What does the 72-hour recommendation mean?
According to the 72-hour preparedness recommendation drawn up by authorities and organisations, a household should be able to cope on its own for at least three days. A long power cut, water outage or storm can interrupt normal services, and help is not always available immediately.
The recommendation does not require a separate store. The Martha Organisation's expert advises building a home supply from foods the family eats anyway, so that the stock rotates and does not go out of date.
What belongs in a home emergency supply?
According to SPEK's 72 hours guide, about 2 litres of drinking water per person per day is needed, i.e. at least 6 litres per person for three days. Cooking and hygiene additionally use 1–2 buckets of water per person per day.
In addition to home supplies, it is worth thinking in advance about how the home will be heated without electricity. According to SPEK's guide, in most homes heating depends on electricity, so keeping one room warm and preventing draughts helps. If you have a fireplace at home, keep dry firewood ready and take care of carbon monoxide safety.
- Water: at least 6 litres of drinking water per person, plus containers for storing extra water.
- Food: canned goods, dry food and ready-to-eat products that need no cooking.
- Medication: everyone's essential medication for at least three days.
- A battery radio and spare batteries for listening to official announcements.
- Torch, candles and matches, and a charged power bank for the phone.
- Cash, because cards and ATMs do not work in a power cut.
- Warm clothes and blankets. The temperature of a wooden house can drop to about +10 degrees in less than 24 hours without heating.
- Pet food and hygiene supplies.
Home burglaries in Finland
According to Statistics Finland, about 3,400 burglaries of homes came to the police's attention in 2025, about a hundred more than in 2024. A burglar usually looks for an easy target: an unlocked door, valuables in view or a house that looks empty. Good structural protection and careful habits therefore reduce the risk effectively.
Doors, locks and windows
According to Finance Finland's home burglary protection guideline, the external door of a residential building must have a day lock, and when nobody is home the door is locked with the deadbolt. If valuable and easily portable property is kept at home, a security lock is added to the external door.
In the guidance, the requirement for an operating lock is class 1 or 2 of standard SFS 7020, and for a security lock class 3 or 4. Glass panes must be fixed so that they cannot be removed from the outside without breaking them. Garage doors are locked with at least an operating lock or a class 2 padlock. Your home insurance terms may have their own safety requirements, so check the requirements of your own policy.
Keys, valuables and lighting
Keys must not be marked with a name, address or phone number. The possibility of misuse of a lost key should be investigated immediately, and when a resident changes, re-keying the lock should be considered.
Cash, jewellery, electronics, identity documents, weapons and medicines are targets for thieves. According to the guidance, bank cards, PIN codes and identity documents are kept supervised or behind a lock. It is worth lighting entrances and access routes, for example with a motion-sensor light.
When you leave for a longer period, do not announce your absence publicly on social media. Ask a neighbour to empty the letterbox and, if necessary, to visit the yard so the house does not look empty. Valuables should be kept in a secured, break-in-tested safe; in Finance Finland's guidance the requirement is at least class 1 of the SFS-EN 1143-1 standard.
Alarm and camera surveillance
A burglar alarm and a guarding service complement structural protection but do not replace it. Camera surveillance is permitted on the plot of a detached house, but the street or a neighbour's yard may not be filmed without permission, and surveillance must be indicated by signs. According to the guidance, recordings are recommended to be kept for at most 30 days unless there is a special reason for longer retention.
Safety Radar shows current crime statistics and the basic rules of home security. If your home has been broken into, report the crime to the police and notify your insurance company.
Frequently asked questions
How much water is needed for a home emergency supply?
About 2 litres of drinking water per person per day, i.e. at least 6 litres per person for three days. In addition, water is needed for cooking and hygiene.
What is a deadlock?
A security lock is a stronger lock than a basic lock. In the Finance Finland guidance, a basic lock is class 1 or 2 of standard SFS 7020 and a security lock is class 3 or 4.
May you film the yard of a detached house with a surveillance camera?
You may film your own plot, but not the street or a neighbour's plot without permission. Surveillance must be indicated with clear signs.
Calculate it yourself
- Smoke alarm calculator: how many smoke alarms are needed? · free
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Ready-made tools
- Home safety check · Smoke alarms, electrics, locking, escape routes and an annual calendar
Sources
- SPEK: 72 hours – preparing at home (2025)
- Verkkouutiset: Is your home contents cover in order? (7.2.2025)
- Finance Finland: Home burglary protection (2024)
- Statistics Finland: Offences and coercive measures statistics 2025 (30.1.2026)
- Police: File a criminal report
The article is general information and does not replace the guidance of an authority, a lawyer or an adviser. Check up-to-date information from the sources.