After dealing with power outages in his home state of Florida during last year’s hurricane season, Noah Bild knew it was time to take action.
“We’re close to the water,” Bild told Fox 13 News Tampa Bay. “A lot of our neighbors’ power went out. Our power went out.”
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So the 19-year-old entrepreneur developed a portable energy storage unit that he’s now making available to Tampa Bay area residents ahead of this year’s hurricane season.
And if this year’s season is anything like the last, these units could be in high demand.
The evolution of a new power solution
Bild has been building things since he was young.
“Anything hands-on, anything electric. I thought the process of being able to power something is super cool,” Bild told Fox 13.
He began with remote control cars and then got into one-wheeling — a sport where you ride a single-wheeled electric skateboard — which is when he started building batteries.
Two years ago, he began working on a commercial-grade portable lithium iron phosphate energy storage unit in his garage.
The unit, called the OffGrid Pro, is “completely odorless, fumeless [and] silent,” Bild told Fox 13. He says it can power a fridge for two to three days on its own — but, when its solar panels are hooked up, it can provide power indefinitely.
It’s also half the price of a Tesla Powerwall, which runs just under $10,000 without installation.
For now, Bild is marketing the OffGrid Pro at street festivals in Safety Harbor, Palm Harbor and Tarpon Springs, but hopes to supply the energy storage unit to municipalities. He’s currently taking pre-orders for shipment by Oct. 1.
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Your disaster plan should include a financial plan
Natural disasters are costly — and they’re getting more severe. While the BBC says the number of hurricanes and cyclones doesn’t appear to be increasing globally, it’s “likely” that a higher proportion are reaching Category 3 or above, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
At the same time, droughts and floods are becoming more frequent, more severe and longer-lasting, according to data from NASA obtained by The Guardian.
Not only are these changes driving an increase in weather-related power outages across the U.S., they also come at a high economic cost.
The 2024 hurricane season “caused an estimated $500 billion in total damage and economic loss,” according to AccuWeather, which factors in things like medical costs, uninsured losses, job and wage losses and business and supply chain disruptions.
This is why your disaster preparedness plan should also include a financial disaster plan.
To help with this, the American Red Cross has developed a Disasters and Financial Planning guide, which includes pointers like “creating a disaster supplies kit, assessing your property’s disaster vulnerability and creating evacuation and communication plans.”
Protecting your home begins by taking a household inventory (along with photos) so you know what you’re protecting. Then, make sure you’re properly insured, which means understanding what your insurance covers and what it doesn’t cover. You may need additional coverage, such as flood insurance, for example.
Losing important documentation can compound the effects of a disaster and make it more difficult to recover. Original copies of your most important documents, such as your birth certificate, are best stored in a safe deposit box — preferably in a bank some distance from your home so it’s less likely to be affected by the same disaster. You can also scan important documents and keep a copy stored in the cloud.
Consider what documents you might need if you have to evacuate and put them in a fire-resistant and waterproof box that you can take with you. This is also a good place for keepsakes and photographs you want to save. You should have some cash on hand in your disaster kit too in case ATMs aren’t working and your bank is closed.
If you don’t have to evacuate, having backup power can help with lighting, refrigeration and communication to weather out a storm.
When it comes time to recover, reach out for help if you need it from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) or state and county offices of emergency preparedness, as well as organizations like the American Red Cross. File insurance claims as quickly as possible and contact your employer to determine next steps.
You may need to access large amounts of cash for food, shelter and repairs, so the American Red Cross suggests looking into disaster relief funds that may be available from federal, state and local governments (and they’re typically tax-free). You could also cash out an insurance policy, sell some personal property or, if you have no other options, borrow against your retirement plan.
But avoid making rash financial decisions — and be cautious of fraudsters who prey on victims needing financial solutions and extensive home repairs after a disaster.
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This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
