Lessons learned from the ice storm.

[les45]

We just survived the recent ice storm here in South Carolina relatively unscathed. Two days without power and a bunch of limbs to clean up but no major damage to house or cars. I did learn a few things that I will pass on. One is teardrop related but the others are just common sense for what it's worth. In general, the fact that we had all our camping gear in one place in the TD really came in handy. The propane camp stove and LED lanterns and flashlights kept us in hot food and well lighted during the power outage. The one thing that I learned about my TD is the need for DC outlets to make better use of my deep cycle battery. We always go to campgrounds with AC power so I have always used my AC outlets for charging phones and iPads. I had never bothered to install DC outlets for these appliances. I had charged my battery before the ice storm but only in case we decided to sleep in it. After the first day without AC I decided to "jury rig" a DC outlet with some old parts that I had. I used a spare circuit on my PD4045 and a piece of extension cord to wire up an old outlet extension that kept our phones and iPad fully charged. They provided the only communication and entertainment that we had during the power outage. I've already ordered parts to install these outlets permanently in the TD.
A couple of other unique things that we picked up from folks on the radio included:
1. Use those little outdoor sidewalk solar lights indoors to help find your way around at night. Stick them back out in the daylight next day to re-charge.
2. Use the clean snow/ice accumulation on your deck to fill coolers. These can be used for storing perishables from your refrigerator or freezer if the power stays out long enough to cause the food in the fridge/freezer to start going bad.

[PKCSPT]

I have put freezables out side here in Mn when we lost power once, now those solar lights are a great idea. Guess it is time to get us some.

[Verna]

A lesson I learned during my two day power outage in January: take a plastic 1/2 gallon or gallon jug, cut a hole in the side and slide a battery operated tea light inside. It's a wonderful nightlight that isn't so bright that it jolts you awake at night. Safer thru the night than candles, too.

[mary and bob]

I charge phones and iPad in one of our vehicles, then if needed I can run the engine to charge the battery. Not pulling down the camper battery that way.

[rowerwet]

some friends were traveling and ended up heading into the area where the ice storms hit, after finding all the motels full they back tracked until they found an open one. With holes in the walls, tv cables that had to be jiggled to get a picture, and floors and chairs with burn holes, they slept with the lights on to keep the bed bugs away. Much better to have a bedroom clean and ready, hitched to the car or sitting in the driveway