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soupslam1

California Power Outage

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https://www.sfgate.com/california-wildfires/article/pge-potential-power-outage-map-wind-fire-14501332.php

My in-laws live in one of the affected areas and were told power could be out as long as five days. It all stems from the Paradise fire as a result of high winds that knocked down a power line causing the fire. PGE was sued for millions and I believe filed for bankruptcy. So now with high winds anticipated the next few days they are shutting off the power grid to selected areas. 

This is unbelievable and I’m shocked it’s not national news. If you live in Cali time to buy a backup home generator. 

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That shit is ridiculous.  I’m glad I don’t live in CA.  I couldn’t sleep at night because I have to use a CPAP machine.  California really needs to get their shit together.  

thelawlorfaithful, on 31 Dec 2012 - 04:01 AM, said:One of the rules I live by: never underestimate a man in a dandy looking sweater

 

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National news is too busy pushing "orange man bad". They don't have time to talk about important news. I read somewhere that PG&E did all notification through email, with only 48 hours notice. There will be almost a million people affected.

GO POKES!!!

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It's that time of year to batten down the hatches.

We always get Santa Anas this time of year... it's a crapshoot where/who will get the worst of them, and after a f*cktastically large wildfire or two, you always get a little froggy when it's blowing and the humidity drops to single digits.

St-Javelin-Sm.jpgChase.jpg 

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Quote

If you live in Cali time to buy a backup home generator. 

 

A Generac system is about 12k.  A simple gen that will power major appliances is about 4k without install.  This may be their only use.  Food for thought.

Given the circumstances of those fires, we can expect that repair is needed.  The short notice stuff is crazy.  Rather unbelievable, in all honesty.

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Just now, East Coast Aztec said:

 

A Generac system is about 12k.  A simple gen that will power major appliances is about 4k without install.  This may be their only use.  Food for thought.

Given the circumstances of those fires, we can expect that repair is needed.  The short notice stuff is crazy.  Rather unbelievable, in all honesty.

Costco has generators for less than 1k, small but enough to run lights and a refrigerator. Even a small camping generator would keep the fridge going. 

GO POKES!!!

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1 minute ago, poke em said:

Costco has generators for less than 1k, small but enough to run lights and a refrigerator. Even a small camping generator would keep the fridge going. 

A lot of the cost of a portable generator is the db noise it makes. Cheap ones are loud, and Honda has the quietest and expensive. 

If you want AC, you’ll probably need one 10kw or above. 

kat.jpg

 

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14 minutes ago, poke em said:

Costco has generators for less than 1k, small but enough to run lights and a refrigerator. Even a small camping generator would keep the fridge going. 

May as well just buy ice and a cooler. What about the HVAC, and the lights?  You buy a gen because you fear days, not hours, without power.

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3 minutes ago, East Coast Aztec said:

May as well just buy ice and a cooler. What about the HVAC, and the lights?  You buy a gen because you fear days, not hours, without power.

My in-laws were told power could be out up to five days. 

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2 minutes ago, soupslam1 said:

My in-laws were told power could be out up to five days. 

Inland?  Health issues?  I am just saying that that may be a healthy bill dependent on what they are going for.  We have one at our cabin, as we are so remote, it isn't worth it for them to do some repairs that timely.  But that is down on a routine nature.  

It just depends on, but I find that many who buy them outside of inclement weather areas just waste their money 

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Now that’s funny. 

thelawlorfaithful, on 31 Dec 2012 - 04:01 AM, said:One of the rules I live by: never underestimate a man in a dandy looking sweater

 

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1 hour ago, East Coast Aztec said:

May as well just buy ice and a cooler. What about the HVAC, and the lights?  You buy a gen because you fear days, not hours, without power.

When the power goes out in the summer in central CA in the summer it is no joke.  Even for a day.  Last year it happened at my parents.  My dad was an invalid (he passed last June), and it was well over a hundred degrees in the house.  I went to harbor freight and boutght a small generator just so we could power his chair and get him up and bathe him.

It isn't a big deal for most people to be out of power for a short while, but for elderly it is life threatening.

Sorry , I got sidetracked, I agree with your sentiment that a home generator is a major investment.

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My sense is that PG&E is literally too big to fail. Breaking up the company is impossible because there's so much infrastructure with work that needs to be done to upgrade it for safety that you need a company of considerable size and resources to do it. If you sold off the infrastructure in pieces to a whole bunch of smaller entities, wouldn't the liability make it just too much of a risk for a smaller company (or even a municipality) to take over? Like, they're still deep in the middle of surveying and working on their gas lines as a response to the San Bruno explosion. They're doing that at a scale at which a smaller company couldn't operate. The other option is the state takes over PG&E. As much as the CA government loves to run things, I have a hard time believing they want any part of the liability that PG&E faces here.

I dunno, it's a shitshow for sure. I have two brother in laws who work for PG&E, so I hope they continue to operate while figuring out this wildfire risk thing. This is unsustainable. 

Planning is an exercise of power, and in a modern state much real power is suffused with boredom. The agents of planning are usually boring; the planning process is boring; the implementation of plans is always boring. In a democracy boredom works for bureaucracies and corporations as smell works for skunk. It keeps danger away. Power does not have to be exercised behind the scenes. It can be open. The audience is asleep. The modern world is forged amidst our inattention.

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If they turn off the power every time there is a major wind storm that’s going to suck for a lot of people and businesses. Granted the Paradise fire was a major catastrophy but most utility companies face the same hazard (and have for years) and don’t turn the power off.

IMO it’s the risk you face from receiving gas or electric service from any utility. Nothing is fool proof safe. People are either going to need to accept that risk or the significant inconvenience of no power. 

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12 hours ago, soupslam1 said:

This is unbelievable and I’m shocked it’s not national news. If you live in Cali time to buy a backup home generator. 

It is national news now.  The first headline on Google News at least.

As far as a generator goes - I would only get one sized for your basic necessities - not one to cover all modern conveniences like air-conditioning and hot water.

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