Carbon monoxide is the deadliest mistake people make in a blackout. After major storms, CO poisoning kills people who made it through the storm itself — almost always because a generator, grill, or car engine was running in the wrong place.
CO has no smell and no color. It puts you to sleep, and you don't wake up. So the rules have no exceptions:
The rules
- NEVER run a generator indoors. Not in the garage. Not in the basement. Not on the porch. Not near a window, door, or vent. Outside only, at least 20 feet from the house, exhaust pointed away.
- NEVER plug a generator into a wall outlet. It can send power back down the line and kill a utility worker. Appliances plug into the generator with heavy-duty outdoor cords, or you use a transfer switch installed by an electrician.
- NEVER use a charcoal grill, gas grill, or camp stove indoors. Not "with the door cracked."
- NEVER heat the house with a gas oven.
- If your CO alarm sounds — or anyone feels dizzy, headachy, weak, or sick — get everyone outside to fresh air and call 911.
The safer default: gear that doesn't burn anything
Most families don't actually need a generator for 72 hours. They need light, information, a way to charge phones, and warmth — all of which exist without combustion: battery lanterns, a hand-crank NOAA radio, a solar power bank, and thermal layers. Nothing to fuel, nothing to vent, nothing that can poison the room your kids sleep in.
That's the philosophy behind the 72-Hour Blackout Kit — and the free Blackout Playbook that ships with it puts these CO rules on one printable page.