In late October 2019, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. and South California Edison shut down power for more than 2 million California residents. The shutdown comes on the heels of an October 8 blackout, when PG&E cut power to 800,00 homes in an attempt to prevent the risk of wildfire in the wake of projected severe wind events hitting the state.

Power outages--planned or unplanned--seem to be on the rise. How can you prepare for when all the lights go out and entire cities are plunged into darkness? It turns out that riding out a power outage isn't that hard. All you have to do is make sure that you prepare for non-grid solutions to the following problems: Refrigeration, Cooking, Lighting, and Phone Charging. 

We will recommend solutions to all four here.

Refrigeration

One of the biggest worries during a power outage is whether the electricity will come back on in time to start up your fridge or freezer and save food from spoiling. Perishable food starts to get questionable after 48 hours without refrigeration.

That's why a solar cooler is a godsend in a power outage. We recommend the GoSun Chill, a solar cooler that doesn't need ice. The Chill can keep food cold, frozen, dry, and organized - no ice required. The included PowerBank+ let's you charge devices and power your Chill day and night.

Cooking

Ready.gov recommends at least a three-day supply of food ready to go in case of disaster. But what if you want to go beyond canned beans and freeze-dried food when the power is out? This is where a solar cooker makes all the difference in the type of food you can make without access to electricity.  

The GoSun Sport is an incredibly fast-cooking solar oven that can bake, roast, and steam a meal for two people in just 20 minutes under direct sun. It's light and compact so you can take it anywhere.

Lighting 

Candles are not the way to go in a power outage. They are a fire hazard, said Cynthia Shaw, a Red Cross spokeswoman.

“People could tip the candles and start a fire in their homes,” she said. “With the winds, that fire could spread to multiple homes very quickly.”

Instead of candles or battery-powered lights, solar is a better alternative. One of the best lights to ride out power outages is The Sun King Pro

 

Phone Charging

keeping your phone charged is a critical part of disaster prep (America has updated its cellular networks to stay on during natural disasters). And a solar phone charger for travel is essential when grid energy is unreliable or non-existent.

We recommend GoSun's SolarFlex 10. It is perfect for charging your devices using nothing but sunshine. It's simple, just connect any device and place in the sun. Under full sun, this will charge about at fast as a typical wall outlet charger.