When the power goes out, the first 72 hours decide how the rest goes.
- Know exactly what to do in the first hour, the first 72 hours, the first week and the month after
- Tick-box checklists you can follow by flashlight, with the whole family
- Printed on paper: your phone will die. This book won’t.
Printed paperback · Free shipping · Delivery in 3–8 business days
Get my copyThe best time to read a blackout manual is while the lights are still on.
Why Ready Porch
Ready Porch makes preparedness guides for ordinary American homes, not bunkers. No wild gear, no tactical fantasy: just what to do, in what order, when the lights go off.
Family first
Written for people with jobs, kids and a normal house, including renters and apartments.
Plain writing
Big headings, short steps and tick-box checklists you can follow by flashlight.
Printed on paper
No battery, no signal, no login. The plan sits on your shelf next to the flashlight.
Start with the first 72 hours
Our first field manual. 17 chapters in three parts, plus printable checklists.
When the Power Goes Out
By former Navy SEAL Cole Hartley
Water, food, heat, light, medicine and security, in the order you’ll need them. Everything your household needs, with tick-box checklists for every day.
Free shipping · Delivery in 3–8 business days
See the bookYour family’s plan, in three stages
The plan for the first 72 hours, the first week, and beyond. The manual is built around time, so you always know what matters right now and what can wait.
Water. Light. Warmth. Lock it down.
- Water first: fill tubs and containers
- Keep the fridge and freezer closed
- Set up one room for light and warmth
- Radio on, phones on low power
- Check on family and neighbors
Settle into a routine.
- Switch to pantry meals and a cooking routine
- Treat water daily
- Set up a simple sanitation system
- Budget your power: what gets charged each day
- Keep a low profile at home
Ration. Preserve. Grow. Outlast it.
- A rationing plan for your pantry
- Preserve food without a fridge
- Collect rainwater and grow food
- Simple off-grid repairs and projects
- Routines that keep kids and family calm
Read it while the lights are on
Put it on the shelf next to the flashlight. Then when the dark comes, you won’t be guessing. You’ll be following the plan.
The difference is a book you read while the lights were still on.