A small household outage checklist
A useful outage plan is something your household can follow when the lights are already off.
Before an outage
Choose a place for charged lights, phone cables, and your printed device plan. Follow battery maintenance instructions. Keep provider contact details and an alternate communication method accessible. Identify health-related equipment that needs a dedicated plan with its supplier or care team; this household calculator is not a medical backup assessment.
When power is interrupted
Use your utility’s official outage information and follow local emergency instructions. Start the essential-device schedule you tested in advance. Keep refrigerator doors closed as much as possible and use appliance thermometers. Follow FoodSafety.gov guidance to decide which food can be kept; do not use the calculator’s runtime as a substitute.
Keep fuel-burning equipment outside
The CDC says portable generators belong outdoors, more than 20 feet from windows, doors, and vents. Never run one in a home or garage, even with doors open. Use battery-backed carbon monoxide detection. Do not connect a power source to household wiring or a wall outlet; permanent backup arrangements require appropriately designed equipment and a qualified professional.
After power returns
Check equipment and food according to manufacturer and official guidance. Recharge batteries using their instructions, and note what your plan missed. Replace the planner’s assumptions with actual observed usage where possible. Keep the revised plan with the equipment so the next outage takes less improvisation.
Sources & further reading
Numerical examples and default device values are illustrative unless explicitly described as a measurement. Consult the manuals for your own equipment.
Make it a plan for your home.
Choose your devices and edit the assumptions.
Open the backup planner