
Brad Haslett
flybrad at gmail.com
Thu Jul 27 12:06:56 EDT 2006
Bill,
Yup, I remember 1973. I was supposed to fly to London for Christmas that
year but BOAC cancelled the flight. Avgas doubled and we bought fuel for
the airport I was a mechanic at on the spot market. I got rid of my 1966
283 cu. in. Chevy Nova for an Opel Manta. When the second oil crisis hit in
1979 I bought a diesel Rabbit. My 12 year old Lexus is getting a bit frayed
and will probably need to be replaced in the next couple of years. If
forced, I'll go back to another diesel VW. What I really want is a
diesel-electric hybrid in the 80-90 mpg range. It will come. Now as to our
dump trucks and my jet, there ain't no solution.
Brad
On 7/27/06, Bill Effros <bill at effros.com> wrote:
>
> Thanks, Brad,
>
> The last time I had to seriously use a generator was in 1973 when we
> moved into a new house that didn't have any electricity because a major
> ice storm ate up all the available wire. Then the oil crisis hit.
> Diane was pregnant. You could only buy gas on alternate days. It was a
> challenge (solved by a BMW racing motorcycle with a 10 gallon tank that
> was allowed to go to the head of the line any day of the week) -- but
> not something we soon forgot. That generator was so loud that hearing
> it run out of gas sounded good. It was half a year before we could use
> electricity without associating it with a deafening sound.
>
> Generators have been out of the question here ever since. Until I saw
> the one you guys were talking about. The modern appliances are so
> efficient it's amazing. We have installed the new low-power air
> conditioners throughout our home. They really work!
>
> I kind of thought low-power low noise low weight was the way to go, but
> it's good to get the confirmation before I have to step up to the plate.
>
> Bill Effros
>
>
>
> Brad Haslett wrote:
> > Bill,
> >
> > I have a Honda 1000eu for home and a Yamaha 2000 watt at the gulf. The
> > Honda is much lighter and can be handled by one person easily. The 2000
> > watt units need two men at our age. With 1000 watts you can run a
> > 5000 btu
> > a/c unit or a small microvave. I can run two fridges. The Honda uses a
> > quart of fuel about every six hours. Fuel consumption is the real
> > issue for
> > long power outages, not comfort.
> >
> > Brad
> >
> >
> > On 7/27/06, Arthur H. Czerwonky <czerwonky at earthlink.net> wrote:
> >>
> >> Bill,
> >> You might want to look at the 2K Honda also, and make sure the
> generator
> >> is enough. The extra 1K is little more in cost and same db, or
> close...
> >> Art
> >>
> >> -----Original Message-----
> >> >From: Bill Effros <bill at effros.com>
> >> >Sent: Jul 27, 2006 10:13 AM
> >> >To: The Rhodes 22 mail list <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> >> >Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] And now for something completely
> different
> >> - Power outages
> >> >
> >> > Brad,
> >> >
> >> >I've come round on this one. I hadn't looked at portable generators
> >> for
> >> >20 years, and am just about to buy a $700 Honda 1K because of the gas
> >> >sipping qualities and extremely low noise. The only reason I looked
> >> >this time was because of you and ...Wally? talking about the
> >> >practicality of bringing one on board. I may even try that.
> >> >
> >> >Bill Effros
> >> >
> >> >Brad Haslett wrote:
> >> >> Some of you that have been here for awhile may remember the rather
> >> >> spirited
> >> >> discussion we had on generators a few years back. With the power
> >> >> outages in
> >> >> the NYC area and other cities, now may be a good time to review the
> >> >> issue.
> >> >> During Hurricane Elvis (strong line of thunderstorms that knocked
> out
> >> >> power
> >> >> in Memphis for up to three weeks) my neighbors ran big Y2K
> generators
> >> for
> >> >> ONE day until they ran out of gas, then went looking for filling
> >> stations
> >> >> with power. We're putting the finishing touches on our MS Gulf
> Coast
> >> >> evacuation plan and hurricane preparedness skills. Here's my
> >> experience
> >> >> from Elvis. Small is better. You need to run one window A/C unit
> >> >> during the
> >> >> day (available for $60 if you buy before the crisis) and a fridge at
> >> >> night. One 1000 watt genset will run on 5 gallons of gas for a
> >> week.
> >> >> Someone on this list will go for days without power this summer
> >> for one
> >> >> reason or another. Don't say you weren't warned!
> >> >>
> >> >> Brad
> >> >>
> >> >> ----------------
> >> >>
> >> >> JULY 21, 2006Posted 5 days and 0 hours ago on July 21, 2006 Blackout
> >> >> Survival Guide
> >> >> <
> >>
> http://www.popularmechanics.com/blog/home/3391786.html?c=y&imageID=1338716&caption=%3Cb%3EBatteries+Included%3A%3C%2Fb%3E+Prepare+your+blackout+kit+now%2C+not+in+the+dark
> .
> >>
> >> >
> >> >>
> >> >> <
> >>
> http://www.popularmechanics.com/blog/home/3391786.html?c=y&imageID=1338716&caption=%3Cb%3EBatteries+Included%3A%3C%2Fb%3E+Prepare+your+blackout+kit+now%2C+not+in+the+dark
> .
> >>
> >> >
> >> >>
> >> >> *Batteries Included:* Prepare your blackout kit now, not in the
> dark.
> >> >> When it's as hot and humid outside as it is right now in the
> >> >> northeast, air
> >> >> conditioning feels like a miracle. Until the lights flicker, dim,
> and
> >> go
> >> >> out. With air conditioning creating massive spikes power
> consumption,
> >> >> occasionally the grid calls it quits. That's just what happened on
> >> >> Tuesday
> >> >> evening, when more than 200,000 homes in the New York region lost
> >> their
> >> >> power. Many people are still waiting for the power to come back.
> >> >>
> >> >> Before you're sweating it out in candlelight, take a look at our
> >> blackout
> >> >> survival guide.
> >> >>
> >> >> Download the blackout survival podcast
> >> >> here<
> >>
> http://media.popularmechanics.com/audio/Popular+Mechanics+PodcastBlackoutSurvival1.mp3
> >>
> >> >
> >> >>
> >> >> .
> >> >>
> >> >> Have a Flashlight: If you haven't done so already, go out and buy at
> >> >> least
> >> >> one small, inexpensive flashlight?one that takes 2 D cell or 2 AA
> >> >> batteries.
> >> >> If you already have a flashlight, swap in new batteries. Leave it
> >> >> standing
> >> >> on a book shelf, or on an easy-to-reach countertop so that you can
> >> get
> >> to
> >> >> quickly and safely in the dark.
> >> >>
> >> >> Be Prepared to Empty the Fridge: A freezer packed with dry ice will
> >> stay
> >> >> cold for days, but it's tough to find dry ice at the local corner
> >> >> store. So
> >> >> if you've been without power for more than four hours, start
> emptying
> >> the
> >> >> fridge now. Even if the power does come back soon, chances are your
> >> food
> >> >> won't, and you don't want to let food melt in the freezer or, even
> >> worse,
> >> >> rot in the appliance. Cleaning that up is not a mess you want to
> deal
> >> >> with.
> >> >>
> >> >> Shut Down Your Appliances: If your power goes out, make sure you
> turn
> >> off
> >> >> your air conditioner or reset the thermostat so the air conditioner
> >> >> will not
> >> >> turn back on until you turn it on manually. When the power does turn
> >> back
> >> >> on, the combined load of thousands of air conditioner spooling up
> >> >> simultaneously can be enough to trip the grid again, starting
> another
> >> >> blackout. However, if everybody turned on their air conditioners
> >> >> individually, it would stagger the power demand on the grid. Every
> >> >> small bit
> >> >> of help counts during an emergency.
> >> >>
> >> >> (Also, now's a good time to unplug that circular saw you were using
> >> >> when the
> >> >> power went out.)
> >> >>
> >> >> Don't Overdue AC: When you do turn an air conditioner back on, don't
> >> >> set the
> >> >> thermostat lower than 78 F. This is good practice in general:
> >> Although
> >> it
> >> >> doesn't seem very cool, the dehumidifying effect of air conditioning
> >> will
> >> >> make your house much more bearable, even at 78 F.
> >> >>
> >> >> Use Passive Cooling: If the power goes out, open as many windows as
> >> >> possible, especially windows and vents in the attic and the upper
> >> floors.
> >> >> However, use shades on the sunny side of the house (south and
> >> west) to
> >> >> minimize solar heating. This is a good practice in warm months, even
> >> when
> >> >> you've got your AC cranking like a Pratt and Whitney turbofan.
> >> >>
> >> >> If you really got caught off guard, take this opportunity to learn
> >> >> from the
> >> >> mistake and assemble an emergency preparedness
> >> >> kit<
> >>
> http://www.popularmechanics.com/home_improvement/home_owner_clinic/2076037.html?page=4&c=y
> >>
> >> >consisting
> >> >>
> >> >> of lighting, food, water, a first aid kit, tools and anything
> >> >> else you'll need. ?Roy Berendsohn
> >> >> __________________________________________________
> >> >> Use Rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org, Help? www.rhodes22.org/list
> >> >>
> >> >__________________________________________________
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> >>
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