Do You Have a Plan for Extended Power Outages?

[SerpentineDream]

Being a reptile enthusiast in in rural South Dakota where we are prone to severe weather and the power can be out for extended periods of time (by which I mean weeks) I've put a lot of thought into how to keep my ectothermic friends safe. We have all electric heat in our house, so plans for a woodstove and automatic whole-house generator are in the works.

My current solution is 72-hour heat packs, bought by the case. I work from home so I can respond quickly. If the power is out for more than 30 minutes I deploy a couple of heat packs to the warm end of everyone's cages, buried under the aspen shavings. I also have reflective space blankets that can be taped over the glass of their cages to minimize heat loss. I have battery operated temperature probes to monitor their situations. If worse comes to worst and we need to evacuate, I have a bunch of locking Rubbermaid tubs with bedding and foam board insulation to serve as escape pods. Throw a heat pack and a thermometer in there and away we go.

But this is something that can affect all of us and our animals. What are your suggestions? What plans do you have in place for your critters in these situations?