Hurricane Irma impact

[ZEROPILOT]

How many other members are getting ready to do battle with the near 190 mph Irma?
I'm sure we'll lose power. May lose the whole house...
How long can a pond pump and filter not run and not become toxic?
It's not on a circuit that I normally use with my generator.

 

[j.w]

Gosh I sure hope everything is ok for all of you Florida people. Don't take any chances on your safety. If they say leave I hope you will. I'll be praying!

 

[ZEROPILOT]

This is a HUGE state and the storm looks like it might travel east, then turn and cut right through the whole thing.
Most folks don't realize that you can drive 9 hours at highway speed from one end and still not be out of the state.
We're staying.
The house is cement block. I'm 11 miles inland and we have pets that I'm not leaving behind.
A direct hit won't be pretty.
Anything less and we'll be ok

 

[Jhn]

Be safe down there. Last hurricane that hit up here, we lost power for a little more than a week.

My pond inhabitants (more fish in there than i can count) were fine, granted my pond (8000 gal) is heavily planted, so it doesn't rely completely on the filter system to provide oxygen.

Fish population side note...The fish were/are mostly small koi, goldies, and orfes born in the pond.

 

[MitchM]

We live in an area that can be devastated by forest fires, so the first thing we did was bulldoze a couple of emergency exits out of our property. If there's a forest fire, we're outta here.
Sticking around and risking your life doesn't sound worth it.
Can't you leave your home for a few days/weeks, let the storm do it's damage and then return to rebuild if necessary?

 

[JBtheExplorer]

Good luck. I know Floridians are stubborn about leaving. Some of them in my own family, but thankfully they've all moved back to Wisconsin over the past couple years. Still, they've got some of their own family down there that won't leave and never has. It's not about the drive either, they just won't go.

 

[Meyer Jordan]

How many other members are getting ready to do battle with the near 190 mph Irma?
I'm sure we'll lose power. May lose the whole house...
How long can a pond pump and filter not run and not become toxic?
It's not on a circuit that I normally use with my generator.

It appears, if the prognosticators are correct, that your area will feel the full impact of this most dangerous storm.
As a native Floridian, I have experienced first-hand some of the real nasties: Hurricanes Frederick, Erin, Opal, Ivan, Dennis even parts of Katrina.
Sadly, Backyard ponds do not usually survive these storms intact, They will catch, it seems, every piece of debris that was blowing around, Fish loss will range from major to total (with or without power). With storm surges, entire ponds wash away leaving only a hole in the ground.
Your only concern should be for the safety of yourself and family. If the authorities request that you evacuate, DO SO. Once the storm hits and during its passing and for a period afterwards, you will be isolated with no-one able to get to you and even if they can, the sheer number of people requiring assistance makes assistance available on a first come-first served basis. Communications may be non-existent even cellular.
Find and move to safer shelter, to do otherwise is a gamble that one should never take.
Good luck!

 

[Lisak1]

I agree with you 100% @Meyer Jordan - I've never experienced a hurricane, but I can tell you beyond a shadow of a doubt I'd be on the first road out given the warnings we are hearing. NOTHING is worth your life.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

The thing with hurricanes is that they move around a lot.
Even the actual day of the storm, they never hit exactly where they are supposed to have hit. So simply moving out of it's way is very difficult.
The last big storm we went out west and it ended up coming from the west.
Right now, gas stations, stores and roads are very crowded and the Florida keys are being evacuated.
By this weekend, evacuating, even if one HAD to will be about impossible.
My standby generator is ready. I've got 60 gallons of gasoline, batteries, flashlights and repair panels made up. Plenty of food and water.
The house has been fortified as best as it can
I'll be staying for this one..

 

[MoonShadows]

I agree with advising someone to evacuate, but I also think when it is your house, your place, your "whole life", it brings a very strong psychological variable into play in making a decision to evacuate, and probably makes one more resistant to evacuating....kind of of like for most of us, it is easy to tell someone else to go to the Doctor, but most of us resist when it comes to us.

 

[addy1]

We have four rentals north of fort Lauderdale. Around 4 miles from the ocean, one on the intercostal. Two are ground level, one is second floor, one is third floor. We have told all the tenants to leave if they are told to. Two are older folks, not sure if they will listen, one is a couple, on the intercostal, they say they are staying, one is a single gal, she said she will leave if they say to leave.

For us this storm can ending up being a huge financial hit, extra assessments from the associations, then damage repair. But way better off than the people that live in Florida that might lose everything.

But our concern is our tenants, we can only do so much from MD. We are making plans to head south if we need to go and manage the damage, once they allow people back in the area. And we have electricity, water etc.

@ZEROPILOT our places are in delray beach

 

[cas]

Good luck @ZEROPILOT .

 

[Gemma]

@ZEROPILOT I think it's crazy to want to stay if you're among those who should evacuate!.... but I do understand and I wish you, and every one else on the storm path, good luck! Be safe!
Could you catch the fish and hold indoor until the storm is done?

 

[ZEROPILOT]

There has been no evacuation order given for Broward county

 

[Nyboy]

I have a dog boarding and grooming kennel in NY. While hurricanes are not really a problem, we do get power outages from storms. Because I am responsible for live animals I have a generator to keep heat or AC on. How do you store 60 gallons of gas ? How long is that gas good for ? Do you add anything to it ? How many hours does a generator run on a gallon of gas ? Sorry for all the questions