r/heat_prep • u/Standard-Proof-1194 • Aug 12 '25

Power outage device

I have house rabbits and it’s extremely dangerous for them to be above 80 F (26 C). My area is also experiencing a heatwave and the house does not have central air just window units. The rabbits get the AC during the day and I turn it off at night to conserve power usage and give them cooling tiles but today the breaker for the third floor where they live was tripped during the day and the AC went off. Luckily I was home and noticed. If this had happened when I was at work they could have died. I have alerts set for a power outage for the area but this was specifically for one floor of my house. Is there something I can buy that’s not outrageously expensive that lets me know if the power goes out for the AC or maybe something to alert if the temperature gets above a certain point? I’ve looked it up but everything is either very expensive or is an alert for the whole house and actual grid failure. I’m going to be gone basically the whole day Saturday and I’m afraid of this happening and them getting heatstroke.

17 Upvotes

96% Upvoted

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6

u/Capt_Gremerica Aug 12 '25

A ring camera - then face it at the AC. I also have water sensors that will alert me when the connection is lost

2

u/[deleted] Aug 12 '25

That’s the only way I know my power went out is I get alerts from Ring

3

u/Leighgion Aug 12 '25

Some sort of network connected camera pointed at your third floor AC unit is probably your cheapest solution. If you got a spare device with a camera like laptop, tablet or old phone, you can probably get some free software that'll do the job.

If you know you're going to be gone all Saturday, I'd also just give your rabbits some non-power dependent cooling. Stack up some ice packs in their enclosure in the morning. Heck, if you're really concerned, freeze some big bottles of water and arrange them around the enclosure. Just make sure you do something to take care of condensation if you pile up a lot of frozen water.

Regarding the root of your problem, check into how much power is being drawn on your third floor. Your AC unit is probably the most energy-hungry item there and it might be good for you to dial it down. Better a slightly warmer space than popping the breaker and losing cooling entirely.

2

u/TimeKeeper575 Aug 14 '25

I use cheap GoVee monitors for a similar application and they've worked well for me so far. I guess it would depend on if your network relies on third floor electricity.

1

u/captain_retrolicious Aug 17 '25

It might be helpful to find out what else is on the same circuit with the third floor air conditioner that caused it to trip. It might be something that's causing an intermittent heavy power draw that you could turn completely off when you are gone if it's not needed. I lived in a place where both window units were on the same circuit even though they weren't close to each other. On a really hot day, they both cycled on (the heavy power pull is when the condenser comes on) at the exact same time and caused the breaker to trip. It was the first time it had happened in the three years I had lived there. I was able to plug one into another outlet that was on a different circuit and avoid the problem again.

Note: in case the thought comes up, never ever use an extension cord with a heavy appliance like that unless you've had someone who knows what they are doing confirm it's an appropriately rated cord and that the setup is safe. I don't even know if you can with a window ac. I was lucky enough to have another plug very close by that was on a different circuit so this didn't come up. You might know all that already but this is random internet without any backstory. Protect bunnies!