Knowing how to heat your house without power can be a literal lifesaver. Should the grid goes down in the middle of a blizzard, you’ll be warm and safe in your home.
This skill proved to be a lifesaver during the Texas winter storm in February 2021. As snow and ice swept the state, authorities lost control of the grid, which led to a massive power outage.
With that, Texans were left in the cold with no power to heat their homes. Unfortunately, some resorted to dangerous ways to keep their bodies warm. About 1,400 individuals were brought to the hospital due to carbon monoxide poisoning. Meanwhile, 11 were confirmed dead for the same reason.
In case you’re faced with the same situation, you must know the right alternative to electricity-powered heating. Below, we discussed 10 options that you should keep in mind.
How to heat your house without power
Are you worried about a power outage during winter? Here are some life hacks that will keep you warm.
1. Choose a heating room
During a power outage, heating an entire house with manual methods is close to impossible. This is much so for those with big, and multi-story homes.
With this, you have to set up a heating room. Basically, this is a single room that you’ll keep warm and heated. Your entire family will stay here for warmth, so you can save resources and concentrate the heat in one area.
Moreover, since your entire family will congregate in a single room, body heat will contribute to the warmth.
Take note that a heating room should be properly insulated and the windows have updated weather-stripping. If possible, choose a south-facing room as this gets the most sunlight, which will help keep you warm during the day.
Still, your heating room should have proper ventilation. Also, you should install a battery-operated carbon monoxide detector for your safety.
2. Use a propane heater
The easiest way to stay warm during winter when a power outage occurs is using propane heaters. These devices are available in a wide range of sizes to suit different floor areas.
Propane heaters are great backups when your heating system bogs down. But just like any fuel-powered heating device, you should observe proper precautions when using it.
First, make sure that you store the propane tanks properly to avoid gas leaks. Also, you shouldn’t run propane heaters for hours on end. It’s important to shut it down and aerate the room.
Since propane heaters burn fuel, they will consume oxygen. This is why you should keep proper ventilation in your heating room, so you don’t get suffocated or poisoned with carbon monoxide.
It’s also best to set the propane heater near a slightly open window. You can also install an exhaust fan in your heating room powered by an outdoor generator. This way, noxious gasses won’t accumulate inside your house.
3. Set up a fireplace
Fireplaces are a traditional method of heating a house without the need to rely on electricity. This delivers a large amount of consistent heat, enough to keep your living room toasty all day long.
However, you must know how to set up a fireplace properly to prevent the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. It’s not just about tossing one log after the other.
While keeping your home warm is the goal, you should still keep a window slightly open as the fire is burning. This will allow harmful gasses to dissipate and keep your house ventilated.
Also, make sure that the damper of your fireplace is open before lighting up the wood to prevent smoke from billowing into your home.
Old and dry wood logs are also the best choice for fireplaces. Never use soaked or wet wood as this will emit a lot of smoke and little heat. Aside from that, it will cause soot to accumulate on your chimney, which increases your risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.
4. Get a pellet stove
If you don’t have a fireplace, a pellet stove will come in handy during power outages. It uses fuel made of wood shaving pressed together to create pellet pieces.
Once the pellets are burned, they will produce a lot of heat and minimal toxic gasses. Still, you should observe proper ventilation to prevent any untoward incidents.
Take note that modern pellet stoves may use electrical parts, so make sure that you opt for the fully mechanical type. This one uses gravity to feed pellets into the stove. Still, the only UL and EPA-approved mechanical pellet stove is the one made by Wiseway.
The good thing is that pellet stoves can be vented either through a roof flue or a side wall L-shaped pipe. It works like a small-scale fireplace, which you can install anywhere in your home.
5. Run a catalytic heater
Catalytic heaters are convenient alternatives during a power outage in winter. It’s gas-powered, wherein the fuel heats an element usually made of platinum-coated plates. From there, the heat will radiate, which will keep you warm.
Unlike propane heaters, catalytic heaters produce less gas since it doesn’t combust the fuel. Still, you should observe proper ventilation by putting it near a half-open window.
Overall, you can use multiple catalytic heaters in your home as long as the room has a window or opening for ventilation.
However, you should also keep in mind that catalytic heaters need regular maintenance as the heating element may need replacements after some time.
6. Build a DIY candle heater
If you’re caught unprepared by the power outage on a cold day, you can still make a DIY candle heater. This is ideal as a temporary solution as you try to gather supplies or an alternative power source.
For this, you need a terracotta clay pot, small candles, and objects where you can elevate the pot.
Simply turn the pot upside down, so it looks like a dome. After that, place thick objects on each side, so there’s a gap between the pot and the surface where it’s placed. Just make sure that the objects propping the pot are stable and not flammable, preferably spare bricks.
Next, light up the small candles and place them under the upside-down clay pot. This will help provide small amounts of heat for a person.
Overall, you should only use this as an emergency heat source and not a long-term solution. Also, you should keep it away from the reach of children and pets as the open fire still poses serious hazards.
7. Get soapstone heaters
If you’re using heaters or other methods above, you can extend its warmth by utilizing soapstone heaters. Basically, you just have to place blocks of soapstone beside your heat source until it absorbs warmth.
After that, you can place the hot soapstone around your home where it will radiate the heat for hours. The bigger the block is, the longer it will retain heat.
Overall, soapstone blocks are a convenient way to bring heat anywhere in your house during power outages. It also reduces the risk of fire or carbon monoxide poisoning since it only radiates warmth. Still, you should place it in a safe spot as very hot soapstone can cause burns.
If you’re looking where to buy soapstone blocks, feel free to visit a local granite trading shop or a sculpting shop. They often have blocks of various stones in stock.
8. Cook meals indoors
Cooking meals indoors is a great way to maximize heat production inside your home. Gas ovens or stove ranges burn fuel to produce flames and heat. So as you prepare your family’s meal, you keep them warm at the same time.
However, since gas stoves still burn fuel, ventilation is still necessary. Always keep a window ajar to allow air to circulate in and out of your home.
Also, try to avoid using your gas stoves as heaters. This is due to the risk of carbon monoxide exposure and poisoning.
Instead, you can try the methods discussed here to keep your house as warm as possible.
9. Stock up on BioFuel cans
BioFuel burner cans are a popular solution during power outages. A single can will last for up to seven hours, which you can use for small-scale cooking. It’s also refillable, so you don’t have to buy many cans at once.
Unlike petroleum or gel-based counterparts, BioFuel burner cans are safer since it produces less noxious gas. It’s made of biobased ingredients with no petroleum or preservatives. To be specific, the fuel used on these burners is derived from fermenting corn sugar.
But for safety, it’s still important to keep proper ventilation in your home when using these burners. Also, you shouldn’t consider it as your main source of heat since the cans are small and suitable as an emergency option only.
10. Invest in an alternative power source
During power outages, you don’t have to sit helplessly in the cold. The good thing is that you can always prepare for these outages even before winter comes.
First, consider investing in an outdoor generator. This power backup will keep your heating system running even when the grid is out. You only have to ensure that the generator has enough gas in it in case emergencies happen.
If you have the budget, you should consider installing solar panels. This will be an infinite source of free electricity enough to keep your heater running. You need five 300-watt solar panels to run a 1,500-watt heater. You can also get bigger panels to harness more solar energy.
Even if it’s cold in winter, solar panels will continue to absorb solar energy. Overall, it’s almost a foolproof way to survive in freezing temperatures even without traditional electricity.
Final words
Knowing how to heat your house without power can save you from the life-threatening hazards of winter. Make sure that you’re prepared with safe and tested methods that won’t cause carbon monoxide poisoning.
And in case you and your family members start feeling dizzy while using the methods above, open your windows or go outside immediately. This is a potential case of carbon monoxide poisoning, which can turn deadly within minutes.
Whatever method you’re planning to use, remember that ventilation is still necessary for your safety. A half-open window can make a big difference in preventing carbon monoxide poisoning and suffocation.