Ice Storm Coming!
By Ali Canary
@AliCanary (4017)
January 23, 2026 9:36pm CST
We're trying to prepare for the big ice storm that is expected to come this weekend. We don't have to go anywhere, so that's fine, but it's likely our power is going to go out, and that is *not* fine, especially since it is expected to be 6 degrees on Monday night.
We have candles and plenty of non-perishable food, and we're planning to have all of our devices charged. Even though we have a gas furnace, it won't work if the power goes out because the fan won't work. However, we're lucky to have a gas water heater, so if we get too cold, we can take a hot shower or bath to warm up our core temperature, and we can fill empty bottles with hot water to make a foot warmer (and a cat warmer, too, which Sophie will appreciate).
We also made sure to fill up the cars on gasoline so that even if we can't drive anywhere, we can sit in the driveway and blast the heat, listen to music, and recharge our phones.
Do you have any tips or suggestions to make it through a winter power outage?
Picture is one I took of ice on our Japanese maple tree. It's kind of weird to see the green grass, but around here, you don't need snow to get ice.
11 people like this
9 responses
@DianneN (252463)
• United States
25 Jan
Thank goodness you are prepared. Even though we have a generator, which is wonderful, we aren’t in CT to start it. Time to invest in a whole house generator that kicks on automatically. Hopefully, my son will get to my house before the pipes freeze and burst. That’s what happens when I am in Florida avoiding the cold and snow. Stay warm and safe!
2 people like this
@DianneN (252463)
• United States
25 Jan
@AliCanary Both of my sons have them. Wish my husband wasn’t so cheap and paid more for one. Hope your power stays on!
1 person likes this
@AliCanary (4017)
•
25 Jan
Our neighbor has a whole-house generator, and I can always tell the power's gone out in the morning, because I can hear it kick on immediately.
1 person likes this
@Ineeddentures (26196)
•
24 Jan
You have the cat warmer, Sophie will be pleased.
Filling up the cars was a good move.
Sitting in the driveway blasting the heating is also a good idea,
And recharging the phones whilst listening to music would be great.
Do I have any tips?
Not really. You have covered it all quite well
1 person likes this
@AliCanary (4017)
•
24 Jan
Thanks! Are you in an area that is affected by winter storms?
1 person likes this
@Ineeddentures (26196)
•
24 Jan
@AliCanary
We get the odd storm here in Scotland.
But nothing like the stuff that's coming your way
1 person likes this
@AliCanary (4017)
•
25 Jan
@Ineeddentures I feel really lucky because the power is still on, as of now. I think the worst part went north of us. It's on a lunch break right now, apparently, but there is supposed to be more to come until 8pm.
1 person likes this
@JESSY3236 (21861)
• United States
27 Jan
cool picture. We didn't lose power during the storm, but we had candles and flashlights. We also had powered up our phones. Everything we have is electric so everything will go out if we lose power. We have 4 cats so we have plenty of cat warmers. lol We had a little bit of snow, sleet, and ice.
1 person likes this
@AliCanary (4017)
•
28 Jan
Same here. There's seen some melt and refreeze over the last couple of days, but I'm hoping things will be pretty clear tomorrow when I go to my job interview.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (218163)
• United States
24 Jan
I think you've covered all the bases. Fortunately I have a standby generator. Stay safe and warm.
1 person likes this
@AliCanary (4017)
•
25 Jan
A generator is great! I guess we were planning to use our car as a generator, lol. Luckily, the power is still on, but there's still a chance for more precipitation.
1 person likes this
@AliCanary (4017)
•
26 Jan
@LindaOHio I'm in North Carolina. We do get snow, but nothing like up there. Hope you're doing well!
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (218163)
• United States
26 Jan
@AliCanary We are going to get some lake effect s**w today. All tolled we have about a foot. What state are you in?
Stay safe and warm.
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (56841)
•
24 Jan
It sounds like you have done your homework to be ready for the storm.
One thing I also do if I am worried the power will go out is fill my two thermos containters with boiling water, and my airpot (which is older than dirt, but works!) with hot coffee. When it's cold, we want hot water for tea and we want our coffee...I keep a few packets of those just add boiling water soups in the pantry for times with no power, and a need of something hot to eat. Oh, and candles.
1 person likes this
@AliCanary (4017)
•
24 Jan
I'm hoping we can get our running water hot enough to make fairly decent tea. I also have instant oatmeal that just needs water, and I can add a packet of trail mix with nuts and dried fruits to it, so that makes a good, filling meal.
1 person likes this
@AliCanary (4017)
•
25 Jan
@MarieCoyle my parents bought me a hand-crank radio many years ago, but I'm not sure if it still works (or where it is). It's kinda neat to be able to make electricity, though!
1 person likes this
@MarieCoyle (56841)
•
26 Jan
@AliCanary This is a weather radio. Only a few years old, the hand crank is used if the lithium battery gets totally drained. We have never had to use the hand crank yet, but it's nice to know it's there if we need it!
1 person likes this
@changjiangzhibin89 (17194)
• China
24 Jan
Glad that You have braced yourself for the ice storm and power cut.There was a little snow here the other day.We hardly get power cut.
@JudyEv (376575)
• Rockingham, Australia
24 Jan
These are really quite dire times for you. I hope you won't need to employ such extreme measures.
