Hurricane Sandy lessons learned

garandman

Instructor
NES Member
Joined
Jun 27, 2008
Messages
23,622
Likes
24,230
Location
Boston Hahbah
Feedback: 13 / 1 / 0
Hope we can keep this thread specifically as a "lessons learned" thread about winter storms and salt water flooding.

A co-worker has relatives in Freeport, NY - the ocean side of southern Long Island. Their house is six miles from the open ocean although near a tidal inlet. The house has been there for many years and never been flooded, although they did get some water in their yard last year during Hurricane Irene. They only evacuated the house for this storm because so many relatives nagged them that they decided to go inland, book a hotel and do some shopping. The hotel lost power but did not suffer any physical damage.

At the height of the storm, there was four feet of water in the house. A large wave(s) came through (estimated 10'+) without being impeded by land and breakwater and stove in their second story windows, flooding the entire house in the process. The enterior of most homes is not very resistant to salt water intrusion....

Their oil tank was broken off it's mounts and spilled the contents. When they returned the neighborhood was littered with oil and propane tanks.

  1. My co-worker had previously purchased a good-sized 12V bilge pump at a marine store and a spare 12 V battery that fit his car. This pump helped de-water the house when no one else around could do so. Might be a good solution for those of you with sump pumps and no power. They're available in sizes from 500 to 2000 gph.
  2. He brought an 800 watt inverter ($50-75). This inverter was large enough to power an electric coffee pot. He wired the second battery in parallel with his car and was able to run the coffee pot, and a few other small electrical accessories for three days by running the car periodically to charge both batteries, using a 1/4 tank of fuel.
  3. They used a Coleman camp stove for cooking. The one lb bottles were also sold out in the region in short order. I told my co-worker about the Coleman hose adapter to convert a 20lb can for camp stove use: he'd never heard of it and is going to get them one.
  4. The local cell towers were disabled by the storm. They had to drive 5-6 miles inland to get a cell signal to deal with insurance companies, relatives, contractors etc. Oftentimes these towers were overloaded with traffic and they could not get a connection.
  5. They purchased two six gallon jerry cans in MA and filled them in CT. This was the most important contribution for the family because they had to drive 10 miles per cell phone call (see above) and also used the car to stay warm. There were no fuel cans within 100 miles of NYC and supply is short across the country from this one storm.
  6. There are a number of electricians who live in the area, and the power was turned on in the neighborhood after a few days. But the electricians could not get a supply of replacement or repair sockets, wiring and other run-of-the-mill electrical supplies - also sold out throughout the three state area. Basically they had power to two second floor wall sockets, but could not use anything else because of wiring and fuse box damage.


What else you got?
 
Installing electric service panels below ground level (basement) is a no-win. Install panel above historic flood levels. First floor and basement GFCI circuits. No more getting electrocuted to turn off power at a basement panel or waiting to pump out a basement to restore power. Give similar consideration to water heater and furnace placement.

Use car as an emergency backup generator.
USB charger (cigarette lighter)
AC (inverter) outlet in one car
- enough to charge phones, laptops, run modem/router

LED lanterns, flashlights

Old style (no AC power needed) phone and landline. In over 20 years only failed when a tree snapped line on street.

My $0.02
 
Good information.

Realizing MA really was not getting the brunt of the storm, I still took this as an opportunity to observe and improve my own preps. Living in an apartment adds some complexity to my preparedness equation- I have no place to store gasoline, a generator, or large supplies of water, food, etc. I did, however, pickup a Coleman dual-burner propane stove in case we lost power (I would use the outside deck if I had to). I also picked up an oil lamp which was relatively cheap (~$17), uses an inexpensive fuel source, and will last much longer than a typical candle. In the event I ran out of propane (i.e. an extended outage), I do have a small portable camping stove which can be fueled with wood (I keep small Fatwood Fire Starter Bundles just in case). I keep a WaterBOB around to fill up in the bathtub for use as a stored water supply, filled up empty plastic bottles with water and froze them to act as a backup water supply and help keep the freezer cold in case we lost power, and as a last resort I also have a Katadyn water filter. I have plenty of flashlights, ranging from cheap to very durable, and plenty of candles, so I wasn't concerned with lighting. For communications I have a couple FRS/GMRS limited range radios but more recently decided to pickup a couple of the Baofeng UV5R+ radios for longer range communications, checking weather advisories, and getting myself introduced to HAM radios.

I learned that I need a longer term food supply in the event things get as bad as they did in NYC and NJ. We keep a reasonable supply of non-perishables (soups, pasta, etc.) but I'm honestly not sure how long it would last in that type of situation. I also need to figure out what to do about fuel (i.e. gasoline). I had a filled tank, but my car only gets about 18-19 mpg at best, an extended situation (more than a week) would force me to leave the car at home.

Btw, since it's somewhat related, I'm including the following link to the pdf version of the book by David Crawford called Lights Out. This is a fictional account of an EMP attack, but was an overall great story and there are a number of good ideas thrown in as well. Well worth reading IMO.
 
[*]They used a Coleman camp stove for cooking. The one lb bottles were also sold out in the region in short order. I told my co-worker about the Coleman hose adapter to convert a 20lb can for camp stove use: he'd never heard of it and is going to get them one.

One comment on those 1lb tanks. I can use those for heating, cooking, and lighting and have in extended power outages in the past. You are right how quickly they disappear when the power is out for a couple of days. This is why I have always made sure to grab a two pack almost every time I hit Walmart. I think they are a little over $5 for the pair. It's easy over time to assemble a lot of these and not have to go on a hunt when you need to use them for a few weeks.
 
  • If the cell towers are overloaded, text if possible. It will get through when a call will not.
  • Buy a cell phone car charger adapter so you can charge the phone in the car
  • Consider solar charging for usb appliances as a backup. See here. You must have rechargeable batteries in the unit to recharge appliances.
  • I'm counting on my gas grill to save me for cooking, but I'm over 100 ft. above sea level. I also have a backpack stove that is compact but runs on Coleman or unleaded gas.
 
They also make a adapter for the standard 20lb propane tank that you can use to refill the small 1lb disposable propane bottles. I got one so I do not have to bring my 20 lb tank when I go camping.
For New Yorkers and most of new england, I would recommend a diesel generator. Not as many problems as gasoline models when not used regularly and a lot of homes have 275 gallon heating oil tanks which is an already built in fuel storage. Heating oil and diesel are the same except diesel has less sulfur (pollutant). A small little transfer pump and you are all set. Grab fuel from heating oil tank, start diesel generator, then run your heating system. I also have a diesel truck. That 275 gallons could provide warmth, electricity and fuel for your vehicle. I am working on getting my wife a diesel car, and a second 275 gallon oil tank for my basement. I could probably install a second tank myself for under $1000.
 
Practice.

Get your back-up equipment, and do a "STHF Practice Run" - figure out in your head, or on paper, how to light the house, and cook your meals, then try it. See if you have enough lights. See if you have enough fuel for (insert whatever time you're prepping for here) this setup on hand.

Diversify: when Irene hit, we had candles, oil lamps, propane and liquid fuel mantle lanters, and flashlights (we have gas, so there was no problem, there). This way, if propane tanks are hard to get, you have options. Figure out what the "minimum" is, and what's "enough". I liked mantle lamps for "work", kero for lighting, and candles for "night lights".

Reality test: Make sure that all persons in the house are "comfortable" with your preps - you never know who'll get "twitchy" about "fires in all the rooms" (What if the cat lights its tail on fire?!?!?!) If you have younger kids, be careful as to what's appropriate.
 
Anyone install a car inverter? They seem to be limited to 150 watts or so if you plug into the lighter socket, I can't see driving around with one that needs to be hooked up under the hood.
 
Anyone install a car inverter? They seem to be limited to 150 watts or so if you plug into the lighter socket, I can't see driving around with one that needs to be hooked up under the hood.

I have one that plugs in to the lighter socket. Works good for charging phones and running laptops. Could also hook up other small electronics. I have an 800W one that you connect to the battery but only use that if the genny fails. Actually we have 2 of those. [smile] We can run almost the whole house off these with careful management. Check out this site for recommendations www.solar1234.com Also you can listen to his guest appearances on The Survival Podcast talking about keeping your home powered during blackouts (episde 939 talks about the inverters and stuff).
 
Anyone install a car inverter? They seem to be limited to 150 watts or so if you plug into the lighter socket, I can't see driving around with one that needs to be hooked up under the hood.

Rig up your car with some Anderson power connectors:

http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/AN...3BY20&ef_id=UJuTyQAACplxg1Qn:20121126123005:s


They make them in all different sizes and amp ratings. You see them a lot on tow trucks because they just rig the connector in , and then use it to hook jumper cables up to - instead of having to hook onto the battery posts.

They're made in all sorts of different colors and amp ratings - get the right one for the load you'll be putting thru it. The link above is just to show what they are (not sure if it would be the correct connector for an automotive jumper cable for instance).
 
Back
Top Bottom