When it’s winter in snow country, we need to be prepared for a power outage. The power can go out for a number of reasons: ice or wind may take down power lines, or above-average power usage during extreme temperatures may affect how much power can be delivered to large numbers of homes. Or, your heating source may suddenly fail during a winter storm, leaving you cold, and your home unprotected from falling temperatures.
Here are some things you can do to protect yourself and your home from a power outage this winter.
Tips for Surviving a Winter Storm
1. Keep a winter storm survival kit, with a flashlight, batteries, first aid supplies and cash. Check and change batteries.
2. Plan for a way to recharge your phone or necessary battery-powered devices, such as a laptop. You may have to resort to using your vehicle or driving somewhere with power, but don’t run the vehicle in a garage even with the door open. Keep devices charged up in anticipation of storms.
3. Plan for how you can get out of a motorized garage door by finding the manual release.
4. Buy a good quality ice chest and purchase ice in advance of a storm, in case you need to keep food cold. You may be able to put an ice chest out of doors on the patio with perishables in it to keep it cold, depending on the temperature. You can also freeze plastic jugs of water for additional cold storage packs. .
5. Fill your vehicles’ gas tanks before the storm. Gas stations need electricity to power pumps.
6. Should evacuation to a shelter be needed, find out where the nearest one to you is located. If you have pets, find out if the shelter accepts them and plan for providing a crate or other enclosure.
7. If someone in your home relies on power-dependent devices, you may need to plan to evacuate, or to buy a backup generator.
To learn more about what to do in a power outage, contact Arpi’s Industries. We serve Calgary and the surrounding area.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Calgary, Alberta about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Guide.
