What arrangements have you made for cooking should the energy be turned off?

I am not making any arrangements. IF.......and it is still a very big IF, I get a three hour outage, I think I can manage to survive without having to worry about no 'hot food'!!!

Assuming we have notice of these outage (should they occur - (and will probably not), I may consider filling a jug flask with hot water, but that will be all.

THREE HOURS!!!! -honestly folk - are you going out and spending money on purchasing camping cooking items for that sort of outage time???? I will save that money and use it for keeping my flat nice and warm the rest of the time.

I have ordered another flask, the latest models from thermos are very good indeed. Prices are already up 60% on amazon since I bought the last one in august. Cheaper from the thermos site with free p and p for tea.

For three days I have been experimenting: boiling a very full kettle and filling 900 and 470ml flasks and a mug. It is definitely saving money and is actually much more convenient and very hot to the last drop. Enough for my hot drinks all day. I cannot be accurate on energy savings but I am thinking 20-30p a day and it all adds up, £9 a month on my (cheaper) fixed rate

Just watching the news, those poor people in the Ukraine don't have any electricity at all.

Fleurpepper

To be fair, my response was not linked to any worked-out plan on my/our behalf, just to the thread title. Just thought of another trick- like most of us who got married in the 70s- still got 2 fondue pots, with methylated spirit! Could re-heat stuff on there lol!

I wish I had. That's a good idea. Haven't they come back into fashion?

I haven't really been thinking about it all, but now I will be going shopping for a flask.

To be fair, my response was not linked to any worked-out plan on my/our behalf, just to the thread title. Just thought of another trick- like most of us who got married in the 70s- still got 2 fondue pots, with methylated spirit! Could re-heat stuff on there lol!

It is good that there are plans made, DaisyAnne but of course if it does have to be done they will still have to implement the plans. As you say, it is by no means "only 3 hours" It is "3 hours at a time"

Even at the minimal Level One, everyone would have at least three of those three-hour blocks in a week, and some would have four. Some people would have two separate blocks on the same day, and another block on another day.

At level three almost everyone would have three blocks on each of two days, (sometimes consecutive days) plus other single blocks. And so on.

They will have problems getting this through to everyone - and there are detailed plans for up to eighteen levels! Let us hope it doesn't come to that!

All those people who say they are doing nothing to prepare are going to be rushing round like blue-arsed flies if the worst comes to the worst. Will they be relying on their neighbours for help?

Thank you, Elegran. That's well worth reading.

In my opinion, and it can be nothing more, I think the country would go along with 1 - 5. However, if you were getting towards the last five, I think there would be questions. Why, for instance, would we have reached the equivalent situation that Ukraine has with their energy bombed out of existence by Russia?

I am glad they have planned. I hope it will not become so extreme and doubt that it will. However, I can see anger and civil unrest if we had to increase and go further up the scale. I imagine this would come from those who would express surprise that it's not "only 3 hours", as it certainly isn't after the first few levels.

I hope this negligent government has some excellent organisational behaviour bods on board to persuade the currently "it's only 3 hours" not to mind. I also hope they have people already working on it not being needed - but I will believe it when I see it. I trust those who know how to do these things; I do not trust the government.

We all hope it won't come to that. However, there is nothing wrong with being prepared and nothing right about ignoring the possibilities.

Surely with notice of a planned 3 hours without electricity, you could eat before, after or have a sandwich.

karmalady

teacheranne there is a neck reading light on amazon which is LED and will last 80 hours. I bought one early last summer, to crochet by. It does work for crochet and knitting or sitting reading in bed and is comfortable. £16.99

re cooking: 3 hours 4-7 will not mean emergency measures for me, I have some cuppasoups and they will do. Any longer then I can cook easily and safely on my trangia, using meths, which I have already prepped for and bought in

Thank you, I’ll have a look for one, I’d not heard of them before.

BlueBelle

I haven’t got the brain power to worry about this to be honest if gas and electric are blacked out at the same time (extremely unlikely) I ll eat cold food
I honestly couldn’t care less people are living underground in Ukraine and my family managed in the war I managed in the 70 s with 3 small kids and I ll manage again
It isn’t worth a minutes worry it’s not happened it may not happen just live for now

My new cooker works with manual lighting espee so think you were told wrong

I’m with you. Far too much overthinking.
Its only 3 hrs

Thank you Elegran, I have found mine.

scheduling

Here is a link to the actual plan for sceduling powercuts, should they become necessary.
assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/995049/esec-guidance.pdf
You can find out what reference letter your house comes under from your power bill. It will be " a letter, often boxed, located near the top. Note that not every energy supplier will include your load block on your energy bills, so if this is the case you will need to contact them directly to find out." When you have this, look in the rota tables.

I'm not a diary keeper or planner, all alien to me. However, we always have more than enough food on the shelves to cook anything we'd want to eat.

We have a gas hob, log burner, BBQ. We'll be fine. The phone power banks are confusing, but I suppose I don't care enough to figure it out. I took a look at amazon, it made no sense.

Thank you for the link Casdon. It used to be a British characteristic to "be prepared". It will be good if we are moving back to it. This sounds as if at least some of them are moving back to it.

I can't see a link to the actual plan though.

Thanks Razzamatazz I suppose I really should get a new Hottie.
M0nica, all my jam jars are full of Marmalade at the moment. ?

Being rural, we are all electric, no gas. Shall fill flask if given notice but no way of heating.

I'll cope for a few hours eating biscuits, cheese etc. I have a couple of charged up torches and lots of warm dressing gowns and duvets if it's cold. If I get enough warning I'll have something hot to eat and make a flask of coffee. I just went to Ikea and bought lots of candles.
I've lived in India where power cuts are very common, without any notice. Mind you it's warm there.

We would probably have tuna sandwiches, tinned sardines or mackerel with tomatoes, cucumber etc, rolls or bread and butter, sausage rolls etc. Tinned potatoes are ok cold. Fruit juice, squash or water. It would be fine.

We had a week without any electricity owing to storm damage. We burnt wood for heating and cooked on the BBQ. There was no hot water, either, so we went to my daughter’s for showers. Lots of candles for lighting. The fridge and freezers were off, of course, so we lost all the food and they gave us $200 compensation ( about half of the amount lost but we didn’t complain ).

I haven't given it a thought.

My semi is 1960 and has a proper chimney. There is a gas flue going up the chimney but I guess the open fire could be reinstated. Is this feasible?

I read a tip somewhere about power cut prep, put some milk into the portable ice box to avoid opening the fridge. When I boil the kettle I always put the water into a big thermos anyway.

I'd get a new hot water bottle Auntieflo, a friend's has recently split soaking her mattress. Some of mine must be at least twenty years old, I'm replacing them.

There’s a really good article here which describes exactly how power cuts might affect us, summarising the National Grid plans. We are being drip fed information, I think that means that they think that it’s more likely it will happen than it won’t - and there’s certainly no harm in being prepared anyway.
www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/read-this/uk-blackouts-the-exact-times-your-house-could-face-hours-of-power-cuts-this-winter-amid-energy-crisis-3888951