lets discuss preps for disasters

[Soundguy]

Lots of folks worry about the power going out and no well water. A pill bottle on a string can bring up enough water to survive. Just takes a lot of trips up and down the pipe.

Someone mentioned tornadoes and it is kind of hard to run from them. Always store some basic hand tools in the basement and another set in the garage. If you don't have a basement, you should have a tornado shelter. Anyhow. Bottled water, some bleach, some hand tools, some dried foods, a first aid kit!, an ax!, waterproof matches, some cotton balls soaked in vaseline, and it can't hurt to have a bottle of multi-vitamins. You never know what your diet might have to consist of, and there might be a chance you won't be getting enough vitamins from eating the weeds in your neighbor's yard, so it can't hurt.

i gotta ask about the lubed cotton balls. ?

 

[Soundguy]

Having swallowed a lot of pool water over the years, I wouldn't hesitate to purify and drink pool water either.

heck, if chlorinated.. might be safe as is.

 

[Soundguy]

Get a clothesline and a washtub, too. And some bar soap.

soaps good!

I make soap.

I usually have 20-30 bars on hand.

when I make a batch I pour 12 bars per mould.. I have 4 moulds for bar soap, and 4 for decorative soaps.. deco soaps have 20-24 smaller soaps.

I don't always pour multiple moulds, but usually do pour at least 1-2, and any leftover out of hte batch goes into the deco moulds.


On the subject of soap.. since I get to control the ingredients.. you can make some soaps that will help with the survival aspect.. certian oils like mints, clove and tea tree can help
with wound management and bugs in general. lotsa bugs are repelled by those... not to mention ancedotal evidence of wound care uses.

 

[Soundguy]

More along the line of catastrophic times - but ..........

Antibiotics are essential. You can get these without a prescription by buying bird/fish antibiotics. These are the exact thing your doctor prescribes for you.

If you are one to consider the possibility of massive grid failure - lasting for many months - this will make sense to you.

Borrowing from a practice I use on animals, it's easy to make 'bulk' antibiotic ointment using a tub of petroleum jelly and a bag of powdered antibiotic. For instance, swine, cattle, and fowl antibiotic many times comes bagged and powdered.

mix that with some vasolene and it makes a cheap ointment.. vs buying tubes of the stuff at the pharmacy.

lets face it.. when a cow gets a cut on a board or fence.. a tube of antibiotic creme for 4$ don't go far.. but a 4$ bag of AB from the farm store and a quart of walmart 'jelly' for 5$ goes a looooong way for ol' besse...

Normally I keep a tub of nitrofurazone for the cattle and horses.. but have run out before..

 

[kcflhrc]

I recommend keeping one bullet for yourself.

 

[paulharvey]

I would bet that for around $100, you can be more prepared then 90% of the general public. Beans, rice, flour, and peanut butter are cheap, keep a 2nd 20# propane tank full, and have a plan for water; you'll be better than most.

Something we used to do a mom's house, that no one has mentioned: if you have a deep freeze, it should be full at all times, with jugs of frozen water; it keeps you from loosing all the cold when you open it (yes I know there is no 'cold' only less warm), and in case power goes out, with 75% of the deep freeze full of frozen jugs, and not opening it, you might keep food for a week. It's not end of times ready, but thunderstorm, tropical storm, and about 90% of the hurricanes ready. Worst case, it all melts, you have water.

So at a basic level (one week)
Fill bath tubs with water if you see it coming

Freeze jugs of water to keep food frozen

Extra propane

Batteries

And a healthy stock of "normal" cabinet foods.

 

[Soundguy]

and those jugs of frozen water.. in the end.. are water!

 

[Jstpssng]

Somebody touched briefly on dogs and cats... what about those of you who keep livestock? Do you have enough feed/water ahead for them, or are they on their own?

I keep about a dozen laying hens, a bag of feed lasts about 3 weeks and they can scratch to survive if need be, (except in winter). I would have eggs for a while, and a regular supply of meat for a month or so. (My two roosters wouldn't be around long. ) I usually have about 3 weeks of dry dog food on hand, and he can share the eggs and whatever. I can survive a natural disaster, and as I said before I don't want to worry about an end of the world, SHTF event.

 

[paulharvey]

Somebody touched briefly on dogs and cats... what about those of you who keep livestock? Do you have enough feed/water ahead for them, or are they on their own?

I keep about a dozen laying hens, a bag of feed lasts about 3 weeks and they can scratch to survive if need be, (except in winter). I would have eggs for a while, and a regular supply of meat for a month or so. (My two roosters wouldn't be around long. ) I usually have about 3 weeks of dry dog food on hand, and he can share the eggs and whatever. I can survive a natural disaster, and as I said before I don't want to worry about an end of the world, SHTF event.

Eggs also last for upto what, 2 weeks, from fresh; without refrigeration. I also have 10 hens, and no roosters. They are only laying 3-5 eggs with this summer heat, plus they are only 5 months old, but with 5 eggs, you probably fill in a nice sized chunk of the families protein requirements.

The feed issue reminds me... Rats... dried beans, peas, rice, corn ect; put the sealed bags in tin cookie cans to protect from rodents. I keep the chicken feed in 15 gallon galvanized steel cans.

Soundguy, the OP, I know has horses, and I don't know how long they last with out added feed and hay. They should be able to get a fair portion of their diet from grazing, but not 100%

Edit; I also have a mostly full bag of powdered tetracycline laying around in the house somewhere, I know it can be used by humans, but has side effects (don't know what) and I don't know what it would treat

 

[Soundguy]

Tetracycline is commonly prescribed for humans. Hit wiki-google and print out what organisms are susceptible to it. Lee that with your baggy.

As for my animals, using this year as a guideline, we are keeping enough rain and sun to not have to supplement feed ( I do however as it keeps them friendly and happy . ). This usually lasts 9-10 m in Florida.

They do need minerals though, I use blocks.. Between bulk feed and minerals, I can have a year of food easy in the barn, if rain holds average.

If not and in the apocalypse where 50% of the pop are dead, hopefully I can use son neighboring land as grazeing, to cut food needs. Chix/ turkey/roosters won't last long..

 

[GreenYellow]

I have an "ok" supply of essentials -- though life wouldn't be comfortable.

One thing I have to plan for is extended family. My inlaws, parents, and others are not adept to surviving on their own when it's rough. So, besides my wife and 3 daughters, I tend to plan for a dozen or more people. It would just be that way... They all come to me when things get tough.

Food:
I tend to think about cheap things that go a long way. (many mouths to feed) Pinto beans in an cast iron pot will feed half an army for about $2. Rice goes well too.
Spaghetti and other pastas do well. Canned spaghetti sauce lasts well and is only about $1 a can for the cheap stuff.
Any kind of canned vegetable. I don't have a "stash" of canned vegetables, but we keep the pantry pretty stocked. Hard to say how long it would last, but it would be a while.

Water is pretty simple. Our well is only 40 feet deep. (36") A bucket and a rope = infinite water. Plus, our well water is spectacularly clear and great tasting. We could seriously bottle and sell it.

I have 3 bottles of propane at any given time. Countless uses for heating, cooking, sterilizing, etc.
I have (for some reason) about 20 tarps of all shapes and sizes.
Something I haven't seen listed above -- SEEDS. This is more for long terms hardships. I have several envelopes of seeds in the freezer. When they stores clearance them in summer, grab a handful.
We have a dozen chickens. I wouldn't expect to eat them until it gets BAD. Their eggs are way more valuable than their meat in terms of sustainability. Plus they last well.
Perservatives: Salt and vinegar. Meat (and eggs) can be salted to preserve them. You can pickle nearly anything... May not taste how you want it, but hey... It works.
Mason jars and the knowledge of how to can food. (also more for long term) Chances are, your freezer would be useless. Canning is a PERFECT way to preserve what food you get. Meat can be canned too.

Of course, I have axes, tools, guns, etc... Goes without saying.

In my opinion, the most important thing of all is YOUR BRAIN and your attitude. The ability to adapt is what will make you or break you. As long as you have a handful of things to work with, your knowledge will carry you farther than a whole truckload of supplies.

 

[Loadstar]

Good thread! About all I have is a way to heat (although it's natural gas) and I also maintain an oil lamp in most rooms. Also have a fleet of hurricane lanterns and parts. I do plan to get a bit more at least to sustain for a couple weeks.

 

[paulharvey]

I have an "ok" supply of essentials -- though life wouldn't be comfortable.

One thing I have to plan for is extended family. My inlaws, parents, and others are not adept to surviving on their own when it's rough. So, besides my wife and 3 daughters, I tend to plan for a dozen or more people. It would just be that way... They all come to me when things get tough.

This is an important point. Me and wife where joking about it after watching "fear the walking dead" the other night. People are social animals, and you would need a group to survive into the longer term (probably anything past 3-6 months) but you couldn't take care of dead weight, and too large of a group would burn though resources fast. I'm thinking anything more than a dozen people would be hard to support. In those early days when you don't know how long something will last, you would have to be careful how big your extended family gets. Ie, neighbors wouldn't and couldn't be welcome if they show up empty handed.

One thing people over look is, people deep down, are tough. Look at Bosnia, the siege of Leningrad, the Holodomor, the Black Death, even the Armenian genocide; the deaths where staggering, but in all cases over 50% of the people made it though. The siege of Sarajevo only saw deaths in the 10-15% range despite lasting many months.

 

[/pine]

Something I have not seen mentioned (mostly I suppose because we have not really experienced a really bad one) but another threat is EMF's and CME's ...either one has the potential to damage communication infrastructure to the point where we could be back to using smoke signals...

IMO...Hand crank dynamos and GMRS radios would be worthy things to have on hand...regardless of the cause or circumstances of a disaster...

 

[Jstpssng]

I have an "ok" supply of essentials -- though life wouldn't be comfortable.

One thing I have to plan for is extended family. My inlaws, parents, and others are not adept to surviving on their own when it's rough. So, besides my wife and 3 daughters, I tend to plan for a dozen or more people. It would just be that way... They all come to me when things get tough.

Food:
I tend to think about cheap things that go a long way. (many mouths to feed) Pinto beans in an cast iron pot will feed half an army for about $2. Rice goes well too.
Spaghetti and other pastas do well. Canned spaghetti sauce lasts well and is only about $1 a can for the cheap stuff.
Any kind of canned vegetable. I don't have a "stash" of canned vegetables, but we keep the pantry pretty stocked. Hard to say how long it would last, but it would be a while.

Water is pretty simple. Our well is only 40 feet deep. (36") A bucket and a rope = infinite water. Plus, our well water is spectacularly clear and great tasting. We could seriously bottle and sell it.

I have 3 bottles of propane at any given time. Countless uses for heating, cooking, sterilizing, etc.
I have (for some reason) about 20 tarps of all shapes and sizes.
Something I haven't seen listed above -- SEEDS. This is more for long terms hardships. I have several envelopes of seeds in the freezer. When they stores clearance them in summer, grab a handful.
We have a dozen chickens. I wouldn't expect to eat them until it gets BAD. Their eggs are way more valuable than their meat in terms of sustainability. Plus they last well.
Perservatives: Salt and vinegar. Meat (and eggs) can be salted to preserve them. You can pickle nearly anything... May not taste how you want it, but hey... It works.
Mason jars and the knowledge of how to can food. (also more for long term) Chances are, your freezer would be useless. Canning is a PERFECT way to preserve what food you get. Meat can be canned too.

Of course, I have axes, tools, guns, etc... Goes without saying.

In my opinion, the most important thing of all is YOUR BRAIN and your attitude. The ability to adapt is what will make you or break you. As long as you have a handful of things to work with, your knowledge will carry you farther than a whole truckload of supplies.

Now you're talking long term, in which case I had better save one of the roosters. On the subject or seeds, you might be more careful about what you choose. Some of the heirloom varieties of tomatoes, corn, and cucumbers for instance. Dried beans can be planted as well as eaten, and potatoes of course. A lot of what we now consider ornamental was once a food source. Day lilies for example, can be eaten at any stage. A perennial herb bed can add a little pizazz to a mundane diet.
Those of you in the south can grow food year round (although someone else might end up helping themselves in the middle of the night.) I have a small greenhouse going onto the side of my building, which can be used to start seedlings, raise Cole products in winter, plus add some heat on suñny days. Like Eddie I have a summer kitchen planned, which will hold my maple syrup evaporator, then give me a place to can and process food throughout the growing season.

 

[Gunny]

Side note on the flavor of the survival rations - We were a test unit for "T Rations" before they were issued to the bulk of the military, things were sealed in a can and heated up by just throwing them in a large pan of boiling water for a specified number of minutes.

One of the breakfast meals had orange scrambled eggs (I mean real orange in color) and had these tiny little link sausages mixed in (heartburn city if you were brave enough to try them). Most of my soldiers passed on them simply because of the color, but one of my guys ate several portions of it every time it was served. When I asked him how in the world he could eat it, he told me that if you poured enough Tabasco sauce on it, it tasted just like Tabasco sauce!

 

[Sprinklerman]

Bleach is one essential often overlooked . You can sanitize water .( dont get scented bleach )

 

[Soundguy]

Wow.. every day, more great posts. lots of good points.

I actually have a friend that keeps a few FRS radios in aluminum fol wrapping faraday shielding.

Here's another thought. Most of us are talking short term preps ( which is what 99% of us, hopefully will ever need ).. but one onther long term thing that some forget is teamwork.

It's hard to stay up 24 hrs a day, guard the family, go hunt or gather supplies.

you need ( 100% trust your life/wife around ) trusted team members to take turns guarding and gathering.

It helps if your groups team members also each bring their own unique skills. IE.. our family/friendly group has members with medic and 1st responder training, engineering and electronics, tactical ( many members are former military ).. etc.

all those skills in tandem are as important as many of our other preps.

 

[Soundguy]

Wow.. every day, more great posts. lots of good points.

I actually have a friend that keeps a few FRS radios in aluminum fol wrapping faraday shielding.

Here's another thought. Most of us are talking short term preps ( which is what 99% of us, hopefully will ever need ).. but one onther long term thing that some forget is teamwork.

It's hard to stay up 24 hrs a day, guard the family, go hunt or gather supplies.

you need ( 100% trust your life/wife around ) trusted team members to take turns guarding and gathering.

It helps if your groups team members also each bring their own unique skills. IE.. our family/friendly group has members with medic and 1st responder training, engineering and electronics, tactical ( many members are former military ).. etc.

all those skills in tandem are as important as many of our other preps.

 

[kcflhrc]

Man, this sure got weird. Almost cult like. Keep the foil on your heads too so the scanners cant get you. :thumbsup: