Bulb says they will supply heating/cooking eqpt during power cuts to homes with electricity only???

dee100

This is for vulnerable people. I asked how they could do this as I have no chimney, they did not know how it would be done.
I personally think they will supply hot meals, special hot water type bottles that self-heat and special clothing to keep warm.
What do you think they would be able to supply for heating/cooking?
I'm really worried about it as my health is bad.
Also, I forgot to ask if this would apply to government planned power cuts or just breakdowns in the electric grid, probably both?

ariarnia

where/when did they say this would probably be a place to start. 

dee100

I believe all energy companies have joined to do this. Bulb has not mentioned delivering hot meals, another company did...
"Support during emergencies and power cuts

We work with your local energy network operator to provide extra support that’s right for you. For example, giving you advance notice of planned power cuts, or arranging heating or cooking equipment if you have a power cut."

https://bulb.co.uk/priority-services-register/

ariarnia

i don't think cooking facilities would apply to a three hour pre planned/notified power cut. i would think it would be more like a longer full day or several day power outage due to a problem with the network or unexpected event and even then they would only offer you something like a gas stove if you had somewhere you could use it safely (the bit that says they offer the support that's right for you. not heating and cooking facilities for everyone on the register). 

if they notify you in advance then you have time to warm the house and make hot drinks and fill a hot water bottle before the cut. you could have a hot meal earlier in the day or plan for a hot meal after the power comes back with the notice. but if you are concerned or if that would be a problem for you then the best thing to do is to contact them and explain your situation and ask what they can do to help. 

or you can join the blackout discussion on here or in the old style board and other posters might have suggestions for ways you could prepare to be more comfortable if there's power cuts this winter?

comeandgo

After a long power outage due to storms food vans were placed in our local town centres for people to use.  You were supposed to prove you lived in the area before you got the free food but in reality nothing was checked. I don’t think anything will be done for planned three or four hour breaks.  

[Deleted User]

We really have become soft as a Nation. Three hour pre-planned power cuts might be annoying but they hardly justify the cost of deploying cooking equipment. 

Some of us are old enough to remember the 3 day week which started on the 1st January 1974 and lasted 3 months. Three days in the sense that businesses only got power for 3 days a week. Most pubs were closed.  It was a particularly cold Winter and I recall spending most of my working days in a heavy coat; gloves and a woollen hat. TV went off at 1030 pm as a way of encouraging people to go to bed: that said, after a couple of frightening Grid frequency episodes, the TV shutdowns were staggered across regions to prevent long-term damage to the Grid. We also had a speed limit of 50MPH on motorways and roads.

funny.money

[Deleted User] said:

We really have become soft as a Nation. Three hour pre-planned power cuts might be annoying but they hardly justify the cost of deploying cooking equipment. 

Some of us are old enough to remember the 3 day week which started on the 1st January 1974 and lasted 3 months. Three days in the sense that businesses only got power for 3 days a week. Most pubs were closed.  It was a particularly cold Winter and I recall spending most of my working days in a heavy coat; gloves and a woollen hat. TV went off at 1030 pm as a way of encouraging people to go to bed: that said, after a couple of frightening Grid frequency episodes, the TV shutdowns were staggered across regions to prevent long-term damage to the Grid. We also had a speed limit of 50MPH on motorways and roads.

100% agree - we certainly live in a different world now 😩

deano2099

Well yeah. Its a much older and more vulnerable population right now as people live longer.
Young people these days won't give a damn about any planned power cut that lasts for a shorter amount of time than their phone battery.

EssexHebridean

I think you're wrong - O suspect it WILL be the younger people who are more phased by this in a lot of cases because a lot of them will literally never have experienced a power outage before. Those living in rural areas, sure - but for those who have been brought up and always lived in urban areas, anything more than the lights flickering briefly will be unknown territory for them. And yes - a lot of those people ARE used to multiple forms of visual and aural stimulation being available to them at all times - they walk in the door at home in the evening and the first thing they do is put the TV on - then it's on in the background the whole time, regardless of whether they're watching it at all. That's the sort of thing that will be an impact mentally - not least as they'll find out about all the odd creaky freaky noises houses make when there's no background noise - and at a time when there's relatively little light, too! 

We've seen it on here already - those that remember - even vaguely - the 70's, are far less phased by the whole idea. 

MattMattMattUK

dee100 said:

I believe all energy companies have joined to do this. Bulb has not mentioned delivering hot meals, another company did...
"Support during emergencies and power cuts

We work with your local energy network operator to provide extra support that’s right for you. For example, giving you advance notice of planned power cuts, or arranging heating or cooking equipment if you have a power cut."

https://bulb.co.uk/priority-services-register/

That would be for longer power cuts, days or weeks, not a three hour planned cut. The only people who will receive support for the three hour power cut will be those with medical equipment which needs to run constantly. 

deano2099

EssexHebridean said:

I think you're wrong - O suspect it WILL be the younger people who are more phased by this in a lot of cases because a lot of them will literally never have experienced a power outage before. Those living in rural areas, sure - but for those who have been brought up and always lived in urban areas, anything more than the lights flickering briefly will be unknown territory for them. And yes - a lot of those people ARE used to multiple forms of visual and aural stimulation being available to them at all times - they walk in the door at home in the evening and the first thing they do is put the TV on - then it's on in the background the whole time, regardless of whether they're watching it at all. 

Are you sure about this? Or who are you talking about as "young people"? I think there's a gap, for sure - those in their 40s/50s that weren't around or don't remember the 70s may actually struggle the most.
But those in their 20s/30s and especially kids today... I mean, if it's your legit experience about the TV thing then I'm not questioning that at all, but my perception is young kids these days aren't watching TV at all. Yes, they'll stick Twitch or YouTube on in the background on their phone or tablet but TV is mostly streaming and appointment viewing.
And even if you're right, as you say, it's a background activity, yes, you feel a small impact of it not being there but you're not left thinking "what am I going to do?"

I do wonder if the older generation that actually remember it are also far less prepared than they think. "It was fine in the 70s, we all sat around in the candlelight and played Scrabble". Yeah, but it's 2022 and you live alone and the kids don't want to come around and play Scrabble with you because the Nintendo Switch has a full charge and the eldest is watching Netflix on her tablet. The world is very different now and the community/family activities people were essentially forced into in the 70s won't exist now because battery-powered devices offer an easy way to opt out. The "I managed it in the 70s so I'll manage it now" attitude may catch many out if they don't properly prepare.

Just watch youngsters these days if they know they have a long train/car journey. The phone will always be at 100% battery before they leave. Young people are very conscious of the battery levels of their devices because they're so reliant on them.

Now - *unplanned* power cuts. That's a different kettle of fish entirely. I can just imagine the panic when the lights go out and a teenager is at 10% battery!