Flashaholics day - and always have a corded phone!!!!

Today turned into a day flashaholics plan for. This morning at 6Am my area had a brownout, something, not sure what woke me up so I used my Rock River AAA by the bedside to walk around and figure out what was up, and to turn off the breakers to the furnace and fridge. Then I used my Guide Gear LED lantern to dress by. Then I used my Inova X03 to go out to my truck and clean it in the blizzard like conditions (thank god for strong flashlights and 4 Wheel drive) and used it to wade thru the snow to my sister and my in-laws houses to warn them, since they both only have a cordless phone which was useless.

Then when I got home I used the Guide Gear lantern to make some coffee and rolls in the oven for breakfast while my wife slept.

When I discovered my hot water heater pilot light was out also, I used my Brinkman headlamp to crawl in the closet and relight it. This afternoon till the power came back on I used my Jeep Lantern/tv/radio to listen to music.

All in all a day made much easier by a few good lights, oh I also dropped off a RR AA to my sister since she let the batteries die in her Mini Guide Gear lanterns and Minimags I gave her for emergency uses.

I sure enjoyed your post, Lee1959.

Yes, having a phone that doesn't require a wall wart is a simple necessity that can make a power outage easier to deal with.

Your description of taking care of your people was good to read. I think my favorite part was making coffee and rolls while your better half slept.

Uhh... I recently switched to Vonage (VoIP phone service) and it's dependant on my cable internet, which requires power... *shrug*

Chances are the cable company's plant will have power but your router won't during an outage. Do you have a UPS?.

PhotonWrangler said:

Chances are the cable company's plant will have power but your router won't during an outage. Do you have a UPS?.

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Nope. May get one, though.

What a guy!

You're absolutely right about cordless phones; totally useless in a power outage. And if the cell system is down...

Thanks for the reminder. I've been meaning to score an old corded phone since Katrina, but simply forgot about it.

Can you still even BUY one?

many people also have cell phones - which are great for power outages (if they are charged - or have a car charger). I also have VOIP, and have had to use the cell phone a couple of times to report power outages.

I have a wired phone downstairs.
Always ready!

For all of it's warts, there's still something to be said for POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service).

Way to go on your experience Lee1959!

Land line huh? . . .

I just plug my cordless phone into my UPS..... as long as the computer isn't on, it will have plenty of power for a few important calls.

Someone correct me if I am wrong, but even if you dropped your regular phone service, as long as the lines are still connected to your home and you have jacks, you can plug in a corded phone and call 911 if your area is equippped with a 911 service.
I have the cordless phone, and cell phone, but for plain old KISS simple my life depends on it, give me an old fashioned corded phone any day... sorta like my 1911 Colt... old and reliable. As a matter of fact, by my bedside there sits both the corded phone and my cell phone, just in case.

Thank you Icebreak, I have taken over the household completly since my wife was diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma and is getting Chemotherpy. She does not want to give up her nursing job on the afternoon shift, she loves the work, but it tires her out a lot. I work out of our home anyways, so when she is home, she rests.

Good Point!
You could also make sure you buy cordless phones that have a battery backup in the base. Two of mine have batteries in the base. I also have a Harris Butt set that I can plug into a any phone jack or use the bed of nails clips to connect to any interface box.

Lee1959 said:

Someone correct me if I am wrong, but even if you dropped your regular phone service, as long as the lines are still connected to your home and you have jacks, you can plug in a corded phone and call 911 if your area is equippped with a 911 service.

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That will only work if you still have line voltage to the jacks or junction/interface box.

I think you might be thinking of deactivated cell phones. You won't generally have a dial tone (nor a phone circuit) when phone service is disconnected to a residence.

Lee1959 said:

Someone correct me if I am wrong, but even if you dropped your regular phone service, as long as the lines are still connected to your home and you have jacks, you can plug in a corded phone and call 911 if your area is equippped with a 911 service.

Click to expand...

Steve C said:

You're absolutely right about cordless phones; totally useless in a power outage. And if the cell system is down...

Thanks for the reminder. I've been meaning to score an old corded phone since Katrina, but simply forgot about it.

Can you still even BUY one?

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Yes they are still fairly common and quite cheap. Wal-Mart carries them and the last one I bought even has a speaker-phone on it.
If not you can usually find them at a thrift shop.

Lee1959 said:

...since my wife was diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma and is getting Chemotherpy.

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Lee,
I wish you and your wife all the best, you'll be in our thoughts and prayers.
Blazer

Oh! I thought this topic was about the official National Flashlight Day/Night.


Anyone know what day it is or if we even have one? If not how do we go about making it truly official?

CroMAGnet said:

Oh! I thought this topic was about the official National Flashlight Day/Night.

Anyone know what day it is or if we even have one? If not how do we go about making it truly official?

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WE have one, but I don't remember the date. I think it was back in Dec.
Edit: It was Dec. 21