🚀 go-pugleaf

John Gilmer wrote:
> 
> Hi!
> 
> Like many others, we lost power because of the recent storm (from Thursday
> evening to Monday evening in out case.)   Since we get our water from a
> well, we even had to bring in water.
> 
> By Sunday, the "indoor camping" was getting old.
> 
> We are kicking around getting a generator for the "next time."
> 
> SO:  who here used a generator last week?   Did you power a deep well pump?
> How was the generator connected to the load?   How much gas did your use?
> 
> Any advice for those of us considering a generator purchase (and whatever
> extra house wiring may be necessary)?
> 
> Thanks

I live in Maryland (Montgomery County). This past August we lost power
for 4 days! It happened on a Tuesday afternoon at 4:40 pm. I
remember the exact minute because I was on my treadmill and
almost broke my neck when it suddenly stopped!

The four days were an absolute nightmare. I take care of my 84
year old mother and it was very difficult trying to live
without air conditioning, lights, fans, and I suppose we
are all used to living with electricity. This storm knocked
out power to over 120,000 customers and I was surprised to hear
it would take so long to get our power restored. 

Then again when hurricane Isabel was approaching, I tried to
buy a generator and NONE were available ANYWHERE! Forget it!

Finally, one night (morning) at 3:00 am I called a Home Depot
store and spoke to the manager (who just put 18 on display)
for the 6:00 am opening and I literally begged him .... and asked
if I could come buy one for me and my neighbor. He agreed,
so my neighbor and I drove there immediately and I ended up 
buying enough for two more neighbors and my neighbor bought
a nice (electric start) model.

My Coleman Power-mate cost $499 and has an output of 5,000
watts, with 6250 surge. During the high winds from Isabel
the power went out! I was ready ..... I started up the generator,
hooked up the refrigerator, TV and floor lamp with a heavy duty
extension cord, and was ready to give my neighbors some current
when the power (a miracle) came back on ..... and stayed on.
We got very lucky because this storm left another 100,000 (or so)
PEPCO customers in the dark for many days. Virginia had over
a million customers without power! 

I was satisfied with my small generator and I wanted (mainly)
to operate the refrigerator because during the August outage
we lost ALL food in the refrigerator and freezer. 

I have several friends who are talking about buy a large
back-up system for their homes, that runs on natural gas.
But I believe these larger generators start about $4,000
and up. There is a photo and specs of my new generator at:

http://www.colemanpowermate.com/generators/pm0545005.shtml

Would like to read any comments, experiences, etc. Thanks.

Ken