Can we each add our best tip or thing to remember?

[DewDropsAndCobWebs]

A prepping situation I have come across before is having tree come down that breaks a window or patio door.
We were lucky to have some of those dollar store clear plastic painting drop sheets on hand, and with some duct tape, rustled up a "for now" window.
Not fancy, but it kept the rain, and later mosquitoes, from getting in the house.
It wasn't a save your life thing, but a small prep that was really useful in the moment.

Maybe we could make a list of useful things to know/tricks to get by?
Not just what tims to buy, iyswim?

I always have a little sandwich bag with a couple of condiments, teabags, decaf coffee sticks and sugar sachets in case I get stuck somewhere e.g. at our regional (non UK) airport, or if the coffee station at work runs out. Not lifesaving by any means but definitely a prep I recommend to make life more enjoyable. By the same token, I generally keep a tiny pair of scissors in my handbag, they are immeasurably useful for all sorts (I take them out if flying though). A packet of scented wet wipes was very useful this morning when I awoke to find we had no running water and I couldn’t have a shower but needed to be fresh for work.

That if the water supply fails, loos can be flushed with rain water from a water butt.

Since my kids were young toddlers I’ve always kept a selection of shelf stable snacks in the insulated part of the centre console in my car. It’s saved me so many times! I tended to keep things that they like and I don’t, otherwise I’d be tempted to eat them.

Fixings! Always have duct tape, nails, screws, garden wire, string, cable ties, elastic bands, etc for repairs, temporary or otherwise.

manual tin opener, maybe two.

Hygiene products for water supply failure. Wet wipes, non rinse hand cleaner, etc.
Generally soap (not liquid), toothpaste, washing powder, washing up liquid, etc.
These disappear fast and disease spreads rapidly when water's off or rationed.

Rubbish bins with lids, for those times when collections are disrupted.
In the event of a prolonged power outage affecting sewage pumping, consider that you might need to bag up and bin human waste until disposal arrangements are in place. Massive sanitary and vermin implications, unless you have good lids!

We've all got candles, torches, stoves, etc but for safety, get some fire extinguishers, fire blankets, battery smoke alarms and battery carbon monoxide alarms. I bought some oil lamps and purchased these alongside.

Water stored in the freezer helps keep it cold if the power goes off.
Freeze a small cup of water and place a coin on top. This is an indicator to tell you if there has been a thaw and re freeze.

You can get huge water bladders to fill the bath with drinking water, if we get notice of supply interruption.

If there's a power failure as well, you can't flush human waste, so definitely make sure you've got bags you can use and seal. A tip, our water pumping station is about 12 miles away and water in the pipes ran out four hours later.

Apologies to those who’ve seen it a million times: clean empty two litre milk bottle, filled with water, head torch turned in so the light diffuses through water. Transportable and non scary

These are excellent!
Another from when I was young, is to save your wood ages, from fireplace/wood stove/burn barrel. They make a great deodorizer added onto of the outhouse heap , and also sprinkle over icy patches to get great traction.
We used to spread the ashes up and down our very steep long driveway in the winter.

Excuse my ignorance but I have never seen this before! What is its purpose?

what is scary?

The idea is that this provides a gentle, diffuse light that shines in all directions, whereas a torch tends to shine in only one direction, leaving lots of dark areas around the beam, which can be scary for kids.

Also, the milk bottle lanterns will light up a whole room, albeit dimly, so it can be used by more than one person, whereas a torch only really lights the area directly in front of the person holding it.

Ah thank you! After I asked I wondered if it was to create a lamp effect.

As a kid of the 70s I remember the power cuts being fun in the candle light. Not much fun for mum, obviously. The milk bottle lantern thing is one less thing to stress about- you can have them in kids’ rooms without worrying about candles

Speaking of kids, another tip would be to have puzzles/books/comics stashed that are new to them, something as a distraction or to keep busy while the days pass with no electricity

Two habits rather than things to buy. Write key numbers on paper and keep it somewhere everyone knows: 105 for power cuts, your water supplier, Floodline 0345 988 1188, school, neighbours and family, because none of us remembers numbers any more. And in a power cut, turn off anything that heats up, like the cooker, iron or hair straighteners, so it doesn't come back on unattended. Leave one lamp switched on so you can tell when the power returns.

Aldi are doing plug in nightlights that automatically comes on and can act as a torch when the power is off

I might have a look for these. My friend has a light sensor at the bottom of her stairs and it seems like a sensible idea. What does the box look like?

Lanterns can make your face look spooky as the direction of the light is different, can scare kids. Diffuse light does this less.

My tip.

Fill up the kettle every night so there is enough water for coffee if the water goes off.

I still occasionally mutter Bellini's name at the petrol station because of the top up the tank regularly. It's not my favourite job.

Ohhhh, water stored in freezer - that's a great one. Thanks!!!

Brand name is casa lux

https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/aldi-casalux-induction-night-light-4514847

Thankfully if there is a powercut we have a gas hob, many times it has saved the day 😂.