08-11-2014, 10:32 AM
We learned that generators can break. [
]
We learned that even though we are tied to the grid, our water is not unless it gets shut off by the County (which has never happened). Our water was completely normal, and we could take showers and wash dishes with no power.
As we already knew, solar hot water doesn't heat during a storm, but it is nice afterwards.
Re outside lights, we had a stored box of 12-volt lights, and my son wired a two-light section to a track and powered them off of a big battery that he had pre-charged. He also rigged a charging station for cell phones etc.. to the big batteries. The lights would have run for about a week. We have lanterns and flashlights, but it was great to have bright lights in the kitchen.
We don't use candles, because years ago, we had an extended power outage due to a storm, and a candle got knocked over, and our house burned down, and two families almost died in the process. Have never been fond of candles since.
]We learned that even though we are tied to the grid, our water is not unless it gets shut off by the County (which has never happened). Our water was completely normal, and we could take showers and wash dishes with no power.
As we already knew, solar hot water doesn't heat during a storm, but it is nice afterwards.
Re outside lights, we had a stored box of 12-volt lights, and my son wired a two-light section to a track and powered them off of a big battery that he had pre-charged. He also rigged a charging station for cell phones etc.. to the big batteries. The lights would have run for about a week. We have lanterns and flashlights, but it was great to have bright lights in the kitchen.
We don't use candles, because years ago, we had an extended power outage due to a storm, and a candle got knocked over, and our house burned down, and two families almost died in the process. Have never been fond of candles since.