General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Question: Why are people stocking up on toilet paper? [View all]csziggy
(34,136 posts)Which is really what we used at the barn and called a muck bucket. It's about five - eight gallons - I just set it in the shower, fill it up, and use a smaller bucket to fill the toilet tank. Once the power is back, I can bail it out into the shower drain and it can go right back outside for garden use.
Two fo the three storm outages, I was here alone and some friends got me set up with their old portable gas generator - but it conked out due to goo build up. That's why I bought a propane generator for the well - propane does not deteriorate like gas so is better for short term, far apart usage.
But I am not able to do the chores necessary to run a portable and my husband is no good with mechanical stuff, so for the house the whole house generator that is self regulating is our best bet. It will also be propane, though I have not decided what size tank to get. I'm thinking of big enough to run for a week at least. I can get it refilled after the worst of the recovery is over. The longest our power has ever been out has been a full week so that should be adequate.
My other prep for storm season is a good LED light - the two I have for needlework are both broken, but with them a set of AA batteries lasts a week or more. We used to use oil lanterns when regular flashlights and D batteries only lasted hours, but the oil stinks and you have to maintain the wick, plus there is always fire hazard.