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Posted: 2/22/2006 10:06:35 PM EDT
I'm putting together some supplies at home primarily for earthquake. I'm planning on filling some water jugs and getting a few military MREs at a gunshow (I don't trust the civilian versions to hold up) and probably a first aid kit. Anything else that would be critically needed?
Link Posted: 2/22/2006 11:36:54 PM EDT
[#1]
First aid kits, lights and batteries, maybe cyalume sticks.

Ammo. Lots and lots of ammo. And mags.
Link Posted: 2/22/2006 11:47:09 PM EDT
[#2]
I would go with Mountain House freeze dried foods along with a case or two of MREs. Get a backpacking water purifier as well cause they are fairly handy. plus you never know you may have to hike  or ride out of a hotspot.  Chem lights, battery power lantern, candles some type of other cooking source maybe a colman stove. Oh and plenty of batteries. Keep plenty of water on hand I need more right know I only have 40 gal on hand. You can also add some dried beans and rice. I usually have a couple 5 pound bags of rice laying around at anygivin time. I also keep little things aound plenty of energy bars, and beverage mix like gatorade packets for liter size fills. I also bought a MSR pocket rocket stove so if I need boiling water asap I can have it. Those are some thoughts but there are plenty of other stuff you may need.
Link Posted: 2/23/2006 12:12:49 AM EDT
[#3]

Quoted:
and getting a few military MREs at a gunshow (I don't trust the civilian versions to hold up)



I've had both the civilian type and .mil type and with the exception of the limited accessory selection in the civy type they are just about the same.  I don't have any of them at hand atm but IIRC the products within the packages are exactly the same as you get in the military MREs.  If I was looking at emergency rations and both the civy and military ones were the same price I'd get the military, but if there is a good price break in the civys (including buying heaters seperately) then I'd go for them.

One or two of those mylar emergency blankets will not take up much room in an emergency kit.  A snake bite kit (suction device) would also be a good addition in most of the southwest.

The survival forum and Frugal Squirrels are good resources.
Link Posted: 2/23/2006 3:41:20 AM EDT
[#4]
Listen you don't need any MRE's when you got good ole can food.  Which is way better than an MRE can ever.

Survival items

WATER:
Have jugs of water filled and on standby, add a little bleach to it so that it lasts longer.
This will only last a few days at most unless you got a 100 gallon tank outside.
Get some kind of water purification device and/or steralizing tablets.

Food:
MRE's are good but can food is better.  Remeber your not in the middle of the Afganistan, just in California. hile
Shelter:
Get a tent large enough for you and your family.  Why?  If the gas lines in the house rupture you may not wanna be inside.  Know where the breaker for electrical isolation of your home and gas cutout valves to your home are.  Your home is your castle you should know everything about it.
Really thick blankets to keep you warm.  Mink blankets are awesome.

Power:
Simple things like electricity are things we take for granted here in America.  Get a portable generator.  While you are at that get some gas cans filled and have portable ranges either eletric and/or gas so you can heat water.  

You can get all these at your local outdoors and hardware suppply store.  Hell go to Home depo.
You can also go here www.actiongear.com , the website for brigadequatermasters.  Military should go through the AFFES link you will get a 10 percent discount.  You can get really good first aid kits here.
Link Posted: 2/23/2006 1:28:38 PM EDT
[#5]
Quoted:
Listen you don't need any MRE's when you got good ole can food.  Which is way better than an MRE can ever.

Survival items

WATER:
Have jugs of water filled and on standby, add a little bleach to it so that it lasts longer.
This will only last a few days at most unless you got a 100 gallon tank outside.
Get some kind of water purification device and/or steralizing tablets.

Food:
MRE's are good but can food is better.  Remeber your not in the middle of the Afganistan, just in California. h
Link Posted: 2/23/2006 2:01:47 PM EDT
[#6]
We have both MREs and canned goods stocked in case the SHTF.  Canned goods are stored in our pantry and garage, consumed and replaced every yr.

The MREs are in case we have to evacuate from our residence immediately.  Those too will be consumed and replaced when the time comes.

I see the pros/cons of both.  If you can afford it, get both...just remember to rotate your supplies to avoid waste.

As they say, it's better to have and not need than to need and not have...

Some other things to consider:

AC/DC power inverter
AM/FM/SW radio (such as a Grundig/Eton emergency radio - no batteries required)
Water filter/purifier
Wet wipes (for hygiene)
Link Posted: 2/23/2006 3:02:32 PM EDT
[#7]
Link Posted: 2/23/2006 3:13:44 PM EDT
[#8]

Quoted:
I've got a 10/22 rifle and a 2" snub-nose Smith and Wesson revolver and both weapons have nearly a full box of ammo for each put aside too.



Funniest thing I've read all day!  
Link Posted: 2/23/2006 5:14:53 PM EDT
[#9]

Quoted:

Quoted:
I've got a 10/22 rifle and a 2" snub-nose Smith and Wesson revolver and both weapons have nearly a full box of ammo for each put aside too.



Funniest thing I've read all day!  


Haha yeah...don't overdo it Paul.  You don't want to be labeled as a "survivalist," do you?
Link Posted: 2/23/2006 6:40:22 PM EDT
[#10]
water water water good as gold oh and I have a brick of ammo for my 10/22...hollowpoints!hock.gif
Link Posted: 2/23/2006 8:58:32 PM EDT
[#11]
Toilet paper.
Link Posted: 2/23/2006 9:36:02 PM EDT
[#12]
what about for the car?  i've heard others say that chances will be pretty good you won't be at home when the SHTF.  you may be at the office or stuck in traffic...
Link Posted: 2/23/2006 10:51:03 PM EDT
[#13]

Quoted:
While you are at that get some gas cans filled...



Gasoline is NOT something that you can store indefinitely. After a few weeks its smell changes a little, after 3 months it's very noticeable. Do not use gas that is older than 6 months old, you've got no better than a 50/50 chance of screwing up the fuel system on the generator motor, or heaven forbid your fuel-injected car. Also note: it's cheaper to put a kit in a generator motor carburetor than it is to have a shop clean out your van's fuel lines, fuel pump and injectors, by a long shot. So REALLY don't use it in your car. Today I saw a Toyota carburetor, the gas inside it looked like tapioca pudding. That's what eventually happens.

All that being said,
1) rotate your stored gas through your lawn mower or whatever. Older than about 6 months, it'd be more useful as weed killer for the cracks in your driveway. Have I stressed that enough?
2) Buy and use "Sta-bil" gas stabilizer. It'll keep your gas fairly fresh for significantly longer than left untreated. You follow the instructions on the bottle or can or whatever and pour the indicated amount in, and close it up, you're good for several months. Boat owners who know about it often will put it in their tank the last time they take the boat out in the fall, and the gas is still good enough to run in the spring.
www.goldeagle.com/sta-bil/
Link Posted: 2/23/2006 11:11:36 PM EDT
[#14]
Are some stuff mentioned like moist wipes, toilet paper and a power inverter really necessary (not a rhetorical question, an honest request to edumacate me)?

Was anyone in the badly affected areas of Northridge or the riots? What was useful? What took up space?

Thanks for all the suggestions and links, I'm going to put aside time and sort through it all.
Link Posted: 2/24/2006 12:32:38 AM EDT
[#15]
Hey Foo (That was not an attempt at a Mr. T impression BTW),

If you are in SoCal, you may want to pop over to Major Surplus and Survival in Gardena.

Good source of supplies for MRE's, water storage, etc...

As for me, I've got a few 3 gallon water jugs from Smart & Final (no membership required). It was $3.00 per jug. Works out to be the same price as a 1 gallon you would buy at a supermarket, but easier to carry and refill. Shelf life is two years. Here is a page from their site with with some general suggestions.

I picked up a few of the boxes of the MRE entree packets last year from Major Surplus and Survival, but have a fairly well stocked pantry with lots of can goods lthat won't need too much prep or cooking ike tuna, soup, vegetables, beans, chili, PBJ, etc.

I stock up on what I normally eat when they are on sale and rotate frequently. I try to look for brands that have expiration dates, ideally at least two years. I mark the purchase date on them with a Sharpie so I know if it needs to go.

A bottle of PLAIN, unscented bleach with purification directions marked on the side with a Sharpie is good to have as well as LED flashlight, gloves, goggles, first aid stuff, knowing how to shut off gas. . .

A lot of good info over here also at the Survival Forum.

72hours.org, Ready.gov, and the Red Cross should keep you busy for a while as well.

Wet wipes are good to maintain proper personal hygiene, especially if there is limited water due to busted mains after a major quake.

Generator is a sticky question. If you live in a city and your block has no power for a day or two and you've got a generator cranking, you've got a good chance of unwanted guests showing up.

I've got candles and hand crank/battery operated radio instead.

No 10/22, but I've got a Daisy Red Ryder!
Link Posted: 2/24/2006 2:50:41 AM EDT
[#16]
I'm going camping in a few weeks and am taking 14 gallons of water for the 4-5 days I'm gonna be up there.

I'm not even planning on drinking that much water as I'll be car camping more or less and have tons of other beverages up there.

But the water goes so quick when you are simply cooking and trying to keep things modestly clean.

Baby wipes are a good alternative, especially if water is short and you are trying to conserve.   I'd say they are a definite, or an alternative, on the list of things to have.


I don't really have a substantial home kit yet.    Have a bug out bag of sorts and a substantial car kit in the works(had to use tool kit the other day when I went out of town and the alternator died, 15 minutes later and I'm up and running again).     The car kit needs a first aide kit and more water(currently only have 6 quarts of water in the truck).   Gonna probably get it to 5 2 quart canteens for purposes of being able to keep it easily portable.


Being in California sucks, can't get away with having an AR15 as a trunk gun or much of any gun as a trunk gun.    Think I'm just gonna say to hell with it and get my CCW, I'm in Kern County after all.
Link Posted: 2/24/2006 7:37:33 AM EDT
[#17]

Quoted:

Are some stuff mentioned like moist wipes, toilet paper and a power inverter really necessary?



YMMV but for us, some sort of backup AC power source is necessary.  My nephew (who lives with us) requires the use of a nebulizer for his asthma attacks.

A generator would be nice, but as Rastro mentioned, it will attract unwanted attention where we live.  The inverter suits our needs just fine.


Quoted:

what about for the car? i've heard others say that chances will be pretty good you won't be at home when the SHTF. you may be at the office or stuck in traffic...



We all have basic kits in our cars as well.  Since we all work relatively close to our home (within 7-10 miles), our car kits contain just enough so that we can (hopefully) make our way back home if the SHTF.



Link Posted: 2/24/2006 10:15:26 AM EDT
[#18]
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