Originally published at Notes from the bunker…. You can comment here or there.

Montana isn’t exactly California in terms of earthquake incidents, but they do happen from time to time. The last really big one (by our non-Californian standards) was about 50 years ago that resulted in the relocation of a river, the formation of a new lake, and the deaths of a couple people who had the misfortune of a boulder landing on their tent.

I’ve felt two earthquakes in the twenty years I’ve been here. (There have been more, I’m told, but I only was aware of the two) Both were just enough to make me say “Was that an earthquake?” They were the rumblings and vibrations that usually accompany a heavy truck passing the house. The bed sways a bit, the windows rattle, and that’s about it.

However, even if the incidence of earthquakes in your region is low, you should absolutely know how to isolate your house from the various utilities if the need arises.

Biggest thing to know is how to turn of the water, the gas and the electric.

Shutting of the gas usually requires a special wrench but improvisations will work. However, for the ten bucks you’d need for the wrench, its probably worth it. Lanyard the wrench to the gas meter (where the shutoff usually is) so it’ll always be there. In earthquake prone regions there are valves that will automatically shut themselves off when the earth starts dancing but they aren’t required in places like Montana. However, if you’re building your own place it might be a worthwhile addition.

Same for your water. Find where the main shutoff valve for your house is and keep it free from clutter and accessible. If its three in the morning and you suddenly hear rushing water from a broken hose in your dishwasher you want to be able to turn that thing off fast and not have to move crates of old Christmas decorations out from the corner of the basement in order to get to the valve. I speak from experience on this one, folks. I broke a pipe in my basement while doing some repairs and knowing where the valve was and being able to access it quickly meant the difference between a little bit of damp basement and an indoor wading pool.

Its also handy to know because there may come a time when you want to isolate the water that’s already in your pipes from the rest of the municipal supply. If you need to drain your plumbing to salvage potable water turn off the main, head to the highest point in the house and open a faucet (upstairs bathroom, for example) then open a faucet at the lowest point in the house (basement sink, for example) and all the water in the house will drain out. If needed you can also salvage a lot of water from your water heaters but be prepared to filter out any sediment.

Odds are if theres a situation that you need to disconnect power to your house the power is probably out anyway. But, maybe when the power comes back on there’ll be some unpleasantness (like from the exposed wiring where the tree fell through your bedroom wall) so know where the master switch(es) is/are located. If you’re smart enough to have a tie-in for a generator, then you already know what Im talking about. Its been said a million times but I’ll say it here for the newbies: if you’re powering the house with a generator during a power failure you must, must, must isolate your house from the power lines or your going to have a hellacious lesson in electrical theory when the power comes back on. Also youre going to wind up powering your local powerlines and possibly kill a lineman working on what he thinks is a ‘dead’ powerline.

Of course, you need to think about the consequences of these actions and be prepared to deal with them. For example, if you shut off the electricity then youre going to need to have a flashlight handy to go find the water shutoff. If you turn off the gas, you better have some alternate heating on tap to keep the pipes from freezing. If you turn off the water….well, you get the idea.