Eight Emergency Power Options

i am lucky to have a good well and have T junctioned a line in to the well line before the electric pump. when the power goes off i open the valve under the sink and use the hand pump for all the water i want. i do not have to go outside in a storm and jigg for water down my well head!!! at 66 years old with arthritis and asthma this sure helps!!

It needs to be remembered, since we are talking safety, that emergency generators need to be connected only when the main service is disconnected. This insures that power from the generator will not feed back along the utility line and electrocute an electrical worker simply trying to restore service in your area.

Most current building codes mandate the installation of carbon monoxide (not carbon dioxide) detectors as this is the gas responsible for most combustion related deaths. However, if they are newer installations direct wired into your house wiring they may not function during a power outage. It would be a good idea to have a battery operated model as well as a battery operated smoke alarm for emergencies.

I use a deep charge Marine battery, a power inverter, and keep it charged with solar panels. Also, for those of us with water pumps; in the event of a power outage don't forget you have 40-50 gallons of drinking water or water to flush your toilet with that you can drain out of your water heater.

We heat our 1000 sq ft house with a ventless propane heater that hangs on the wall. Every Fall we have the tank filled and it gets us thru the whole winter. It usually costs between $400-$800 to fill the 600 gallon tank. We just went thru the ice storm last week with 5 days without power. We used oil lamps, a windup radio, and flashlights. We were worried about losing the food in the freezer, but we rolled up newspapers and put them around the seal and then duct taped it into place. It worked. We put water in plastic containers and put it outside to freeze and put it in the refrigerator. And we had a campstove to cook on.

Shortly after we bought our home there was a huge storm that knocked out our power for three days. Because it was in September, the worst that happened to us was the loss of food stuffs in our refrigerator. Because we have a gas range and hot water heater (and no well) we still had abundant resources for the time but it caused us to consider making some changes. We added a free standing gas fireplace with outside air exchange and some carbon dioxide detectors. We have chosen to forego the generator since we have flash lights, lanterns and candles and can live media free for a few days.

One type of generator that someone with a mid-size (20 to 40 horse power)tractor should consider is a PTO generator. It attaches to the PTO shaft of the tractor. They cost thousands less then a generator with an engine (gasoline, diesel or propane).