Power Outage

Being with out  power for a few hours is a big pain. Try being with out power for days even weeks. Here are some things that I want to be sure to pass on to you.

If you are lucky enough to only to be with out power for just a few hours, then there is not much to worry about, especially with food. Food safety reminders: If you were without power for over 4 hours the perishable items in your refrigerator need to be discarded. If you lost power for over 24 hours and your freezer was half full or over 48 hours with a full freezer, the contents need to be discarded, they are not safe for consumption. When in doubt, throw it out!

What do I do to prepare before a power outage: 

Be sure to have ice, either make ice and double bag it, and store in the freezer. make bigger ice chunks, as I would call them, with using bigger bowls, etc, double bag them and store them in the freezer. by making your own ice and having it on hand will cost less then having to buy bags at the store, if you can find ice at the store after an emergency. You can even freeze water bottles, for this also. just be sure to leave some room at the top of the bottle for the water to expand as is freezes.


Be sure to have coolers or ice chests in your home, be sure to keep them clean and ready to go! 

May want to have a food thermometer to check temps of food, not only when cooking everyday to to check the temps of foods to make sure they are cool enough! 

When the power goes out keep the refrigerator and freezer closed! Keep a list on the front of the door so you know what is in them, and even where located to you can get in and out of the fridge or freezer as fast as possible. Get everything out at once and replace everything back in at once.    


Food in the fridge should be used first, then the freezer, then your non perishables. This is common sense, but people do tend to forget this at times. 

If your power is out for 12-18 hours prepare the ice chests/coolers for the food. Place in the ice and "pack" the cooler! Find the coolest spot in the house and keep cooler there, even if it is your bathtub. 


Unplug all electronics. Be sure to turn off the AC or the heat if during winter. Keep one light on or even just a nightlight plugged in and on. Everything else should be turned off and unplugged! This will keep things from power surges that may occur. 

Personally I would encourage anyone to get the glow sticks, chem sticks, you know the sticks you buy and break, shake and they light up. Be sure to get the ones that can last for 12 hours or so. Green lights up very well, orange not so much. Be sure to get enough of these little buggers. Simply because they are safe to have around and use with children, pets, and even a house full of a lot of people. Not everyone thinks, esp those that have been drinking. I would encourage you  to have at least one per ROOM, for up to 1-2 weeks. yeah I know that is a lot, but have you ever tried to go to the bathroom in the dark, simply because everyone else has the flashlights. Or if you have small children, or just children in general, or older family members. It is too hard for them to go into a dark room, turn on and hold a flashlight. So yeah glow/chem sticks for each room. You can get the kids for fun the bracelets, or necklaces that glow. It will help calm them down, and distract them from the darkness that comes at night when there are no lights on anywhere! Especially when you try to put them down for bedtime.


We put one glow stick a 12 hour green one in the bathroom and not only did it light up the bathroom, but part of the hallway as well. We were able to shower by the light the glow stick put out. The ones I bought have plastic cord that comes with it, so we just hung it up on a hook in the bathroom.


Be sure to buy extra flashlights, and BATTERIES! When it is announced to prepare for a storm of any kind it is too late to find the size you are looking for! Batteries can last a good long while, buy early and always have extras on hand.  That means you need to know what size of batteries to have, how many each item takes! Some items take 3-4 batteries, some only 1-2. it all depends on what it is.