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Reference · Electricity
Power and light
DayZ nights are black. Everything that makes light or runs on power is here: what fuels it, what it plugs into, how long it lasts and who can see it from the hill.
The power chain
Generator, reel, device
Mains power does not exist in DayZ; every powered thing runs on a battery or on the Power Generator. The chain is simple: fill the generator with gasoline from a jerry can, fit a spark plug, start it, plug a Cable Reel into it, and plug the other end of the reel into the device. A reel reaches about 20 metres. The generator burns fuel while it runs and is loud enough to hear from the next field.
Power sources
Batteries and the charger
| Source | Runs | Recharge | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9V Battery | Flashlight, head torch, rangefinder, night vision, electronic sights, radios, GPS | Battery charger | The battery of everything hand-held. Carry two |
| Car Battery | Cars, the construction light via a cable reel | Battery charger, or the car’s engine while it runs | Drains when the engine starts and from lights; see fix and fuel |
| Truck Battery | The M3S truck and the M1025 | Battery charger | Heavier, bigger, same idea |
| Power Generator | Anything on a cable reel | Refuel with gasoline | The only way to run lights and a charger at a base |
| Battery Charger | Charges car, truck and 9V batteries | Needs the generator through a cable reel | Put a battery in it, wait. Slow |
Lights
Every light in the game
Flashlight and head torch
The Flashlight takes a 9V battery and a hand; the Head Torch takes the same battery and leaves both hands free, which is why it is the one to keep. Both are a beam everyone within a kilometre can see at night.
Universal flashlight
Mounts on a rifle rail, 9V battery, toggles on and off. Fine for clearing a building, suicidal in a firefight. See attachments.
Torch
The crafted Torch: a stick with rags or bark, lit from a fire or matches. Burns for a while, lights a room, and can light a fireplace. Free, and the first light most characters carry.
Gas lamp
The Gas Lamp runs on a gas canister, lights a whole room warmly and can be hung. The best base light that does not need a generator.
Chemlights, road flares, personal night light
Chemlights are a soft glow for an hour in your hand or on the ground; flares are bright, hot, and attract infected. The personal night light is a faint light around your character that only you see; it is in the settings, not the inventory.
Construction light and Christmas lights
The Construction Light is a floodlight on a stand, run from a generator or a car battery through a cable reel. Christmas lights string along fences off the same reel. Both tell everyone exactly where your base is.
Night vision
NVG and the night scope
Night Vision Goggles take a 9V battery and mount on a headstrap or a helmet with a mount; they turn a black night green and bright, and they are very rare. The NV-PVS4 is a rifle scope that does the same for shooting. Both die with the battery and are blinded by any strong light, so a flare in the face of a night-vision user is a real tactic. Both are military loot; see best loot by map.
Lighting a base
Light without a generator, mostly
- Fireplace indoors or a gas lamp: light and heat, no engine noise.
- Head torch on, beam down when you are working on a fence at night.
- Generator only when you need the charger. Run it for the batteries, then shut it off. A generator left running is a beacon with a fuel bill.
- Construction light pointed inward, if you must, so the glow does not leave the walls.
Base building itself is on bases.
Being seen
Light is a signal
At night a lit window, a flashlight beam or a fire shows from across a valley, and since 1.13 infected walk towards fires and flares after dark. The quiet way to move at night is no light at all: let your eyes adjust, walk the treeline, and use the head torch only inside with the door shut. More in night and hard to see and hear.
Quick answers
Questions people ask
How do you use the power generator in DayZ?
Fill it with gasoline from a jerry can, attach a spark plug, start it, then plug a cable reel into it and the other end into a construction light, Christmas lights or a battery charger.
How do you charge a car battery in DayZ?
Put it in a battery charger that is plugged into a running power generator through a cable reel, or drive: a running engine charges the battery slowly.
What battery does the flashlight use in DayZ?
A 9V battery. The head torch, night vision goggles, rangefinder, electronic sights, radios and the GPS use the same one.
How do you see at night in DayZ?
A head torch or flashlight, a crafted torch, a gas lamp, chemlights, or night vision goggles with a 9V battery. Or raise the personal night light in the settings and move without a light.
Do infected see light in DayZ?
They are drawn to fires and flares at night, and they hear a generator. A flashlight beam does not pull them by itself, but the player it shows you to will.
Keep going
More guides and tools
Checked 1 November 2026 against DayZ 1.30 (PC 1.30.164200, console 1.87). Reel reach and burn times are approximate; item pages carry the exact figures where known.