A prepper took to Reddit to share lessons they learned during a three-day power outage and the things they would do differently going forward.
A Redditor posted in r/preppers discussing how they fared without power for an extended period of time.
First and foremost, they sang the praises of battery-powered electric candles.
"They have a very long battery life, provide enough light for most tasks, are generally very cheap, are available in a wide variety of sizes, and do not carry the fire risk of regular candles," they said. "Especially important with pets/children." They also noted that headlamps and flashlights were solid supplemental light sources, and they only used their oil lamp "for the vibes."
They also noted that a single propane burner stove wasn't enough for their needs for three days. While it would accomplish the tasks asked of it, like boiling water or cooking meat, it was slow, inefficient, and didn't do a good job of cooking the food.
"We gave up on fiddle-f*cking with it after day 1 and just [ate] MREs," they said, referring to meals ready to eat. "A large, (portable) dual-burner camping stove is now very high on my list."
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They also sang the praises of military MREs (which stands for "meals ready to eat") as a staple of prepping, as their convenience makes them superior to other basic options, even with a functional stove.
They noted that cell phones were still essential devices, but they lacked the necessary technology to keep them properly charged at all times.
"We have one small backpacking style solar panel, and just a couple of battery packs, and the solar panel was just barely enough to keep a single pack topped off and one phone running," they said. "A larger USB compatible solar panel, and additional battery packs would have been helpful."
🗣️ What supplies do you keep on hand in case of a blackout?
🔘 Just a flashlight 🔦
🔘 A few camping lanterns 😎
🔘 A full-on emergency kit 🆘
🔘 I don't have anything 🤷
🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
Lastly, the fourth thing they noted was stocking the freezer with ice beforehand.
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"We lost some food that we 'might' have been able to save if I had stocked the fridge with ice sooner," they said.
As our planet's climate changes and severe weather events become more and more common, preppers can be a helpful resource for learning how to survive if you find yourself stuck in a less-than-ideal scenario after a natural disaster strikes, and lessons like these can be very helpful.
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