NFFU have adopted a simple yet effective approach, making appeals through social media and posting notices in prominent public places. The response has been overwhelmingly generous. Used generators soon began arriving, many of them having sat unused in sheds for decades.

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Bringing them back to life has not always been straightforward. Carburettors and fuel tanks are often clogged with stale fuel, while parts can be obsolete and difficult to source. Each machine presents its own unique challenges.

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Using life-learned skills, the team carefully dismantles, cleans and rebuilds the generators,both the engine and the actual alternator / generator. When they finally fire up, thorough safety checks follow. Units are inspected to ensure they do not leak fuel, switch off correctly and deliver the proper power output. Power leads with the correct plug and socket arrangements are made up before dispatch to EU standards. Fuel is drained again for safe transport.

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Every generator is logged and its destination recorded

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Generators form the majority of this team's work, but they are far from the only items restored. Over the past four years the team has also repaired hospital beds, electric wheelchairs, mobility scooters and even an ancient fire pump. So old that its manufacturer no longer held spare parts, it was successfully reconstructed over seven months by Stuart, and it will soon head off to a firefighting unit in Ukraine.

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Over the past four years, Stuart, Brian, Paul, Peter, Andy and CoOrdinator Stephen along with others have all been involved in this effort. Stephen reports that much of the hands-on generator work today is carried out by Stuart, much of the electrical work by Peter.

 

Donations of used generators continue to arrive, but more help is still needed. Volunteers with small-engine knowledge and a little spare time would make a real difference.