BEST WAYS to STAY WARM in a WINTER POWER OUTAGE

5 Things YOU'LL WISH You Spent the Money on

Build DIY Emergency Berkey for 1/4 the Cost

3 Essential Survival Knots You Need to Know

ITEM LINKS FROM VIDEO
Body Heat/Friends to Snuggle with - I barely have enough friends of my own, I don't know where to find more..

[PracticalPreparedness]

Add any I might have missed below!
Thanks as always for watching
- Justin

[marcthomas]

My wife used to work with homeless people, and she noticed that the prepper sites do not usually mention cardboard. She used to help folks make "squirrel nests" out of cardboard, plastic, and tarps. Premium cardboard, such as refrigerator boxes, can have good qualities, but you can't always find those. Layers of thinner cardboard and duct tape can work really well. Plastic bags of leaves surrounding the nest can top off the insulation. We'd like to see you do a show on cardboard. More of you preppers should visit some homeless camps to witness real ingenuity.

[carlagarrett]

For young people, if you have an elderly family member or neighbor, don't forget to contact them in person and check to make sure they too have some form of heat.

[janemack]

In the '50's and '60's, we had horses in Ohio. Our horse barn wasn't that warm, although straw helped. My dad bought old rugs and carpets from estate sales and hung them on the inside barn walls. Made a huge difference. Like tapestries in medieval monasteries. Keeping out wind and holding in warmth.

[aliciaokiegal]

I purchased several clear shower curtains at Dollar Tree to tape around my old single pane windows, that face north because of the cold wind. Was able to to do for less cost than the roll of plastic sheeting at local store. I will leave my south facing windows alone for the sunshine and at night, will close the drapes.
Side note: A few years ago when I moved into this house, I cut rolls of bubble wrap to fit on the interior side of the window glass. Just spray the window glass with water and place the flat side of the bubble wrap against it. Still up 3 yrs later! I did this to the north facing windows that no one sees. It truly made a big difference as those 2 rooms were the coldest in the house. This was a trick I learned from an RV camping group.

[Cetok]

Here's a safety tip for Sterno style alcohol stoves; if you sprinkle a few grains of table salt into the burner you'll be able to see the flames as they glow yellow.

[missyc]

Not sure how helpful this will be, but: Flip your bed layers. Have a blanket touching you with your duvet and extra blankets on top of that. For extra warmth have another blanket between you and the mattress (you can swap it out for bath towels as well if needed). This is a great way of having a "warm" bed if you don't have/want to use electric blankets/water bottles etc. Also I have an extra pillow that I keep between my head and the wall during winter, (assuming you don't have a headboard) this helps insulate you and stops the wall leeching warmth. (this might be obvious to some but these were helpful to lots of friends so figured I'd share anyway). Hope this helps someone 💛

[starlitopensky]

I was without housing for awhile. I was in Michigan and spent a winter in a vehicle that was broken, no heat. For me I gradually got used the temperature. Eventually I didn't need a jacket on when the temperature was below freezing. In the wind I felt the cold hit me some, but I would just fight it; eventually I'd probably get used to the wind too if I had been in it most of the time.
Put bottled water under your blankets and your body will keep it from freezing.
I am mostly worried about others who might have a hard time with getting used to the cold, since getting used to it can be some suffering.
Mostly, a good helpful book can help you feel better, a shower to keep your body clean, a place for your bodily waste, a safe place to sleep (a lot of people in society are not really trustworthy), enough food (preferably no need to cook), a clean water source, and a place to dispose of trash. Don't use any drugs (including weed, alcohol); one might get depressed, but the drugs will cause many problems.
Depends on the situation, one might survive, and even help others to survive without them going through hell if they do survive.

[sharriceowens]

1. Layers
2. Micro climate
3. Insulate floors.
4. Let sun in.
5. Seal up drafts..windows with plastic or tape etc.
6. Dribk warm food and drinks
7. Exercise major muscles
8. Snuggle up people and pets
9. Sleep bags and emergency blankets, wool
10. Hand warmers.
11. Water bottles with hot water
12. Fire place
13. Kerosene heater, propane, warm pans put in micro climate, sterno heat, terracotta heater, alcohol stove,
14. Generator with space heater or heated blanket.
15. Bricks out in sun or by fire..put in sleep bag
16. Use your car.
17. Camp stove/tent stove.

[tipsovr]

My mom grew up in northern Sweden in the 40's and 50's. She tells me about heating rocks in the fireplace and placing them in bed before they would go to sleep to make the bed warm to get into. Europe may have to go back to that practice this winter.

[rebeccajohnsdorf]

As I am German I do know the Video about the small candles. The Main Point is to keep a certain distance between the candles and also enough space to the flower pot. If not the wax can get too hot and thus start burning completely and not just the wick. As the material is basically oil, the fire needs to be treated accordingly and can’t be put out with water. The safe distance between those candles is about an inch or three cm. As for the height - that depends on the amount of candles you use. The more candles the higher the distance should be. But even with only one the flame should be beneath the pot. Heat rises so there’s still enough to warm up the pot.

[wasserdagger]

My house uses diesel fuel for the furnace. Last year when the price of heating oil shot way up, I started turning my thermostat way down to save on oil... leaving me to figure out how to deal with a *much* colder house than I'd ever experienced. In addition to stoking my fireplace more, I found that fleece clothing and blankets are a very comfortable way to keep warm. An added bonus: my sister sewed me some fleece pillow cases, and they really help keep my head warm and cozy on cold nights. So now when I feel like I'm getting fleeced by the oil companies, I fight back with fleece!

[jeffreyharville]

Growing up, when we had a power outage, we slipped back a few decades and used more clothing (layers), if it got too cold we covered up with blankets and quilts (still more layers). For a good portion of my teenage years we had a wood stove, and we ( I mean me usually), got warm twice or three times, once when I cut the tree down, once when I split the wood for the stove and again when we burned it for warmth and cooking. We used the sunlight to see by, when the sun went down, we did too and went to bed, under a ton of blankets and quilts. We used food to warm us; good tasting, filling, with plenty of FAT cooked in. That human heater you talked about is due to having a diet tailored for cold weather, it did not make you fat, it helped your body warm itself. Many of the oldsters would only have a small house, and that was due to not having to heat as much, (100 to 200 years ago.) Those who did have large houses, had multiple fire places and stoves and the wealth to maintain them with. SO, what I'm saying is, have plenty of layers to put on, either clothing and/or blankets, and eat often and well for the calories needed for that human heater to work properly. There are many ways to stay warm in the cold, use them! There are many ways to die in the cold, don't! There is one tool that everybody has that will be your salvation, that would be your BRAIN, use it and study, research, understand, and ask questions and you can survive.

[TheDajamster]

Several years back, I was in a cabin in late October in Ohio. The electric blew one evening. We lit tea lights and I put a mirror behind them to amplify the light. It also amplified the heat. I've had good results in later years by using mirrors to increase heat & light during power outages.

Another thing that can be helpful during a winter power outage. If it stays cold enough, you can use a vehicle to store stuff from the freezer. You can also bring in chunks of ice (put them in a container for when it melts) to put in your fridge to keep it cold.

[glasshalffull]

Hello! Another idea for a candle heater... I have a large stock pot with a strainer that fits inside it. Put a 4" unscented candle in the pot and put the strainer on top upside down, like a dome. The entire unit will radiate heat. Place it on a cookie cooling rack on a heat safe surface.

[amyfu]

The Styrofoam trays used by grocery store meat departments work well as an extra later inside winter boots. Take out the insole and cut the tray to match. Makes a big difference! I'm sure others can think of more creative ways to use them!

[crazyjplays]

To add to the Layers bit regarding clothing: I highly recommend investing in thermal underclothes, like thermal pants, shirts, and one-piece thermal suits; these go under your clothes as a base layer and really help to trap in heat, I still have in my possession a thermal suit that saved my life one winter when I was homeless; side-note DO NOT wear thermal clothes to bed, you will sweat to the point that you wake up dehydrated in the middle of the night desperately needing water!

[MoonbeamAtKnight]

1. Canopy beds are not just decorative.
Make a warm zone in your bed. Build a canopy that also includes a bed skirt to maintain temp under the bed. Use the under bed space to store items that can get cold but can also act as insulation. Use thick blankets and curtains for the canopy cover the top and sides. That’s the whole purpose of a canopy bed (well and to keep bugs out!) use the same layering concept as your clothing.
2. Pee when you can. Your body spends energy warming your urine because your bladder is in the middle of your body.
3. If you have power, and use an electric blanket - use it under you not over you, or use a mattress warmer. Heat rises, if you get warm you can remove your blankets but keep the heat.

[sailor_stine]

This 'tip' is maybe a little dumb, but I had to do it once (as I didn't have proper waterproof shoes when I was traveling): If you don't have/can't afford good wool or heavy socks, or waterproof shoes/boots, put plastic (empty!!) cereal bags on your feet as your 'base layer'. They're pretty sturdy and plenty big. (I prefer cornflakes bags myself.) Save a bunch ahead of time and give them a quick rinse out and thorough dry. They work a treat as free shoe/boot/sock 'liners' and they do keep your feet warm and dry. Upcycling too 👍

[lrlsmir]

Some people think this is strange, but going to the bathroom is one of the most important things to keep warm. The body loses an incredible amount of energy heating up what should be disposed of. I think you should also include this in a future video :)