SHELF RELIANCEAbout us Emergency

An organised emergency kit with radio, torch, blanket, first aid pouch, charger and checklist

Practical, calm, ready

The useful kit.
None of the panic.

A considered list of supplies for power cuts, severe weather and the first 72 hours of an emergency.

L3

Power & light

Power stations & solar

Use this printable guide to explore backup power stations and solar charging for your household. It covers matching panels and batteries, understanding device power needs and estimating running times, with space to record your own setup. Keep it alongside the manufacturer instructions when planning which devices you want to power.

Readiness Sheet L3: Power stations & solar

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Tips

Good preparedness is layered. Start with water, food, light, warmth and a way to receive information. P1 Plan for your worst day. Keep a few no-effort options by the bed: small bottles of water, a head torch and hand gel. P1 No prize for pushing on. Feeling worse? Switch to the easier option straight away. P1 Texts get through. When the phone lines are busy, a short text often gets through when a call won't. P2 Pick an out-of-area contact. A relative who lives elsewhere can pass messages between everyone. P2 Set an ICE contact. Add an emergency contact and Medical ID to everyone's phone lock screen. P2 Keep Emergency Alerts on. Check they're switched on in everyone's phone settings. P3 Agree a family code word. Schools usually only hand children to people they've been told about. A code word helps. P4 Message in a Bottle. A free Lions Club pot for your fridge that paramedics know to look for. P5 Pets need a bag too. Three days of food, their medicines, and a recent photo of you together. P6 Where, not what. Write down where your documents are kept, never the numbers on them. P7 Start with four things. A rucksack, water, a torch and copies of your documents. Add the rest one or two at a time. P8 Check twice a year. The weekends the clocks change are an easy reminder to check your kit. P9 Find your stopcock. It's usually under the kitchen sink. Make sure everyone knows where it is. H1 Label your shut-offs. A luggage tag on the stopcock, gas valve and main switch saves time when it matters. H1 Never walk through flood water. Just 15cm of fast-flowing water can knock an adult off their feet. H2 Floodline is free. Sign up for flood warnings on 0345 988 1188. H2 A power cut means no heating. Most gas boilers need electricity, so plan another way to keep warm. H3 Pick one warm room. If the heating fails, it's easier to keep one room warm than the whole house. H3 Hot cars are dangerous. Never leave anyone, or a pet, in a parked car on a warm day. H4 Quiet power. Power stations are silent and fume-free, so they're fine indoors. Keep them dry and don't leave them charging overnight. H5 3 litres a day. That's the minimum drinking water per person. 10 litres covers cooking and washing too. W1 Filter, then treat. For the safest water, filter it first, then boil it or use tablets. W1 Call 105. Free from any phone, 24 hours, to report a power cut or find out when it'll be fixed. L1 Leave one light on. In a power cut, leave one light switched on so you know when the power's back. L1 Top up your power banks. They slowly lose charge in a drawer. Charge them fully when bad weather is forecast. L2 Fill a battery first. Phones charge badly straight from a solar panel. Charge a power bank, then the phone. L3 Keep the fridge shut. A closed fridge stays cold for about 4 hours. A full freezer lasts about 48. F1 Snap the fridge. Take a photo inside the fridge when the power goes, so you don't keep opening the door. F1 Only store what you eat. Eat the oldest first and replace it, so nothing goes to waste. F2 Use by or best before? Use by is about safety. Best before is about quality and is often fine after. F3 Fresh greens from a jar. Sprouts grow in a few days with just seeds, water and a jar. Always cook them. F4 Mostly no-cook. A week's food box full of food you can eat cold has you covered on a bad day. F5 Practise a knot. Learn one knot well, like the bowline, until you can tie it without looking. T1