Posted: 9/23/2009 6:25:40 PM EDT
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Ive been reading the posts for a month or two but just joined recentley. I've always been interested in preparing for the things that could happen if shtf but never knew how to get started or where to start. To make a long story short what can I do to get started. Have to many Idea's bounceing around in this empty head. Some opions on the things that I do have idea's for.
First off guess where to store the things I need for me and my family{wife and 6 year old son} I live in a realitivley small home with little storage and a one car attached garage. thinking of building a small room in corner of garage thats inclosed and insualated but the garage has no climate controlled. Second, start with food and water,how long can these things be stored safley. Mainley water because from reading other posts it looks like canned food will last a while for now just wanting to get enough for a month or so. Third, already have the things that go boom 
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| Start utilizing "club" stores and/or grocery stores to purchase items that you like to eat in bulk. Use some of the food for day to day meals, but put some of it back for a "rainy day". For bug-in, I'd get a generator and keep some fuel back. For bug-out scenarious, I'd recommend geting some basic camping gear to begin to develop this inventory for your family. |
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Ive been reading the posts for a month or two but just joined recentley. I've always been interested in preparing for the things that could happen if shtf but never knew how to get started or where to start. To make a long story short what can I do to get started. Have to many Idea's bounceing around in this empty head. Some opions on the things that I do have idea's for. First off guess where to store the things I need for me and my family{wife and 6 year old son} I live in a realitivley small home with little storage and a one car attached garage. thinking of building a small room in corner of garage thats inclosed and insualated but the garage has no climate controlled. Second, start with food and water,how long can these things be stored safley. Mainley water because from reading other posts it looks like canned food will last a while for now just wanting to get enough for a month or so. Third, already have the things that go boom Space can be an issue, especially when there is little available at the outset. My recommendation for additional space would be to look at rooms (basement if you have one, or garage) that would allow you to put up shelves or cabinets/cupboards. Most of the space in a room that is wasted is usually along the walls and at a height of about 3' up to the ceiling, so being able to put up shelves or cupboards will really add a lot of storage to a room. Second point, and I really hate to write this because it sometimes reads as though your point is being dismissed, but there is a thread on here about food and shelf life. It has some really great information in it, I believe a food scientist even posted in it, and I would recommend that you read it if you haven't already done so. http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=10&f=17&t=618647 Third, well it looks like you have that one covered. 
Welcome to the forums.
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| sorry maybe I should clarify I could not find any thing on water storage maybe I missed that post. but is there anything that i can add to water stored that will make it last longer without rotating it and if there is'nt how long can it last sealed in a barrel or a container. |
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Water Storage Tips
or this which is a little pricey. There are a lot of sources for different size containers to store your water, I personally use the 55 gal food grade blue plastic drums (see below). You should store at least 1 gallon per person per day for as long as you think necessary. I have a wife and a three year old, so you and I are kinda in the same boat. Also check out Zombie Squad, kinda goofy, but lots of good info. 
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Quoted:
sorry maybe I should clarify I could not find any thing on water storage maybe I missed that post. but is there anything that i can add to water stored that will make it last longer without rotating it and if there is'nt how long can it last sealed in a barrel or a container. Here are a couple of threads on water storage. http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=10&f=17&t=627475 http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=10&f=17&t=627710 |
Welcome to the SF 
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Prepare for the most likely first and the least likely last. So you ask; what is the most likely event? Current events –– ongoing or happened within the last 6 months: Flooding in GA 3 SF members that are recovering from job loss. 1 team member that lost their home due to fire 1 member that lost her BOV to fire History –– has been posted in SF since I found the SF: home lost to fire posted here in SF BOV totaled in head on crash because of drugged driver 5 or more new little SFers born Visits to the ER due to infection, injury, and insect sting allergy 5 or more hurricanes Flooding in Cedar Rapids TJ’s BOVs destroyed by severe weather I point this out to say that you can have the perfect retreat but be really hurt by a simple accident. Being a prepper makes dealing with these less troublesome. Do you and your wife have a plan for fire severe weather pregnancy job loss vehicle loss Who’s who of the SF (please forgive me if I don’t spell all the names perfectly) Frank Squid –– posts occasionally one of the founders or the founder of SF TomJefferson –– top moderator of SF and great source of wisdom and stories, and poster SF family Paul –– suburban SFing and expedition offroading. Halffast –– author of some well known fiction Feral –– homesteading frozenny –– financial Protus –– apartment survivalism and outdoor skills Die-Tryin –– poster BOV of SF Ops –– lived SF for decades, poster SF family 1bigbunker –– builds houses Ferfal308 –– he’s living through a collapse in another country There are others, but I have not caught the above posters posting trash or foolishness. Now about your water question. You can get a filter. Even a little hiker filter that is rated to treat a couple thousand gallons would keep a family of 3 well hydrated for a year. I have to rotate because of limited storage space. The containers I use are five 1 gallon Gatorade jugs and twenty 1L Nalgenes. We use the Nalgenes when we walk out the door and the Gatorade jugs keep the water at home. If we have a hurricane inbound I fill every Nalgene. I really recommend that you rotate your stocks of food and water. This keeps things from going bad in the pantry and it lets you keep what you like to eat. |
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Quoted:
Welcome to the SF
Quoted:
Prepare for the most likely first and the least likely last. So you ask; what is the most likely event? Current events –– ongoing or happened within the last 6 months: Flooding in GA 3 SF members that are recovering from job loss. 1 team member that lost their home due to fire 1 member that lost her BOV to fire History –– has been posted in SF since I found the SF: home lost to fire posted here in SF BOV totaled in head on crash because of drugged driver 5 or more new little SFers born Visits to the ER due to infection, injury, and insect sting allergy 5 or more hurricanes Flooding in Cedar Rapids TJ’s BOVs destroyed by severe weather I point this out to say that you can have the perfect retreat but be really hurt by a simple accident. Being a prepper makes dealing with these less troublesome. Do you and your wife have a plan for fire severe weather pregnancy job loss vehicle loss Who’s who of the SF (please forgive me if I don’t spell all the names perfectly) Frank Squid –– posts occasionally one of the founders or the founder of SF TomJefferson –– top moderator of SF and great source of wisdom and stories, and poster SF family Paul –– suburban SFing and expedition offroading. Halffast –– author of some well known fiction Feral –– homesteading frozenny –– financial Protus –– apartment survivalism and outdoor skills Die-Tryin –– poster BOV of SF Ops –– lived SF for decades, poster SF family 1bigbunker –– builds houses Ferfal308 –– he’s living through a collapse in another country There are others, but I have not caught the above posters posting trash or foolishness. Now about your water question. You can get a filter. Even a little hiker filter that is rated to treat a couple thousand gallons would keep a family of 3 well hydrated for a year. I have to rotate because of limited storage space. The containers I use are five 1 gallon Gatorade jugs and twenty 1L Nalgenes. We use the Nalgenes when we walk out the door and the Gatorade jugs keep the water at home. If we have a hurricane inbound I fill every Nalgene. I really recommend that you rotate your stocks of food and water. This keeps things from going bad in the pantry and it lets you keep what you like to eat. Don't forget FordGuy for all things gardening/growing, a nice guy and willing to help if you ask. Hangs out in Food/Garden alot! I've been at this for quite a while but find Jack Spirko over at The Survival Podcast a daily must. Check him out... Get yourself a MP3 player and listen to his daily show on your commute to work. Welcome aboard by the way. I had been a LONG time lurker and have only just found my voice, please jump in and get involved, I bet you have skills and experiences that we will all be able to benefit from!! Prepper |
First, welcome aboard. It's going to be a wild ride. Second, if I had to start over from the beginning I would first read, and follow, the information in this website created and run by a poster in these Listening to Katrina forums (sorry I don't remember who  , please forgive me). It may not all apply to you and your situation but I know that you will find a lot of helpful stuff, especially while just starting. One thing that I love about it is that it builds on itself and starts with just the basics so it is easy enough to follow and actually accomplish.
From personal experience with food storage I know that my wife and I were able to make huge gains by just picking up a little more of each thing we bought and then storing away the extra. Then begin rotating by consuming what you've stored and replacing it with newly bought items. Don't forget about non-food items as well, trash bags, zip-loc bags, toilet paper, all the bathroom related materials like toothbrush, tooth paste, tampons etc., the list can go on and on. But I'd start by storing what you already use. Also, as someone above stated, camping gear can make great survival gear and you get the added bonus of camping out to test your gear and see where you need to make improvements or adjustments. Don't just store it and forget it. This should be a way of life if you really want to be ready to use it when you need to. All the gear in the world won't help those who can't get in the right mindset and who don't have any of the skills necessary to operate their "tactical" gear. Anyway, I don't really know that much, I'm working my way through life like everyone else, doing the best I can. Good luck to you, this is an awesome forum and I hope that it helps you as much as it has already helped me .
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For water storage, I have a bunch of THESE
At only $11.48ea they are inexpensive, virtually indestructible, portable, and easy to stack. I decided a long time ago that I wanted my potable water storage to be portable-just in case I had to take some of it with me in an evacuation situation. The Winpak containers I linked to are nothing at all like the aquatainers at Wal-Mart. In short, you won't be sorry
Welcome aboard, by the way! 
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