A number of years back I realized two things. First, we were caring for my mother who was on her late 80s and early 90s. She needed regular care from home health aides. A major power outage at the wrong time of year could be a disaster. At the same time I had acquired a proven breeding group of zebra plecos for a lot of money. They began to spawn for me and a year later I had almost 100 offspring in my tanks. I gad other fish as well. The math said I had at least $15k worth of zebras.
The result was we had a whole house back-up generator installed. This was a good decision despite the insane cost. Not long after we were hit by back to back hurricanes in 2011 and 2012. In both instances we lost utility supplied power for 13 days. Our generator saved my mom and my fish twice.
I can keep a tank going using battery powered air pumps. I can keep the water temperatuer up by removing tank water and heating it on my outdoor grill. This works up to a point. But when the temperature outside is very cold, sooner or later the house will be as well. There is no way to keep heat in a house without electricity. Conversely, in the summer temps can be in the mid to high 90s or even in the low 100s. Only air conditioning can deal with this and again, that requires electricity, Finally, if one needs water, you also need electricity to make it come out of the faucets.
My point in relating the above is that even if one has a small generator or two for emergency use, that may not be enough if the need occurs in the dead of winter or in the temps from a summer heat wave. The problem is many hobbyists simply cannot afford the cost of a whole house back-up. Others may live in condos or apartments where that option does not even exist. This is a reality and there is not a lot one can do if faced with an extended loss of power at the wrong time of year and there is no replacement source for all the electricity needed heat or cool a home.
