Every farmer knows the importance of a reliable and steady power supply to support their lifestyle and daily operations. And for so many agricultural responsibilities, the amount of power available is much less essential than the reliability of that power.
Worth the risk?
Being unprepared when a power failure hits poses a wide range of risks – including risk of losing livestock, produce and water, damage to valuable equipment, electric fencing issues, no work for paid staff – all contributing to substantial costs just to bring the farm back to normal function. And while all farming industries and operations rely on continuous and steady power supply, it is presumed that poultry farmers could take the biggest hit with the most significant potential losses.
Meta Economics Consulting Group surveyed a large group of farmers about their experience with power failures. They concluded with a striking mean of over 100 reported instances of power failures per farmer, per year (occurring for a < 6 hour period). aside from these seemingly very common short, frequent power failures experienced by farmers yearly, we can’t forget about the more extreme and longer outages that are occurring even more regularly that pose an even greater risk to a farm.
Protect your farm with reliable backup energy
Over three quarters of all farmers questioned by Meta Economics Consulting Group reported to have generators on their farm. And while this isn’t a totally disappointing number, the fact still remains that every farmer should ideally have an emergency or backup power source on their farm.
With that said, there are two common types of backup/standby generators a farmer can employ: diesel generators and gaseous generators.
Diesel fuel generators are the least expensive initially and are simple to operate. On the other hand, natural gas or propane units tend to be preferred by most farmers due to their low long-term cost benefit and comparatively lower emissions. There is also the benefit of no transportation costs when it comes to fuel. Generators should only be used in areas with proper ventilation to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning.
Protect your operations with the right equipment
The type of electrical equipment a farmer uses, as well as the maintenance of this equipment plays a fundamental role in keeping farming operations safe from power failures. As far as maintenance goes, farmers should always make sure that their generator is receiving monthly inspections like checking fluid levels, as well as annual maintenance, including oil and filter changes, changing the fuel filter and the air filter, checking the coolant concentration and cleaning the crankcase breather. Bi-annually maintenance duties include checking the battery functions, inspecting the coolant heater and drive belts, as well as checking for oil leaks and enclosure inspection, among others.
To ensure that your bi-yearly and yearly maintenance is being performed properly, a certified T&T Power Group technician would be happy to help. Contact Us anytime to schedule a maintenance service, or if you need any kind of assistance with your generator. Our team of experts is just a phone call or email away.
Explore all the different ways you can prepare
Because not every single one of your farming operations may be fully protected from a power outage, preparation goes a long way. For example, when it comes to the caring of livestock, an alt. feeding plan should be predetermined when a mechanical feeder is no longer operational. Same goes for water, and heating or ventilation solutions.
How protected is your farm’s valuable livestock, plants and equipment from the next power failure? Something to think about – and definitely do something about if need be.