If you’re like many, you slip a battery-operated TV into your pack of hurricane supplies.

Watching TV on a battery-operated set seems to be one of the standard things do do during a hurricane. And, lets face it, getting the latest information from a trusted weathercaster or hearing the “all-clear” from a favored news source is one of the few good moments during a storm.

Well, after Feb. 17, 2009, that little TV will make a nifty boat anchor. (Don’t do it, the chemicals in the set will pollute the water and hurt the fish.)

You see, the Federal Communications Comission requires all television stations will start broadcasting in a digital format called DTV then, and unless you have a special converter for your set or receive TV signals from a cable company or from a satellite provider (that’s doubtful during a bad storm) you are not going to see or hear anything at all.

According to an e-mail from Dennis Feltgen, a meteorologist with the National Hurricane Center: “One problem is that the converter boxes need power, too. Because it is not anticipated that battery powered digital-to-analog converter boxes will be produced, another external power source would be needed.

If a battery-powered TV is part of your hurricane plan, the obvious solution is to purchase a battery-powered digital TV, which are already available.”

Unfortunately, calls to local retailers turned up plenty of regular portable televisions, but DTV-compliant portable sets seem to be scarce and relatively expensive. Remember, your current portable will be just fine for this hurricane season.

What should you look for when buying a portable TV?

“If your portable television contains labels or markings with the words “Integrated Digital Tuner,” “Digital Tuner Built-In,” “Digital Receiver,” or “Digital Tuner,” “DTV,” “ATSC,” or “HDTV Built-In”, then you should be able to view digital over-the-air programming without the need for a digital-to-analog converter box,” says Rosemary Kimball, director of media relations at the consumer and governmental affairs bureau of the FCC in an e-mail.

DTV promises to be a wonderful advance. There will be better picture quality, and broadcasters will be able to unleash a host of new features; some will allow you to interact with the program you are watching.

But, none of this will be of any use should you lose a signal during a storm.

Feltgen adds in his e-mail, “If that (losing TV reception) is a problem, make sure you have a battery-powered radio. Radio stations provide emergency information just as do television. In addition, a number of TV stations simulcast their broadcasts on local radio stations.”

If you have a portable or laptop computer, you can get a “TV tuner” that will plug into the computer’s USB port.

But, don’t expect to see the battery-operated converter boxes for your portable TV any time soon.

“We sent manufacturers the specs (for a portable DTV converter box) to all the manufacturers,” said Todd Sednak, a Department of Commerce spokesperson. “No one showed any interest.”

It’s even doubtful you’ll be able to pick up the audio portion of a TV broadcast on your FM radio. While some stations will be able to do just that, the DTV switch-over will knock some off the air, according to an FCC Web site.

So, the best advice seems to be to enjoy your portable now, watch newspaper ads for a DTV-compliant battery-operated TV set (people at the National Weather Service, FCC and Department of Commerce think the price will drop as demand goes up) to get the best price, or look for a battery-operated converter box. And, let’s all pray that we never need them.