What a week it has been so far. Or maybe what a summer! I know much of the US is suffering from heat, storms and humidity, my state no exception.

Power was lost early Sunday morning due to a thunderstorm. Gigantic areas were affected. As of 2130 last night there was still no power in my area and it was 90+ degrees and 80% humidty. Last night an Edison worker swung by my farm to check the lines out. Nothing was broken here but one line had been stretched pretty good by a large sassafrass tree which had fallen across my pasture fence and bounced off the wire.

The worker said they could not figure out why power was not restored in my township yet. She then said there was no projected time/date as to when it would be back on.

I have three freezers/fridges full of game and home raised livestock. Desperation was setting in as the kitchen freezer was thawed already and I lost my entire egg crop in the barn refrigerator. I am estimating about 30 dozen were spoiled.

My game meat is in the BIG freezer and basically that one was still packed full. Hundreds of pounds of goodies in there.

I called the insurance company to explain the situation. Yes, they will cover it just do an inventory. Even worse is the loss of home raised meat which is labor intensive. I have at least 40 eight to ten pound chickens (part of a year's supply of chemical free meat).

Anyway, while trying to sleep in a sweltering house last night the power zoomed back on at 2215. I had the AC jammin within seconds and then reluctantly checked the big freezer. All was still frozen after almost 42 hours of no power combined with summer heat!

I'll celebrate with a succulent deer steak tonight after work.

Glad you only had minimal losses. We had the same thing here a few years ago. Lost everything in both freezers, etc. Luckily, insurance kicked in. Enjoy your steak!

If you have that much frozen meat to protect get a generator !

Ann
Do what I did.... Buy a generator. A 5000 Watt generator will cost about $500 and will power several big freezers. You will not be able to power your whole house but you can power the important stuff...
Russ

Dear Ann:
I feel for you and your loss of power. Here in Alabama we have had a couple of bad thunder storms out of the Gulf within the last 10 months, and lower has been out over large parts of the state each time. When it is 90-100 degree/90-100% humidity it is hot! How did we live without air condishioning when I was young? I think that 90 degrees is hoter now than then. I hope that youget your frezers back on before every thing spoils. Maybe you can make a LOT of jerky.
Judge Sharpe

The obvious answer is what has already been posted go out and get a generator.

Doesn't seem like rocket science to me on this one.

File a claim on your insurance and you will likely have just made a big chuck of the generator payment when you see your next insurance premium.

Don't know if it is still true but at one time the power co. was responsible. Could be a Texas contract thing but I know in the 70's Gulf States (entergy) bought alot of bad food here.

Storms are considerd an act of god. In 25 years of utillity work I have never heard of one paying for lost freezer and refrigirator items.

If a person leaves his freezer closed and coverd with blankets, I have seen food stay frozen for 5 days.

Kudu, Read your post and called someone and was told you were right. I was also told that what I rememder was screw up Gulf States made. They could not fix it everywhere so had to pay some.
It was not an act of god.

Guys, last time I looked at 5000 w generators they were $1500 plus bucks. Which buys fencing materials, tractor implements, chain saw, a hunt...you get it. So purchasing a piece of equipment I might use once every other year just wasn't at the top of the list. There always seemed to be something more important.

But if such a thing can be obtained for $500 it is probably worth investing in. DTE (old Detroit Edison) said they would pay a loss claim as it was a substaion issue in this case. I am not a utility worker so am not sure what exactly the issue was. However, I am greatful it has been repaird.

I will do an inventory to see what was lost. The bottom line is it could have been a lot worse as I hate to buy meat from the store.

I think a generator and a wood splitter are the last pieces of good equipment I need to buy. Just need my own oil well and refinery and I can shut out the rest of the world!

The generator idea is fine but if you don't run it at least once a month and use stable in the gas when you need to use it it may not start. My friends sister ran into that problem when we had a power outage due to an ice storm this spring.

My father lost everything in his fridge and freezer due to the ice storm and no power for 5 days. Luckly he had good insurance and they paid off, but the deer he had in the freezer can't be bought. We only can hope that this Muzzle loader season and regular firearm season we will be able to harvest some more fine venison. I would rather eat a deer steak than a beef steak anyway.

Ann
Sears has a 5600 Watt on sale for $670. Walmart has a coleman 6250 Watt on sale for $498. What Swede says is true. I use stable and test the generator on a regular basis. I consider it like insurance... you don't need it very often and it is expensive but when you need it you need it REAL BAD.

I do stand corrected "Acts of God" don't count on insurance claims.

I have a 6500 watt electric start gen set tied in with a manual trandfer panel to the house. You should use fuel stabilizer and start the gen set up one a month or so as Swede44Mag has said.

Guess what you have to weigh is how often will you need it, how much food do you stand to lose and how bad do you want to save your perisibles when you don't have power for a prolonged duration. Get one on four wheels so you can move it around easier and be sure you get one with a large gas tank so it will run for at least 8-12 hours without refueling.

If it is "somewhat" portable you can lend a hand to a neighbor or friend when they are in need and you still have power.

It certianly is an expense item for your business.