On 24/01/2012 10:16, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In ,
Frank wrote:
Power cuts can and do happen without cables being nicked. If that power
is essential, backup should be provided.

Hospitals always (?) have standby alternators, but what about, for
example, renal dialysis machines used in private homes? Or all these
type of things battery powered nowadays? Indeed, are such things used
at all now? :-)

If home dialyse - or anything else like that - is such that it must be
carried out at a specific time, it would be sensible to have a standby
source of electricity.

I can give you an actual example of the problems. My parents' next-door
neighbour suffered from emphysema. He spent his final years at home,
hooked up to a machine that fed him oxygen enriched air. If the power
failed, the battery would last only a short time and the back-up was
bottled oxygen, which would also work if the machine failed in any other
way. However, he was physically unable to turn the oxygen bottle on by
himself. His wife very rarely spent more than a very short time out of
the house because of this, but had to take a chance occassionally. At
one stage she dared not leave the house at all for a fortnight, as cable
TV was being put in through the area and they had twice hit power cables
- without her there, this could have killed him. Now it would have been
terrible if this had killed him, but faults mistakes and accidents do
happen; how much worse if he had died through a totally avoidable,
deliberate and totally mindless criminal act.

Despite all the bile spouted here, you're more likely to have an
'ordinary' power cut than one caused by cable theft.

Most power cuts from my (suburban) experience have been deliberate (70s
strikes or maintenence) in which case there is prior notice (especially
for medical users) or faults, that usually come back on very quickly.
Other than strikes, we have never experienced loss of power of even one
hour during forty-odd years! Cable thefts can knock out power for days.
Thefts also often involve the substation neutral/earth links and can
cause large voltage swings, resulting in damage to electronic equipment;
total failure; and fires.

SteveW