Weekly Preppers Thread

[Kartographer]

Haven't done one for a while and with all that is going on I though it would be a good idea to do a Weekly Prepper Thread, for posting tips, new products, good prep buys etc.....

“There is no greater disaster than to underestimate danger.

Underestimation can be fatal.”

[Roos_Girl]

I don’t think the number of Prepper articles is too high. Easy enough to skip something if it doesn’t interest me.

[TomasUSMC]

ADD ME PLS

[Kartographer]

First thanks for the incouragement!

I agree with you on problem I see is most people think Preppers=MadMax. SHTF doesn't have to be MadMax and 99% of the time would be something like a hurricane, ice storm, flooding so forth. We have all watch as different countries have gone through financial crisis and bank shutdowns and withdraw resrictions have always go with these events. So are you prepared to live a week, a month with no or little access to cash, debit/credit cards? Do you have on hand enough food, suppies, fuel, cash to make it through such for a week or maybe even a month?

I remember reading during the Boston lockdown and searh for the bombers of people call the police for help with formual and diapers. We all read about the fighting in gas lines on Long Island after Sandy. Do you want to put yourself though such? Do you want to stand in lines for hours everyday just to end up with just enough to get you through that day?

It is your choice you can prep or you can stand around on a bridge waiting for FEMA to bring you a bottle of water, a MRE, a warm blanket and a kiss for your boo-boo and maybe you can even get your picture as you stand there on the national news

[metmom]

I don’t have any problem with the number of threads you are pinging out.

Keep up the good work and ignore the whiners.

[Stentor]

I would also like to ask the question it seems that lately I have once again angered a number of fellow FReepers with these prepping threads. Suggestion?

Yeah. Worry about when someone worries about all the Apple spam threads.

[Lurker]

For cheap food prep we have been putting back dried bulk beans. We buy them in ten pound bags and then vacuum seal them in one pound portions.

12 pounds of dried beans and rice fits nicely in one of those five gallon big box hardware store buckets. We toss a cup of salt and a generous handful of whole peppercorns, also vac sealed, into the bucket. Then you apply the lid. Get the ones with the rubber seal.

Ought to keep for at least 5 years that way.

L

[NYTexan]

I’d be more screwed than Laz if it weren’t for yer posts...

Keep up the good work!

[Kartographer]

LOL When they run the back to school clothing sales I get at least one or two pack of each. Remmeber during SHTF you are going to do a lot more walking that mean MORE SOCKS! Taking can of your feet will be of prime importance! Ask and infantry man!

[Duchess47]

I’m sorry, I don’t know why it would annoy them. I very much enjoy them.

[bleach]

Ping me.

[EternalHope]

Thanks Kartographer!

No idea how often we should have these threads, but I’m guessing it will become self evident.

Night vision gear: I goofed and bought a night vision rifle scope. It’s great, but not nearly as useful as night vision googles would have been. With night vision googles I could see around me much more easily than is possible simply from sweeping a rifle scope, and could still see iron sights if necessary.

The scope is gen 2, which is plenty good. I suspect a gen 1 scope would still be pretty good. No way would I spend the money for a gen 3 scope.

Solar generator: Lots to choose from, don’t know what’s best. I did it the hard way and built one from scratch. LOTS of work and did not save much money. (Learned a lot though!)

I’ve learned a bit about EMP since then, and decided to put the solar components in a Faraday cage. Unfortunately, the panels also need to be protected and I haven’t got that done yet.

[MomwithHope]

I would definitely like tips on a solar generator that would power a well pump and maybe a freezer. Looking for a good price too.
I ordered potassium iodide tablets for the first time ever this week. We are in pretty good shape other than the water issue. we have a good supply stored but it won't last more than a couple of months.

[sportutegrl]

I survived two weeks without electricity, gas or water in my apartment after Hurricane Andrew. Also I couldn’t get out because a tree was blocking my truck. I had prefilled my propane gas tank for my bbq pit, and filled my spare bathtub with water, had lots of candles and batteries and a new hurricane tracking chart and my radio. I put all my fridge food in the freezer, using it as an ice chest and slowly ate stuff as it thawed, (BBQ). I could boil water on the side burner and make coffee, and I highly recommend getting an old style drip coffeepot. Save your batteries for the radio, use candles for light. After about a week, my brother came by to check on me and winched the tree off my truck and gave me a $20 bag of ice. After that I was good.

[Kartographer]

"I’d be more screwed than Laz"

Thats a short list! In fact I say the only one I know that might be on such a list would be Hugh Hefner.

[PA Engineer]

Just keep up the good work. I enjoy reading the threads, however I don't post that often on them. I having been prepping since 1998. You can always learn something new.

Thanks you for the all the hard work.

[pops88]

I sometimes like a bowl of ramen broth, but don’t eat the noodles. When I have a gallon sized bag full, I vacuum seal them and stick them in the pantry. Crap food, but it’s still food. I have some vacuum sealed packs of beans stored, and some rice, but I tend to work on the higher ticket items like canned chicken, fish and beef products. I’m not as worried about the availability of rice and beans. I spent a few months on a Pacific Island eating mostly baked beans and white bread and not much meat due to the scarcity of it. I’m sure that impacted my view of what to prep. My daughter absolutely refuses to eat beans now. Not much point in prepping food one isn’t willing to eat if looking at prepping for the bump in the road vs. zombie apocalypse.

[Kartographer]

You might think of adding a hand power winch and one of these to your preps.

[thackney]

I have once again angered a number of fellow FReepers with these prepping threads. Suggestion?

Ignore the complainers.

Post more threads.

[Kartographer]

Check out this article:

Better than Bleach: Use Calcium Hypochlorite to Disinfect Water

http://readynutrition.com/resources/better-than-bleach-use-calcium-hypochlorite-to-disinfect-water_19062010/

[Jamestown1630]

Thank you, Kart.

I enjoy the threads, and I joined the ping list because I HAVE been through several instances of terrible ice/snow storms that stranded me at home for many days, and through summer thunder-storm power outages. And I know that many of my compatriots have been through much worse: Sandy, Katrina, &c.

It never hurts to know this stuff, and to be able to decide - from an educated standpoint - at what level one’s own circumstances suggest to prepare.

As others have said: if people don’t like the threads, they don’t have to read them.

Post On!

-JT