A cold home can become unsafe, but improvised heating can cause fire or carbon-monoxide poisoning first. In the first hour, account for everyone, rule out fire and carbon-monoxide hazards, reduce heat loss, and decide whether you still have a safe heat and exit plan. Move early if you do not.
Follow local emergency-management instructions and the Ready.gov winter-weather guidance.
First-Hour Checklist
- Check every person for urgent medical needs, wet clothing, severe cold stress, or dependence on powered medical equipment.
- Confirm that there is no smoke, fuel odor, damaged wiring, flooding near electrical equipment, or carbon-monoxide alarm. Leave and call emergency services from outside if an alarm sounds or you suspect gas or CO.
- Report the outage, check official alerts, and find the estimated restoration time and nearest open warming location if available.
- Test smoke and battery-backed CO alarms without disabling them. Put flashlights where people can reach them; prefer them to candles.
- Add dry layers, hats, socks, blankets, and sleeping bags. Choose a warm room without blocking exits or appliance ventilation.
- Inventory approved heat, batteries, medications, water, communications, and safe transportation. Set a household check-in schedule.
- Make the stay-or-leave decision now, then reassess whenever conditions, health, roads, or the restoration estimate change.
Compare Heat Options Before Lighting Anything
| Heat option | When it may fit | Non-negotiable limits |
|---|---|---|
| Existing central or permanently vented heating system | The system is operating normally and its required electricity, fuel supply, intake, and exhaust remain available | Do not bypass controls or improvise fuel or power connections; keep exterior vents clear of snow |
| Portable electric space heater | Utility or properly connected backup power can support the full load and an alert adult can supervise | Stable level surface, at least 3 feet from combustibles, directly into a sound wall outlet, never a power strip or extension cord, and never under rugs |
| Portable fuel-burning heater listed for indoor use | The exact model, fuel, room, ventilation, altitude, and local rules all permit it | Follow the manual exactly; maintain clearances and ventilation; refuel only as directed; do not treat an oxygen-depletion sensor as a substitute for CO alarms |
| Installed wood stove or fireplace | It has a maintained chimney or flue, required clearances, screen or doors, and suitable fuel | Never burn treated wood, trash, or accelerants; remove ashes safely and continue smoke/CO monitoring |
| Oven, range, charcoal grill, camp stove, generator, or vehicle engine | Never as indoor space heating | These can cause fire or lethal CO. Generators stay outdoors more than 20 feet from doors, windows, and vents, with exhaust directed away from buildings |
The CPSC’s 2026 winter-storm warning reinforces direct-to-wall electric-heater connections, 3-foot clearances, immediate evacuation for alarms, and outdoor generator placement. Product instructions and local code still control the exact installation and use.
Make a Warm Room
Choose one room with few exterior surfaces, enough safe exits, working smoke/CO alarms, and space for everyone. Close unused rooms, use curtains or removable draft control without blocking required ventilation, and add layers, hats, socks, blankets, and sleeping bags.
Do not seal a room airtight. Fuel-burning appliances need manufacturer-specified ventilation, and every sleeping area needs safe egress.
Use Only Approved Heat Sources
Never use a gas oven or range, charcoal grill, camp stove, generator, or vehicle engine to heat an indoor space. Do not run a vehicle in a garage, even with the door open.
Portable fuel-burning heaters must be specifically listed and labeled for the intended indoor use and fuel, and operated exactly to the manual and local code. Maintain clearances, stable placement, ventilation, shutdown, and refueling procedures. Never leave them unattended; do not make overnight operation the plan unless the exact installation and product instructions permit it and all required alarms and ventilation are working.
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Wood stoves and fireplaces require inspected chimneys, appropriate fuel, screens or doors, clearances, and maintenance. Never burn treated wood, trash, or accelerants.
Carbon Monoxide and Fire Protection
The CDC warns that carbon monoxide is odorless and can cause sudden illness and death. Maintain battery-backed CO alarms on every level and near sleeping areas, plus smoke alarms, according to code and manufacturer instructions.
If an alarm sounds or anyone develops headache, dizziness, weakness, nausea, chest pain, or confusion, move everyone to fresh air and call emergency services. Do not search for the source or re-enter until responders say it is safe.
Keep an appropriate extinguisher accessible. The U.S. Fire Administration says to keep portable heaters at least 3 feet from anything that can burn and plug them directly into wall outlets, never extension cords or power strips.
Decide Whether to Stay or Leave
There is no single safe indoor-temperature threshold for every household. Health conditions, age, wetness, clothing, safe heat, expected outage duration, and travel conditions all matter. Agree on personalized limits with a clinician or care team when someone is medically vulnerable.
Leave immediately and call for help from outside if a smoke or CO alarm sounds; you smell or hear leaking gas; fire, structural damage, or electrical hazards are present; or anyone has trouble breathing, chest pain, confusion, fainting, or another emergency.
Seek emergency medical care for possible hypothermia. CDC warning signs include shivering, exhaustion, confusion, fumbling hands, memory loss, slurred speech, and drowsiness; infants may have bright red cold skin and very low energy. Move the person to warm shelter, remove wet clothing, warm the center of the body, and follow CDC hypothermia first-aid guidance while help is arranged.
Relocate before travel becomes worse when you cannot operate a heat source safely, cannot keep smoke/CO alarms and exits functional, cannot support medications or powered medical equipment, cannot keep people dry and responsive, expect the outage to exceed your fuel or battery plan, or official authorities direct evacuation. A warming center, hotel, or trusted heated home is part of the plan, not a failure.
Staying can be reasonable while everyone remains well, the structure and utilities are safe, alarms and exits work, approved heat is used within its instructions, critical supplies are adequate, and you can still communicate and leave if conditions change.
Protect Water and Pipes
Know the main shutoff. Open sink cabinets on exterior walls only if it is safe for children and pets, and follow utility advice about dripping faucets. If freezing or a leak is likely, shut off and drain plumbing according to a plumber or utility’s instructions.
Never use an open flame to thaw a pipe. Use safe gentle heat and call a plumber. Assume a thawed pipe may leak when pressure returns.
Keep a stored drinking-water supply because frozen pipes, treatment failures, and pump outages can interrupt water.
Power, Communication, and Overnight Planning
Use battery stations for low-power critical loads within their limits. Operate generators only under the generator safety rules. Do not use electric resistance heat from a small battery as the primary plan; it consumes stored energy quickly.
Keep an off-grid communication plan for changing forecasts and local instructions. If leaving becomes likely, use the documents, medications, clothing, lights, chargers, and supplies from a 72-hour evacuation bag rather than packing from scratch in the dark.
Before sleep, confirm alarms, exits, heater instructions, ventilation, household check-ins, and the conditions that mean everyone leaves. Your next action is to write those conditions and the first two relocation destinations on paper while roads and phones still work.