Posted: 11/4/2007 7:00:08 PM EDT
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I'm a college student looking to help my parents start prepping for a possible disaster. I don't have any plans at this time to actually start prepping at my school location as I'll only be here for 1 more year, after which I'll be deploying with the Navy. I've read a lot the posts here so here are my ?s Water storage- A bunch of those 6 gallon "cubes" from wallys world or food grade drums? My parents have plenty of room, so I'm leaning toward the drums. Food- What are some good, easy to cook things to stock up on? My dad is used to eating a lot of meat and potatoes, what are some good long term storage solutions that might be appealing? Again, i tried to read the posts on here, but i'm sure i missed some, so a redirect would be great. Cooking- Propane or kerosene stove? My parents have a grill and propane camp stoves along with ~5 20lb tanks of lp. What should be done to improve this. They have a wood burner to heat the house, and i've got plenty of firearms. We have a 5000 watt generator and about 50 gallons of gas stored, but i don't like the idea of relying on electricity for a long term disaster. So the above items are what i need help with the most (unless i'm missing something, which is possible). Thanks in advance for your help. Sam |
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Get one or two of the china mart Aquatainer blue to use as a dispenser, and go with plastic barrels for the remainder of the stored water. The Aquatainers do not stack. Be sure to get a barrel siphon pump and a couple blue funnels to help with dispensing. If wood is already on hand, maybe a cheap woodburning stove for cooking/heating/water boiling, etc? I'm a meat and potatoes guy myself, but I went a step further and used a pressure canner to can meat. |
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Water storage: The AquaTainer cubes are pretty decent, and they are portable in case you have to change locations. The big drums are not portable, but they hold a lot more water. So get both, along with a pump for the big drums. Treat the water with around 8 drops of regular bleach per gallon. It would probably be a good idea to get a water filter and spare filter element, and some extra bleach, to treat lake water or creek water or whatever's available once the water supply runs out. Food: I like zero preparation things like Pop Tarts, granola bars, peanut butter, crackers, canned tuna, cereal, canned fruit, etc., because they require no fuel. Next step up is canned goods like chili or soup or Beef-A Roni that just need a little heating. Next step up is things like rice, beans, flour, oatmeal and pasta, because you can buy a huge amount of food for relatively little money, but it does have to be cooked. Add salt, other seasonings, baking powder, cooking oil, yeast, tomato paste, some more canned meats. Might be worth buying some canned powdered milk and powdered eggs from Honeyville.com. Some multi-vitamins and minerals would be good, too. Cooking: Kero stoves are actually a bit hard to find. If your folks have propane camping stoves and five 20# containers, that will cook a LOT of food. But only if they have the hose and adaptor (and maybe a filter) to fit the stoves. That would be the first thing I'd check. You can also buy cheap bags of charcoal this time of year, and that's an easy way to cook--just make sure to do it outside because of the CO. Other stuff: First aid kit, lighting options (flashlights and LED lanterns with spare batteries, propane lanterns with spare mantles, kerosene lanterns with spare wicks and kero, even candles), a decent battery operated radio and spare batteries, some way to deal with pee and poop if the water isn't working (maybe a shovel in the summer and plastic bags and lime or kitty litter in the winter), matches or lighters, extra supplies of prescription meds, some way to wash rinse and dry clothes, toilet paper, a way to cut wood for the wood stove, fishing gear, books and board games, duct tape, sewing kit, plastic sheeting, I don't know. |
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CollegeBoy, I completely respect you taking measures for your parents regarding preparedness. However, I still think that you still need to get yourself a bug-out bag for yourself (just in case). They'd likley be better off if you could make it home under difficult circumstances. |
Yeah, I'm working on that too. My brother is down here now, so I'm working on a plan for how to get us home (225miles). I've got two 9mm pistols and a Romy 5.45 AK down here for firearms. I've got two bags (Camelbak BFM and SpecOPS PACK) that I'm starting to fill. Any suggestions on prepping for a college town bug out would be appreciated. |
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Unless they're handicapped, they look well prepared for almost anything...the wood burner for warmth, the propane stoves for cooking, and the generator for all other house needs... Surely they can go shopping for food - the stuff they like. Just give Mom a shopping list of things to 'get for you' and put in a big plastic bin. Get them a 25 lbs. bag of rice, some honey, sugar, oatmeal, ramen, and canned meats and fish. That'll store for years if properly stored. It might also help to get them to make a plan for what to do in an emergency should you be gone.... relatives and good friends to call on or bug out to... and then talk to these folks to make sure that they'll check in on the folks regularly. |
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CollegeBoy, Its good to hear that both you and your brother are taking measures for preparedness as well. I hope you live off of campus, because many states have strict laws regarding firearms possession on university premises. If you're building you BOB, I'd recommend some water purification, fire starting, first aid, food and shelter materials for these bags. While I also enjoy the shooting sports, I think that its better to plan like you're going for a long hike instead of crossing the DMZ. If you look like Rambo, you'll likely stand-out in the crowd, which could be hazardous in a SHTF situation. |