How to Keep Warm in a Winter Power Outage

When the power goes out in the winter and you don't have a back-up generator, you might have to "chill out" for a while. If you rely on electricity for your heat, be prepared to keep warm during a winter power outage for as long as a week. To help stave off illness and hypothermia, learn how to keep warm during a winter power outage with these tips.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Flashlights
• Electric lanterns
• Spare batteries
• Warm blankets
• Radios
• Warm clothing layers
• Emergency food

1. 
   A winter storm doesn't look so beautiful when the power goes out.

   Prepare ahead of time for the possibility of your power and heat going out. Store up a supply of flashlights, battery-operated electric lanterns, batteries, warm blankets, and radios, and keep them in a handy, easily accessible place. Buy food that doesn't need preparing and can be eaten straight out of the package.

2. At the first sign of the power outage, gather your supplies together. You want everything where you'll need it by the time it gets dark - especially flashlights. Shut the drapes and close the doors to unused rooms. Gather your home's inhabitants in one room to share the benefits of communal body heat.

3. Bundle up in layers, making sure your head, hands, and feet are covered too. Since heat rises, a hat is important in preventing heat loss through your head. Cover your mouth with a scarf to prevent frigid air entering your lungs.

4. Keep moving to keep warm during a winter power outage. Walk around the house, stand up, and do mild exercise to get your blood circulating through your body to warm you up.

5. Get friendly. Cuddle up to other warm bodies to share body heat. To keep warm in a cold home, stay under shared blankets and sleep with hats on.

6. Eat plenty of food and drink water during the power outage. Being cold makes you burn calories as your body increases its metabolism to keep warm. Replenish those calories to keep up your body's ability to warm itself.

7. If you have a gas water heater and hot water available, take warm baths, being sure to ventilate the bathroom. Do this only when absolutely necessary, as the heat lost from removing your clothes can be significant.

8. 
   Don't tough it out when somebody's health is on the line. Get to a heated shelter.

   Move to warm shelter elsewhere if the power outage becomes prolonged (more than a few days) and you remain without heat. If you cannot stay at the home of a relative, friend, or trusted acquaintance, check on local radio stations and in newspapers for alerts about public shelters.

Tips & Warnings

• The Internet is a powerful tool...until the power goes out. Print out this page now, and keep it with your emergency supplies.
• Keep a supply of extra gas for your car on hand so you are able to leave at a moment's notice.
• Never use electric generators inside the home.
• Never try to keep warm by running your car inside a garage.
• Never try to keep warm by turning on a gas oven and opening the door.
• Never burn charcoal inside your home.
• In fact, make it a rule never to use any equipment that runs on propane (natural gas), kerosene, gasoline, or any fuel that burns, inside an enclosed area.
• If you do use a generator OUTSIDE the home, make sure it's not releasing exhaust near an open vent or window. Familiarize yourself with safe generator use beforehand.
• Candles are a serious fire hazard, so use with caution. Never leave a candle burning in an unoccupied room. Never leave kids or nonambulatory people alone in a room with a candle burning.
• Avoid "warming yourself" with alcohol during an emergency; alcohol will dull your alertness.
• If kids, elderly people, or anybody physically disabled or otherwise of vulnerable health are staying in your home and the power outage looks to be a long one, get them to heated shelter before their health suffers.
• At any signs of frostbite or hypothermia, get medical attention immediately. See the Resources section for more information.

Resources

• FEMA's Winter Storms Page
• CDC page on what to do when the power goes out
• Make a Survival Preparedness Checklist

[yessharon]

on 12/22/2008 Great tips on preparing for the power outages. Thanks for sharing.

[woodsusa]

on 12/19/2008 Great advice for handling an outage...it seems like it only happens when you are not prepared...I am going to take your advice on this one!

[MotherDove]

on 12/15/2008 These are excellent tips for an emergency as well as for beating rising heating costs. A very warm thank-you for this one!

[Gardengates]

on 12/15/2008 Excellent advice on handling a power outage. I sure am glad I live in a warm climate!