Free · Printable · The same plan we email with every kit order

The 72-Hour Household Plan

Emergency agencies ask households to be able to look after themselves for about three days. That is not a bunker. It is a radio, some light, charged phones, stored water, a bit of cash, and everyone knowing where it all is. Fill this in, print it, stick it on the fridge and put a copy with the kit.

Based on the household kit lists published by the Australian Red Cross (RediPlan) and state and territory SES agencies. Dark Day Ready is a private business and is not endorsed by any of them.

1. Who and where

Our household (names, and anyone who needs help moving or medication) Where the kit lives (say it out loud to everyone) Meeting point if we are not at home and phones are down Out-of-area contact everyone will message or call (someone in another state is best) Second number to write down (doctor, neighbour, or school)

2. The list

Tick what you have. Anything unticked is a job for this week.

Radio that works without mains power: wind-up, solar or battery. ABC local radio is the emergency broadcaster.
Light: a torch or headlamp per adult, and one lantern that lights a room. Charged, not "probably charged".
Power: a power bank per phone, kept at 100%. A folding solar charger if you can.
Water: 10 litres per person for three days (3 L a day plus a bit for hygiene). Sealed containers, swapped every three months. A boil-water notice is the most common water event in Australia; a filter straw is a backup, not a plan.
Cash: $100 to $200 in small notes. EFTPOS and ATMs stop with the power or the network.
Papers: photocopies of ID, insurance policy numbers, prescriptions, in a waterproof pouch. Photos on your phone count only while the phone is alive.
First aid: dressings, bandages, any personal medication for 7 days.
Warmth: thermal blankets or sleeping bags; a hot-water bottle if you have gas.
Food for three days that needs no cooking: tinned, long-life, and a manual can opener. Buy it at the supermarket; we deliberately do not ship food.
Car: keep the tank above half. Servos need power to pump.
Pets: three days of food and water for them too.

3. The first hour of an outage

Check it is not just you. Look at the street. Switch the main safety switch off and on once. Do not touch fallen lines.
Turn the radio on. ABC local radio. Save phone battery: low-power mode, screen dim, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth off if the router is dead anyway.
One message, not ten. Text the out-of-area contact: "We are fine, power out, will check in at [time]." Then put the phone down.
Fridge and freezer stay shut. A closed fridge holds food safely for about 4 hours, a full freezer about 48.
Fill your water containers now while there is still pressure, and the bath if a boil notice or supply cut is likely.
Light one room. Lantern on the table, headlamps for moving around. Never candles near anything that burns, never a generator or barbecue indoors.
Switch off and unplug big appliances and electronics so the surge when power returns does not take them with it. Leave one light on so you know when it is back.
Check the neighbours who live alone or are older, especially in heat or cold.

4. If it runs past a day

Recharge phones from the power bank in the morning, and the power bank from the solar charger or car during the day. One phone at a time.
Water: 3 L per person per day for drinking. Tap water after an outage: wait for the all-clear, or boil for one minute, or use the filter straw as a last resort for fresh water only.
Food: eat the fridge first, then the freezer, then the tins.
Payments: cash. Keep receipts for insurance claims for spoiled food.
Heat or cold: everyone in one room, blankets, close doors. Check on the vulnerable twice a day.
Medical emergency: 000 still works from any mobile with any carrier's signal, even with a flat prepaid.

5. Every three months

Recharge every power bank and lantern to full.
Swap the stored water.
Check first aid dates and medication.
Test the radio for 30 seconds.
Read this page out loud to whoever is new in the house.

Dark Day Ready kit owners can opt in to a reminder email on this schedule. Everyone else: put it in your calendar now, repeating every 13 weeks.

Want the list already done?

Every Dark Day Ready kit covers the radio, light, power, papers and warmth on the list, adds a water filter straw, and arrives in one tracked parcel, with this plan emailed to you to print. Household adds solar charging, a room lantern, a first aid kit and the Offline Library. Stored water, cash, food and personal medication are still yours to add. See the three kits, from $149