When the Lights Go Out

If you are completely dependent on mains electricity to run your house and have made absolutely no preparations for coping without it, a power cut can be a very difficult time. It's no fun to sit in the dark, without any entertainment, no way to cook, trying to stay warm and thinking about how the present sucks. But with a little preparations a power cut, even an extended one is nothing to fear.

The single greatest asset in a power cut is a solid fuel heating system. It will allow you to cook simple meals like soups and stews, to boil water and to space heat. A fireplace will do the job but any kind of stove is a lot better. If your house has no solid fuel option, think strongly about retro-fitting it, if you can. If an external metal fluepipe can be fitted to the house, this may make it possible to install a stove. Obviously always keep a supply of fuel in reserve for power cuts.

Candles are good for light, and produce about 80 watts of heat each. They are however expensive and are a serious fire risk, especially around children. For light the easiest, cheapest and more reliable option are wind-up LED camping lanterns. If you make sure to keep them charged you have a ready source of light once the power goes out. If you forget to keep them charged you have to do some work, but the work will warm you and you will have light. An LED head torch for everyone in the house would also be good. Very easy on power and puts the light right where you need it.

The ultimate accessory to get through a short power cut is a power pack, usually used by motorists for emergency power and compressor. They will supply a small amount of DC current. For household back up buy one with an inverter which will also produce the AC current used by household appliances. The more you spend the more powerful an inverter you get. But a power pack is a very small reserve and it’s best used for running small appliances like a coffee grinder or small TV. Do a lot of heavy work with it and you will have no power very quickly.

To get through a power cut in style requires more than meeting your physical needs, you must also boost morale. Keeps books and board games in stock. In many modern households PC, consoles and TV often mean entertainment is a solitary pursuit. In a power cut most of these entertainment systems are dead. Learn how to play a musical instrument or tell a good story. Have some of your favourite chemical stimulant in stock, in my case whiskey. It's amazing the way a good source of heat, a bowl of soup, a few shots of whiskey and a singsong can lift morale.

The last time we had a power cut it lasted about 3 hours. We got the backup lights going, threw more logs on the stove, cracked open a bottle of whiskey, got the guitars out and ended up telling the kids stories about their great grand parents. It was a great night and I still remember it fondly. In fact I was sorry when the power came back and the kids went back to their xboxs and TVs. There is a kind of magic telling stories in a dimly lit room.





Wind up Lamp

Head lamp

Power Pack