I bought a 5600 from Sears for $749 during Frances. Lowes and Home Depot had 5500s for about $780, but never any in stock. During Frances our DSL stayed up, but we had no phones or cell service. I got Vonage before Jeanne, but then our DSL was out.
I think our neighbor had an 1100 that he picked up pretty cheaply that ran his fridge and a small TV.
After Jeanne at night before the power was restored I kept thinking... it is costing me $2/hour to run these two fans. haha
I do have to do a bit of electrical work very soon so that I don't have to run suicide plugs.
With the 5600, I could run two computers, laptop, router, switch, home theater (without the subwoofer), fridge, microwave, ceiling fans, two portable fans that I bought at Walmart........ and the hot water heater.
We had lighting throughout the house and the ceiling fans worked fine. I did eventually go on a kick and replace most of the overhead indoor floods with compact fluorescents and replaced most of the lights in the vanity. I think I figured I was saving $5/month for the ones in the living room. Not saving much on the bathroom lights since they are rarely on anyhow.