2 weeks without power...

[Larry Gude]

...on some of my other forums, there is a lot of commentary from folks directly and indirectly involved with Sandy related problems of being without power for many days.

Maybe worth a little reflection. What would your life be like if you lost power for two weeks and relief was really difficult. Food, gas, etc.

Generator people up there are dealing with running out of fuel, especially those with gasoline units. Seems the ones with natural gas to their homes that are also using that for generators didn't lose gas.

Water is critical; fill those bath tubs and anything else that can hold water for flushing toilets. You need something like a gallon a day of drinking water per person. Something like 2,000 calories per person per day for food. Candles, batteries, perhaps some sort of solar cells to keep cell phones recharged?

This would have become way, way worse if it was cold. Fireplaces and wood stoves would be solid gold. Cooking, heating, boiling water to drink.

 

[Nickel]

For a lot of people it was very cold. My aunt and uncle live in rural St George WV. They were without power for about 2 weeks and had over 2 feet of snow. They spent all day plowing their 1+ mile driveway to the main road only to find that it was closed. Luckily they are the type of people who take responsibility for their own preparedness and live in an area where community isn't just a word.


'Forgotten' West Virginia struggling in Sandy's aftermath - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

 

[migtig]

I remember Hurricane Isabel hitting this area and people being without power for weeks. Difference was, instead of those folks sitting on their butt waiting on help to come to them, they were out there helping themselves and their neighbors.

I can't believe the number of idiots on tv, waiting on the government to come to their homes and give them money, free food and clothes.

Number one, you should have prepared. Number two, you should have evacuated. Number three, you need to call your insurance company instead of expecting them to magically appear out of thin air. Number four, if you need assistance or shelter, you go to where those shelters and outreaches are set up, instead of expecting them to come to the home that you were supposed to have evacuated.

I know in St Mary's a shelter is always set up at the local school and at the fairgrounds. When I was a kid, it was my local high school and a couple of churches.

Yes, they need help, but they need to help themselves too. I am not feeling empathy for people who are too selfish to do anything but sit on their bottoms and expect help to magically show up out of the sky and be at their door.

 

[vraiblonde]

Oh for ####'s sake. 100 years ago people didn't even have any of that stuff and they managed to get along just fine. This is what happens when the government makes a pet out of you: you can no longer care for yourself or perform even the most basic survival skills. So, yeah - ha ha.

 

[DynaDink]

I remember Hurricane Isabel hitting this area and people being without power for weeks. Difference was, instead of those folks sitting on their butt waiting on help to come to them, they were out there helping themselves and their neighbors.

I can't believe the number of idiots on tv, waiting on the government to come to their homes and give them money, free food and clothes.

Number one, you should have prepared. Number two, you should have evacuated. Number three, you need to call your insurance company instead of expecting them to magically appear out of thin air. Number four, if you need assistance or shelter, you go to where those shelters and outreaches are set up, instead of expecting them to come to the home that you were supposed to have evacuated.

I know in St Mary's a shelter is always set up at the local school and at the fairgrounds. When I was a kid, it was my local high school and a couple of churches.

Yes, they need help, but they need to help themselves too. I am not feeling empathy for people who are too selfish to do anything but sit on their bottoms and expect help to magically show up out of the sky and be at their door.

Are you referring to the poor disenfranchised people of New Orleans?

 

[Hank]

Oh for ####'s sake. 100 years ago people didn't even have any of that stuff and they managed to get along just fine. This is what happens when the government makes a pet out of you: you can no longer care for yourself or perform even the most basic survival skills. So, yeah - ha ha.

See, I was thinking along the compassion route until I read your post and I have to say I agree with you.... I guess the only part of the equation that I do have compassion for, is the mess they have to clean up and the memorabilia that was destroyed in the flooding. Pointing fingers at the government is just the easiest thing for a lot of people to do... Instant scapegoat. I have lost power for over a week and managed fine albeit I had nothing destroyed.

 

[Larry Gude]

See, I was thinking along the compassion route .

It wasn't meant as a compassion piece. I meant it as a 'practical considerations' tread.

 

[vraiblonde]

Let me add:

A friend of mine lives in the mountains of WV and her power just came back on two days ago. They were also snowed in with the nearest store 10 or 15 miles away. They had food, heat, shelter, light, and water because not only did they prepare for the storm, but they know how to do things for themselves instead of needing to be taken care of.

Her big complaint? She wanted a hot shower and to wash her hair properly. Other than that, they were good to go.

 

[Hank]

It wasn't meant as a compassion piece. I meant it as a 'practical considerations' tread.

Well, I was responding to a post, not necessarily to your fancy "tread", homie....

 

[vraiblonde]

It wasn't meant as a compassion piece. I meant it as a 'practical considerations' tread.

People already know #### like that and just don't do it. It's like I tell Apollo that I may die tomorrow and he needs to start stocking up kibble and conserving water so he can stay alive while waiting for Vince or Pete to realize they haven't heard from me in awhile. Apollo licks his butt and goes "whatever" because all he knows is me being there and taking care of him, and it is inconceivable to him that I may not always be able to do so.

 

[Hank]

It wasn't meant as a compassion piece. I meant it as a 'practical considerations' tread.

Now it's a "pet piece"....

 

[Larry Gude]

People already know #### like that and just don't do it. It's like I tell Apollo that I may die tomorrow and he needs to start stocking up kibble and conserving water so he can stay alive while waiting for Vince or Pete to realize they haven't heard from me in awhile. Apollo licks his butt and goes "whatever" because all he knows is me being there and taking care of him, and it is inconceivable to him that I may not always be able to do so.

???

Most people who do have generators, who do prepare, think in terms of days, not weeks. For instance, a typical emergency generator might use 5-10 gallons of gas a day if you plan on using it sparingly. That's a few five gallon cans for a few days. 14 days could be getting into 100's of gallons, real quick.

Same with water. Same with food. Keeping things cold. Sanitation.

All the sites I've been pulling this from are not Boo hoo, woe is me sites. They are serious SHTF sites that are simply getting into the practical nuts and bolts experience of Sandy vs. what people had planned for, comparing the results, and weeks of being on your own and how to ramp that sort of experience into EOTWAWKI stuff where weeks become years. They're talking about things like getting several smaller generators you can handle on your own vs. the 2-300 pounds some typical small ones weigh that a man can't get in and out of a truck by himself. Solar panels. Batteries. Practical application stuff.

I didn't intend this as any kind of dependency thing.

 

[desertrat]

I remember Hurricane Isabel hitting this area and people being without power for weeks. Difference was, instead of those folks sitting on their butt waiting on help to come to them, they were out there helping themselves and their neighbors.

I can't believe the number of idiots on tv, waiting on the government to come to their homes and give them money, free food and clothes.

Number one, you should have prepared. Number two, you should have evacuated. Number three, you need to call your insurance company instead of expecting them to magically appear out of thin air. Number four, if you need assistance or shelter, you go to where those shelters and outreaches are set up, instead of expecting them to come to the home that you were supposed to have evacuated.

I know in St Mary's a shelter is always set up at the local school and at the fairgrounds. When I was a kid, it was my local high school and a couple of churches.

Yes, they need help, but they need to help themselves too. I am not feeling empathy for people who are too selfish to do anything but sit on their bottoms and expect help to magically show up out of the sky and be at their door.

Big difference though. Around here during Irene you could go a mile in any direction and find gas or food.
Not the way it is there. Like you said, if they say get out, then do it!

People already know #### like that and just don't do it. It's like I tell Apollo that I may die tomorrow and he needs to start stocking up kibble and conserving water so he can stay alive while waiting for Vince or Pete to realize they haven't heard from me in awhile. Apollo licks his butt and goes "whatever" because all he knows is me being there and taking care of him, and it is inconceivable to him that I may not always be able to do so.

So true. But, I remember a time when dogs used to bury bones in the back yard for food shortages or practice killing skunks, rabbits and squirrels for food., what happened to that type of hardy canine?

 

[GURPS]

???

Most people who do have generators, who do prepare, think in terms of days, not weeks. For instance, a typical emergency generator might use 5-10 gallons of gas a day if you plan on using it sparingly. That's a few five gallon cans for a few days. 14 days could be getting into 100's of gallons, real quick.

Propane or Diesel would be better 'long term' generator usage

although Diesel is susceptible to algae growth .... the Gas we get now a days does not store more than 45 days before starting to go bad

stabil helps, but with all the ETHO it sucks up moisture and breaks down quicker - look online for 'PURE' gas stations


you can still get 'Nato Jerry' cans, but they are sold 'not for fuel use' due to Gov / EPA meddling

 

[itsbob]

???

Most people who do have generators, who do prepare, think in terms of days, not weeks. For instance, a typical emergency generator might use 5-10 gallons of gas a day if you plan on using it sparingly. That's a few five gallon cans for a few days. 14 days could be getting into 100's of gallons, real quick.

Same with water. Same with food. Keeping things cold. Sanitation.

All the sites I've been pulling this from are not Boo hoo, woe is me sites. They are serious SHTF sites that are simply getting into the practical nuts and bolts experience of Sandy vs. what people had planned for, comparing the results, and weeks of being on your own and how to ramp that sort of experience into EOTWAWKI stuff where weeks become years. They're talking about things like getting several smaller generators you can handle on your own vs. the 2-300 pounds some typical small ones weigh that a man can't get in and out of a truck by himself. Solar panels. Batteries. Practical application stuff.

I didn't intend this as any kind of dependency thing.

We were looking at Solar Panels as an option, but thanks to the Nanny Gov't they are NOT an option.

If you lose power the solar panels are required to shut down!!

Would have been a great option for saving SOME money month to month, but even a greater option for when the power went out to power the house at least during day time.

WITH that said.. when in New England we lost power not frequently, but somewhat regularly. We never had a generator, just dealt with the lack of power. Generally we preferred to lose power in the winter v summer. In the winter you lose power you move all your food outside and it keeps. Wear extra layers to stay warm, extra blankets to sleep under.. and you dealt with it.

We lost power up there for long periods of times, I think in 1978 it was close to, if not over, a month. Couldn't wait for the schools to re-open to get to some heat!!

I believe shortly after the storms in 08 my parents put a woodburner in the basment for the next big storm.

 

[vraiblonde]

Larry, real survivalists think about what they did before generators and gas were invented. For long-term EOTWAWKI it's not "get several smaller generators"; it's "can you build a fire without starter sticks?" "Can you catch and skin a rabbit?" "Can you disable an attacker without a weapon?" "How long can you survive when there will be no rescue, ever?"

You know - like the Hunger Games.

 

[GURPS]

We were looking at Solar Panels as an option, but thanks to the Nanny Gov't they are NOT an option.

If you lose power the solar panels are required to shut down!!

I would think a disconnect from the 'main' feed would be sufficient

 

[vraiblonde]

PS, Migtig knows how to build a still, so I'm calling dibs for her to be on my team when SHTF.

 

[migtig]

Are you referring to the poor disenfranchised people of New Orleans?

Actually no. There was a huge difference there. A big difference was the fact that most of the people left in NO after the storm did not have any means of transporation to leave the area when the evacuation was called. Then they were all herded to the Super Dome whether they wanted to go there or not.

In NY, NJ & CT, the people complaining the loudest and longest about not getting any help, say they had vehicles that were destroyed. So they could have evacuated when the evacuation was called. They are sitting in their homes saying their homes are destroyed, when folks really did have their homes devastated. They are saying they are starving to death because nobody has come to their home to give them any food, instead of getting up off their butts and going to go get it. They are saying they can't leave their homes because they have no where to go, and they are freezing to death, when shelters have been set up but they won't get up off their butts and go to a shelter. They say they can't do anything because nobody from the government has come to their homes and given them money. WTF? What did they do for money before? It seems none of them have homeowners insurance, because not one person has mentioned the phone call they put into their insurance company. Instead, I heard a man last night whining that he didn't like the free food he did get from the Red Cross. It wasn't good enough for him. It looked better than the MREs I used to eat. They are whining about not having any power, as if they are the only people in the world who have never had power. In this situation, the responsibility to take care of themselves, first lies with them. Not the government. Not the volunteer charities.

The average cost of those homes destroyed by Sandy was $500,000, plus.

The average cost of those homes destroyed by Katrina was $50,000.

 

[itsbob]

Propane or Diesel would be better 'long term' generator usage

although Diesel is susceptible to algae growth .... the Gas we get now a days does not store more than 45 days before starting to go bad

stabil helps, but with all the ETHO it sucks up moisture and breaks down quicker - look online for 'PURE' gas stations


you can still get 'Nato Jerry' cans, but they are sold 'not for fuel use' due to Gov / EPA meddling

This is my thoughts on fuel use:

I bought a PTO generator to use. I run the tractor regularly so the fuel never gets old, very little if any maintenance on the generator (and already paying to maintain the tractor) itself and it's a low RPM generator (lot of extra windings) mean it will last much longer too. My biggest concern was fuel sitting in a generator, or rust getting in the tank from an empty fuel tank.. I thought the best solution was to use the one big motor I have in use every week anyways.

Only downside is the size of the tank. The tractor only holds 5 gallons (diesel), and we ran about half that out in the 4-5 hours we ran it.

There is a company out there that sells a smaller PTO like generator that runs off the mower deck attachment on regular garden tractors.. Thought it was a pretty cool solution too.