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Dealing with possible power cuts.

Does what it says on the tin
scotview
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Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443578

Postby scotview » September 19th, 2021, 2:10 pm

The UK seems to be drifting along with a fairly undefined energy strategy, apart from the fact that we will be moving to a future powered by electricity.

The energy market also looks to be getting rather volatile.

Is anyone looking seriously at backup home heating solutions in the event of possible power cuts? Or maybe the probability is so low it isn't worth considering.

ReformedCharacter
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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443580

Postby ReformedCharacter » September 19th, 2021, 2:15 pm

scotview wrote:The UK seems to be drifting along with a fairly undefined energy strategy, apart from the fact that we will be moving to a future powered by electricity.

The energy market also looks to be getting rather volatile.

Is anyone looking seriously at backup home heating solutions in the event of possible power cuts? Or maybe the probability is so low it isn't worth considering.

I'll be OK for heating because I burn a lot of (well seasoned) wood. But after reading some news items this morning I wondered how much paraffin I have for my hurricane lamp.

RC

richlist
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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443607

Postby richlist » September 19th, 2021, 4:14 pm

The options for most people are very limited. If normal gas & electricity supplies were cut the only options that I can think of are:
* Wood / pellet burners.
* Coal fires.
* Bottled gas for portable heaters.
* BBQs

pje16
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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443611

Postby pje16 » September 19th, 2021, 4:20 pm

Don't forget thermal under garments
tried them for the first time last year, boy do they make a dfference
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07V6QR771/

and one of these comes in handy
I always know where mine is, even in the dark
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rolson-Quality ... B003KGB992

richlist
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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443635

Postby richlist » September 19th, 2021, 5:28 pm

Not needed.
Don't you know that eating carrots helps you see in the dark ?

pje16
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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443636

Postby pje16 » September 19th, 2021, 5:31 pm

richlist wrote:Not needed.
Don't you know that eating carrots helps you see in the dark ?

about as much as eating blueberries will turn you blue
:lol: :lol:
Last edited by pje16 on September 19th, 2021, 5:33 pm, edited 2 times in total.

Midsmartin
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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443637

Postby Midsmartin » September 19th, 2021, 5:32 pm

I'm not too worried about heating. I have coats and clothes.

Cooking would be more of a problem. Though we have enough gas in the camper van to last a week or two.

And when I work I need a computer.

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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443650

Postby csearle » September 19th, 2021, 6:42 pm

Midsmartin wrote:Cooking would be more of a problem.
Really? C.

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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443655

Postby richlist » September 19th, 2021, 7:00 pm

csearle wrote:
Midsmartin wrote:Cooking would be more of a problem.
Really? C.


You can eat carrots cold.

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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443658

Postby csearle » September 19th, 2021, 7:11 pm

richlist wrote:
csearle wrote:
Midsmartin wrote:Cooking would be more of a problem.
Really? C.


You can eat carrots cold.
You also can eat dead things cold (steak tartare, sashimi, etc.) C.

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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443661

Postby pje16 » September 19th, 2021, 7:15 pm

Not very appetising
come on ... carrots was a joke :roll:

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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443709

Postby vagrantbrain » September 19th, 2021, 10:57 pm

I think there's 2 separate issues:

1) Power cut caused by a fault - likely fixed within hours; a day or 2 at the most. DNOs are pretty good at fixing faults, and if they can't a generator will appear and get hooked up to get power back while they fix the fault. I'm not sure there's much need to take extra precautions against this happening.

2) Power cut caused by a lack of generation - a much bigger problem and one I think is on the cards for this winter. There's not much the DNOs can do if there is not enough being generated. Whether it's worth mitigating against this IMHO depends on where you live. The biggest problem is likely the disruption to supermarkets and shops so maybe some extra food would be useful alongside the usual candles and blankets.


We've had a diesel generator for years which was purchased during a spell living in rural Scotland fed from an overhead line that went out every time there was a storm. Rather expensive to run but invaluable. It's got a 32A 230V output which is sufficient to run everything except the shower. One oil filled radiator is about the max for heating.

Cost wise I think it was about £1k to purchase and it costs about £10 a day to run (with the tank needing filled every day) on red diesel, substantially more if you need to buy it from the petrol station. A bit noisy too which is fine in the sticks but maybe not in the middle of suburbia.

If you've got gas central heating then you can run the heating, although once during a protracted power cut in a subsequent house the gas pressure dropped off to the point where the boiler shut off which i'm presuming was due to the power cut affecting the gas supply network.

Unless you live in Cumbria or rural Wales (or just want to look smug in front of the neighbours) it's possibly OTT, although working in the leccy industry i'm buying extra diesel for this winter..

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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443728

Postby AJC5001 » September 20th, 2021, 1:31 am

vagrantbrain wrote:If you've got gas central heating then you can run the heating


Really? What about the pump, valves, sensors, circuit board etc. - all need electricity I think :?

Adrian

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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443729

Postby servodude » September 20th, 2021, 2:26 am

AJC5001 wrote:
vagrantbrain wrote:If you've got gas central heating then you can run the heating


Really? What about the pump, valves, sensors, circuit board etc. - all need electricity I think :?

Adrian


You can stand round a gas stove top and use it to warm your hands/boil water (if you remember that the piezo starter isn't going to work)

- sd

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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443734

Postby Urbandreamer » September 20th, 2021, 6:47 am

AJC5001 wrote:
vagrantbrain wrote:If you've got gas central heating then you can run the heating


Really? What about the pump, valves, sensors, circuit board etc. - all need electricity I think :?

Adrian


I'm fairly certain that vagrantbrain mentioned having a generator, so electricity to run the pump etc would not be a problem for them.

Indeed their generator is a huge overkill for that with it's 32A output. It wouldn't be that difficult to specify a battery backup system if gas central heating, lights, TV and simple computer were all that was needed. You would however need a generator that big if you wanted to be able to use the washing machine or the heating was not gas, but electric.

Ps, I understand that many car companies are recycling EV batteries into backup systems when the range becomes an issue for the car. Here is a link to Tesla's offering.
https://www.tesla.com/en_GB/powerwall

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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443759

Postby vagrantbrain » September 20th, 2021, 9:27 am

AJC5001 wrote:
vagrantbrain wrote:If you've got gas central heating then you can run the heating


Really? What about the pump, valves, sensors, circuit board etc. - all need electricity I think :?

Adrian


What do you think the generator, which was the subject of the post, is for??

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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443769

Postby UncleEbenezer » September 20th, 2021, 10:11 am

scotview wrote:Is anyone looking seriously at backup home heating solutions in the event of possible power cuts? Or maybe the probability is so low it isn't worth considering.

That'll be cold showers. Bracing, but something that happens whenever the hot water fails - last winter here when the boiler needed replacing, and through decades of often-dodgy rentals.

I'll be much more bothered if I have to endure long winter nights with no light or computer.

Or food.

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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443921

Postby 9873210 » September 20th, 2021, 7:49 pm

There is also a situation of widespread power outages due to a natural disaster. Restoration can take a while. Fortunately this is more common in Louisiana that Luton, but climate change is and will be global, so this should be planned for even if not in the wilds of Scotland.

One solution is running a 1000W inverter from a car. This works for all IC cars, but is better for a hybrid that will automatically run the engine intermittently at non-ruinous efficiency. A few hundred watts of electric power is a lot better than zero watts. It's usually enough to run a fridge, central heating auxiliaries, a few light bulbs, phone chargers, etc. (However no hair driers, cookers, or other electric heaters.)

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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443938

Postby Mike4 » September 20th, 2021, 8:52 pm

My strategy is to decamp to one or another of my boats.

Home from home!

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Re: Dealing with possible power cuts.

#443941

Postby AF62 » September 20th, 2021, 8:57 pm

Mike4 wrote:My strategy is to decamp to one or another of my boats.


My strategy is just to leave the country for somewhere warmer.


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