Pete in MI
New member
We live in a mobile home so we know any kind of problem can get out of hand FAST. We have had a few power fluctuations 'brown outs' where the lights would be bright then go dim then back to bright, etc.
We were told living UpNorth to expect fluctuations...but there was no storm going on to shake the wires outside to cause this.
The light next to me just went out. Then Casey came in and said the light in her room quit working. We have changed several bulbs lately...not exactly sure why they died.
I went back into my closet where the circuit breaker box is and was going to check to see if a breaker had tripped. Before I got to the bedroom I could smell melting plastic/electrical components. I got to the breaker box and barely touched the case and it was HOT HOT HOT (heat type hot). I shut off the top main switches, called the electrician who has been doing work on our place and only got a machine. Then called the fire department just to be safe.
The used a sensor to check for smoke and found no smoke but they shut off all power to the house....as far as we knew. All the circuit breaker boxes (4 - 3 inside and one on the pole outside) had been flipped to the OFF position. Yet one room in our house where the cable modem is has power to the modem...that's how I am on line now. I don't pretend to understand it.
We dug out the electrical generator last night and ran 2 extension cords into the house...one for a light in the bathroom and one connected to a power strip which had a large fan to keep us cool, our chargers for the cell phones (our only communication since the regular phone doesn't work without power), our power units for Sherry and my laptops and a lamp next to us.
My digging buddy Ken came to our aid and provided us containers and water from his house so we had water for 'flushing the toilet'. (We have a pump for water from the well..which doesn't work without power so no water otherwise.) He even offered us his internet connection while he and his wife are gone camping today and through the weekend - as he knew Sherry needed to have the connection for her job with Bugman Pest Control.
My sister-in-law and her 2 daughters arrived yesterday for a short 4 day stay....just before all this occurred. Gave them some things to talk about when they go back home again.
Even though we had no power (besides the generator) we still had set up the outside fireplace and had a nice fire going. We all thought as we looked at the fire "Ah the wonders of UpNorth"...with the nice fresh air, the blazing fire going snap crackle and pop...and the generator drowning out our conversation.
Had to get up about 2 AM to add more fuel to the generator. Didn't get a whole lot of sleep and my back had hurt all day and still is.
We still have not heard from the electrician and we hope he can get here today to resolve the problem and we hope too our homeowner's insurance will cover the expenses of getting the electrical fixed and other expenses.
So there we are. Had to go to the gas station for coffee this morning. Maybe later after we get the refrigerator/freezer cold again I can make a pot of coffee...our stove is electric too :sad:
No water, no stove to cook with, no furnace when the electricity is off.
Not a single luxury...sound like Gilligan's Island????
Been interesting to say the least.
We were told living UpNorth to expect fluctuations...but there was no storm going on to shake the wires outside to cause this.
The light next to me just went out. Then Casey came in and said the light in her room quit working. We have changed several bulbs lately...not exactly sure why they died.
I went back into my closet where the circuit breaker box is and was going to check to see if a breaker had tripped. Before I got to the bedroom I could smell melting plastic/electrical components. I got to the breaker box and barely touched the case and it was HOT HOT HOT (heat type hot). I shut off the top main switches, called the electrician who has been doing work on our place and only got a machine. Then called the fire department just to be safe.
The used a sensor to check for smoke and found no smoke but they shut off all power to the house....as far as we knew. All the circuit breaker boxes (4 - 3 inside and one on the pole outside) had been flipped to the OFF position. Yet one room in our house where the cable modem is has power to the modem...that's how I am on line now. I don't pretend to understand it.
We dug out the electrical generator last night and ran 2 extension cords into the house...one for a light in the bathroom and one connected to a power strip which had a large fan to keep us cool, our chargers for the cell phones (our only communication since the regular phone doesn't work without power), our power units for Sherry and my laptops and a lamp next to us.
My digging buddy Ken came to our aid and provided us containers and water from his house so we had water for 'flushing the toilet'. (We have a pump for water from the well..which doesn't work without power so no water otherwise.) He even offered us his internet connection while he and his wife are gone camping today and through the weekend - as he knew Sherry needed to have the connection for her job with Bugman Pest Control.
My sister-in-law and her 2 daughters arrived yesterday for a short 4 day stay....just before all this occurred. Gave them some things to talk about when they go back home again.
Even though we had no power (besides the generator) we still had set up the outside fireplace and had a nice fire going. We all thought as we looked at the fire "Ah the wonders of UpNorth"...with the nice fresh air, the blazing fire going snap crackle and pop...and the generator drowning out our conversation.
Had to get up about 2 AM to add more fuel to the generator. Didn't get a whole lot of sleep and my back had hurt all day and still is.
We still have not heard from the electrician and we hope he can get here today to resolve the problem and we hope too our homeowner's insurance will cover the expenses of getting the electrical fixed and other expenses.
So there we are. Had to go to the gas station for coffee this morning. Maybe later after we get the refrigerator/freezer cold again I can make a pot of coffee...our stove is electric too :sad:
No water, no stove to cook with, no furnace when the electricity is off.
Not a single luxury...sound like Gilligan's Island????
Been interesting to say the least.