4 Ways to Heat Your House Without Electricity

  1. Wood stove or portable heater
  2. Designate a warm room
  3. Pitch a tent or make a fort
  4. Heat a room for pennies a day

[Ed. Note: Here at the Daily Reckoning, we strive to bring you a unique and entertaining view of the world of finance. But we also realize that there’s more to this world than money. After all… what good is money if you don’t know how to enjoy it? So as part of our ongoing “Tip of the Day” series — brought to you by our friends at Laissez Faire Today — we’re proud to share this little actionable tip on living a happier, healthier and more enjoyable life than you ever thought possible. Enjoy!]

There’s nothing that will halt your normal day-to-day life more than a power outage in the dead of winter.

An extended winter power outage is, for me at least, the stuff of nightmares.

Without power, you lose the primary way you heat your house, and, in most cases, you also lose your water supply.

Luckily, there are other ways to heat your house without using electricity. And, believe it or not, preparation is fairly simple.

It’s important to stock up on the obvious things: plastic window sealers, lots and lots of blankets and quilts, insulating pipe wrap, batteries (lots of batteries), water, canned goods, board games, etc.

Once you’re in the clear as far as supplies go, here are four things you can do to heat your house and stay warmer this winter…

1. Wood stove or portable heater:

If you don’t have one yet, it’s a good investment. You may be able to find a cheap, used one. It’s better than nothing. If you use either, just make sure you have proper ventilation in each room you’re using them in. Also, a battery-powered carbon monoxide detector wouldn’t hurt either.

2. Designate a warm room:

In the event of a winter blackout, pick the smallest room in your home and cover the walls and windows in blankets, towels, curtains, space blankets… whatever you have. Keeping that room warm will be much easier than trying to heat your house in its entirety.

3. Pitch a tent or make a fort:

A small tent or fort in your warm room will capture body heat and help you and your family stay warm.

4. Heat a room for pennies a day:

If you don’t have a wood stove or portable heat, here’s an interesting option: With just a few tealights, a small metal bread pan, and two flower pots, you can heat a room for an entire day.

I plan on making one of these just to test it out. If you do it right, they actually look pretty cool.

More on how it works in future tips.

To learn how to make your own, check out this video:

Regards,

Chris Campbell
for The Daily Reckoning

P.S. Don’t let Capitol Hill outlaw this book BEFORE you see it! Let our team of team show you how to legally and ethically find loopholes in the system… and claim many of Congress’ own benefits WITHOUT having to steal taxpayer money, WITHOUT having to take bribes and WITHOUT pissing anyone off. Click HERE to learn how to uncover benefits.

The Daily Reckoning