How do you stay warm during a power outage without heat?

Close off one room, gather everyone and any pets into it, and keep the doors shut to trap body heat. Dress in loose layers, wear a hat, and stay off the cold floor with blankets or a sleeping bag. Use only safe heat sources — never a gas stove, oven, or charcoal grill. The National Weather Service notes that about half of people who die from hypothermia are over the age of 60, so check on older relatives and neighbors.

Is it safe to run a generator or gas stove indoors during an outage?

No. Never run a portable generator, camp stove, charcoal grill, or gas stove or oven indoors, in a garage, or near an open window to heat your home or cook. They release carbon monoxide, an odorless gas that kills. Run generators outdoors only, at least 20 feet from windows and doors. The CDC reports more than 400 Americans die each year from unintentional carbon monoxide poisoning, and the CPSC attributes about 100 of those deaths a year to portable generators — most of them during the September-to-April heating season.

How long does food stay safe in the fridge and freezer during a power outage?

Keep the doors closed. An unopened refrigerator holds a safe temperature for about 4 hours; a full freezer holds for about 48 hours, or 24 hours if it is half full. After that, throw out any perishable food — meat, poultry, eggs, and leftovers — that has been above 40°F for two hours or more. Food may be refrozen only if it still has ice crystals or is at 40°F or below. When in doubt, throw it out — tasting it will not tell you if it is unsafe.

How much water do you need for a winter power outage?

Store at least one gallon of water per person per day for a minimum of three days, per Ready.gov. Cold weather does not lower that need — heaters, extra layers, and physical exertion like shoveling still dehydrate you. Fill extra jugs and your bathtub before a forecast storm in case the power outage also disrupts your water supply or your pipes freeze.

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Winter Storm

Winter Storm & Power Outage Emergency Kit

Q: What should be in a winter storm emergency kit?

Build around three jobs: staying warm, staying powered, and staying fed. Stock warm blankets or cold-rated sleeping bags, hats, gloves and layered clothing; flashlights with spare batteries (not candles); a battery or hand-crank NOAA Weather Radio; a power bank; at least three days of water at one gallon per person per day; no-cook food with a manual can opener; a 7-day supply of medications; and a carbon monoxide detector with battery backup. Ready.gov recommends one gallon of water per person per day.

A winter storm can cut heat and power for days. Here's exactly what to stock — and the invisible mistake that kills about 100 people every year.

By ReadyAF Team · July 22, 2026 · 9 min read

Key takeaways

Prepare for the outage, not just the snow. The National Weather Service calls winter storms "deceptive killers" because most deaths are indirect — hypothermia, carbon monoxide poisoning, and crashes on ice, not the storm itself (NWS).
Carbon monoxide is the deadliest winter mistake. Never heat your home with a gas stove, oven, or grill, and run generators outdoors only, at least 20 feet from windows (Ready.gov). The CPSC ties about 100 deaths a year to portable-generator carbon monoxide poisoning alone.
Water still matters in the cold: one gallon per person per day, three days minimum (Ready.gov).
Keep the fridge and freezer shut. A closed fridge stays safe ~4 hours; a full freezer ~48 hours (FDA).
Stay warm in one room, layered, off the floor. About half of hypothermia deaths are people over 60 (NWS).

When a winter storm knocks out the power, the danger isn't only the cold outside — it's the next two or three days inside a house with no heat, no lights, and a fridge slowly warming up. A winter storm emergency kit exists to carry your household through that outage safely. This guide covers exactly what to put in a winter emergency kit, how to stay warm during a power outage without poisoning your family, and the winter power outage checklist to run before the first hard freeze.

What should be in a winter storm emergency kit?

Build your kit around three jobs: staying warm, staying powered and informed, and staying fed and hydrated. Keep it together in one place everyone knows, not scattered across the house you'll be navigating in the dark.

Stay warm

Extra blankets and a cold-rated sleeping bag for each person.
Hats, gloves, wool socks, and layered clothing — you lose most heat when you're still and underdressed.
Hand and foot warmers, and a foam pad or spare blanket to sit on so you're not losing heat to a cold floor.

Stay powered and informed

Flashlights and headlamps with spare batteries — not candles. Open flames cause house fires during outages, and they're worse near any gas leak.
A battery-powered or hand-crank NOAA Weather Radio so you get warnings and "all clear" updates even when the cell network is down.
A charged power bank for phones, plus car chargers as backup.
A carbon monoxide detector with battery backup — see the next section for why this is non-negotiable.

Stay fed and hydrated

Water: at least one gallon per person per day for three days (Ready.gov). Fill extra jugs before a forecast storm.
No-cook food for several days — canned goods, peanut butter, crackers, dried fruit — and a manual can opener.
A 7-day supply of medications and a basic first-aid kit.

For city-specific timing and local warming-center resources, see your metro's guide: Buffalo (lake-effect snow), Boston (nor'easters), Chicago (polar-vortex cold), and Minneapolis (extreme cold and blizzards).

How do you stay warm during a power outage?

You don't heat the whole house — you heat the people.

Pick one room and close it off. An interior room away from big windows holds heat best. Move everyone, including pets, into it and keep the door shut to trap body heat.
Layer up and stay off the floor. Loose layers trap warm air better than one bulky coat. Wear a hat indoors, and put a blanket or foam pad between you and cold tile or concrete.
Insulate the windows. Blankets or towels over windows and under door gaps slow the heat loss.
Check on the vulnerable. The National Weather Service reports that about half of hypothermia deaths are people over 60 (NWS). If you have older relatives or neighbors, check on them early — hypothermia can set in indoors during a long outage.

Is it safe to run a generator or gas stove during a power outage?

This is the section that saves lives, so read it even if you skip the rest.

Never run a portable generator, camp stove, charcoal grill, or your gas stove or oven indoors, in a garage, or near an open window — not to heat, not to cook. They give off carbon monoxide (CO), a gas you cannot see or smell that kills people while they sleep. Using a gas oven to heat a home also raises the risk of fire (Ready.gov).

The numbers are stark, and they cluster in exactly the months you'd use these things:

The CDC reports that more than 400 Americans die every year from unintentional, non-fire carbon monoxide poisoning.
The CPSC attributes about 100 of those deaths a year to portable generators, and finds that 84% of consumer-product CO deaths happen between September and April — driven by heating during cold weather and outages.

Do this instead:

Run generators outdoors only, at least 20 feet from any window, door, or vent, with the exhaust pointed away from the house (Ready.gov).
Install carbon monoxide detectors with battery backup on every level of your home. In an outage, a battery CO alarm is the only thing that will warn you.
Heat with rated equipment only — never improvise a heater from a cooking appliance.

How long will your food stay safe?

Keep the refrigerator and freezer closed and food stays safe far longer than you'd guess. Per the FDA (FDA):

A refrigerator holds a safe temperature for about 4 hours if you don't open it.
A full freezer holds for about 48 hours — 24 hours if it's half full.

After the outage: throw out perishable food (meat, poultry, eggs, leftovers) that sat above 40°F for 2 hours or more. You can refreeze food only if it still has ice crystals or is at 40°F or below. When in doubt, throw it out — harmful bacteria don't change how food tastes or smells, so a taste test won't protect you. In deep winter, a cooler on a shaded porch or packed with snow can buy your fridge more time.

Before the storm hits: a winter power outage checklist

Winter storms are usually forecast days out. Use that lead time:

Charge everything — phones, power banks, laptops, and any medical devices.
Fill water containers and the bathtub in case the outage disrupts your water or your pipes freeze.
Fill the car's gas tank (pumps need power) and stock a winter car kit — blanket, flashlight, snacks, and a phone charger.
Protect your pipes. Let a faucet drip and open cabinet doors under sinks so warm air reaches the plumbing.
Refill prescriptions before the storm so you're not caught short for a week.
Check on older relatives and neighbors so no one rides out the cold alone.

Winter is the one hazard where the emergency often starts when the storm ends and the power is still out. A kit that keeps you warm, lit, hydrated, and safe from carbon monoxide is what turns a multi-day outage from a crisis into an inconvenience. Browse all of our city emergency kit guides for local risks, and don't miss the 5 critical items most people forget.

Not sure how exposed your area is to winter storms and outages? Take our free 2-minute risk assessment — it maps your address to local hazards and shows you exactly what to prioritize in your kit.