Does Anyone Here Prep for if the grid goes down or a cyberattack?

[Ponderling]

Use Fuel Stabilizer in your ethanol-free fuel. And when you shut off your generator, go it by shutting off the fuel so it runs the carb dry.

I run a old school 3kW non invertor genny.
Generac with made in usa Briggs & Stratton motor. Noisy, yes.
But with enough surge capacity to start the natural gas furnace glow ignitor while also running the freezer and household LED lighting etc.
Or run a skill saw or air compressor on off the grid construction jobs.

But, yes, one step more I use for reliable start after storage.

While just a bit of gas left in the tank, mix in some SeaFoam at prescribed rate of solvent, shake machine well.
Ride choke so it will stay running on the solvent mix.
And run with a hair dryer load until it runs dry.
Hair dryer speeds the run dry time.
Then drop the carb bowl and toss the last bit of fuel there

I buy CTC supreme grade fuel, allegedly Ethanol free. Then stabilize it.
Usually I fill the cache in mid July before thunderstorm storm risk season comes to town.

Then we consume the over wintered cache in our cars in March when winter storm risk has passed.

I have fleet of 16 Coleman white gas cans that I have rust resist sprayed the tops on.
I use these as my first line of over winter storage stabilized fuel, kept on a shelf under the overhang of my back yard shed.

I have learned that trying to wrestle a 10l or larger red gas jug to fuel a genny in winter wearing gloves is not a very easy thing to do without spilling.
Smaller multiple cans for the first effort of getting gas in and the machine running after a power fail is a much nicer experience.

 

[Ponderling]

Along with 3 large bags of rice.

I still do old school home canning of stuff I cook up.
I typically make batches of 10L of chili, spaghetti meat sauce, baked beans, barley lentil soup etc.
I can fit 7x1l jars into the pressure canner, and the other 3x1l we stick in the fridge and eat up as fresh in a week or two.

The pressure can jars go to shelves in the basement cold cellar.
Along with summer made jams and relishes.
So there is likely 6 weeks easy stashed there mist of the time.

Bulk Barn sells potato flakes, and they are a way easier to cook up side than rice when power is off.
Add boiled water, whisk and wait for a few minutes and then eat.

 

[JuanGoodman]

I think that if the grid goes down and you are still in the city after about 2 or 3 months

then you are in real trouble

booze, cigarettes and chocolate might be good to trade for other things

 

[Indiana]

 

[JuanGoodman]

View attachment 309180

this guy wouldn't survive even a month

"it's better to have a gun and not need it,

then to need a gun and don't have it"

 

[roadhog]

How long will the gennie run on three bags of rice?

Forever if it's a Honda.

 

[SchlongConery]

Always use a fuel stabilizer in your tank, if it sits around for any length of time. Gas goes bad and your engine won't start.

and @Ponderling

I used to swear by fuel stabilizer too. But then I watched this Project Farm video and seems its not as effective as I thought. Big takeaway is the damage from ethanol gas. Fucked up my 15 HP Honda outboard years ago and I've never allowed ethanol in my small engines since.

Also, even non-ethanol gas goes bad. So that's why I mentioned the rotation and using it through your car before it goes bad. Add the five gallons to a half fulll tank on your car/truck so it is diluted.

 

[SchlongConery]

I run a old school 3kW non invertor genny.
Generac with made in usa Briggs & Stratton motor. Noisy, yes.
But with enough surge capacity to start the natural gas furnace glow ignitor while also running the freezer and household LED lighting etc.
Or run a skill saw or air compressor on off the grid construction jobs.

But, yes, one step more I use for reliable start after storage.

While just a bit of gas left in the tank, mix in some SeaFoam at prescribed rate of solvent, shake machine well.
Ride choke so it will stay running on the solvent mix.
And run with a hair dryer load until it runs dry.
Hair dryer speeds the run dry time.
Then drop the carb bowl and toss the last bit of fuel there

I buy CTC supreme grade fuel, allegedly Ethanol free. Then stabilize it.
Usually I fill the cache in mid July before thunderstorm storm risk season comes to town.

Then we consume the over wintered cache in our cars in March when winter storm risk has passed.

I have fleet of 16 Coleman white gas cans that I have rust resist sprayed the tops on.
I use these as my first line of over winter storage stabilized fuel, kept on a shelf under the overhang of my back yard shed.

I have learned that trying to wrestle a 10l or larger red gas jug to fuel a genny in winter wearing gloves is not a very easy thing to do without spilling.
Smaller multiple cans for the first effort of getting gas in and the machine running after a power fail is a much nicer experience.

All great practices and advice! The old single cylinder B&S engines are bulletproof. Never had good luck with Tecumseh... especially with snowblower

Seafoam is good. So is Marvel Mystery Oil. I do something similar with Rust Check spray to fog the cylinder just as she dies out. Cottage standby generator (Briggs on propane) does an Auto run every Monday but I would shut down completely for the winter so I always fog it and then pull the plugs (2 cylinder Briggs Vanguard- bulletproof) and put some straight 30W in and turn it over a few revolutions to hopefully keep the rust off the cylinders.

The Honda and another 3500 Briggs I do as you do and as I describeed earlier.

Just checked and it seems that ethanol free gas has pretty much been discontinued since May 2023. But I swear I bought some from an Etobicoke Shell in January for the Honda 2000

Here is a crowdsourced website with some locations. Seems to only show places outside the GTA

Pure-gas.org - ethanol-free gasoline in the U.S. and Canada

Pure-gas.org is the definitive web site listing stations that sell pure gasoline in the U.S. and Canada.

www.pure-gas.org

 

[SchlongConery]

Just remembered seeing something for the Honda and found it. Gas, propane or Nat Gas. Might be an alternative to storing gasoline in the city. Just hook it up to a natural gas BBQ connection. I wonder if the power output is lower with the Nat gas having less energy than gasoline?

Honda EU2000i Propane, Natural Gas & Gasoline Generator Tri-Fuel Kit

Kit Options Essential Kit: The Essential Kit gives you everything you need to convert and run your little Honda generator on a standard 20/30lb propane tank. Pro Kit: The Pro Kit gives you an additional hose and bracket that allows you to run your Honda generator on natural gas or directly to...

www.hutchmountain.com

 

[JuanGoodman]

Just remembered seeing something for the Honda and found it. Gas, propane or Nat Gas. Might be an alternative to storing gasoline in the city. Just hook it up to a natural gas BBQ connection. I wonder if the power output is lower with the Nat gas having less energy than gasoline?

Honda EU2000i Propane, Natural Gas & Gasoline Generator Tri-Fuel Kit

Kit Options Essential Kit: The Essential Kit gives you everything you need to convert and run your little Honda generator on a standard 20/30lb propane tank. Pro Kit: The Pro Kit gives you an additional hose and bracket that allows you to run your Honda generator on natural gas or directly to...

www.hutchmountain.com

the problem with generators is that sooner or later you will run out of fuel

all depends how long the grid will be down

 

[SchlongConery]

the problem with generators is that sooner or later you will run out of fuel

all depends how long the grid will be down

That's why I mentioned the Nat gas conversion kit. And also becuz of the hassle of gas and no more ethanol-free gas.

 

[wigglee]

Some clown posted on Facebook that the banks are gonna fail during the coming eclipse!

 

[Not getting younger]

Living where I do it’s a necessity and fact of life. High winds and more frequently knock down power lines. Worst yet has been close to 72 hours.

wont get into too much or too detailed, just the basics and redundancy.

A duel fuel generator that can power the house ( start up/run loads). I have 60 pounds ( 2x30) of dedicated propane, I simply don’t touch until needed. plus 20 pound tanks I use for BBQ. I start with the 20s. So I always have roughly 100 pounds of propane on hand and can quickly get more if I think it might last and the 20s run dry. Propane that doesn’t go stale, or gum up carburetors. Last thing you want is a genny that won’t start.

If all my propane runs out, and I can’t get refills because gas stations are down too, or I can’t buy new pre filled 20s… I always have lots of gas too that I have on hand for boat, cars lawn tractor, other stuff, that’s always fairly fresh. But so far, haven’t needed to use gas in it.

The genny hooks up to my hydro meter. Plug it in, turn it on, and all is good.

Total cost, genny plus meter link ( back then ) about $2,500. Compared to Generacs and standbys. I can buy 4 or more new gennys If I ever need to replace the genny. So figure I’m good for 20 or more years. I always test it in Oct.

Orher than that. Cash in the house to buy 20pound propane from corner stores or who ever doesn’t need their 20s and neighbors that might like to warm their hands or a warm bed for a night. In the cold cellar about 20 litres of water and some dry food /canned stuff.

Plus my guns, bows, and fishing equipment, incase it’s armegeddon, or zombies or Someone tries to steal my genny

 

[RaphaelD]

I used it to power an old sump pump to keep my basement from flooding too much. Most of my neighbours were fucked.

Mostly because you pump your basement water into your neighbour’s backyard

 

[explorerzip]

Mostly because you pump your basement water into your neighbour’s backyard

Most of went onto my driveway, but I'm sure some of it ended up in my neighbour's basement. That's why I took advantage of the basement flooding rebate to install a sump pump as soon as it was available. I didn't want to be the only house on the street without any flood prevention devices.

 

[GameBoy27]

and @Ponderling

I used to swear by fuel stabilizer too. But then I watched this Project Farm video and seems its not as effective as I thought. Big takeaway is the damage from ethanol gas. Fucked up my 15 HP Honda outboard years ago and I've never allowed ethanol in my small engines since.

Also, even non-ethanol gas goes bad. So that's why I mentioned the rotation and using it through your car before it goes bad. Add the five gallons to a half fulll tank on your car/truck so it is diluted.]

I've never had that problem. I use this fuel treatment year-round in my vintage car that sits during the winter months. It eliminates ethanol from the fuel. Give it a try in your outboard. All my friends also run it in their high-performance Merc outboards. Excellent stuff.

 

[explorerzip]

If you have a "suicide cord" electrical setup, know that is illegal and dangerous and its mere presence can invalidate your insurance even if it didn't have anything to do with a loss. . Lots of info on why etc but I'm sure you know it and I'm not going to change your mind. https://www.consumerreports.org/hom...extension-cords-are-so-dangerous-a1189731437/

Here is a proper Manual Transfer switch for $68 on Amazon.

I also have a Honda EU2000i that is 20 years old and had to replace the carb last year... just when I needed it most. Do what you want but fuel seals only last so long and the needle and seat in the carb only needs a little bit of shmutz or rubber gasket debris to cause the carb to flood or not deliver fuel.

No need for an OEM carb, this one for $50 worked like a charm. https://www.amazon.ca/Cnfaner-Carburetor-EU2000iK1-EU2000iT1-16100-Z0D-D03/dp/B08LPR79WS

Easy to change and LOTS of how-to video's on YouTube. Here is the first one that came up for me. Getting a small engine shop to change it probably takes a week or more and $300+. But again, no need to learn from my experience, suit yourself my friend

Uncle's a retired electrician so everything should be above board. I have a rotary switch inside the house similar to this:



On the outside, I have a permanently mounted stanrdard 3 prong cord within a weather proof box. I connect the 3 prong cord to the gen only when I need it. Whether or not this setup is considered a "suicide cord" is beyond my area of expertise.

Me and my uncle are fairly meticulous when it comes to engine maintenance so we should be fine for now. Having said that, Murphy's Law will kick in at some point and something will fail at a bad time.

I appreciate the info and video you just shared though.

 

[explorerzip]

the problem with generators is that sooner or later you will run out of fuel

all depends how long the grid will be down

There's always going to be vulnerabilities somewhere in the system. Nat gas lines are unlikely to fail, but the pumping stations need backup generators that can fail or run out of fuel. There comes a point when the cost to have total redundancy is much higher than the chance of a signifcatn power failure that lasts a long time.

 

[TomFord1980]

I jerk off, piss, shit, and blow my nose every day so I can live off the four food groups in an emergency.

What happens when you cant eat your shit or drink your urine anymore?

 

[moredale7]

What happens when you cant eat your shit or drink your urine anymore?

I have neighbors
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