We have the canned goods, the dry goods, the water filter, the ammo, an emergency trunk filled with everything you can think of—drugs, first aid, lanterns, etc.
But I’m sitting here in the dark for hours after a transformer blew in our small village. Totally failed our dry run. I can’t get the lanterns working. Our batteries seem corrupted and I don’t have the right kind of batteries in some instances. And I need a lantern that uses another kind of energy too.
Big fail! I’m off to Home Depot when the lights come on to truly get prepared. Glad this happened today. I thought we were in good shape. Didn’t make it an hour.
By no means a prepper but I think its a good idea to store fresh batteries with the gear you may need to use in an emergency (ie I have a blackout box, a 10L plastic box filed with multiple lights, torches and radio + all required batteries), so they are at hand if/when you need to use. I prefer to not fit them into the torches/radio etc beforehand as I dont want to risk them going flat.
Battery shelf life is usually 5-10+ years, so you can always cycle out your batteries after 5 years and replace them with fresh batteries, and use the stored ones for your everyday needs.
I use the rechargeable Panasonic eneloops for AA/AAA, and the ternergy LSD (low self discharge) for D cells. These sit well on the shelf for months without losing much charge.
Don't leave alkaline batteries in your devices! They leak over time and ruin flashlights, radios, etc. Duracell and Energizer have sent me checks to replace maglites until I learned.
https://www.amazon.com/Panasonic-K-KJ17MCA104-Rechargeable-Batteries-Individual/dp/B078375TK9/ref=sr_1_9?sr=8-9
https://www.amazon.com/Tenergy-Rechargeable-Discharge-Batteries-Pre-Charged/dp/B01ASF24WI/ref=sxin_16_pa_sp_search_thematic_sspa?cv_ct_cx=tenergy+lsd+D+cell&sbo=RZvfv%2F%2FHxDF%2BO5021pAnSA%3D%3D&sr=1-2-6024b2a3-78e4-4fed-8fed-e1613be3bcce-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9zZWFyY2hfdGhlbWF0aWM&psc=1
Charger: https://www.amazon.com/Powerex-MH-C800S-8-Cell-Smart-Charger/dp/B000LQMKDS/ref=sr_1_2?sr=8-2
Buy once, cry once. I have been happy with these for years.
Eneloops rock.
This is super great advice. Got these on my list now