I had not seen this post in a while, sorry for the delay. My list is pretty basic.
Always have spare batteries for flashlights. Have some type of room area light. Keep bottled water handy.
Gas cans and funnels. (large funnel to fill while running and preventing spillover) During the winter I keep my best spark suppressed whiz o can in the garage close to the generator for quick access, others filled with stabil in the metal building to get to later. (I slowly pour them in the cars in the spring, and start fresh for mowing and the boat.)
String cords to appropriate areas of the house for box heaters.
Elevate the plugins over a chair or table, they will generate a lot of heat over time, give them some airflow and keep them off combustibles. (Carpet, etc)
String one "mobile" cord with a power tap for lamp, cell phone charger, coffee pot, hotplate, use on the refrigerator and freezer four hours each during the day, etc.
Seal the cracks where cords enter with blue painters tape, use plastic if needed. (I strung mine under the garage door then into the entry door of the house, so it isolated the cold a little.
Locate a timer for gas fill on the generator. You will have to test a while to know how long your tank will run.
Chain your generator if you might be gone to work or elsewhere, might slow someone down.
CK that the fireplace vents are closed.
Place towels over floor vents. (I have a crawl space and vents are on the floor)
Blue tape any door cracks you might not be using, mine leak a little.
Wrap outside faucets with towels. My crawl space is heated with some HVAC leakage normally, wind will suck the heat further back on the faucet with no heat underneath the house and might freeze. Double ck outside vents are closed if you have them.
Unplug your house alarm battery so it will not call out as it dies.
Unplug electronics for power surges when the power comes back on.
Switch heat pumps to emergency heat only to protect compressors when electric comes back on intermittently.
We closed off the smallest bedroom for sleeping with a heater in it.
Get all this ready, and take what might be your last hot shower for a while if you have an electric water heater.
Think about what might freeze in your garage that normally is OK, but now you have a little crack under the door, and less heat from the interior walls.
Our water plant was down also, so I melted ice in a 5 gal bucket with the generator exhaust for flushing the toilets, just pour it in, does the same function. I took my chain saw with me when I made trips to fill the gas cans. Had to use it once to clear the road where I live. Tree limbs were still coming down for a few days.
I am sure others have additional items and tips. These are just my starting points. Hope we do not have to use them often.
