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Be Prepared | Conservation Measures
It is always a good idea to have the following supplies in the event of an outage:
- Flashlight and batteries (change them periodically)
- Battery-powered radio and extra batteries (change batteries periodically - even unused batteries lose power over time)
- Manual can opener
- Battery-powered or windup alarm clock
- Bottled water
- Sanitary water containers (if you rely on electricity to pump water)
- Thermos
- Disposable plates and utensils
- Extra blankets or sleeping bags
- Firewood and kindling
- Camp lights and lanterns (do not use kerosene lanterns indoors unless you have proper ventilation)
If you have a home computer, it's good idea to protect your work before any outage. Rule one is to remember to save your files regularly. Auto-save back-up programs will do the work for you and are available at any computer store. Install a surge protector. Don't confuse a power strip with a surge protector - good surge protectors (also known as transitory volt suppressors) cost about $60, and they will protect your computer from surges that follow any sort of power disturbance. They are available at most office supply, computer and home improvement stores.
You might want to also consider an uninterruptable power supply (UPS). A UPS is a battery back-up system that supplies power for about 15 minutes - long enough for you to save all work and shut the computer down. You can find a UPS at most office supply or computer stores. Make sure it is UL-1778 listed, and be aware that you cannot use a UPS to power a printer or copier.
