Power outage essentials
A winter outage is mostly an inconvenience if a few inexpensive things are ready before the storm. This list is ordered by what you miss first, says what to look for rather than naming a model, and uses this site's calculator for the bigger question of what a power station would keep running.
In the UK? See the power cut edition.
For a particular situation
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Light
The first thing you miss, and the cheapest to solve.
Plug-in power failure lights
They sit in an outlet as a night light, stay charged, and switch on by themselves the moment the power goes out.
Look for: A removable battery that doubles as a flashlight, so you can carry one to the breaker panel.
Headlamp
Both hands free for the stairs, the breaker panel and the pets.
Look for: USB-C charging or common AA batteries, and a red-light mode.
Phones and updates
Your phone is how you check the outage map, get alerts and reach people.
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.
NOAA weather radio
Broadcasts National Weather Service alerts directly, with no cell signal or phone battery needed.
Look for: The NOAA weather band with alert function; a hand crank or solar panel is a bonus, not a substitute for batteries.
Mini UPS for the router
If your home phone or internet runs through the router, it stops when the power does. A small battery box keeps the router, and any phone plugged into it, working through a short outage.
Look for: DC outputs that match the voltage printed on your router's power adapter (usually 12 V), enough of them for the modem too, and a capacity in watt-hours.
A 20,000 mAh bank holds about 74 Wh. Roughly two-thirds of that reaches the phone after conversion losses, which is about 3 full charges of a typical 15 Wh phone battery. That is a rule of thumb, not a test: bigger phones get fewer.
A power bank only runs the internet router through a USB-to-12 V cable, and only if the bank supports it. A mini UPS made for routers is simpler, and a power station runs it for a long time: see below. The power bank page has the numbers for phones, lanterns, USB heated throws and routers, and the router guide explains why the home phone matters.
Warmth
Heat the person, not the house.
Cold-weather sleeping bags
A sleeping bag rated below the night-time temperature keeps a person warm with no power at all.
Look for: A temperature rating, not just "warm"; one per person.
Hand and body warmers
Air-activated packs give hours of heat for pennies, and a pocketful helps children and older relatives.
Look for: Long-duration packs; check the expiry date on bulk boxes.
More ideas, and what a battery can and cannot heat, in how to keep warm in a power cut.
Pipes and water
A long outage in a freeze can burst pipes, and burst pipes cost far more than the outage.
Foam pipe insulation and faucet covers
Cheap insulation on pipes in crawl spaces, garages and outside walls, and a cover on each outdoor faucet, buys hours before anything freezes.
Look for: Sleeves sized to your pipe diameter; covers that seal around the spigot.
Food
Keep the refrigerator and freezer closed. Ready.gov says a closed refrigerator keeps food cold for about four hours.
Refrigerator and freezer thermometers
The only way to know whether food stayed cold enough, rather than guessing from the clock.
Look for: One per appliance, readable without holding the door open.
A cooler
Move what you need for the day into a cooler with ice so the refrigerator stays shut.
Look for: Whatever holds a day of food; add ice before the storm, not after.
How long food lasts, and when to throw it away, is in how long a freezer stays frozen in a power cut.
Safety
Winter outages kill people through carbon monoxide from generators, grills and heaters used indoors.
Battery carbon monoxide detector
The CDC advises a battery-powered or battery-backup carbon monoxide detector whenever a generator is running, and one on every level of the home.
Look for: UL 2034 listing and a sealed long-life battery.
When you need more: a power station
Everything above keeps you comfortable. A portable power station keeps things running: the router, the refrigerator, an electric blanket and, if it is wired for it and the station can start its blower, the gas furnace. This is what a 1,056 Wh Anker SOLIX C1000 manages for each load on its own, modelled from the same catalogue as the rest of the site.
| Load | Alone, from full |
|---|---|
| Wi-Fi router | 36 h 33 min |
| Phone charging | 2 days 13 h |
| Fridge-freezer (full size) | 12 h 5 min |
| Gas furnace (blower and controls) | 2 h 28 min |
| Electric blanket | 23 h 59 min |
Running several together shares the same battery. Size a station for your own loads with the calculator, compare the outage picks in the buying guide, and read the furnace guide before counting on heating.
Checklist to print
- Power failure lights in the hallway, stairs and kitchen
- A headlamp by each bed and one by the breaker panel
- Lantern and spare batteries in one labeled box
- Power bank charged, and a cable for every phone in the house
- NOAA weather radio with fresh batteries
- Sleeping bags and hand warmers for everyone
- Pipes insulated and outdoor faucets covered
- A gallon of water per person per day, for several days
- Thermometers in the refrigerator and freezer, and a cooler
- A working carbon monoxide detector on every level, tested
- If you have a power station: charged, and you know what it can run
Print this page or save it for offline use: the site keeps working without a connection once you have visited it.
If you have solar or a home battery
Most solar panels switch off in a power outage, even in bright sun: here is why, and what keeps working. A home battery only helps if it was installed with backup; the home battery calculator shows how long it keeps the essentials going.
Before a winter storm
- Charge everything: phones, power bank, power station, headlamps.
- Fill water containers and turn the refrigerator and freezer to their coldest settings.
- Open cabinet doors under sinks on outside walls, and know where the main water shutoff is.
- If you own a generator, plan where it will sit: outdoors, more than 20 feet from windows, doors and vents, as the CDC advises. Never in a garage.
- Check on neighbors who rely on powered medical equipment or would struggle in the cold.
The furnace guide explains what it takes to keep the heat on, and the cold-weather guide explains why a station holds less in a cold garage.
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