Power outage plan: food safety and carbon monoxide
Checked: 2026-10-25.
An outage plan covers two things before any appliance: keeping food cold, and keeping fuel-burning equipment away from the house. The figures below are Ready.gov's.
Food
- A refrigerator keeps food cold for about four hours; a full freezer holds its temperature for about 48 hours.
- Keep freezers and refrigerators closed.
To keep the fridge running beyond that, see how long a power station runs a fridge.
Carbon monoxide
- Generators, camp stoves and charcoal grills should always be used outdoors and at least 20 feet away from windows, doors and attached garages.
- Install carbon monoxide detectors with battery backup in central locations on every level of your home.
- Never use a gas stovetop or oven to heat your home.
Carbon monoxide can kill, so never run a generator indoors or in a garage, even with the door open.
Where a power station fits
A battery power station burns no fuel, so it carries none of a generator's carbon monoxide risk. For the trade-offs against a fuel generator, see generator vs power station; for medical devices, see CPAP runtime; for whole-home setups, see transfer switch basics.
Sources
- Ready.gov, Power Outages: https://www.ready.gov/power-outages (checked 2026-10-25)