Whether you think 2012 will be "just" an economic collapse or "the end of the world as we know it" (TEOTWAWKI) as some fear, you need to have an emergency plan for lighting when the power grid goes down. Perhaps it will be gone altogether or maybe it will just become less reliable, but either way, candles will not cut it in 2012.
Gas Powered Backup Generators Only Help So Much
As brownouts and blackouts have affected more and more people across the nation, there seems to be an increase in the number of people who have emergency backup generators. While this is a good thing, the emergencies won't always be a temporary outage due to weather.
What happens when the power outage is widespread and lasts for days or even weeks? The fuel to run the generator won't be available at gas stations, which require electricity to pump the gas. The gas in your generator and the extra fuel can you have for your lawn mower will be used up within a day or two. Then it will be time for "Plan C."
When the Gas Runs Out
Let's think of the first two days of a power grid failure as 'short term.' Then let's turn our attention to "medium term' - which we would define as between 3 to 14 days. It's a good bet that you have enough candles on hand to light your house for more than a couple days, and besides, they are dangerous if you have kids or pets and not very portable to help you go to the bathroom and do your chores.
The best route for medium term lighting is to use LED flashlights and headlamps. These will last you up to two weeks on the same batteries. They are safe, economical and very portable. Headlamps, which may not win you any fashion awards on any other day, will be a game changer if you are trying to get around in the dark and get anything done. They aren't just for coal miners - backpackers swear by headlamps.
You'll get some great ideas on which LED lights to buy, how to determine the best batteries to use in them, etc. in any good, practical urban survival manual. There are several aspects of lighting and power that most of us will never even think of until after we've been through an extended power failure for ourselves. Learning from the experience of others who've written urban survival manuals is a great way to avoid a very painful learning curve.
What Do We Do For Longer Term Lighting?
If the power is out for a longer period of time, the most practical solution is a small, inexpensive solar panel setup. For a hundred dollars or less, you can get enough light from a solar setup to light an entire room of your house.
The type of lights you need to have is definitely LED, as these bulbs last for ages and they don't use nearly as much power for the same amount of light as incandescent or florescent lights. A very cheap LED rope light will produce a good amount of light and can run off the solar power stored by a small panel for the entire evening until you go to bed. More light than a 100 watt bulb for less power.
There are many skills, which we refer to as "urban survival techniques" to get good at before a major collapse happens. Ensuring your food supply, drinking water and lighting are only three of the skills that will make a major difference in 2012.
To learn about all of the urban survival techniques you will need to get by the tough times ahead, you should consult a practical urban survival manual. You may be surprised at how little preparation it takes to give yourself a great deal of peace of mind.
By Mike Kuykendall, Urban Survival Techniques Expert at Survive2day.
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