Storm (12/12/2008)

[turbo]

Not a generator, just a little $65 electrical device that hooks to your car battery. You run an extension cord inside where you want the power, and leave the car running so the battery doesn't get drained. Not very much power, but enough to run small things in an emergency such as laptops, cell phone charger, lamps, coffeepot. Not quite enough to run the fridge, but who needs refrigeration in this weather...

Motorized things don't work very well due to the type of electrical load they create, but I used one once to run a 1/6 HP sump pump that kept my basement from flooding.

Hope your reptiles are OK   

[Jared]

no cable. my life SUCKS *LONG SIGH*

[Russell Kanning]

nopowerneeded wood stoves never felt better

[Free libertarian]

I have an extra 750W inverter if anyone needs it (they are sold out in NH and Mass... I ended up driving to RI last night to purchase them, but fortunately our power came back on before I got home!)

how do those work anyhow?  i have never used or owned a generator.  do you hook it into the house somehow or do you just run extension cords all over?

An inverter turns DC power (the kind in batteries)  into AC power (what most houses have) .   If anyone is looking for a small inverter and the department stores are out of them try automotive parts stores, they might still have some left.

Be careful if you are thinking of hooking up a generator to your house...the electrical juice might backflow into the grid system if it's not done right and could make for a bad day for the repair guy.  Best to use heavy duty extension
cords and keep your generator OUTSIDE if you aren't sure how to hook it up directly into your electrical panel safely.
Another obvious but sometimes overlooked thing....don't refill the generator gas tank while it's running or the exhaust is hot.  A little spill could lead to a big noise.

   

[AntonLee]

I have an extra 750W inverter if anyone needs it (they are sold out in NH and Mass... I ended up driving to RI last night to purchase them, but fortunately our power came back on before I got home!)

how do those work anyhow?  i have never used or owned a generator.  do you hook it into the house somehow or do you just run extension cords all over?

An inverter turns DC power (the kind in batteries)  into AC power (what most houses have) .   If anyone is looking for a small inverter and the department stores are out of them try automotive parts stores, they might still have some left.

Be careful if you are thinking of hooking up a generator to your house...the electrical juice might backflow into the grid system if it's not done right and could make for a bad day for the repair guy.  Best to use heavy duty extension
cords and keep your generator OUTSIDE if you aren't sure how to hook it up directly into your electrical panel safely.
Another obvious but sometimes overlooked thing....don't refill the generator gas tank while it's running or the exhaust is hot.  A little spill could lead to a big noise.

actually it wasn't so obvious to me, not that I tried it.  My girlfriend's family has a separate switch for the generator which plugs into the house from the outside.  He went around shutting certain breakers off and made it quite nice (except for the noise)

but thanks for posting your tips, I'm thinking about showing my own parents about it, perhaps helping them set something up so in case (when) it happens again they'll have some power. 

[leetninja]

power has been restored to my house as of 1pm today.  My house is freezing!!! Colder inside than it is out lol!

[Porcupine_in_MA]

Great to see Leet!

[MaineShark]

When looking at inverters, just remember that power quality differs.  Since they are creating AC electronically (rather than mechanically, at a power plant), the wave is often square instead of smooth, and that doesn't always play nice with certain electronics.

If you have sensitive electronics that you want to power with an inverter, looking for true sine wave output is important.

Joe

[Lloyd Danforth]

I have an extra 750W inverter if anyone needs it (they are sold out in NH and Mass... I ended up driving to RI last night to purchase them, but fortunately our power came back on before I got home!)

how do those work anyhow?  i have never used or owned a generator.  do you hook it into the house somehow or do you just run extension cords all over?

An inverter turns DC power (the kind in batteries)  into AC power (what most houses have) .   If anyone is looking for a small inverter and the department stores are out of them try automotive parts stores, they might still have some left.

Be careful if you are thinking of hooking up a generator to your house...the electrical juice might backflow into the grid system if it's not done right and could make for a bad day for the repair guy.  Best to use heavy duty extension
cords and keep your generator OUTSIDE if you aren't sure how to hook it up directly into your electrical panel safely.
Another obvious but sometimes overlooked thing....don't refill the generator gas tank while it's running or the exhaust is hot.  A little spill could lead to a big noise.

One of my customers bought a nice old, cast iron, 3500 Watt Windcharger generator.  I mounted it on a shelf in his garage and ran the exhaust thru a 20 gallon oil drum buried in the ground. I ran the wire into the house and hooked it to dedicated outlets behind the refridgerator, in the living room, bedroom and near the oil burner.
When the power goes off he can start the Generator and have power where he needs it.
I've been trying to talk him into buying a new generator and giving me the Windcharger, but, he won't bite

[Romak]

Still no power in Antrim either. They are saying possibly as long as XMas day to restore power. This is getting ridiculous, fortunately we have back up generators, ,wonder how those without are going to make it that long.

[AntonLee]

my friggin job doesn't have power so I can't even get my check (they print them there). . . wtf. . . been waiting since Friday!

in other news, this probably means the Seabrook porcmanor doesn't have power back yet either.

[Hubbard]

my friggin job doesn't have power so I can't even get my check (they print them there). . . wtf. . . been waiting since Friday!

in other news, this probably means the Seabrook porcmanor doesn't have power back yet either.

You're kidding right? That's ridiculous.

[D Stewart]

(A large part of) Grafton got its power back yesterday.  Looks like we just lost it again, about five minutes ago.





edit:  ...and it's back again.  Guess they were just splicing a line or something.  :-)   Just as well, my generator apparently doesn't want to run any more.

[Romak]

Here is a great website that has amount of people out per town and estimated time for total power on per town. www.twitter.com/psnh
I called PSNH and they confirmed that my town of Antrim has an ETA of Thursday at the latest. I'll believe it when I see it since I'm in a remote area but it was nice to hear.

[AntonLee]

sorry Romak, I'm sitting here bitching about my check not being ready for a week, and you're still without power.  Wish there was something I could do, but even if there was I'd still have to get my check first =O)