7 Ways to Charge Up and Connect After Disaster

Products and tips for communicating and keeping essential items running till the power's back on

November 13, 2012
Houzz Contributor. I'm a Silicon Valley-based writer, columnist and blogger, covering technology and culture. http://elgan.com
Houzz Contributor. I'm a Silicon Valley-based writer, columnist and blogger, covering... More
Comment18
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As we learned from Hurricane Sandy, disasters can suddenly transform a modern area into a primitive one — no roads, no gas, no electricity, no Internet access and no phone service.

And no place is safe from the possibility of natural disasters. The East Coast and Southeastern coastal areas of the U.S. are vulnerable to hurricanes and flooding. The Midwest has to worry about tornadoes. Out West, people need to be concerned with fires and earthquakes. In Hawaii and other coastal regions, tsunamis are a threat. Small towns can be cut off from outside help. City residents can be trapped by gridlocked streets.

The real-world consequences of such outages can suddenly reveal the dependence of each modern convenience upon the others. For example, the grocery store may be open, but without Internet or phone access, its credit card machines won’t work. (Solution: Keep cash in your emergency kit).

If you have a generator, you also need gas — and the gas pumps won’t work in a blackout.

If you have cell phone service, you need electricity to charge your phone.

If you’re relying on candles during electrical outages, you put yourself at risk of fire. (Many homes burned down in the wake of the Sandy disaster.)

And what do you do about all that food in the fridge?

Real preparedness means all the bases are covered, that you’re ready to live in reasonable comfort and security without road access, electricity, phone service, Internet access and gasoline — all at the same time and for many days in a row.

Staying charged and connected is one of the biggest concerns when the power goes out. Here are some technology tips and products that can help.
Home Electronics American Red Cross FRX3 Hand Turbine
American Red Cross FRX3 Hand Turbine - $60
In an emergency, a smart phone can be a lifeline. Assuming you still have voice and data connection, you can call for help, get important information, get real-time maps — even use the phone as a flashlight.

But none of this works if your phone’s battery is dead.

The first thing you should do in an emergency is conserve phone battery power. If you need to be able to receive calls, close running apps and turn off location services (which burn through your batteries in their constant hunt for satellites).

If you don’t need to receive calls, put your phone into “airplane mode,” which turns off all location and wireless services and doubles or even triples your phone’s battery life; turn off “airplane mode” only as needed.

Charge up in the car. Make sure your emergency kit has a power inverter, so you can charge your phone with the car’s cigarette lighter outlet. A car is an under-appreciated piece of survival gear that can give you shelter, warmth, a radio and electricity — the engine is also a generator that charges the car battery and can power your gadgets.

Get a hand-cranked charger. You should also have a way to charge your phone without home or car access. Solar chargers abound, but they’re not a good choice for emergencies. For starters, you want the option to charge indoors, at night or in bad weather. Solar chargers are finicky about having the panel facing direct sunlight.

A better solution is a hand-cranked charger, which gives you juice anywhere at any time. Be sure to get one with a built-in radio and flashlight.

The American Red Cross FRX3 Hand Turbine AM/FM NOAA Weather Radio with USB Smartphone Charger and LED Flashlight has a long name, and an even longer list of features.

One small benefit is that it has a glow-in-the-dark handle. The device also has USB charging for your phone and other gadgets, a radio, a solar panel to augment the hand crank, an LED flashlight and a red flashing emergency beacon.

This one gadget will guarantee that you’ll at least be informed and illuminated, with a charged phone. (Order ahead: At this writing, this item is on back order with projected 10-day shipping.)
Home Electronics Motorola Talkabout MT352
Motorola Talkabout MT352 - $169.99
Of course, a fully charged phone is worthless for communication if the wireless carriers are non-functional. Fortunately, you can prepare for that, too.

There are three basic ways to communicate in an emergency without landline or wireless phone service.

The first is short-range communication. A low-cost option is walkie-talkies. Some of the better models have very long ranges, making them super useful in an emergency.

Walkie-talkies have two advantages in a disaster: They let multiple people in the area talk to each other, so you can check on nearby family and friends even if both parties have no cell service. Second, they let you connect to strangers in the area either looking for help or offering it.

A good option for walkie-talkies is the Motorola Talkabout MT352 because it's weather-proof, has long battery life, boasts a range of up to 35 miles, and comes in a pack of three. That lets you keep two in the house and give the other to someone in the 35-mile range.
Home Electronics DeLorme AG-008449-201 inReach for iOS & Android
DeLorme AG-008449-201 inReach for iOS & Android - $249.95
Another option many people don’t know about is a satellite device that lets you send text messages from your cell phone even if your phone can’t connect to the Internet or phone service.

Take the DeLorme inReach as an example. You can use this little gadget without a cell phone to send SOS messages and broadcast your location. Or you can connect it via Bluetooth to your iOS or Android phone and send two-way text messages. It’s a satellite device, so it works from absolutely anywhere.
Home Electronics IsatPhone Pro Satellite Phone, and 1000 Prepaid Minutes Service Bundle
IsatPhone Pro Satellite Phone, and 1000 Prepaid Minutes Service Bundle - $1,425
The most complete and reliable method of communication, albeit the most costly, is a full-fledged satellite phone that lets you make calls and surf the Internet without needing wireless cell towers.

You can get pre-paid accounts, so you’re not paying a monthly bill when it’s not in use. However, be aware that most pre-paid satellite plans have expiration dates.

One great option is a product called IsatPhone Pro Satellite Phone, and 1000 Prepaid Minutes Service Bundle, which is available on Amazon.com.

In addition to the phone and 1,000 pre-paid minutes, you get a waterproof carrying case and all the accessories. The phone itself is resistant to water, freezing and shock, and has great battery life.
Home Electronics Duracell PowerSource 1800
Duracell PowerSource 1800 - $899.99
Even if you have your phone charged and you're ready to function without the carrier or cell towers, you still have to worry about food in the fridge going bad and other everyday household electrical needs.

While a full-blown gasoline-powered generator is great, you might instead opt for a backup powerpack — a giant battery designed to give you power when you need it.

A good option is the Duracell PowerSource 1800, an indoor backup power source that can juice your fridge, computer, lights or the sump pump you’ll need to keep the basement from flooding.

By the way, if you hesitate to invest in this gear because of the cost and rarity or unlikelihood of disaster, consider one more fact. Each of these products is super useful during travel and other recreation.

Hope for the best, but always prepare for the worst!

How to Pick the Right Generator | More guides to disaster recovery
Comment18
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Comments (18)
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Susan Pines Gocek
The Duracell 1800 gets mixed reviews. Even the good reviews state that with careful maintenance, it will die completely and irreparably within 2 years. At the 2013 rate of around $500, that's less reliable than one would like. This is a box that has an inverter, charger and batteries. A more reliable system can be pieced together from separate components, even with solar rechargers, but it will cost more. The Duracell unit will cause trouble for sensitive electronics (the inverter is Modified Sine Wave, not Pure Sine Wave). Probably OK for a fridge, but the batteries are not super-high capacity, so put it on your sump pump to keep the basement dry for a couple days and prepare to throw the spoiled food out. The advantage is, no gasoline, it can be used indoors.
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User
We did a prioritization of what absolutely needed to be powered. One of the things about a hurricane is that the day afterward, the sun is usually shining even if your lightbulbs aren't, so solar devices can be charged to their full capacity. Hurricane season in the NE is usually in early fall, so it's borderline as to whether you will need a fridge or not. If you have a gas fireplace, try to find an old fashioned cast iron fireback to retain heat and act as a radiator. Ours heated a four bedroom home comfortably even when the temp dipped into the 30's. Of course, gas water heaters are not affected by outages.
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Lewis Design-Build-Remodel
You never can be to prepared , thanks for sharing
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