Setting up a weekly Status update

Background: The NoPowerTXT unit is an electronic device which, like all electronic devices, can fail over time. If it fails then your power source is not being monitored, and a power failure will not be reported (via SMS). 

Your device can send you a weekly “Status Update” SMS which indicates that it is working.

To set this feature, go to the NoPowerTXT Settings.



From there, select Status Update Notification and follow the prompts The recommended period is every 7 days, on a weekday, when you are more likely to be away from the boat.

Then, every Monday (for example) you will receive this message:

Status Update from <Your Boat>.
Power is connected.
System is working

Monitoring

If you don’t receive the Status SMS on the designated day then possibly your device has failed and you should attend to it.

To test your NoPowerTXT device at any time, SMS the word “Status” to it and you should get a response (as above).

If you don’t get a response, then please attend to the device as quickly as possible, and contact me for assistance with repairing or replacing it. If your device was sold through a marine store or boat maintainer, then they may be able to assist you with this. (Such support is not automatically included with the purchase, but many clients have a separate contract with the store/maintainer ).

Terms and Conditions for warranty and replacement are available on our web site. In summary: There is a warranty period of 12 months for free replacement. Replacement batteries are, unfortunately, expensive to the business and some of the cost must be passed on. The NoPowerTXT device and app have had a significant upgrade, and replacement units are available for $250, with is a very good price for the new unit.
 

More Information

The instruction manual, recommended settings, and more supporting information is available here on our web site.

As always, I am available for email and phone support.

Cafes, Delis, Hotels, Hospitals, Retirement Homes, School Tuckshops, Childcare Centres all have the same problem caused by electricity blackouts – what food is safe to retain and what needs to be thrown out?

How can you make that decision if you have no way of knowing the duration of the blackout?  What evidence do you have to support your decision in the event of a future legal claim or prosecution?

It is an unfortunate reality that increasingly more blackouts in many areas exceed the 4 hour mark that Health Authorities warn is the safety limit for food being without refrigeration.

There is a solution to your problem – NoPowerTXT!

The easily installed NoPowerTXT system requires an investment of $369 – much less than the cost of throwing out food each time there is an electricity blackout, and certainly less than the potential costs to your business of supplying food that adversely affects the health of your customers or people in your care.

So, what precautions should you make to be best prepared for the time you are suddenly plunged into darkness?

Because it is more likely to be the case, we’ll assume it is dark outside, the evening meal is on the electric stove, you’ve just switched on the heating, and settled down with the family to watch the TV news.

The first requirement is to get some light on things – and today that is most likely to come from a mobile phone, either with a torch function, or the screen backlight will be sufficient. Next step is to have one person head to the easily accessible spot, that all family members have been drilled about, where there is some form of battery powered lighting (the sort campers use), and ideally a battery powered radio. Candles and matches are dangerous and relatively ineffective.

Once some reasonable battery powered lighting is available, it is important to ascertain whether the blackout is confined to just your home, or more widespread. So, check your safety switch to see if it has been tripped. If not, call a neighbour’s mobile phone to establish whether they have also lost power. In the event of a prolonged outage, and the family all decide to head off to bed, it is very important to carefully think about what electrical appliances were switched on at the time of the power loss, and to ensure they are switched off before you go to sleep. Check the stove, but don’t open the fridge or freezer in case the outage is more than 4 hours. Food spoilage starts to be an issue after 4 hours and keeping the door to fridge and freezer closed is the best way to keep frozen food from starting to thaw.

The other valuable precaution is to have the phone number for your power provider in your mobile phone so that you can check on the expected time for power restoration, plus the mobile numbers of several neighbours, particularly anyone elderly or disabled who may require some reassurance or assistance until power is restored.

We’ve had the rail system shut down for two days by a fault at an electrical sub-station, and simultaneously the Flinders Hospital was plunged into darkness by the over-enthusiastic spade work of a road worker.

However the Power Outage that is causing the most volatile conversations is the one down Alberton way, initiated by those AFL footballers wearing black and teal.

The electricity feed follows a circuit, starting at the power station, then to your home and the light globe or appliance and back, minus the amount of electricity used. The RCD (Residual Current Device) is the safety switch or circuit breaker which cuts off power in problem situations within milli-seconds.

Many power outages are caused by the safety switch being tripped (turned off) due to a fault in an appliance – kettle, fridge, toaster, power board or lead – or by moisture reaching an electrical circuit.

If you lose power, it may be just lights or power points, check the safety switch. If it has tripped, it will be in the down position. If this is the case, try to reset the safety switch by pushing it up. If it trips again, disconnect appliances and electrical devices you have been using. If this causes the safety switch to now stay up, reconnect each appliance one at a time and recheck the safety switch after each appliance is reconnected, until you find the one that causes the switch to trip again. Don’t use that appliance again until it is checked and repaired by a qualified tradesperson.

If you cannot isolate the appliance causing the problem, call a qualified electrician.

What is still safe to eat and what must be thrown out?

Australian health authorities suggest if power is off for less than 4 hours, unopened food should be fine, provided it has not gotten above 40 degrees. A full freezer will keep food at a safe temperature for up to two days if you keep the door shut.

However, foodborne bacteria can start growing in things like meat, poultry, seafood, milk and mayonnaise after it’s been kept above 40 degrees for more than two hours.

Authorities advise you do not rely on your sense of smell to determine if something is safe to eat. And tasting is even worse because that can lead to a foodborne illness like salmonella.

On a brighter note, if your frozen food still has ice crystals around it, it’s safe to eat.

Unfortunately, the problem for every business that stores food – cafes, delis, hotels, restuarants, school tuckshops, childcare centres – is not knowing the duration of the power outage that happens when the business operator is not at the business overnight and at weekends.

That’s why every business storing food needs NoPowerTXT to clearly determine the duration of the power outage and therefore the steps necessary to guarantee the safety of food consumers.

The cost of the easily installed NoPowerTXT system is insignificant compared with the cost of unnecessarily disposing of food because you did not know how long the power was off, or even more so, the cost to your business if the health of your customers is adversely affected by food you supply.

The following are recommendations that apply to food safety during an extended power outage (more than two hours).

Appropriate decision making before, during, and immediately after a power outage is necessary to protect consumers from unsafe food and minimize product loss.

Health Departments recommend that food establishments develop a power outage plan before the need arises.

When there is a Power Outage

• Note the time the power outage begins.
• Discontinue all cooking operations.
• Do not place hot food in refrigerators or freezers, as this will rapidly raise the temperature inside the refrigerator or freezer and may make more food unusable.
• Discard food products that are in the process of being cooked, but which have not yet reached the final cooking temperature.
• Maintain hot potentially hazardous food at 140º F or above. Food that has reached final cooking temperature may be kept hot (140º F) by use of canned heat in chaffing dishes.
• Use ice or/ice baths to rapidly cool small batches of hot food.

Food Safety

Potentially Hazardous Foods

Potentially hazardous foods are those foods such as high protein foods (meat, eggs, dairy) and cooked vegetables that support the rapid and progressive growth of disease-causing bacteria. Foodborne illnesses can be caused by bacteria that can multiply rapidly in foods when the food is held in the temperature danger zone (41° to 140º F).

Keep foods at safe temperatures

Refrigerated potentially hazardous foods must be stored at or below 41º F. Frozen foods must be maintained frozen. Hot cooked potentially hazardous food must be maintained at 140º F or above.

Freezers

Leave the freezer door closed. A full freezer should keep food safe about two days – a half-full freezer, about one day. Add bags of ice or dry ice to the freezer if it appears the power will be off for an extended time. You can safely re-freeze thawed foods that still contain ice crystals and are 41º F or less.

Caution: the use of dry ice may result in the unsafe build-up of carbon dioxide.

Refrigerators

Food in refrigerators should be safe as long as the power is out no more than about four to six hours. Leave the door closed; every time you open it, needed cold air escapes, causing the foods inside to reach unsafe temperatures. Discard any potentially hazardous food that has been above 41º F for four hours or more, reached a temperature of 45º F or higher for any length of time, or has an unusual colour, odour or texture.

For some circumstances, which vary between states, this system may be adequate advice of a major and sustained blackout , but there are significant gaps in the advice provided.

The biggest problem is that the power company’s system is completely unaware of power outages caused by your safety switch tripping due to a faulty appliance or moisture encroaching on an electrical circuit. If the circuit to your freezer or refrigerator, or your aquarium, is not functioning, the power company will never know.

Similarly, if your electrical supply is interrupted by a failure of equipment, either affecting just your premises, or a small number of nearby consumers, experience suggests the power company’s system will not advise you of the problem.

The other problem concerns home-owners who are away, interstate or overseas, and the mobile number registered with the power company is not contactable. The power company does not have the function, available with NoPowerTXT, of advising multiple mobile numbers and allowing you to instantly and easily update the list of mobiles to be advised.

The other power consumers who are not protected at all by the power company’s system, are the many consumers who do not have a direct account with the power company – for example people on shared meters, and businesses who are tenants of commercial landlords who hold the account.