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Which would you choose?

Let us assume for a moment, that the electricity grid fails, for a long time.

Suddenly, those wall outlets are delivering no voltage and thus, no current flows, no power is delivered.

The contents of your freezer start to thaw.

Your smartphone complains about having a low battery -- but there's no way to recharge it.

No Netfix, no Disney+ and, once the batteries discharge, not even any radio.

Cooking only becomes possible while the BBQ still has some gas left in it and the luxury of hot water becomes just a memory.

Before you say "this could never happen", remember the five week long Auckland power crisis back in 1998.

Anything that can happen, will happen (given enough time).

With this in mind, and considering how incredibly dependent we've become on having a regular flow of 240VAC out of our wall-sockets, what strategies do you have in place to cope should the inevitable happen again?

Be it a CME, a major earthquake, volcanic activity, a super-storm, terrorism or whatever, there's a small but non-zero chance that our electricity supply will be compromised or totally shut down at some time in the not-too-distant future so perhaps we should be prepared for that.

Those who have gone all green and now live off-grid or almost off-grid will be smiling smuggly at this point, safe in the knowledge that they've already got this contigency covered.

What about the rest of us?

The way I see it, there are two options...

The first, and cheapest option, is to buy one of those cheap ICE generator units that are now available for beans. These things have capacities anywhere from a few hundred watts right up to 4KW or more -- depending on how much you're prepared to pay.

On the face of it, these are a great choice. They can deliver more than enough power to run your freezer, provide lighting and even cooking facilities (if you don't mind microwaved pies with soggy crust). They're small and can provide almost instant electricity where and whenever you want or need it.

However, there are drawbacks.

These things require fuel. Most run on petrol but a few of the bigger ones are diesel. This requires that you keep sufficient fuel around to make them run. The problem with that is the fact that modern fuel only has a limited shelf-life so unless you refresh your stores on a regular basis you may find that when the shirt hits the fan, your generator refuses to run because the contents of your containers are stale or, in the case if diesel, maybe contaminated with bacteria.

It's also worth noting that many household insurance policies significantly restrict the amount of petrol or other flammable liquid you can store on your property, lest you void your cover.

The second option is to buy a bunch of solar panels, some batteries and an inverter.

This is a whole lot more spendy than a simple generator but it does promise to not require expensive fuels to be kept fresh and available. The sun will deliver power to your panels and they will charge the battery so that the inverter can deliver 240V to your house and its many appliances.

Sounds great... but...

With solar you are at the mercy of the weather. Should our big power outage occur in the depths of winter then you may not be able to capture enough energy to meet even your most basic of needs. All that valuable and essential food in the freezer will likely thaw and be wasted just when you need it most.

What's more, such a setup is unlikely to be very portable. If things really get bad and you have to relocate to another area, you can transport an ICE generator pretty easily but an array of solar panels and a hulking great battery pose more of a problem.

I guess the best solution might be not to rely so much on electricity at all. Keep plenty of dried or canned food in the cupboards, make sure you have a small solar system that will at least allow you to charge USB-style stuff such as your smartphone, LED lanterns/torches and radios. Make sure there are some good old-fashioned candles in a box somewhere (along with matches or a lighter of course) and keep the BBQ cylinder as close to full as you can (or get a spare that you keep full at all times).

If we had a repeat of the 1998 Auckland power outage near you, are you set up to cope for more than a month without electricity?

Perhaps it's time to prepare for the inevitable while you can.

Carpe Diem folks!

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