It's worse than that. No Natural gas for HEATING. IN FUCKING COLORADO.
If the electricity goes out you could die with the cold in CO. They hate everyone that is not them and want's them dead.
Natural gas rocks if you can get it, not all places can. I have never seen a time in my history here where natural gas has been out where I had it (all places but my current which is fucking miles from anything). I get that sometimes a line is cut and its out for a short period, but even then we are talking hours, not days.
That being said, propane tanks are a thing, and even burrying them is another thing. I do heat pump primary heat, with propane secondary. 1000 gal of propane (actually 800 gal in since its a 1000 gal tank)
Last year I used some propane for the emergency when it got freezing and some for the shop. Now in colorado, heat pump is likely a no starter, so you are heat strips and propane backup. Even then if power is out, well your fucked.
But you can likely run the blower motor and entire unit off a jackery type battery. Jump it into emergency heat only (either by the thermostat if it has that ability) or disconnect the primary trigger/swap primary/emergency so propane is primary. Then you can run the entire unit on 120v (inside unit) which is blower motor, 24v for thermostat and fire strikers, logic boards and shit...
But I know most arent level of electronics game, but I would wager that you could do the same. Have a genny, just extension cord the jenny to the unit, and hard wire a 120v to that set of lugs.
Look at the install schematic and you can find where power is....could like build a easy change over box in 2 gang switch, with 20 amp switches. one switch on/off primary power, one switch on/off genny plug. Main power, off Genny on.
Then light that fucker up....but a fire place or wood stove is easy enough.
Side note, I don't like poking holes in a non-leaky roof. So I like to run vents through the side wall...most wood burners can do that also. It does slow down the exhaust, but that also lets the pipe get hotter.
Research if your new target stove can have that. Worst case, have an extera solid core door, and cut a vent pipe hole close to the top. Replace door and place wood burner as needed, run pipe outside, attach vertical to gutter/eve with standoff. Tape up shit door, enjoy heat. Remove shit door when hellscape winter is over or power on.
There are so many ways to get heat if needed.
Just rambling outloud about possiblities.
Oh I can wire anything up how I want. I know how to (and have) done residential electric as well as personal projects hacking and slashing things to make them do things they were not designed to.
In my current location it is simply not worth really bothering and I am trying to move. Once I get out of this liberal hell-hole I will have a setup that would make government facilities look amateur.
Motors can draw a lot more current than their nameplate ratings on startup. That can sometimes exceed the capacity of one of those power banks.
Sometimes they'll (the power bank or generator) will rate surge (or start) vs. run currents, or something like that.
The motors I have pulled out of most HVAC units is about 9amp start, 1.5-2 running. Now with the variable speed jobbers, I got no idea.....but still would not expect more than 10amp from everything I have seen.
"If you want to know the amps, put a meter on it!" Maria Carrie or some shit.
You would only die if you don't have an axe, or live on the front range, or in alamso's desert. I mean you got trees all over, and with an axe... I guess you need a wood burning stove.. I guess I'd plan to live there.....like I plan seasonal gear in the truck....yes there is a chain saw in there now, as even in Texas, we get ice and can have downed trees....truck could likely climb over most, but I have an entire bed to carry stuff to make life easier.
So we plan....we plan.
There is so no point to living on CO at this time. Unless it goes "red" again it will never be worth it again.
My opinion is that you MUST have 3 forms of heat/power in a house.
Gas is good, Electric is ok, Wood is last but also highly preferred. (I really miss having a wood stove). With Wood I can heat the place and make sure my pipes don't pop and I can cook food. So what if I have to read a physical book for a few days while I wait on the power to turn back on?
Well, guess what. CO is/has also been trying to ban wood burning stoves too. Fuck the commie faggots.
Yes, my other comment touches on some of that. Also, just to note, PEX is much more forgiving for not poping when frozen.
If I lived in Kolorado, I'd likely have designed a house half in the fucking ground, and the fireplace would have a thermal wall mass which backed up to the bedroom. I'd still have wood burners, even small ones in the Master.
Side, Side Note: even in Texas, I designed the master large enough to put a wood burner in the corner....it don't have fire block, or reflector, but all that I can drum up if the world goes to shit. "Why don't you throw away those 3 pallets of scrap lumber, they ain't large enough to use" Honey....those will burn when the world goes to shit and we might need them for heat. They take up no room out behind the trees just sleeping till we need them. "oh"
2 coords on the porch...and I have started a fire 2x in 3 years here. propane tank is full. Well House has 2500 gallons of water, that is heated when temps drop to 45, so the thermal mass in there is good enough for short runs (2 days at below freezing) with no power.
If power was to be out more than a day...Genny is sitting there, and I can wire it into the feed and cut the mains.....aint setup for 10 min job, but its doable in likely an hour. gas you say? 10x 5 gallon jugs with no-ethanol. diesel you say? 10 x 5gallon jugs, that is winter gas, not summer (no gel here)
I spent a little time in the cold....I'm ready for Colorado cold, in Texas climate.