Surviving a power outage in Subzero weather
Filed under
Urban
Your going about your everyday life and a nasty winter storm hits. Your power goes out and your snowed in without a chance of getting out. You quickly realize your house will soon fall below freezing.
What can you do to stay warm?
Well hopefully you prepared for this kind of problem in advanced, but lets look at some options that you might have.
- Wood Stove – If you don’t have one, get one! You can pick up a cheap used wood stove that will help you stay warm in an emergency.
- Create a Warm Room – Wall off a Small Room, Find the smallest room in your house, and wall it off with thick heavy blankets. It is easier to heat or keep heat in this small area than it is to heat a large house. (even a few candles can add warmth to a small room.)
- Backpackers stove – A Small backpackers stove can be used to heat water. The hot water can be put in water bottles and shoved into a sleeping bag to keep you warm.
- Put on your winter gear – Hats, gloves, and coats. It may be uncomfortable to wear when your trying to sleep, but your trying to stay warm, not comfortable. A winter hat is a must, you lose a majority of your heat from your head.
- Tent - In you small room you can also set up a small tent to sleep in. It will capture your body heat and help you to stay warm at night.
- Dress in Layers, and make sure you stay dry. If you start to sweat remove a layer at a time.
- Candles - A couple of good candles in a small bathroom sized room can keep it warm enough to survive. I have heard of people using large homemade candles in this type of situation.
- EAT - Eating can actually keep you warm, it can be especially important right before bed. If you eat before going to bed, the energy your body uses to digest your food can keep you warm at night.
- Make a Fort – Remember making forts when you were a kid? Well those fort making skills are going to come in handy. Making a blanket fort can keep you warm, and can help you get through until the power comes back on.
Prepare before it Happens: Stock up on these items and you will be well prepared for a winter power outage.
- Vogelzang BX42E Cast Iron Deluxe Boxwood Stove
- NuWick 120 Hour Canned Candle for Emergency Cooking, Heating
- Coleman Hot Water-On-Demand Portable Water Heater
- Heatmax Hand & Body Warmer (40 Count)
- Body Warmer, Hand Warmer, Emergency Heat
- Alaskan Stove
- Marmot CWM EQ -40 Degree Sleeping Bag
- Lippi Selk’ Bag 2
- UCO Original Candle Lantern
- Coleman SportCat Perfectemp Catalytic Propane Heater with Instastart Technology
- Vogelzang Barrel Stove Kit, Model# BK100E
Your site is great, but please stop spreading the myth that humans lose the most heat through their heads. This is based on a flawed military study that dressed men in full winter suits *without* hats, then measured where they lost the most heat. The results weren’t surprising, but have been misused ever since. More recent research shows that we lose heat equally over our bodies. While wearing a hat is important, it is not the magic trick people like to pretend it is.
Here is one source. You can find a million others through Google. http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2008/dec/17/medicalresearch-humanbehaviour
While heat loss may be equally distributed across the body, we are most often wearing clothes. Often, the ONLY uncovered places on our body (in semi-cold weather) are our hands and heads. Therefore, MOST of the time, MOST of us are losing MOST of our heat through our heads.
Also, the body likes to keep the vital organs and brain warm (because we can’t live without them.) Therefore, by keeping your head warm yourself (with a hat), you’re allowing the body to try to keep other parts warm.
Are my conclusions scientific? No.
Are they common sense? Yes.
Personally, I can run in 35 F degree weather in shorts and a long sleeve jacket with a hat and gloves. But without a hat I would need to wear pants and I would most likely still be a bit cold.