Green as grass new member.

New Members - Introduce yourself, and say a few words
User avatar
Smudge
Posts: 277
Joined: Tue Apr 15, 2014 7:49 pm

Re: Green as grass new member.

Post by Smudge »

Welcome ;)
If at first you don't succeed, excessive force is usually the answer.
GillyBee
Posts: 1047
Joined: Tue Apr 07, 2020 6:46 am

Re: Green as grass new member.

Post by GillyBee »

Welcome.

Plenty of advice on here. Just take a good look around.

If you are buying in extra food & drink to hedge against supply problems, it is a good idea to set up a way of easily rotating the stock from the outset.
I have just spent the weekend going through my collection of tinned food and checking the best before dates then adding dot stickers accordingly. Now the entire famiy knows that anything with a red dot needs to be used up while yellow or green dots should be left untouched unless there is no alternative. (And DH does not need to put his glasses on to read the tin).
ForgeCorvus
Posts: 3035
Joined: Fri Feb 08, 2013 11:32 pm

Re: Green as grass new member.

Post by ForgeCorvus »

Hiya Mate
Welcome home :D

What can I add that others haven't already said?

Well, you're making lists and on here doing research so thats a tick.

Food and water, we have whole sections devoted to those.
All I'll say is, Don't stash stuff you don't eat.... Rice and Spam are great, but if you don't like rice and are Veggie you're going to get hungry.

Don't plan on the "Run to the Hills" type Bug Out, a few days in a tent sounds great until its mid-winter and slashing it down.

Try and build up a stock of essential medication (not easy I know) and a wad of cash. Banks can be closed and your Plastic may not work but it would have to be an extreme Event for people to stop accepting cash
jennyjj01 wrote:"I'm not in the least bit worried because I'm prepared: Are you?"
Londonpreppy wrote: At its core all prepping is, is making sure you're not down to your last sheet of loo roll when you really need a poo.
"All Things Strive" Gd Tak 'Gar
Rusty74
Posts: 284
Joined: Sat Apr 07, 2018 9:35 pm
Location: hidden away in the welsh hills...

Re: Green as grass new member.

Post by Rusty74 »

welcome sammy,there's some great folks here with a vast amount of knowledge,don't be afraid to ask
Remember the rule of the 7 P's, proper planning and prepperation prevents piss poor performance...
bobble
Posts: 168
Joined: Tue Aug 02, 2016 8:57 pm
Location: merseyside

Re: Green as grass new member.

Post by bobble »

Hiya Sammy! Welcome!😃
Jerseyspud
Posts: 397
Joined: Fri Feb 12, 2021 5:16 pm

Re: Green as grass new member.

Post by Jerseyspud »

Hi and welcome :tinfoil
when it comes to catastrophic events, we never know when the day before is the day before. So we prepare for tomorrow

Prepping on a small island
Sammy
Posts: 1
Joined: Mon Apr 04, 2022 8:15 am

Re: Green as grass new member.

Post by Sammy »

Thank you all so much for the warm welcome. I have spent the last week or so writing lists, scoring stuff off we don't like and adding other stuff we do like, and finally got our definitive "emergency" list of food that we all can tolerate, if not enjoy, during harsh times. I purchased a 2 ring camping stove and extra bottles of gas (we now can at least have a cuppa and a mug of soup when the S.H.T.F.). I have also purchased half a dozen large plastic storage boxes with clip-on lids for the storage of supplies, and emptied the kitchen lobby cupboard, which is the largest cupboard space I have and is cooler and darker than anywhere else in the house, to store the supplies. I am aiming for a 3 month supply of food, water and enough gas to cook/boil it should the power go off for any length of time. The good lady is working on the list and is bringing in a few extra things every time she goes shopping and I have a list taped to the top of the box with what is in it and the best before dates. It is amazing how quickly they start to add up( not "amazing" to you good folks obviously :) ) and I would say we have about a weeks supply stored away already for the 6 of us. I am now working towards an essential equipment list, sleeping bags, candles, batteries, first aid box etc (I had been a first aider for 20 years, would think I would have had the brains to pinch all that stuff from my last work place...doh!). I hear read about short wave radios, is it a good idea to have one? Sorry if that's been answered elsewhere on the site but I haven't had the time to really explore here yet. Anyhoo, thank you once again for the fine welcome. :)
Arzosah
Posts: 6323
Joined: Fri Jun 22, 2012 4:20 pm

Re: Green as grass new member.

Post by Arzosah »

That's a great re-organisation, Sammy, well done you and your wife. Difficult to store enough for 6 for 3 months, so it does need something as complete as what you're doing. Well done you!

I'm not a radio person (yet) so I can't answer that, but someone should be along soon.
jennyjj01
Posts: 3429
Joined: Sun Jun 04, 2017 11:09 pm

Re: Green as grass new member.

Post by jennyjj01 »

Sammy wrote: Mon Apr 11, 2022 2:56 am I have spent the last week or so writing lists, scoring stuff off we don't like and adding other stuff we do like, and finally got our definitive "emergency" list of food that we all can tolerate, if not enjoy, during harsh times....
The good lady is working on the list and is bringing in a few extra things every time she goes shopping and I have a list taped to the top of the box with what is in it and the best before dates. It is amazing how quickly they start to add up( not "amazing" to you good folks obviously :) ) and I would say we have about a weeks supply stored away already for the 6 of us.
.

Whoooohoo. You seem to have hit the ground running. Well done. Stashing for six is a big ask. :shock:
I'd tend away from candles and towards some sort of solar or rechargeable solution. Keep reviewing the reality of your food stockpile. Rotate it into your regular diet. Stick with decent quality stuff you know, rather than mountains of everyday value scoff. If TSHTF, you'll want some familiar comfort food. But that doesn't stop you shopping around. Maybe measure your core food stuff in Total Calories or portions, aiming for 2000 calories per day per person and X teabags and Y bottles of beer per day ;) for survival. Where reserves will need to be compromises, such as powdered milk or tinned fish/meat, get used to using those compromises, sooner rather than later. Camping gas bottles are expensive and maybe only good for a few days of frequent use, so consider some sort of rocket stove. Can be as simple as a few breezeblocks or a £10 wood stove off ebay.

Have you considered Utilities outages? I bet you have. ;)
Medications?

I don't know about 'short wave' radio, but certainly get an analogue radio rather than, or as well as, a DAB digital, as they are less battery hungry and lower tech. A Baofeng walkie talkie gives you a reasonable receiver with the perk of long term short range comms. ( subject to license pre SHTF :) )
Graceful Degradation! Prepping's objective summed up in two words. Turning Disaster into Mild Inconvenience by the power of fore-thought

Not Feeling Optimistic. Let me be wrong
Frnc
Posts: 3182
Joined: Sat Mar 12, 2022 1:54 pm

Re: Green as grass new member.

Post by Frnc »

Sammy wrote: Mon Apr 11, 2022 2:56 am Thank you all so much for the warm welcome. I have spent the last week or so writing lists, scoring stuff off we don't like and adding other stuff we do like, and finally got our definitive "emergency" list of food that we all can tolerate, if not enjoy, during harsh times. I purchased a 2 ring camping stove and extra bottles of gas (we now can at least have a cuppa and a mug of soup when the S.H.T.F.). I have also purchased half a dozen large plastic storage boxes with clip-on lids for the storage of supplies, and emptied the kitchen lobby cupboard, which is the largest cupboard space I have and is cooler and darker than anywhere else in the house, to store the supplies. I am aiming for a 3 month supply of food, water and enough gas to cook/boil it should the power go off for any length of time. The good lady is working on the list and is bringing in a few extra things every time she goes shopping and I have a list taped to the top of the box with what is in it and the best before dates. It is amazing how quickly they start to add up( not "amazing" to you good folks obviously :) ) and I would say we have about a weeks supply stored away already for the 6 of us. I am now working towards an essential equipment list, sleeping bags, candles, batteries, first aid box etc (I had been a first aider for 20 years, would think I would have had the brains to pinch all that stuff from my last work place...doh!). I hear read about short wave radios, is it a good idea to have one? Sorry if that's been answered elsewhere on the site but I haven't had the time to really explore here yet. Anyhoo, thank you once again for the fine welcome. :)
Hi, I don't know about short wave. I got a wind-up radio that also has a solar panel and it can charge a phone and has a torch. It's just got FM and AM. Cost about £30. There are a few similar ones and the same but with different names.
Regarding emergency cooking, you might consider a mini wood stove. There are a couple of types. On folds flat and you just feed it with bits of wood. The other has a hollow wall and is supposed to burn hotter and create less smoke. This latter type can be expensive but there's one for £25 called "TOMSHOO Camping Stove/Backpacking Stove Portable Folding Windproof Wood Burning Stove Compact Stainless Steel Alcohol Stove Outdoor Camping Hiking Backpacking Picnic BBQ " I'm surprised they missed out "Unisex".
Which reminds me, Trangia is another option, these burn meths.
Of course gas is the quickest and easiest.