The Arrival of The Atlantic Hurricane Season 2021

June 1^st marks the first official day of the Atlantic Hurricane Season and for those of us living in the eastern part of the United States, we’re all too familiar with the inevitable risks of power outages. Without proper preparation for the natural disaster’s effects, we could be left without power for weeks.

Hurricanes are prone to occur each year on the east coast beginning in June and lasting until November 30^th. This area of the U.S. enters the 6-month period of tropical storms (winds of 39-73 mph) and hurricanes (winds of 74 mph or higher) potentially making landfall and causing catastrophic damage to our city and our homes. We know that a hurricane colliding with your city and leaving you without power for days or even weeks can be a scary thought, but with the help from the experts at ATI Electrical in this blog, you can prepare your power distribution equipment to ensure it will function properly when you need it most. It could be a mess if you have all of the appropriate portable power components aside from a single plug or connector that prevents you from powering your home during a natural disaster.

For those of you located in the zone of these Atlantic Hurricanes and are interested in power distribution equipment for an emergency response, you can visit our website to view our long list of all the portable power products you need. ATI is your go to portable power distributor for all emergency response situations. We stock generator cable with quick camlock connections, generator docking stations, transfer switches, camlock connection boxes, generators, and much more. If you have any questions about your current power distribution equipment or products listed on our site, you can call or text our experts anytime at (800)-597-9311.

How to Prepare Your Equipment for Hurricane Season

If you have generator cables, a portable or standby generator, and a transfer switch then this section is for you. First things first, you’re going to need to take a full inventory of all your power distribution equipment to see what you have and what you’re missing. Next, you’ll need to do a maintenance check on your generator to ensure it has oil, new fuel, and all the lines and hoses are connected and in good working condition. You should never run your generator with old fuel as it can have a tremendous impact on the performance of your generator and its parts.

After performing a routine checkup, you can test your equipment by flipping the main breaker in your transfer switch from the line position to the generator power position. Next, you can connect your cables to your generator docking station and fire up your generator. One by one, you can turn on the circuits that you would like to provide power to. After testing your equipment, you can evaluate which products are functioning properly, and those of which will need to be replaced. We recommend doing this demonstration well ahead of time to allow sufficient time to receive all the parts you need. To order any replacement parts, you can reach out to our portable power group by text or phone at (800)-597-9311 or email us today at PPG@ATIelectrical.com

Stock Up and Be Prepared

During and after a hurricane, there’s a very high chance of losing power from the torrential down pour and high-speed winds that can tear down trees and other structures. This means limited home cooked meals and restaurants to visit once it’s all said and done. You should fully prepare yourself by stocking up on bottled water, ice, batteries, flashlights, and non-perishable goods such as canned foods, peanut butter, soups, rice, and so on. This will ensure you have sufficient food and water for the time being, while the utility companies work night and day to get the power back on.

Without power you will have to rely on a propane grill to heat and cook your food during this time. If you have a power distribution setup, you’ll need either propane, gasoline or diesel (depending on your generator) to keep your power on during this time. Be sure to store enough fuel to keep the power on as long as necessary.

The National Hurricane Center (NHA) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has predicted a 60% above normal, active hurricane season in the Atlantic this year. If you happen to be under a hurricane warning, we highly recommend you listen to all NHA recommendations and protocols to stay safe during that time. You can visit the NHA’s website for storm activity and potential hurricane pathways.