What Preps are you doing this week? Part 9

[Kiwififer]

Just noticed my driving license and passport have just expired so I will be sorting that tomorrow.

I still need to get to a vape shop to get a charger for the battery in my torch (they are the same one that are used in vapes).

I also need to contact my folks down in Australia to get an updated accommodation list from them as they travel about being silver hippies. You know, just in case I need to visit them soon….

[ukpreppergrrl]

Returned to uk-preppers after a long time absence

Finally got a week off work all to myself so going to rotate my long term storage stores, they are woefully un-rotated I believe most the tins officially expired in 2019, not that I let a little thing like that bother me! There may even be some chocolate in there so I will continue my "just how long can you store chocolate and it still be ok" experiments that unfortunately have never got past a couple of years owing to my lack of self control.

I've been playing with...erm...researching alcohol stoves over the last year as an alternative to bottled gas stoves. This is largely in an effort to move away from fossil fuels - given the government's policy on banning new gas boilers in 7 years time, I'm guessing that there is highly likely to be a sharp rise in the price of gas products to "encourage" us all to move to to sustainable fuels. Regardless of artificial price rises, the price of bottled gas has risen majorly anyway and in the current situation that price is not going to come down any time soon. I've just taken receipt of my new toy...erm...important life saving prepping device. An Origo 300 single burner lookey-likey alcohol stove. Dometic/Origo no longer produce them and their second-hand value has sky rocketed, but there seems to be a company in Germany making (well..they're made in China but this company sells them) absolutely identical "spirituskocher" stoves just minus the Dometic/Origo logo. They are big in the boating world who would rather not have propane owing to living in a big bucket (Propane is heavier than air and so if it leaks it sinks to the bottom of the boat where it sits. Until a spark hits it. Then it rather rapidly expands and deconstructs said big bucket). They are a full sized stove top, with an easily controllable flame for simmering. Origo also used to make a double burner, the 1500, and the 600 which is a double burner with an oven underneath! The German company also sells the double burner, but doesn't seem to sell a replica 600, so I'm going to play with my Coleman stovetop oven on the single burner for baking. Though I do have a hankering for an Omnia. I do seem to like me those Swedish products! Bioethanol is now easily and cheaply available owing to the current penchant for people to want to have a "real fire" in their living room but don't want the mess of a wood burner. This stuff, unlike good old methylated spirits, isn't a vibrant purple and doesn't smell nasty, so is ideal for cooking on.

[Le Mouse]

I did a big Aldi shop yesterday, mainly meat, flour and some tins. The meat will make its way from the fridge into the freezer in portions later today. I want to buy a big 16kg sack of flour from the local bakery, but I have to wait till after this dratted property inspection before I do that, so two bags of Aldi bread flour will have to tide me over till then. I noticed there were sizeable gaps on the shelves - loo roll and boxes of tissues, pasta and suchlike.

Before the inspection, I shall have to squirrel away some of my food stores from my larder in case the letting agent checks the meter in there and he thinks I'm a bit weird on the food storage front...

I've been looking at my finances again and working out where I can cut back. I suspect it'll be the heating when I am working from home I've already turned it down, but I think it will have to go down more and I will have to sit under blankets. Oh well, hopefully it will be properly spring soon!

[jennyjj01]

[Nurseandy]

Re. Diesel degredation - I've happily used one year old diesel in a modern car without issue. I store it in 10 litre plastic containers in an unheated shed.
I tend to mix it 50/50 with fresh stuff out of the pump so don't know about running your car exclusively on old diesel.

[British Red]

Returned to uk-preppers after a long time absence



I've just taken receipt of my new toy...erm...important life saving prepping device. An Origo 300 single burner lookey-likey alcohol stove. Dometic/Origo no longer produce them and their second-hand value has sky rocketed, but there seems to be a company in Germany making (well..they're made in China but this company sells them) absolutely identical "spirituskocher" stoves just minus the Dometic/Origo logo. They are big in the boating world who would rather not have propane owing to living in a big bucket (Propane is heavier than air and so if it leaks it sinks to the bottom of the boat where it sits. Until a spark hits it. Then it rather rapidly expands and deconstructs said big bucket). They are a full sized stove top, with an easily controllable flame for simmering. Origo also used to make a double burner, the 1500, and the 600 which is a double burner with an oven underneath! The German company also sells the double burner, but doesn't seem to sell a replica 600, so I'm going to play with my Coleman stovetop oven on the single burner for baking.

That sounds really interesting - do you have a link?

[ukpreppergrrl]

That sounds really interesting - do you have a link?

This is the place that sells the lookey-likey spirit stove: https://www.compass24.com/comfort/pantr ... l-pan-1500

I've got the numbers wrong. The single is the 1500, the double is the 3000 so the one with the oven must have been 6000. Googling Origo or Dometic Origo alcohol stove will bring up lots of stuff. And the second hand ones at eye-watering prices! Origo also used to make a "Heat Pal" or Origo 5100 which is based on the same canister that you put the alcohol in and the same simmer plate, but it had a spreader ring and a big perforated bucket on the top to radiate the heat. They only appear to have stopped making them about 18 months ago, just as I discovered them!!

[jansman]

Preps this week have been around medical and topping up some stocks.
A basic oximeter in case covid comes to call again.
A wrist blood pressure meter
An in ear digital thermometer and covers
Some more plasters.
Sorting out the OTC medicine drawer - moving the ibuprofen into a child safe tub from the foil wrap as it was taking up all the space.

We eat a lot of sunflower seeds and sunflower nut butter here so have just placed an order for 25Kg from GrapeTree. 2/3 of the world supply comes from Russia and Ukraine so i can see this helping us adjust to the idea that sunflower seed and oils may soon be unobtainium. Will top up our vegetable oil stocks as well. We dont use so much sunflower oil but if stocks of that are tight, everyone will switch to other options, making all of them hard to get.

I think I need to buy another big bag of buckwheat flour as this is another thing likely to be impacted and we use a lot of it since we cant eat wheat.

Watch out for pulse oximeters on amazon. there are some at a couple of quid that are absolutely rubbish.
Yes. Sunflower Oil is a significant Ukrainian export, so expect prices to climb.

Just use another oil.

[British Red]

This is the place that sells the lookey-likey spirit stove: https://www.compass24.com/comfort/pantr ... l-pan-1500

Interesting reading - thank you

[grenfell]

Poses a question. Diesel by us is currently around £1.54 a litre with petrol slightly lower. I have a quantity of diesel stored that was purchased when it was around £1.25-30 ( seems a distant memory but not that long ago really) . As you mention there are estimates that it could hit £2 a litre.
Now the question is "when should I start using my stocks?" Do I use it now and save almost 30p a litre or do I wait longer and potentially save 50-80p and possibly last a bit longer if there are shortages or rationing?

Hi Grenfell,
The way I look at it, a litre of diesel is worth a litre of diesel in diesel. And a tin of beans is worth a tin of beans whether we bought it for 20p or £1. And do we stock it as a long term prep? If we use a jerry can from our reserves because the price is high now, then unless the price drops, we will be replacing it at the higher price anyway, or we will be sat with a gap in our reserves. So, apart from degradation with time, might as well just fill the vehicle at the pumps at the best price we can find today.

Does anyone know if diesel degrades the same way petrol does? I might need to consider rotating mine. It's a heavy messy job with jerry cans

Touches on a subject I may have mentioned on here or if not certainly somewhere else. The difference between price , value and worth , terms often used interchangeably and I feel wrongly by many people. Worth and value are , I feel , more closer in meaning and I agree with your summing up of the worth of a litre of diesel or a tin of beans. It's the work it can do or the calories they provide and that really remains the same. It's only the price that changes. Money is probably the only thing that can change in value in that £1 a while ago would buy that litre of diesel but now it's over one and a half of that same pound and it may become a point where we need two pounds to buy that same unchanged value or worth of diesel. So the question is more when we swap pounds for goods not that I really feel there's a right or wrong answer.
To answer your question about the diesel I've used diesel stored for over a year , not mixed with any new , without problems.
On the subject of diesels and perhaps this should be in the transport section but I have been reading on the tinterweb about the practice of putting 2 stroke oil in the diesel. Apparently it seems to be beneficial to older vehicles , providing more lubrication to pumps and injectors , and some say the mpg figures are better , less emissions and a quieter engine. Tempted to give it a try . Anyone else tried it?