I think I'm paranoid...

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Entilzha
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri Jul 29, 2022 6:30 pm

I think I'm paranoid...

Post by Entilzha »

... actually I just fancy Shirley Manson from Garbage

When we had our first kid in 2014 I soon found myself wondering what I could do to safeguard our family.

We don't have room for large stashes, crops, livestock etc, and my best defense against home invaders is what I learned playing Street Fighter in the eighties.

But I am working on the basics. water, some food, simple survival kit, reserve power stc.

Currently working on reducing our reliance on the grid., so cooking outdoors a lot and looking at solar + batteries.

We're not hermits and will remain grid tied for now, but I want a plan in place if that's no longer an option
pseudonym
Posts: 4551
Joined: Wed Jul 27, 2011 10:11 am
Location: East Midlands

Re: I think I'm paranoid...

Post by pseudonym »

Hello and welcome to the Forum. :D
Two is one and one is none, but three is even better.
Vitamin c
Posts: 1070
Joined: Mon Sep 21, 2020 1:16 pm

Re: I think I'm paranoid...

Post by Vitamin c »

Good intro .

Welcome.
Fill er up jacko...
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korolev
Posts: 606
Joined: Thu Jul 06, 2017 2:18 am
Location: Land of the South Saxons

Re: I think I'm paranoid...

Post by korolev »

Welcome
V2.0 is one of my favourite albums
jennyjj01
Posts: 3430
Joined: Sun Jun 04, 2017 11:09 pm

Re: I think I'm paranoid...

Post by jennyjj01 »

Entilzha wrote: Sun Jul 31, 2022 11:19 pm But I am working on the basics. water, some food, simple survival kit, reserve power stc.

Currently working on reducing our reliance on the grid., so cooking outdoors a lot and looking at solar + batteries.

We're not hermits and will remain grid tied for now, but I want a plan in place if that's no longer an option
Hi and Welcome.
Storing Water is an especially space hungry stash. So maybe work on the assumption that there's usually impure water available and stash a few life straws and purifying tablets.... As well as a few big bottles.
If you are already cooking outdoors, you'll be getting good skills and probably figure fuel efficient tricks. Did you try a rocket stove yet? Recommended.
When you figure off grid solar, please share your solution. Are you going for a big system? Let us know how it gets configured to be off grid as well as grid tied. A few have said it's possible to get full resiance, but it's a confusing topic, so if you do it, you'll be the expert :geek: .
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: 3183
Joined: Sat Mar 12, 2022 1:54 pm

Re: I think I'm paranoid...

Post by Frnc »

Hi, welcome
One idea for water storage is several 5 litre containers under a bed. Also 10 litre or 25 litre containers at the foot of a bed.
10 litre containers will fit on the bottom of some shelving units. I have an old shelving unit in my bedroom with 10 l water containers on the bottom, plus a lot of other prep gear and food on the shelves. It's only a cheap thing but it's strong and the shelves are quite far apart, with the bottom one only just off the ground. The top one is piled high so my gear reaches over 2 metres in total height. I have 3 large plastic bins one one shelf full of stuff like stoves, with stuff on top of their lids like gaffa tape.
This is a narrow bedroom with a corner removed so it's an L shape. The bed runs along the short direction in front of the chimney, and I have to climb over it to get to the far side as the gap at the foot is full of stuff (water, duvet, fire escape ladder, tv above).
Another good space for long term stuff is a corner unit in a kitchen where there's a load of space to the side that's hard to reach. I put food there that's got 2 years shelf life.
jennyjj01
Posts: 3430
Joined: Sun Jun 04, 2017 11:09 pm

Re: I think I'm paranoid...

Post by jennyjj01 »

Frnc wrote: Thu Aug 04, 2022 9:29 am Hi, welcome
One idea for water storage is several 5 litre containers under a bed. Also 10 litre or 25 litre containers at the foot of a bed.
10 litre containers will fit on the bottom of some shelving units. I have an old shelving unit in my bedroom with 10 l water containers on the bottom, plus a lot of other prep gear and food on the shelves. It's only a cheap thing but it's strong and the shelves are quite far apart, with the bottom one only just off the ground. The top one is piled high so my gear reaches over 2 metres in total height. I have 3 large plastic bins one one shelf full of stuff like stoves, with stuff on top of their lids like gaffa tape.
This is a narrow bedroom with a corner removed so it's an L shape. The bed runs along the short direction in front of the chimney, and I have to climb over it to get to the far side as the gap at the foot is full of stuff (water, duvet, fire escape ladder, tv above).
Another good space for long term stuff is a corner unit in a kitchen where there's a load of space to the side that's hard to reach. I put food there that's got 2 years shelf life.
One day I'll post a photo of my 'void' :) The staircase twists and behind an understair cupboard, there's a Jenny sized hole in the plasterboard that leads to approx 0.7m^3 of under the stairs. It used to be where my tins went, but access made stock rotation impossible, Now home to a LOT of 2L and 5L bottles of water, never to be rotated.
I will caution that water is heavy, It can bow or break shelves sooner than you might expect. Been there, done that.
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: 3183
Joined: Sat Mar 12, 2022 1:54 pm

Re: I think I'm paranoid...

Post by Frnc »

jennyjj01 wrote: Thu Aug 04, 2022 12:05 pm
Frnc wrote: Thu Aug 04, 2022 9:29 am Hi, welcome
One idea for water storage is several 5 litre containers under a bed. Also 10 litre or 25 litre containers at the foot of a bed.
10 litre containers will fit on the bottom of some shelving units. I have an old shelving unit in my bedroom with 10 l water containers on the bottom, plus a lot of other prep gear and food on the shelves. It's only a cheap thing but it's strong and the shelves are quite far apart, with the bottom one only just off the ground. The top one is piled high so my gear reaches over 2 metres in total height. I have 3 large plastic bins one one shelf full of stuff like stoves, with stuff on top of their lids like gaffa tape.
This is a narrow bedroom with a corner removed so it's an L shape. The bed runs along the short direction in front of the chimney, and I have to climb over it to get to the far side as the gap at the foot is full of stuff (water, duvet, fire escape ladder, tv above).
Another good space for long term stuff is a corner unit in a kitchen where there's a load of space to the side that's hard to reach. I put food there that's got 2 years shelf life.
One day I'll post a photo of my 'void' :) The staircase twists and behind an understair cupboard, there's a Jenny sized hole in the plasterboard that leads to approx 0.7m^3 of under the stairs. It used to be where my tins went, but access made stock rotation impossible, Now home to a LOT of 2L and 5L bottles of water, never to be rotated.
I will caution that water is heavy, It can bow or break shelves sooner than you might expect. Been there, done that.
10 l on the end of a shelf is working ok. You do need to change water at least once a year.
jennyjj01
Posts: 3430
Joined: Sun Jun 04, 2017 11:09 pm

Re: I think I'm paranoid...

Post by jennyjj01 »

Frnc wrote: Thu Aug 04, 2022 12:44 pm
10 l on the end of a shelf is working ok. You do need to change water at least once a year.
I disagree on the shelf life. Some say refill the bottles with fresh tap water every year or so. But I feel happier having shop bought sealed spring water stored in the dark indefinitely. Tap water, I'd be wary of microorganisms and algi. Worst case scenario a bit of plasticky taste with the sealed bottles. Those plastic bottles are very stable.
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: 3183
Joined: Sat Mar 12, 2022 1:54 pm

Re: I think I'm paranoid...

Post by Frnc »

jennyjj01 wrote: Thu Aug 04, 2022 2:16 pm
Frnc wrote: Thu Aug 04, 2022 12:44 pm
10 l on the end of a shelf is working ok. You do need to change water at least once a year.
I disagree on the shelf life. Some say refill the bottles with fresh tap water every year or so. But I feel happier having shop bought sealed spring water stored in the dark indefinitely. Tap water, I'd be wary of microorganisms and algi. Worst case scenario a bit of plasticky taste with the sealed bottles. Those plastic bottles are very stable.
I wash my containers first with soapy water, thoroughly rinse, then steralise. UK tap water is, or was, highly regulated. I've seen claims that it was regulated stricter than bottled water. But it was regulated by an EU directive. Not sure how that will change. Something to keep an eye on actually.