I use June 1, beginning of the tropical hurricane season...change out the stored water, charge up the 12v batteries, charge up the AA Eneloops not being used, make sure the back up battery for the cordless drill is charged, top off the gas cans, check on the propane bulk tanks, start up the generator (I should probably run it more often, but usually only every 3 months)....like most of the old timers down here, it's easy to get complacent...especially if there haven't been any major storms in a number of years....