The recent meteorological catastrophes illustrate the importance of having some form of backup power generation equipment. In Florida, nearly 6 million people are without power. See how it would affect your family. Turn off your power for 72 hours and note how you cope with no power. The fridge dies, and perishables spoil, if you’re on a well no water. Floods can affect the delivery of gas, and may contaminate the city’s water supply. Hot humid weather is a health risk for the elderly and the very young. No power no A/C, grandma maybe at risk, or a new born infant may suffer under these conditions.

Emergency Preparedness Food Supply

So, if your home is high and dry and you’re going to weather the storm you need your own generator. Flooding is a real disaster and power restoration such as in Florida could be delayed for weeks. You need at least a 72-hour emergency kit, and 90 days’ worth of food and water. Most of us could survive a week perhaps up to 10 days, if the refrigerator has no power. Many Americans are woefully unprepared to face a crisis. Stores, if intact only carry about three days of merchandise on the shelf or warehouse. So, don’t expect resupply any time soon. You got what you got and that is it.

Condensation in Fuel Tanks

If you have a good source of natural gas you can power your generator indefinitely. But flooding and earthquake may compromise the gas supply. Natural gas and propane do not deteriorate. With no leakage, your 20lb barbecue tank will be as good in 100 years from now as it is today. No fuel storage is easy, but with propane it is simpler. Gasoline and diesel tanks are vented to the atmosphere and can absorb moisture from condensation, but the water and fuel will separate with the water on the bottom and fuel on top and can be separated. This only affects long term storage of fuels. Keeping the fuel tank full minimizes condensation, in your generator and your car. Keep it full. You may have to bug out, make sure you’ve got your 72 hours emergency kit for every member of the family.

Hook Up a Generator to a House

In the case where you decide to weather the storm you need to hook up your generator. Automatic startup and switching is the best way to go. On a dark stormy night with rain drops the size of a big-gulp, you don’t want to go outside in the rain and play with anything electrical, so automatic startup and switching is a must. Upon installation of your generator a transfer panel is installed connecting the generator to the homes electrical panel. The unit detects the power grid outage and starts the generator with only a minor lag. When the grid lights up again, the system will be shut down saving fuel. Many of the newer generator rigs will also run their own diagnostic routines to ensure operation. They start up the engine monthly or bimonthly and run tests on the generator head, making sure its ready to run. With liquid fuels, you must check fuel levels. If propane fueled make sure you have enough fuel to run at least 72 hours or more.

Generator Hookups, Transfer Switches, Emergency Backup Power Portable & Permanent Installations in Pompano Beach, Oakland Park, Plantation, Deerfield Beach, Hollywood, Boca Raton, Davie, Fort Lauderdale & South Florida

An electrician can install the switch and you can run a permanently installed unit or simply plug in your mobile unit. Burley Electrical Services offers generator hookups, transfer switches, emergency backup power portable and permanent installations. Contact us for all your electrical wiring needs.