How-To Guides

A two-hour break-in procedure that seats the piston rings properly: oil, no-load hour, early oil changes, and light load done right.

Tilt, aim, and timing tricks that pull 25 to 40 percent more energy from a portable solar panel, no extra gear required.

Realistic running and surge wattage for 25 common appliances, plus worked examples showing exactly how to size a generator or power station.

Carbon monoxide, floodwater, hot refueling, and backfeeding kill people after the storm passes. The rules that prevent every one of them.

Manual switch, automatic switch or interlock kit: costs, code rules and which connection method fits your generator setup.

A 7-step wattage method with a full appliance reference table and three worked examples, from a minimal kit to near whole-home power.

How much fuel to store for an outage, which containers are safe, where to keep it, and how long gasoline, propane and diesel actually last.