Fast help! No power!

[x1C0DE1x]

So North Carolina has almost a foot of snow and peoples power are going out. I don't have a generator. What do I need to do in order to keep the temperature in my tank stable and not loose any heat? The power hasn't gone out but the risk are getting higher. Thanks for all help!

[duperdave]

you can put a blanket over YOUR tank to help keep the heat in.you also need to get 1 gallon container and scooped up water and dump it back into the circulate and get oxygen in the tank.

[Scffvariable]

Wrap the tank in blankets and battery powered air pump is the cheap solution with varying results.

Personally I would at least go spend couple hundred on a cheap geny. Add up what you have invested and it will be cheap insurance. You can get a decent one for $300-500.

[RedStangGA]

My wife actually said today that our next tank purchase was going to be a generator. She gets it.

[julie180]

+1 wrap the tank and battery powered air pump or inverter. I would imagine a gen is going to be impossible to find right now. Best of luck

[x1C0DE1x]

Well, snowed in....

[jacksonpt]

If you can, a cheap power inverter is a simple short term fix. hook it up to your car battery and run a small pump for circulation along with a heater as needed.

[tommyboynj]

That's a tough one. Heat and gas exchange are your two primary concerns. Wrap the tank in blankets and remove amd replace water every once in a while to foster gas exchange. If you have a gas stove and few empty two litres you can heat water, put it in the bottles and then put the bottles in the tank. Reef tank=generator.

[stan zemanek]

We lost power for 7 days about 2 years ago due to a huge ice storm. So the wife and I decide to put in a whole house generator. Expensive? Yes, but last year one week before hurricane Sandy hit we had all our inspections and approvals from the town. We lost power about 4 hours into the storm and the gene kicked on and ran for 5 straight days just like nothing happened.At the very least, if your serious about this hobby, get yourself a small portable gene or be willing to suffer the inevitable.
Her'es how we did it.
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e319/paintman27/IMG_1750.jpg (http://s42.photobucket.com/user/paintman27/media/IMG_1750.jpg.html)

[sumpfinfishe]

I agree, wrap tank in blankets and use battery powered air pumps, or maybe a neighbor has a spare generator that you can borrow.

[snorvich]

Whole house generator here. But the suggestions above for water movement and heating are excellent.

[fifthtoe]

Where in NC are you located? We got a bunch of ice and snow last night, but everything is all clear now. Roads are wet but that's about it. Everything is open and no closed stores. Reflective insulation works great. It looks like foil bubble wrap. It's used to wrap hot water heaters and stuff. It works great at reflecting heat back. I use it on my dog beds and the bottoms don't feel warm at all any more. You can get it at lowes or Home Depot. One layer would probably suffice, but two would hurt. You can get a big role of it.

[DopeCantWin]

We lost power for 7 days about 2 years ago due to a huge ice storm. So the wife and I decide to put in a whole house generator. Expensive? Yes, but last year one week before hurricane Sandy hit we had all our inspections and approvals from the town. We lost power about 4 hours into the storm and the gene kicked on and ran for 5 straight days just like nothing happened.At the very least, if your serious about this hobby, get yourself a small portable gene or be willing to suffer the inevitable.
Her'es how we did it.
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e319/paintman27/IMG_1750.jpg (http://s42.photobucket.com/user/paintman27/media/IMG_1750.jpg.html)

That's awesome, it looks like your generator might be bigger than some people's houses.

[Uncle Salty 05]

My wife actually said today that our next tank purchase was going to be a generator. She gets it.

If you decide to get a generator I highly recommend this one.
It starts on the first pull and is whisper quiet.

http://www.electricgeneratorsdirect.com/Honda-EU2000IA1-Portable-Generator/p8519.html?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=honda%20eu2000i&utm_campaign=models+honda

[Jeff000]

We lost power for 7 days about 2 years ago due to a huge ice storm. So the wife and I decide to put in a whole house generator. Expensive? Yes, but last year one week before hurricane Sandy hit we had all our inspections and approvals from the town. We lost power about 4 hours into the storm and the gene kicked on and ran for 5 straight days just like nothing happened.At the very least, if your serious about this hobby, get yourself a small portable gene or be willing to suffer the inevitable.
Her'es how we did it.
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e319/paintman27/IMG_1750.jpg (http://s42.photobucket.com/user/paintman27/media/IMG_1750.jpg.html)

Damn, that looks like a beautiful piece of property. And nice generator building.

I'm glad it takes a LOT here to knock out the power, and I have never known what snowed in is, 18" of snow over 24 hours, no problem, a car can get down most roads still. And my truck and jeep are unstoppable. I think 8 hours is the longest I have heard the power has been out here. Apparently even when the tornado went through in 89 most piles of rubble still had power.

My next house will be almost off grid, and have a whole house gen set. Probably not as pretty a house for the genset though.



As for the OP, blankets, and scoop and pour water. If it starts getting real chilly, a gas stove or camping stove to heat water for a bottle to float would be the next step.

[Dr Colliebreath]

Umm, I think Stan's generator is the small 3'x2' unit next to the steps and the propane tanks, and not the entire A-frame building. :lmao:

[Jeff000]

Umm, I think Stan's generator is the small 3'x2' unit next to the steps and the propane tanks, and not the entire A-frame building. :lmao:

lol, it appears you are correct. Viewing on a cell phone :o

[tommyboynj]

Umm, I think Stan's generator is the small 3'x2' unit next to the steps and the propane tanks, and not the entire A-frame building. :lmao:

The building is probably just where he keeps the frag tanks.

[x1C0DE1x]

Fortunately the power never went out but I know a lot of people whose power did go out. I live in Charlotte and e got a foot of snow in total the last 2 days. Thanks for the help everyone.

[julie180]

Now that that panic is over, its time to plan for the next then hope it never happens!!

[rockslide123]

you can usually find inverters at auto parts stores. Probably need a decent extension cord to go from car to tank. Might be obvious but don;t get tempted to close the garage door while running the car. I just put the car outside let it idle with the hood gently closed. If security is an issue you can usually lock cars while the're running if you use the button on the passenger door. you'd be surprised how long a car can idle on a tank of gas.