calf hutch /generator shed

[peter lena 8,608]

picked up this  rear crushed , calf hutch  for cheap, years ago , cut off  back end , added  vinyl fencing , for air intake side . 171 pic, front entry  pic 122 is now generator exhaust spot . bottom  2" pvc piping  screwed on  for easy sliding/ movement . basically roll up generator  to pic 154  , and lower it down to ground ,  image 63  big box plug in point ,with cable to basement gen tran switch . heavy weather just drape a heavy chain over it , goes no where  , stays absolutely  dry and happy .  runs under that as long as I  need it , no problems at all . unused it just sits next to my shed. like this type / style  / size ,  just another  opportunity  for a weather issue under power .  you might ask a local farmer , thats what I  did , he even delivered it , pete

[ebinmaine 67,408]

Excellent repurpose.   

[SylvanLakeWH 25,525]

[Sparky-(Admin) 21,314]

  I like that “hut” idea if I was forced to store my generator outside.
  But luckily I have a walk out basement so she lives inside next to the breaker panels where even on the coldest days (like 5 degrees today!!) it never gets below 60 degrees. It’s also always plugged in to the little battery tender thingy that it came with. 
 

 

[peter lena 8,608]

@Sparky  MERRY CHRISTMAS !  wish I  had a walk out basement , we had a couple of  power blips  last night , we also have a sump pump that has been working overtime with  ground water , so I  set up the gen  in the shed , just in case we had a power outage over night , set up ready to go . of course  nothing  went out , not even me . will run the gen to day  for basics before it goes back in the  big shed , pete

[peter lena 8,608]

@Sparky   snug as a bug in a rug , gen warm / dry  , giving us  basic power  till the failure is fixed . lay a heavy chain over the top of it , to assist  no movement .  instant start , Stabil fuel additive , clean / clear fuel lines , filters  clean clear . have a good one , Pete     

[Sparky-(Admin) 21,314]

7 hours ago, peter lena said:

@Sparky   snug as a bug in a rug , gen warm / dry  , giving us  basic power  till the failure is fixed . 

@peter lena

We got lucky and never lost power at the house. The submarine base (work) however lost power this morning for about an hour. 

[peter lena 8,608]

@Sparky  lost power for about 8 hours , lots of related tree / line take downs . heard about the base , power issue . glad to be back on line , Pete

[ML3 1,197]

Eventually I want to get a automated generator setup at this house. Had one at my last house. Had well water so when power went out also lost water. 

 

We moved into this house about 2 years ago. Downsized & absolutely have no regrets. My girlfriends she shed is 10'x16'. I divided off 6' with a separate entrance for lawn equipment storage, etc. I have an electric start tri fuel generator installed on the utility side of shed. There's 2 fresh air vents & a shutter attic fan to exhaust heat & fumes. The exhaust is routed high up thru the wall with a kit purchased for that application/installation.  All I have to do is start generator & run power cord about 15ft to a 30a connector on back of house. I had electrician install a interlock switch on fuse box. Overall it was quite cost effective. Only drawback being it's not automated. For now it will have to do. Fortunately,  I don't have a basement so no need to worry about a sump pump. 

[ebinmaine 67,408]

2 hours ago, peter lena said:

@Sparky  lost power for about 8 hours , lots of related tree / line take downs . heard about the base , power issue . glad to be back on line , Pete

Been out since 9:15 AM with no ETA for restoration.  

Around half the State of Maine is out tonight.  

Hellacious storm... 

[cleat 5,918]

We have got almost 2" of rain over the last 24 hours and it is well above freezing out

if it was colder and that was all snow it would have been terrible.

 

I hope you get power back soon, it's crazy how much we depend on it now.

 

[ebinmaine 67,408]

9 hours ago, cleat said:

We have got almost 2" of rain over the last 24 hours and it is well above freezing out

if it was colder and that was all snow it would have been terrible.

 

I hope you get power back soon, it's crazy how much we depend on it now.

 

 

 

Lucky for us it was a work from home day for Trina.

She's usually prepared for most things anyway so we were pretty well set up.

Just a matter of time now.....

 

We really could use a slightly larger generator so I may have to get one of my vintage ones going.  

[peter lena 8,608]

@ebinmaine   have a sump pump , and live on the road  front of cleared  farm /   sloped area , ground water  from  tree/ vegetation removal , those gen Tran  units , like everything else is ridiculous pricing , have enough for  pump / heat / basic electrical , if I  were to upgrade , be a 15k  rolling unit , and step up electrical plug in . that would let me run , everything in the house . good for now , pate

[lynnmor 7,304]

My new neighbor didn't move in yet, he is busy getting the property suitable for his lifestyle.  One thing is to pull the electric submersible pump and replace it with a gasoline powered one that is connected with a flexshaft.  Along with removing all wiring, he had two larger dump trucks of manure dumped on the front lawn just to make if feel more like home. 

[peter lena 8,608]

@lynnmor   boy , that really outdoes me on a reference / suggestion . on the other hand , we do have 30 plus head of cows , just behind us , rarely do we hear , or  anything related to  cows , also have deer and turkey , just behind the yard fence , pete

[Handy Don 12,210]

On 12/18/2023 at 8:09 PM, ebinmaine said:

Been out since 9:15 AM with no ETA for restoration.  

Around half the State of Maine is out tonight.  

Hellacious storm... 

Woke up Monday at 4:30 AM to no power. I had gone to sleep hearing the sump pump cycle every 10 mins or less still catching up with the previous heavy rain!

Minor stress getting battery lighting going, the generator going and stuff plugged in, checking fridges & sumps, reporting the outage, and realizing I had only a couple gallons of gas in the cans (at moderate load, the gen uses a bit less than a quart per hour). So...a 5:00 AM drive to 24 hour gas station and stock up. Sump pump now cyling every 6 minutes!

Repair supervisor was onsite by 8:30. A wind-blown branch had fallen on the low voltage distribution lines and tripped the breaker on the nearby transformer--second time this has happened. Bucket truck showed by 9:15 and power was back on at 10:00. Whew!

The supervisor said that because several people on the block had all reported it very early, we were a “multiple” and near the top of the repair dispatch list! Some others in town didn’t get repairs until Tuesday afternoon.

[ebinmaine 67,408]

7 hours ago, Handy Don said:

The supervisor said that because several people on the block had all reported it very early, we were a “multiple” and near the top of the repair dispatch list! Some others in town didn’t get repairs until Tuesday afternoon

 

Central Maine Power's dispatch is done very differently nowadays. 

They're notified by Smart Meters as to the status of our usage, including the power being out.  

 

They repair and return electricity based on a bang for the buck system for the most part. 

Major roads are restored first. 

Health care centers take priority. 

Stretches where supply chain businesses also. 

 

 

Our road is about 4.5 miles long and has short dead end spurs off of it. 

Total customer count around 85 I believe.  

 

We're not top of the list having neither of the above mentioned commercial entities but we don't usually wait more than 24 to 48 hours. 

MANY places around the state are out much longer.  

 

 

[ML3 1,197]

So glad I don't have deal w/sump pumps. My 1st house many many years ago had a sump pump. It was in town so I had had city water & sewer. The backup sump pump was powered by the city water pressure. So if power was out causing electric sump pump to be inop the back up pump engaged using water pressure to power it. They can be purchased for as little as $400. Definitely a great backup but one must have city water.  

 

I've always had a multi fuel generator. Chances are if I don't have power the local fuel station probably doesn't have power. I do still store about 25gal of ethanol free fuel. Nice to have other fuel options. Gas, propane,  or natural gas. I mostly run off the natural gas but of course just like city water it had to be available. Propane works well too & like natural gas there's nothing that's going to gum up carb like gasoline can. 

[Sailman 1,291]

Here in North Georgia we don't have the same winter weather as you folks. However, its not uncommon to have an ice storm at least once each winter and with all the trees here we have broken branches, fallen trees, etc that take out the power lines for up to a week some times. I have a propane Mr Heater to supplement our heat pump when temps get in the teens and during an outage we use it with my Jackery solar generator to run the fan. Also keep the fireplace stoked during the day, propane camp stove for cooking, inverter and batteries to run basic electrics and lights as needed. Recharge batteries with solar panels. Lastly, I fire up the small generator every 4-6 hours just to keep the fridge and freezer cold. We stay snug and warm for the duration! End up taking the generator to neighbors with the GT 14 to keep their refrigerated food from spoiling.

Edited December 21, 2023 by Sailman

[Handy Don 12,210]

 

On 12/21/2023 at 4:37 AM, ebinmaine said:

Central Maine Power's dispatch is done very differently nowadays. 

They're notified by Smart Meters as to the status of our usage, including the power being out.  

Con Ed has a similar system using the meters (though these meters are not yet system-wide) and the “affected customers” logic but the called-in reports do affect their algorithm. It helped that they had good advance notice of the likely impact of the storm and prepared with standby crews. Note that some years ago the utility’s poor storm prep and response left thousands without power for up to a week (five days for us). The supervising commission took them to the woodshed over it with fines and new performance standards. Some executives lost their jobs and most lost their bonuses that year.)

 

The issue I’m grappling with is that I was home and still physically able to set up the alternate power. Had no one, or only my spouse, been home this would have been a different story. I’m starting to investigate options with automatic cutover for the critical stuff via solar with batteries or a natural gas whole-house system. (One neighbor has a 30kw backup system and his wife complained to us that it won’t let her run the A/C at the same time she is cooking. Different universe.)

Edited December 22, 2023 by Handy Don

[peter lena 8,608]

@Handy Don  thats  the trade off , in stand by power .  length of  power loss , we typically have multiple trucks from all over the country  assist  in areas , they don't leave till that area is 100% on line , then off to the next . a 15 k  portable unit will run entire house ,, not that you have to , but being able to use the  electric range / or central a/c depending on power , is very good stuff.  from my experience  just checking on a  stand by unit , there is a  year wait , in possible  installation / availability , very high demand . of course , everyone's  set up is totally different . power is usually back , same day , so its a doable thing . getting older does not make this any easier , sparky , Pete