When the Lights Go Out: Simple Solutions to Stay Warm This Winter During a Power Outage

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With the summer quickly coming to an end, you may be looking forward to cooler temperatures of fall and winter. Unfortunately, the colder months can bring wintry precipitation, which may lead to power outages and the loss of your home's main source of heat. Heating your home without power is not only stressful and costly, but it can become uncomfortable for you and your family. Using these tips, you can heat your home and keep your family comfortable after the power goes out.

Use the Fireplace

You may mount a television above it and hang your stockings on its mantle around Christmas, but your fireplace is not just for decoration. An estimated 60 percent of new homes offer a fireplace because they offer more than just appeal to your home.

Gas logs are great options for your fireplace because they can quickly warm your house, but they require electricity to ignite and blow heated air into your home. However, if your logs have a battery backup, you can use them to heat your home during a power outage.

If your home has a traditional, wood-burning fireplace, ensure you have a stash of cut logs ready for the winter season. Store the logs in a cool, dry area to make sure they do not become damp.

Create a Warm Room

While surprising to hear, you can create a warm room inside your home without your traditional heating system. When the power goes out during a winter storm, consider creating a "warm room" for your family.

Since smaller rooms can hold in more heat compared to larger, open room of your home, you will need to choose a small bedroom or living room for your family's warm room. Your new warm room will help your family stay warm and comfortable without heat while the power is out.

Gather blankets and thick towels and hang on the walls of your warm room. Windows and doors lose 25 percent of heat, so cover them with blankets and towels to trap in more heat. Line the floors with additional blankets, towels, and sleeping bags, as well.

Build a Heater

Heating your home without electricity may seem impossible, but you can build an effective heater that does not require power using a few simple supplies.

To create a heater that will warm a small space of your home, complete the following steps:

1. For best results, select a small room of your house for your DIY heater. Your family's small "warm room" is a great location for this space heater.
2. Choose a space in the small room for your heater. It will need to rest on a flat, level surface.
3. Use a metal loaf or cake plan. Place on the flat surface.
4. Add a few unscented votive or tea light candles to the middle of the pan.
5. Arrange a brick on each side of the pan, but be sure the brick is parallel to the long sides of the pan.
6. Place a metal cooling rack directly on top of the pan and bricks.
7. Arrange a clay planter pot on the cooling rack. Be sure the pot's opening faces down and is directly over the candles inside the pan.
8. The bottom of each clay pot has a hole for drainage. Locate the hole, which should be facing upwards, and cover it using a nickel.
9. Place a larger clay pot over top of the first pot.
10. Slide the metal loaf or cake pan out and light the candles. Slide back under the pots.

The combination of the candles, metal pan, and clay pots will create heat that radiates through a small space. When you lack power to heat your home, this DIY heater is a great alternative for your family.

Staying warm inside your house without electricity may seem difficult. However, with a bit of effort and creativity, you and your family can stay warm this winter after the power goes out. For more assistance, contact companies like Avery Heating & Air Conditioning.

26 August 2015