How to check your home (before going back)

[GalvestonDuck]

I can't believe I forgot to post this -- something I've done for years, depending upon the situation.

If you've evacuated out of town and want to know if power or the phone still works at home - call. If you have an answering machine, powered by electricity, and it doesn't come on and answer, chances are your power is out. And if you get a recording, obviously your phone lines are down.

I just called a friend's house -- phone still works, no answering machine.

[Robert]

I thought you were supposed to shut off your power at the main breaker when you left?

On a similar note, I read someplace that you should leave your front porch light on, so power companies could drive through and quickly see if your area had power or not (I think that was from the local power company).

[Canelaw99]

But if you turn off the breaker how will your front porch light have power? Does it run off something besides your main breaker???

[Robert]

That is the question... Do you shut off your power (no front porch light, no answering machine) or do you leave it on (front porch and answering machine)?

[GalvestonDuck]

LOL! I thought you were supposed to turn off gas.

And leave a light on in the house so you'll know when power comes back on and won't keep walking in and out of rooms, hitting light switches.

Of course, nothing bugs ya more than when the power comes on at 4 AM as you sleep and wakes you with your desk lamp glaring right at you.

[SeaBrz_FL]

I never quite understood the "turn off the main breaker" advice either, but I do now.

After Frances, but before people could get back home, the power companies were trying to get power up and there were several building fires. In one case, a window had blown out and the wind knocked a microwave oven on top of a range which moved a knob to the 'on' position. The burner caught flammable debris on fire. Bizarre, but it happened!