The Prepping Thread - A Newer Beginning ;)

LadOnTheHill

We've been told that our electricity will be turned off temporarily on Monday, due to works on the mains cables. Rather than seeing it as a pain in the bum, we're using it as an opportunity to test our preparedness and see which of our systems are affected,  which aren't, and which fall down flat.

We have thermometers in the freezers/fridges, and while part of me wants to turn the boost on beforehand, I'd rather keep an eye on the temps and see how much of an effect a power cut is likely to have. They're all full already, either with food or water blocks, so they should be fine.

Heating is going to be interesting - we have gas central heating but with no mains electricity to run the boiler controls or the pump, it's not going to be working. We do have butane heaters that we can use if it gets cold, but I'd rather save the gas and see how we get on. Might be time to break out the furry onesies.

Cooking is going to be taken care of by the gas hob and a lighter to light it with. It does limit what we can cook, but we have plenty of tinned stuff and canned meals to keep us going.

Thankfully, the power cut will be during the day, so there's no need for the lamps or candles, but entertainment will have to be laptops/phones if necessary. I do wonder how or if the telephone network will be affected when we're all moved to the new Internet phone system. From what I understand, they're on a different system, so hopefully they will keep working. We could get outside during the day, too, rather than staying indoors.

The "power cut" we had a couple of months ago was useful to see where we needed to make changes. Hopefully this will be too.

MrsCD

Do you know how long your power will be off? Ours was off around 40ish hours and we found the worst thing was how cold the house got after a while so maybe you could think of preps for that.
Just read back and saw your idea of onesies! Maybe that's the answer...or long ponchos.

LadOnTheHill

They are doing the usual spiel of "expected between 8am and 5pm, but circumstances beyond our control...." Hopefully it won't be too long. We have a couple of fish tanks, but apparently the air pump is more important than the heater and we have a couple of USB powered ones that will do the job.

The onesie is a sge green, fur material. I look like a Martian teddy bear when I'm wearing it. It's bloody warm though.

cuddlymarm

Hi guys
When it’s cold I find layers are best, but also if you are sat for a while covering your ankles helps and regular hot drinks. My auntie used to wear a hat around the house when it was cold to keep heat in and fingerless gloves. They lived in a stone house with only a fire in the living room which had a back boiler for water so the kitchen and upstairs was freezing. But that was normal so they were used to it. 
when the power comes back on it might be worth checking how frozen your freezer food is and cooking off any part defrosted meats and refreezing and fitting anything that’s ok but you’re worried about refreezing in your next few days menu plan.

elaine241

cbsexec said:

How did it start up Elaine241?   Would love to get that sort of initiative going in my village and area.

I think it is via an app that the stores sign up to and you then say you will collect. I can ask what the app is when I am there Tuesday. I have messaged our chairman as she coordinates all the accepting donations, volunteer drivers and collections.Once I have the info I will post it on here.

jcriyadh

elaine241 said:

jcriyadh said:

lovely to see you again @elaine241, we also have a food share project at Goytre Village Hall which I pop over to weekly.  These are such great initiatives and take away a lot of the stigma around food banks, etc as people from many different circumstances use it.  The volunteers who run these are amazing. 😃

Funny enough that's the one I am talking about! I live in Goytre!

Goodness, it’s a small world isn’t it? 😃.  Deb does a great job organising the food share, in spite of some local opposition, which I cannot for the life of me understand.  I currently work part time but if you ever fancy a coffee, give me a shout.  Julie - Near Llanarth 😊

CCW007

elaine241 said:

cbsexec said:

How did it start up Elaine241?   Would love to get that sort of initiative going in my village and area.

I think it is via an app that the stores sign up to and you then say you will collect. I can ask what the app is when I am there Tuesday. I have messaged our chairman as she coordinates all the accepting donations, volunteer drivers and collections.Once I have the info I will post it on here.

Tesco have an arrangement with Fareshare who get priority for food collections so it might be worth getting in touch with Fareshare to see how you register with them.

Floss

For those in NW England - I received an email today from Electricity North West, who are responsible for maintaining and operating the network that provides electricity to homes. They are encouraging people to join their Priority Service Register - https://www.enwl.co.uk/priority

If you click on the link there's quite a wide range of criteria that are eligible, including temporary need.

cbsexec

Thanks Elaine241.  

short_bird

Floss said:

For those in NW England - I received an email today from Electricity North West, who are responsible for maintaining and operating the network that provides electricity to homes. They are encouraging people to join their Priority Service Register - https://www.enwl.co.uk/priority

If you click on the link there's quite a wide range of criteria that are eligible, including temporary need.

Getting extra help with the Priority Services Register | Ofgem
Further information via that link for those outside the N/W - also, your network provider details should be on your fuel bills.