.

[Deleted member 8461]

.

 

[SpringFever552]

Generator covers all your concerns..also outdoor natural gas bbq for cooking.
Like camping in your own home

If "charging" your home up with generator remember to turn your main breaker to "off" so not to put power back into system when crews are working on lines.

Live in east Courtenay and have yet to loose power in almost 6.5yrs

 

[Trophy]

Retired to acreage in Qualicum Beach back in 2009. Power used to go out 8 to 12 hours at a time with a few 2-3 hour stints. Purchased a gas generator and since then it has hardly gone out! Maybe thats the secret? Still have a backup plan:
Generator at the ready
Drinking water stored and refreshed regularly (plans to get well pump on generator)
Septic system, back onto Little Q, water available to flush
Pantry always full
Extra candles, batteries
Experimented with a heat source and found the “noma oscillating parabolic radiating heater” as the most effective heater with less power drain on generator. More power for TV/internet/fridges/freezer/lights. Storm Trooper, your expertise with solar would really help here. Solar definitely quieter than the generator!
Boat heater (kerosene) at the ready as is the patio propane heater and bbq. Two propane tanks always full.
Truck/boat/tractor gas tanks kept full. 50 gallons always on hand.

 

[Islander57]

We keep a generator, I also have a three burner Camp Chef stove and a charcoal BBQ. I live in Comox, and if the power goes out, it seems to be out throughout all of Comox. We also keep a decent supply of dry foods. I live close to Salish Seafoods, so if need be, and they remain open I can grab a cooler or two of flake ice if needed. Lots of warm bedding, and a good supply of LED battery lights and batteries to keep us going.

 

[SpringFever552]

I sold my generator three years ago. I am going for near zero noise and emissions if at all possible. I recognize burning wood has some effect. I am also looking for solutions that I can use while camping or on a boat as well. Thanks for the tips, keep em coming.

The scenario is 3 days to a week without Hydro - what do you do?

My son lives off the grid in Bowser..
He's using mainly solar and generator for backup and has looked at wind.
His amps were down with all the smoke we had last mth but still managed to get by...uses propane also for heating water and when needed furnace

 

[TheHurtLocker]

I happen to know there are a bunch of Lineman that work for BCH on this site. Probably just message one of them if you’re out of power. ️

 

[Islander57]

The last time we had a multi day power outage in Comox....about eight years ago, I drove to Campbell River and picked up dry ice at Praxair to put in my freezer. Worked great

 

[cuttlefish]

Still have all the same stuff from when we lived off the grid forty years ago. Kerosene lamps (with fresh kerosene of course), headlamps and candles for lights, wood stove for heating, propane stove for cooking as well as the recent addition of a Cobb cooker (charcoal) for roasting. Flashlights, radios (vhf and fm for CBC) etc. and extra batteries in ditch bag. It all still works fine. We use it all quite often here on NVI so everything gets a regular workout.
As for fridge and freezer, cook stove, heating, you will never power those with solar so generator outside and extension cords for the three freezers. We eat out of the fridge and fridge feezer first. We try to keep the other two in the basement full with food or ice packs and don't open them till power returns. Lots of ca

 

[The Jackel]

When we built the new house, put in a 17kw genny, fires up when the power goes out, also have a honda 2000 and 3000i. I have 8 cords of wood in the wood shed and the house has an open design so the wood stove heats 90% of the house. The genny runs on propane and we have the big butt tank, which is also hooked up to the house for the bbq. Have all my hunting and camping stuff in the garage if needed, enough food to last months, so Bob's your uncle.

 

[Da Bay Bye]

I sold my generator three years ago. I am going for near zero noise and emissions if at all possible. I recognize burning wood has some effect. I am also looking for solutions that I can use while camping or on a boat as well. Thanks for the tips, keep em coming.

The scenario is 3 days to a week without Hydro - what do you do?

Been there, done that for 5 days in Nova Scotia after Hurricane Juan tore through.

No generator and living on a well and septic. Fridge and freezer contents mostly lost. Cooked on a BBQ and a Coleman camp stove. Because my well was dug, I could get buckets of water for the toilet. Mostly bought food to cook for day to day needs. Heat was not needed as it was late September when it happened.

Lessons learned were: 1. Keep 5 gallon water jug filled for drinking water.
2. Bought a gas generator as backup ( keep 5 gallons of fresh gas available)
3. Bought a small electric heater (110 volt) for room heat.

 

[Stizzla]

The scenario is 3 days to a week without Hydro - what do you do?

Come to your house. You’ve been preparing for this!

 

[bigdogg1]

Generators are great - use them periodically so they do not sit! Also a good idea to buy a container of synthetic fuel to store and have on hand. Aspen is one of the better products...3-5 year shelf life for when you need it.

https://aspenfuel.co.uk/find-out-more/faq-testimonials/

 

[spring fever]

I,m not doing anything except rely on Trudeau and the feel good federal gov't-I'm sure they will come through if needed!~!

 

[Bows Up]

When we built, we bought wood stoves with actual cook tops on them . Hard to find given this is Canada but with the frequent outages we experience on the North island a godsend.

Think romance , buy candles.