Prepping - anyone?

[caseyc]

I've been interested in the topic of prepping lately. Prepping, as in making preparations for surviving a potential natural disaster. In my case, it would probably be a large earthquake. Heck, maybe even a huge hurricane. Anyone else out there prepping?

For those who have a van (or other type of vehicle), we already have an advantage of having a BOV (Bug Out Vehicle) if disaster strikes. If something bad happens, hopefully we can make it to our (BOV) vehicle, and bug out to another location that is safe to ride out whatever storm may exist.

I've seen a number of videos recommending creating a BOB (Bug Out Bag) that is full of emergency gear. While I don't (currently) have a specific BOB, I do however have pretty much all the same items in my van that most bug out bags would contain. Thanks REI sports, haha!

Such emergency gear would include first aid items, stuff for creating fire and purifying water, items for shelter and security, portable power, etc. The list goes on and on. I've seen a number of YouTube videos on this topic, and it's amazing how large a bug out bag can get that's filled with all kinds of gear.

At this point, about the only thing I don't have enough of is food and water. I only have a few days worth of Mountain Home (MRE) food, and I need to stock up more of. I only keep maybe a few gallons of water on hand in the van, but I do have water purifiers in case I have access to potentially unsafe water that I could use.

No, I don't consider myself a hardcore prepper. I won't be creating a bombshelter in the Nevada desert any time soon. Neither will I be stocking up on haz-mat suits or hoarding food and ammo. I do think this is a good idea to be at least moderately prepared in case of an emergency so I don't have to rely on anyone for help, especially the government.

 

[offroad]

are you watching the shows on National Geographic channel? Find this topic very interesting along with bushcraft skills.

 

[sparky1]

been a prepper since I bought this place in 84,,,24 miles to the store---buy quanties is just plain smart.i'm not a bunker guy either, I do have several spare campers (3) vans (2) bov's yes i'm always prepaired,not a hunter,fisher,but could do it if it became manditory,tomorrow snow/ice expected---I have wood in the basement for heat(normal)plenty of food & water,3 large solar panels charging (3)(4D) battery's for lighting.
heck it was 13 degrees this morning here, & ice on the storm windows..
NOT a problem here.
sparky the Retired electrician.

 

[James AKA Lynx]

I hear "Prepper" and wonder what they mean. You can set up your van to go 2 weeks without going out and buying anything. You can load up your van with dried/freeze dried and be close to water and wood and last for months. Are you a prepper or just camping? Same stuff really if you want to be safe.

 

[ice_maiden]

When I was growing up my grandparent bought things in bulk when they were on sale instead of buying groceries week to week like a lot of people do now. You eventually start back stocking groceries this way. I buy groceries the same way....so like my grandparents I have several months of back stocked groceries and buy when things are on sale. I do this with other things I use also...I have kerosene for the lanterns, extra batteries for the flashlights, extra toilet paper and paper towel, several extra propane tanks. Working on a water catchment system. I have a generator and gasoline in case. Solar will come in the future when I understand it better....till then I am collect solar stuff as I find it.

I don't really consider myself a prepper per say.... I think of it as just being frugal and using common sense. I'd like to be as self sufficient as possible. Like sparky1, I live rural. Although my trip is not as far... it is still 10 miles round trip to the store. When you live rural it's just smarter to try and keep what you need on hand. If crap did hit the fan I can't see myself being any safer any where else than where I am at right now.

 

[caseyc]

[dead link]

Here's a video about "prepping" that I had first posted on the "old" forum. Thought it might be useful to copy the YouTube link to this thread. I like this video cuz it's straightforward and logical. Other videos I've seen simply lay out a pile of stuff on a bed sheet.

---

There are obvious similarities between camping and prepping. But in my mind, prepping involves being prepared in case things get more severe as in the case of a natural or un-natural disaster. For example, I recently stocked up with a box of N100 rated face mask respirators. Who knows, there might be an outbreak of the bird/swine flu in the US?! Having a face mask that blocks out 100 percent of airborne germs just might save my life. I certainly wouldn't pack such an item for normal camping outing. But in the case of a disaster, such an item might be sorely needed. If in the case of a zombie apocalypse outbreak, I also got a couple long machete knives, plus extra hallow point ammo and a laser sight. I would classify these particular items as "security" in case of a disaster, haha.

 

[Roadworthy]

I've had this on my mind too. Especially living out in the desert where Quartzsite has limited supplies, and high-priced at that.

Before we came, I bought a 25# bag of rolled oats and a 4 gallon bucket of wheatberries, in addition to two weeks worth of food. In the future, when we can get a bigger trailer, I'd like to store some of our other stuff (extra clothes, toys, etc.) in there, so we can squeeze an extra 2 weeks worth of food in the motorhome. With careful planning and organization, I think it can be done.

We have the ability to carry 10 gallons of gas for the generator (we plan to also buy a siphon in case we need to tap the motorhome's gas tank--it also has a spare tank, but we don't use it). With careful usage, the genny can last 10 days on that. If we only use it when absolutely necessary, we might be able to last 20 days on that 10 gallons. We don't have solar panels yet, but plan to get them, probably in February. I'd love to be completely dependent on the sun.

Our propane can last about two weeks, if the heat doesn't kick on too much at night. This is an estimate--this is the first time we've run the fridge mostly on propane, so we'll see how that goes. We're not even using the heat at night, because with the warm days and all the body heat in here at night, we don't need it so far. I will expect that will change in December. If we pay to have our propane hookup modified, and buy a 100# portable LP tank to hook up, we could last 2-4 weeks, even with using the heat.

In addition to our water tank, we have seven Aquatainers, which can almost refill the freshwater tank. Our biggest issue is water. If we don't watch the kids like a hawk, they waste a lot of water. We can last 2-3 days before dumping. If we were uber extremely careful, and made use of our emergency porta potty, we could last longer. Maybe a week...maybe. If we used the Aquatainer water for washing dishes, and dumped it on the ground, we could probably last a week. (But that would be in an emergency situation only--it's not allowed here, plus I'd be afraid that the food particles from the dish water might attract animals.)

I would love to find a way to fix our water/dumping issues. If we had a truck, we could use a Tankmin system, which would help a lot. Other than that, I'm out of ideas. If we could last 2 weeks without filling/dumping, that would totally rock. I'd feel a lot more self-sufficient.

If we can cram 2 weeks or more of supplies in our rig for our family, a single vandweller should be able to do the same, in their van. It just takes creative organization and the ability to part with crap you don't really need. I'm sure Bob and others are already doing that, since they boondock in the desert all the time.

---

Oh, and I forgot to mention, we store the oats in 2 gallon buckets under the bed, and the bucket that we are currently taking oats from has a 2 gallon size gamma seal lid, for easy access. Those bucket lids are a bitch to open, even though we have a lid lifter for them. Gamma seals are wonderfully easy to open. And the 2 gallon buckets are perfect for storing in small spaces, like under the bed. They're probably too big to put in overhead cabinets--they'd hog up the cabinet and waste space, especially if the cabinet was oddly-shaped.

 

[MrNoodly]

...instead of buying groceries week to week like a lot of people do now.

In some cultures (not just underdeveloped countries) they buy groceries daily. They don't have large houses with huge refrigerators and a deep freeze in the garage (don't have garages, either). They don't have a lot of spare room to store the food that doesn't need refrigeration. And in many cultures they avoid supermarkets, preferring to go to the butcher, the baker, the vegetable vendor, etc. Hell, they avoid canned and packaged foods.

 

[Lifemagician]

In some cultures (not just underdeveloped countries) they buy groceries daily. They don't have large houses with huge refrigerators and a deep freeze in the garage (don't have garages, either). They don't have a lot of spare room to store the food that doesn't need refrigeration. And in many cultures they avoid supermarkets, preferring to go to the butcher, the baker, the vegetable vendor, etc. Hell, they avoid canned and packaged foods.

That has been one of the biggest puzzles I find in the US. Most folk live within a stone's throw of a grocery store or supermarket, and yet they hoard food at home. Friend in MN has three freezers full with food as well as a couple of fridges and heaven knows how many pantries....

and then she comes home from work with something to eat she picked up along the way. Go figure!

I live close to supermarkets and shop two or three times a week. When I live in my van in the US I shop mostly every day for fresh food, even though I have a fridge.

Lifey

 

[owl]

We don't have the old small villages the way they do in other countries. I have never met anyone who enjoyed going to the supermarket, so we mostly go and get it over with. When people visit the U.S. from other countries they go into our large supermarkets and marvel. They don't have anything like it at home. The idea of shopping for a meal every day is not for me.

 

[Unchained]

That has been one of the biggest puzzles I find in the US. Most folk live within a stone's throw of a grocery store or supermarket, and yet they hoard food at home.

The fact of the matter is that things change FAST when the lights go out.

When the power outage hit SoCali in Sept 2011, many things went to sh*t in a matter of hours. The gas stations/ convenience stores and chain supermarkets closed immediately. According to the cashiers at the local AM/PM and grocery store, people were pounding on the locked doors trying to get in, nearly breaking the glass. Traffic was instantly a mess in many areas, because very few traffic lights run on solar.

I made a supply run for the neighbors, who had one flashlight between them and no real food or extra water because the grocery store was 'right up the street' and 'nothing ever happens here'. They were staring at their smartphone and randomly pushing buttons when I left.

When I got to town, the only stores open were the locally owned liquor stores, and they were jammed with customers buying ice, water, food, flashlights and batteries... as well as booze. Limits were 2 gal jugs or 1 case of water and 2 7lb or 1 20lb bag of ice per customer. The ice and water were gone within hours, and I doubt the booze lasted much longer.

That night, the prepared lit up their BBQs and/or gas stoves and cooked both for themselves and for their neighbors. Some used their gennys to power lights, DVD players and big screen TVs at spontaneous backyard gatherings. Others went 'old school' with lanterns and campfires.

Still, many people wandered the streets, completely lost without their electronic gadgets and fast food.

Note: That outage lasted about 12 hours, and potable water still flowed from the taps for most people. Another day without power, and it would have gotten seriously ugly.

All I know is that, when the sh*t hit the fan, I was good to go for weeks while others were struggling within hours. If that means that I'm 'hoarding' food, so be it

 

[ice_maiden]

The idea of shopping for a meal every day is not for me.

I second this sentiment, I am a female who hates to shop. The less time I can spend in any store the better.

The fact of the matter is that things change FAST when the lights go out.

Unchained this is a very true statement.... I was vacationing on the Mexican border and the Gulf of Texas when Hurricane Rita hit the Gulf in 2005. People were acting nuts. We had went on a true, no itinerary, do what we felt like vacation. We were in Weslaco, TX. We were just renting a motel as we went. Once the hurricane threat hit, there was not a room to be had inland. We went to South Padre Island were everyone was evacuating, even though all they were getting was storm surge. Gas was being rationed, so we extending our vacation so that we did not have to fight for gas at the pumps so much to get home. It was a wicked adventure at the time, but not one that I really care to repeat. People over react because they are so ill prepared to begin with by living day to day.

When hurricane Ike hit in 2008 and went way inland, I was at home in east Texas. It should not have hit where I was. But because of the nature of that storm, it mildly (for a hurricane) did. Everyone was clearing out the stores that were still open. I sat at home and watched it go by because I had everything I needed.

You can never be fully prepared for everything that could possibly happen. I live on the edge of tornado alley now. If a Tornado came through and took out my RV. There really would not be much I could do about it, But if it left my RV intact. I could ride out the following chaos. If it didn't, I'd pitch a tent and salvage what I could...... attitude has a lot to do with how you survive any SHTF situation.

 

[WheelEstate USA]

I'm not a prepper really, but I do like having some food/water stocked away. A few things like batteries, small radio, light, something to cook on are among the things I keep stocked.

I think it was Dec of 06 when a storm hit the coast of Or. We were in Astoria and pretty much centered receiving winds gusting to near 100 mph. Windows in the old post office were blown out and the docks in havoc. Power was out in most of the area for as much as 4 days. Service crews missed a problem in our neighborhood and we had no electric for 10 days despite several calls to report. (unlike most, we had a Mr. Heater).
Ice and bottled water were gone quickly. Stores were emptied quickly. Deliveries could only be brought in from one direction due to road hazards. With electronics down banks closed, no ATMs, no plastic in stores.

The best part about this story isn't the fact that I was able to sustain 3 people (son was there)...the best part was the wonderful people of that town. People shared what they had, were helpful, and we never felt a sense of panic in the air.

Things like this can be hard on everyone. We saw people "working with it" in stead of "working against it".

 

[Unchained]

People over react because they are so ill prepared to begin with by living day to day.

This. When the lights went out here, people freaked. SoCali gets wildfires and the occasional earthquake, but we don't get storms and tornadoes like back east that knock the power out. Many people didn't have so much as an extra set of batteries for their single flashlight, so they panicked.

I sat at home and watched it go by because I had everything I needed.

Had it not been for the neighbors and the fact that we had a few thousand $$ in stock at work that had to remain refrigerated, I could have done the same. I spent the evening making dinner, then reading until bedtime. The neighbors bailed for his folks' house in town.

attitude has a lot to do with how you survive any SHTF situation.

Absolutely. The scary thing is that so many people didn't learn a lesson from that outage. For a couple of weeks, the local WalMart couldn't keep flashlights and batteries in stock, then people went back to sleep. The neighbors still don't keep extra food or water, and may have 2 flashlights with no extra batteries. If it happened again tomorrow, it would be much the same.

 

[daminc]

we get blizzards and driving bans here in Buffalo Ny… lots of time we lose power because of it. we have learned to make sure we have enough gas and food for at least a week always…. its the way we grew up

 

[owl]

Here is the plan, forget food, water, guns and ammo. Stock away big, and I mean big, supplies of TOILET PAPER! It will be more valuable than gold. You will be able to barter for anything you need.

 

[ice_maiden]

Here is the plan, forget food, water, guns and ammo. Stock away big, and I mean big, supplies of TOILET PAPER! It will be more valuable than gold. You will be able to barter for anything you need.

Owl sometimes you are too funny....but actually I have toilet paper, paper towels, paper plates, etc..... and have not bought any of them in about a year......although now that you mention it.... I may need to buy some more toilet paper... I may run out in the next few months

 

[Unchained]

Here is the plan, forget food, water, guns and ammo. Stock away big, and I mean big, supplies of TOILET PAPER! It will be more valuable than gold. You will be able to barter for anything you need.

Nope. Without the guns and ammo, someone could steal your stash!

 

[sparky1]

I use Notebook File for my Inventory of what I have on hand-works for me.Have it in mostly group items and alfabetical,IE; food,medical,shelter,etc,
keeb.

 

[ilovemyvan]

It's strange because when I was living in Montreal I never thought of getting ready for disaster, buying warm winter clothes was the extend of it.

Now that we live in Florida I had to change my tune. In 1998 we had some serious fires going on for weeks. That's when I put all the things that could not be replaced like old photos and important papers in 2 plastic tubs. To this day, these tubs are still close to a door, ready to be whisked away.

We ran out of electricity often with all the hurricanes in 2004 and 2005, once it was off for more than a week. So from this I learned to make sure we don't have too much food in the freezer during hurricane season and more canned food as well as a lot of bottle water.

Ever since I was a kid I have always been bothered by the fact that I could be separated from my love ones during a disaster and I wouldn't be able to find them again. I think that's from a war movie I saw or something like that. Well when 911 happened I was so sad for people that couldn't get in touch with each other. How awful this must have been. It became a bit of an obsession for me. Sox has been good enough to humor me and so now we carry this phone number in our wallets, not only on our cell phones. It belong to a friend back in Canada who is also good enough to humor me. I feel much better since we have this procedure to follow just in case.

I'm prepared but I don't think I'm a prepper in the true sense of the word.

Good topic Casey.

Nicole