Dave -
Regarding your home refrig, I think you are (and can be) in better shape than you think.
First, the defrost heater and the compressor don't run at the same time. If you dig up a schematic, you'll find that the defrost cycle and the compressor are mutually exclusive. The defrost cycle is on a timer, and while there isn't a real easy way to defeat it without access to the timer, the defrost cycle doesn't run very often - maybe 15 minutes a day?
Second, you can disable the ice maker by simply raising the feeler bail in the ice bucket.
Third, you can unscrew the light bulbs. Power failures are tough times, and the refrig is dark inside, but I think you're up to dealing with it.
This leaves you with the compressor, operating intermittently at 175 watts for most of the time, and an occasional burst of defrost heater.
It has been my experience that if you fire up the generator once every four hours, and plug the refrig into it for half an hour, it will stay perfectly cold. Then in the down times, you can carry your genny over to the neighbor's house, give their refrig a shot of juice - and be a HERO, to whom they owe an everlasting debt!
Bill
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