TO: ALL WOOD COUNTY ARES MEMBERS (OFFICIAL)
ALL ARES AND NON-ARES AMATEURS ANYWHERE (INFORMATION)
FROM: KEN HARRIS WA8LLM ARRL DISTRICT 3 EMERGENCY COORDINATOR
WOOD COUNTY EMERGENCY COMMUNICATIONS INC.
WOOD COUNTY ARES BULLETIN NR 17.48 DATE: November 26, 2017
SUBJECT: GENERATOR SAFETY TIPS
With winter and cold weather coming are you ready for the power to go off? When your power goes off do you have a back-up generator to hold you over until it comes back on? Some people are lucky enough to have a generator that automatically starts and transfers their house to the generator. Then when the power comes back on it transfers their house back to the power company.
If all you have is a generator that needs to be started manually by either pulling a rope or if you are lucky enough to have an electric start where is it operated? Is it in an enclosed building or garage? A generator that is operated in an enclosed building or garage should have it's exhaust routed to the outside world. Don't forget the exhaust is a poisonous gas. Operating a generator in an enclosed space has two problems, one is the poisonous gas, and the other is the air input to the generator. If the generator doesn't get fresh air it will either quit running or run at a lower power output.
If your generator is operated outside, make sure that the exhaust is away from any air intake to the house. If your generator is portable it's best to operate it under a shed so that it's out of the weather and can have fresh air intake. Don't forget to ground your generator, and have a safe way to transfer your house from the power company to your generator.
Ken Harris WA8LLM
WCEC
Wood County WV