Imagine the power goes out, in the dead of winter, and you’re stuck at home with no heat, no electricity, and no real way to cook or refrigerate food. Sounds like a nightmare, right?

Well, it doesn’t have to be. There are other ways to heat your home without using electricity. And, believe it or not, preparation will be fairly simple.

When disaster strikes you don’t want to be without the important items, like: window sealants, blankets, batteries, bottles of water, canned goods, board games, and anything else that will keep you and your family safe and happy..

After that, then you can make a plan of attack:

  1. Use a wood stove or portable heater:Heat-your-home-Nelson's-Heating-and-Cooling If you don’t have one yet, it’s a good investment. Using both of these items at the same time may sound like a good idea, but you definitely will need to double check your ventilation. And, if you don’t have a carbon monoxide detector, you may want to look into that also.
  2. Designate a warm room: Don’t worry, when a friend made this suggestion, we jumped on it! The smallest room in your house, preferably with no windows, would be the warmest. However, if there are windows, cover them and the walls with some of your extra blankets and towels. This idea is easier than keeping the entire house warm in the winter.
  3. Pitch a tent or make a fort: We had the right idea as kids! Pitching tents, or forts, are a great way to create some insulated heat in a cold house.
  4. Heat a room for the low: If you forget everything else on this list, always remember to have candles handy. You never know when the power will go out, or the electric/gas stove won’t work and now you have to make a fire.

And, of course, once the electricity turns back on, you should schedule an appointment with your local HVAC company to make sure your unit is in proper operational order.