Best Home Emergency Kit (2023): Flashlights, Stoves, Chargers, and More

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If you are using alkaline batteries, please remove them from the flashlight if it is not going to be used for a long time, otherwise they will leak and cause trouble. Store them near the flashlight so you can find them easily. Try gluing the batteries to the barrel of the flashlight.

Pro Tip: The best-performing flashlights are specifically designed to use lithium-ion batteries or have non-removable rechargeable batteries, which won’t do you any good if the power is out for a long time. AA rechargeable Nickel-Metal Hydride (NiMH) batteries maintain their performance best over the life of the battery, while alkaline performance declines more as they are depleted, so buy a few. Panasonic Eneloops for $41. They are better for the environment, but if they run out you can still use regular alkaline AAs.

You may prefer to have a headlamp on hand. He Petzl Actik for $40 It is my favorite model and it has never let me down, from snowy mountains to dusty deserts. It runs on three easy-to-find AAA batteries and has three brightness settings, the brightest of which is powerful enough for home emergencies.

a flashlight

Coleman discontinued our previous favorite pick, the Divide+ Push Lantern, so the Coleman 4D LED Camp Lantern for $19 It is the next best option for not spending a lot of money. Flashlights work poorly when you need to light up an entire room or need to keep your hands free for a task. This entry-level flashlight offers a unique 54-lumen setting, with a 175-hour runtime on four D-cell batteries. Sounds like a lot, but next to other full-size battery-powered flashlights, like the Coleman Twin LED Flashlight that uses eight cells D, it is economical. Fifty-four lumens isn’t what I’d call bright, but it’s bright enough for most tasks, including reading, while conserving battery life.

If you want to save batteries or just prefer to hang out by candlelight, keep a spare emergency candle or two. He Coghlan’s 36 Hour Survival Candle for $10 It has three wicks that will last 12 hours each. Keep a lighter or some matches nearby.

a water purifier

Most of the time, your water supply will work even when the power goes out. But big natural disasters can destroy or damage it, and you may get dirty water. He LifeStraw Go Series Water Purifying Bottle for $45 marries the straw component of the LifeStraw Personal Water Filter with a BPA-free plastic bottle to filter 99.99% of waterborne bacteria for up to 26 gallons of water. The original bottleless straw is still a good backup option for $17 and will filter up to 1,000 gallons.

Our top pick above, the Grayl Ultralight Compact Purifying Bottle for $81, It remains an excellent and dependable choice. It is expensive. Still, it’s a solid, fast one-person filter that will last 300 uses, a total of 40 gallons, before you need to change the filter. It is what I rely on when traveling to countries with no guarantee of safe water.