Top 9 Mistakes Of Prepping

http://www.commonfolkusingcommonsense.com/2010/06/07/top-9-mistakes-of-prepping/ ^

[Red in Blue PA]

1. Following the wrong advice: Many new survivalist become fixated upon the advice given by others. They read the latest preparedness book or blog post and automatically assume the advice given is best them, without considering their individual needs, skill level or location. In order to be self-reliant you need to learn to think for yourself.

2. Not eating what they store: Many new survivalist fill their pantry with unfamiliar foods, thinking they will adapt their diet “when the time comes” this is nonsense. You need to learn how to prepare and use these foods now, so they become a familiar staple.

3. Relying only on their food storage: Many new survivalist think once they have their one year supply of survival foods, that’s the end. Don’t get me wrong, having a deep larder is important, just don’t overlook the possibility of needing to replenish your supplies, and obtaining the skills and resources needed to do that.

4. Not storing enough salt: Many new survivalist fail to store this staple in the quantities needed. Don’t discount the importance of salt. I suggest at least ten pounds of iodized salt per person as a minimum.

5. Building an arsenal: I see this all the time. Many new survivalist spend thousands on weapons and related gear, yet have only a two-week supply food and no water filter. This is stupid. I love guns and gear as much as the next person – but I know food and water are more important to my survival. Sure; we need weapons to protect what we’ve put away, just don’t neglect the other stuff.

6. Relying on bugging out: I’m not a fan of the “grab a bug out bag and head for the hills survival strategy”. In most cases you’re better off staying where you are. Having a bug out bag is a good idea, just don’t make bugging out your only plan or first priority.

7. To much stuff not enough skill: Many new survivalist believe they can be saved though buying. This fantasy has been promoted by self-serving survival gurus for years to fill their pockets with cash. Sure supplies are useful and some are needed – just don’t become dependent on stuff instead develop your skills.

8. Storing only one type of food: More than a few new survivalist have made this mistake. I can’t remember exactly where I read it, I think it was on another survival blog – but the author suggested his readers store hundreds of pounds of wheat and nothing else. While wheat is the backbone of my food storage, storing only one type of food, no matter how versatile is foolish.

9. Not taking care of pet needs: Many new survivalist fail to consider the needs of their pets. If you have pets you must plan for their needs by laying back the necessary supplies to keep them fed and healthy.

[STONEWALLS]

...I don’t see it that way...police will abandon their posts and go home to look after their own families...crimnal motorcycle gangs will prey on the weak...after they’ve taken the all the easy pickings locally they’ll begin to roam the countryside...I’d rather prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

[STONEWALLS]

“And farmers prosper.....”

...not with out law enforcement they don’t.

[Armedanddangerous]

Oh man, Im mega set up for flashlights, batteries and even a new red cross radio.

Ive found the best flashlights to be had for general use are LED lights powered by AA batteries. They seem to last forever for me.

Ive got a few surefires powered by cr 123 batteries, mostly for use with firearms. One of them is attached to the forearm of my olympic 5.56 M4 carbine.

[fireforeffect]

Right you are.

Katrina, earthquake (Chile), flood, etc are much more likely than the end of the world.

Plan for 30 days and you will survive most problems. Do not do anything that will get you arrested later.

Do not know about our current Sheriff, but the old one talked about setting up road blocks between us and the big city. No proof of residency, no pass. I actually left a letter with my parents, just in case.

[Uncle Ike]

” ...not with out law enforcement they don’t. “

See my post #15...

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2553931/posts?page=15#15

“Law Enforcement” doesn’t necessarily imply ‘government employees’......

[Kartographer]

Motorcycle gangs will be the most dangerous and effect looters/pillagers during any prolong SHTF event.

Link to a copy of Military Threat Assessment For motorcycle gangs:

http://militarytimes.com/static/projects/pages/ngic_gangs.pdf

[Lorica]

bookmarking for good advice and ideas

[jameslalor]

“Baffled as to why, should one have to go survivalist, one would even waste the time and resources to maintain “pets”.”

I think you may have a bit of a fantasy/hollywood view of the type of people being discussed in this article. In most cases, these people are simply trying to plan for the normal and predictable disruptions that occur to goods and services due to commonplace events (hurricanes, earthquakes, social unrest and so on).

I grew up in tornado alley and was used to having a stocked basement with radios, first aid kits, candles and flashlights, food & water. Over time, it became apparent that these simple preparations and minor use of forethought allowed us to more comfortably weather freak events like a 200-year-rare icestorm that leaves cities crippled for a week or more.

I live in an area of the country now where “severe weather” would be a freak 100 year storm that drops BB sized hail, so I don’t have a storm shelter or emergency supplies, but I can very readily see the good logic behind having some things socked away for emergency use. Haven’t gotten around to it, back burner and all that, hope that lazy thinking doesn’t bite me in the backside one of these days.

From what I’ve seen, what the media loves to call “survivalists” tend to have just taken slightly more prep in their emergency plans. The line of thinking goes like: “Ok, we’ve got some pre-planning and prep done for normal emergencies... kick it up just a notch and we’ll cover our butts in a lot of unforeseen events.”

Take an existing hurricane or earthquake plan, add a month or two supply of shelf-stable food along with the various and sundry items you might need in that time period, and you have an insurance plan that can help you comfortably weather a VERY wide range of NASTY events. Since such nasty events are rare, such emergency plans usually end up helping someone handle job loss or bad personal injury; but in the end, it’s still pre-planning well used.

I’ve never, EVER, met a person preparing for an apocalypse (at least one who admitted as much). I have however met many people who put a bit of thought and effort into making sure that they can handle temporary upset in their lives.

So, back up. You’re making up a household emergency plan to cover severe weather, earthquakes, maybe the rare riot or temporary bout of marshal law. Why the hell WOULDN’T you include a case of Alpo for the family dog?

[GonzoGOP]

Motorcycle gangs will be the most dangerous and effect looters/pillagers during any prolong SHTF event.

Well rouge military would be worse, but a lot less likely. And there isn't much you can do if somebody rolls in on you with a reinforced battalion of armor. Sticks and stones may break your bones, but the guy in the M1A2 does pretty much whatever he wants till the fuel runs out.

[STONEWALLS]

...excellent link Kartographer....I have no doubt that military gang members will straight to the arms room and ammo bunkers and begin pillaging in any prolonged SHTF scenario.

[Uncle Ike]

” Motorcycle gangs will be the most dangerous and effect looters/pillagers during any prolong SHTF event.

Well rouge military would be worse, “

Less dramatic, but far more difficult to deal with will be the miles-long columns of refugees fleeing no-longer-functioning cities....

Tens-of-thousands of unarmed and mostly non-violent men, women, and children scavenging everything edible or usable as they pass....

The only effective defense is to be where they ain’t - far off the ‘beaten track’.....

[fireforeffect]

Just Scroogle “manual well pump”.

Lordy be. There are a lot of them out there now.

Now I need to find out how deep my pump is. Then I will know what to buy.

[married21]

Besides, that goes well with the “eat (or drink) what you store” philosphy.

[married21]

I’m with you. There’s an ocean full of food within walking distance of my house. I just need to learn how to get it. I’ve got some equipment and I’ve been fishing a couple of times with my kids. Just need to do it more often.

[GonzoGOP]

Less dramatic, but far more difficult to deal with will be the miles-long columns of refugees fleeing no-longer-functioning cities

Wolves -vs- plague of locusts. The wolves appear to be more dangerous, but if prepared you can deal them. The locusts just eat you our of house and home. The good news is that they can't go very far without transport. And most urban dwelling Obama voters are too stupid to bug out early. They will wait for the Magical FEMA fairy to come save them. Untrained, underfed, not used to long marches cross country, hauling suitcases and carts rather than proper battle rattle. The best they are going to do is 12 miles a day. In a week they would starve so 84 miles from the edge of civilization is about as far as they are going to get. Get 100 miles out and you are probably safe from anyone who isn't mechanized.

And when the fuel runs out nobody is going to want to commute 100 miles to loot even if they have the gas. The bikers can do it because they get great gas millage and are used to long rides. The boys form the hood will be busy looting the refuges closer to home.

[Bean Counter]

Great article and I thought i would add a thought along these lines. I am not planning on being a member of "The Golden Horde" and we have been "prepping" if you will for years, in that we have consistently upgraded, improved and repaired our home so we can in fact live here fairly comfortably when the power goes off.

Another step I encourage anyone with the space to do so is to add a chicken coop to your property. I built ours between last November and this past February, and the first hens moved in around February 7th. Here is a link to Backyard Chickens dot com where I posted an extensive set of construction pictures while it was being built. There are several threads linked off of that one with details of different coop and run components, including the rainwater collection system that fills that barrel on the back and provides the chooks with a near inexhaustible supply of drinking water.

http://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=283812

And here are some pictures from today of what our coop and flock looks like. We have 2 Rhode Island Reds, two Golden Sex Links, and a pair of Jersey Giants. Three of the girls are in lay right now and we are averaging three eggs a day. When the Jersey Giants lay, their eggs are like goose-eggs, but it will be at least another month before they mature. They are a full 2 months younger than the Reds.









The henhouse and run us based on six four by four posts that support the roof, and the coop. The run is 50 square feet and the coop interior is 20 square feet, and the exterior nesting boxes add about 8.5 additional square feet. The lids open up to harvest eggs.

You can do worse for yourself in a barter economy, than to have fresh hen fruit available every day, and if you select "dual use" birds you have meat on the table when you need it.

Check your local zoning to be sure of the rules; here we are allowed a flock of this size, but hens only and no roosters allowed; and if you are raising hens for eggs you don't want a roo anyway...

The cost was reasonable and we spread it out in cash over several months, so it was easy to pay for it as we went. Give chickens a try in your long-term survival plans.

[bgill]

You come to my house to try and take my families food, Ill have your guns, your boots, flashlights, other weapons and they’ll find your ragged corpse sometime next spring

Save your pantry. There's your first ingredient for Donner Party Stew.

[GonzoGOP]

Another thing about bugging out is that the cops/feds/jackbooted thugs will have check points on all the roads. Better be armed to the teeth when you get to one of those.

If the feds/LEA have enough organization and control to set up road blocks the bug-out will be easy. The roadblocks that will be of most concern are small towns that decide they don't want any city folk visitors. If you are planning to run to a friends house in the country it would be a good idea to have the letter of introduction. It could quite literally save your life. And it would just suck to survive the escape from Chicago and get shot by your friends next door neighbor because he thinks you are a road mobile looter.

[bgill]

If you have the money, invest in a hand pump. Or do a search for a how-to for using a pvc pipe to dip water out of your well. Or attach a plastic cup to a string and lower it down for water. And set out water collectors aka garbage cans when it rains.

[dragnet2]

The small dog can live happily enough in an apartment. He'll provide a vocal deterrent to intruders

Oh yeah....Every knows the vicious barking sound of little yappers.....That'll scare them away fer sure....

The small dog can be carried easily. In your backpack no less.

:o

Hey, get one of those big bad dog recordings, and tape it to your Chihuahua.