When Hurricane Charley hit us we were out of power for nearly 10 days. Meanwhile, the pool got green because we didn't have the capacity to keep the 2 hp pump motor going. Moreover, potable water was an issue because our 2 hp well pump posed a considerable load (the refrigerator was the primary load). Add to it, and quite naturally, it got very hot and uncomfortable due to the humidity, which lead to frayed tempers. Furthermore, we burned a lot of gasoline through the little Honda ES6500 genset and due to widespread power outages, just getting gasoline was a challenge for many (though we were well prepared by having 80 gallons on hand, I still ended up tapping the 30-gallon tank of my step van).
Anyway, hurricanes aren't as common an event as folks would suppose for us here in Central FL but they do happen. And when the power goes it can be for extended periods of time. However, you're correct, we wouldn't really need to power the truck, e.g. just the house (though come to think of it, sleeping in the truck would be a workable alternative to sweating in our regular bed - I hadn't thought this through well enough because that would definitely change things).
Regardless, it's moot because there doesn't seem to be a generator large enough to run the house, which will fit in the available space. Thus, at present it's looking like 6.5KW will be as large as I can easily get (or maybe as much as 8KW), but nothing like the 20KW I had hoped to purchase. Thus, I suspect when it comes down to it, my little Honda will continue to do the duty because I can buy a lot of gasoline for what a replacement diesel genset will set me back. Especially when I consider I only anticipate using the truck a half dozen times a year. Add to it, the Honda is really, really quiet.
Like I said, it was a nice thought experiment.
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