Are You Prepared for a Power Outage?

by | Oct 17, 2019 | (Sub)Urban Homesteading, Preparedness

Note: The below references to companies are Winding Pathways’ own experiences with quality products.

What Are Common Causes of Power Outages?

Usually, people lose electric power because of a tornado, hurricane, blizzard, or a windstorm that blows down trees. We were surprised that Pacific Gas and Electric planned a deliberate outage to prevent sparks from igniting a forest fire like the terrible one that destroyed the town of Paradise. CA, last year.

Interviews with impacted residents on the national news made us realize how unprepared many people are for the loss of electricity. Californians flocked to gas stations and grocery stores to stock up on fuel and food.

Preparation is Best

Lantern

This powerful lantern runs several hours on the battery.

Humans are addicted to the flow of electrons we call electricity.  Winding Pathways encourages everyone to prepare for times when power is not there. Several previous blogs detail how families can prepare to ride out an outage in relative comfort

Preparation is neither hard nor expensive. Check our past blogs for detail but here’s the short list of simple items to keep on hand in case the power goes off for a few days:

Basic Items to Consider

Food:   A few days’ worth of non-perishable food beats not eating. Dehydrated meals keep nearly forever and canned goods also have a high storage life. When a blizzard approaches people flock to grocery stores to buy milk and bread. Neither is needed. And, milk will spoil if not kept cold. Keep powdered milk and crackers on hand just in case.

Light:   Flashlights help people find their way around on dark nights, but they’re not too useful when lots of light is needed for reading or preparing a meal. Modern LED lanterns are ideal for general lighting. Our Milwaukee lamp was made for construction workers but throws out plenty of light and runs all night on one rechargeable battery.  We keep a few batteries always charged. Many brands of lanterns are on the market. We recommend that people keep one in the closet to help on dark nights.

Fuel and backup heat:   Rather than waiting in line at a gas station when power might go out, simply keep some gas in storage in the garage. Be sure to add a gas stabilizer to it.  We rotate our gas in spring and fall by simply pouring the old gas into the car’s tank and then filling the can with fresh gas. We keep ten gallons in storage. Anyone living in a cold climate needs to have a backup plan in case the power goes off. Keeping pipes from freezing is important.  See our earlier blogs for tips.

Water:   Usually municipal water still flows even if the power goes off but it’s always a good idea to keep several gallons of clean water in storage just in case.

Readers can also go to the American Red Cross and ready.gov  for excellent information on preparedness kits.

Modern people rely heavily on electricity but sometimes we have to make do without it.

Important items to have along.

Solar chargers help keep people connected when the power goes out.

Simple preparation makes waiting out an outage comfortable and easy.

Save Baby Chicks From Certain Death

by | Mar 29, 2017 | Chickens, Preparedness

Hand Warmers

Keep hand warmers nearby in case of power outage.

We weren’t worried when a 37-degree north wind took to blowing on Saturday, March 25th.  Our chicks were safe inside the barn brooder.  Then, our electric power went out.   Normally that wouldn’t be a problem. Our wood stove keeps the house warm without electricity and we have camp stove for cooking. And the adult chickens do well in most weather.

However, the sudden unexpected loss of electricity threatened our 50 baby chicks living in a plywood brooder under heat lamps out in the barn. Electric heat lamps normally keep them snugly warm in the otherwise cold barn.

We heard about the power failure while shopping. It took a half hour to get home and we found the cold chicks huddled together in a vain attempt to keep warm. We had no idea how long the power would be off so immediately put our back up plan in place. Here’s what we did:

  • Filled two plastic jugs with hot water and placed them near the chicks. The babies immediately snuggled up to the warm bottles.
  • Tore the plastic covering off six chemical hand warmers to activate them. These are sold to farmers, carpenters, and hunters to keep their pockets warm during winter outings. They get very warm but not hot. We put them under the chicks.

The milk jugs and hand warmers didn’t warm the entire brooder, but they did keep the chicks warm enough to survive three hours until the power came back on.

Huddled in corner

Chicks huddle together when cold.

Anyone brooding baby chicks should have a back-up plan to keep their peeping friends warm in case the electricity goes out. A couple of milk jugs and a few hand warmers can prevent a disaster.

When the Power Goes Out!

by | Dec 29, 2015 | Preparedness

Lighting a lamp

Battery operated lamps (left) are the safest to use indoors in the aftermath of storms. Be cautious if using propane lamps danger of fire and carbon monoxide poisoning.

On the evening of December 28, 2015 national news reported that thousands of people in the South are without power due to tornadoes that ripped through the region. The situation wasn’t much better in the Midwest where a howling blizzard also cut off electricity.

Many people are unprepared to ride out a week or ten days without electricity. Gathering a few emergency supplies and equipment can make enduring a storm much more comfortable. Every home should have them. While a preparedness kit  may not make it in a home destroyed by tornadoes, neighbors sharing their kits could be the difference between danger and safety.

Click on the PREPAREDNESS tab on this website to learn how to manage a power outage in relative comfort.