Since they first appeared in the 1830s portable generators have grown steadily both in availability and affordability. And that journey has been fueled by all kinds of buyers who either have been unable for whatever reason to depend all the time on grid power or who have just made the choice to live off-grid. They have also been a favorite for anyone who likes or needs independent power sources, be it professionally in, say, the construction industry, or campers out and about in their RV.
The one fact that we don't seem to avoid is that the vast majority of this type of equipment and associated parts are produced in the Far East, particularly China, however hard some
manufacturers may advertently or inadvertently try to obscure it. But, as we attempt to explain in
our article on where portable generators are made, this is not necessarily a bad thing, though we understand perfectly well the strong views held by some people about the need to produce and buy home grown products to support local communities and the economy in general.
This sentiment is bound to grow stronger as we go forward following Russia's unprovoked and horrific attack on the people of Ukraine and their country, which is causing a further impact on supply chains already severely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. One of the most serious problems with equipment made in China and elsewhere for that matter is access to spare parts as well as new supplies, with potentially sky rocketing price rises on the horizon.
But that's not all.
Though the hypothetical danger has been acknowledged by the Department of Homeland Security for years, we must all now be much more alert to the greatly increased threat of a cyber attack from Russia, North Korea or even China on 16 areas identified as critical infrastructure in the US, including the energy sector, which could realistically knock out access to the grid's supply of electricity in large parts of the country. Such actions would provoke a proportionate and deserving response.
These factors on their own, supply chain issues, enemy actions and the response, make it now so much more important for people to update heir plans to mitigate events that would seriously affect their daily lives in ways never seen in recent times.
For more information on this we recommend a read of
Politico's article published on 25 February 2022.