Generators for Gladstone

Gladstone gets fewer than half as many cyclones up close as Townsville: 6 inside 100 km since 1970, against 13. The most recent, Marcia, crossed the coast at Shoalwater Bay, north of Yeppoon, as a category 5 in February 2015, and its track passed about 46 km from the city. The next evening about 2,600 Gladstone customers were still without power.

A storm doesn't have to come that close to be felt here. David crossed near St Lawrence in January 1976 and isn't in our count, yet the Gladstone Met Office still recorded gusts of about 156 km/h. Even the transmission network isn't immune: in February 2018, a high-voltage fault during a severe lightning strike tripped the 132 kV line to Boyne Island, and it was about 70 minutes before all 414 MW of lost industrial load was back.

Oswald isn't in our count either: its track stayed more than 100 km away. In January 2013 its remnant brought major flooding to central Queensland, with more than 1,000 mm of rain in some areas in 48 hours. Awoonga Dam, the city's water supply, spilled 8.3 m over its spillway in the region's biggest recorded flood. About 400 homes near the mouth of the Boyne River were evacuated, and dozens of low-lying properties on Boyne Island flooded.

On 25 January Gladstone was isolated. The Bruce Highway was cut at Miriam Vale, the Dawson Highway was closed at Catfish Creek, trains were cancelled and harbour shipments stopped. When the roads are cut, you rely on what's at home.

Agnes Water and Town of 1770 rely on two road links, Essendean Bridge towards Bundaberg and Alligator Flats towards Miriam Vale, and both flood. When both go under, the area is usually cut off for 24 to 48 hours.

Plan to look after yourself for two days: fuel for the generator, a fridge that keeps running and phones that stay charged. For a holiday let or other accommodation, a diesel standby set with an automatic transfer switch keeps the essentials running for guests.

• Fridge, lights, phones and a laptop: a 2 to 3.5 kVA inverter.
• Add the TV, microwave and fans: 3.5 to 5 kVA.
• Fridge, lights and phones after dark: a power station rated above what you plug in (check each label). A 1,000 W HYPS1000 covers them overnight with the generator off, but it won't run the kettle.
• Most of the house with the split system on: 7 to 10 kVA petrol, or 8 to 12 kVA diesel for a long outage.
• The whole house, ducted air and all: 10 kVA and up, usually diesel.
• Shop, office or cool room backup: 10 to 20 kVA diesel.

On a cattle block or farm out of town, allow about 3.6 kVA for every kW of pump motor started direct on line, and choose a three phase set for three phase motors. Not sure? Our generator size calculator adds up your appliances in about a minute, or browse home backup generators.

Most of what keeps a house going in an outage is small: the fridge, the lights and the phone chargers. A 2 kVA inverter runs that on less fuel than a generator sized for the kettle. Add a power station and it can take over at night, silently, so the generator gets switched off.

Our Hyundai HY2000Si and HYPS1000 bundle is that pair, and it costs less than buying the two separately. The generator runs the day and recharges the HYPS1000. Overnight, with the generator switched off, the power station runs the fridge, the lights, phone chargers or a CPAP machine. It isn't a kettle setup: the HYPS1000 puts out 1,000 W. In Agnes Water and 1770, where flooded crossings can cut the area off for up to two days, that means quieter nights for your household or holiday guests, and fuel that goes further. Browse our portable power stations and generator and power station bundles.

Don't leave it until a cyclone watch is issued. If the highways are cut, as they were in 2013, you can't drive out of town to buy one. Buy before November, test-run it at home, store fuel safely and start it once a month.

We deliver across the region, from Boyne Island to Agnes Water and Town of 1770. Most units up to 10 kVA ship free. For everything else, freight is priced at checkout, based on delivery to capital cities and major centres. If your address costs more to reach, we'll call before dispatch with the difference, and you can go ahead or cancel for a full refund.

Your order ships from our base in Townsville or direct from the supplier warehouse closest to you. Most orders are dispatched within 1 to 5 business days and arrive within 3 to 8 business days of ordering. Sets over about 1 tonne take 1 to 2 weeks to dispatch and need a forklift, crane or tractor forks on site to unload, and we'll call before dispatch to confirm access.

Don't connect a generator to the house through a power point. That's backfeeding: it's illegal, and it can kill line workers. A licensed electrician fits a changeover switch and inlet so the generator runs your circuits safely. Here's how a changeover switch installation works. Run it outdoors, well away from doors and windows, because the exhaust can kill. On low-lying ground, like parts of Boyne Island, keep the generator and fuel above flood level.