Emergency preparedness.

[Crazy]

True, but my plan is to have at least a 30 day supply. That's not hard to do with dry and canned goods...

I would have to agree. A one month supply would be nice to have on hand. The problem that I have is that during the winter half of the year my supplies would freeze in my bus. I always have at least 72 hours worth of supplies on hand for both of us, including bottled water, but more than that would take too long to move from the house to the bus if we had to evacuate in a hurry.

Then go with dry goods. Buy in bulk and split up into mylar bags with an O2 absorber. Rice, beans, lentils, etc. Maybe store them in coolers to minimize the temp swings. I guess you could bring the water when you leave the house.

 

[Crazy]

72 HOURS? I WAS THINKIN AT LEAST 72 BEERS!keep some cash around also,keep that bus fueled up,batterys charged,good time to have solar for sure,have to keep in mind that the next evac may be guberment related...

Word!

 

[jkindt]

72 HOURS? I WAS THINKIN AT LEAST 72 BEERS!keep some cash around also,keep that bus fueled up,batterys charged,good time to have solar for sure,have to keep in mind that the next evac may be guberment related...

Yeah, I try to keep the bus completely fueled up (its propane so it won't go bad like gasoline could), and my batteries are always charged because I keep it plugged in when its parked at home and my converter takes care of that (storage mode). Solar would be nice...maybe in the future when I get some more $$ to work with. We each have a 60 day supply of dry food in a bucket, and I try to keep at least four 5 gallon bottles of water on hand along with a few cases of bottled water. My wife is all about being prepared. 8) I also try to keep at least 2 or 3 propane tanks (20 lb) filled and ready to go along with our generator. Just in case...

 

[M1031]

72 HOURS? I WAS THINKIN AT LEAST 72 BEERS!keep some cash around also,keep that bus fueled up,batterys charged,good time to have solar for sure,have to keep in mind that the next evac may be guberment related...

Will 72 beers LAST 72 hours?!?!?!?!?

 

[Crazy]

What do you need all that stuff for? You're giving a similar example-scenario as I did....but mine didn't fit the intent of this post? How about if you lose your job, and then your home. You're destitute, have nothing, and no where to go....could you provide food, water, and shelter for yourself? You mentioned "economic" disasters yourself.....

Smitty

Smitty, I don't know why you're getting upset. I didn't say what you said didn't fit the intent of this post. What you're speaking of could and does fill a forum 100 times the size of skoolie.net. My intent was to get people in the mindset of getting prepped for emergencies, not for every possible thing that could happen. Basically, I'm talking about setting up the bus as a Bug Out Vehicle.

Now you don't think listing ice cream, cheez-whiz, crackers and candles is poking fun? Like that is really going to solve the problem. I don't disagree with what you have proposed, but you know that could easily consume this site. I know you've heard the term sheeple and not everyone thinks there could be problems on the horizon. My intention was to plant the seed and open peoples eyes.

I started this thread 2 1/2 years ago and there was a total of 7 replies 2 1/2 years ago. It wasn't exactly a hot topic. I thought I would bring it up again but I'm not looking for a battle over it. If I want info and knowledge about prepping and survival, I go elsewhere. The same goes for needlepoint. If you want to teach everything you mentioned, go right ahead. I'm not going to stop you.

 

[jkindt]

Thinking about it, I was under the impression that water couldn't be stored where it could freeze. Why not? Because the container would break due to expansion? If that is it then just don't fill the containers as full, or use plastic jugs and compress them a little when you put the lid on, then when the water expands it wont burst the container. 8)

 

[Crazy]

So what do you do with the cheez-whiz Smitty? :shock:

 

[M1031]

Were you aware it contains neither cheez nor whiz?

I disagree. Last time I tasted it, it reminded me a lot of whiz. And that was years ago - I'd hate to think what they use for "filler" these days.. :shock:

If it contained whiz it sure would be difficult to lite! :shock:

 

[jkindt]

Cheeze whiz candles eh? Well, Smitty, you do have a good point. A 72 hour emergency preparedness kit really is just packing for a long weekend camping trip. Of course, we usually take fresh food with us and have time to plan for the camping trip where by the time you evacuate for an emergency, the planning stage is past. 72 hours worth of non-perishable food is easy, as is water, fuel, and other necessities. Heck, I usually have 72 hours worth of propane stored in cylinders just for my generator! When we start talking about 30 days, things get a lot more complicated. But like I said, the most common emergency preparedness plan is targeted at 72 hours. As for the EOTWAWKI discussions, do you really want to survive something like that anyways? Fighting for your life day in and day out? Killing your neighbors just to save your own ass? If you did survive, how long until you go insane? Too many variables to try to fully prepare for the EOTWAWKI. 8)

 

[bus-ted]

I'll throw out... a supply of good quality (bic or better) lighters. As a plus, if the **** REALLY hits the fan, most people won't kill you for your bic- heehaw-, like they might for your bus, food, ammo, etc.... (no, I don't work for the Bic Corp.).

 

[kotflb]

Food and water is fairly easy to store for evacuations. My main concern is how to stay warm in the winter. How much propane do I need to store to keep from freezing to death in the winter? How much fuel to carry on board to get myself to southern Arizona, in the event there is no gas or diesel to be bought. Getting my family to a destination away from a harsh winter area is my main concern. Our buses will give us good shelter, but I don't want to be stuck somewhere where I have to burn 30 lbs of propane a day to keep from freezing. Your thoughts....

 

[Crazy]

Food and water is fairly easy to store for evacuations. My main concern is how to stay warm in the winter. How much propane do I need to store to keep from freezing to death in the winter? How much fuel to carry on board to get myself to southern Arizona, in the event there is no gas or diesel to be bought. Getting my family to a destination away from a harsh winter area is my main concern. Our buses will give us good shelter, but I don't want to be stuck somewhere where I have to burn 30 lbs of propane a day to keep from freezing. Your thoughts....

If things get to the point of no gas or diesel is available, the last place I would be heading is the US/Mexican border. I can't imagine that would be the safest place to hang out.

 

[M1031]

If things get to the point of no gas or diesel is available, the last place I would be heading is the US/Mexican border. I can't imagine that would be the safest place to hang out.

It depends upon who you're hanging out with and how well prepared they are........ I have my "plan B" ready approximately 60 to 70 miles from the border.

 

[jkindt]

...The more you can provide for yourself, the less you need to haul-around or cram into any limited space you may have...

And this is why we should have paid attention to what our ancesters were trying to teach us!!! Every generation seems to lose more of the self-reliance that the older generations were quite capable of. Electricity, gasoline, propane, etc. are all 'new' inventions. People lived a LONG time before such luxuries came to be. History can teach us how to survive IF we actually take the time to learn. 8)

 

[Sojakai]

If you have a wood stove in your skoolie, you only need an axe to harvest fuel. If you have solar panels on your bus, you can power a single burner electric stove for cooking or heating a single small room (a "stovetop" fan is handy for heating a room)...if your not using the wood stove already to heat the entire bus. Keep several coolers ready and dump the contents of your fridge into them when the twinkie hits the fan. Don't forget that you have all those cans and boxes in the cupboards to grab also. MRE's are tasty for about 10 or so years, then they dont taste as good but are just as nutritional as the day they were packaged... Stay away from the Meatballs in Sauce, it gains a "sticky oily" flavor/texture. (I speak from experience.)

You dont have to plan for Every disaster, Just plan for most of them. The stuff you have to carry will work for just about 95% of the problems you will run into, the last 5% cant be accounted for, or will cost a lot to get a "Uni-Tasker" for a single purpose. A saw is good, but a rope-saw is better and takes alot less space, plus you can get several for $10 and store in the same amount of space as 4-6 condoms. Just be sure which you grab in the dark. Get a Dynamo Flashlight that has a chargeport on it. If you really have too, you can power small electronics like a cellphone or radio from it. Or even charge the battery of a larger rechargeable lamp. LED lights are going to be great to have around for making your batteries and fuel last longer between engine/gen chargings.

Oh yeah, and in the case of sudden emergencies... If the roads are Fuc.....So are you! Cause you aren't going anywhere... Alot of people aren't bright enough to stay put when something happens and they try to flee causing all sorts of chaos added onto whatever damage was caused by the disaster. Unless you have 4wheel drive, your pretty much stuck to flat roads and behind the "rats" trying to get out.

 

[spirit_of_76]

A good mountain bike (think good quality used, not dept. store junk) is excellent no fuel short range transportation with cargo capacity,and after a local flood some years ago that took out most of the bridges in one area, and washed out roads,I was still mobile. suspension is good on the front, but on the rear limits use of a rack/panniers to carry stuff as well as being less expensive.

 

[Abbott-SKO]