Storm power cut checklist
Most big power cuts in Britain come with named storms, when trees bring down overhead lines and repairs can take days in rural areas. This list is what to have ready before the Met Office warning turns amber, ordered by what you miss first, and says what to look for rather than naming a model.
Know this first
Why storms are different
In a storm the cut can last a lot longer than the usual hour or two: network operators have to clear fallen trees and make lines safe before they can repair them, and remote places come last. Plan for a night, and for longer if you are rural.
The phone may go with the power
Most homes are moving to digital landlines, which work through the broadband router. When the power goes, so does the router, and so does the home phone unless it has battery backup. Keep a charged mobile, and read will your phone and internet work in a power cut.
Food
The Food Standards Agency figures: about 48 hours for a full freezer and 24 for a half-full one if the door stays shut, and about four hours for a fridge. A fridge is fine while it stays below 8 °C, so a thermometer tells you more than the clock. More in how long a freezer stays frozen.
Who to tell
If someone at home uses powered medical equipment, is disabled or is over state pension age, join the free Priority Services Register before the storm. Network operators contact people on it in a power cut and can prioritise help.
Light
The first thing you miss, and the cheapest to solve.
Plug-in power failure lights
They live in a socket as a night light, charge themselves, and switch on the moment the mains goes off, so you are never hunting for a torch in the dark.
Look for: A built-in battery you can pull out and carry as a torch, and a UK three-pin plug if you are in the UK.
Head torch
Both hands free for the fuse box, the stairs and the kettle you cannot use.
Look for: USB-C charging or common AA batteries, and a red-light mode that does not dazzle everyone else.
Phones and news
Your phone is how you call 105 and check the operator's map.
Power bank, 20,000 mAh
Keeps a phone going for days if you use it sparingly.
Look for: Capacity in watt-hours as well as mAh (about 74 Wh for 20,000 mAh), USB-C in and out, and keep it charged.
Battery or wind-up radio
Local radio carries outage and weather updates without using your phone battery.
Look for: DAB and FM in the UK; a NOAA weather band in the US. A hand crank or solar panel is a bonus, not a substitute for batteries.
Mini UPS for the router
Home phones now run through the broadband router, so when it goes off in a power cut the landline goes with it. A small battery box keeps the router, and the phone plugged into it, working.
Look for: DC outputs that match the voltage printed on your router's power adapter (usually 12 V), enough of them for the fibre box too if you have one, and a capacity in watt-hours.
Warmth and hot drinks
Fill the flask before the storm arrives, not after.
Vacuum flask
Filled from the kettle before the storm, it gives hot drinks and hot water bottles for most of a day without power.
Look for: A litre or more, stainless steel, and a stated heat retention in hours.
Hot water bottle and a vacuum flask
Boil water while you still can, keep it hot in a flask, and refill the bottle through the night.
Look for: A bottle made to BS 1970 in the UK, and a flask of a litre or more.
Fleece blankets or sleeping bags
Layers and a warm bed do more than any heater a battery can run.
Look for: Whatever you would take camping; a sleeping bag rated for the season is warmer than a duvet.
Food
Keep the fridge and freezer shut.
Fridge and freezer thermometers
The only way to know whether the food stayed cold enough, rather than guessing from the clock.
Look for: One for each appliance, readable without opening the door for long.
Safety
Storms bring camping stoves, candles and heaters indoors, and injuries.
Battery carbon monoxide alarm
Anything burning fuel indoors, a boiler relit after an outage included, can produce carbon monoxide you cannot see or smell.
Look for: A sealed long-life battery and EN 50291 certification in the UK (UL 2034 in the US).
First aid kit
Storms bring cuts, burns and sprains at the moment help is slowest to arrive.
Look for: A contents list, and a check on the expiry dates of anything inside it once a year.
What a power station keeps running
The kit above keeps people comfortable. A portable power station keeps things running. This is what a 1,056 Wh Anker SOLIX C1000 manages for each load on its own, from full.
| Load | Alone, from full |
|---|---|
| Wi-Fi router | 36 h 33 min |
| Fridge-freezer (full size) | 14 h 29 min |
| Gas combi boiler (its electrics) | 12 h 23 min |
| Electric blanket | 23 h 59 min |
| Phone charging | 2 days 13 h |
Running several together shares the same battery. Whether a boiler can run from a station at all depends on how it is wired: see the boiler guide. Compare stations in the buying guide.
Checklist to print
- Power failure lights in the hall, landing and kitchen
- A head torch by each bed
- Power bank charged, and a mobile phone charged
- Battery or wind-up radio
- Flask filled with boiling water, and hot water bottles
- Blankets or sleeping bags for everyone
- Thermometers in the fridge and freezer
- Carbon monoxide alarm, tested
- The number 105 written down
- Garden furniture and bins tied down or brought in
When the Met Office warning goes amber
- Charge everything: phones, power banks, head torches, and a power station if you have one.
- Fill the flask and a couple of hot water bottles if the cut is likely to be long.
- Turn the fridge and freezer down a notch, and fill gaps in the freezer with bottles of water.
- Check on neighbours who are older, unwell, or rely on powered equipment.
- If you use a camping stove or gas heater, use it only as the maker says, with ventilation and a carbon monoxide alarm.
Sources
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