Make a water and energy outage checklist

Draw the delivery chain

Write the sequence from water source to intended use: tank or supply, any pump, treatment equipment, controls and outlet. Mark which parts require electricity. Identify the equipment documentation and responsible service contact for each powered component.

Do not assume every property uses the same arrangement. Gravity delivery, pressure pumping and a well system create different dependencies. Keep your actual layout in the record rather than copying a generic homestead diagram.

Separate quantity, quality and delivery

Ask three questions independently: how much suitable water is available, whether it is appropriate for the intended use and whether the system can deliver it. A level estimate answers only part of the first question.

The CDC’s emergency water-supply guidance explains planning and storing an emergency drinking-water supply. Use that guidance and local advisories for health-related decisions. A solar dashboard is not a water-quality instrument.

Put powered water equipment in the load inventory

Record the pump’s purpose, documented electrical requirements and ordinary operating pattern. Starting demand and daily energy are different considerations. Give the equipment information to the installer when discussing backup capability; do not infer suitability from a daily kWh total alone.

Any backup-power connection or equipment operation must follow its own documented design. This checklist does not authorize improvised wiring or pump-control changes.

Define an observation-based response

Choose the information a household member can safely collect: current power status, monitoring timestamps, available water record and visible equipment indications. State who should be contacted when delivery stops or water suitability is uncertain.

Keep essential actions available on paper or another offline medium. Include communication alternatives if the router or phone charging arrangement is unavailable. A checklist stored only on the affected Pi may be inaccessible at the moment it is needed.

Make the limits visible

• Water source and delivery dependencies identified.
• Emergency drinking-water plan stored separately.
• Powered water equipment included in the energy inventory.
• Approved backup procedures and contacts available.
• Monitoring gaps and unknowns explicitly labeled.
• One person responsible for the next review.

Sunstead’s water view currently shows preview assumptions, not measurements from a connected tank sensor. Its time-to-reserve calculation does not establish drinking-water availability, and the preview does not control a pump.

Walk through the checklist without interrupting utilities. Ask someone to find the relevant contact and explain which observation comes next. Revise unclear steps while the property is operating normally, then revisit the plan when water or power equipment changes.