Power Basics
Lighting
We have put Lighting in the POWER section, because it takes power to make light happen.
Personal Lights. You need a flashlight for emergency situations, because nearly half of all emergencies happen at night. (If my experience is any guide, at least half also happen when you're at your tiredest, but that's another story.)
Ah, I must be tired now, because I said 'a flashlight'. What could I have been thinking? Having one flashlight is like having one match. Even the best personal light, and I have some of the very best personal lights, are subject to going out at the most perfectly wrong time. The movie Volcano, with Tommy Lee Jones, although far from Oscar material, demonstrates this point magnificently. Two people are in a tunnel looking for the source of the problem. One person's professional quality light goes fritzy for a moment, just as the magma opens a crack, and the other person falls in. Probably not a situation you will run into. But it is extremely realistic in terms of emergency lighting. It really can go out when you need it the most. That's why I always carry two lights when I go scuba diving at night.
So, flashlights.
There are so many kinds. I feel like a kid in a candy store every time I look at a webpage full of choices. But the primary thing to think about is quality. Economize elsewhere. Put your money into the quality of your primary personal light. It should be waterproof. It should throw a beam that does not have a big dark spot in the middle. Some center spot is unavoidable, but a few models make it a problem. Some people like the beam to be adjustable.
It should be very bright. There are super-LED flashlights that can actually be used as a sort of disorienting weapon at night, but those are not available most places. Generally, you can't get a light that is too bright. Light up the night like the sun, I say. The better I can see, the more effective I can be.
Speaking of LEDs, they are very definitely the way to go. If the flashlight is designed properly, you will get a brighter light, yet your batteries will last much longer than with other kinds of bulbs. That is not manufacturer hype. It's the real deal. They cost more, but they're worth it. You might want to consider the color of the light that is produced. Some LED lights are very blue, and some people have a hard time with that. Colors do not look the same as in the daylight. Of course, that is true with the too-yellow light of most incandescent flashlights, and the too-I-don't-know-what-color-it-is light of florescent lights. So that might not be a big thing for most people. But I must say that the newest generation of LEDs can be of a white-light spectrum that is really excellent. It's just about the most natural light you can get in a small, hand-held flashlight to date.
Still, to each his own...
There are also Headlamps that keep your hands free to work. Keychain lights to give you an instant bit of light right when you need it. Lanterns (more on that below) and lots of other things. Take your pick! In fact, take two or three or four picks. Sometimes you hear that everything is location, location, location. In emergency equipment it's backup, backup, backup.
Area Lights. It is good to have individual lights. You should also consider area lights that illuminate your surroundings. Of the two, the personal lights are many times more valuable. But area lights give you a chance to conserve and recharge your personal lights. They also make people feel more comfortable at night.
If you have to do rescue, or other work at night, area lighting is very helpful. You can find a wide spectrum of area lights, and when I say wide, I mean from under $20 to over $1,000.00. There are literally tens of thousands of outdoor products and emergency supplies.
Batteries
Flashlight Batteries. There are lights that get their power from a hand crank, there are solar powered lights (which seems pretty funny until you consider that you recharge them during the day, use them at night), and rechargeable lights that you have to plug into a power source, normally your wall socket. But most portable lighting uses batteries.
Single time use batteries are a valid choice. They stay charged a long time and can be stored for emergency use. I have a lot of them. I buy the most highly rated, longest-life batteries available. That information can usually be found on the package. If it isn't... you can figure those batteries' lifespan is not something they want to talk about. Also, check the expiration date. It is usually several years in the future. That's good, because all batteries lose a percentage of their power as time passes. The expiration date is an estimation of when they will lose enough to be considered 'not fresh'. What does that mean? Really. What does that mean? I don't know, and have never been able to find out. So I believe it is best to use batteries that are the furthest away from their 'expiration date' as possible.
But you can use batteries that are even past their expiration date. They will not carry the same amount of charge as 'fresh' batteries, but they will very probably be useable unless they are long past expired. Do be careful of older batteries in that they may leak, sooner than fresh batteries, which can also leak on occasion. It might be a good idea to get a 1.5 volt battery tester. Most stores carry them in their electrical department.
Some sources recommend that you keep batteries out of flashlights and all other battery powered devices unless you are using them. The warning is even stronger if you are storing them. It is true that a battery stored in an electronic device can leak and ruin it. That is a dilemma when the purpose of an emergency flashlight is to be ready to use at a moment's notice, and may be stored for a long time before its is needed. Do you want to take the time to load batteries into a flashlight - in the dark - while an emergency is going down? I don't.
My solution is to keep the batteries in, and check everything that has them every couple of months. That does not stop a leaking battery from harming or even ruining a flashlight. It just gives you a chance to catch it and replace it. But so far I have caught any batteries that have started to leak before they could do much damage. I also test a sample of several of the batteries to see if they have a good charge amount left, irrespective of expiration date. Since I started doing this, I've found only one leaking.
Corrosion Block. Perhaps I have such a happy experience with batteries because I coat both their terminal ends and the terminals of all my devices with a product I found originally in Hawaii called Corrosion Block. It is amazing. It stops all kinds of corrosion. It is especially good on electrical terminals, including car batteries. It is amazing. I said that already, I know, but it's worth two amazings. I just now looked and saw that it is currently available at Amazon.com. Search for Corrosion Block. It is made by H&M Marine.
Rechargeable Batteries. Most rechargeable batteries are nice if the power grid is up and you can keep them charged. Unfortunately, their charge degrades far more rapidly than one-use batteries. They go from 100% to zero charge in about a year. Even worse, the longer they are at a low charge, the more damage occurs to the battery and hence they have a significantly shorter lifespan compared to a regularly used recharegable battery. That is why they have never been recommended for emergency equipment.
But now Sanyo® has developed their eneloop(tm) rechargeable battery. It comes fully charged. After a year, it still has 85% of a full charge. It is the first rechargeable battery that can be stored for a long period. They are also available at Amazon. Heres a link for the eneloop Power Pack. I rather like that pack as it has a everything you need to get started. It even has C and D cell adapters so you can slide a AA battery into the adapter and use it as a D cell.
As I mentioned above, the bulk of my batteries are one-time use. It is a bit of an expense. But if there is no power to recharge batteries, I still have power for quite a bit of use. I also have a quantity of eneloop(tm) batteries, and a couple of their chargers. Because I'll be able to recharge them at least a few times. Which leads us on to...
Emergency Power Sources
Car Batteries. You have an emergency power source in your car. As long as you have gas, you have a way to recharge it. You just need a couple of things to be able to use it to it's full potential. Most car have the cigarette lighter type of jack, although it's beginning to be called other names. Whatever, it is a jack that can power any 12 volt DC device with the same type of plug. You may currently run your laptop that way when you're on the road.
Inverters. Now go the next level. Get an inverter that changes 12 volt DC into 120 volt AC, which is regular household current, or close enough. Then you can plug in any kind of electrical device for which your inverter is rated. Be advised that not all electrical devices can be powered by a inverter, and some simply take too much current. Read the inverter's instruction manual and exactly follow all the warnings and ratings. Don't push it. Some things, like your refrigerator, are so far over the limit, the best case scenario is that you blow the inverter's fuse. The worst case is you blow everything up, possibly including yourself. So use an inverter wisely. You can usually find one in a Wally Mart auto department.
Combinations. You may also be able to find a combination car battery charger and inverter. Those can be sweet. You can start a car with an almost dead battery, or get 12 volt DC from it, or get 120 volt AC power from it. The best models make it possible for you to recharge the battery in this device while your car is running. So as long as you have gasoline, you can have electric power for small devices. And you have a way to recharge your rechargeable batteries.
If there are cars around without gas in them, you might be able to partner with one of the owners so you can use their battery to recharge yours, and you both can have some 120 volt electricity to use.
Generators. Usually gas powered. Considerable outlay of money for one large enough to be worthwhile. Very noisy. Excellent for hospitals. And maybe large groups. I'm not sure if I want to broadcast the fact I have a power source and probably food and... you get the idea.
Solar Power. Perfect. Get as much as you can afford. There are all sorts of emergency type solar panels for power. Search for solar power.
Wind and Water Power. Great sources. You can get lots and lots of power from them. Takes a while to set up. There will eventually be more on these in our Sustainability section. If you would like to be advised when these sections are posted, click here.