How to prepare for a power outage (blackout) at home

Prepare for a power outage with food that needs no cooking, water, charged power banks, flashlights, a battery or crank radio and some cash. Poland's government safety guide suggests home supplies for at least three days; BBK and Ready.gov add advice on warmth and safe habits.

Why it is worth preparing

Ready.gov describes a power outage as electrical power going out unexpectedly. Germany's BBK says that a large-scale, long-lasting outage is unlikely but cannot be ruled out, and names extreme weather, errors during construction work and cyberattacks as possible causes.

Simple preparations cost little and help whether an outage lasts an evening or longer.

What to have ready at home

Food and water: Poland's official government safety guide (gov.pl, Poradnik bezpieczeństwa) recommends ready-to-eat food such as canned food, rusks and bars, and water at a minimum of 3 litres per person per day. It says home supplies should cover at least 3 days.

Power and information: the same guide advises charging power banks and switching your phone to battery-saving mode. It suggests flashlights with spare batteries and a battery or hand-crank radio. BBK also advises a battery or crank radio, so you can follow official announcements during a long outage.

Cash: the gov.pl guide suggests keeping some cash in various denominations.

Staying warm during an outage

BBK says warm clothing and blankets can replace heating for a while. It suggests choosing one room to stay in and keeping its doors closed so heat does not escape, while still ventilating regularly. The gov.pl guide likewise advises gathering household members in one room.

The gov.pl guide advises opening the fridge and freezer as little as possible and disconnecting electrical devices from the power supply. Ready.gov says a closed refrigerator keeps food cold for about four hours and a full freezer for about 48 hours.

Heating and cooking safely

Ready.gov says never to use a gas stove or oven to heat your home, because it raises the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. It says generators, camp stoves and charcoal grills belong outdoors, at least 20 feet (about 6 metres) from windows. It also recommends working carbon monoxide detectors on every level of the home.

If you want an alternative heat source, BBK advises getting advice from professionals. For gas-powered heaters it stresses checking that safety features such as oxygen-depletion and ignition safeguards are present, and it says a carbon monoxide detector adds safety.

Get your household's full 72-hour plan

Ready72h turns official guidance from Sweden (MSB), Germany (BBK) and Poland (RCB) into a calm, practical plan: a complete 72-hour supply checklist, a family communication plan for when phones go down, and a “15 minutes to leave the house” go-bag list. Apartment and house versions, printable PDF plus an offline app that tracks your progress.

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FAQ

How many days of supplies should I plan for?

The Polish government safety guide (gov.pl) says home supplies should cover at least 3 days. Start with what you can manage and build up gradually.

Why keep cash for a power outage?

The gov.pl safety guide recommends keeping some cash in various denominations as part of your outage preparations.

Is it safe to heat my home with a gas stove or run a generator indoors?

No. Ready.gov says not to use a gas stove or oven to heat your home because of carbon monoxide poisoning risk, and to use generators only outdoors and away from windows.