Episode 2044
Generator Protection 101: Keeping the Power On and You Safe
Generator safety is no joke, folks! This week, I’m hanging out with Saloni from Gen Tent, and trust me, we’re diving headfirst into the wild world of keeping your generator running safely while dodging the chaotic storms of hurricane season. I mean, who doesn’t love a good thunderstorm, right? But seriously, we’re tackling how to protect your precious generator from the elements while also ensuring you’re not creating a carbon monoxide death trap in your own backyard. Spoiler alert: It involves some common-sense rules that seem to be lost on many. So, whether you’re a seasoned pro or just looking to keep the lights on during the next weather apocalypse, tune in for some laughs, insights, and a good dose of sarcasm about generator safety!
Generator safety is not just a topic; it's a full-blown life choice, especially when hurricanes and wildfires start knocking on our doors like unwanted relatives. Eric G and Saloni from Gen Tent dive headfirst into the wild world of generator safety, shedding light on the dos and don'ts that could mean the difference between a cozy power outage experience and a disaster movie moment. We’re talking about how to keep your generator protected from the elements while also ensuring you don’t accidentally create a carbon monoxide gas chamber in your own backyard. Spoiler alert: putting your generator under the patio to keep it ‘safe’ is a terrible idea. Join us as we explore the critical importance of keeping that generator at least 20 feet away from your home, because close encounters with carbon monoxide are not the bonding experience you think they are. We’ll also touch on why Gen Tent is the superhero cape your generator desperately needs, making it weatherproof and ready to go when the power goes out. So, if you're ready to learn how to navigate the stormy seas of generator ownership with a laugh and a few eye rolls, this episode is packed with all the tips you need to stay safe and sane when Mother Nature throws a tantrum.
Takeaways:
- Generator safety is crucial, especially during hurricane and wildfire seasons, so keep your generator protected and your family safe.
- Using a generator improperly can lead to dangerous situations like carbon monoxide poisoning, which is a silent killer that can happen without warning.
- It's essential to keep your generator at least 20 feet away from your home to prevent carbon monoxide buildup and risks of fire hazards.
- Always choose high-quality generator covers like Gen Tent that are flame retardant, as cheap alternatives can be made from flammable materials.
- The smartest generator usage involves knowing where to place it, how to maintain it, and ensuring it's safe from elements like rain and snow.
- Educate yourself on generator safety protocols—because following the rules can literally save your life and prevent costly accidents.
Links referenced in this episode:
Companies mentioned in this episode:
- Monument Grills
- Gen Tent
- Champion
- Westinghouse
- Steramax
- Generac
- Cummins
- Duramax
- PD Power Equipment
- Aero Broom
To get your questions answered by Eric G give us a call in the studio at 833-239-4144 24/7 and Eric G will get back to you and answer your question and you might end up in a future episode of Around the House.
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Information given on the Around the House Show should not be considered construction or design advice for your specific project, nor is it intended to replace consulting at your home or jobsite by a building professional. The views and opinions expressed by those interviewed on the podcast are those of the guests and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the Around the House Show.
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Transcript
Foreign.
Speaker B:Welcome to around the House with Eric G. Your trusted source for all things home improvement.
Speaker B:Whether you're tackling a DIY project, hiring it out, or just trying to keep your home running smoothly, you're in the right place.
Speaker B:With over 30 years of remodeling experience, certified kitchen designer Eric G. Takes you behind the scenes with expert advice, industry trends, and the latest innovations for your home.
Speaker B:Home it's everything you need to know without the fluff.
Speaker B:Now here's your host, Eric G. Welcome.
Speaker C:To the around the House show, the next generation of home improvement.
Speaker C:I'm Eric G. Thanks for joining me today.
Speaker C:This hour is brought to you by my friends at Monument Grills.
Speaker C:Check them out@monumentgrills.com here we've got today one of my favorite products out there.
Speaker D:Because if you're like me that has.
Speaker C:A generator outside the house, I don't have a place to put it.
Speaker C:That's under the weather, that's safe, and gen tent has got you covered.
Speaker C:Solani, welcome to around the House.
Speaker E:Thank you so much, Eric.
Speaker E:It's such a pleasure to be here.
Speaker C:I'm so happy to have you on because we're coming into hurricane season.
Speaker C:It's been hurricane season for a bit, but we're getting into the prime of it as well as wildfires and everything else gone.
Speaker C:And then the people thinking about the winter storms.
Speaker C:So seems like where it's a great time for prime season for people with generators and how to protect them.
Speaker E:Absolutely.
Speaker E:So August really kickstarts the most intense wildfire season.
Speaker E:It's also the heart of hurricane season.
Speaker E:And exactly to your point, Eric.
Speaker E:It's when people are starting to think about winter storms, things like that.
Speaker E:So we're really gearing up for probably a tough year ahead, tough rest of the year ahead, rather with inclement weather come forward.
Speaker C:Yeah, hopefully we dodge it this year, but it always seems like that.
Speaker C:August, September, and that's the time I usually try to go to the Caribbean, which usually jinx is everything when I do that.
Speaker C:It's that time of year where things get crazy and I think it's really important for generator safety out there.
Speaker C:You know, you've got fire from a generator as far as the heat, you've got electricity.
Speaker C:And the last thing you want is your generator getting taken out by heavy rains and stuff and getting it hurt or broken when you're relying on it to give you power.
Speaker E:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker E:There's so much diversity in power across the country with people having power outages anywhere between a few hours to a Few days, sometimes, sometimes even a couple weeks.
Speaker E:So if your generator stops working in the middle of a storm, it is one of the most unfortunate things that can happen.
Speaker E:So exactly to your point, we're really trying to help people keep their families protected and safe against instances like that.
Speaker C:I think it's so dangerous because people have maybe carports or that covered patio.
Speaker C:And the problem is many times those are tied into the house, at least to the attic space or something like that.
Speaker C:Carbon monoxide can do some crazy things.
Speaker C:And even with some of the smarter carbon monoxide generators out there that monitor it, if you put it in a place that's going to trap that in there, it could turn itself off.
Speaker C:So having A cover like Gen 10, I think is so important just to maintain that unit and for the safety of you inside the house.
Speaker E:Yeah.
Speaker E:So a little bit more information regarding that.
Speaker E:Right.
Speaker E:Generator safety is a life or death issue.
Speaker E:Over 29 million Americans own portable generators, and many of them end up using it dangerously, not through any fault of their own, per se.
Speaker E:They just are not aware of the proper things to do.
Speaker E:Exactly.
Speaker E:As you mentioned, Eric, carbon monoxide poisoning is one of the most dangerous things that can occur with improper generator usage.
Speaker E:Carbon monoxide poisoning is the silent killer because one generator actually produces more carbon monoxide than hundreds of cars combined.
Speaker E:So if you think about it that way, you wouldn't run hundreds of cars in your garage.
Speaker E:Right.
Speaker E:So then why would you run a portable generator somewhere like a carport to your point, or a garage?
Speaker E:It's just so dangerous, especially with the fact that the gas can really go in through tiny spaces between doors and window cracks as well, and it becomes lethal.
Speaker E:It can accumulate and become lethal in minutes.
Speaker C:Yeah, it's so dangerous.
Speaker C:We always see the stuff on the news where everybody shakes their head, but so many people just don't know that someone in an apartment that didn't have power for four days, they started up in their apartment, and you're just like, what are you thinking?
Speaker C:But these mistakes happen every year.
Speaker C:And if you use the generators, they're beautifully safe, but you just got to follow the rules and guidelines and not put yourself in a bad position.
Speaker C:And especially with Gente.
Speaker C:I've got one on my older generator.
Speaker C:One just showed up this week to go on my new one.
Speaker C:And the cool thing is I can keep it 20ft away from the house, away from everything that I needed to be, and not have to worry about that exhaust or carbon monoxide going in the house.
Speaker C:At the same time, I'm protecting That generator that I spent a lot of money on and I know that it's.
Speaker D:Going to be in a safe situation out there.
Speaker E:Absolutely.
Speaker E:We really consider a generator to be an investment and something that you're going to have for many years.
Speaker E:You're going to use it in life saving situations.
Speaker E:And to your point, keeping it 20ft away is something that's not just what we as Gen 10 say, it's what the CPSC says, it's what the CDC says, it's what FEMA says.
Speaker E:We're really seeing that language being adopted by a lot of generator manufacturers as well as obviously these national associations and government officials as well.
Speaker E:So you really want to keep it that safe distance because anything closer than you really do risk, again, like anything such as carbon monoxide accumulation, but also if it's too close to the house, you risk structural fire risks and that's something you definitely don't want.
Speaker E:And then again, if you also keep it too far away without any sort of safety protocols, you risk electrocution and ruining your investment.
Speaker C:Absolutely.
Speaker C:And the thing is, you guys make them for so many different models.
Speaker C:There's things that are super small, there's stuff like mine that's really big, depending if you're going out tailgating or if you're going to be sitting there trying to run the whole house.
Speaker C:Because I don't know about you guys out there in the audience, but last time I didn't have powers for five days.
Speaker C:Five days, a long time to be living off that generator.
Speaker C:And Mother nature can throw everything at you.
Speaker E:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker E:We cover over 3, 500 generator models, which is something that we love to brag about.
Speaker E:We really, we cover everything from open frame to fully enclosed.
Speaker E:I think you were mentioning that you have a fully enclosed champion.
Speaker E:Right.
Speaker E:That we sent over our newest product, which is the Gen 10 XL inverter kit for.
Speaker E:Because what we're really trying to do is not only be built for today's generators, but tomorrow's too.
Speaker E:And so a little bit about how the generator market is really shifting.
Speaker E:We're seeing the market moving towards these larger units with wider chassis and power output for the whole home.
Speaker E:So you have models like Champion, Westinghouse, Steramax, Generac, et cetera, really building these larger units that can actually power your home for power outages that last for something like five days.
Speaker E:Like what you faced area, Right, Exactly.
Speaker E:So anything that you have, such as a smaller unit that's really built for tailgating, we got that covered.
Speaker E:Anything that's a whole power, a whole Home inverter unit or something like that as well.
Speaker E:We have it covered, something we're really proud of.
Speaker C:Yeah.
Speaker C:And those inverter generators are so great because I've got a ton of electronics.
Speaker C:I do my radio show, TV stuff, podcast, and I need all this stuff to be working under clean power.
Speaker C:And that inverter, really, you don't have to worry about the electronics getting messed up by dirty power by one of the older generators.
Speaker C:And it just works like when you plug in, it's just, wow.
Speaker C:It's just like the power's back on again, which is exactly what I was looking for.
Speaker C:And it's nice that technology is doing that for us.
Speaker E:It is great that technology is doing that for us.
Speaker E:And then speaking of refueling your generator as that pertains as well, something that I love about the Gentemp, for example, is the fact that we have a really easy refueling door.
Speaker E:So that clean power, you can really keep it going very easily.
Speaker E:Especially during situations where you just want to get in and out.
Speaker E:It's raining or it's snowing out there and you're just like, okay, cool, I have to refill this generator.
Speaker E:Let me just do that real quick with our open top flap, which is very convenient.
Speaker E:But yes, I agree.
Speaker E:I think the generator manufacturers are doing a really good job trying to make things really clean and easy for us to be able to again, use things really safely.
Speaker E:That's exactly what we want to do.
Speaker C:I didn't realize how cool that flap was until my last power outage, I think last year.
Speaker C:And again ice storms.
Speaker C:So we had freezing, it was 28 degrees and raining.
Speaker C:And so I had trees dropping down in the neighborhood, everything else.
Speaker C:And I went through 34 gallons of unleaded gas during that time because I didn't have a trifle unit.
Speaker C:And so I had a ton of gas, five gallons at a time.
Speaker C:It'd go about seven hours, which was great.
Speaker C:So I'd have to shut it down to be safe.
Speaker C:I want to get in and get out and get the power back on again.
Speaker C:You go out there, turn it off, fill it back up.
Speaker C:And that door made it so easy.
Speaker C:And I was like, oh, I hope this works.
Speaker C:And I was like, ah, this could not be more perfectly placed to have access but still protect it.
Speaker E:Thank you.
Speaker E:Yeah.
Speaker E:The thing with Gente, I think is we really take design into consideration.
Speaker E:We really pride ourselves on being an engineered product.
Speaker E:Right.
Speaker D:So.
Speaker E:So with the design of the Gen tent, it's specifically made to be not only have that ease of access for Things like refueling.
Speaker E:But it's also meant to have it to be a tool less full weatherproof enclosure with a clever top down watershed system.
Speaker B:Stick around.
Speaker B:We're back in just a minute with around the House with Eric G. The only show where mistakes are just custom features.
Speaker A:But kids these days will never understand what it's like to play an instrument, to be in a band.
Speaker B:What's up?
Speaker C:This is Sticksy Dania and Satchel from Steel Panther and you are listening to.
Speaker B:Around the House with Eric G. Yeah, we love Eric G. And you should too.
Speaker A:1987.
Speaker A:I never wanna leave.
Speaker B:Welcome back to the around the House show.
Speaker B:This hour is sponsored by Monument Grills for the best barbecues in their class.
Speaker B:Check them out@monumentgrills.com now let's get back to the conversation about generator safety with Saloni from Gen Tend.
Speaker E:So just like you mentioned, with an ice storm, right, like the ice really just slides right off.
Speaker E:And so it a system that diverts rain, snow, ice away from not only the electrical panel but just from accumulating at the top.
Speaker E:What we see with a lot of our competitors by comparison is that they have a flat top model or design and that tends to buckle under rain or snow accumulation.
Speaker E:So we really made it a point to not have that occur with our system.
Speaker C:I tell you what, if you're out there shopping for these and you're getting the competitors, you're making a mistake.
Speaker C:My personal opinion, I'm not going to put something that could be flammable around the outside of my generator because you've got heat, you got electricity, you've got probably five gallons of gas sitting there.
Speaker C:If you got a big one.
Speaker C:The last thing I'm going to do is stick something on there that's not rated for that.
Speaker C:And the imposters out there are big.
Speaker C:And I tell you what, careful, if you're not getting a gen 10, you could be getting a headache on top of that.
Speaker C:And nobody wants to see that.
Speaker E:You are 100% correct, Eric.
Speaker E:And thank you for thinking of generator safety.
Speaker E:It's why we love to do what we do.
Speaker E:But you're absolutely right.
Speaker E:There are so many dangerous knockoffs sweating the market.
Speaker E:And while it may seem like a cheaper solution in the near term, what people don't realize is that these alternative solutions, while they're marketed as generator running covers, they tend to be made of flammable material.
Speaker E:We do a lot of testing in house, right?
Speaker E:No, we literally what we're doing is we're getting 30, 40 of our competitor products in here, and we're putting it on generators and seeing how they perform.
Speaker E:If there's any form of ignition or spark, and we're seeing these covers go up in flames in seconds that last.
Speaker E:And these flames last for minutes, if that is, to your point, near anything combustible like fuel, or even if the generator is not, according to protocol, if it's too close to the home, that can start a fire.
Speaker E:We see instances every winter where the generator is actually too close to the home.
Speaker E:There's generator fires, and that's due in part to, obviously, any sort of electrical fire hazard that just may occur due to no cover.
Speaker E:But then imagine if you're actually getting a cover.
Speaker E:You're like, I'm making the right decision.
Speaker E:I'm keeping myself protected.
Speaker E:And in the end, this product is unsafe.
Speaker E:And what we're doing is we're partnering with associations like the pgma, which is the Portable Generator Manufacturer association, ncoaa, which is the National Carbon Monoxide Awareness association, and naspem, which is the national association of State Fire Marshals, for portable generator safety initiatives, so that we're always designing the safest products.
Speaker E:We're also actively working on a UL standard for generator cover flammability.
Speaker E:So we're really hoping to make sure that the market is safer so that consumers can always pick the safest solutions for them.
Speaker E:That's just what it boils down to at the end of the day.
Speaker C:Yeah, I think.
Speaker C:And this is my call out to the Consumer Product Safety Commission every Wednesday on my midweek special podcast.
Speaker C:If you're listening on the radio, I talk about recalls.
Speaker C:There is no reason why those products out there that are flammable should be on the market today and they should.
Speaker D:Be recalled, in my opinion, because they.
Speaker C:Shouldn'T be on people's generators.
Speaker C:That would be like taking a.
Speaker C:A blanket that's flammable and wrap it around there and hoping for the best.
Speaker C:It's not a good look.
Speaker C:Not a good look.
Speaker E:It sure isn't.
Speaker E:But that's the thing.
Speaker E:People don't know, because when they're marketed to, they're told that this is waterproof, weatherproof, that this running cover works.
Speaker E:No one's going to advertise, oh, yeah, by the way, we're flammable.
Speaker E:So it's not on the.
Speaker E:The consumers are just unaware because they have the wrong information in front of them.
Speaker E:So you're absolutely right.
Speaker E:We're working to make sure that's not an issue going forward.
Speaker C:And the good news is, you guys build these for a lot of other brands, too.
Speaker C:So if you're buying one from Champion, let's say that's your unit going out the door.
Speaker C:It's.
Speaker C:Even though it's got their brand name on it and it matches theirs, it's a cool thing that you guys are making them for these generator manufacturers, because the manufacturers are going, hey, this is going to be safe with our unit.
Speaker E:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker E:So to that point, we definitely have a few OEM partners, and we're super excited to be ramping up with others.
Speaker E:But you're exactly right with your champion.
Speaker E:It's that gorgeous champion yellow.
Speaker E:If you want that matching storm shield that goes that perfect yellow color with it, Absolutely get that.
Speaker E:It looks great.
Speaker E:We have partnerships currently with Cummins as well as Westinghouse as well.
Speaker E:And we're going to be launching another partnership in the fall, which we're super excited about as well.
Speaker E:And that's with Duramax.
Speaker C:Nice.
Speaker C:And, guys, these are not just great for the storms, but if you're out there, it's football season coming up, college football season coming up.
Speaker C:One of these would look great right on top of your generator out there when you're out there getting ready to do this.
Speaker C:So when you're out tailgating at the stadium should have a gen tent on it.
Speaker E:Yeah.
Speaker E:Imagine, you know, for example, your little champion verter with a champion storm shield supporting some football champions.
Speaker E:How does that sound?
Speaker C:There we go.
Speaker C:I love it.
Speaker C:And then you guys make all the different parts and pieces, and that's what.
Speaker D:I thought was really cool.
Speaker C:My first generator that I got from you guys, I had more of a universal one on there, but I had so many different options of how far down I wanted to have, whether I wanted to have a clear shield.
Speaker C:So I could see the digital readout.
Speaker C:You guys have really spent a lot of time designing these to work for everybody.
Speaker E:Yes, I. Yeah.
Speaker E:So open frame, we're fully enclosed.
Speaker E:We've got you covered.
Speaker E:The open frame design, we have clamps that directly go mount to generator frames.
Speaker E:And then with the inverter model, we have an easy strap mount system.
Speaker E:And as you mentioned, in addition to this, we do take our accessories into account.
Speaker E:Having that clear panel allows you to read things simply.
Speaker E:Again, that's our whole thing.
Speaker E:We want things to be easy, we want things to be simple.
Speaker E:And we just want you guys to be able to just get in and out when you're doing either refueling, whether you're reading.
Speaker C:What I like, too, that you guys have for all these different models.
Speaker D:I think it's awesome.
Speaker C:You can go on your website, grab the make, grab the model.
Speaker C:It walks you right through the whole thing.
Speaker D:Because you guys have a ton of options for generators.
Speaker E:We really do.
Speaker E:Yes.
Speaker E:We have our fit tool, which you can access by just going to genent.com bit and exactly to your point, if you put in your make and your model, you'll be able to find the perfect generator to fit your.
Speaker E:The perfect gen 10.
Speaker E:Rather, to fit your generator, it leads you right directly to that product page.
Speaker E:So we really try to make things really simple for you.
Speaker C:Yeah, it is great.
Speaker C:And I think that the fun part with this is it's super easy install this does not take a PhD of mechanical engineering to put this in 20 minutes.
Speaker C:You're ready to rock in most cases.
Speaker E:Yeah.
Speaker E:And as someone with absolutely zero, zero knowledge on how to build or assemble anything, for me, IKEA is a task.
Speaker E:So with all of the new employees here at Gen 10, what we do is we make them actually assemble their first gen 10.
Speaker E:And how it is for someone who has never actually touched this product before.
Speaker E:And even I, and I say that very specifically, even I, someone who would literally be a dummy in this field.
Speaker E:I was able to set it up in 20 minutes max, which is quite the feat, I would say.
Speaker C:There you go.
Speaker C:And it's so simple.
Speaker C:And you know what I like too is your website has so much safety tips and everything else, it's got a lot of great information on it.
Speaker C:So if you're worried about generators and you're like, how do I do this?
Speaker C:There's so many great safety tips over there.
Speaker C:Over there.
Speaker C:Because safety is such a big thing with generators.
Speaker C:If we could cut down the issues that we see out there with generator safety.
Speaker C:Generators are safe, but you just gotta follow the rules.
Speaker C:And once you know the rules, they're common sense.
Speaker C:But you don't know what you don't know.
Speaker B:Hang tight.
Speaker B:We're back soon with around the House with Eric G. Where sawdust isn't a mess, it's a decorating choice.
Speaker B:We have a lot more about generator safety with Saloni from Gen Tent after these messages.
Speaker B:Welcome back to the around the House show.
Speaker B:This hour is sponsored by Monument Grills for the best barbecues in their class.
Speaker B:Check them out@monumentgrills.com now let's get back to the conversation about generator safety with Saloni from Gen Tent.
Speaker C:If we could cut down the issues that we see out there with generator safety.
Speaker C:Generators are safe, but you just gotta follow the rules.
Speaker C:And once you know the rules, they're common Sense, but you don't know what you don't know.
Speaker E:Exactly.
Speaker E:And that's the biggest thing.
Speaker E:Right.
Speaker E:Like we really want people to know that Gen 10 is not just a product, it's a safety company first.
Speaker E:So having those safety tips on our website is a very important part of who we are.
Speaker E:And if you want to access any of those, you can just go on our website, gen10.com you'll find them there.
Speaker E:Or you can just go directly to gen10.com safety for our generator safety toolkit, which offers a lot of different diagrams, best practices and just general information that's so useful to know.
Speaker C:Solana, when it comes to generators, there's so much in that safety thing.
Speaker C:And with the flammability of these other products out there, you guys have really dove into the facts and really tried to make these things as safe as possible.
Speaker C:To me, as a real good complement to the generators.
Speaker E:Yes, thank you so much.
Speaker E:That is by design as well.
Speaker E:So all of our products are NFPA rated, which means that every single component of the hardware as well as the canopy itself is flame retardant.
Speaker E:And that's obviously really important because what you never wanna have is any sort of heat from the exhaust causing your generator to generator cover to go up in flames and cause any issues.
Speaker C:No, it's so great to see that you guys are doing this to make sure things are safe.
Speaker C:And it's just so sad to see some of these other products out there that, that are, are potentially dangerous.
Speaker C:And little tease for you guys out there.
Speaker C:I think I might play with some fire and do some testing myself and we'll see how Gen 10 goes against these other guys out there because I'm curious to see how bad can it get.
Speaker C:Don't worry, I'll be working with some pros out there to see what we do on this, but could be coming up in a future TV segment.
Speaker C:So a little tease for you out there.
Speaker E:That's pretty exciting.
Speaker E:We're really excited to see the results.
Speaker C:Oh yeah.
Speaker C:Play with fire with some firefighters is not a bad way to go.
Speaker C:So fun when you're doing it in a safe environment.
Speaker E:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker C:Well, Solani, thanks for coming on today.
Speaker C:I really appreciate it in that website.
Speaker C:One more time for Gente.
Speaker E:Absolutely.
Speaker E:The website is gente.com that would be G-E-N-T-E-N-T.com.
Speaker D:All right.
Speaker C:For the people out there that are sitting there that are like, oh my gosh, I gotta get one of these, where do they find them?
Speaker E:Absolutely.
Speaker E:So you can find it on a lot of places.
Speaker E:So you can get it on our website@gen10.com that would be g e n t e n t dot com.
Speaker E:You can also find us on Amazon, Home Depot, Lowe's, Walmart or other online retailers such as PD Power Equipment Direct.
Speaker E:Or you can also call our friendly U.S. based support system here in Brentwood, New Hampshire.
Speaker E: -: Speaker C:Yeah, that is perfect.
Speaker C:And you guys are so helpful over there.
Speaker C:It's so nice.
Speaker C:I've had a call in once and go hey, am I doing this right?
Speaker C:I was but I wanted to make sure.
Speaker C:But it's great talking to people that are jam packed full of knowledge that understands this product inside and out.
Speaker E:They really do.
Speaker E:And they're so helpful, so kind.
Speaker E:You can email, you can call in.
Speaker E:They will do so much in order to make sure that you have that set up correctly.
Speaker C:That is great to find.
Speaker B:If a Gen tent will fit your generator, head to gentent.com now let's head out to our weekly segment, the around the House Nugget.
Speaker D:Time for an around the House Nugget.
Speaker C:Brought to you by Aerobroom.
Speaker D:I'm Eric G. And I love how Aerobrum's two in one sweeper and cordless blower makes outdoor cleanup a breeze even.
Speaker C:Inside with that dog hair.
Speaker D:Sweep debris or blast leaves from all the tight spots.
Speaker C:All under $60.
Speaker C:Grab yours@arrowbroom.com that's aerobroom.com it's my go to for dog hair messes.
Speaker C:Now here's your quick tip.
Speaker D:Hey guys, it's Eric G. From around the House.
Speaker D:Late summer's here and your AC is.
Speaker C:Working harder than a cat trying to avoid a bath.
Speaker D:Want to save on your power bill first?
Speaker D:First, close those blinds on sunny windows.
Speaker D:Think of them as sunglasses for your house.
Speaker D:Second, run your ceiling fan so you can nudge the thermostat up a couple degrees without sweating like you're in a sauna.
Speaker D:And lastly, check that H vac filter.
Speaker D:A dirty filter makes your system work harder and your wallet cry louder.
Speaker D:A few simple steps and you'll stay cool without giving your power company a vacation bonus.
Speaker D:Make sure you tune in to our back catalog of around the House podcasts.
Speaker D:Your Go to for Smarter Home Improvement.
Speaker D:I can tell you what.
Speaker D:Over the years I have learned a lot about generators with backup power in my house.
Speaker D:Here and in my studio, we typically have a winter storm that'll take Our power out for two, three on average, almost five days a year.
Speaker D:And usually those five days are all at once.
Speaker D:And then our power is good to go.
Speaker D:Because here in the Pacific Northwest, especially in the Portland area where I'm at, we get a lot of ice storms and with all these big fir trees, that ice breaks off branches, comes down, takes out power lines, and guess what?
Speaker D:We got a heck of a mess.
Speaker D:And it doesn't take out one.
Speaker D:It usually takes out hundreds all over the city.
Speaker D:And so I've learned that having a lot of gasoline does not make sense these days in backup power.
Speaker D:For me, that's a lot to store.
Speaker D:And the stuff goes so bad so quickly you have to put in a lot of stabilizers just to keep that going or go down and pay a premium for the clear gas that has.
Speaker C:No additives to it.
Speaker D:That's just really simple gasoline without all.
Speaker C:The alcohol in it.
Speaker D:The thing is, I had bought a generator that was a really nice generator.
Speaker D:And the issue was it had fuel injection.
Speaker D:It was great.
Speaker D:But the problem was I couldn't convert it over with one of the kits to natural gas.
Speaker D:That injection, which was great for starting in the winter time, didn't make it so you could convert it over to natural gas.
Speaker D:So I ended up having to get another generator that was trifle.
Speaker D:So I could run it on propane, I could run it on natural gas, I could run it on gasoline.
Speaker D:And that makes it so much easier because I could just hook into the natural gas.
Speaker D:We'll be good to go.
Speaker D:Now having the gasoline as a backup is great if we have an earthquake, which we will one day.
Speaker D:That makes a lot of sense because now you can have gasoline.
Speaker D:I can take it out of my truck, I can you take it out of a couple gas cans.
Speaker D:It's not as big a deal, but really planning ahead for how that's going to work and of course how you pack it into your house.
Speaker D:You don't want to be running extension cords everywhere.
Speaker D:So what you want to be doing is hooking it into your panel so you've got a good system there.
Speaker D:And so you need to have a shut off so you don't back feed into that.
Speaker D:And something that's going to really work powering the house.
Speaker D:Now the next thing you can do is figure out how big of generator you want.
Speaker D:I like generator transfer switches for this because then you can control the things that you want.
Speaker D:Your H vac system, the lights, the refrigerators, the stuff that's going to give you comfort.
Speaker D:And really these days With LED lights.
Speaker C:It works really well.
Speaker D:It doesn't take that much power.
Speaker D:Now the big one is if you have an electric water heater.
Speaker D:And that's why I think if you've got an electric water heater, it's smart converter over into a heat pump water heater, because then for 4 or 500 watts you can generate hot water.
Speaker D:It'll take a while, but if you're running the generator, who cares?
Speaker D:It'll keep it up there.
Speaker D:And if you're a little patient, don't let it run down.
Speaker D:You'll be fine.
Speaker D:Otherwise you need to run a whole big whole house generator.
Speaker D:And that's a whole other budget.
Speaker D:You can spend 10 to $20,000 super easy on an automatic whole house backup generator here.
Speaker D:Now the cool thing with that is it's way low maintenance.
Speaker D:It'll just turn on.
Speaker D:You don't have to go out and turn something on.
Speaker D:But that does change the reliability of how that all works.
Speaker D:And for an added cost, no matter if you're home or not, it'll turn on and you've got something good.
Speaker D:All you have to do is make sure you stay on the maintenance and do that.
Speaker D:And you can actually, if you're having a company, put it in.
Speaker D:Many of them put in a maintenance plan and things like that, so you're good to go.
Speaker D:So that's a great way to manage your power like that, especially in areas where you.
Speaker D:It's a backup and it's an issue.
Speaker C:Now there are ways out there where.
Speaker D:You can have battery power backup like the Tesla power walls and that kind of stuff.
Speaker D:But unless you have a solar system that's feeding it, those can be pretty darn expensive and they're not going to last for a long time depending on the power use.
Speaker D:So of course, for the price of those, you could have just bought a.
Speaker D:A whole house power generation system that runs off natural gas or diesel or whatever you have in your area, or propane.
Speaker D:There's a lot of different systems out there, but just make sure you stay on top of that whichever way you're.
Speaker C:Going to do it.
Speaker D:And I know that coming up here, we're going to see this with wildfires that we see all across the country.
Speaker D:When we get high wind events in the summertime, when it's dry in our area or anywhere else in the country, you're going to see power companies shutting down your power to reduce their liability.
Speaker D:And that makes a lot of sense for them because they don't want to get sued for dropping power lines down and starting some big wildfire because the insurance companies are looking for someone to blame.
Speaker D:All right, everybody around the house.
Speaker D:Be right back after these important messages.
Speaker D:Don't change that dial.
Speaker C:All right.
Speaker D:Welcome back to the around the house show, the next generation of home improvement.
Speaker D:I'm Eric G. Thanks for joining me today.
Speaker D:This hour is brought to you by our friends at Monument Grills.
Speaker D:Check them out@monument grills.com I tell you what, I have been buying parts and pieces for my house, trying to get it finished up to put it for sale.
Speaker D:Sometimes when I can't find what I'm looking for or have to order it, I go to Facebook Marketplace, sometimes Craigslist.
Speaker D:But sometimes when I need something, it's found right there and I can get it at a discount.
Speaker D:But I tell you what buyer beware out there is.
Speaker D:I am seeing more and more companies out there that are wholesaler or retailers that are hiding, trying to pretend that they're selling things as a they close out or whatever on Facebook Marketplace.
Speaker D:But when you ask about it, all of a sudden they want you to call some 800 number or toll free number and talk to the boss and be very careful of that.
Speaker D:So here's the thing.
Speaker D:Be really careful on Facebook Marketplace.
Speaker D:I tell you what, I'm finding more and more of this where it's not what they say it is or even more importantly, they're not who they say they are.
Speaker D:And that gets a little sketchy.
Speaker C:So buyer beware out there.
Speaker D:Make sure you know who you're talking to.
Speaker D:I was needing a window.
Speaker D:Something simple.
Speaker D:Yeah.
Speaker D:Something a little custom though, either.
Speaker D:It wasn't going to be on the shelf of a home center or something like that.
Speaker D:I had a seal broken and I didn't want to wait a month to get a window.
Speaker D:And so I found a few of them.
Speaker D:One of them I reached out to and oh, no, all of a sudden I'm getting the run around.
Speaker D:Can't tell me a price.
Speaker D:They said they had it, but I had to talk to the boss.
Speaker D:So just be really careful out there, guys.
Speaker D:Some of these people are online sellers that are trying to play it off as being someone with a bunch of extra things in their garage, for instance.
Speaker D:So just buyer beware out there.
Speaker D:There's a lot of things out there that might not seem what they are.
Speaker D:And when we get into these times where building materials are expensive and the economy as far as in the building and construction is slowed down, that's when these people come out to pray the most.
Speaker D:So be very careful now I do.
Speaker C:Feel bad though for a lot of.
Speaker D:Our non profits out there because they are struggling because so many of us, including me, and I'll be the first to say it, are taking the extra building materials we have from a project and we're putting it up for sale on Facebook, Marketplace or Craigslist instead of maybe donating it.
Speaker D:And so what happens is these companies or non profits that rely on that are really getting concerned because they're getting less and less donations and there's less that they have to sell because people are buying more from there.
Speaker D:So It's a catch 22.
Speaker C:When in doubt, donated.
Speaker D:I'm putting some stuff up on there.
Speaker D:I tell you what, I'm not having any luck on some of this stuff.
Speaker D:I'm just gonna go donate it, I'm gonna put it over there because I tell you what, sometimes it's better just to give it a good home.
Speaker D:And then those pieces you've been saving, they can end up someplace else.
Speaker D:And instead of paying to get rid.
Speaker C:Of it, it you can just go.
Speaker D:Ahead and donate it and maybe it's a tax write off and then they could put that to good use in.
Speaker C:Either a project that they have or.
Speaker D:Somebody that needs it can use it.
Speaker D:Today in this last segment of the show, I wanted to talk about some.
Speaker C:Other safety stuff that we have to.
Speaker D:Be careful with out there.
Speaker D:We were talking about generator and generator safety with Gen 10.
Speaker D:Love those guys, great stuff.
Speaker D:But I really want to take some time today and talk about some things now that we're cruising into late summer and fall that we can be doing to make sure that we're ready with kids going back to school and everything else.
Speaker D:I like a little bit of safety.
Speaker D:So first off, there are some new products out there that we've talked about in the past that I want to remind you.
Speaker D:And these are great products that you can put on your home that I think are great safety things beyond our traditional smoke detector, smoke alarm, slash carbon monoxide alarm.
Speaker D:I want to see make sure you put in some kind of sensor that's going to measure your indoor air quality.
Speaker D:That's great.
Speaker D:You can see if you've got other issues going on.
Speaker D:And one little tool you can get off of Amazon or at your local tool store is a combustible gas detector.
Speaker D:If you have natural gas in your home.
Speaker D:I tell you what I am seeing on more the inspection sites.
Speaker D:So many gas situations where they have leaking natural gas.
Speaker D:And I think that's a bigger issue out there that's costing us money and Leaking natural gas can also be a serious problem.
Speaker D:So make sure that you've got that and just go around and test your gas appliances from time to time.
Speaker D:Now, when in doubt, at least in my area, and I think almost all gas companies are that way, if you go, hey, I think I smell it, call them, they will send somebody out.
Speaker D:Worst case, call the fire department if.
Speaker C:You can't get a hold of them.
Speaker D:But usually your gas company has people on call to come out.
Speaker D:They'll take a look at it, they'll test it.
Speaker D:If something's broken, they're going to red tag, turn it off and say, fix this.
Speaker D:So then you could turn it back on again because the last thing we need is a fire or some other safety issue that could go really badly.
Speaker D:So take your time, get that dialed in.
Speaker D:And that's a good thing to have around your house just to go test.
Speaker D:And if you go, oh, wow, I'm testing a little bit around the range or a water heater, go get it taken a look at.
Speaker D:And the other thing too is carbon monoxide detectors usually measure at a higher rate.
Speaker D:That's healthy for you anyway.
Speaker D:It's basically trying to prevent your death.
Speaker D:It's not a bad thing, right?
Speaker D:But the thing is, a little bit of carbon monoxide, it's not good for you either.
Speaker D:So if you're bad at turning on the range hood, if you've got a natural gas stove or you don't have makeup air, those kind of things, make sure that you've got something in that indoor air quality sensor to make sure that it's measuring.
Speaker D:Because sometimes if it's low, you need to deal with it.
Speaker D:And that's a good time to deal with it before it gets dangerous.
Speaker D:And so that's an extra warning sign for you for that.
Speaker D:Now the other thing is here is if you've got small children or like in my garage where I've got lots of batteries for battery power tools, I have what they call flame detect.
Speaker D:Now, flame detect is really cool because that looks for flames and I forget that I have it out there.
Speaker D:So I'll light up the torch.
Speaker C:I could literally light the torch up.
Speaker D:With my back to the sensor.
Speaker D:It'll say it send it off saying, there's a flame measured.
Speaker D:So it's looking for it and it's looking for reflections and stuff off of walls.
Speaker D:This is so sensitive that you could have it in a child's bedroom.
Speaker D:And if the kid is hiding over in the corner trying to play with matches, I bet you it's going to catch it.
Speaker D:So that's a good thing.
Speaker D:So if you've got small children, if you want something that's going to go minutes ahead of what a smoke detector is going to do, flame detects great.
Speaker D:And it's affordable and it's going to be one of those things I can think can really save your house because it's going to send you a push notification on your phone.
Speaker D:It's going to give an audible alarm.
Speaker D:It's not a bad thing.
Speaker D:It will tell you what's going on.
Speaker D:That's a great safety thing.
Speaker D:Now the next one I want you to check out with your insurance company as well.
Speaker D:You've heard me talk about them, they've been on the show before.
Speaker D:But Ting Fire this plugs into the wall in a regular outlet.
Speaker D:You hook it up to your WI fi, it monitors your home electrical system and it will sit there and absolutely sense any electrical faults.
Speaker D:So if you've got a.
Speaker D:Let's say you've got one of those outlets with the stab connectors in the back where the wire gets pushed into the back, it's not wrapped around the terminal and that becomes loose like many do.
Speaker D:Well, this will see that because anytime you have an electrical signal like that, it's going through that is going to give off wavelengths and stuff.
Speaker D:And it's looking for that in the power.
Speaker D:So it's going to monitor everything that's plugged into the power all the way up to the transformer and tell you what's going on.
Speaker D:And if there's an issue, it's going to warn you.
Speaker D:And it comes with a thousand dollar policy.
Speaker D:So if it catches something like hey, I've got an issue, they want to know what that sounded like.
Speaker D:So they've got a thousand dollar insurance policy to send an electrician out to take a look to fix the issue that they caught.
Speaker D:So that way they can verify and make sure that's it and it's not a bad deal.
Speaker D:So take a look at that.
Speaker D:And that's a really great way to go.
Speaker D:That's Ting Fire and many insurance companies.
Speaker C:Now are actually paying for that.
Speaker D:And we'll send it for free.
Speaker D:Before you go spend the money, call your insurance company.
Speaker D:None of these are commercials.
Speaker D:These are the things that I have around my house for safety and I think it's really smart.
Speaker D:The other thing is that's really cool is that I have something that's awesome and I think this is really trick.
Speaker D:These are many things you can do in your house for water.
Speaker D:If you have a water pipe break in your house, it will automatically shut off because it's going to sense that pipe break.
Speaker D:There are a lot of different water sensing solutions that go in line.
Speaker D:So this goes into the water main coming into your house.
Speaker D:If the line breaks it will automatically shut it off and send you a warning that it shut off the water.
Speaker D:So this can be huge.
Speaker D:My buddy William here a number of years ago, probably two years ago had a, we had an ice storm, house froze up.
Speaker D:His cabin did up in the mountains.
Speaker D:Went onto his camera system when the power came on and went what is that?
Speaker D:That was water coming out of the can lights in the lower floor.
Speaker D:He had hundreds of thousands of dollars of damage from a broken pipe.
Speaker D:And if this would have been installed in there, it would have sensed it and it would have turned it off and it would have stopped that.
Speaker D:So it could have been a five thousand dollar piece of damage versus a hundred thousand dollar damage.
Speaker D:So these are things that can really help you out when it comes to that.
Speaker A:That.
Speaker D:So these are some great things to add to your house.
Speaker D:Great things for added safety and let your insurance company know you're putting them in.
Speaker D:Might help you with a discount as well.
Speaker D:All right everybody, this wraps up today's show.
Speaker D:Thanks to our friends over at Gen 10 for being a part of it today.
Speaker D:And if you want to find out more about us, head over to aroundthehouse online.com for more information.
Speaker D:I'm Eric G. Thanks for tuning in to around the house.
Speaker B:You've been listening to around the House with Eric G. The only show where power tools and questionable decisions live in perfect harmony.
Speaker B:We will see you next time anywhere.
Speaker A:Beyond the me Love is a love song let's be lovers we're all over the radio Take my hand I know where to go all over the radio with you.
