Posted on 11/01/2012 3:33:35 PM PDT by BobL
Hi fellow FReepers,
Since we have some really good people on this site when it comes to survival techniques, I'm wondering if people have suggestions as to the best method to keep warm in the aftermath of an event like Hurricane Sandy in the Northeast (where temperatures will be in the 30s in the next day or so). While we all talk about having 20 acres and multiple pillboxes for when it happens, I suspect that most people, like myself, live in relatively modest houses, in communities where people are packed together relatively densely. In other words most of us likely live on 1/4 to 1/2 of an acre. Lots of us probably don't have fireplaces, or have the lousy pre-fab ones that can barely fit a log.
So here's the scenario, and assume this is well before the hurricane has hit...so there's plenty of time to buy supplies and equipment:
1) Your house doesn't have a fireplace (it may or may not have natural gas service - I'd like to explore both scenarios). 2) You will not have electricity for a month after the storm, and it's winter. 3) You can store up to 50 gallons of fuel (any fuel), although an outdoor propane tank would get you into trouble with the town. 4) You can have firewood, but again, no fireplace. So you need some other way to burn it.
So the question is what would be the most practical way to prepare for this. I live in Houston and don't worry much about keeping warm (although it can get quite cold here in winter). I have lots of flashlights, batteries, gasoline/propane-powered lanterns, gasoline/propane powered stoves, even a portable propane-powered water heater (works great), along with electric and natural gas water heaters. I also have the ability to collect and purify rain water.
What I don't have is a way to keep warm if the temperature dropped to 10 degrees here (which it won't, but which it does in the Northeast).
So, any ideas? I would want the system used to keep warm to be the following: 1) Non-intrusive. In other words, not immediately noticeable if it's not in use. So something that can be deployed reasonably easy. 2) If combustion is used (as likely the case), then a way to safely vent combustion gasses, while keeping as much heat as possible indoors
Any suggestions are welcome, and thanks all!
“If you have a small fireplace, be prepared to convert it for burning pellets.”
Good advice...do you have more info on the pellets? I could see that as a good way to have the equivalent of “firewood” stored, but without the problem of firewood, like bugs (i.e. termites), which scare me.
I have two big tanks so I think I would be okay. I talked to my delivery dude and he said before a storm they fill all the trucks. Given that I think I would be okay.
I’m wondering if they do dual fuel but I tend to doubt it.
Wear insulating underwear. I like items designed for winter sports that wick away the moisture and are very thin. Patagonia is one brand, but there are others. Wear layers and you won’t overheat.
Smart Indian, build small fire, sit close.
Moral of the story: Whatever heat can be used, use it efficiently, don’t waste it.
Don’t overlook clothing, which is available in quantity.
In my moderate location, instead of heating hundreds of cubic feet, I wear a sweatshirt and cap indoors a lot.
Have you considered cuddling up with the Texans’ cheerleaders? It can’t hurt to ask.
Having a good sleeping bag is a bonus.
I have a mummy bag made with Quallofil, you don’t even dare get into it if the temps are > 40 degrees or so.
Supposed to be good to like -10F
Apparently Rahway still wants you to pay taxes on time, despite all the problems
“http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2913038/posts";
Thanks. I chimed in on that thread too. I knew your propane equivalence was way off...and you were classy when you responded. I learned my lesson with propane a long time ago when I tried making mac and cheese for myself with a small propane camping stove that used the small (14 oz, I think) propane bottles. The next thing I knew, I nearly depleted the bottle. From that day on, I use gasoline for high-energy cooking (and Coleman sells the stoves). Gasoline has huge amounts of stored energy. Propane is still great for a lot of things...as long as you use the larger tanks and don’t mind it’s relative cost (which isn’t too bad in most cases).
Blump
Wood stove and good supply of wood. Party like its 1799....
Down here in Texas the storms hit when it’s 100 degrees. Have a 20KW whole house generator with a transfer switch and a 500 gal propane tank. Turn key price was $10K. Cook stove and heat stove run off a separate propane tank. The unit tests itself every Wednesday afternoon. It was a good investment. I’m 64 and after Hurricane Ike I swore off of stove top baths.
When I was a child about 75 years ago, we didn’t have central heating, just a stove in the living room and one in the kitchen. We burned coal, and I’m still here and healthy. We got central heating when I was about 10.
Assuming that's the case, head to Florida, So. Texas, anywhere it's warm and let your homeowners insurance cover the costs........
Oh, and invite your neighbors, who choose to stick around and freeze, to loot your home. It's a great way to get your homeowners insurance company to replace all your stolen electronics and get that 60" plasma TV you've always wanted............
They sell special mesh/grid “baskets” to put in your fireplace for burning pellets. Pellets are approx 50% more expensive than cord wood, but easier to store, transport, and handle. They should burn cleaner, and leave less ash than cord wood.
If possible sleep in a small area where heat can be confined
Better yet sleep naked with another person- you can't beat body heat to stave off hypothermia. Cuddling with a nice furry dog or cat can also help
Never sleep in the clothes you wore all day- perspiration wicks out your body heat
In North Dakota blizzards, if stranded in a car, a single candle can generate enough heat to make the difference between living or freezing to death
Backpackers and specialty stores have all kinds of fancy small stoves and fuel pellets (or use sterno), nothing beats being able to heat even a cup of water for soup or tea
Take lots of Vitamin D3
Make a box oven for baking- Scouts know how to do this. completely cover a copy paper size box in heavy foil, cut a flap opening in the bottom, place upside down, inside place a pie pan with charcoal briquets and place over a grill or small oven rack , balanced over the pie plate on tin cans. Each coal = 40 degrees of oven heat.
You can bake bread brownies or cookies. Check out the site "Instructables" for hundreds of creative ideas for self sufficiency under primitive conditions Always have good shoes in case you (and the family) need to walk a long way to relocate
“NO fire for heat while you sleep, if you want to wake up”
That is BRILLIANT advice. Hopefully all reading this understand just what it means.
Thank you.
I am from upstate NY and I remember a freak Halloweenish time snow storm that left us without power for about three or four days. We had to walk about five miles to my sister's restaurant that had a generator so we could eat. I don't remember everyone falling apart during that either.
Tis why I live back in the desert. Far from Holder's people in a pretty red state.
10 degrees outside will freeze pipes with water inside and cause them to break. Make sure you turn off your main water supply.
A pipe break with the water turned off is a relatively small clean up.
If the main turnoff is inside your house a break could occur before the break and could cause a lot of flooding.
A 30 degree temperature would probably not cause pipe breaks.
To keep warm wear lots of clothes and have several blankets when sleeping.
It’s probably too late to buy heaters and/or generators before the power comes back on.
Good luck.
My solution will run the furnace in my house for days, indefinitely if the gas utility stays up. The only reason I’d need to shut down the gen set is for oil changes and maintenance the supplies for which we’ve stored in quantity.
If that fails we have a small fireplace which will heat the core of our home. I’m very fortunate as Mrs. L’s employer gives away well seasoned, split, hardwood firewood for free. I keep a full cord of it in the backyard.
Believe it or not those Coleman type propane and gas lanterns kick out quite a bit of heat themselves. I’ve found that one will raise the temp in a bedroom a good ten degrees or so.
You might want to invest in one or two of those electric oil filled radiant heaters. If you have the power issue dealt with those can put out some serious heat. If those are appropriate to your situation you might want to look into them.
Best of luck to you, sir.
Agreed. Put everyone in one room with bathroom access. Body heat will help more than you think. Also, open the curtains when the sun is shining in and close them when it isn't. Light candles and set them in front of a mirror.
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