Hurricane Sandy (2 Viewers)

[Rohn Jambo]

I believe one of the reasons Hess stations have been one of the winners here is they trucked in generators. At least that is what I've heard and would match with their results. Regardless, anyone blaming Obama forthe gas issues here is blindly partisan, fishing or utterly foolish. Perhaps all three.

this generator idea is good too. So did FEMA provide generators to more gas stations?

 

[Apple Jack]

I believe one of the reasons Hess stations have been one of the winners here is they trucked in generators. At least that is what I've heard and would match with their results. Regardless, anyone blaming Obama forthe gas issues here is blindly partisan, fishing or utterly foolish. Perhaps all three.

Hess has sent generators to their stations and they've been sending gas to competitors' stations. They're right there with Bloomberg's ASL signer as the storm MVPs.

 

[Rohn Jambo]

I do not get why they make people wait in line for hours. I go to a restaurant, tell the hostess how many people are in my party and they call me when the tables is available. Why don't they do the same with the gas? Let people call in and leave their numbers.

You've been hitting the bloody mary bar hard this morning haven't you?

Just saying that it is 2012 and not the 1970s. Sheesh. We have computers now and can use it to tell if someone has already gotten gas in the last 24 hours and where the demand is the highest and which gas station they should go to pick up their gas.

How are you calling them? Their cell phones are dead or they're not getting a reception.

Home delivery down? Some restaurants give out pagers that you give back to get the table.People have to think out of the box.

Okay, it seems you are on another planet this morning so I'll step aside and let you do your thing.

Clearly you do not live on the East coast.

Born and raised in DC. Spent six years in Brooklyn and Midtown.Your right, why can't Flaco Menendez who owns the Shell station at Atlantic and 111th just pass out his Outback beepers!!???

Why shouldn't Flaco do that? Because the governors, FEMA and Obamama dropped the ball.

Dude, seriously?People lost lives, people in this thread lost belongings, people are using this thread to offer help to each other.You really coming in here with this crap?

No, I do not blame anyone who has been hit by the storm. I was pretty clueless myself.The only way to make sure the same thing does not happen again is to reflect on what we can do better the next time in terms of preparation.

 

[Rohn Jambo]

I believe one of the reasons Hess stations have been one of the winners here is they trucked in generators. At least that is what I've heard and would match with their results. Regardless, anyone blaming Obama forthe gas issues here is blindly partisan, fishing or utterly foolish. Perhaps all three.

Hess has sent generators to their stations and they've been sending gas to competitors' stations. They're right there with Bloomberg's ASL signer as the storm MVPs.

That is great.

 

[Koya]

I believe one of the reasons Hess stations have been one of the winners here is they trucked in generators. At least that is what I've heard and would match with their results. Regardless, anyone blaming Obama forthe gas issues here is blindly partisan, fishing or utterly foolish. Perhaps all three.

this generator idea is good too. So did FEMA provide generators to more gas stations?

You seem very quick to blame FEMA and push a political angle here. There are more important discussions - and constructive means by which to engage in some of the potential solutions - to be had here.As someone who is living through this, fortunately with far less pain than many, but someone who knows people in BK and SI, has friends who have lost a lot, knows of ours who have lost more, it's sickening.Take it to the political thread please, this should not be a thread in which to grandstand for political purposes, it's a bit disgusting, sorry.

 

[Rohn Jambo]

I believe one of the reasons Hess stations have been one of the winners here is they trucked in generators. At least that is what I've heard and would match with their results. Regardless, anyone blaming Obama forthe gas issues here is blindly partisan, fishing or utterly foolish. Perhaps all three.

this generator idea is good too. So did FEMA provide generators to more gas stations?

You seem very quick to blame FEMA and push a political angle here. There are more important discussions - and constructive means by which to engage in some of the potential solutions - to be had here.As someone who is living through this, fortunately with far less pain than many, but someone who knows people in BK and SI, has friends who have lost a lot, knows of ours who have lost more, it's sickening.Take it to the political thread please, this should not be a thread in which to grandstand for political purposes, it's a bit disgusting, sorry.

Sorry about this. My bad.

 

[Rohn Jambo]

It is time for communities to pull together to help each other:

NEW YORK –  New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo says cold temperatures will leave "tens of thousands" of people whose homes have been damaged by the superstorm needing other places to live.He says "it's going to become increasingly clear" that homes without heat are uninhabitable as temperatures drop. He says that means that residents who have been reluctant to leave their homes will have to, and that they'll need housing.New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg says the city expects that it will have to find housing for 30,000 to 40,000 people.

 

[pittstownkiller]

You've been hitting the bloody mary bar hard this morning haven't you?

Just saying that it is 2012 and not the 1970s. Sheesh. We have computers now and can use it to tell if someone has already gotten gas in the last 24 hours and where the demand is the highest and which gas station they should go to pick up their gas.

How are you calling them? Their cell phones are dead or they're not getting a reception.

Home delivery down? Some restaurants give out pagers that you give back to get the table.People have to think out of the box.

Okay, it seems you are on another planet this morning so I'll step aside and let you do your thing.

Clearly you do not live on the East coast.

Born and raised in DC. Spent six years in Brooklyn and Midtown.Your right, why can't Flaco Menendez who owns the Shell station at Atlantic and 111th just pass out his Outback beepers!!???

Why shouldn't Flaco do that? Because the governors, FEMA and Obamama dropped the ball.

The infrastructure doesn’t exist at gas stations to do something like that. If you want to force gas stations to do something prior to a disaster then you should require them to have back-up generators on site.

I believe one of the reasons Hess stations have been one of the winners here is they trucked in generators. At least that is what I've heard and would match with their results. Regardless, anyone blaming Obama forthe gas issues here is blindly partisan, fishing or utterly foolish. Perhaps all three.

I agree, just the same as someone saying what a great job the President has done with the government's response.

 

[pittstownkiller]

Hess, a good old New Jersey company, is looking like an all-star here. It looks like Leon left the company in good hands.

 

[Koya]

I believe one of the reasons Hess stations have been one of the winners here is they trucked in generators. At least that is what I've heard and would match with their results. Regardless, anyone blaming Obama forthe gas issues here is blindly partisan, fishing or utterly foolish. Perhaps all three.

this generator idea is good too. So did FEMA provide generators to more gas stations?

You seem very quick to blame FEMA and push a political angle here. There are more important discussions - and constructive means by which to engage in some of the potential solutions - to be had here.As someone who is living through this, fortunately with far less pain than many, but someone who knows people in BK and SI, has friends who have lost a lot, knows of ours who have lost more, it's sickening.Take it to the political thread please, this should not be a thread in which to grandstand for political purposes, it's a bit disgusting, sorry.

Sorry about this. My bad.

No worries, apology accepted and appreciated. Will be PLENTY of time to dissect this politically, but as you mention right now is a time to work together for solutions. I think it is kinda sad that it's actually refreshing to have seen Christie give cross aisle praise, but imagine how much more we'd get done as a nation with that attitude?Right now I need my republican county exec and dem governor to do everything possible to get people safe from the cold and somehow restore gas, which we've obviously become far too dependent on. As a thought to examine later, the oil supply chain is something that is obviously vulnerable from a national security standpoint. Imagiine a situation where a coordinated attack were to occur in multiple metro areas to take out the electrical grid and cut off gas supply. If you somehow affected the water supply too, could be a tremendous disaster.We are seeing things from this storm that, at least the big cities and the northeast, have never experienced at all. And the islands here definitely provide an additional hurdle.

 

[Rohn Jambo]

I believe one of the reasons Hess stations have been one of the winners here is they trucked in generators. At least that is what I've heard and would match with their results. Regardless, anyone blaming Obama forthe gas issues here is blindly partisan, fishing or utterly foolish. Perhaps all three.

this generator idea is good too. So did FEMA provide generators to more gas stations?

You seem very quick to blame FEMA and push a political angle here. There are more important discussions - and constructive means by which to engage in some of the potential solutions - to be had here.As someone who is living through this, fortunately with far less pain than many, but someone who knows people in BK and SI, has friends who have lost a lot, knows of ours who have lost more, it's sickening.Take it to the political thread please, this should not be a thread in which to grandstand for political purposes, it's a bit disgusting, sorry.

Sorry about this. My bad.

No worries, apology accepted and appreciated. Will be PLENTY of time to dissect this politically, but as you mention right now is a time to work together for solutions. I think it is kinda sad that it's actually refreshing to have seen Christie give cross aisle praise, but imagine how much more we'd get done as a nation with that attitude?Right now I need my republican county exec and dem governor to do everything possible to get people safe from the cold and somehow restore gas, which we've obviously become far too dependent on. As a thought to examine later, the oil supply chain is something that is obviously vulnerable from a national security standpoint. Imagiine a situation where a coordinated attack were to occur in multiple metro areas to take out the electrical grid and cut off gas supply. If you somehow affected the water supply too, could be a tremendous disaster.We are seeing things from this storm that, at least the big cities and the northeast, have never experienced at all. And the islands here definitely provide an additional hurdle.

I voted for Obama so I feel like I can criticize him when things can be done better. I would have made the same post if a Republican is in office.

 

[pittstownkiller]

Has anyone heard from Celt today?

 

[GroveDiesel]

Bottom line is that after Irene and now especially this, no price tag is too high for me to make this happen. I told me wife I will work my tail off to make this house disaster proofed. When the zombies come, you all should come to our place.

Better take out all those trees around your house if you want to be disaster proof. My buddy just moved down here to South Jersey a couple of months ago and his former neighbor from North Jersey is now living with him because a giant tree fell on their house.

 

[Otis]

Bottom line is that after Irene and now especially this, no price tag is too high for me to make this happen. I told me wife I will work my tail off to make this house disaster proofed. When the zombies come, you all should come to our place.

Better take out all those trees around your house if you want to be disaster proof. My buddy just moved down here to South Jersey a couple of months ago and his former neighbor from North Jersey is now living with him because a giant tree fell on their house.

This is high on the list as well. Going to have as many of them removed as the town will let me. Especially the ones closed to the house...

 

[Rohn Jambo]

It's obvious that Obamama and the FEMA guys have never run a business. It's not really different. Your customers are always right.

Have you? I have.Customers are not always right, often wrong in fact.Now, that doesn't mean that they aren't your top priority, the reason you are in businesses and must be catered to... Nor does it mean that sometimes even when they are wrong you can't just come out and say it, but one of the first lessons I learned running a business is that the customer is NOT always right.To act like they are would put you out of business in short order - not to mention inconvenience many oer customers in he process.

You took it too literally. The phrase "the customer is always right" particularly refers to what happens when they're wrong. It has changed over time. I think the original saying was "the customer is never wrong."

 

[Sheriff Bart]

Bottom line is that after Irene and now especially this, no price tag is too high for me to make this happen. I told me wife I will work my tail off to make this house disaster proofed. When the zombies come, you all should come to our place.

Better take out all those trees around your house if you want to be disaster proof. My buddy just moved down here to South Jersey a couple of months ago and his former neighbor from North Jersey is now living with him because a giant tree fell on their house.

This is high on the list as well. Going to have as many of them removed as the town will let me. Especially the ones closed to the house...

I've been wanting to get one of these for awhile.

 

[Sheriff Bart]

125 powerless hours and counting. Every town within 10 miles in every direction has power.

clearly theyre trying to bust that meth house above you

Most definitely. It got colder last night and I'm betting that my aquarium finally succumbed, but I'm too tired, cold, angry and lazy to get out of bed and check

Dang. Sorry to hear GB. :(

this no gas thing is getting beyond ridiculous. i cant believe they havent resolved the issues yet.

After losing power for 5 days what, 6 years ago, I keep 30 gallons of gas on hand at all times. Yes, I use fuel stabilizer and rotate in and out.

 

[Smack Tripper]

I will say this and I don't mean to carry FEMA's water because their response in staten island, where I volunteered today, leaves a lot to be desired.

What is probably a particular challenge, I'm summizing, is the breadth of impact, an understanding of boots on the ground problems, and the wonky access to these points in the best of conditions.

Breadth: this storm was predicted into Sunday as I recall of being a major threat to Delmarva, then lower Atlantic county NJ. Delmarva and Cape may aren't far removed as the crow flies but it's about 4-6 hours drive time in optimal conditions. If you need to stagger preventative resources there, and it Jaggs north to hit ocean county nj, with impact on all different barrier island chains that are NOT all necessarily connected north to south. This may be Greek to any but a jerseyan but you can see it on a map. You're hitting a moving target as FEMA, and it wasn't clear until the morning after the storm how severe the staten island and queens damage was. Once that becomes clear, you you're dealing with really something on the Order of 150 miles, quite conservatively , of major shoreline impact with half of that having a significant, dense year round population(Margate to Brigantine Nj including AC) and then. From Perth Amboy Nj to Lindenhurst Long Island Ny. I don't know that FEMA ever had this broad a field over this wide an area. The biggest disasters that I recall hitting major metro areas are hurricane Andrew, the 89 San Fran earthquake, the 94 North ridge earthquake and Katrina. I don't know how you could mobilize over night, at a moments notice.

Ground problems:dovetailing with what may be unprecedented impact is one factor somewhat ignored and absent in most disasters FEMA prepares for In southern hurricanes and western earthquakes: cold. I was told today that FEMA did show up by Wednesday, with MRE's and water which was needed and appreciated. Howecer. Not One blanket. Crazy to Think and yes they should have thought of everything but with limited space to load supplies, that this went overlooked shows how unprecedented this was. Here's hoping they learn with each disaster. The cold coming on and the snow possibly this week add a whole new layer to this thing

Access: sort of covered above but when you account for primary mobilzarions to be ground units, as fhe crow flies we are talking short distances. Sandy hook to breezy point is a 4 mile sail. But it's probably a 50-60 mile car ride. Through downed trees, downed wires and high water.

I feel everyone's frustration. This sucks all around. But FEMA is not the state farm agent who you Sing "lke a good neighbor..." to and they pop up.

I'd assume like anything you need a plan and then some time to carry it out.

If its your house that has the Atlantic ocean flowing through the living room, I get that anything less than instant is too long. They could have definitely improved response times but I measure that gulf in hours and not days.

 

[Otis]

Bottom line is that after Irene and now especially this, no price tag is too high for me to make this happen. I told me wife I will work my tail off to make this house disaster proofed. When the zombies come, you all should come to our place.

Better take out all those trees around your house if you want to be disaster proof. My buddy just moved down here to South Jersey a couple of months ago and his former neighbor from North Jersey is now living with him because a giant tree fell on their house.

This is high on the list as well. Going to have as many of them removed as the town will let me. Especially the ones closed to the house...

I've been wanting to get one of these for awhile.

Exactly, though I might go 20kw

 

[belljr]

Bottom line is that after Irene and now especially this, no price tag is too high for me to make this happen. I told me wife I will work my tail off to make this house disaster proofed. When the zombies come, you all should come to our place.

Better take out all those trees around your house if you want to be disaster proof. My buddy just moved down here to South Jersey a couple of months ago and his former neighbor from North Jersey is now living with him because a giant tree fell on their house.

This is high on the list as well. Going to have as many of them removed as the town will let me. Especially the ones closed to the house...

We had a big one luckily fall the other way.... I might spend the 1400 they wanted to take down the big one.

 

[Dragons]

Great great post comfortably.

The 12-15 per day tanker fills matches what they told me at wawa parsippany, deliveries every 2 hours.

They are at least south jerz based so I figure they're drawing on a Philly supply potentially.

I have had a few near "lose my S " moments.

I can deal with no power.

I can deal with no gas

It's just hard to deal with both.

I have elderly parents who are somewhat accurately self described as "hearty" but hard not to worry about them.

Luckily just got 15 gallons of gas which should keep them in

Juice for the next 2 days.

If that doesn't get us back to power on monday after a week with f'ing c-130s full of power trucks, I'll go batty

That said though, heard a reliable report today that hobokens 3 substations, located on the lower west end of town, are still flooded and it may be a much longer term problem getting power to boken.

Ditto natural gas on basically all barrier islands. Looking like a six month operation.

Fortunately I'd guess there was a 20 percent winter time occupancy in MOST communities north of brigantine

Just got power back this evening. I didn't use 15 gallons of gas in my generator the whole time I was out (ran the generator ~4 hours/day for 5 days - burned about 11 gallons). Can't they turn something off?

They were running a solid 18 hours a day, more at first. Ran a couple of space heaters, the fridge and a freezer. Gave up the freezer on Thursday though.

They're old, I'd rather they run it and stay warm. If I can get gas I can take the wait.

Thankfully though, they got power back tonight. It's a load off my mind. I have been focusing on caring for them but I'm hoping to jump in with some relief efforts since Incan finally gas my car up tomorrow.

Feel sick as a dog but hard not to help when people are living like they are on staten island. Gonna buy socks, water and power bars at wal Mart or costco. Have a lead on some emergency thermal blankets too(the foil kind).

It's not much but it might be enough to get Someone through tomorrow. Just glad my parents juice frees me up to handle this

I'm glad it's over for you (and that you're able to move on to other noble endeavors). I know you said it's a small burden compared to what others are going through, but there's so many things you never really consider when you don't have power for days, that it really is an ordeal. Old people and kids really compound the problem. Of course, it's not anything like having your whole house demolished or having 2 small children washed to sea, but it's an ordeal just the same. If there's one good that comes out of this is hopefully more people will get storm ready for the future. I know a bunch of people planning to buy generators (including myself). Learning how to use them smartly will come with time, I suppose.

Ill go a step further. We were planning to do a major extension on our house in the next couple of years. I've added to the very top of the list for that project getting a whole house, high end backup generator. I know little about them at this point, other than that they cost 7-8k and just click on automatically the moment power goes out, providing power right to your circuit box and ensuring business as usual. I hear they can be propane powered or gas powered -- ultimate seems one that allows for both, so that in situations like this week where we had gas, it will just plug along indefinitely on that fuel, but which will also let us switch over to some propane tanks backup in case natural gas is somehow knocked out. Bottom line is that after Irene and now especially this, no price tag is too high for me to make this happen. I told me wife I will work my tail off to make this house disaster proofed. When the zombies come, you all should come to our place.

This step is probably overkill for most, but as long as your gas line isn't interrupted, is a helluva lot easier than hunting for gas if there are shortages. For this storm, or Irene last year, there aren't/weren't gas shortages in CT, so it would be unnecessary. But, other areas are a different story, especially with Sandy. If you have money to burn, it can't hurt to go all the way. If you're going this route and money's no object, you should probably also get a gas generator to hedge your bets (I don't think you can switch back and forth between propane and gas, you have to install a different nozzle for each). Keeping some gas on hand is a pain in the ###, due to having to rotate it, but it'd be prudent too. The good thing is that usually in the N.E., we have warning of our natural disasters, so filling up a few 5 gallon tanks a day or two before the storm shouldn't be a big deal.My main point in the above post was about conservation of electricity. Getting a 10-20k watt generator to keep the whole house running is nice, especially if you have the tangible income to put in that kind of system for the few times a decade you'll need to use it. But, figuring out what you NEED to run and what is completely optional, can save you a whole lot of headache in an emergency. Your fridge needs juice consistently (my neighbor across the street keeps his fridge safe running the generator 2 hours out of 6), but if you can offload any perishables to a family member or friend that has power, your freezer needs a whole lot less. We ran our fridge about 4 hours a day for 5 days and lost nothing in the freezer. 4/24 was probably overkill. We also loaded up on heat from our (gas) furnace during those 4 hours (to a whopping 72 degrees) to hold us comfortably overnight. The worst I noticed was losing 6 degrees over night (to 66), which was fine with some extra blankets. We were able to use the TV for a few hours, although from recorded shows/movies because cable is also out, during the evening, cook with a burner on the stove and even run the dishwasher before it broke (totally unrelated to Sandy). All this for about 2 gallons/day of gas. It's really not much to plan for in an extreme emergency. Filling up two 5 gallon containers will last you for 5 days. You can dump that into the gas tank of your car if you don't end up using it.

If you have electric heat or medical issues which require constant power, then things change. If you're planning for a storm in January instead of late October, you may want 30 gallons on hand ahead of time to run your furnace longer. The point is being smart about what you need and what you don't, and not putting a drain on the whole system unnecessarily.

 

[Apple Jack]

Ask yourself this...would you pay $12K to have had a generator for the last week and maybe/maybe not enough gas to get you through? Because you could have just driven to New Haven or Philly and flown the family Rio for a few weeks, spending all that time on the beach sipping slushy drinks for a fraction of that price.

 

[PinkydaPimp]

Ask yourself this...would you pay $12K to have had a generator for the last week and maybe/maybe not enough gas to get you through? Because you could have just driven to New Haven or Philly and flown the family Rio for a few weeks, spending all that time on the beach sipping slushy drinks for a fraction of that price.

that generator will increase the value of your home and and if you stay there for a while should prove useful for years.

 

[Apple Jack]

Ask yourself this...would you pay $12K to have had a generator for the last week and maybe/maybe not enough gas to get you through? Because you could have just driven to New Haven or Philly and flown the family Rio for a few weeks, spending all that time on the beach sipping slushy drinks for a fraction of that price.

that generator will increase the value of your home and and if you stay there for a while should prove useful for years.

Of course. I just like the idea of looking a potential tragedy in the eye and turning it into an all-world vacation.

 

[Angry Beavers]

reading thru this my heart goes out to everyone impacted.I dont think anyone wants to drive 500 miles to Cleveland and go to the rock n roll hall of fame but if so I have an open door for any and all.

 

[baymen]

Bottom line is that after Irene and now especially this, no price tag is too high for me to make this happen. I told me wife I will work my tail off to make this house disaster proofed. When the zombies come, you all should come to our place.

Better take out all those trees around your house if you want to be disaster proof. My buddy just moved down here to South Jersey a couple of months ago and his former neighbor from North Jersey is now living with him because a giant tree fell on their house.

This is high on the list as well. Going to have as many of them removed as the town will let me. Especially the ones closed to the house...

I've been wanting to get one of these for awhile.

Exactly, though I might go 20kw

Ordered the 20KW for the house. They are back ordered until December. One of my good friends is am electrician. I am getting the propane gas model and added the block heater as an option. Total cost will be less than 10k.

 

[BassNBrew]

reading thru this my heart goes out to everyone impacted.I dont think anyone wants to drive 500 miles to Cleveland and go to the rock n roll hall of fame but if so I have an open door for any and all.

I doubt there will be any takers. Tossed two homes out on the Homeaway Sandy list and had no takers. Got one availabe for two weeks and another smaller one that I could do for 6 months. I suspect the number of permanent residences lost was relatively small compared to katrina and the family/friend network in the NE is much larger.

 

[Rohn Jambo]

Ask yourself this...would you pay $12K to have had a generator for the last week and maybe/maybe not enough gas to get you through? Because you could have just driven to New Haven or Philly and flown the family Rio for a few weeks, spending all that time on the beach sipping slushy drinks for a fraction of that price.

that generator will increase the value of your home and and if you stay there for a while should prove useful for years.

Of course. I just like the idea of looking a potential tragedy in the eye and turning it into an all-world vacation.

If one leaves town then it's better to do it before the storm hit. A lot of people would be worried about their family, friends and properties to enjoy themselves 100%.

 

[NJ]

Ask yourself this...would you pay $12K to have had a generator for the last week and maybe/maybe not enough gas to get you through? Because you could have just driven to New Haven or Philly and flown the family Rio for a few weeks, spending all that time on the beach sipping slushy drinks for a fraction of that price.

I assume a 12K generator would be a whole home generator that would be hooked up with natural gas so you wouldn't be worried about enough fuel to get you through it. And while just uping and heading to Rio for a few weeks is a nice thought, its not necessarily an option for everyone, work/school schedules might not allow it. Plus a lot of people have 2 or even 3 fridges/freezers in their homes and all that food would spoil if you just left it. And those with basements that are prone to flooding need to keep their sump pumps running or they will take in water. But I guess if none of that applies to you, a vacation is a better option than a backup generator.

 

[Dragons]

Ask yourself this...would you pay $12K to have had a generator for the last week and maybe/maybe not enough gas to get you through? Because you could have just driven to New Haven or Philly and flown the family Rio for a few weeks, spending all that time on the beach sipping slushy drinks for a fraction of that price.

I assume a 12K generator would be a whole home generator that would be hooked up with natural gas so you wouldn't be worried about enough fuel to get you through it. And while just uping and heading to Rio for a few weeks is a nice thought, its not necessarily an option for everyone, work/school schedules might not allow it. Plus a lot of people have 2 or even 3 fridges/freezers in their homes and all that food would spoil if you just left it. And those with basements that are prone to flooding need to keep their sump pumps running or they will take in water. But I guess if none of that applies to you, a vacation is a better option than a backup generator.

Yeah, it would be nice to know in advance that my kids school (where my wife works) would be out for a full week, so we could just up an leave, but I had to work, and we had no idea they'd be down all week. Impossible to plan for, unless, I suppose, you have the tangible income to put in a 12k whole home generator.

 

[Otis]

Bottom line is that after Irene and now especially this, no price tag is too high for me to make this happen. I told me wife I will work my tail off to make this house disaster proofed. When the zombies come, you all should come to our place.

Better take out all those trees around your house if you want to be disaster proof. My buddy just moved down here to South Jersey a couple of months ago and his former neighbor from North Jersey is now living with him because a giant tree fell on their house.

This is high on the list as well. Going to have as many of them removed as the town will let me. Especially the ones closed to the house...

I've been wanting to get one of these for awhile.

Exactly, though I might go 20kw

Ordered the 20KW for the house. They are back ordered until December. One of my good friends is am electrician. I am getting the propane gas model and added the block heater as an option. Total cost will be less than 10k.

Keep us posted on this. Curious to hear how it goes.

Stupid question -- what's the block heater option?

Also, why propane gas over natural gas? Seems to me to be a much better option than the couple of oversized propane tanks sitting out in back of your house, which may or may not run out during an extended outage anyway?

 

[TLEF316]

Went to my dad's house to watch football for the afternoon. Came home at 6:30 and my neighbors have their lights on. We're back in business!!!

Walk into the house to hear the sound of water. Turn on the light to discover that the power turning back on must have caused some sort of surge that made my hot water heater fail. Water all over my hallway as well as partially into both my bedrooms and living room.

And oh yeah, 1/2 of my fish (the more expensive half) died at some point during the past day or so. :(

so yeah, my attitude towards Sandy has gone from "Incredibly annoyed and inconvenienced, but Hell, it could have been much worse" to "The next time I meet a girl named Sandy under the age of 40, I'm pretty sure I'm going to anger-bang her"

 

[baymen]

Bottom line is that after Irene and now especially this, no price tag is too high for me to make this happen. I told me wife I will work my tail off to make this house disaster proofed. When the zombies come, you all should come to our place.

Better take out all those trees around your house if you want to be disaster proof. My buddy just moved down here to South Jersey a couple of months ago and his former neighbor from North Jersey is now living with him because a giant tree fell on their house.

This is high on the list as well. Going to have as many of them removed as the town will let me. Especially the ones closed to the house...

I've been wanting to get one of these for awhile.

Exactly, though I might go 20kw

Ordered the 20KW for the house. They are back ordered until December. One of my good friends is am electrician. I am getting the propane gas model and added the block heater as an option. Total cost will be less than 10k.

Keep us posted on this. Curious to hear how it goes.

Stupid question -- what's the block heater option?

Also, why propane gas over natural gas? Seems to me to be a much better option than the couple of oversized propane tanks sitting out in back of your house, which may or may not run out during an extended outage anyway?

Will do. The block heater option is to keep the generator engine warm in real cold temperatures. It is a few hundred dollar option and my friend recommended me to get it.

I have no natural gas service in my neighborhood and have a 1,000 gallon propane gas tank buried already in my yard to run my heat and stove. I am just going to connect from that into the generator. The generator burns 3 gallons/hour under a full load, but in reality it is around 1.5-2 gallons/hour so my tank will last a long time and propane deliveries were running right after the storm here out east.

 

[Otis]

Bottom line is that after Irene and now especially this, no price tag is too high for me to make this happen. I told me wife I will work my tail off to make this house disaster proofed. When the zombies come, you all should come to our place.

Better take out all those trees around your house if you want to be disaster proof. My buddy just moved down here to South Jersey a couple of months ago and his former neighbor from North Jersey is now living with him because a giant tree fell on their house.

This is high on the list as well. Going to have as many of them removed as the town will let me. Especially the ones closed to the house...

I've been wanting to get one of these for awhile.

Exactly, though I might go 20kw

Ordered the 20KW for the house. They are back ordered until December. One of my good friends is am electrician. I am getting the propane gas model and added the block heater as an option. Total cost will be less than 10k.

Keep us posted on this. Curious to hear how it goes.

Stupid question -- what's the block heater option?

Also, why propane gas over natural gas? Seems to me to be a much better option than the couple of oversized propane tanks sitting out in back of your house, which may or may not run out during an extended outage anyway?

Will do. The block heater option is to keep the generator engine warm in real cold temperatures. It is a few hundred dollar option and my friend recommended me to get it.

I have no natural gas service in my neighborhood and have a 1,000 gallon propane gas tank buried already in my yard to run my heat and stove. I am just going to connect from that into the generator. The generator burns 3 gallons/hour under a full load, but in reality it is around 1.5-2 gallons/hour so my tank will last a long time and propane deliveries were running right after the storm here out east.

Got it -- thanks. Is there any other benefit to propane over nat gas, as far as you know? Or is it really just about which is more convenient to run into your home (propane for you, nat gas for me)?

 

[Dragons]

Bottom line is that after Irene and now especially this, no price tag is too high for me to make this happen. I told me wife I will work my tail off to make this house disaster proofed. When the zombies come, you all should come to our place.

Better take out all those trees around your house if you want to be disaster proof. My buddy just moved down here to South Jersey a couple of months ago and his former neighbor from North Jersey is now living with him because a giant tree fell on their house.

This is high on the list as well. Going to have as many of them removed as the town will let me. Especially the ones closed to the house...

I've been wanting to get one of these for awhile.

Exactly, though I might go 20kw

Ordered the 20KW for the house. They are back ordered until December. One of my good friends is am electrician. I am getting the propane gas model and added the block heater as an option. Total cost will be less than 10k.

Keep us posted on this. Curious to hear how it goes.

Stupid question -- what's the block heater option?

Also, why propane gas over natural gas? Seems to me to be a much better option than the couple of oversized propane tanks sitting out in back of your house, which may or may not run out during an extended outage anyway?

Will do. The block heater option is to keep the generator engine warm in real cold temperatures. It is a few hundred dollar option and my friend recommended me to get it.

I have no natural gas service in my neighborhood and have a 1,000 gallon propane gas tank buried already in my yard to run my heat and stove. I am just going to connect from that into the generator. The generator burns 3 gallons/hour under a full load, but in reality it is around 1.5-2 gallons/hour so my tank will last a long time and propane deliveries were running right after the storm here out east.

Got it -- thanks. Is there any other benefit to propane over nat gas, as far as you know? Or is it really just about which is more convenient to run into your home (propane for you, nat gas for me)?

I think anyone with natural gas running to their house would choose natural gas. Propane is an option for those without natural gas. It's that simple.

 

[urbanhack]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UjsXo9l6I8

 

[eoMMan]

reading thru this my heart goes out to everyone impacted.I dont think anyone wants to drive 500 miles to Cleveland and go to the rock n roll hall of fame but if so I have an open door for any and all.

This.I feel for all you guys going through this. I am in Florida now (kind of crazy that I moved here almost 4 years ago from south jersey and now you guys are the ones getting these destructive storms). I don't know what I can do to help besides donating to the big organizations but I wish you all the best and hope this BS ends soon. Hang in there.

 

[shadyridr]

damn, tlef. sorry to hear that

 

[TLEF316]

damn, tlef. sorry to hear that

I'm angry, but its cleaning up ok (its just clean water and I got to it pretty quick with a shop vac and fans) and I'm so burnt out at this point, I can't even rage. Just gonna let the fans run, sit down and catch up on the week's TV for a few hours. Its just time to unwind.

 

[Tremendous Upside]

damn, tlef. sorry to hear that

I'm angry, but its cleaning up ok (its just clean water and I got to it pretty quick with a shop vac and fans) and I'm so burnt out at this point, I can't even rage. Just gonna let the fans run, sit down and catch up on the week's TV for a few hours. Its just time to unwind.

Sorry that there's a last hurdle here but you've made it to the finish line...

 

[Rohn Jambo]

Went to my dad's house to watch football for the afternoon. Came home at 6:30 and my neighbors have their lights on. We're back in business!!! Walk into the house to hear the sound of water. Turn on the light to discover that the power turning back on must have caused some sort of surge that made my hot water heater fail. Water all over my hallway as well as partially into both my bedrooms and living room. And oh yeah, 1/2 of my fish (the more expensive half) died at some point during the past day or so. :( so yeah, my attitude towards Sandy has gone from "Incredibly annoyed and inconvenienced, but Hell, it could have been much worse" to "The next time I meet a girl named Sandy under the age of 40, I'm pretty sure I'm going to anger-bang her"

That really sucks, TLEF316. BIG HUG

 

[urbanhack]

damn, tlef. sorry to hear that

I'm angry, but its cleaning up ok (its just clean water and I got to it pretty quick with a shop vac and fans) and I'm so burnt out at this point, I can't even rage. Just gonna let the fans run, sit down and catch up on the week's TV for a few hours. Its just time to unwind.

Sorry that there's a last hurdle here but you've made it to the finish line...

 

[shadyridr]

bulk of the subway system will be up and running on monday. where was the guy who said it would be a month before its back in action? NYC dont mess around.

 

[Rohn Jambo]

bulk of the subway system will be up and running on monday. where was the guy who said it would be a month before its back in action? NYC dont mess around.

That's very good news.

 

[Sheriff Bart]

bulk of the subway system will be up and running on monday. where was the guy who said it would be a month before its back in action? NYC dont mess around.

Right here. It's not like I'm rooting for it to not be up and running. Plus "the bulk" isn't the entire subway system.

 

[otello]

Anyone ever use a public adjuster? They represent you when dealing with an insurance company. They take a percentage of the settlement. Are they worth it? In New Jersey, it looks like they charge about 10%, though this is negotiable.

Any insight is appreciated.

 

[TLEF316]

Anyone ever use a public adjuster? They represent you when dealing with an insurance company. They take a percentage of the settlement. Are they worth it? In New Jersey, it looks like they charge about 10%, though this is negotiable.Any insight is appreciated.

Personally, I think it would probably be a rip off. In a case like this, most carriers are going to be pretty helpful. For example, I've been told that the carrier I work for (arguably the top high-end home owners carrier in the country) is going to waive our wind deductible for home-owners claims. So its really going to depend on how much faith you have in the claims department for your homeowners carrier. I have Travelers (who I used to work for) and I have total faith that they'll pay what's fair. If you have a rinky-dink carrier and a cheapo policy, you might have to fight a little harder.

 

[otello]

Anyone ever use a public adjuster? They represent you when dealing with an insurance company. They take a percentage of the settlement. Are they worth it? In New Jersey, it looks like they charge about 10%, though this is negotiable.Any insight is appreciated.

Personally, I think it would probably be a rip off. In a case like this, most carriers are going to be pretty helpful. For example, I've been told that the carrier I work for (arguably the top high-end home owners carrier in the country) is going to waive our wind deductible for home-owners claims. So its really going to depend on how much faith you have in the claims department for your homeowners carrier. I have Travelers (who I used to work for) and I have total faith that they'll pay what's fair. If you have a rinky-dink carrier and a cheapo policy, you might have to fight a little harder.

The claim will be mostly for flood damage, therefore FEMA flood insurance claim. Maybe some roof damage from wind for homeowners, depending on how the claims department views it. We are weighing now whether to use a public adjuster. I have heard your view from at least one other person whose opinion I value. Obviously, the public adjusters argue that the insurance companies are all against you.

 

[shadyridr]

bulk of the subway system will be up and running on monday. where was the guy who said it would be a month before its back in action? NYC dont mess around.

Right here. It's not like I'm rooting for it to not be up and running. Plus "the bulk" isn't the entire subway system.

lol i know. i dont remember your exact comment but i dont remember you implying every single station. i dont think anybody thought every single station would be back within a week. either way, awesome news

 

[TLEF316]

Anyone ever use a public adjuster? They represent you when dealing with an insurance company. They take a percentage of the settlement. Are they worth it? In New Jersey, it looks like they charge about 10%, though this is negotiable.Any insight is appreciated.

Personally, I think it would probably be a rip off. In a case like this, most carriers are going to be pretty helpful. For example, I've been told that the carrier I work for (arguably the top high-end home owners carrier in the country) is going to waive our wind deductible for home-owners claims. So its really going to depend on how much faith you have in the claims department for your homeowners carrier. I have Travelers (who I used to work for) and I have total faith that they'll pay what's fair. If you have a rinky-dink carrier and a cheapo policy, you might have to fight a little harder.

The claim will be mostly for flood damage, therefore FEMA flood insurance claim. Maybe some roof damage from wind for homeowners, depending on how the claims department views it. We are weighing now whether to use a public adjuster. I have heard your view from at least one other person whose opinion I value. Obviously, the public adjusters argue that the insurance companies are all against you.

If you have an understanding of your policy and how it works, you can do just as good a job as a public adjuster. Its not rocket science. And even if you don't, its pretty basic contract language that is very easy to understand once you sit down and read it. I don't have any knowledge of how FEMA policies work, but if its a comprehensive flood policy, I can't imagine you won't be covered. If its a slam dunk flood case (as opposed to sewer/drain back up, leakage or some other sort of water peril) your biggest problem will be the deductible. Again, I don't write FEMA policies, but I'm guessing the flood deductible is higher than the regular deductible on your standard homeowners (I know it usually is when I write flood as part of one of my commercial policies) Good luck.