Things you learn after a power outage..

Rocker

An old style wired phone will work assuming the phone line remains up.

A battery operated radio. Or one of those wind up radios.

A couple of camper style gas stove. Allows you to fry sausages/eggs while the kettle is boiling on the second stove.

A supply of candles/torches/head lights.

You can recharge a mobile phone in your car or using a car jump start device.

A car jump start device can power some essential medical devices like CPAPs

Switch off the central heating boiler before going to bed (during a power outage). You don't want the system running during the night if the power returns.

Phil_aka_Pip

You should have invested in a UPS to protect your stereo/computer/digital recorder.

You shouldn't have bought stereo kit with a microprocessor in, designed by a clever chap but who is hard put to service the kit and he's the only one on the planet with the knowledge and skills to fix it. Instead you should have got kit that can be serviced by any competent audio engineer and for which circuit schematics are easily googlable.

You shouldn't have bought a house that depends entirely on lekky for its heating, hot water & cooking. It's why in my last house I had red bottled gas for heating & cooking (the only reliable thing about the lekky supply was the price hikes).

speshul91

i need a better plan than hope i can run an extension lead from a neighbours for my fish tanks

scrumhalf

Rocker said:

Switch off the central heating boiler before going to bed (during a power outage). You don't want the system running during the night if the power returns.

After a power outage the controller for my boiler reverts to its factory pre-set which keeps it on for half the day. It can't be changed. Bastards.

Bridgehouse

Interestingly we still install a pbx analogue line into new schools to attach a domestic style telephone to in case of power outage - the current is delivered down the analogue copper and hence works when your power goes down.

Ah. Old school technology. 

Emp_Fab

speshul91 said:

i need a better plan than hope i can run an extension lead from a neighbours for my fish tanks

Yep.  If your power is out, it's almost a dead cert your neighbour's will be too.

Do you know what the total wattage is for your tanks?  (assuming you can manage without the lights) ?

ICBM

Bridgehouse said:

Interestingly we still install a pbx analogue line into new schools to attach a domestic style telephone to in case of power outage - the current is delivered down the analogue copper and hence works when your power goes down.

Ah. Old school technology. 

I have an old analogue wired phone for exactly the same reason.

I also have a small portable generator - only 850W, but that's enough to run essentials like the central heating boiler and controller - because of course even though it's gas, it's no use without an electricity supply - charge mobile phones etc. I bought it after the 2010 winter when we were without power for over 24 hrs and it was starting to get very cold in the house, and of course that hasn't happened again since! But it really does make you realise how dependent we are on electricity.

speshul91

Emp_Fab said:

speshul91 said:

i need a better plan than hope i can run an extension lead from a neighbours for my fish tanks

Yep.  If your power is out, it's almost a dead cert your neighbour's will be too.

Do you know what the total wattage is for your tanks?  (assuming you can manage without the lights) ?

no i don't the main community tank has got a 100w heater and 2 filters which make for 1500 lph though.

Danny1969

When I was growing up power cuts happened quite often and could sometimes last for 2 days. Wasn't a huge problem as no one had central heating back then and with only 3 channels available on the TV it wasn't the be and end all of entertainment. The only real worry was the freezer but if you kept the door shut it would stay frozen for a day. 

Candles are a great source of heat and light

Zoolooter

All set for brexit then.

Phil_aka_Pip

Bridgehouse said:

Ah. Old school technology. 

Best kind

Alvin

Should have bought an acoustic .

Emp_Fab

speshul91 said: 

Emp_Fab said:

speshul91 said:

i need a better plan than hope i can run an extension lead from a neighbours for my fish tanks

Yep.  If your power is out, it's almost a dead cert your neighbour's will be too.

Do you know what the total wattage is for your tanks?  (assuming you can manage without the lights) ?

no i don't the main community tank has got a 100w heater and 2 filters which make for 1500 lph though.

Emp_Fab

Bloody quote system on here is shite...

I was going to ask when was the last time you had a power cut?

RandallFlagg

Power outage? Don't we have power cuts in there UK?

Anyway I think a power cut is a great time to engage in the joy of sex

ToneControl

and the electricity can drop to 130v for a bit, and fry the motherboard on your dual Xeon server

luckily it had a 3 year on site warranty

speshul91

Emp_Fab said:

speshul91 said: 

Emp_Fab said:

speshul91 said:

i need a better plan than hope i can run an extension lead from a neighbours for my fish tanks

Yep.  If your power is out, it's almost a dead cert your neighbour's will be too.

Do you know what the total wattage is for your tanks?  (assuming you can manage without the lights) ?

no i don't the main community tank has got a 100w heater and 2 filters which make for 1500 lph though.

i honestly can't remember.

Bridgehouse

ICBM said:

Bridgehouse said:

Interestingly we still install a pbx analogue line into new schools to attach a domestic style telephone to in case of power outage - the current is delivered down the analogue copper and hence works when your power goes down.

Ah. Old school technology. 

I have an old analogue wired phone for exactly the same reason.

I also have a small portable generator - only 850W, but that's enough to run essentials like the central heating boiler and controller - because of course even though it's gas, it's no use without an electricity supply - charge mobile phones etc. I bought it after the 2010 winter when we were without power for over 24 hrs and it was starting to get very cold in the house, and of course that hasn't happened again since! But it really does make you realise how dependent we are on electricity.

Main reason we do it in schools is so someone can make the "can you pick your child up? We have no power so school is closed" call.

Even a reserve mobile is useless as it can run out and then not get charged up.

BigMonka

ICBM said:

Bridgehouse said:

Interestingly we still install a pbx analogue line into new schools to attach a domestic style telephone to in case of power outage - the current is delivered down the analogue copper and hence works when your power goes down.

Ah. Old school technology. 

I have an old analogue wired phone for exactly the same reason.

I also have a small portable generator - only 850W, but that's enough to run essentials like the central heating boiler and controller - because of course even though it's gas, it's no use without an electricity supply - charge mobile phones etc. I bought it after the 2010 winter when we were without power for over 24 hrs and it was starting to get very cold in the house, and of course that hasn't happened again since! But it really does make you realise how dependent we are on electricity.

Do you have a good way of hooking the genny up to the house? Or is your boiler on a plug that you can run off an extension from the generator?

ICBM

BigMonka said:

Do you have a good way of hooking the genny up to the house? Or is your boiler on a plug that you can run off an extension from the generator?

I have a slightly dodgy but functional method of connecting the generator to the house mains, having first made sure the house is disconnected from the incoming supply so I'm not trying to power the whole village .

A double-ended 13A cable which can be plugged into the generator and into the outside power socket by the back door . Obviously a bit dodgy since if you connect only one end of it to a live system the other end is a 13A plug with exposed pins...

dano

Keep some old school porn mags in the shed, loft etc. You can't get instant access to Internet porn during a power outage.


Also keep a battery torch to read the stuff too.