11 hurricane household hacks that would make MacGyver proud

[FM123]

(SunSentinel) A hurricane is coming and at some point, as the winds rage, you’ll likely be out of power, water, food or all three. And, of course, the dog has to pee! Never fear. These handy hurricane hacks will get you through the storm and make MacGyver proud.

1. Penny trick: This is especially helpful if you evacuate. Freeze a cup of water and then put a penny on top. Stash it in the freezer. If the power goes out long enough for the ice to melt, the penny will be on the bottom, signaling that those frozen goods are spoiled and must be trashed. Upside: Clean freezer!

2. Charge your smartphone with a battery: You need 9-volt batteries, a charging cord, a cigarette-lighter type charger, a spring from a ball-point pen and tape.

3. Make a lantern: Sitting in the dark sucks. Strap a headlamp to a gallon of water to light the room with a soft glow.

4. Make hot water: If the power’s off and there’s no hot water, leave a garden hose filled with water out in the sun. Voila! Be careful, the water is super hot!

5. Freeze zip-seal bags: Fill zip-seal freezer bags from the tap about 3/4 full, seal them well and lay them flat in the freezer. They can then be used to keep food cold if the power goes out and double as drinking water.

6. Royal flush. Use pool water to fill up the toilet tank and flush. No pool? Buy or use a clean 30-gallon garbage can. Set it up on the patio near a door. Don’t worry. It won’t blow away because one gallon weighs 8.34 pounds. Line the can with a heavy-duty garbage bag and fill it up with the hose. Put the lid on.

7. Use the washer as a cooler: Right before the storm hits, fill the washing machine tub with ice and beverages. No mess!

8. Store documents in the dishwasher. Put important papers and treasured photos in plastic bags and store them in the dishwasher for safe keeping.

9. Buy a power inverter: Can’t afford an expensive portable generator? An inverter costs about $30 at home improvement stores. They hook up to the car battery and create AC power. You know, to run the coffee maker.

10. Uh oh, gotta go: If Fido or Fifi is freaked out during the storm or can’t go out because of high winds (don’t do it!), line a kiddie pool with sod to create a place for him to do his business.

11. Let there be light: Use the flashlight on your smartphone or buy battery-operated LED light bars. They last a lot longer than regular flashlights.

Link to videos with directions:
https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/weather/hurricane/fl-fea-hurricane-household-hacks-20190829-om4pwsdi4bhb5khfqdy54h2mem-story.html

(Good luck my fellow DU Floridians)

[NCjack]

1. Good MacGyver list. One caution about

#4. Make hot water. The inside of a garden hose is not sterile, and that water should be regarded as unsafe for drinking.

[NightWatcher]

2. 8. Has been debunked and should not be done.

[Baitball Blogger]

3. What I regret the most is not buying a solar powered battery charger for my I-Phone.

[Leith]

4. Here's another helpful hint

If your water didn't last as long as you thought, use the water in the water heater. That will give you 30 or 40 gallons (depending on its size). It has a drain spout near the bottom.

[CaptainTruth]

8. Great idea. Just make sure you turn off the cold water supply valve & the gas.

If there's a water line break you don't want polluted water flowing into the tank.

And most importantly, TURN OFF THE GAS OR ELECTRIC TO THE TANK. There's a gas valve on the flexible gas supply line to the tank. There should be circuit breakers in your service panel for an electric water heater. If you drain the tank down so it's just partly full of water & the gas/electric heaters continue to run it could build up steam pressure & explode or do other damage to your plumbing.

[AllaN01Bear]

5. get a 2 way radio. ie walkie talkie ,cb there are other freqencies that dont need licenseses .

make sure you have your meds and a list of meds if and when evacuated .

[Duppers]

6. These are fantastic.

Here on the mid-Atlantic coast, we've endured 2 hurricanes, one of which was a doozie. Wish we'd thought all of these. (Some we did.) Due to all the trees in our neighborhood coming down we were without electricity for almost 2 weeks & house-bound 5 days...in the heat. It was horrible.

A couple of good things in our favor was that we have gas, so we had hot water to bathe and I could cook. Gas couldn't power our A/C unfortunately. And we filled 2 bath tubs with water to flush our toilets.

THANKS for posting these, FM123.

[Staph]

7. I've read a slightly different version of number 1.

Fill the glass half full and freeze it. Then add the penny (or whatever coin!), top the glass off and freeze. When the power returns, so long as the coin is above halfway up the glass, your frozen foods should be okay.