Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

MacNut

macrumors Core
Jan 4, 2002
22,995
9,973
CT
Isolated, for sure.

Hurricanes, not really. We had a big one back in 1992 but nothing of importance since. In 2014 Iselle threatened my island but made landfall as a tropical storm only.
Isn't everything extremely expensive as well?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Beachguy

monokakata

macrumors 68020
May 8, 2008
2,036
583
Ithaca, NY
Isn't everything extremely expensive as well?
Yes, for things that have to be shipped in. There are upsides to living here, though. In my case, I was born and raised here, so I feel very much at home.

We're talking about weather. You mainlanders can amuse yourselves by following this link, which will take you to webcams at nearly 14,000' -- from where I live, I could be at there in about an hour, where it's currently about 3C, with snow on the ground. I like that -- I live on the wet side, but I can be on the dry side in an hour, too. I'm in a rainforest environment, but I could be in what's technically a desert in about 90 minutes. Then there's the ocean . . . .

http://www.eao.hawaii.edu/weather/
 
  • Like
Reactions: 762999

Gutwrench

Suspended
Jan 2, 2011
4,603
10,530
Today will be the first day since Christmas that our temperature will climb to 20 degrees or above. Just looked at our electric bill online last night and it's almost a grand. Yikes.

$1k inone month? Dang. Electric heat? Generally speaking, where are you?
 

rdowns

macrumors Penryn
Jul 11, 2003
27,397
12,521
Today will be the first day since Christmas that our temperature will climb to 20 degrees or above. Just looked at our electric bill online last night and it's almost a grand. Yikes.

Yikes! Where do you live? I'm expected a $300-400 for this month with this cold wave. I live on Long Island.
 

RootBeerMan

macrumors 65816
Jan 3, 2016
1,472
5,259
Yikes! Where do you live? I'm expected a $300-400 for this month with this cold wave. I live on Long Island.
Living in the Midwest. We've been below 20 degrees, (many days in the negative numbers) since Christmas. With an all electric system it was hard to keep the house warm enough. I have my doubts that anyone from the power company even showed up to read the meter, (no footprints in the snow that's been out there for weeks). Par for the course with Duke Energy. This is the worst it's been, but winters are usually more costly.
 

jeyf

macrumors 68020
Jan 20, 2009
2,173
1,044
leave the doors open to rooms with plumbing in the walls, even cabinet doors
expect some things to fail, maybe for no apparent reason; furnace ignitor, garage froze shut.

given a few hours, maybe over night, there is a difference between 32.1 and 31.9
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: LizKat

hallux

macrumors 68040
Apr 25, 2012
3,437
1,005
Living in the Midwest. We've been below 20 degrees, (many days in the negative numbers) since Christmas. With an all electric system it was hard to keep the house warm enough. I have my doubts that anyone from the power company even showed up to read the meter, (no footprints in the snow that's been out there for weeks). Par for the course with Duke Energy. This is the worst it's been, but winters are usually more costly.

You guys don't have the remote-read meters yet? All they have to do where I live is drive by and the truck grabs the reading...
 

jeyf

macrumors 68020
Jan 20, 2009
2,173
1,044
Denver some areas but i would ask to have your electric meter changed out anyways
 

LizKat

macrumors 604
Aug 5, 2004
6,766
36,273
Catskill Mountains
File under feelin' lucky: the power went out for awhile here tonight after a tree limb must have fallen on some wires. The feed did that one, twice, three times off-on attempt to reset itself, and then the music I was streaming quit for good and I was looking at a laptop screen glowing in blackness,,, and thinking well at least it's +28 degrees tonight instead of -19.

When I phoned in the outage it seems that everyone else affected must have done so too, I actually got a circuit busy first time I tried. It's harder to be casual about blackouts in the dead of winter I guess. Anyway right in my area they switched us to another substation inside of ten minutes.

[ Puts another ten bucks in the kitty for the kind of genny hooked up to the gas tanks and the service panel that will kick in automatically during a power outage.... :D I need to speed that project up some if we're gonna have the Arctic Circle down here so often... ]
 
  • Like
Reactions: AlliFlowers

lowendlinux

macrumors 603
Sep 24, 2014
5,439
6,735
Germany
This neat little polar blast got my flight to JFK cancelled on Friday so they bumped me yesterday the good part was that I got a business class flight this time the bad part is that I've had to wait around Penn station for the last four hours and I've got a couple more to go.
 

belvdr

macrumors 603
Aug 15, 2005
5,945
1,372
[ Puts another ten bucks in the kitty for the kind of genny hooked up to the gas tanks and the service panel that will kick in automatically during a power outage.... :D I need to speed that project up some if we're gonna have the Arctic Circle down here so often... ]
Rather than go the fully automatic route, I'd suggest looking into a portable generator to power select circuits. I did the install myself last summer and am able to power about 70% of the house, enough for hot water, heat, cooking, and entertainment. End cost was ~ $1,571 all inclusive; I just cannot afford a five figure automatic setup.

When the power drops, I roll out the generator, plug it into the generator outlet on the side of the house and fire it up. Next to the main power panel, there's a small breakout box that I simply flip switches from "Line" to "Gen". On a tank of fuel, I can power the house for about 12 hours. Additionally, the generator can run on gas or propane.
 

LizKat

macrumors 604
Aug 5, 2004
6,766
36,273
Catskill Mountains
This neat little polar blast got my flight to JFK cancelled on Friday so they bumped me yesterday the good part was that I got a business class flight this time the bad part is that I've had to wait around Penn station for the last four hours and I've got a couple more to go.

You sure took our usually warmer early winter weather with you when you left here for the holidays... hope your baggage on this return contains the missing pieces of our Sun. :p
 
  • Like
Reactions: lowendlinux

lowendlinux

macrumors 603
Sep 24, 2014
5,439
6,735
Germany
You sure took our usually warmer early winter weather with you when you left here for the holidays... hope your baggage on this return contains the missing pieces of our Sun. :p
I did bring the 40 degrees and sunshine with me but she escaped when some guy drunk tried to talk with her on 7th Ave.
 

lowendlinux

macrumors 603
Sep 24, 2014
5,439
6,735
Germany
Yea it should be an interesting long weekend 45 one day then 20 the next, I think I'll stay in

e55bd6e33ad260a4a1e6f442ed571186.jpg
 

LizKat

macrumors 604
Aug 5, 2004
6,766
36,273
Catskill Mountains
There was some talk about emergency generators here. The average Joe should really NOT consider implementing this. If you must look at this:
https://www.electricgeneratorsdirec...MI6avdk_XL2AIVCKvsCh2B2AlAEAQYASABEgKmI_D_BwE

Get a portable generator, they are really quiet and lite weight. In an emergency run an extension cord to an appliance for a few hours, cycle through the appliances that need power.

I appreciate the info... I do... but... I still want the kind of genny setup that's "permanent" and just kicks in automatically, like some of my kin have been satisified with... plus the stuff and the installation are cheaper now than back a few years. I wait long enough I'll freeze to death in my sleep some night, I realize that lately, :eek: but I think I might almost have enough saved up by summertime to book installation before the weather turns in late fall.

Anyway I'm not big on messing around with gas powered anythings... I'm the kind dislikes even lighting a camp stove to boil water out on the deck after we've lost juice to the house. Close to fearful every time I crank up a lawn mower or weed whacker, terrified to transport gasoline from anywhere to anywhere else, no matter 10 miles or 10 steps. I'm an original customer of automated and turn-key solutions for gas powered items. I'm sure they're happy when they see me turn up shopping, too, but someone has to be that customer. :)
 

RootBeerMan

macrumors 65816
Jan 3, 2016
1,472
5,259
I appreciate the info... I do... but... I still want the kind of genny setup that's "permanent" and just kicks in automatically, like some of my kin have been satisified with... plus the stuff and the installation are cheaper now than back a few years. I wait long enough I'll freeze to death in my sleep some night, I realize that lately, :eek: but I think I might almost have enough saved up by summertime to book installation before the weather turns in late fall.

Anyway I'm not big on messing around with gas powered anythings... I'm the kind dislikes even lighting a camp stove to boil water out on the deck after we've lost juice to the house. Close to fearful every time I crank up a lawn mower or weed whacker, terrified to transport gasoline from anywhere to anywhere else, no matter 10 miles or 10 steps. I'm an original customer of automated and turn-key solutions for gas powered items. I'm sure they're happy when they see me turn up shopping, too, but someone has to be that customer. :)
My neighbour has a propane generator that cuts in automatically. They love it. They buried the gas tank, so it's not seen and he swears it was worth every penny he paid for it. There have been times I've envied it.
 

hallux

macrumors 68040
Apr 25, 2012
3,437
1,005
This neat little polar blast got my flight to JFK cancelled on Friday so they bumped me yesterday the good part was that I got a business class flight this time the bad part is that I've had to wait around Penn station for the last four hours and I've got a couple more to go.

Heh, I know we're in the same general area... I don't mind a drive to NY from time to time and I was off yesterday. Too bad it was because I was sick lol.. Might have gotten you home faster. Too bad you didn't luck out and end up on a Norwegian flight to JFK that was diverted to Albany the other day due to the snow...
 

AlliFlowers

macrumors 601
Jan 1, 2011
4,542
15,755
L.A. (Lower Alabama)
File under feelin' lucky: the power went out for awhile here tonight after a tree limb must have fallen on some wires. The feed did that one, twice, three times off-on attempt to reset itself, and then the music I was streaming quit for good and I was looking at a laptop screen glowing in blackness,,, and thinking well at least it's +28 degrees tonight instead of -19.

When I phoned in the outage it seems that everyone else affected must have done so too, I actually got a circuit busy first time I tried. It's harder to be casual about blackouts in the dead of winter I guess. Anyway right in my area they switched us to another substation inside of ten minutes.

[ Puts another ten bucks in the kitty for the kind of genny hooked up to the gas tanks and the service panel that will kick in automatically during a power outage.... :D I need to speed that project up some if we're gonna have the Arctic Circle down here so often... ]

We bought a whole house Genny after Katrina. Used a portable during, and it didn't get through two days (hubby wasn't willing to wait 4 hours online for gas, and I wasn't making it home every day even though I had plenty of gas). Anyhow, it was the best decision we made, and totally worth the expense. Haven't lost power since Katrina!

Heh, I know we're in the same general area... I don't mind a drive to NY from time to time and I was off yesterday. Too bad it was because I was sick lol.. Might have gotten you home faster. Too bad you didn't luck out and end up on a Norwegian flight to JFK that was diverted to Albany the other day due to the snow...

Exactly what I don't miss about living in upstate NY. I'll stick to my hurricanes.

Meanwhile we're expecting another week back in the 20's. That will be miserable after going back to 70 this week!
 

Gutwrench

Suspended
Jan 2, 2011
4,603
10,530
We’ve been above freezing during daylight for two or three days now. It still smelled of winter but felt like spring. Snow inbound tonight.

With an all electric system it was hard to keep the house warm enough.

Ahhh electric, that explains it.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.