# What did you do to prep today?



## squerly

I’m not a doomsday prepper but I do believe it’s a good idea to have a backup plan and to be as prepared as possible. I don’t make this my life’s work, but I try to do a little something whenever I can. There is no lead-lined bunker in my back yard but I do have a garden, fresh water supply, fish in the pond, hunting/trapping stuffs, backup cooking methods and other assorted things that make for a better quality of life if the SHTF. 

I use solar motion lights instead of grid lighting, I gravity flow my water supply instead of depending on a pump, I prefer to build my living space around wood heating than depending on electric or oil, etc. 

I’m sure there are others on this forum that are doing the same. Maybe not as much, maybe even more. So I thought it might be fun/helpful to keep a running tally on who’s doing what.


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## squerly

Getting from point A to B without fuel can be challenging. So in preparation for a time when fuel might not be so plentiful, I purchased an external 50 gallon fuel tank and transfer device for my truck. 

It's an "L" shape and fits against the back of the cab and takes up the empty space under my tool box. I had already changed out the stock fuel tank with a larger capacity tank so with the addition of this tank I can travel about 1,300 miles without stopping for fuel.


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## Kane

Next time you're at the junk yard, look around for an old 12V CB radio.  Could be invaluable.

All of these young adults addicted to iPads/iPhones/iWhatevers will simply not know what to do  ...  other than wander around with millions and millions of other young libs looking in vain for their government to give them more.


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## Cowboy

squerly said:


> Getting from point A to B without fuel can be challenging. So in preparation for a time when fuel might not be so plentiful, I purchased an external 50 gallon fuel tank and transfer device for my truck.
> 
> It's an "L" shape and fits against the back of the cab and takes up the empty space under my tool box. I had already changed out the stock fuel tank with a larger capacity tank so with the addition of tank I can travel about 1,300 miles without stopping for fuel.


 Where are you planning on going if and when the SHTF? 

Me i am staying right here where we have everything we need, we simply have been learning how to do without the many things that are important to most. We have a nice garden this year, plenty of back up food supply. Oil for lanterns, lots of firewood and plenty of fuel for the tractors, generators if needed. 

  The river runs through our back of property for fish, wild game is a plenty here and we have plenty of ammo if needed. Our biggest problem is our crappy water supply but i have been working on that as well, I also have been working on a filtering system to purify the river water if needed allthough i dont think that will become neccesary. 

There is just the two of us, so i have it much easier then most but its allways interesting to see how others are prepared.


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## AAUTOFAB1

Today my plan is to acquire some more medicines and antibiotic for my portable trauma kit/bug out gear. not sure if any one else is stocking up on first aid prep,but this stuff is often over looked. like a sutures,they can be invaluable when on the move but most kits do not have any.


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## Kane

*Five Types Of Looters You Must Prepare For*

                     by Survival Diva on June 21, 2012

Welcome to this week’s Urban Survival Newsletter, sponsored by “[ame="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1470082829/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=surviveinplac-20"]Tactical Firearms Training Secrets[/ame],”  the critically acclaimed book by David Morris, featuring Dustin  Ellermann, winner of Season 3 of History Channel’s “Top Shot,”  demonstrating skills throughout.  You can buy the [ame="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1470082829/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=surviveinplac-20"]book[/ame] or the [ame="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007KN263Y/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=surviveinplac-20"]Kindle[/ame] edition on Amazon.com right now!
It’s  Survival Diva again with some food for thought about societal collapse;  what to expect and who to look out for. It’s an important part of the  puzzle when you’re one of the few prepared to survive the coming  onslaught. Some guesstimate preppers make up only 5% of the populace,  but it’s my belief it’s closer to 3% at best, and more likely to be  1-2%. Many give lip service to prepping and claim to be prepared when  the truth is they’re still in the “thinking” stage. 

They  haven’t advanced to in-the-trenches preparedness that many need to do  to get prepared faster, where dinners out, budget-draining vacations,  and designer _anything _are put on the back-burner until the  storage shelves are full, water has been stored, and must-have  preparedness goods are crowding sheds, basements, or in a pinch; closets  and under the bed.

To  come out on the other side of a wide-spread crisis in one piece, even  when you’re prepared, takes getting into the head of the majority of the  population who are NOT prepared. If you’re successful, you’ll face,  head-on, the darker side of humanity most of us would rather pretend  doesn’t exist. 

Yesterday  I was given a small example. When purchasing another 20 buckets for  food storage, a Home Depot employee kindly offered to help me load them  into the back of my SUV. Looking at the 200 pounds of sugar and another  200 pounds of flour crowding the back—I’m planning to use it for barter  when the time comes—he asked; “What’s with all the buckets and the  baking stuff?” This was my cue to wake up another person who’ll be  sorely disappointed when meals on wheels doesn’t come to their aid in a  wide-spread emergency. Besides, I knew I could safely talk to him  without worry of him showing up at my doorstep if things go south. I  live 90 miles away and I pay with cash for my preparedness goods and  NEVER use rewards cards, where my personal purchases are tracked. 

So  I told him I write about prepping and I practice what I preach. Our  discussion revealed he had attempted to start prepping, yet every time  he stored the items in the basement, his teenagers helped themselves to  his emergency stash. I asked if he had a shed that could be padlocked to  keep his prepping goods intact, which he did. His answer, however, was  disappointing: “My wife would kill me if I put the bikes outside to  store preparedness goods.”  

I  left the parking lot shaking my head in sadness with the realization  this man represents the majority of people, including many reading this  very article. They may have that gut-wrenching intuition that things  aren’t quite right, and they should be getting ready, but they have  become entrenched with today’s norms and are over-consumers with the  belief the government will step in if things get_ really _bad.  Like this man, many would-be preppers just haven’t marshaled their  strength to lock horns with loved ones, even when it’s for their own  good, nor can they stomach being labeled paranoid.

*Get Into The Heads of Those to Watch For*
In  a collapse, not all looters are created equally. There will be varying  degrees of how far a person is willing to go to survive. But even the  best, most honest of people will be desperate for food and water. It’s a  good idea to consider who might be approaching your doorstep _before _trouble shows.

*Stan, the Family Man: *He  has loved ones that he desperately wants to protect. He ignored the  hassle of preparedness. He even ignored FEMA’s suggestion of storing  three days worth of emergency food and water. Money has been tight once  his hours were cut since the economic slow-down. He’d thought about  selling the jet skis and investing in storage food, but it was just too  depressing. Now a wide-spread emergency has decimated grocer’s shelves  in a matter of hours. Water is scarce and there are rumors of many in  the area getting sick after drinking non-purified water from a nearby  lake. The toilet won’t flush, sewage has backed up in the tub and there  is no electric. Communications are down and he and his family are  without hope. The first two days, he’d held out hope that help would  arrive. But it hasn’t and his family is hungry and thirsty and  frightened. Stan has always paid his dues, and would normally never  think about stealing from others. But, that was then. He must do  whatever it takes to provide for his family. The cooking smells coming  from across the hallway of his apartment building has set a plan in  motion. Survival has come down to them or him…
                                                                 *   *   *
*Toni, the Prisoner: *When  the lights went out, security at the prison was compromised. Most of  the jail guards left for home at first sign of trouble. Now, the tables  are turned and Toni and several other inmates have escaped. Toni and his  group are on foot, but that doesn’t present a problem because their  rural location offers plenty of opportunities. The farmers in the area  have fruits and vegetables ripe for the picking. Several in the vicinity  raise horses. Now that he and the other inmates broke out of prison,  Toni considers himself lucky; the problem of food and transportation is  solved…once he and the five other inmates have overtaken the family  they’ve targeted.
                                                                *   *   *
*Scorpion, the Gang Member:  *Scorpion, amember  of a major gang is, mad at life and knows he’s entitled to survive  because he’s young and strong. He’s willing to do whatever it takes  without remorse.  He and his homeboys have plenty of firepower and  ammunition: the tools of their trade. They can’t wait to take what they  need, just for the sheer sport of it. And it’s proven to be as easy as  stealing candy from a baby. Several home invasions produced more than  enough food, water and medical supplies. What didn’t interest them was  grabbed and sold on the black market to desperate customers. The best  part is they didn’t even have to leave the city. There’s more than  enough to keep the gang well fed. Along the way, they’ve picked up an  arsenal. Ammo is now so plentiful, it’s moved past need and has been  sold for more than what gold and silver is fetching. The few police  combating the looting and killing don’t have the manpower to take down  his gang, and they’re on a rampage.
                                                            *   *   *
*John, the Tactically Trained: *For  the past two days, John has had to watch his neighbors go into  meltdown. They’re without food and water, as is John. One of his  neighbors is a diabetic with no way to get insulin. They can’t call  their doctor—cell and land line phones haven’t worked for days. Plus,  the roads are in complete gridlock. The gas stations ran out of fuel  within 24-hours of the crisis and many frantic motorists trying to flee  ran out of gas, or experienced car problems, leaving their vehicles to  clog the roadways. 

John  feels for his neighbor, but he has loved ones. They are his number one  priority and he’s run out of time. John and several of his hunting  buddies have decided it’s time to search for survival goods, taking  their ATV’s. John’s military training now comes in handy. As leader of  the group, he knows to head outside the suburb he lives for the boonies  where it’s more likely there will be plentiful food and water and  preparedness goods. They’ve agreed not to hurt anyone, so long as  they’re allowed to take what they need. John knows what to look for: the  sound of a generator or lights shining through windows. This is his  signal a homeowner is prepared. During the day his group listens for the  tell-tale sounds of a generator, a chainsaw, or a motorized vehicle,  which isn’t hard to do now that the grid’s down. For days, things have  been eerily silent. At night, John and his hunting buddies look for the  tell-tale glow of lights reflecting from windows. In no time, they have  what they need and will return to this rural goldmine on an as-need  basis.
*                                                            *   *   **
*Brenda, the Naysayer: *Brenda laughed when her co-worker, Sarah, shared her prepping plans.Now,  the streets are over-run with desperate folks. The stores have been  looted. Grocers, sporting good stores and gun shops were the first to  get hit. But there have been plenty of  TV’s, computers and high-ticket  electronic items pilfered, even though they’re no good to anyone at  present. The family car has an empty gas tank, but she’s in good health  and so is the rest of her family. It’s just blind luck Brenda knows  where Sarah lives, and the awesome part is she isn’t far—only a couple  of miles away. Her family is into bicycling, so the problem of  transportation is solved; They’ll just zip past the gridlock, baring  looters, that is. The rest of Brenda’s plan lies with the knowledge that  Sarah is kindhearted. 

She’ll  put Brenda and her family up until order is restored, which from the  looks of things could be a long time. Brenda and her husband throw what  little they have in their pantry (what they can handle weight-wise,  anyway) into backpacks and pillowcases. Next, they clear out the  medicine cabinet. They tried to use their ATM card for cash just  yesterday, so they wouldn’t show up empty-handed—they’d never want to be  seen as free-loaders—but the grid is hopelessly crashed, so no luck  there, and all businesses are closed, including the banks. But Brenda  doesn’t necessarily see that as a deal-breaker. She did everything she  could, other than fill her pantry and get preparedness goods. And  besides, Brenda has two adorable kids…how can Sarah say no?
                                                           *   *   *
*Will You Be A Victim?*
Desperate families, prison inmates, gang-bangers and freeloaders _will _be  out there during a full-on collapse. The first thing you want to do is  to get prepared so that you aren’t one of them.  Next, how you handle  desperate people and whether you come out on the other side alive has a  lot to do with planning beforehand. Here are some pointers. *Hopefully, you have some of your own to share by commenting below:*


The  “Vacant Home” strategy: Many people plan on making their home look  unoccupied in an attempt to protect themselves from looters.  In  grid down, you don’t necessarily want to have your home appear vacant.  The average person won’t risk getting shot when they believe a home is  occupied. It’s better to keep them guessing, and that also includes NOT  telegraphing your preparedness.
You  will be an instant target if you’re running a noisy a generator, or  driving a vehicle, or using a chain saw when your area has drawn looters  or worse. It sends a message: You’re prepared and you have goods they  need! It’s best to forgo the obvious. Some generators are built to run  quietly. Is yours? If not, when looters are in your area, use only tools  that won’t draw as much attention like a tree-felling ax, and cease  running a noisy generator until it’s safer to do so. Keep vehicles  parked, and gas storage out of site.  Some  things that you can do are to add supplementary mufflers to your  generator, build a sound dampening enclosure, build an underground sound  dampening enclosure, and only run your generator during the noisiest  parts of the day, if possible.
Don’t  light up your home in grid-down! Now is a good time to fit your windows  with black-out curtains. Even using a piece of material that’s  secured—possibly with duct tape, so light doesn’t escape and alert  people outside, will do.  Whatever you do, test, test, and test again.  Test  your black-out provisions now when there is plenty of ambient light and  test them again if the grid goes down on moonless nights.
Cooking  odors will attract anyone with a growling stomach, including neighbors,  looters and worse. Keep canned goods and MRE’s on hand for times when  looting is rampant.
You  must have the means to defend yourself. Guns and ammo may be the  pivotal deciding factor between who comes out ahead: Toni the prisoner  or Scorpion the gang banger, or you and your loved ones. It will be  necessary in times of unruliness, when people are frantic to survive, to  patrol your home, whether it happens to be in the boonies or in the  city. This, often times, requires a trusted group. It may become  impossible to protect a location with just a husband and wife due to the  heightened demands on your time that during normal times is not an  issue. This is a separate post, however, because of all it entails. Look  for the post soon!

Either  have stored water or a safe route to get it and keep a high-quality  water purifier on hand. During a collapse, sanitation will go south.  Never risk drinking non-purified water. (David’s Note:  I plan on  purifying any water that I have stored rather than relying on  my container cleaning and water preserving skills to keep us safe.)

Have a backup plan for toilet use and basic hygiene, as we talked about in this article: http://www.secretsofurbansurvival.com/1470/grid-down-water-and-sewer/


Put  aside medical supplies. Should anyone in your family or group be  inured, medical aid is unlikely to show during a crisis. We’ll talk  about what you’ll need specifically in an upcoming post.
Keep  several ABC fire extinguishers that will handle all types of fires. Do  not expect to be able to contact the fire department for help.  (David’s  note:  We also keep a LARGE supply of baking soda, aloe, and other  first aid items for burns.  One of these items is anbesol…which is for  teeth, but contains .9% lidocaine.  Solarcaine is aloe and .5% lidocaine  and it works well also.  You  can buy lidocaine cream without a prescription at a 5% concentration  >HERE<  [ame="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001F8HY0U/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=surviveinplac-20"]Amazon.com: Zcaine - Fast Acting Anesthetic Gel - 4% Lidocaine - 60 gram: Beauty[/ame])
NEVER  depend upon land line and cell phones to work when a crisis strikes. If  you doubt this, you only have to look at the Japan tsunami, or Haiti,  or Katrina. Have a back-up plan, always—which we’ll be covering here in  an upcoming post.  (David’s note:  Never underestimate the power of  randomness in a large scale disaster.  On 9/11 in NYC, the network that  Blackberries operated on was the only one that was reliable.  After  Katrina, friends doing security contracting weren’t able to use cell  phones, but were able to use landline phones even though the water was 6  feet deep on the ground floor and the cables were under water.  In  Hawaii, the night that the earthquake hit Japan and a tsunami was  expected to hit Hawaii, cell phone circuits were busy, but I was still  able to email, tweet, post updates, and surf the web over my data  connection on the same phone that couldn’t make a call.)
When  possible, a large dog is worth considering. It’s long been known by  police that a large, serious-sounding dog will stop the bad guy. Problem  is, he’ll just look for easier targets. You must provide for their  survival, just as you have your loved ones, which will mean plenty of  dog food. In my book,_ Survival: Prepare Before Disaster Strikes_,   [ame="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1927360099/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=surviveinplac-20"]Amazon.com: Survival: Prepare Before Disaster Strikes (9781927360095): Barbara Fix: Books[/ame]  I shared a work-around for those who can’t keep a dog. Just having a  beat-up, large dog collar, worn water and food bowls, and a heavy duty  chain trailing on the ground WILL  have  the bad guy thinking twice about attacking your home. After reading  this section, a wise-cracking Alaskan friend suggested a chewed up moose  leg.

Divide and avoid being conquered.  Split up your survival goods in as many ways as are practical for you.  Some  people will have more options than others, depending on their living  situation and how willing they are to hide things in places that many  would consider to be completely crazy.  Splitting up and hiding your  survival goods will allow you to sacrifice stashes if necessary without  giving up everything.
                                                              *   *   *  
Most of us, if given the opportunity, would choose to help others, and many preppers who can afford to _have_  put aside extra canned goods to help others. But there is a world of  difference between helping someone in need and becoming a victim of  someone who plans to steal your preparedness goods with force. It’s  important to agree amongst family or group members how you will address  likely scenarios, so if the time comes, you’ll be able to react as a  cohesive group. Hesitation can kill you!

*So, What are your plans to survive in the midst of bedlam?  *


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## squerly

Part of our prep is to have a good dog. They are great early warning systems and some can be a strong psychological detent to even coming into the area. And then some of them, properly trained, can be tremendous protection. 

I work with my German Shepherd a couple of times a week. Some sessions are nothing more than the sit-stay-ok routine. He has the “stay” thing down so well that you have to remember where you left him or he’ll be there until you come back to get him. 

Today’s drill was to go into my office, look through each room and sniff in different areas for the “bad guy”. He didn’t perform all that well today, but that’s why we practice. Anyhow, here was today’s drill. Sorry about the crappy video, would have been better if I had a 3rd person running the camera while I ran through the building behind the dog.

click here


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## Kane

squerly said:


> Part of our prep is to have a good dog. They are great early warning systems and some can be a strong psychological detent to even coming into the area. And then some of them, properly trained, can be tremendous protection.
> 
> I work with my German Shepherd a couple of times a week. Some sessions are nothing more than the sit-stay-ok routine. He has the “stay” thing down so well that you have to remember where you left him or he’ll be there until you come back to get him.
> 
> Today’s drill was to go into my office, look through each room and sniff in different areas for the “bad guy”. He didn’t perform all that well today, but that’s why we practice. Anyhow, here was today’s drill. Sorry about the crappy video, would have been better if I had a 3rd person running the camera while I ran through the building behind the dog.
> 
> click here


Impressive.  Handsome dog.

Next time, you may want to borrow a willing "bad guy" to lurk somewhere in the building. Give the dog something to chew on.


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## EastTexFrank

Kane, that was an interesting article.  It highlighted two of the things that really worry me, namely noise and light.  

I live in the country 6 miles from the nearest small town and 30 miles from the nearest large one.  One thing that many people don't realize is just how far sound carries when you live in the silence of the countryside.  I have a neighbor who shoots his pistol once or twice a week.  I hear it clearly and there is absolutely no doubt about what it is and he lives over a mile away.  Chainsaws can be heard for miles, most generators too.  One of my generators while surrounded by buildings and structures can be heard from the front gate a 100 yards away and it's unmistakable.  

During a power outage a few years back one of my neighbors asked me when I had the standby generator installed.  He and his wife had decided to get out and go somewhere that wasn't affected by the outage.  He said that our house was lit up like Christmas tree.  At the time all we had out were a few candles, waiting to see how long the outage would last, but in the darkness of the countryside it doesn't take much to be noticed from a long, long way off.  

Both things just set you up as a target.  There's no sense stealing from someone who doesn't have anything and they both signal that you have something.


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## luvs

i'll put on lipstick & spray on sunscreen. soon i'll fix my hair. i'll head to the alkie distributor 4 guests, swim, & then maybe snooze. then i'll look for zombies when that apacolypse occurs. 

seriously, food/gallons of h20 & all that i need is here. 

this is so reminiscant of when the millenium was approaching.


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## Kane

EastTexFrank said:


> Kane, that was an interesting article.  It highlighted two of the things that really worry me, namely noise and light.
> 
> I live in the country 6 miles from the nearest small town and 30 miles from the nearest large one.  One thing that many people don't realize is just how far sound carries when you live in the silence of the countryside.  I have a neighbor who shoots his pistol once or twice a week.  I hear it clearly and there is absolutely no doubt about what it is and he lives over a mile away.  Chainsaws can be heard for miles, most generators too.  One of my generators while surrounded by buildings and structures can be heard from the front gate a 100 yards away and it's unmistakable.
> 
> During a power outage a few years back one of my neighbors asked me when I had the standby generator installed.  He and his wife had decided to get out and go somewhere that wasn't affected by the outage.  He said that our house was lit up like Christmas tree.  At the time all we had out were a few candles, waiting to see how long the outage would last, but in the darkness of the countryside it doesn't take much to be noticed from a long, long way off.
> 
> Both things just set you up as a target.  There's no sense stealing from someone who doesn't have anything and they both signal that you have something.



Tex, be glad that you live 30 miles from the nearest large city.  Can you imagine being a diligent prepper living on the near outskirts of, say, Chicago or Detroit?  Just imagine the wave after wave of stupid liberals scouring the countryside looking in vain for their government to give them more.  When it finally dawns on them that their government ain't coming to the rescue, they're gonna' be real hungry.

Still stupid, but still hungry.  Keep the long gun loaded.
.


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## muleman RIP

Squerly, you need to get somebody wearing a hat to help get that pup fired up a bit. My black GSD goes nuts on the Amish when they are here. The dogs are my early warning system and to help protect the wife while I take aim! Most folks don't even know our place is up here on top and even walking the lane they will be tired by the time they get here. As far as prepping we are set pretty well. My biggest problem is rotating stock in the pantry as the wife likes to just add new items in front of things that have been there a while. Between canned and frozen we are good for 6 months at least plus what we grow in the garden and greenhouses. Fuel is the one thing i try to keep rotated and filled up. Price right now makes me wish I had waited to fill my diesel tank.


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## Kane

muleman said:


> Squerly, you need to get somebody wearing a hat to help get that pup fired up a bit.


Nah, wearing a hoodie.


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## Cowboy

EastTexFrank said:


> Kane, that was an interesting article. It highlighted two of the things that really worry me, namely noise and light.
> 
> I live in the country 6 miles from the nearest small town and 30 miles from the nearest large one. One thing that many people don't realize is just how far sound carries when you live in the silence of the countryside. I have a neighbor who shoots his pistol once or twice a week. I hear it clearly and there is absolutely no doubt about what it is and he lives over a mile away. Chainsaws can be heard for miles, most generators too. One of my generators while surrounded by buildings and structures can be heard from the front gate a 100 yards away and it's unmistakable.
> 
> During a power outage a few years back one of my neighbors asked me when I had the standby generator installed. He and his wife had decided to get out and go somewhere that wasn't affected by the outage. He said that our house was lit up like Christmas tree. At the time all we had out were a few candles, waiting to see how long the outage would last, but in the darkness of the countryside it doesn't take much to be noticed from a long, long way off.
> 
> Both things just set you up as a target. There's no sense stealing from someone who doesn't have anything and they both signal that you have something.


 Just my opinion, but most city folks (even the criminals) i ever knew were scared of their own shadow unless they were going much more defenseless then theirselves. 

  Cowards will most likely not fuck with folks in the country wether they are desperate or not, by the time they run out of easy prey in the city they will be eating their own IMO. 

  Either way i aint gonna sweat it, if things get that bad it wont be worth surviving to me, but "they" will damn sure know there was a fight.


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## EastTexFrank

Cowboy said:


> if things get that bad it wont be worth surviving to me



Cowboy, that's my attitude.  I'm not one that's going to disappear in to a hole in the ground and live there for a year and come out to find what?  I'm 65-years old, if things ever get that bad I'm not sure that I want to live through it.  

Here in East Texas, out in the country, there are just so many guns.  Everybody I know has at least one, usually more.  People who come out from the city to scavenge the country may get lucky and catch 2 or 3 people unawares but the 4th one is going to nail their ass.   

Also, like you, I'm not going anywhere unless ....

I've got everything I need right here to get by for a while in a reasonable amount of comfort and that's all I need.


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## tiredretired

You can have all the food and water and etc you need but if you do not have a supply of back up meds you may be in trouble.  Fortunatly for us, the local pharmacy screwed up big time and gave us double the pills monthly for over six months.  I said nothing, insurance paid and I stashed.  Now I need to rotate the meds to make sure nothing gets too old.  
I would say realistically, one should try to maintain at least a 30-60 day supply. 

Other things we have:

Plenty of propane and gasoline on hand.
Clean sine wave generator.
60 day supply of food & water.
Lots & lots of ammo with ability to keep reloading spent brass.
Plenty of dog food for Sophie.  
Lots of batteries.


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## Kane

And don't forget to have lots'a* Toilet Paper!*


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## muleman RIP

Still have about 60 rolls on hand. When we get down to 48 it is time to get more.


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## EastTexFrank

TR touches on a couple of really good points.

Meds : Bad things can start to happen if you run out.  Our insurance pays for a 90 supply but you can renew after 70 days.  Over the years you can build up a useful "buffer".

Fuel:  You can have all the food and water you want but without power life can get pretty miserable in a hurry.  Power doesn't necessarily mean a generator but more importantly the FUEL to run it.  This is one of the few areas where I don't think that the "bigger is better" theory applies.  I know that many people like to have a big, honking generator that burns 10 or 12 gallons of gas every 12 hours but to me that just means that, even for a relatively short outage, you have to keep an unreasonable amount to gas around and FRESH all the time.  No, I like my 2 little generators that sip fuel so that my gas stash can last a useful amount of time.  

I remember a long time ago Melensdad has a topic somewhat similar to this one and some of the things that I identified that I really didn't have enough of was dog food, cigars and Scotch ... all of which have been taken care of.  

Another thing that I've found useful on quite a few occasions is a 2000 watt inverter.  It has 4K surge watts for around 10 seconds.  It'll run all 110volt household appliances easily and, using diesel, I can power it from the tractors or the truck without having to think about draining gas from the vehicles.


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## EastTexFrank

luvs said:


> this is so reminiscant of when the millenium was approaching.



I'm glad that you're going to look good when the zombies come around. 

Referencing the quote above, it's nothing like the Millenium thing.  I'm not talking about those Doomsday Preppers that you see on TV.  If, like many of us, you live out in the country being prepared is a way of life.  Living without power, no water, not being able to get off the property for days forces you to take certain precautions if you want to get by or even, in extreme cases, survive.   

It's even worse if you are someone who raises something like chickens commercially.  A one day power outage in the middle of the Texas summer can wipe you out financially.  You'll have houses full of thousands of dead chickens.  Experience teaches you to take precautions.

Out where I live, losing power for a few hours, or up to 5 days, isn't that unusual either in winter or in summer.  You lose power, you lose water.  Things start getting tough.  It's all a question of whether you want to revert to the Stoneage for a few days or get by with some semblance of civilization and creature comforts.  Me, I'm prepared.


----------



## squerly

Your sig is great etf!


----------



## luvs

us city folk- we needn't prep very much. necessities- a hop, skip, & a jump away. my kitty food & litter- always overstocked. for me, soap, a few pens/sharpies, minerals & stomach meds, laundry detergent, food, h2o, a change of clothes, & farm-dwelling family shall suffice. a way to contact ppl. 
pardon me, i lack that there thing they call paranoia.


----------



## luvs

EastTexFrank said:


> TR touches on a couple of really good points.
> 
> Meds : Bad things can start to happen if you run out. Our insurance pays for a 90 supply but you can renew after 70 days. Over the years you can build up a useful "buffer".
> 
> Fuel: You can have all the food and water you want but without power life can get pretty miserable in a hurry. Power doesn't necessarily mean a generator but more importantly the FUEL to run it. This is one of the few areas where I don't think that the "bigger is better" theory applies. I know that many people like to have a big, honking generator that burns 10 or 12 gallons of gas every 12 hours but to me that just means that, even for a relatively short outage, you have to keep an unreasonable amount to gas around and FRESH all the time. No, I like my 2 little generators that sip fuel so that my gas stash can last a useful amount of time.
> 
> I remember a long time ago Melensdad has a topic somewhat similar to this one and some of the things that I identified that I really didn't have enough of was dog food, cigars and Scotch ... all of which have been taken care of.
> 
> Another thing that I've found useful on quite a few occasions is a 2000 watt inverter. It has 4K surge watts for around 10 seconds. It'll run all 110volt household appliances easily and, using diesel, I can power it from the tractors or the truck without having to think about draining gas from the vehicles.


 

then u should be good for now. . see why i live here & keep farm-fam nearby~


----------



## tiredretired

luvs said:


> us city folk- we needn't prep very much. necessities- a hop, skip, & a jump away. my kitty food & litter- always overstocked. for me, soap, a few pens/sharpies, minerals & stomach meds, laundry detergent, food, h2o, a change of clothes, & farm-dwelling family shall suffice. a way to contact ppl.
> pardon me, i lack that there thing they call paranoia.



City folks should keep a bug out bag handy.  A good sized rucksack with some essentials.  Never know, may need to leave in a hurry.  

I do not feel I am being paranoid over this at all.  I just wish all those people that are out to get me would stop it.


----------



## Kane

luvs said:


> us city folk- we needn't prep very much. necessities- a hop, skip, & a jump away. my kitty food & litter- always overstocked. for me, soap, a few pens/sharpies, minerals & stomach meds, laundry detergent, food, h2o, a change of clothes, & farm-dwelling family shall suffice. a way to contact ppl.
> pardon me, i lack that there thing they call paranoia.


Paranoia aside, luvs, if you live in the city you are screwed.  Really screwed.  As TR suggests, have the means to get away with your kitty to that farm dwelling family you know.


----------



## pirate_girl

I am glad I live on the edge of town, right where city meets country.
Got friends who live in the sticks (or what we call the sticks around here-- 11 miles + out of town)
I always have a bug out bag of essentials ready... no matter what it would be for, it's ready.
There are a few items I'd throw in at the last minute, then get the hell outta Dodge.


----------



## luvs

Kane said:


> Paranoia aside, luvs, if you live in the city you are screwed. Really screwed. As TR suggests, have the means to get away with your kitty to that farm dwelling family you know.


 

i have gone sans basics several times via h2o mains going, nature- (excessive cold/snow; summer sun, etc. etc.), yet plowed thru it as that was the only way @ that time. i have farm-dwelling Godparents. it's all good. i'll stay here- in the city~ we deal w/ difficulties, too. we manage & we manage well.


----------



## Kane

luvs said:


> i have gone sans basics several times via h2o mains going, nature- (excessive cold/snow; summer sun, etc. etc.), yet plowed thru it as that was the only way @ that time. i have farm-dwelling Godparents. it's all good. i'll stay here- in the city~ we deal w/ difficulties, too. we manage & we manage well.


okay...

You seem the good trusting soul, but methinks it is the "we" part that breaks down.













BTW, do you own a small pistol?
.


----------



## luvs

TiredRetired said:


> City folks should keep a bug out bag handy. A good sized rucksack with some essentials. Never know, may need to leave in a hurry.
> 
> I do not feel I am being paranoid over this at all. I just wish all those people that are out to get me would stop it.


 
goober. i know u know i know as much. laughing @ the last line in ur post.
i have a jansport that i take w/ me daily. my life is stuffed into that bag.


----------



## luvs

Kane said:


> okay...
> 
> You seem the good trusting soul, but methinks it is the "we" part that breaks down.
> 
> the 'we' is my block. we look toward each others' well-being. very tight-knit community, here.BTW, do you own a small pistol?
> .


 we're tight-knit. it's all good.


----------



## EastTexFrank

luvs said:


> we're tight-knit. it's all good.



So were all the people in New Orleans until Katrina came to town.


----------



## Kane

luvs said:


> we're tight-knit. it's all good.


Methinks we're talking about the wrong "we", luvs. Your "we's" are fine.  It's the millions of other ill-prepared "we's" wandering the streets looking in vain for their government to give them more.  These are the "we's" you should be concerned about.






So.  Do you own a small pistol?
.


----------



## luvs

kane, like i said, it's all good. let's leave it at that. 'kay~


----------



## squerly

Kane said:


> Next time you're at the junk yard, look around for an old 12V CB radio. Could be invaluable.


We have a set of GMRS handheld radios.  They work well but I think they are only good when communicating with other people who are using another GMRS radio, I don't think they can communicate with a CB radio.  

Another thing about the GMRS is I've only been able to find them in a handheld model.  I would like to have a dash installed model so that it's always with me and not dependent on me remembering to keep it charged.  

What would you suggest Kane?


----------



## squerly

Added a 5-pack of tooth paste, 48 boxes of Ramon Noodles, 2-24 can boxes of chicken soup, 100 rolls of toilet paper, noodles, and 2 large bags of dog treats. Everything we bought has a shelf life of at least 2 years. Cept for the t-paper… that should last a little longer.


----------



## EastTexFrank

squerly said:


> Added a 5-pack of tooth paste, 48 boxes of Ramon Noodles, 2-24 can boxes of chicken soup, 100 rolls of toilet paper, noodles, and 2 large bags of dog treats. Everything we bought has a shelf life of at least 2 years. *Cept for the t-paper… that should last a little longer.  *



Not if you eat all those Ramen noodles.


----------



## tiredretired

squerly said:


> Added a 5-pack of tooth paste, 48 boxes of Ramon Noodles, 2-24 can boxes of chicken soup, 100 rolls of toilet paper, noodles, and 2 large bags of dog treats. Everything we bought has a shelf life of at least 2 years. Cept for the t-paper… that should last a little longer.



Don't forget Dinty Moore beef and chicken stew.  We happen to like it and the self life is very long.  Out to 2016 right now I believe.   Everyone needs Dinty Moore on their preppers shelf right next to the Spam.  

This is a good thread.  Keep the good ideas coming fellas.  

I gotta go now, the dog is barking and I wonder if a few zombies have wandered on the property.  Bastiges!!


----------



## Kane

squerly said:


> We have a set of GMRS handheld radios.  They work well but I think they are only good when communicating with other people who are using another GMRS radio, I don't think they can communicate with a CB radio.
> 
> Another thing about the GMRS is I've only been able to find them in a handheld model.  I would like to have a dash installed model so that it's always with me and not dependent on me remembering to keep it charged.
> 
> What would you suggest Kane?


I know very little about radios, but it seems the GMRS you speak of are more of a walkie-talkie. No?  

On the other hand, the CB radio was the latest and greatest technology amongst the '60s good-buddy crowd and could surf the entire band of citizens' frequencies.  Probably the thing to resurrect if the cellular systems would go down (which would be likely in a cyber SHTF scenario).  They can take down the cells, but they cannot take out the frequencies dedicated to the old 12V line-of-sight CB.  I think.


----------



## pirate_girl

TiredRetired said:


> Don't forget Dinty Moore beef and chicken stew.  We happen to like it and the self life is very long.  Out to 2016 right now I believe.   Everyone needs Dinty Moore on their preppers shelf right next to the Spam.
> 
> This is a good thread.  Keep the good ideas coming fellas.
> 
> I gotta go now, the dog is barking and I wonder if a few zombies have wandered on the property.  Bastiges!!


Tinned baked beans, tinned spaghetti... tuna in the pouch (easy zip off).. same with micro rice mixes (can and would eat them all cold)- saltines.
Cheap bottled water.
Baby wipes, kleenex.
The gun and ammo.
I think Gretchen would fit in my bug out bag, AND her food as well 



Oh wait, my shortwave radio (the Grundig Yacht Boy 400)-- and plenty of batteries.
This thing has been dropped numerous times, run over and fell in the lake and it still works like brand new lol


----------



## EastTexFrank

That radio is a good thing to have.  

15 years ago I came to the country after being a big city boy for my whole life.  Not quite because I had stayed and worked on my inlaws farm for years but I was totally unprepared for full time country living. 

That first year we had 6 friends come out from Dallas for a long week-end of burning meat and drinking beer.  On Friday night we had a big storm come through and it knocked out the power and we lost the water.  On Saturday, with all 4 toilets full and unflushable (disgusting), I had to ask them all to go home early.  That outage lasted till Monday morning.  All the freezers defrosted and we lost a lot of foodstuffs too.  We managed to get some of it put up with friends and relatives but not all of it.  That's when I decided that I was never going to get caught like that again.  

The second thing that drove it home that first year was when there were tornadoes on the ground all around us and we had to get underneath the house for safety.  Our basement is built like a bomb shelter so we were pretty safe down there but what do you and the dogs do for 6 hours if you don't have a game plan and haven't at least made some preparations? ... Stand and stare at each other.  Now we can live reasonably comfortably under there without power and water for a day if need be.  It's just like camping.  And yes TR, there is a can of Dinty Moore beef stew down there. 

No, I'm not a Doomsday Prepper but it's stupid to ignore the certainty of losing power and water and living conditions becoming unmanageable but once the initial game plan is in place it's not too difficult to extend it to cover any length of emergency that you want.

 No Luvs, it's not called being paranoid, it's called being prudent.


----------



## muleman RIP

I helped make some room in the freezer by cooking up some maple sugar sausage for an early lunch! Wish I could afford to get a bulk tank for gasoline as that is the only thing really lacking around here.


----------



## Doc

muleman said:


> I helped make some room in the freezer by cooking up some maple sugar sausage for an early lunch! *Wish I could afford to get a bulk tank for gasoline as that is the only thing really lacking around here.*



Mmmm the sausage sure sounds good.  

As for a bulk tank, how long can you expect our ethanol treated gas to last?   I thought it started breaking down in a very short time span so that it would do more harm to your engine than good.  
Is there something you can treat it with (like fuel stabilizer) to make sure it lasts longer?


----------



## muleman RIP

Stabil helps as does buying mid grade or high test. I know i get much better mileage with my mower on mid grade.


----------



## EastTexFrank

Yea, having enough gas is one thing that worries me.  How much is enough?  I usually keep about 25 gallons set aside exclusively for the generator(s) and about another 20 for all the gas powered equipment.  I rotate it out within a year.

I read somewhere once that untreated gas stays usable for about 3 months.  That came from one of the oil company webpages or blogs so may be a little conservative.  Gas treated with Stab-il remains "fresh" for up to one year.  If you double the amount of Stab-il they say (Stab-il) that it remains usable for up to 2 years but I've never tried keeping it that long.  I usually double the amount of Stab-il and rotate it after a year.  

As Muley said, buying a higher grade of gas also helps.  

One of these days I'll have to put a standby natural gas generator on the house or buy a diesel generator or a PTO generator, and stop having to mess with so much gasoline.


----------



## Dargo

I have a neighbor who not only has 4 roosters that are genetically defective and scream all day, but he literally bought a jackass!  Holy shit, you think someone got stabbed when it starts it's earsplitting scream!!  WTF is this new 'neighbor' thinking?  I honestly have had absolutely nothing to do with his continuous loss of glass in his pickup, but I did fry up a couple of big sponges in bacon grease for the jackass.   They got really small and smelled great.  I just pitched them over the fence as I drove by.  Looked like he went right for them.


----------



## bczoom

Doc said:


> As for a bulk tank, how long can you expect our ethanol treated gas to last?   I thought it started breaking down in a very short time span so that it would do more harm to your engine than good.
> Is there something you can treat it with (like fuel stabilizer) to make sure it lasts longer?


Use the Marine Formula StaBil (which is better) and it'll last a solid year but in year 2, the engines run but don't like it much.

I keep about 500 gallons of gas and 250 each of diesel and kero.  Another 1000+ pounds of propane in 100# tanks.


----------



## tiredretired

I use Seafoam in all my gas cans 2 & 4 cycle.  It's even good for diesel.  Better than your run of the mill stabil.   More expensive too.  If you are going to try and store gasoline I would recommend non ethanol type. I believe it is available most places, at least seasonally during the summer months.  That is all a lot of boaters only  use.


----------



## luvs

okay, yinz got me thinkin'. i'll pack surgical scrub, 2 washcloths- 1 for wet, another for drying, purell, a toothbrush, screw the toothpaste; a box of baking soda is versatile, cleans teeth, etc. (pop, i say- baking pop!). i have cases & cases of nutritional supplements. meds- called in last nite fer extras. girly items, t.p., deoderant & soap. 
other than 'at, my home is well-stocked.


----------



## Kane

luvs said:


> okay, yinz got me thinkin'. i'll pack surgical scrub, 2 washcloths- 1 for wet, another for drying, purell, a toothbrush, screw the toothpaste; a box of baking soda is versatile, cleans teeth, etc. (pop, i say- baking pop!). i have cases & cases of nutritional supplements. meds- called in last nite fer extras. girly items, t.p., deoderant & soap.
> other than 'at, my home is well-stocked.


Oh, and don't forget a fresh box of bullets for that little pistol you own.  




  If I must say, that's a very nice piece.


----------



## EastTexFrank

Good Luvs, at least we got you thinking about it.  Everybody's needs and requirements are different.  Some just want to scrape by for a couple of days and others want to lead as normal a life as possible, however long it lasts.  

Can I ask you what you are going to cook on in this well stocked house of yours if the power goes off.


----------



## luvs

the gas stove or the grill my buddy owns. much of my food is sustainable. only dairy would be tossed. dry ice & the coolers for the items i like enough to keep, like steak, seafood, lamb lollipops, veal cut 4 scallopine.....

& should all else fail, there's nutren. it's like ensure.

kane, my niece has got me covered.


----------



## squerly

ahhh, she's a sweetheart!


----------



## EastTexFrank

luvs said:


> the gas stove or the grill my buddy owns. much of my food is sustainable. only dairy would be tossed. dry ice & the coolers for the items i like enough to keep, like steak, seafood, lamb lollipops, veal cut 4 scallopine.....
> 
> 
> kane, my niece has got me covered.



I knew what the answer would be when I asked the question.  All you people who like to cook have natural gas.  Hey, I'm 6 miles away from the nearest town and we have natural gas ..... because my wife likes to cook.  If the house hadn't had it I doubt that I would have been allowed to buy it.  You foodies are all the same.    Hey, I like the menu, invite me over.

Your niece is a sweetheart.  She may not protect you but there are lots of people who would protect her, me among them.


----------



## luvs

thanx- raynin is the luv of my life. i'd give anything feasible for that 'lil baby-luv. my nephews, my brother/sil, too.

btw, dinner is tbd, so how 'bout crabcakes sammiches w/ wasabi aioli or remoulade, roast veggies, & potatoes w/ cream & truffles~


----------



## EastTexFrank

luvs said:


> so how 'bout crabcakes sammiches w/ wasabi aioli or remoulade, roast veggies, & potatoes w/ cream & truffles~



get cookin'.   

The only thing is that I'm borderline diabetic so no bread and potatoes at the same meal so serve the crabcake "naked"  and I'll be a happy little camper.


----------



## luvs

i cooked. where 'ya at~

i thought of a few other items. dry or aseptecially packaged milk. mori-nu silken tofu. that's shelf-stable, too. k'bossy. nuts. pasta. a wristwatch. trash can liners. so many uses, there. oh, yeah, a personal fan that takes batteries. if it's summertime, anyhow.


----------



## Galvatron

topped up at the butchers on steak....and also prepped a road map for my wife for her holiday.


----------



## EastTexFrank

luvs said:


> i cooked. where 'ya at~



Got busy, skipped lunch altogether.  Maybe next time.


----------



## EastTexFrank

Galvatron said:


> topped up at the butchers on steak....and also prepped a road map for my wife for her holiday.



Maybe you should have topped up the wife for her holiday and prepped the steak for dinner.


----------



## AAUTOFAB1

Hear is a utube vid that i ran across that really hit home,the beginning has a short movie clip that is part of what this man is trying to convey.how many friends do you really have?

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzeNyIOJvKw"]One of the most important Preps to make and I can't tell you how.      - YouTube[/ame]


----------



## Tweeker

I rotated stock on food and water for 6 months, earthquake preps.
Got my emergency communications up and running on 900MHz.
It was a good day. 
Tweeker


----------



## EastTexFrank

Tweeker said:


> I rotated stock on food and water for 6 months, earthquake preps.
> Got my emergency communications up and running on 900MHz.
> It was a good day.
> Tweeker



Another prepper is always welcome.  We're still trying to convince people on this board that we're not paranoid, just prudent.  It's not easy being a Boy Scout, always prepared, but when the SHTF, guess who's door they are going to be knocking on.  Tough, it's too late.


----------



## Tweeker

I have had some luck in convincing a few to get prepared for another big earthquake.
I have an app on my phone that tracks earth disasters, earthquakes and such
every day there are earthquakes here in California, just the news dosen't report them.


----------



## EastTexFrank

Tweeker said:


> every day there are earthquakes here in California, just the news doesn't report them.



If I lived in California I'd do the same thing ... and then some.  

What did I do to prep today?  Well, I'm preparing to host family supper at our house for 16 - 20 people on Saturday.  That means powerwashing the deck and pool area, washing windows and mowing, trimming and edging the 4 acre yard.  I know that's not what this thread is about but it's going to keep me so busy that I won't be worrying about anything else.  

There's going to be some meat burning and beer drinking at our place on Saturday.


----------



## Cowboy

> Another thing that I've found useful on quite a few occasions is a 2000 watt inverter. It has 4K surge watts for around 10 seconds. It'll run all 110volt household appliances easily and, using diesel, I can power it from the tractors or the truck without having to think about draining gas from the vehicles.


 
Could you tell us a little more about the power invertor you are talking about Frank? Can they be used to power refridgeration or freezers if needed running off my tractor?


----------



## EastTexFrank

Cowboy said:


> Could you tell us a little more about the power invertor you are talking about Frank? Can they be used to power refridgeration or freezers if needed running off my tractor?



That's how I use it Cowboy.

I originally got it (2000 watt inverter) to power an electric pole saw from the tractor battery when I was out in the pasture.  I also used it for back-up to the generator(s) for running the 5 fridges and freezers that we have.  It'll run any one of them using the tractor or the truck.  I don't know if it'll run 2 of them at the same time, that might be pushing it as the compressor motor takes a lot of power to start and I think it would probably be right at its limit.  There's no sense in doing that.  We used to have a big, honking 25-year old plus fridge that I used as a beer fridge that it would struggle to start.  God only knows how much power that old thing needed to kick in the motor but once and if it it got it started it would run it just fine.  These newer fridges and freezers are a lot more energy efficient and require less power to start so it manages one them just fine.  

I used an old jumper cable to connect it to the battery of the truck and just let it idle.  I watch the ammeter and if necessary I have a fast idle on the truck I can use.  On the tractor I nudge the rpm up about 1500 and let her run.

The disclaimer is that I haven't needed to use it to do that for quite a while.  I still sometimes use it to power a drill or something away from the house when I'm too lazy to haul one of the generators down there.  The minimum size that you would need would possibly be 1500 watts but a 2000 watt is better.  2000 watts gives you about 4000 watts surge for 10 or 15 seconds which is usually enough to get the compressor going.

I read somewhere once that a fridge/freezer takes about 800 watts to run but takes up to another 2000 watts to start.  That's why I said that a 2000 watt inverter would probably be better.


----------



## tiredretired

I've been looking around for those one slice packets of Spam.  Very light to carry in your BOB.  Can't find them locally.


----------



## Cowboy

EastTexFrank said:


> That's how I use it Cowboy.
> 
> I originally got it (2000 watt inverter) to power an electric pole saw from the tractor battery when I was out in the pasture. I also used it for back-up to the generator(s) for running the 5 fridges and freezers that we have. It'll run any one of them using the tractor or the truck. I don't know if it'll run 2 of them at the same time, that might be pushing it as the compressor motor takes a lot of power to start and I think it would probably be right at its limit. There's no sense in doing that. We used to have a big, honking 25-year old plus fridge that I used as a beer fridge that it would struggle to start. God only knows how much power that old thing needed to kick in the motor but once and if it it got it started it would run it just fine. These newer fridges and freezers are a lot more energy efficient and require less power to start so it manages one them just fine.
> 
> I used an old jumper cable to connect it to the battery of the truck and just let it idle. I watch the ammeter and if necessary I have a fast idle on the truck I can use. On the tractor I nudge the rpm up about 1500 and let her run.
> 
> The disclaimer is that I haven't needed to use it to do that for quite a while. I still sometimes use it to power a drill or something away from the house when I'm too lazy to haul one of the generators down there. The minimum size that you would need would possibly be 1500 watts but a 2000 watt is better. 2000 watts gives you about 4000 watts surge for 10 or 15 seconds which is usually enough to get the compressor going.
> 
> I read somewhere once that a fridge/freezer takes about 800 watts to run but takes up to another 2000 watts to start. That's why I said that a 2000 watt inverter would probably be better.


 Thats just what i was needing to know, thanks Frank. I am just looking for a backup just in case, as my generators have been giving me the fits when i need them most. The tractors use far less fuel IMO, and i keep much more diesel on hand then gas. 

Even in a long power outage i only run the fridges and freezer every 6 hours or so, and only for 30 minutes or so at a time. I'll plan on getting two that are at least 2000 watts. Never hurts to have a backup for your backup & i have two tractors.


----------



## bczoom

On the inverters, I too wouldn't go less then 2000w unless you're just running some lights off it.
My approach (instead of the tractor) is to do pretty much what's in the picture (I grabbed off the internet) below.

I put a deep-cycle marine battery in the box and strap the inverter to the top.  It then sits in the house, ready to go.  I normally keep it in the same room as the wood stove since if the stove is running and the power goes out, it's a quick grab to get the inverter connected to the stove to run the fans so it doesn't overheat.  With the deep-cycle battery, you can run it for a few hours (depending on the load and battery size) without having to re-charge the battery.

Being a packaged up unit, I can grab it and throw it in the truck, ATV, RTV... for portable power wherever I need it.


----------



## Tweeker

Cowboy said:


> Could you tell us a little more about the power invertor you are talking about Frank? Can they be used to power refridgeration or freezers if needed running off my tractor?


 
If you plan on running your computer off of the inverter, you will need to get a True Sine Wave Unit, like a "prosine".
An inverter that produces a modifided sine wave is not well suited for your expensive electronics.
Tweeker


----------



## rlk

Tweeker said:


> If you plan on running your computer off of the inverter, you will need to get a True Sine Wave Unit, like a "prosine".
> An inverter that produces a modifided sine wave is not well suited for your expensive electronics.
> Tweeker



Tweeter, is this also true if you are running a laptop?

Bob


----------



## Tweeker

That would depend on the type of ac to dc converter your laptop uses.
What happens with a modified sine wave inverter is that the inverter produces some high frequency harmonics which if the are not filtered out will screw up the electronics.
True sine wave inverters cost about twice as much per watt as do the modified sine wave inverters.
I would play it safe and not run a laptop off of a modified sine wave inverter.
Tweeker


----------



## EastTexFrank

Tweeker said:


> That would depend on the type of ac to dc converter your laptop uses.
> What happens with a modified sine wave inverter is that the inverter produces some high frequency harmonics which if the are not filtered out will screw up the electronics.
> True sine wave inverters cost about twice as much per watt as do the modified sine wave inverters.
> I would play it safe and not run a laptop off of a modified sine wave inverter.
> Tweeker



Hey Tweeker that's something that I hadn't thought of but running electronics off it wasn't one of the reasons I got it.  Just thinking, instead of plugging the computer directly into the inverter, if you plugged a UPS into the inverter and then the computer and stuff into the UPS, would that filter out some of the "noise" and allow you to run them safely?

Zoomer, that's a pretty neat set up.  I have two deep cycle 12v batteries sitting in boxes that I tote around when pulling the 5th wheel, just in case.  I'm a prepper there too.  It wouldn't take much rigging up at all.  

Cowboy, that was another one of the reasons that I got it way back when.  Like you I always have a darned sight more diesel around than I do gas.  So, if "whatever" happens and lasts long enough for me to run out of gas, I can still use the little tractor or the big one for that matter or the truck to keep the beer fridge cold.  Gotta get your priorities straight.  Nobody likes drinking warm beer.


----------



## Tweeker

ETF
You got it 
Using a UPS will work, I hadn't thought of that 
Tweeker


----------



## Cowboy

Tweeker said:


> If you plan on running your computer off of the inverter, you will need to get a True Sine Wave Unit, like a "prosine".
> An inverter that produces a modifided sine wave is not well suited for your expensive electronics.
> Tweeker


 Thats good to know Tweeker, i hadnt thought about using it for our computers.  So far the ones i have looked at are desribed as (Pure Sine Wave Inverter), is this the same thing?


----------



## Cowboy

EastTexFrank said:


> Hey Tweeker that's something that I hadn't thought of but running electronics off it wasn't one of the reasons I got it. Just thinking, instead of plugging the computer directly into the inverter, if you plugged a UPS into the inverter and then the computer and stuff into the UPS, would that filter out some of the "noise" and allow you to run them safely?
> 
> Zoomer, that's a pretty neat set up. I have two deep cycle 12v batteries sitting in boxes that I tote around when pulling the 5th wheel, just in case. I'm a prepper there too. It wouldn't take much rigging up at all.
> 
> Cowboy, that was another one of the reasons that I got it way back when. Like you I always have a darned sight more diesel around than I do gas. So, if "whatever" happens and lasts long enough for me to run out of gas, I can still use the little tractor or the big one for that matter or the truck to keep the beer fridge cold. Gotta get your priorities straight. Nobody likes drinking warm beer.


 This is all great info, thanks to all for the info & ideas. 

I'm with you on using the diesel VS gas Frank, i have been looking for a reasonable priced diesel genset with electric start but dayum i just cant see putting out that kind of money just for emergency use. But how did you know what i kept in my emergency fridges? 

  My gas ones are pull start and i have a bad shoulder where i cant hardly pull the darn rope anymore without pulling my shoulder out of socket.  

  It just makes more sense to me to have both tractors available for emergency power, and it would also come in handy working elsewhere on the property when i need to use some other electric tools or pumps.


----------



## Tweeker

Cowboy said:


> Thats good to know Tweeker, i hadnt thought about using it for our computers.  So far the ones i have looked at are desribed as (Pure Sine Wave Inverter), is this the same thing?


 
Yes,

As a side note, this site has been down for almost 2 days.
I tried to access it on friday and saturday but was not able to do so.
Tweeker


----------



## Cowboy

Tweeker said:


> Yes,
> 
> As a side note, this site has been down for almost 2 days.
> I tried to access it on friday and saturday but was not able to do so.
> Tweeker


 Read post #7 of this thread for an explanation Tweeker. Were lucky Doc was even able to get the forums back up. 

http://www.forumsforums.com/3_9/showthread.php?t=56854


----------



## tiredretired

I'm thinking about one of those deep cycle batteries and a clean sine wave inverter to run my pellet stove in case of an outage.  I just cant run the gennie 24/7 and waste all that gas just for the stove.  

I like what you did Frank with the battery, case and inverter strapped to it.   Makes it a nice clean portable setup.  Sweet.  

Anyone have any recommendations as to a good deep cell battery with lots of AmpHours?

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Sunforce-11240-Inverter-Remote-Control/dp/B000WGNNUQ"]I am looking at this inverter.[/ame]  Seems like a good price and even has a remote!  LOL.


----------



## muleman RIP

Anyone have any recommendations as to a good deep cell battery with lots of AmpHours?

Optima is a good brand. They ain't cheap but guys swear by them.


----------



## tiredretired

Thanx.  I was also thinking about heavy equipment batteries.  I just learned that many "off the gridders" like em because of their added capacity.


----------



## Tweeker

There was this guy in Texas, I think, that took a huge amount of copper cable and buried in beneath some High tension power lines and hooked them up to a bank of High capacity batteries.
He was getting free electricity for about 2 years untill they caught him. 
The power company knew that they were loosing power somewhere along that streatch of line but could not find out where.
Then one evening they noticed this ranch house all lit up like it was christmas and no power line running to his house, no solar panels, no wind generator.
They put 2 and 2 together and figured out what was happening.
Tweeker


----------



## Tweeker

I have 2 optima batteries in my FJ40.
Best battery ever made. IMO
Tweeker

Something wierd just happened, there was supposed to be a qute from Muleman here someplace
now what did I do with it?


----------



## muleman RIP

I have been saving up distilled water from my a/c condensate pump for batteries. I also use it in my machinery radiators since our tap water is so hard.


----------



## Tweeker

A friend of mine told me about industry grade batteries.
They are 24 or 48 volt and as large as a footlocker.
These things can be rebuilt, there is a draine for the water/acid 
the bottom is removable so that the lead particles that normally fall off the plate can be removed preventing the plates from shorting out and the lead plates can be resurfaced or replaced as needed.
Tweeker


----------



## tiredretired

muleman said:


> I have been saving up distilled water from my a/c condensate pump for batteries. I also use it in my machinery radiators since our tap water is so hard.



Good water for that.  Pure and clean.  



Tweeker said:


> A friend of mine told me about industry grade batteries.
> They are 24 or 48 volt and as large as a footlocker.
> These things can be rebuilt, there is a draine for the water/acid
> the bottom is removable so that the lead particles that normally fall off the plate can be removed preventing the plates from shorting out and the lead plates can be resurfaced or replaced as needed.
> Tweeker



Those sound awesome but..........I'll bet they are pricier than all get out and heavier than an Italian Mother-In-Law.


----------



## squerly

Added 1 bucket (84 meals) of FoodWise meals.  Shelf life is advertised as 25 years, which means it will outlive me... lol.


----------



## Rusty Shackleford

Kane said:


> Next time you're at the junk yard, look around for an old 12V CB radio. Could be invaluable.
> 
> All of these young adults addicted to iPads/iPhones/iWhatevers will simply not know what to do ... other than wander around with millions and millions of other young libs looking in vain for their government to give them more.


 
I still have my Dad's old CB in my car, hooked up and ready to use. Could do for a peak and tune sometime though. I can live without my cellphone, though when the fecal matter connects with the bladed spinning device I think it is good to have to get in contact with family and friend who you may be in cahoonts with as far as prepping/planning. The ones expecting the government to help them out of the doomsday situation will be unfortunatley (for them) left in the dark as I believe the government will be the cause of doomsday. 

That being said, we are not nearly prepared enough for the impending disaster which I believe will occur within 50 years. Could be in 50 years, could be tomorrow, hard to say. We have a good amount of dried packaeged foods as well as canned foods and I try to keep a fresh water supply by rotating it between drinking it, and using it to make my coffee in the AM and cook with in the evenings. We have a decent supply of medical supplies, and with Lith knowing all about that stuff it's good to have her around 

Regardless it's hard to prepare on a paycheck-to-paycheck budget, and we really only have probably a week's worth of water, and maybe 2-3 weeks worth of foods to get us by as of current. But with me having some money freed up by finally having my car payed off, it will be alot easier to make at least a small hoard of supplies and edibles. I'll keep updated with this as I do more.


----------



## luvs

got all my rainboots scattered from here to there, at the door. all of 'em. umbrellas & 2 sets of keys prepped. phones- charged.


----------



## Tweeker

Rusty Shackleford said:


> I still have my Dad's old CB in my car, hooked up and ready to use. Could do for a peak and tune sometime though. I can live without my cellphone, though when the fecal matter connects with the bladed spinning device I think it is good to have to get in contact with family and friend who you may be in cahoonts with as far as prepping/planning. The ones expecting the government to help them out of the doomsday situation will be unfortunatley (for them) left in the dark as I believe the government will be the cause of doomsday.
> 
> That being said, we are not nearly prepared enough for the impending disaster which I believe will occur within 50 years. Could be in 50 years, could be tomorrow, hard to say. We have a good amount of dried packaeged foods as well as canned foods and I try to keep a fresh water supply by rotating it between drinking it, and using it to make my coffee in the AM and cook with in the evenings. We have a decent supply of medical supplies, and with Lith knowing all about that stuff it's good to have her around
> 
> Regardless it's hard to prepare on a paycheck-to-paycheck budget, and we really only have probably a week's worth of water, and maybe 2-3 weeks worth of foods to get us by as of current. But with me having some money freed up by finally having my car payed off, it will be alot easier to make at least a small hoard of supplies and edibles. I'll keep updated with this as I do more.


 You may want to check out that CB radio, if it is a 23 channel you may have problems communicating with other CBers.
when they went to 40 channels, they narrowed the bands in order to squeeze more channels in the alloted band space.
Tweeker


----------



## Rusty Shackleford

Tweeker said:


> You may want to check out that CB radio, if it is a 23 channel you may have problems communicating with other CBers.
> when they went to 40 channels, they narrowed the bands in order to squeeze more channels in the alloted band space.
> Tweeker


 
It's a 40 clicker


----------



## muleman RIP




----------



## Catavenger

It's hard to prep. when you live in a city and can't drive. I do have extra food and guns and ammunition. When I post that it makes me think of the lyrics in Silent Running by Mike and The Mechanics: "There's a gun and ammunition Just inside the doorway Use it only in emergency Better you should pray to God The father and the spirit"

So even though I think that it's important to prep. I think that when the shit hits the fan you better have faith in God. From the way things are going in this country  (and world) I think it may hit the fan soon.


----------



## Tweeker

Catavenger.
I know how hard it is to prep, even without the limitations that you are handling.
Try to hook up with other prepers in your area, next door neighbors ect.
you may find all the support that you need right there.
Also there are a bunch of levels of preparedness,
One of the easyist, is to keep your regular gear in shape.
I just found a hand crank radio at the thrift store that has a USB output jack, now I can charge my Iphone when I forget to charge my Iphone.
If that makes any sense.
Tweeker


----------



## Rusty Shackleford

That Iphone ain't gonna be worth shit when the grid goes down, bud. Just sayin'


----------



## Tweeker

Rusty Shackleford said:


> That Iphone ain't gonna be worth shit when the grid goes down, bud. Just sayin'


 
Yea I know, But in the event of a mini shtf scenario, like me forgetting to...well you know. 

In the event of a major SHTF I have a multi band ham station, ranging from 27MHz up to 900MHz.
I shall be heard 
Tweeker


----------



## Rusty Shackleford

Tweeker said:


> Yea I know, But in the event of a mini shtf scenario, like me forgetting to...well you know.
> 
> In the event of a major SHTF I have a multi band ham station, ranging from 27MHz up to 900MHz.
> I shall be heard
> Tweeker


 
NOW we're talkin!


----------



## joec

Not much just a few hundred rounds of 9mm ammo.


----------



## luvs

Catavenger said:


> It's hard to prep. when you live in a city and can't drive. I do have extra food and guns and ammunition. When I post that it makes me think of the lyrics in Silent Running by Mike and The Mechanics: "There's a gun and ammunition Just inside the doorway Use it only in emergency Better you should pray to God The father and the spirit"
> 
> So even though I think that it's important to prep. I think that when the shit hits the fan you better have faith in God. From the way things are going in this country (and world) I think it may hit the fan soon.


 
i chose to sell my car. has any city-dweller achieved success in finding a lot/spot or lease to place a car sans essentially relinquishing ur pay to get a spot to get to ur job....... not me. i can drive. well. i know feet get u there quicker.
God gave me feet for a reason.
& i utilize 'em.


----------



## 300 H and H

Just keep feeding and watering my beef. It'll be ready by next summer. Literally so many hogs here if the folks who tend but don't own the hogs are on there own for feed, they will be turned loose. So I don't worry about pork being available. And of course deer...

Regards, Kirk


----------



## EastTexFrank

300 H and H said:


> Just keep feeding and watering my beef. It'll be ready by next summer. Literally so many hogs here if the folks who tend but don't own the hogs are on there own for feed, they will be turned loose. So I don't worry about pork being available. And of course deer...



That's how it is at our place.  No domestic animals at the house but there are hogs, rabbits and deer all around.  Just have to find 'em.  Plenty of hamburger on the hoof at the farm 6 miles away.  Holding on to them in a major SHTF scenario might be a trick.  In a minor one I might be tempted to bring some to the pasture at the house just in case it escalates.  

After the happenings of today, it might be a good time to lay in ammo if you need it.  I think that it's going to be hard to find again in the near future.


----------



## Tweeker

As most of you know I already ranted about that wad in Colorado who went on a shooting spree at the expense of the lives of innocent people.
Now the media are lableing him a prepper.
I am soooo sick of this S**T
Tweeker


----------



## muleman RIP

He ain't no prepper. Too smart for his own sanity maybe.


----------



## bczoom

luvs said:


> i chose to sell my car. has any city-dweller achieved success in finding a lot/spot or lease to place a car sans essentially relinquishing ur pay to get a spot to get to ur job....... not me. i can drive. well. i know feet get u there quicker.
> God gave me feet for a reason.
> & i utilize 'em.


Do you need a spot to store your car?  I have a parking lot you could use but it's 40 miles outside the city so it would be a PITA for you to get regularly.


----------



## Rusty Shackleford

Tweeker said:


> As most of you know I already ranted about that wad in Colorado who went on a shooting spree at the expense of the lives of innocent people.
> Now the media are lableing him a prepper.
> I am soooo sick of this S**T
> Tweeker


 
He prepared for his attack. That don't make him a prepper. That makes him a fucking nutjob.


----------



## luvs

bczoom said:


> Do you need a spot to store your car? I have a parking lot you could use but it's 40 miles outside the city so it would be a PITA for you to get regularly.


 
it's gone. i have a spot feet from my door if i needed one, or @ my Parents homes in the suburbs. it's pointless to have owned it & have a career in most districts. thanx, tho!


----------



## luvs

yesterday, got a stock of meds. i'm combining a supply of each into 1 of thier own bottles. i am getting a supply of lighters. already get matches most nitely from the bar. i keep zip-locks there for items that may get rained on- keep a few items in my one in my 1 lunchbox/purse already. now re-fill bottles/jugs after they're empty often. buy 2 when i need 1 of a non-perishable food. arrange my rainboots by the door nightly, as i usually wear 'em, & babbit seems to think they're toys & scatters most shoes/boots about my kitchen frequently. i keep my tub full jik. i have a bag of kitty food & a pot full of h2o for them, too.


----------



## joec

muleman said:


> He ain't no prepper. Too smart for his own sanity maybe.



I tend to agree Muleman, I've known a couple of guys I grew up with that bordered on genius that always seemed on the edge of complete insanity sometimes. As they say a thin line between the two and this guy was just plain over the edge regardless of what set him off and if he didn't have guns he would of probably found other methods of doing it too.


----------



## EastTexFrank

After all the commotion being raised about the shooter in Colorado buying his "arsenal" and "thousands and thousands" of rounds of ammunition on the internet, I think that is going to be the first place they will try to strike ... banning internet sales.  

There's going to be the usual outcry about large capacity mags and putting timers on guns so they only fire 1 round a minute and similar idiotic things but I think that banning internet sales of guns and ammo is going to be where the first real attack is going to be launched.  

So, what did I do to prep today, I sent off an order for a couple of hundred more rounds of ammunition.


----------



## squerly

Yep, added another 1K rounds of .22.


----------



## Tweeker

I organized my stocks, well sort of...
now I know how it feels to work in a grocery store. 
Tweeker


----------



## Rusty Shackleford

Where the hell is the Jim Beam??


----------



## muleman RIP

Where is the coffee? I picked up 2 more big cans today when I got down to 4 on the shelf.


----------



## tiredretired

Tweeker said:


> now I know how it feels to work in a grocery store.
> Tweeker



Then don't forget to rotate your stock.    Dinty Moore Beef and Chicken Stew have long shelf life.


----------



## tiredretired

muleman said:


> Where is the coffee? I picked up 2 more big cans today when I got down to 4 on the shelf.



I prep with instant coffee.  Taster's Choice French Roast.  Takes less shelf space and less energy to heat the water for a cup.  Some can't drink instant but I have no problem with it.  Taster's Choice is about the best there is in the instant department.


----------



## Tweeker

I go through coffee so fast that its hard to keep it on the shelf.
I'm gonna have to cut back if I don't want to go through withdraws when the SHTF. 
As for the Jim Beam, I still have a list of stuff yet to get, thats on it. 
I still have to set up a system for stock rotation, in the worst case, most canned goods can be eaten way after thier shelf life, but I tried it with a can of peaches, 2 years after thier best by date, it tasted ok but I can't begin to describe what it looked like. I'll never do that again. 
Tweeker


----------



## joec

I've actually picked up about a years supply for 2 people of these Wise food systems at Bud's http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/index.php/cPath/1086/sort/6a/page/2 I've been buy a couple of a month now for about a year covering 3 meals a day as well as fruits and other snake stuff in the by Wise. Dawn and I should be able to last a year on just this alone.

They aren't as good as my grandmother made or even me however they are better than I thought they would be and sure better than the average MRE


----------



## bczoom

Tweeker said:


> I still have to set up a system for stock rotation


Here's an option.  Instead of putting things on shelves organized by what they are, put things on the shelves based on its expiration.  E.g. Top shelf is stuff that expires 3rd quarter 2012.  Shelf below it has stuff that expires 4Q12...


----------



## Rusty Shackleford

bczoom said:


> Here's an option. Instead of putting things on shelves organized by what they are, put things on the shelves based on its expiration. E.g. Top shelf is stuff that expires 3rd quarter 2012. Shelf below it has stuff that expires 4Q12...


 
That's how I'm planning it, but like at the grocery store. The stuff at the front of the shelf expires before the stuff at the back. Just keep it well stocked, and rotate by using stuff for daily use, dinners breakfast, ect.


----------



## EastTexFrank

TiredRetired said:


> Dinty Moore Beef and Chicken Stew have long shelf life.



Strange you should mention that.  Last week I was down under the house changing out the filters on the a/c and I thought that I'd better check the emergency storage box that I keep down there for when we're hiding from tornadoes.  Stuck right down at the very bottom of the crate was 1 can of each, both 4 years past their "use by" date.  

I don't know whether to eat them, feed them to the dog, toss them in the trash or call in the Federal Emergency Response Clean Up Team to get rid of them.


----------



## Cowboy

EastTexFrank said:


> Strange you should mention that. Last week I was down under the house changing out the filters on the a/c and I thought that I'd better check the emergency storage box that I keep down there for when we're hiding from tornadoes. Stuck right down at the very bottom of the crate was 1 can of each, both 4 years past their "use by" date.
> 
> I don't know whether to eat them, feed them to the dog, toss them in the trash or *call in the Federal Emergency Response Clean Up Team to get rid of them.*


 I hope you have another 4 years to wait for them to show up Frank. 

As far as i am concerned that is a "best used by date" and has nothing to do with the safety of eating it. IMO, If the cans still sealed good and not blown out of shape, once opened if it looks good, and dont smell bad i would eat it before feeding it to an animal. But then again i aint near as picky as most folks.


----------



## Rusty Shackleford

Cowboy said:


> As far as i am concerned that is a "best used by date" and has nothing to do with the safety of eating it. IMO, If the cans still sealed good and not blown out of shape, once opened if it looks good, and dont smell bad i would eat it before feeding it to an animal. But then again i aint near as picky as most folks.


I'm with ya, Cowhand. I figure if it ain't growin' mold, it's probably fine


----------



## luvs

checked in on my stock of this:

i think i'm good for now. it's the equivalent of ensure plus, 375 calories a can. i've only opened 1 pack, & have ensure in the pantry & in & on the 1 fridge, & other boxes of ^ in a spare room.


----------



## Tweeker

Picked up a spider paint ball rifle.
just need a few hundered rounds of pepperballs and I'm good to go 
Tweeker


----------



## Garmins_Dad

All you with wood stoves... Don't forget to own your own brush and the ability to clean your own stove.. A case of matches is always handy also....


----------



## bczoom

Speaking of wood stoves and such.  Last night I got _another_ full truckload of scrap lumber from a friend who owns a company that does the finish carpentry on _high-end_ new houses.

It's all solid wood that would be used in making cabinets, moldings, baseboard... Oak, ash, cherry etc.

Will be cutting it up and storing for kindling for the woodstove but mainly for small cooking fires outside.  Now that the summer heat has passed, we'll have an outdoor fire several times a week and cook over the flames.  This wood is nice for that as it heats quickly, makes a good bed of coals but isn't huge chunks where it burns all night (when I only wanted a 2-hour fire).


----------



## Dargo

bczoom said:


> On the inverters, I too wouldn't go less then 2000w unless you're just running some lights off it.
> My approach (instead of the tractor) is to do pretty much what's in the picture (I grabbed off the internet) below.
> 
> I put a deep-cycle marine battery in the box and strap the inverter to the top.  It then sits in the house, ready to go.  I normally keep it in the same room as the wood stove since if the stove is running and the power goes out, it's a quick grab to get the inverter connected to the stove to run the fans so it doesn't overheat.  With the deep-cycle battery, you can run it for a few hours (depending on the load and battery size) without having to re-charge the battery.
> 
> Being a packaged up unit, I can grab it and throw it in the truck, ATV, RTV... for portable power wherever I need it.



Kind of the same idea but different.  I also topped off and now have around 1500 gallons of diesel.  I've also since cleaned the dirty hand prints and grease off the generator and the grass my son splattered on the fence...


----------



## EastTexFrank

Dargo said:


> Kind of the same idea but different.  I also topped off and now have around 1500 gallons of diesel.  I've also since cleaned the dirty hand prints and grease off the generator and the grass my son splattered on the fence...



Dargo, that is one of the sweetest set-ups that I've seen.  It's way too big for my modest needs though but I'd sure like to see one out back.


----------



## squerly

Wow, that's a real comfort maker for sure.  Looks kind of thirsty...


----------



## Dargo

squerly said:


> Wow, that's a real comfort maker for sure.  Looks kind of thirsty...



Relatively, it's not that bad.  It sits on a 110 gallon fuel tank and with a moderate load (not with 4 A/C units totaling 9 tons capacity running), it seems to burn just under a gallon per hour.  I'm trying to burn off some of the old diesel that was in it, but with no load, it doesn't seem to drink much in 20 minutes of 'exercise' with zero load.  

It's sitting on 4 pieces of 4"X8"X3/4" rubber pads and the concrete is heavily reinforced and 12" thick.  I didn't bother with bolting it down.  With fuel, it weighs around 6000 pounds.  I'm not thinking it will blow away too easily with the house and fence blocking wind out of the west and south.  Here's a pic setting it in place.  My track loader didn't have the reach I needed and my forklift is for use on concrete only.  It was all my mini-excavator (7 ton class) wanted!


----------



## Garmins_Dad

Wow that's a nice machine.. I was proud of my 7500 watt diesel gen set.. Your's is mighty night..


----------



## squerly

Bought (used) ANVIS-6 Gen3 Night Vision.  What's left to say?  They're AWESOME!


----------



## Kane

After Katrina, one of the biggest threats was looting.  Some wards and parishes were absolutely pillaged, with instances of extreme violence.  So preppers, seeing this, now take pause and consider arms and ammo.

After Sandy, tho, looting is almost non-existent, even in the most heavily populated part of the country.  Maybe stocking arms and ammo is a myth?
.


----------



## squerly

Kane said:


> After Katrina, one of the biggest threats was looting.  Some wards and parishes were absolutely pillaged, with instances of extreme violence.  So preppers, seeing this, now take pause and consider arms and ammo.
> 
> After Sandy, tho, looting is almost non-existent, even in the most heavily populated part of the country.  Maybe stocking arms and ammo is a myth?
> .



I don't know how the quality of the population plays into this but there is a considerable difference between the good folks living in Nawlans and the people living in NY.  In New Orleans, proper looting skills are taught in school.  Thievery in NY is far more refined.


----------



## Kane

squerly said:


> I don't know how the quality of the population plays into this but there is a considerable difference between the good folks living in Nawlans and the people living in NY.  In New Orleans, proper looting skills are taught in school.  Thievery in NY is far more refined.


Nah, I doubt is demographics has anything to do with it.


----------



## muleman RIP

Last report was 13 people were busted for looting shops in Manhattan. NYPD and Guardsmen take things pretty seriously down there. It is a good idea to stay stocked on ammo as you never know what will happen in these elections.


----------



## AAUTOFAB1

Just finished splitting my second cord, one more and I'm set for the winter. had a sweet spot on the mountain where the forest service had done some thinning but found out they are doing a controlled burn there this weekend so it'll be a week before i can finish my wood pile

people some times make fun of preppers, well i think we will see more story's in the future of how prepping is not such a crazy thing to do after all. my thoughts and prayers go out to all the people affected by the hurricane.


----------



## muleman RIP

I have noticed for the past 6 months  that Sam's club is carrying a lot of prepper stuff. More folks than ever are expecting bad times and preparing. This storm just reinforces the need.


----------



## EastTexFrank

muleman said:


> I have noticed for the past 6 months  that Sam's club is carrying a lot of prepper stuff. More folks than ever are expecting bad times and preparing. This storm just reinforces the need.



I haven't been to Sam's in quite a while.  Maybe I need to make a quick trip.

For me, prepping doesn't really have a whole lot to do with the Doomsday scenario but it's more to do with handling the road bumps that life places in our way.  I'm not going to disappear into a hole in the ground and live there for a year but I can hole up at the house and get by for a few months.

PS ... picked up some more ammo and freeze dried food last week.


----------



## squerly

Kane said:


> After Katrina, one of the biggest threats was looting. Some wards and parishes were absolutely pillaged, with instances of extreme violence. So preppers, seeing this, now take pause and consider arms and ammo.
> 
> After Sandy, tho, looting is almost non-existent, even in the most heavily populated part of the country. Maybe stocking arms and ammo is a myth?
> .


 
OK folks, here's what's really happening in Sandy land...  My wife has a girlfriend in New Jersey.  While she (and her husband) are lucky enough to have power her brother, sisters, and Mother/Dad are all without.  They have generators but there is little fuel to be had.  Her brother stood in line for 4 hours today to buy $20.00 worth of gas (the max they will let you buy). Looting and burglaries are common place and there is a "be off the streets when it gets dark" curfew.  

On a positive note these people are "prepper conscious" and have more than enough food, water and medical supplies to last them until order is restored.  They are short on fuel, but given they have power it's not as big a deal for them as it is for many others.


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## squerly

squerly said:


> Bought (used) ANVIS-6 Gen3 Night Vision. What's left to say? They're AWESOME!


 
Here are a few pictures I took at 3:00am when the dogs decided they wanted to go outside. Picture 1 is looking across the field (from my deck) to the open eye. Picture 2,3 and 4 are taken from the same location but with me holding the ANVIS up to the camera.

The animals in picture 3 are my 2 GSD's, 1 is sniffing around and the blurry one is running toward the deck. You really can't appriciate how awesome these things are until you stand in the darkness and see nothing vs looking through the ANVIS and suddenly see everything!


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## luvs

wow, squerly- prime pix!


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## muleman RIP

I would love to have one of those. Always critters of some sort running around at night up here. Tough to get the light on them and hold the binocs at the same time.


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## muleman RIP

A quick look at what is going on in NYC and Jersey is a good reminder to stay prepped. Those folks don't even have enough food or fuel to make it for a few days. That would scare me to be that unprepared. I added another item to the stash that will last 1,000 years and still be good. Honey from our hives made 5 gallons+ some gift jars.


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## EastTexFrank

muleman said:


> A quick look at what is going on in NYC and Jersey is a good reminder to stay prepped. Those folks don't even have enough food or fuel to make it for a few days. That would scare me to be that unprepared. I added another item to the stash that will last 1,000 years and still be good. Honey from our hives made 5 gallons+ some gift jars.



I came back from Colorado with 5 jars of honey.  I hadn't eaten any honey in about 150 years (that's a long time).  I couldn't believe how good it tasted.  I've got 4 jars stuck away in the cupboard that I'll hang on to for emergencies.  

Like you, I couldn't believe how unprepared some of those people were, then it dawned on me.  Most of us live out in the sticks and we have room and space to store things like fuel%2


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## Rusty Shackleford

Finally grew our water supplies in preparation for Sandy. Didn't need any of it, but we needed more in the rotation anyway. Right now the trunk of the Taurus is temporary water storage for what I can't get in the kitchen.


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## tiredretired

I bought another generator prior to Sandy as a backup. Yesterday I placed the order for the stainless steel Kelly Kettle.  Invaluable for boiling water quick and easy.

I need to find a nice battery charging solar setup to keep batteries up to snuff for the pellet stove without running the genset for it.


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## EastTexFrank

TiredRetired said:


> Yesterday I placed the order for the stainless steel Kelly Kettle.  Invaluable for boiling water quick and easy.
> 
> I need to find a nice battery charging solar setup to keep batteries up to snuff for the pellet stove without running the genset for it.



I wasn't familiar with the Kelly Kettle and had to Google it.  That is an interesting piece of gear.  I was all prepared to pick up a Biolite Stove before this winter but now I'm in a quandry .... which one will suit my needs best?

Thanks for the info.


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## BigAl RIP

I took a shower


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## Leni

Since I live in earthquake country I always try to be prepared.  My big problem as someone already pointed out is room for everything.  I do have a lot of canned food and charcoal so that I can cook.  When the Northridge earthquake happened I had enough food and water plus meds to keep us going.  We did not have a looting problem in my part of the Valley.  DH had an FFL license for 20 years so we have plently of amo and weapons.  I finally convinced him to buy a generator.  He'd be talking about buying one for years but never did it.  Had to kick his ass with my pointed toe shoe.


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## muleman RIP

You should run that generator once a month. I am going to start keeping mine in the basement now that cold weather is here. i just ran it the Friday before Sandy blew through. A little Stabil in the gas helps also.


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## FrancSevin

After visiting my Son's place in CT during Sndy,we realized how vuneratble he is to power outages.

While he did not lose power that night, he could quite esily with all the trees and such where he lives.

He has a well Oil furnace and Gas water heater. But with power out he has none of the above. So I will be rewireing my ranch genset as a backup power source and install it next Christmas. He will then be a proper preper.

I know he will need a licencsed electrician to do the final hook up but I can set the panel on the wall, pipe out the diesel exhaust and parisite a fuel line off his heating oil tank.
5500 watts should keep his furnace,water pump and kitchen appliances on line. The gen has an automatic start when the power shuts off. It also self diagnostics and runs a monthly test, all automaticaly.

Now, I have to find a new system for the ranch. I want bigger power ( 10,000 Watts) but I don't need the auto start. The solar systems maintain anything I need running when I'm gone.


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## muleman RIP

Saw this and thought it might be handy for folks with apartments or small pantries.
http://amy-toby.blogspot.com/2012/03/canned-food-storage.html


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## squerly

Hey, thart's sweet!


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## EastTexFrank

Leni said:


> Had to kick his ass with my pointed toe shoe.



Bet that brought a tear to his eye and a lump to his throat.  

As someone said, you need to run it once a month for an hour or so with a load on it, a big load, make it work.  I personally use 1500 watt electric heaters.  There's no need to be fanatical about it but it really needs to be done.  

Also, when you are done exercising it once a month let the fuel tank run dry or shut off the fuel supply and let the generator die from fuel starvation.  You really don't want any old, stale gas sitting around in the carberator.  Stab-il will help but remember when you put it in and make sure that gas is used up in a year or so from that date.  

I'm sorry if you guys know all this but there's nothing worse and I do mean nothing worse than a generator that won't start.  Just talking from personal experience.


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## muleman RIP

Rusty Shackleford said:


> Finally grew our water supplies in preparation for Sandy. Didn't need any of it, but we needed more in the rotation anyway. Right now the trunk of the Taurus is temporary water storage for what I can't get in the kitchen.


I would say by Tuesday you better find a home for the water in the trunk or it will be froze and leaking.


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## muleman RIP

Frank, that is a good idea with the heater. i usually plug a drill or skilsaw in for a few minutes. I have a few electric heaters i could use.


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## muleman RIP

Saw this today. Was not sure if it is being a prepper or just redneck, but it works.


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## squerly

Bought 20 rounds of #4 Buck Shot, 3", 12 guage.


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## EastTexFrank

Found this product today.  

http://www.waterwise-distillers.com/waterwise-model-1600.htm

One of my problems has always been potable water.  I have a swimming pool with about 30,000 gallons but, because of the chlorine in it, I can't really use it for filling toilet tanks and flushing toilets without putting the septic system at risk.  

I thought that something like this would at least give me a couple of flushes a day and I could run it on the gas cooktop, the propane grill, a camping stove, the wood fired smoker or a wood camp fire.  It's either this or a Berkey water filter.  

Maybe I just need to get a portapotty and be done with it.


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## Tweeker

Neutralize the chlorine by exposing the water to sunlight or pass it through activated charcoal
Tweeker


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## EastTexFrank

Tweeker said:


> Neutralize the chlorine by exposing the water to sunlight or pass it through activated charcoal
> Tweeker



Thanks.


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## AAUTOFAB1

today i started looking at how to make my property less inviting to wondering zombies. the access from the street is gated but i need to be able to get cover built into certain areas so i can see but intruders are exposed.i want to funnel them into a corner to box them in,+ has any one ever seen the trip wire style warning devices? they use shot gun primers so if some one or some thing ventures past it triggers the primer. in the dead of night it makes a hell of a bang.


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## BigAl RIP

Renewed my Passport and started packing .........


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## JEV

AAUTOFAB1 said:


> today i started looking at how to make my property less inviting to wondering zombies. the access from the street is gated but i need to be able to get cover built into certain areas so i can see but intruders are exposed.i want to funnel them into a corner to box them in,+ has any one ever seen the trip wire style warning devices? they use shot gun primers so if some one or some thing ventures past it triggers the primer. in the dead of night it makes a hell of a bang.



http://hitechammotogo.com/html/perimeter_alarm_systems___acce.html  at the bottom of the page.

This is illegal in most states, but may be fine where you live. FWIW, I would be more fearful if a tripwire turned on floodlights that exposed my position, followed by a loudspeaker that gave the following announcement...

"_Hey....Bitch! You're now saving the batteries on my night vision scope._"


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## squerly

Purchased a Cammenga compass and I'm learning to use it.  Turns out there is a lot more to using a compass than just finding North!


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## EastTexFrank

squerly said:


> Purchased a Cammenga compass and I'm learning to use it.  Turns out there is a lot more to using a compass than just finding North!



That's a beauty.  

'Way back in my teen years, when I did a lot of camping and hill walking (hiking), I was able to use a compass pretty good.  These days I'm not so sure but I still carry one and topo maps in the truck ... just in case.


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## tystone48

I dehydrate alot of food... 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


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## Doc

tystone48 said:


> I dehydrate alot of food...
> 
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk


What all foods do you dehydrate? 
And Welcome to Forums Forums.  Stop by and do an intro in the Introductions Forum when you have time.  
Here is a direct link to that forum.  http://www.forumsforums.com/3_9/forumdisplay.php?f=48  just look for the 'new post' button right under the forum title "Introductions Forum"


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## EastTexFrank

I haven't done much, if any, preparing for quite a while.  I've almost everything I need in place to get by.  I'm too old to be bugging out anywhere so I guess I'll stand or fall with what I've got where I am.  

Oh, by the way, welcome tystone 48.


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## bczoom

Nothing today but yesterday I did test runs on a couple generators and re-built my 30-amp cord.  _I took it apart last fall to test an appliance but never put the end back on it._

Welcome to the forum tystone.


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## Kane

The folks in Atlanta are learning about prep today. Of course for them preparedness means running to the grocery and grabbing everything off the shelf. People getting shot fighting over a bag of rice or a roll of toilet paper.


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## EastTexFrank

Kane said:


> People getting shot fighting over a bag of rice or a roll of toilet paper.



There was a time in my life, at the airport in the Cameroons in West Africa, that I would have gladly shot somebody for a roll of toilet paper.      Ah, that was another day in another life.


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## Rusty Shackleford

Don't want to see this thread die as we need to prep now more than ever. We replaced the old lo-boy tv stand in the LR a week or so ago. Instead of throwing it out, I stood it up on end and put it in Mason's closet behind the wall. Now it is hidden food/supply storage.


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## EastTexFrank

Rusty Shackleford said:


> Don't want to see this thread die as we need to prep now more than ever. We replaced the old lo-boy tv stand in the LR a week or so ago. Instead of throwing it out, I stood it up on end and put it in Mason's closet behind the wall. Now it is hidden food/supply storage.



That'll work!!!!  

I haven't done much new prepping lately, just more of the same old stuff.  I did get a small lake built and I'll turn the water well on it in the fall and see how much water I can get in it before spring when the sprinklers need to be turned back on.  

Got a place all figured out for the standby generator that I'm probably going to put in this spring.  It'll be an air cooled, 20 kW, natural gas unit from Generac or Kohler.  That should take care of the whole house except for the a/c and the well pump.  I looked at low speed, liquid cooled ones but I honestly don't think that the extra expense is justified for the few occasions we lose power these days.  The utility company has done a good job over the past few years clearing their ROWs and outages are few and not long lasting ... but you never know when the next ice storm will hit.

OH, I did pick up a couple of bucket filters from Sawyer (I think) just in case the water gets shut down again but even then, the water utility now has a back-up generator for their well pump so we shouldn't lose water for any length of time.  

Otherwise it just the same ol' stuff.


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## BigAl RIP

I ain't prepped much , but I guess living where we do , everyday is a prep day for us . Got 3 generators now . A inverter 2200 watt , a Generac 8000 , and a military 15000 unit , We have are own creek .plenty of firewood ,  All the game/fish  we could possibly ever eat. A 36 foot RV that is loaded with everything we need and ready to go  on a moments notice . I keep one room in the shop loaded with everyday repair parts for keeping everything up and running .You name it , it is in there . 
   I have become the Ace Hardware of the back country around here . Yesterday it was a bag of tile mortar that was loaned out and will be replaced on Tuesday . Friday it was a roll of 15 pound felt , one 30/50 well switch and 1/2 dozen PEX  plumbing fittings . Monday it was a water heater temp relief valve .


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## bczoom

EastTexFrank said:


> Got a place all figured out for the standby generator that I'm probably going to put in this spring.  It'll be an air cooled, 20 kW, natural gas unit from Generac or Kohler.  That should take care of the whole house except for the a/c and the well pump.


Why don't you think a 20KW would take care of the A/C and well pump?

The well pump should be a piece of cake.

My 15KW won't run my 5-ton heat pump but I'd think a 20KW would.  (I'm swapping out the 15KW for a 30KW to run the whole house).


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## EastTexFrank

bczoom said:


> Why don't you think a 20KW would take care of the A/C and well pump?
> 
> The well pump should be a piece of cake.
> 
> My 15KW won't run my 5-ton heat pump but I'd think a 20KW would.  (I'm swapping out the 15KW for a 30KW to run the whole house).



The well pump and the a/c are 3-phase.  I've got one of only two houses in the county that has 3-phase power.  The utility company wanted to disconnect it a few years back but balked at replacing two big, honking a/c units and the well pump.  

Without those two I think that a 20kW unit will run the whole house.  Sure, we have 3 fridges and 2 freezers, 3 ovens, 2 sets of washers and driers but if the power goes off nobody is going to run all that stuff at the same time.  With a little judicious power management I think that we could get by with a smaller generator but 20 kW should handle everything without being stressed.

If power goes off during the summer we use fans, a portable a/c unit or a big evaporative cooler.  Or, if all else fails, we adjourn to the RV that's sitting in the driveway and live in relative comfort for a few days.


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## bczoom

Gotcha.  

Instead of a 20KW single phase, why not get a 3-phase?


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## EastTexFrank

bczoom said:


> Gotcha.
> 
> Instead of a 20KW single phase, why not get a 3-phase?



Too much work.  

There is single phase and three phase coming in to the house.  The house itself is on a single phase 200 amp panel.  The 3-phase goes to a panel in the shop.  The two are entirely separate.  The shop panel powers the a/c and well pump and a single leg is used to power other stuff like the shop itself but mainly things outside around the property like the sprinklers, the lights and power to the gate, the barn, the pool and hot tub etc.  

I'm not a great home electrician but I suppose that I could put a 3-phase generator on the shop panel and make the house run off a subpanel coming from it.  My head hurts just thinking about it.  It's way too much work for me.  The single phase installation should be fairly simple, the electrician will manage that just fine.  

You got me thinking though.  Maybe what I need at some point is two separate generators, one on each panel, an automatic transfer switch on the house and maybe a manual transfer switch on the shop or both on auto switches.


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## muleman RIP

I prepped today by not wasting ammo on the groundhog 50 ft. in front of the house.


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## bczoom

I bucked at least another cord of wood tonight.  Have it all lined up behind the splitter so it's ready to go tomorrow for splitting.

Groundhog 50' from the house?  That one should be for the dogs it's so close.


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## TOMLESCOEQUIP

muleman said:


> I prepped today by not wasting ammo on the groundhog 50 ft. in front of the house.



The only wasted ammo is from an estate sale...........shoot 'em if you got 'em !


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## Umberto

I prepped today and went to Cabela's, bought a fishing license and 500 rounds of 7.62 for the M1A NM. On the way home stopped by the commissary and bought 2 cases of MRE's and a 1.75 of Famous Grouse.


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## EastTexFrank

Umberto said:


> I prepped today and went to Cabela's, bought a fishing license and 500 rounds of 7.62 for the M1A NM. On the way home stopped by the commissary and bought 2 cases of MRE's and a 1.75 of Famous Grouse.



That should cover most of your bases.  

I haven't done much prepping for a while.  I pick up a little ammo now and again but that's about it.  When the weather gets a little better I'm going to run a 1-1/4" line from the water well to the lake and start filling her up or as much as I can get done in 4 or 5 months, until spring.  

Early next year I'm going to start the process of putting in a whole whole house back-up generator.  I think at that time is when I'll officially cross over from being a good boy scout to being an actual prepper.


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## luvs

i took klonopin & said my Prayers once i fed my kitties.


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## Loudmouth

I've been doing preparedness for 3-4 years now; the poor man's way.  Canned goods.  A case of this, a case of that - every time I go shopping.  I'll be sheltering in place in a small town when the SHTF.  I've a dog for protection and some other things too.  I rotate stock and when stuff gets close to the out-date; donate it to the local food pantry.  I'm basically all set for 6 months of good livin.  ...but can always use more ammo...


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## EastTexFrank

Loudmouth said:


> I've been doing preparedness for 3-4 years now; the poor man's way.  Canned goods.  A case of this, a case of that - every time I go shopping.  I'll be sheltering in place in a small town when the SHTF.  I've a dog for protection and some other things too.  I rotate stock and when stuff gets close to the out-date; donate it to the local food pantry.  I'm basically all set for 6 months of good livin.  ...but can always use more ammo...



That should get you by in an emergency.

Like I said in my post of almost 2-years ago, I haven't done much new stuff lately, just maintained the status quo and looked after the things that I have.  I still don't have my whole house generator.  Something else always seems to come up and besides, I can't even remember the last time that we had an extended power outage.  It's become less of a priority.  I may still do it one of these days when I get too old to haul out and move generators.  Rotating gasoline is starting to be a chore though.  

I did get a new water filter/purifier that I'm pleased with.  It's a Big Berkey.  I'll add it to the other two filter systems that I have.  I also got a Kelly Kettle to use on camping trips.  I really like that thing.  It's neat.  

I did learn something pretty cool this summer while hiking in Scotland.  I met a guy who showed me a neat trick for making campfires that he learned in Sweden.  He had a log about 15" in diameter and around 2' long.  He crosscut the top down about 9" and crammed a crumbled up firelighter down into the center of the crosscut, lit it and in no time had a good going fire.  The log was flat and level enough that he could cook on top of it at least until it had burned down a bit.  It was one of those simple, ingenious things that for some reason give me pleasure and get you wondering, "Why the hell didn't I think of that?".


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## tiredretired

Thank you Loudmouth for bring this thread back to life.

No prepping for me today.  Dentist visit for a cleaning this afternoon.


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## luvs

nothing


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## Umberto

I got an ammo can full of loose .45 ftom a garage sale and bought a bag full of MRE entrées at Winco, recently.


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## EastTexFrank

I've always been uncomfortable with the label of "prepper".  It conjures up visions of those Doomsday Preppers as shown on TV who are prepping for some of the most outlandish things that are ever likely to occur and want the rest of to think that they are normal, far seeing and prophetic individuals.  

I've always thought of myself as more of a good Boy Scout. 

I recently read a book by Dr. Arthur T. Bradley called "The Disaster Preparedness Handbook"  and decided that a "disaster prepper" is a title that I can live with.  It basically says that you need to prepare for "disasters", either natural or man made, that are likely to occur where you live and therefore everybody's plan is going to vary according to their location but that certain basics hold true wherever you are.  It's an interesting read.

So, I'll just continue on my merry way being ready to handle power outages, weather emergencies, localized flooding, possible civil unrest and any other minor inconvenience while leaving how to handle full scale nuclear conflagration to others who want to worry about such things. 

I'm too old and life is too short to worry about every eventuality.  Sure, the dinosaurs got obliterated by a asteroid the size of Mt Everest but for 60 to 100 million years they got along just fine, thank you very much!!!  I think that I can probably make it through the next 5, 10, 25 years or so.


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## luvs

i took a nap & fed my meowers-- there's food in my pantry, food in my fridge, batteries in my flashlites, soap in my bathroom & kitchen, & businesses that have got generators abound-- between medicine, on-call pals, & ice to preserve my food, we're great!


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## MrLiberty

covered the a/c today. It's getting colder at night lately for some reason.


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## EastTexFrank

MrLiberty said:


> covered the a/c today. It's getting colder at night lately for some reason.



I think that it's called "winter".  

Decided that I'm going to get a 13kW PTO generator before the end of the year.  I'll lay in some additional diesel and start running down my stored gasoline.  That should see me through about 2 or 3 months.  That's about as much prepping as I'm going to do at present.  Anything more will require a major rethink and a "kiss your ass goodbye" plan, which I don't have ... and won't subscribe to.


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