Move my generator down?
 

So we're getting ready to move down in November and packing and selling off stuff up here in Connecticut.

One of the things I planned to sell was our generator, but before I do I thought I'd ask if it's worth moving. Do many people in the Villages own generators? It's kind of a big one, 9000watts and basically powers our whole house when the power goes out up here.

I'm thinking that it's one more thing that eats up alot of precious garage space... but thought I'd ask.

have been here 6 1/2 years in that time lost power 4 times an at that for a hour or 2 . last years storm never a flicker never lost cable nothing . can it happen sure in my area Sanibel (cottage homes)nobody has a gen. that's all I can say

I agree - probably no need for a generator, particularly one that large. Now if you have a medical need such as keeping some medicines cool in the fridge, that would be something to consider getting a small unit for, but certainly not that behemoth. We've been here over 9 years through some big storms as well as a couple hurricanes. Never lost power for more than maybe an hour (Village Santiago).

Don't need it
 

Been here 16 years and have NEVER lost power. Village of Briar Meadow.

Playing the odds you probably don't need it. We didn't lose power at all during the hurricane last year but some parts of the Villages lost power for 5 days or so. In fact we've had maybe 3 or 4 outages since we have been here (5 years). One was an hour or two, the rest were about 15 minutes.

Some people do have generators here, usually Generac's installed outside that run off of propane from a tank buried in the ground or city gas in the parts of the Villages where it is a available.

We had a Gererac when we lived in MA, it was great... when the power went we almost didn't notice it because the automatic switch over was to fast.

You mention it taking up garage space... is your generator gasoline powered portable one you pull outside to run? Is it designed to run in rain pouring down at 2 or 3 inches per hour for 10 or 20 hours with wind peaking to 7o mph? That's what it would have stand up to during a hurricane.

Thanks for the replies... generator going on craigslist tomorrow.

Depends on what Village you are moving to. Had the generator in New Jersey for Hurricane Sandy. Needed electricity for our water pump for the well. Out of p[ower for a month and a half. Moved here just in time for Irma. Out of power for almost a week. Occasional, 1 or 2 power outages here in Silver Lake, Prehistoric section. None more than an hour or two. A generator that size could power a few houses, easy way to make new neighbor friends. Replacement would be expensive.

Unless you're moving to the historic district in Lady Lake (their power was out for 3 days after Hurricane Irma), been here 7 years and barely a flicker of the lights (including during Irma).

It's like lightning rods. The chances of you being struck by lightning are VERY low but if you DO get struck, the cost and stress of repair can be huge. If you live in the non-historic sections of The Villages (which is most of it), the chances of losing power for longer are very low. But if you DO lose power for long, the cost of no power might be a fridge with medicines in it, a freezer full of meat or hours or days without lights or A/C. It really depends on your risk tolerance.

Many that use Duke energy lost power for 7 days after Irma.
Hopefully they will be better prepared for the next one.

We usually head for a hotel if the power goes away.....can stay for a lot of days and not approach the cost of a whole house generator.

When I moved here I had a 9000 watt generator that was capable of running my entire house in Virginia and did for several days at a time several times. Once for 5 days in the dead of winter. I went through your same thinking process. I ended up selling the big generator and bought a Honda 2000 watt inverter type generator. It is big enough to run a fridge and freezer and a few lights and fans. Very quiet, small, uses very little gas, very portable and great for other uses like boating, camping, tailgating, and easy to use. I had to move a couple of breakers around in my main power panel to get the really critical things on one side of the main supply so I could use this 120 volt generator as a direct feed by shutting off the 200 amp main.

So far I have not needed it even during Irma. I was ready though and also have used it for a couple other things. So this may also be a good compromise that would work for you.

My advice would be to sell the big gen and once here, buy a small (Honda like) portable generator "just in case". When Irma blew through, I dusted off the portable generator, bought five gallons of gas, and got it running good a few days before she arrived. Never needed it at all, as we never lost power for a minute, but it helped me sleep better knowing I could run the refrigerator/freezer and have electric lights if needed.

I'd bring it. We were some of the folks who lost power last year and you really don't know how much you rely on it until you don't have it. Our neighborhood was humming with generators for a few days...we wished we were one of them. Hopefully you'll never need it but if you do you'll be kicking yourself for selling.

Typically, you don't power up your generator during the actual hurricane. They are used the days following a major storm if you lose power.