Glad I bought gas

[sberry]

I had limped along without on site gas for a couple weeks but bought fuel last week before price rise and this storm. We have been without line power since late Friday night, 3:30AM Sat morning. Real test of finding problems I didn't know we had,, ha You don't tend to notice when connected to line but connected to barely adequate generators they really show up, took a couple hrs yesterday and tune my well up, got one genset not working right and some intermittent load on one system I am going to try to isolate, think it might be my fridge, didn't feel like tearing covers off every panel.
It cramps a guys speed a bit, first taking most of the day to keep it all on, 4 buildings, 4 fridges, 3 freezers, households on 2 services and a little help from/to neighbors and it keeps a guy busy. No electric cloths dryers,, ha, no compressed air from line power but was thinking I might top off the tanks from the truck, my folks have electric water heater, its off but the other 3 buildings have gas which was intentional on my part just for the rare occasion we have extended outage,,, like this, first in years this long. Not much clue when as to expect service either, not even a good guess. I replace my failing gen with another, better anyway, uses about 13 the fuel, I let one run all night last night. My main I shut down about midnight after the well is charged and it can do without power during night, in the day I just run it all constant.
It has certainly delayed my regular rebuilding work, not welding, basic service lighting and no air on demand, just doing what it takes and suspending my on going work, be all right by me to see the line come on, keep staring at the indicator but got the feeling its about like paint drying, a day yet, maybe a couple.
www.urkafarms.com

 

[Zeke]

I''mhavingahardtimereadingallthatbutihopeyougetsomepowersoon,,,

 

[Kevin54]

I''mhavingahardtimereadingallthatbutihopeyougetsomepowersoon,,,

^^^^^this^^^^^

 

[LoRollinLS]

hahahaha wow

 

[rlitman]

I''mhavingahardtimereadingallthatbutihopeyougetsomepowersoon,,,

It's the weird power you get from generators. That interferes with the keyboard, making punctuation not work as expected.
He'll be fine once the power returns.

 

[Bronson]

Power.is.on.here.hope.You.get.Yours.back.on.soon.!.

 

[CARS]

He just in a hurry to type before the laptop's battery went dead

On a serious note, when you get power back and life calms down, could you list the things you didn't prepare for? Or maybe what you thought you needed and really didn't??

Never know when the grid goes down... I wonder if my gas cooktop lights without power??? Probably some damn electric solenoid or thermo coupler keeping it from turning the gas on.....

 

[MoonRise]

He just in a hurry to type before the laptop's battery went dead

On a serious note, when you get power back and life calms down, could you list the things you didn't prepare for? Or maybe what you thought you needed and really didn't??

Never know when the grid goes down... I wonder if my gas cooktop lights without power??? Probably some damn electric solenoid or thermo coupler keeping it from turning the gas on.....

Gas cooktop will usually light manually, with no wall (or generator) power the built-in spark igniters will not light.

Gas ovens of even semi-recent vintage will have all sorts of safety interlocks and thermocouples and hot-wire igniter systems that they will not work without power. BTDT.

YMMV.

 

[sberry]

I have a small load coming off and on intermittently and I was all set to isolate it when power was restored a few minutes ago. I am going to hunt for it later, could hear it come on the genset where when connected to line power wasn't aware of, about 3 or 4 amps, I think it might be my old fridge in my house? I could have isolated which building it was in but didn't get to it this morning will have to hunt for it later.
The captive air tank in my well was well under pressured and wasn't giving the full range or draw down capacity, added about 10# of air and tuned in the cut in/out ideally. Woke up with 40# still on it this morning with lots to spare, we are conservative when I shut down the genset over night. New toilets take very little water, enough to go around to do chores even with the power off for a while. I got a big bladder tank, 1 1/4 piping. 3 hp well.

 

[sberry]

One of my sets, an old 6000 on a Lincoln was putting out 114 on one leg and 130 on another, not sure whats up with it. I am going to look as well as fix the choke cable on the one on my service truck, I disconnect the cable and hold open with a cloths pin. That I can fix,,, ha but got to pull the cover, if I got to pull the engine will change the oil out to synth while I am at it.
This has been so rare in last several years I limp my way thru but could fix myself up a bit better, a 12K unit would be better than the 8 and if I invested in some wire and digging could cover it all with one unit.
I have taken a fair amount of effort to wards prepared, could always doctor some stuff up better but can cope reasonably well as it is. There is a limit to all the variables and the effort required. I have some backup to a backup built in which helps, I had a 3rd unit when the one had a problem. I got parts to another one wouldn't be a bad idea but just haven't needed it for 15 yrs.

 

[rlitman]

My gas cooktop works without power, but you do need a match or something to light it.
The oven, not so much . . .
My microwave doesn't like being run off of my generator's power. One of my TVs too.

 

[sberry]

I fixed up some entrance equipment for the neighbors and wired around a down secondary pole, the poco guy says good job, they will get to this single service pole next week or so, we had checked all the hi line in the area and when they came my bud brief him, was apparent our work was safe, etc and they heat it all back up a little bit ago, I disconnected all my equipment and am back on the line.
I am going to wait a couple hrs before I kick on a couple motors and water heaters, just let some of the demand cool off since everyone was down for several days although cooling equipment in the winter isn't as bad as cooling in the summer, no air cond needed which is a huge load.
But it cant hurt not to run every dryer, comp, and water heater, going to run it before it hits 5 o'clock load demand cause I am friendly to my poco like that and they do/did a good job considering the scope of it all.
We had some cold nights but warm days helped a lot, if it would have been real winter bitter it would have been lots worse, not so much for myself, I can cope but not everyone can.

 

[sberry]

Yes, something is wrong with my puter.

 

[draglink]

Ice storm about 10 years ago- 7 days without power...wood stove and generator, inconventient at Christmas to say the least

Hurricane Isabel - 7 days without power...generator did well, no A/C sucked!

Hurricane Irene - 8 days without power...generator for home--lights, ref, freezer .....generator in motorhome = slice of heaven, all convenieces of home AND A/C

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

I''mhavingahardtimereadingallthatbutihopeyougetsomepowersoon,,,

Now, now Milt....getting a little touchy in our old age, huh? You expect these yung 'uns to bother with something as nagging and unnecessary as punctuation?

Personally, my head about explodes when I read (...and read, and read, and read) people using the word "then" in place of "than". They are NOT INTERCHANGEABLE PEOPLE!

"My car is faster then yours"! makes no sense whatsoever.
Did you not go further (no, not farther) than the 5th grade in school?

You need to fix your car's "breaks" ERRRRGH!

I'm getting a headache. Can I get a "Hallelujah"?

Come on folks, its the English language. Can you make SOME effort to sound like other than a hillbilly?

 

[sberry]

The biggest interruption we have had in years has been 3 hrs or so until now. We had some blinks but they finally prune enough trees that its been pretty solid for last couple of years.
My biggest other risk that I can't manage is probably the ability to run coolers in a 3 or 4 week window in the summer. My immediate capability would leave things spread pretty thin but I could possibly buy or put something together in relatively short order.

 

[fatboyf150]

....

 

[zjrog]

Ice storm about 10 years ago- 7 days without power...wood stove and generator, inconventient at Christmas to say the least

Hurricane Isabel - 7 days without power...generator did well, no A/C sucked!

Hurricane Irene - 8 days without power...generator for home--lights, ref, freezer .....generator in motorhome = slice of heaven, all convenieces of home AND A/C

Reminds me, I need to finish the generator I want to make from an old washing machine gas engine, Jeep alternator I have laying about and a couple batteries and power inverter... All but the fuel can will fit in a larger milk crate. I hope.

 

[CARS]

The biggest interruption we have had in years has been 3 hrs or so until now.

That is because you don't know when to double space or hit return.

If you keep typing constantly, you will shut the grid down again!

(glad to hear power is on again!)