Huge step Aussies are taking to avoid blackouts

Amid increasing concern about summer blackouts and the effect of extreme weather, more Aussies are seeking their own ways to keep the power on.

Meat in the deep freeze defrosting, and then spoiling.

Cellular devices losing charge, and then dying.

Power blackouts are super annoying, and potentially costly – and increasing concern about them is prompting more and more Australian homeowners to buy their own generators for domestic use.

Energy retailer Outbax has reported a 60 per cent surge in demand for generator units over the past quarter, with the increasing frequency of blackouts caused by extreme weather events driving the trend.

David Sedighi from VoltX Energy.

The Gentrax GT3500 Inverter Generator.

Outbax CEO David Sedighi said inquiries tended to spike after big events like thunderstorms and bushfires, but concern about overloaded electricity grids during summer was also helping generate customer interest.

“We’ve got a grid that’s quite old and requires a lot of upgrading,” he said.

Many buyers were motivated by the prospect of food spoiling in powerless refrigerators and freezers, Mr Sedighi said, “and at times that can be thousands of dollars’ worth of produce or perishables”.

The affordability of home generators was a surprise to some would-be buyers, Mr Sedighi said, with his company’s best-selling model for home use retailing for $879.

“With a full tank of petrol our best selling model could potentially run for eight, nine or 10 hours, depending on what sort of devices you were running,” he said. And with petrol refills they could run much longer, he added.

Transmission towers toppled by high winds near Melrose in South Australia, September 2016. Picture: AFP/Debbie Prosser

Many parts of Australia have grappled with power losses this year after extreme weather brought down transmission infrastructure.

Thunderstorms flattened five towers in Western Australia in January, and six in Victoria in February. More recently, extreme weather damaged transmission infrastructure in far western NSW on October 17, plunging Broken Hill and surrounding areas into prolonged blackouts.

Linda and Mark Hickey at home in Belrose, on Sydney’s northern beaches. Backing on to bushland, their property is also at risk from bushfires. Picture: Tim Hunter

One Aussie who knows more than most about the vagaries of extreme weather, and the saving grace of power generators, is Linda Hickey, from Sydney’s northern beaches.

In 2019, a mini typhoon tore the roof off her Belrose home while leaving some neighbouring houses completely untouched.

She and her husband and daughter were left without power for nine days – but they were able to get by after a local tradie loaned them his generator, free of charge.

The Hickey family home after it was hit by a mini typhoon in November 2019. Picture: Supplied

“We were able to plug the fridge in, the washing machine in, devices in … it was soul saving, just to be able to wash school uniforms, and some work clothes, and have the fridge going with some basics, and of course devices, which we’re all so reliant on,” Ms Hickey said.

Five years on, the Hickeys are now contemplating buying their own generator to cope with power losses brought on by other extreme events.

“We’re in the highest rated fire zone, and this season we’ve been saying we’ll pony up and [buy one],” Ms Hickey said.

And after the extraordinary kindness of the tradie back in 2019, they’d like to be in position to help their neighbours with the loan of a generator if need be, she said.