As someone else posted... let the water trickle ... at all the faucets....

as for the gas logs... depending on when they were installed the stupid manufacturer requires the damper to be locked open. this is usually just a 'C' clamp you can remove... on most masonry fireplaces the damper is adjustable... I would try to partially close the damper down to where you can feel the exhaust spilling out under the lintel and then open it one more notch. The other suggestion of running the logs for an hour or so to get both them and the firebox hot and then shutting them off and closing the damper is not a bad one either. I assume the have a safety pilot, don't worry about that leave it on and just shut the damper. Now if you have prefab fireplace with metal chimney you are pretty much screwed with all this. One other direct to look at int he future since you have gas of some type to the house is to install a direct vent wall unit.... these put out heat with no power cost less than $1,000 and are pretty easy to install.

1st snow caught everyone off guard-----heavier, wetter, more than any forecast.

A lot of leaves still on trees broke adding to issues...............look at it this way----only 4 months of winter to go..........

Make absolutely sure you do whatever you need to do to make certain when you fire up the generator that it is not still connected to the power lines which could send electricity out on the lines injuring or killing a power company worker. At my house that involves going to the box on the pole outside and flipping both switches. Anything I do in the house after that will not affect the power lines or endanger anyone.

quote:

Originally posted by Gene Hillman:
Make absolutely sure you do whatever you need to do to make certain when you fire up the generator that it is not still connected to the power lines which could send electricity out on the lines injuring or killing a power company worker. At my house that involves going to the box on the pole outside and flipping both switches. Anything I do in the house after that will not affect the power lines or endanger anyone.

This is key advice. A transfer switch and a generator to power the whole house is ideal. With a smaller generator, it may be best to run extension cords to the things you want to power rather than heat up the panel (and potentially backfeed the line).

Around here, the utility guys don’t screw around. The first thing they do is pull the fuses on the incoming line, then ground (with hot sticks) both sides of the break before beginning to work on it.

Even so, if you hook up a generator to the line and through luck or care by the line workers, when the line is re-energized, it will fry the generator. If there are any generators out the that tolerate power being backfeed into them, I am not aware of them.

Wow!!! Ya'll have my sympathy! Being prepared ahead of time is a must do. Good luck.

quote:

Originally posted by sgalczyn:
only 4 months of winter to go..........

Our final significant snow last year was April 19th. In recent years, March and April have become winter-roulette months in our area.

10* would have sucked.

quote:

Originally posted by Gene Hillman:
Make absolutely sure you do whatever you need to do to make certain when you fire up the generator that it is not still connected to the power lines which could send electricity out on the lines injuring or killing a power company worker. At my house that involves going to the box on the pole outside and flipping both switches. Anything I do in the house after that will not affect the power lines or endanger anyone.

Yep! Agree 100% My Main is shut off on the subpanel I'm in. It's the top breaker 100A. I even used a meter to see the 0v on the (technically on it's input). other side.

Coleman lantern makes way more light than candles or hurricane lamps. figured that out on day 3 about 12 years ago.

quote:

Originally posted by KMitch200:

quote:

Originally posted by mark_a:
You could also run a small fan to push heat from the gas logs.

Where do you buy a NG powered fan?

Not sure.

But, since my post was only about using an inverter, one would think you would understand that the fan could be run by the a/c power out of the inverter

quote:

Originally posted by mark_a:
Do you have an inverter of any size? Depending on how new your fridge is an 800 watt may be big enough for you to run the unit for a bit every 3-4 hours.

My concept of an inverter is a device that takes DC power from a battery and converts it to AC power for appliances and lights. Wouldn't using one for an extended emergency require a whopping big battery array?

flashguy

When I first moved in to my house 5 years ago we lost power ever week. I had an electrician install a 50 amp switch so I can hook the generator right into the house. I got a 10kw Generac. I’ve run it for 4 days straight last year. Best decision I ever made.

quote:

Originally posted by ZSMICHAEL:
Run the water to a trickle. One year the frost level was nine feet deep and we had to run the water ALL winter. No sense taking a chance.

For those interested. This is the Mother of all ice storms: {Pics}

https://www.mtlblog.com/photog...-glad-we-survived-it

I was there. We could see Montreal from our front doorstep. We didn’t have power for three weeks, there were some that went five weeks in our little poor-ass county. We had over a foot of ice on our roof. Water was from a well, and we were lucky to have a wood stove.

I don’t know what the accumulation on your roof is like, rogue, but it wasn’t long before our house started creaking under the weight. After about a week, the old man got real nervous about it, so we got up on folding ladders with a hand-sledge and busted holes in the ice just above the gutters to let the melted lower layers of water out, which seemed to make a huge difference. Wear a poncho, I was the one up on the ladder when the water went and came down completely soaked after the coldest shower of my life. Spent the rest of the afternoon wrapped in blankets near the wood stove. The next day, we went up the hill to do the same thing for the elderly neighbors. It was scary business, hoping you didn’t manage to bust loose a chunk big enough to crush you to death.

Oh, and for some of the nice maples in our yard, we tried blasting some of the heavier-laden limbs with 12ga birdshot to get some of the ice off before they went. We actually managed to save a few that way.

quote:

Originally posted by flashguy:

quote:

Originally posted by mark_a:
Do you have an inverter of any size? Depending on how new your fridge is an 800 watt may be big enough for you to run the unit for a bit every 3-4 hours.

My concept of an inverter is a device that takes DC power from a battery and converts it to AC power for appliances and lights. Wouldn't using one for an extended emergency require a whopping big battery array?

flashguy

Not if that DC battery is the one in the car. You can get a Cobra or better a Whistler 800 watt inverter for less than $100. It will run most modern fridges. After the fridge runs for a while you can charge cell phones and other electronics. Then, watch TV or surf SigForum. Turns your csr into a nice generator.

In a toolbox in my Dodge truck I have 2 6-volt golf cart batteries wired in series. They run to a 2500 watt inverter. Among other things, I use it to power my non-battery powered tools working around the Property where I don't have power pulled.

The rest of our vehicles have 800 watt inverters in them mounted on a small piece of plywood. It is nice to have portable power.

Once Power is out the first thing is not to Panic, i have got a few rechargeable Lamps so they have to count. having a backup generator is also a good thing...and if you are home Owner, Security light should be turned on.

quote:

Originally posted by flashguy:

quote:

Originally posted by mark_a:
Do you have an inverter of any size? Depending on how new your fridge is an 800 watt may be big enough for you to run the unit for a bit every 3-4 hours.

My concept of an inverter is a device that takes DC power from a battery and converts it to AC power for appliances and lights. Wouldn't using one for an extended emergency require a whopping big battery array?

flashguy

Yep. You might get a couple hours per typical 12v car battery with a light load.

Those LED lanterns like the Streamlight are a nice option to have around for light.

I guess I'm not communicating well in this thread.

You use the battery in your car. You don't worry about how small the battery is because you RUN THE CAR when you are using the inverter. As long as you have gas you can have power.

Automotive engines are very thrifty at idle. If you have a full tank (and why wouldn't you since you knew a storm was coming) You can make it a long time.

If you store fuel, you are in even better shape. I store 60 gallons of gas. I have (12) 5 gallon cans numbered 1-12. Each month a can gets dumped in a car and refilled. This month I used can #11. Next month, #12. Doing this keeps the fuel rotated and I don't have to worry about additives etc.

Not everyone can store this much but I have enough land to have a small shed away from the house that stores my spare fuel.

No, this won't run your a/c unit or even a coffee maker. But, if you have gas appliances or a camp stove, you can use a coffee percolator for some Java.

You will be able to keep your fridge cold, your phones charged and even watch a little TV

Power still out going on 72 hours. Some fundamental lessons learned which I will elaborate on after I have digested all that I have learned. Stay tuned. Night time lows heading into the teens Wednesday. Should be interesting.

well damn I am unlucky,bought a generator a few years back,it has been run once a year for about 20 minutes for testing purposes.
What a waste of money.

quote:

Originally posted by 45 Cal:
well damn I am unlucky,bought a generator a few years back,it has been run once a year for about 20 minutes for testing purposes.
What a waste of money.

I feel the same way about my fire extinguishers. Had them for about 20 years and never needed them. What a waste of money.