[Coop63]

My wife and are in the process of downsizing, getting ready for our move to the Villages. I was wondering if I should bring the following items.

- 2400w portable generator, good for keeping furnace, refrigerator and other small appliances running in power outages. Leaning "yes"

- Portable upright room air conditioner. We currently have a multi story home, so nice to provide extra cool to the upstairs office on a hot day. I know most homes in the Villages are single story, so wondering if it would be nice for the lanai? Leaning "no"

Any feedback is appreciated.

[retiredguy123]

I would be leaning in different directions. Both are good to have, but a spare air conditioner would be more valuable when your HVAC fails in the summer.

[LuvtheVillages]

Originally Posted by Coop63

My wife and are in the process of downsizing, getting ready for our move to the Villages. I was wondering if I should bring the following items.

- 2400w portable generator, good for keeping furnace, refrigerator and other small appliances running in power outages. Leaning "yes"

- Portable upright room air conditioner. We currently have a multi story home, so nice to provide extra cool to the upstairs office on a hot day. I know most homes in the Villages are single story, so wondering if it would be nice for the lanai? Leaning "no"

Any feedback is appreciated.

If you are buying an older home in the historic section, you might need the generator on rare occasions. If your life depends upon meds that must be kept refrigerated or equipment that must be kept running, you might need the generator on rare occasions. Otherwise, power outages have never been more than an hour or so.

As for the A/C - If you are buying a new construction home with the lanai already enclosed, your a/c should be sized for the proper square footage. If you are enclosing a screened lanai, or the previous owner enclosed it, the supplemental a/c might be helpful. Window a/c's are not allowed.

[villagetinker]

No and no, the generator is way too small to handle AC, and in the area we are in (just south of 466A) I can count the number of interruptions in 11 years on one hand with the longest being about 1 hour. If (big if) you have medical equipment that needs to be available 24/7 then the generator may be suitable, but I would not recommend it. You would need to deal with extension cords, a way to get these from outside to inside the house, the possible tripping hazard of these cords. Then you have to have the generator OUTSIDE and away from the house to avoid CO2 poisoning.
As for the AC unit if this is a window type unit you will find it is NOT allowed per deed restrictions.
If you area really worried about an interruption plan on spending $10K to $20K for a whole house generator and the associated fuel tank (buried), transfer switch, etc. I have 2 neighbors with these, the only times they run is the weekly (or monthly?) test run.
Most of the villages have underground utilities, and SECO has a very robust system to feed their area of The Villages. The older section has DUKE and also has a lot of aerial lines which can be subjected to damage. I have very little info on the newer sections south of 44.

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by villagetinker

No and no, the generator is way too small to handle AC, and in the area we are in (just south of 466A) I can count the number of interruptions in 11 years on one hand with the longest being about 1 hour. If (big if) you have medical equipment that needs to be available 24/7 then the generator may be suitable, but I would not recommend it. You would need to deal with extension cords, a way to get these from outside to inside the house, the possible tripping hazard of these cords. Then you have to have the generator OUTSIDE and away from the house to avoid CO2 poisoning.
As for the AC unit if this is a window type unit you will find it is NOT allowed per deed restrictions.
If you area really worried about an interruption plan on spending $10K to $20K for a whole house generator and the associated fuel tank (buried), transfer switch, etc. I have 2 neighbors with these, the only times they run is the weekly (or monthly?) test run.
Most of the villages have underground utilities, and SECO has a very robust system to feed their area of The Villages. The older section has DUKE and also has a lot of aerial lines which can be subjected to damage. I have very little info on the newer sections south of 44.

The OP has an upright AC unit, not a window unit. I have been considering buying one in case my HVAC fails.

[BigSteph]

I brought down a portal AC 3 years ago. Still collecting dust. I suppose I'll keep it, though, it is taking up space in the garage.

(It is the kind that sits on the floor and uses a duct to a slightly cracked window).

[DAVES]

Originally Posted by Coop63

My wife and are in the process of downsizing, getting ready for our move to the Villages. I was wondering if I should bring the following items.

- 2400w portable generator, good for keeping furnace, refrigerator and other small appliances running in power outages. Leaning "yes"

- Portable upright room air conditioner. We currently have a multi story home, so nice to provide extra cool to the upstairs office on a hot day. I know most homes in the Villages are single story, so wondering if it would be nice for the lanai? Leaning "no"

Any feedback is appreciated.

No shortage of opinions. Fortunately this is a small dollar one. There is the expense of moving it. Can you properly pack it so it will not be damaged in transit.
A prof mover may not be willing to move a generator-fuel and oil.
It is a used air conditioner and a used generator. In Florida we also have used window air conditioners and used generators. Far as running a refrigerator, newer refrigerators have electronic controls, you need a stable generator to run them.

[AZ SLIM]

I have an older Honda 2000 generator and bought an upright AC/dehumidifier from Costco at a reasonable price. I tested them and found that I can run the AC to keep a small area of the house cool enough to sleep in. It also runs the refrigerator, a table fan, and a couple lights. Maybe more, I haven't tried yet. Hondas don't use much gas, so I keep about 6 gallons on hand plus (more importantly) one of those syphon kits from Harbor Freight so I can get gas out of our vehicles, which we keep full if storms are predicted. Should be good for many hours or days in the unlikely event that the grid is damaged. I know there is not a history of outages here, but I also don't want to have to leave if a big hurricane hits the coast and causes mass evacuations from there. These houses are not designed for good natural airflow.

[tophcfa]

My opinion, no on generator, rarely lose power with underground lines and when do it’s for a very short duration. Yes on portable A/C assuming you have adequate space in new home to store it (back corner of walk in closet would work). A/C would be nice to have as insurance in unlikely event your system fails during hot and humid season (it happens) and could also be used to cool off bedroom for sleeping during shoulder seasons when it’s not necessary to cool whole house with central air.

[Papa_lecki]

One night my AC stopped working. Had it fixed in a day

Spend the night at the brownwood hotel. It was wonderful.

[dewilson58]

Your "leans" are correct.

I brought the 5k generator I had up North.
Full disclosure, have not used it.
But, since I had it................"it's free".
But, But...............I would not buy one down here.

[Toymeister]

I have both in case of power outage. Odds are slight, yes. That is why its preperation, not a long term plan

[vintageogauge]

We've been here 7 years never had a power outage not even during Irma. If my HVAC goes out and I can't get same day service I'll go buy a room air conditioner or go to a hotel, no need to take up space in the garage to use maybe once in a decade if ever.

[MrChip72]

All the power lines are underground in every area of TV that I've encountered. I've never seen or heard of a power outage in The Villages.

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by MrChip72

All the power lines are underground in every area of TV that I've encountered. I've never seen or heard of a power outage in The Villages.

My power was out for 15 hours a few years ago, and had a 2 year old house with all power lines underground. I have also had several shorter outages since then.