We just survived a 2 and a half day power outage. We THOUGHT we were prepared, but we were really about 75% prepared is what we found out. We have just PCS'ed, this is a military move to a new home location. They do not move any flammable which means they did not move our propane or gas. The only lantern we had in working order was my emergency lantern that I keep in my car, which is battery powered
and we have two emergency radios with the crank handles (eton brand) which have lights on them and will run if you turn the crank enough.
Thank goodness I have candles, that is what got us through the first night.
The power went out in the evening and I had already cooked dinner so I did not have to worry about dinner that night. We left the freezer and fridge shut hoping the power would come on soon, and it did NOT! So in the morning we emptied the fridge and freezer into 5 gallon buckets with tight fitting lids and put them out in the snow. This worked great! The rest of the day was an adventure.
First off you need cash on hand. When power is out there are no ATM's and no point of sale terminals. The small propane tanks go fast so having propane on hand is a must and having an adaptor to run your camp stove before an emergency is a MUST. The adaptors go really fast after the small propane tanks are gone. We solved that by purchasing a Camp Chef that runs directly from a big 20lb propane tank.
This camp chef explorer is awesome for canning outside to keep humidity down in the house from boiling.
The one thing we had the hardest time with was heating the house. We got a Coleman Blackcat heater.
Unfortunately we could not find the adaptor to run this off a large propane tank. We are working on that for our next emergency. This time we used sleeping bags and we all slept in one room to keep the warmth from our bodies. We were inside a dry house so it was not as bad as being in the weather but running a heater would of been really nice. This one says indoor and outdoor use but I am sure that you have to vent for propane use in the house. So read instructions for burning propane and other fuels in your house!!!
and we have two emergency radios with the crank handles (eton brand) which have lights on them and will run if you turn the crank enough.
Thank goodness I have candles, that is what got us through the first night.
The power went out in the evening and I had already cooked dinner so I did not have to worry about dinner that night. We left the freezer and fridge shut hoping the power would come on soon, and it did NOT! So in the morning we emptied the fridge and freezer into 5 gallon buckets with tight fitting lids and put them out in the snow. This worked great! The rest of the day was an adventure.
First off you need cash on hand. When power is out there are no ATM's and no point of sale terminals. The small propane tanks go fast so having propane on hand is a must and having an adaptor to run your camp stove before an emergency is a MUST. The adaptors go really fast after the small propane tanks are gone. We solved that by purchasing a Camp Chef that runs directly from a big 20lb propane tank.
This camp chef explorer is awesome for canning outside to keep humidity down in the house from boiling.
The one thing we had the hardest time with was heating the house. We got a Coleman Blackcat heater.
Unfortunately we could not find the adaptor to run this off a large propane tank. We are working on that for our next emergency. This time we used sleeping bags and we all slept in one room to keep the warmth from our bodies. We were inside a dry house so it was not as bad as being in the weather but running a heater would of been really nice. This one says indoor and outdoor use but I am sure that you have to vent for propane use in the house. So read instructions for burning propane and other fuels in your house!!!
Lee Valley has a hand crank/solar radio that I've been eying for ages. But first I need a generator for my incubators.
ReplyDeleteYes I would say an generator is a good thing to have. Unfortunately we have not investing in a house size one (or any one) for that matter. We were thinking to big... just about whole house. I think that a generator that could power a space heater and a lamp would at least be something. Or in your case an incubator.
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