Here blizzard, blizzard, blizzard!

[Conan71]

Did you get one that's permanently wired and plumbed (natural gas)?

No it runs on that $2.79 $2.85 $2.99 $3.09 QT gas.  Previous genny was 4000 watts.  Finally got one with 8750 watts.  Won't fire the AC compressor, but it will run everything else including deep freeze, fridge, and the most essental: kegerator.  Oh yeah, furnace fan too.

[Red Arrow]

No it runs on that $2.79 $2.85 $2.99 $3.09 QT gas.  Previous genny was 4000 watts.  Finally got one with 8750 watts.  Won't fire the AC compressor, but it will run everything else including deep freeze, fridge, and the most essental: kegerator.  Oh yeah, furnace fan too.

Depending on how much your furnace has computer control, be careful with generators.  I trashed a TV with a generator that had a faulty phase.  The 110V side still had some problems.

[patric]

Depending on how much your furnace has computer control, be careful with generators.  I trashed a TV with a generator that had a faulty phase.  The 110V side still had some problems.

The one we bought after "the" ice storm has problems maintaining a stable frequency.  I think it also has a malformed sine wave, so the first thing you notice is all the digital clocks run wild.

[Red Arrow]

I have frequently thought about getting a whole house, permanently installed, natural gas fueled, automatic take-over generator but haven't stepped up to the price yet.

It would be really convenient for me but really essential for mom if I was out of town.  There is no way she could fire up the portable generator.

[patric]

I have frequently thought about getting a whole house, permanently installed, natural gas fueled, automatic take-over generator but haven't stepped up to the price yet.

It would be really convenient for me but really essential for mom if I was out of town.  There is no way she could fire up the portable generator.

It's been six years since the big ice storm that kept 3/4 of Tulsa dark and cold (some for weeks).

The Dec. 8 storm resulted in at least 29 deaths. It also caused the biggest blackout in state history, knocking out power to more than 640,000 Oklahoma homes and businesses. Many went without power for more than 10 days. Thousands also lost income because their workplaces were closed because of outages. http://www.tulsaworld.com/archives/ice-storm-expenses-adding-up/article_90cedf0c-ec7f-5b4f-a1df-b262d9b07c31.html

In that time, AEP got a rate increase to cover the cost of rebuilding their system exactly the same as it was before the storm,
and another rate increase to fund burying lines and doing more tree cutting.  Not long after the second hike passed the Corporation Commission, they eliminated the "burying lines" part and put all the money into trees.

In a nutshell, the electrical reliability you have now is probably as good as it's ever going to get, so an automatic, plumbed-in, natural gas generator looks like a more realistic investment than it did six years ago.
If in doubt, do an inventory of your frozen food, and estimate the cost of having to toss it on the average of every year and a half.


http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/energy/ice-storm-cost-million/article_e9c47a70-e889-5d74-8246-bc50f26bb227.html
http://www.tulsaworld.com/archives/storm-is-over-but-outages-continue/article_9e5d1569-79df-55bb-80b8-12c20726ac66.html
http://www.tulsaworld.com/archives/buried-lines-weather-the-ice/article_e0d6b417-d78c-55bf-a646-cb3f445382cb.html

[Conan71]

I have frequently thought about getting a whole house, permanently installed, natural gas fueled, automatic take-over generator but haven't stepped up to the price yet.

It would be really convenient for me but really essential for mom if I was out of town.  There is no way she could fire up the portable generator.

Forgot to add, mine has electric start as well as recoil.  Worthless if the battery has taken a dump, but as long as it's hooked up to a trickle charger, it should be just fine.

[Hoss]

Forgot to add, mine has electric start as well as recoil.  Worthless if the battery has taken a dump, but as long as it's hooked up to a trickle charger, it should be just fine.

Lucky one here.  My brother is an electrical engineer and has done many builds (including the new Rogers County Courthouse) so if I should think about getting one he can not only help install, but he can get me a deal as well.

Although the last major outage was the July windstorm (72 hours).  I don't worry a whole lot about it right now.  But with mother getting a little older, I would like to have something in case it goes out while I'm away at work.

[Conan71]

Lucky one here.  My brother is an electrical engineer and has done many builds (including the new Rogers County Courthouse) so if I should think about getting one he can not only help install, but he can get me a deal as well.

Although the last major outage was the July windstorm (72 hours).  I don't worry a whole lot about it right now.  But with mother getting a little older, I would like to have something in case it goes out while I'm away at work.

I was going to suggest it's not a bad idea with your mother at home.

[patric]

I was going to suggest it's not a bad idea with your mother at home.

It wouldnt be necessary to switchover the entire house, just critical circuits like furnace fan, refrigeration and some strategic lights (here's where LEDs really pay off).  Rural folks will want to include a water pump.  Oxygen concentrator for medical needs (consider a LOX system like Helios that doesnt need power).

Your internet connection will use a pittance for energy, but filter and condition it, and dont use a desktop if you dont really have to.

[Hoss]

It wouldnt be necessary to switchover the entire house, just critical circuits like furnace fan, refrigeration and some strategic lights (here's where LEDs really pay off).  Rural folks will want to include a water pump.  Oxygen concentrator for medical needs (consider a LOX system like Helios that doesnt need power).

Your internet connection will use a pittance for energy, but filter and condition it, and dont use a desktop if you dont really have to.

You'll be happy to know that almost all lights in my house now are LED, save for a few CFCs that I have held over.  I bought LED dimmable for both my ceiling fans.  They work pretty good.

My outside lights will be CFCs, as the LED PAR38s are just so damned expensive right now.

[Red Arrow]

It wouldnt be necessary to switchover the entire house, just critical circuits like furnace fan, refrigeration and some strategic lights (here's where LEDs really pay off).  Rural folks will want to include a water pump.  Oxygen concentrator for medical needs (consider a LOX system like Helios that doesnt need power).

A couple of things I need to contend with are mostly regarding the installation.  The electric service goes to a bedroom closet without enough easy access to put the switching for selective circuits.  A whole house switch on the outside of that wall would be easier.  The gas service is about 70 ft away at the garage end of the house where I want the generator to be, next to the Air Conditioner outside unit.  Our house isn't all that big.  The main breaker is 100A so I am not looking at megawatt service.  I think a conduit running along the eve of the roof would be ugly so I would like to bury the line from the generator to the electric service.

[Red Arrow]

My outside lights will be CFCs, as the LED PAR38s are just so damned expensive right now.

Make sure they fit in the socket.  We tried a CFC PAR38 a while back and the base on the bulb above the threads bulged out more than the standard incandescent bulb and wouldn't fit in the socket.

[Hoss]

Make sure they fit in the socket.  We tried a CFC PAR38 a while back and the base on the bulb above the threads bulged out more than the standard incandescent bulb and wouldn't fit in the socket.

The outside lights I have now are non-functioning halogen PAR38s so I should be safe.

Clarification:  the lights I'm speaking about are motion-activated flood lights for security.

[Red Arrow]

The outside lights I have now are non-functioning halogen PAR38s so I should be safe.

Clarification:  the lights I'm speaking about are motion-activated flood lights for security.

Halogen flood/spot lights PAR38 are the ones that fit our sockets.  The compact florescent flood replacement is the one that didn't fit.  When you decide to get them, just get one until you know they fit.

[HoneySuckle]

I'd rather snow any day, over our ridiculously hot summer days