Disclaimer: I received this item for free in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.
If you are wondering how to stay warm when your power goes out in the winter, you are not alone.
During a winter power outage, you need the right equipment in order to stay warm inside your home.
When it comes to your ability to do that, camping gear is one of the best choices you can make for your emergency preparation supply.
Camping gear is designed for the elements and can not only keep you warm, but comfortable as well.
You don’t have to be outside in order to use these resources and in the event your goal is just to save money and cut your power usage, there are some good tips here as well.
Learn How To Stay Warm When Your Power Goes Out With A Tent
You can pitch a tent in any room in your home.
By setting up a tent, you are creating a smaller, enclosed space that is easier to heat.
Not only that, but body heat can naturally warm up the space inside the tent.
To further insulate this area, you can set up a tent within a tent.
If you have large tent, set it up first, then set up the smaller tent inside of it.
The heat space between the two tents will act as an insulating area collecting the heat that escapes from the smaller tent and helping to block out the colder air outside the tent, which means you will preserve more heat.
When you put sleeping bags inside the tent, you have even more protection from the cold and a comfortable place to wait out the power outage.
Besides having a tent and sleeping bags to help keep you warm, you will also want to have alternative cooking options for when the power goes out.
Cooking Products Help Produce Heat But Make Sure They Are Safe For Indoor Use
Another option you want to look for appliances that are safe to use indoors.
If you have a fireplace or wood burning stove, take the time to learn how to use it for cooking.
You can also boil water or make hot beverages.
However you do need a nice cast iron skillet or cast iron saucepan set to cook with.
Another item you would need is a grate or a cooking rack that sits above the flames that is meant to be used in a fireplace.
You can also use camping cookware to cook over an open flame.
Once you know how you can cook everything from eggs to pancakes to meat, even vegetables and one dish casserole meals over an open flame.
Some easy and delicious items to cook on a wood stove or over a wood fire include brownies and grilled cheese sandwiches.
It’s also possible to cook bread or dinner rolls this way.
You can also use a Dutch oven with your fireplace.
You can also cook a variety of foods over the fire using skewers like you use when roasting marshmallows.
If you don’t have a fireplace or wood burning stove, you can use canned cooking fuel or, you can use a camping stove that relies on cooking fuel instead of charcoal or propane.
Just make sure that you choose the models that are safe to use for indoor cooking as well as a fuel that is safe for indoor cooking.
Be sure to you bundle up and cook outside of your tent area.
In fact, cooking in your kitchen area is a good idea if you are using a camp stove or better yet, if you have a protected area outdoors that has good ventilation such as a carport or garage with an open door or window, that is an even better solution.
Do not under any circumstances use a BBQ grill or similar item indoors or even in an enclosed garage as they do put out large amounts of carbon monoxide that can kill you and your family.
Learn How To Stay Warm When Your Power Goes Out With The Right Indoor Lights
Lighting is something else you are going to want to have on hand, otherwise, once it gets dark, you won’t be able to do anything other than go to sleep.
You can use lights that need batteries such as flashlights and battery powered light bulbs.
There are also touch lights that are flat and square.
You can place these on a surface, sit a water bottle on top of them and create a lot of light.
Solar powered lamps are a good idea to have on hand during a power outage.
You can also use hurricane lanterns, kerosene lamps, glow sticks and candles.
If you have pets or young children in the home, you need to be careful with the open flames.
I prefer kerosene lamps because in addition to the light they put out, there is also a very small amount of heat.
Now these would not be safe inside a tent and I do not recommend using any item with an open flame inside a tent.
However if you have an alternative heat source such as a wood burner or fireplace or need light when you are cooking, these are ideal.
I have cooked by kerosene light more than once in my life.
Learn How To Stay Warm When Your Power Goes Out Using The Moosth Wearable Blanket
Another option to help you stay warm in addition to sleeping bags is the Moosth wearable blanket.
It’s very warm and if you prefer to be able to move around a little more, it is a better alternative than a sleeping bag, although using sleeping bags on the floor of the tent is still a good idea.
Plus the Moosth Wearable Blanket has a hood that ties so if you need extra warmth on your head, you have that option.
The elastic cuffs help to keep the sleeves back out of the way when you’re doing things like cooking or maybe reading a book to help pass the time.
The outer material is flannel which is warm by itself, but when you add the Sherpa liner you have a pull over robe type wearable blanket that is sure to keep you plenty warm doing a power outage.
It is a one size fits all.
I normally wear a size large and it fits me with plenty of room.
I had my sister-in-law try it on and it fits her as well.
She normally wears a 2X to 3X.
She did say that it was a bit tight in the shoulders, but otherwise fit fine – so for wearing to keep warm it would work, but she did not have a lot of range of movement.
She said working in it might be a problem.
Those are really deep pockets on both sides as well so you don’t have to wear gloves unless you want to for an extra layer of warmth.
I can walk just fine in this, but it is full length on me.
I am five foot, one inches.
Both my mother-in-law and sister-in-law are taller so it hit them right above ankle length.
So, this really is a one size fits all and I really feel like there is a lot of room if you are smaller like I am.
The hood does need to be tied where you want it because it is really large.
If I pull the hood all of the way forward, I could literally tie it to where just my mouth and nose were exposed, which is great if I need to stay warm when the power is out.
My thought is this is very comfortable and it is very warm.
This would be ideal for someone who is always cold.
Someone who lives in an older drafty home or even an elderly person.
This would be an ideal thing to put in your emergency bag or in an area where you could get to it in case of a power outage.
Just go ahead and put it on over whatever clothes you’re wearing and give yourself an extra layer of clothing.
I do want to add here that both my mother-in-law and my sister-in-law tried it on over the top of the clothes they were wearing.
So this is definitely a product that I love that I feel like I’m going to get a lot of use out of which is why I am recommending to you that you also buy one.
Just in case you need to figure out how to stay warm when your power goes out.
This is a very nice product and would make a great gift item.
Other Ways To Stay Warm
In addition to tents, wearable blankets and sleeping bags one of the most important ways to stay warm is to gather together inside the tent.
Keep the tent closed as much as possible and only leave the tent when necessary.
While it may seem gross, if you have a portable potty, put it in the area between the tents and use it.
Yes, it will smell and yes, you will need to dump it from time to time but its better than constantly opening the tents and letting the warm air out.
If you have cats, use some of their cat litter deodorizer to help control the smell.
Also, keep in mind that dogs and cats are naturally warmer than us so be sure to bring them inside the tent with you.
Wear shoes if at all possible and if not, layer socks and wear slippers.
Warm feet usually help your body feel warmer.
In the event it is still too cold inside your tent for you to be comfortable, seek alternative shelter.
Be safe and remember to practice how to stay warm when your power goes out long before you need to actually do it.
Winter Storm Survival Tips
4 Essential Winter Storm Survival Preparedness Tips
Get your emergency readiness plan in order with these winter storm survival preparedness tips. Includes a free downloadable emergency checklist.
