Ok since moving into this house 3 years ago I've been keeping my camping/BO/Emergency gear in the Garrage.  It's stacked near the door.  Not only is it mostly out of the way - but it was easy to get to load into a vehicle.

The Garage while it gets hot in the summer time, never seems to get to freezine in the winter (we keep bottled water, Soy Milk, and other soft drinks out there and they never freeze - during the winter it'; like a walk in 'fridge).

However I'm rethinking this and I was hoping you guys could give me some feedback.

Besides an attached garage I have a nice shed out back.  It's dry and free of vermin, but there is no power/heating/cooling.

My trailer (see the thread: Trailer) will be finished soon, so instead of being stored in the driveway it will be stored out back next to the shed.  (I should note my back yard is fenced in and the shed is roughly 40 yards from the house (the windows in my bedroom face the shed - as does the sliding door from the basement).

So the question is do I continue to keep my gear in the garage, or move it to the shed?

Garage:
Pros:
- Never Freezes
- Easy access if the gear is needed for a 'bug in'
- Easy to load the gear for camping if I'm camping 'light'

Cons:
-Takes up room in the garage (I'd love to have a 2nd workbench in the garage).
- In the event of a house emergency (say like a fire) it's likely I'd lose my emergency gear (including tent and bedding).

Shed:
Pros:
- It is located near where the trailer will be stored - open the doors, load the trailer and go!
- separate building so it's fate is not tied in with the main house.
- less likely to be left open

Cons:
- Not as secure as the garage
- I'd have to go outside to access the gear (in the event of a bug in).
- No temperture control.

Now realistically there is nothing I'd NEED immediately from the gear in case of a bug in.  We have flashlights in the house, as well as food & water.  The camping gear just has some of the nicer battery powered lanterns and the 2 burner camping stove.

Myself, I'm leaning toward moving the gear to the shed just because the trailer will be located down there.

Quoted: Do not put all your eggs in one basket.

That's exactly the problem I'm having now all my eggs are in one basket - the house.

All the lights, all the stoves, all the bedding, all the shelter, all the food, all the water is in one place.


If I were to split up the gear.  Say put the tents the shed, and the camp kitchen in the garrage - I save no space (I'd end up using more) and I'd have to load up from 2 different spots in the event of a bug out. First load from the shed and back up to the garrage and finish loading?

How are you guys loading up for a BO; do you load it all from one location?

Quoted: be careful of anything you put in the shed.  While the garage probably has no HVAC, the shed probably isn't even insulated.  I wouldn't put anything even remotely temperature-sensitive in there.

That is one of my concerns.  I'm terribly sure what I'd consider to be 'temp sensative' other than water.

How do canned goods handle freezing?

The only other potential issue I see is the plastic cases getting brittle, and potentially getting cracking during loading shoud a winter BO be needed.

Am I missing anything?

Do you have a space under the stairs or something that's inside the house? I vote for that.

There is no place inside the house that half as fast as loading from the garrage or shed.  Even if I were to store in the basement next to the sliding glass doors (which I'd never do) would not be as quick due to the problems of backing the trailer there.

Tagging to read. I have a similar situation as you Forest. Only no basement. My storage shed out back is no where near secure enough from people, animals, and even bugs to put anything of vaule in like food, gear, etc. I am thinking of building a small square concrete block storage building with lots of insulation inside, specifically with the intentions of it being a dedicated securable supply room. To me, it being seperate from the house is both good, and bad. Other concerns I have about building such a storage room/building though, are of course temperature control, and humidity/moisture. Temps can be somewhat handled through good insulation, but the moisture/humidity could be a problem.

Quoted: Quoted: Garage: Pros: - Never Freezes - Easy access if the gear is needed for a 'bug in' - Easy to load the gear for camping if I'm camping 'light' -since the garage is attached to the house, it is considered "inside the curtlige" for LE search warrant purposes Cons: -Takes up room in the garage (I'd love to have a 2nd workbench in the garage). - In the event of a house emergency (say like a fire) it's likely I'd lose my emergency gear (including tent and bedding). Shed: Pros: - It is located near where the trailer will be stored - open the doors, load the trailer and go! - separate building so it's fate is not tied in with the main house. - less likely to be left open Cons: - Not as secure as the garage - I'd have to go outside to access the gear (in the event of a bug in). - No temperture control. -since the shed is not attached to the house, it is considered "outside the curtlige" for LE search warrant purposes I've just added my $.02 . . . .

Um.... dont you have those backwards??

Ok. I was thinking from a bit different angle than that. A search warrant of the house would automatically allow searching the garage since its part of the house, whereas a seperate building would not, and would require a seperate warrant.

Sorry for the brief hijack Forest.

For Reference, the inside of my shed while I was cleaning it out yesterday.



It's built of 2x4s and CTX with pressure treated lumber & plywood for a floor.  It sits off the ground on paving stones.  It has vents near the top on each side, 2 loft space (currently used to house Christmas decorations and winter tools & toys).

I'm moving the gardening tools to a small 'tool cabinet' I'm locating under the deck.  I keep my Kerosene here, and my spare gasoline in the spring/summer/fall (in the winter it's kept in the garrage for ease of access).

Quoted: Depending in MD where you live, your needs may be very different then mine...  My plan is to BUG IN if at all possible and my supplies are secured so that if I am bunkered in that they are secure as a higher priority then bugging out.

I hear ya.  But most of these supplies are redundant to things I have in the house.  Sure some of them are 'better' but I can do just fine w/o them.

As for bugging out - I live very close to a set of train tracks that service the local industrial areas (and the port of Baltimore).  So I'm always concerned about rail accidents.  Not to mention I'm fairly close to several 'high priority' targets.

Then again, in that case, your trailer could be all packed up and parked in a secure garage or out building and you back the truck up to it and roll!

I wish!  That would be optimal.  however my trailer wouldn't fit in the shed, and storing it in the garrage is out as well .  So I'm trying to go for the 'quick load/minium of effort route.

I have a self storage unit where I keep some stuff but I do not keep my SHTF stuff there as it is a fences and gate locked unit and it is too close to home and in an emergency I am not sure I can get in there and hooking chains up to their gate and tearing it down is not likely going to help my situation in the crisis either.

I agree.

I've used such facilities in the past.  Getting in is really not a problem (I've been 'locked in' twice at the place I had used - both times I was able to 'hack' my way out of there with zero damage to the gate control equipment and in less time than using the keypad.  Self Storage facilities ARE NOT secure enough for me.

Guys - thanks for the discusson on warrents.  As I'm currently not storing firearms/ammo in the shed it's really not an issue.  But it is something I had not considered.  Many thanks for the information.

Quoted: Is there any way you could store the absolute minimum bug out gear in the garrage say in those large plastic storage tubs and then any extra in the shed.

Actually it started out that way; however, as the family can no longer fit in the small tent, It's no longer as easy to 'grab and go'.

One thing I have not pointed out is vehicles have 'BOB's in them (each BOB has a 3 day Mainstay ration bar in it along with clothes and other gear).

Thanks to one of Die-Trying's threads I am looking at re-doing the camp kitchen into a couple of smaller (easier to handle) boxes.  I won't get any break in storage size - just in ease of handling.

I appreciate everyone's feedback.  It's making me think and re-think ideas.

There are other things I could move from the garrage to the shed to free up space for a workbench.  Perhaps I've been looking in the wrong direction.  

Quoted: I did not notice any one suggest insulating the shed.

Not sure it's worth the effort w/o a heater.  What are your thoughts?

Quoted: What about an add on to the shed. Maybe another room on the side that you can see from the house. You could put your big bulky camping stuff in there and keep your food/water in the garage, as it has worked thus far.

What's the point of the 2nd room - why not just keep the gear in the shed?  

My dream setup would have the gear paletized so I could just drop it onto the trailer and go.  That would take an addition almost the size of the current shed though.