Electrical Generators Make You Better Prepared For The Emergency!
Don't be like us and only think of electrical generators when you are surrounded by fallen trees, the snow is a meter high, there are no lights and no power. We found ourselves with many others making our way to the generator store the next morning hoping against hope that somehow they were going to be open and would have a supply of electrical generators inside. This was not to be. The storm was so severe that some places suffered structural damage, and this was one of them. So for the next five days we had to survive on kerosene lamps, candles and a lot of tinned food. Fortunately we did have some camping supplies so we were able to boil water and heat food on our little camp oven. It was a big lesson in not being prepared. We had a storm the previous year but it only took the power out for 36 hours and that should have been enough warning. Electrical generators really are essential items for these times of emergency. During this past year there would have been at least three other times that electrical generators could have been used in our district. My feeling is that this is more than enough reason for those of us who don't own one to make it a priority to acquire electrical generators in the shortest possible time. Admittedly they are quite a substantial expense initially, particularly if the electrical generators are going to be connected to the house through a transfer switch. But even if you don't wish to go to this much trouble and intend to run leads from the generator to your appliances it is going to make all the difference between an unbearable situation to one that is much easier managed.
Depending on the type of transfer switch you install - whether it is automatic or manual - the costs can be quite extensive. By the time you pay for a licensed electrical contractor to install the electrical generators you could easily be spending another $500-$1000. Not everyone is able to put their hands on this amount of cash in an emergency situation and as we found out a lot of people purchased their electrical generators one season and during the following year they arranged for the connection. We also had this valuable lesson to learn as well. Electrical generators will sell out very quickly in times of these bad weather conditions. In fact we had to drive about four hours to be able to purchase one the week after our power was restored. It was the last one they had in the shop and I made him promise me that he wouldn't sell it until we arrived. For the rest of the storm season we were comfortable knowing that even though our electrical generator is not connected perhaps the way we would like, it would still serve us very well during an emergency. We would still be able to have the fridge connected and many of the major appliances. Of course as luck would have it there was no need for anyone to use their newly purchased electrical generators for the rest of that season. In fact it wasn't until we had a power outage some six months later which was due to an unseasonably hot spell and a massive drain on resources by the amount of air conditioners that were being used. All along our street we could hear the faint hum of the electrical generators as they were all turned on for the first time. It was almost amusing but it felt good. |
