Denver storms???

[koiczar]

Hey Lee

You just have to rub it in, huh? JK - We're all jealous of your weather. Even though I live in sunny California, water temps are hovering right around 48-50F Fish are doing great, but I feel like a popsicle when I step outside at night.

Merry Xmas to you and family

Mike

[Tamianth]

Nice to see all are fine! Is all the Oregonians and Washingtonians ok from that nasty wind storm that hit last Thursday?

I lost power for a week, but otherwise fine here & very lucky. More sever damage in lower elevations..

[Russell Peters]

Quote: Originally Posted by Tamianth Nice to see all are fine! Is all the Oregonians and Washingtonians ok from that nasty wind storm that hit last Thursday? I lost power for a week, but otherwise fine here & very lucky. More sever damage in lower elevations..

How did you get by without power for a week?

[Tamianth]

LOL Russ, being without power here is not unusual for up to two weeks! The pond is so under stocked its no worry, but I have 5 AQ's, three with Betta's so they take care of themselves. The other three is a routine of hourly turnover's with a pitcher, lots of small WC's, we take shifts. I have a woodstove to stay warm and cook with. We got lucky though and borrowed a generator the last two nights to run pumps and filters though as the town got one grid back on by sat morning.

Decided this was the last major outage we would endure without a generator though, we are both getting a bit old to stay up pitchering the AQ's like that. Seems like the older we get, the less tolerant and resiliant, I'm still tired..

[Lee]

After our direct hit by Hurricane Ivan two years ago last September, we were without power (food, water and most everything else including a complete dry roof over our heads...for more than three months.)

It didn't take very long to realise that if you're going to keep valuable fish and consider yourself a serious fish keeper, that you cannot chance the loss of even one fish without having some form of stand-by power source...always' on stand-by.

In the immediate period post Hurricane Ivan, we had a good friend in Miami who send us by air...a gas generator (which obviously required fuel to keep operating - and, which because there were no filling stations left operational for several months and months after the hurricane first hit our country) I was left to first puncturing holes in the bottom of all my own cars fuel tanks. And, then in a day or two when all this meager fuel was used, I was going out during the night - in search of my finding lost and destroyed cars/trucks or other gas vehicles which had been abondoned by their owers and were clearly seen piled end over end and scattered through-out all of our tiny island....allowing me to become quite competent in puncturing holes thru their fuel tanks and draining out what gas they had remaining to keep my generator running 24/7.

I believe that even today, most people are unaware that new model cars and trucks have an anti syphon device in the fuel line which won't allow any form of tube to pass down...to syphoned out the fuel in the vehicles' tank. However, even if a tube was passable - sucking fuel out of a fuel tank creates an immediate reflex to vomit.

It simply cannot be done...

Since Hurricane Ivan, Sheila and I - and, almost all of our friends who surived Hurricane Ivan (now) have very sophisticated auto-computer switch-over large diesel generators which can keep our homes and fish ponds functioning for several weeks - if need be.

Our own generator has a 1000 gallon fuel tank!

Indeed, once you've not been able to have a hot shower, have a cold beer, or turn on a light bulb for over three months...it becomes no great leap of faith to conclude that 'whatever the cost' - you're not going to go through that form of lifestyle with your family, ever again.

It was worse than 'Nam - as we had 8600 vehicles that were totally destroyed, near every house on the island requiring some form of major re-construction and 80% of all wild life (birds, lizards, frogs, et.al) - dead!

Thus, unlike the States where you are always a railroad siding, airplane or truck delivery away from replacement - receipt of supplies...within only a few days, we in this island, sat for months and months in the middle of the Caribbean without any 'other' nearby nor far away nation sending any help of any nature...

So, you write you have had no power for a week. Or, a day. Or, two hours or more.

....If you raise koi and you care about the fish you've collected...get a generator. And, get it today.

You have no idea when a power companies transformer or wiring system can shut you down...

To fail to be prepared, as I learned (first hand) is just plain - stupid!

Here it is Christmas. Go out now and buy yourself a stand-by generator. It will prove for more valued than a pair of pajamas or socks.

All the best,

Your pal ~

Lee
Grand Cayman

[Russell Peters]

Quote: Originally Posted by Lee After our direct hit by Hurricane Ivan two years ago last September, we were without power (food, water and most everything else including a complete dry roof over our heads...for more than three months.) It didn't take very long to realise that if you're going to keep valuable fish and consider yourself a serious fish keeper, that you cannot chance the loss of even one fish without having some form of stand-by power source...always' on stand-by. In the immediate period post Hurricane Ivan, we had a good friend in Miami who send us by air...a gas generator (which obviously required fuel to keep operating - and, which because there were no filling stations left operational for several months and months after the hurricane first hit our country) I was left to first puncturing holes in the bottom of all my own cars fuel tanks. And, then in a day or two when all this meager fuel was used, I was going out during the night - in search of my finding lost and destroyed cars/trucks or other gas vehicles which had been abondoned by their owers and were clearly seen piled end over end and scattered through-out all of our tiny island....allowing me to become quite competent in puncturing holes thru their fuel tanks and draining out what gas they had remaining to keep my generator running 24/7. I believe that even today, most people are unaware that new model cars and trucks have an anti syphon device in the fuel line which won't allow any form of tube to pass down...to syphoned out the fuel in the vehicles' tank. However, even if a tube was passable - sucking fuel out of a fuel tank creates an immediate reflex to vomit. It simply cannot be done... Since Hurricane Ivan, Sheila and I - and, almost all of our friends who surived Hurricane Ivan (now) have very sophisticated auto-computer switch-over large diesel generators which can keep our homes and fish ponds functioning for several weeks - if need be. Our own generator has a 1000 gallon fuel tank! Indeed, once you've not been able to have a hot shower, have a cold beer, or turn on a light bulb for over three months...it becomes no great leap of faith to conclude that 'whatever the cost' - you're not going to go through that form of lifestyle with your family, ever again. It was worse than 'Nam - as we had 8600 vehicles that were totally destroyed, near every house on the island requiring some form of major re-construction and 80% of all wild life (birds, lizards, frogs, et.al) - dead! Thus, unlike the States where you are always a railroad siding, airplane or truck delivery away from replacement - receipt of supplies...within only a few days, we in this island, sat for months and months in the middle of the Caribbean without any 'other' nearby nor far away nation sending any help of any nature... So, you write you have had no power for a week. Or, a day. Or, two hours or more. ....If you raise koi and you care about the fish you've collected...get a generator. And, get it today. You have no idea when a power companies transformer or wiring system can shut you down... To fail to be prepared, as I learned (first hand) is just plain - stupid! Here it is Christmas. Go out now and buy yourself a stand-by generator. It will prove for more valued than a pair of pajamas or socks. All the best, Your pal ~ Lee Grand Cayman

And I thought we had it bad with our rolling blackouts in California. It is nothing compared to what Lee had to endure. I just can not imagine having to go through all that. I do have a gereator though.

[Tamianth]

I so can understand Lee! Man, a month, I'd be screaming... but I can sure identify with the bath thing, we all where ready to climb the walls here I think by Monday.

My koi are in tupor, I have snow on the ground in most cases to boot. That tends to be anyplace from a skift to 6 ft. Never know whats going to come down here. The wind storm in this case dropped us from above 8,000 to a 2,000 level in less then 4 hours. Then we had sat through tuesday of clear freezing. The generator made it much easier for all of us. The upside though was the mega debris of fir bough's somehow missed the pond, very very little actually got in. The front yard & river side is solid green though on the other hand! The back got some as well. What a mess! Three homes, one mobile home and a travel trailer got tree's on them here. I consider us lucky considering we have lots of them around the whole place. Every time a gust came through as soon as it stopped I was checking the pond for branch's!

As bad as the worst of the winds sounded I still don't think it was as bad as a hurricane and the reports said it would get up to 185 mph gusts in the 4,000 level up. Luckily thats above us!

[Auntiesue]

I see you all are getting yet another storm!! You all holding up ok out there?

Sue

[Bob Winkler]

Thnx Sue... Down in CS we didnt get but maybe another 8 inches from this last storm, so not too bad, though I missed another day of work, darn it. How am I sposed to build up koi money if not working?

[JanT]

Still we do not have as much of the white stuff as Bob, but more than I want to mess with. LOL We did get 3 days of cloudy, gloomy weather and now it is starting to clear. I miss the Colorado sunshine when this happens -