What Preps are you doing this week? Part 9

[Arzosah]

Not forgetting that my days will NOT be starting at 4.30 in the sodding morning!

Sorry....... Theres two 4.30's in a day???

Have a good non-holiday Jansman.... I hope they're biting

For me that IS a holiday!

Yeah ... no! Though I hope you enjoy it

[hanhan]

Hi all,

I'm thinking about potentially prepping with some kind of solar generator. I have a small solar power thing for charging up something small like a phone/tablet but that is all. There was recently a power cut in my area which lasted one and a half hours and luckily I had torches, batteries, candles matches etc so it wasn't too much of a problem. Also had a Coleman lamp which was new, but I hadn't checked it in advance and it didn't work. Very frustrating and I can't return it because it is too late. Anyway, this got me to thinking about potentially getting something more heavy duty and something that could charge bigger items, in case of a longer power cut, which is starting to look more likely at some point. Is it worth getting a solar powered generator in the UK? Is it realistically possible to charge up something of that size in winter/autumn based on us getting next to no sunlight some months of the year? Would something like this be of use in the UK?

[Kiwififer]

Hi everyone, first real post in a very long time and I am happy to receive feedback.

Plus I haven’t a scooby if this is the right place to put it!

I’m kind of new to all this so please be gentle. I’ve always considered the worst case scenario to just be a 72h storm and just thought about that. I bought a Robens Fairbanks (which I was told would be suitable), solar panel radio, three season sleeping bags etc and I am reviewing what I need to keep in the attic in case I need to scoot pronto. I am going thinking of beginning to get a few more items in the next wee bit, solar panel charger, upgrade the first aid kit etc. I might also go get a load of sugar and yeast but that’s more to do with my wine making…

[jansman]

Hi everyone, first real post in a very long time and I am happy to receive feedback.

Plus I haven’t a scooby if this is the right place to put it!

I’m kind of new to all this so please be gentle. I’ve always considered the worst case scenario to just be a 72h storm and just thought about that. I bought a Robens Fairbanks (which I was told would be suitable), solar panel radio, three season sleeping bags etc and I am reviewing what I need to keep in the attic in case I need to scoot pronto. I am going thinking of beginning to get a few more items in the next wee bit, solar panel charger, upgrade the first aid kit etc. I might also go get a load of sugar and yeast but that’s more to do with my wine making…

Have a look around the site, ask questions- always ask! We will always help where we can.

[Kiwififer]

Thanks!

A while back, I started to think about what I would do if things went the proverbial T’s up and I suppose I took it from there. I bought the tent which is meant to be a good one, thought about how I could survive if me and the missus had to get out of town for a bit and really took it from there. I did also have a plan to get out of Edinburgh, but I quickly realised every muppet with a camper van had the same plan during the first lockdown so I kind of shelved that (my mate lives in Aberfeldy which is a good clue).
Anyhoo, I suppose I am on here to just see what’s current, get a few reviews for the things I need to get and take it from there.

[Yorkshire Andy]

Thanks!

A while back, I started to think about what I would do if things went the proverbial T’s up and I suppose I took it from there. I bought the tent which is meant to be a good one, thought about how I could survive if me and the missus had to get out of town for a bit and really took it from there. I did also have a plan to get out of Edinburgh, but I quickly realised every muppet with a camper van had the same plan during the first lockdown so I kind of shelved that (my mate lives in Aberfeldy which is a good clue).
Anyhoo, I suppose I am on here to just see what’s current, get a few reviews for the things I need to get and take it from there.

My biggest issues in my mind at least is

Utility issues be it loss of leccy or gas due to shortages / weather / computer attack ....

Rising costs of living (see you like the home made mind rotter ). But > crime > costs. Then factor in if fuel keeps going up await fuel strikes / blockades / hauler strikes

Weather (keep a eye on the forecast over the next 2 weeks) a level geography means synoptic charts mean something to me but they are not infallible



Russia / Ukraine not much we can do about it ...



A tent as you have seen is a romantic ideology in summer to run to the mountains / hills but if you think you'd live off the land especially at this time of year let alone pitch a tent and it still be standing a week later with the Wether... I've seen campsites flattened in summer.... Shelter in place is usually a better option unless your flooded.. forge local relations be in neighbors / corner shop owner as if shtf a strong bunch of local connections can be a god send... Was out tonight helping a neighbor start his dead car he's a big chap like me with a trade to his name just not mechanics


What sort of kit are you looking for?

[Kiwififer]

My mate’s garage/shed was my go-to place!
The tent was I suppose just a back up.

I’m on the suburbs of Edinburgh and there isn’t really a shop around me. I feel I would actually need to get out of town and pronto if it was a short term thing and I tried to prepare for that more than anything else. If Vlad has a pop at us, I suppose I would just go into the back garden and crack open a special bottle of Macallan I have, as you correctly say, there ain’t a lot I can do about it.

I remember my time down under, my work had a massive black chest with emergency supplies and food in it and most Kiwis I knew had emergency supplies of some sort in case of an earthquake or White Island blew up. This piqued my interest, some dafty put up the Kiwi government’s report on what their plan was if swine and avian flu had mutated on my works Intranet system as well so it all stemmed from there.

[jansman]

Yorkshire Andy has similar priorities to me. I can’t change the big stuff like potential wars ,and I certainly won’t worry about it. However,the little things you CAN do ,can help when big problems arise.

Start with just a week’s worth of extra food,and build from there.If conflict in another country causes shortages,your supply will help

Store some water.You never know when there’s going to be a burst main in the street. When you can,get a water filter to clean rainwater if you have to in an emergency.

Get a camping stove and fuel for back up in case of mains gas and electricity going off.Make sure you have a way to light that stove too.

Get a couple of torches or camping lanterns- and plenty of batteries.Good to be able to see in the dark.

Get a battery powered portable radio so that you can keep abreast of emergency situations.And more batteries.

A basic first aid kit and some over the counter painkillers can be a real blessing when you get poorly or injured.

You probably have a lot of that in your home already ,and with that you are already streets ahead of most folks.

[Kiwififer]

Thanks guys.

I suppose I may as well put up my thoughts and ideas around stuff and any advice on how to improve it would be greatly appreciated. I took it from Maslow’s basic needs. Food warmth and shelter.

Cooking and warmth if outdoors would be covered by my chiminea. I’ve bought specialised pots you can cook with for it and I’ve had a few goes (food was a bit burnt but okay). I’ve got flints and such like and they work although fiddly to use.
I make home made fruit wine so there’s about 7 gallon of the stuff up in the attic at the moment, they could easily be converted into water storage. Plus I have 7 gallon of fortified wine…

I bought a decent tent, sleeping bags and all the stuff needed for it, mallets, hand axe etc. it should keep us going in the short term but only that. If we needed to stay away longer, I do have friends and relatives in the north of Scotland but I’m also not wanting to rely on that if I can.

I have a wind up radio which is good for MW and LW stations, we won’t need to catch The One Show for updates.

What I do need though is a better first aid kit and a portable power bank. Folk have given me pointers on that on my hello post, I’m off work next week so I will have a wee look around a few local shops to see what is available as I try not to give to Amazon when I can.

I’m also wondering what I could fling in the car from the house that would be handy. I’ve always thought it would be something really small or something overlooked that would screw things up so I have an excellent but small Swiss Army Knife on my car keys, it’s just scissors and a knife really but folk would be amazed at how handy it actually is.
I did go to my neighbour who’s a copper and asked if I would get into bother for carrying it, he replied ‘the only thing that’s dangerous to is cheese’….

[grenfell]

No wanting to be disparaging but quite a few of us on here aren't really of the "run to the woods" type which seems to be a focus of what you are planning. Not to say that base shouldn't be covered , most of us enjoy the outdoors , camping and the like but long term don't see it as a really viable solution. For most situations one is likely to encounter staying in the safety and comfort of a house is the best course of action and making that house resilient is more of a priority for most of us , a food stash , water , fuel and so on. For those occasions when evacuation is the option then probably heading to friends or a hotel or even a hostel set up by emergency services is probably going to be top of the list. A hotel bag is a good start. Clean clothes , cash , batteries and chargers , house and insurance documents and that sort of thing.
If you are thinking of small things to put in the car how about a camping stove , either gas , alcohol , meths or solid fuel. Some bottles of water and tea bags and such , a mess tin or even a small saucepan , a folding spade , blankets or a sleeping bag , torch , fire lighting gear.