Planning and saving for that perfect online business is always an exciting new adventure. Contacts have been made, the website and SEO marketing is in place, and the orders are beginning to flow. Each morning proves better than the last with creative entrepreneurial juices flowing. The hours of work are set and on this particular sunny June day, there are online appointments and bids to work on. With everything on schedule, and a quick review of incoming emails, it is time to settle in for a prosperous morning. Suddenly, the unthinkable happens. The computer screen goes black, background music stops, and your desk lamp shuts off.
Insurance Against Power Failure
Saying that your power will never fail, is like expecting to bypass the flu. Loss of electricity should be more of a concern to expect it, get through it, and keep your loss to a minimum. Think about the amount of insurance carried against sickness, liability, and damage, then weigh all of these factors against sitting in a black hole for hours, days, or even weeks. Before the age of computers, businesses could still operate by picking up a pen and paper and calculating a price for goods in a darkened store. The amount of loss was still present, but nothing like it could be today.
Portable Generators
A generator is nothing more than a mini version of a power plant that generates electricity, only on a much smaller scale. There are different sizes that burn gas, diesel, natural gas or propane, and covert into electricity. At the very least, a portable generator, large enough to power a computer and a few essentials, needs to be within reach. 5 to 7 kw is sufficient for powering up a system, turning on a few lights and having a couple extra outlets for a radio or microwave. This is a good alternative when the power is suppressed for a few hours, but can become a problem for a longer duration. A small portable unit should only run at about 80% capacity, to keep from overload. They also emit carbon monoxide fumes, that are harmful, and are very noisy.
Backup Generators
Living on the coast can bring threats of hurricane-type winds and power losses that can last for days or weeks. A backup, or standby generator, can be installed to power an entire house or business. While the initial cost is higher, the worry of power outages are gone. Wired to an existing electrical source, it is triggered to come on at the first sign of power loss. 14 to 27 kw is normal for most homes under 2500 square feet. This number is based on the amount of electricity used at one time. Since all lights and appliances are seldom used at the same time, any more power would be over-kill. A backup generator is mounted permanently outside a building, similar to a central air conditioning unit. It sits quietly, without hardly any need for maintenance, until its time to use.
A Little Solar Power
Solar power has come a long way from having to line a garage with lead batteries and placing solar panels, just so. In an emergency situation, have a solar-powered charger ready for your laptop and keep up with daily duties. A 25-watt solar panel, along with a 600-watt power pack, will charge a 25-watt laptop computer for 8 hours. Never miss that important meeting or the processing of orders, due to a blackout in your area. While the power pack is fully charged, it can be used for other small apparatuces, such as radios, TVs, tools and lights.
Emergency Solar for Homes
One of the nice parts of being an entrepreneur with online customers, is the ability to be mobile. Taking a fishing trip, traveling to a remote cabin in the mountains, or venturing to a foreign country, make business and personal activities possible. However, leaving power for the Internet behind, can create problems unless you have a support team back home. With a an 1800-watt solar generator, complete with 2 100-AH batteries, you are able to set up shop in an ocean front beach house, on a boat, or just in preparation when inclement weather comes through your area. Unlike noisy generators, that can be annoying, or having to have plenty of fuel on hand, solar power is clean, efficient and quiet.
You would not wait until you wrecked a vehicle before looking into an insurance policy, so why wait to insure the most critical aspect of your business? Technology has evolved business into a place where the entire world is at your fingertips, but only as long as the connection is able to be made. The weather has always been unpredictable and cannot be relied upon, no matter how advanced we become in society. Generators and solar power can help prevent a loss of power and are becoming more environmentally friendly. Prices can range anywhere from a couple hundred dollars to just over three thousand. This is a small price to pay for always having access to your business. Protect yourself and your business by looking at proven ways to keep from going black during critical times.