Prudent Prepping: Revisiting Locations

The dust has settled and the First 72 Hours have passed. Now we concentrate  on what to do in, and how to plan for, the long term via Prudent Prepping.

Revisiting Locations:

Because Sometimes,

 Water Stops Flowing

California is in its third year of lower-than-expected snowpack and rain totals. Please notice I did not say 'lower than normal', as California has been in what seems to be a historically wetter than normal cycle for the last 50 years. One of the first non-Spanish settlers in this area was John Marsh, who reported on the weather around 1850 as being 'so dry that many of the cattle have died of thirst' when the springs dried up.

Discounting the Coastal Range and the Sierra Nevada mountains, California is mostly semi-arid land only reclaimed through amazing irrigation improvements, innovations and modern dams. Speaking of dams, there has not been a dam built in this state since the 1970s, yet the population and need for water have both steadily grown. This brings me to reviewing some information about knowing your surroundings that I first posted last year.

The important part to review is water supply. There is an old saying (which over-simplifies things) that goes like this:

You can live for 3 minutes without air, 3 days without water, and 3 weeks without food.

Since running out of air is not likely, the second part of the quote is what needs to be a priority for me now. From last year:

"If you don't know the land in the area you live in now, look for a Forest Service map, Regional Parks or USGS topographical map. With a good map and Google Earth, the obvious lakes, ponds, streams and pools are fairly easy to plot. But there's one thing left to do - you still need to verify if there is public access to these waterways, or if stealthy means need to be used. Natural sources need to be checked for year-round reliability and the only way to do that is use your Mk. One, Mod. One eyeball.

I was able to find the spring that fed the creek that used to flow through this neighborhood by following the concrete channel to the local park and then looking for the storm drain that catches the flow. I'm about half a mile from a reliable year-round source of water, not counting swimming pools. With what I mapped in my old area, I've got 2 springs, 3 creeks, and several ponds and reservoirs within 5 miles."

Last weekend I went to re-survey the springs and related ponds in my area, and I was not happy with what I found:

• Flows that should have been steady and pretty fast were about what I saw last year in the middle of summer. 
• One spring that feeds "Concealed Lake" is way under the flow I'd seen in past years. This is a source of water in my Worst Case plans, even with it being on the fringe of my supply area. 
• There are still 3 more spots much closer that need to be revisited, but with all of them on well-posted property, a bit more care needs to be taken to get in and out safely. 
• As all of these sites back up to state or regional park land, there is 'plausible deniability' as to being a lost hiker looking to get off the hills and to town. The bad thing is, this can only be done once.

So wherever you are:

1. Confirm your water sources for year round supply.
2. Have a backup plan if something fails.
3. Don't forget to have a plan in the first place!

As always, if you have comments, suggestions or corrections, please post them so we all can learn. And remember, Some Is Always Better Than None!

NOTE: All items tested were purchased by me. No products have been loaned in exchange for a favorable review. Any items sent to me for T&E will be listed as such. Suck it Feds.

The First 72 Hours And Beyond

A continuing series on prepping for a disaster, with an emphasis on how and where to start while on a Blue Collar budget.

72 Hours and Beyond 

I am now starting the next step in my disaster survival plan: expanding from 3 days to 2 weeks of stored supplies.

Here is my target list and quantity of normal pantry items to buy, in addition to what I've squirreled away: 

Future Purchases

• 10 lbs brown rice
• 10 lbs dried beans and lentils
• 5 lbs pasta
• 5 large cans of pasta sauce
• 10 lbs of Bisquick or similar
• 12 cans of tuna*
• 12 cans of chicken*
• 12 cans of Spam* or similar
• 8 cans of fruit*
• 2 lbs of  steel-cut oatmeal or other cereal
• 4 large jars of peanut butter
• 4 jars of jam
• 10 boxes of crackers, assorted
• 5 lbs of dried fruit, mix and match
• 100 count Vitamin C
• 32 oz oil
• Small jars of your favorite spices, at least 1-2 oz size
• 2 2 lb boxes of powdered milk
• 4 lbs powdered eggs
• 5 lbs of your favorite candy

*Canned goods are available in low sodium and low sugar, to match your groups health concerns.

Continuing Items

I've no luck in finding used food-grade storage pails, so buying several is on this month's list. I will also be going back to REI to attempt to score a good day pack this weekend, with a REI-cap (Erin!) in Wednesday's post.

Purchased last week

• 5 lb plastic jar of honey, Sam's Club $14.48
• 34 oz Similac Sensitive Formula, Sam's Club $31.98 

This is a bit of a budget buster for me, but in planning for a longer term emergency, there are likely to be situations where formula can be used as a barter item or a way to take care of friends and neighbors less well off.

As always, if you have comments, suggestions or corrections, please post them so we all can learn. And remember, Some Is Always Better Than None!

Guest Post: Tornado response

Today we have a guest post from a friend who was one of the first people to respond to the aftermath of the F5 tornado that hit Moore, OK  almost a year ago. The debris was still falling out of the sky as his ambulance came over the hill into the town and he spent the next four days shuttling injured people to various hospitals in the area.


So you think you're in the clear now that you survived your disaster? That, unfortunately, is not the case at all.

After being on an ambulance crew for four days during and after the May 2013 tornadoes in Oklahoma, I learned quite a bit about what happens after a disaster. Surviving the actual tornado, or hell, any major disaster is a no-brainer, that's a basic part of prepping. The things that happen in the following hours, days, weeks, and months are also things we need to be worried about.

The actual tornado did a lot of damage but the things that were dangerous afterwards are what hurt a lot of people. When you have open gas lines, sharp debris, unstable structures, overhanging power lines, etc. you need to have your wits about you. This is not the time to get hurt physically because you are not paying attention. We literally had cases of people walking into traffic. Not because they were suicidal or anything, it was simply because they needed to get from point A to point B and they didn't think about looking both ways when crossing the street.

Psychological shock was a huge problem. If you're not physically injured, that does not mean you are not psychologically injured. The reasons are obvious now, but we did see a lot of it. Your struggle has just begun, you need to have your head in the right place and make the right decisions. The decisions you make in the first 12 hours will stay with you for months or even years. You need to take however long you need to take to get your head back in the game. Be aware that others around you are probably in shock, too. They will not be thinking straight, and may put you in danger by their actions.

One major thing that you have to realize is that communications will be down in the immediate aftermath of a disaster like this. Our ambulance had zero ability to communicate with our dispatch and through them, the rest of the world. Zero. We were literally on our own. Radio did not work, cell phones did not work, texting didn't work. The only thing that did work was email and that was only if we were lucky and in the right spot. Something to keep in mind while setting up your preparations.

So. Your house has been hit. You need to make a decision, do I stay or leave?

When and if you decide to leave, you should know that you are not going to be able to come back for quite a long time. You're going to have to know where you are going to go. Grab what is close to your heart and irreplaceable. Hopefully it is small enough to walk with because the roads will be full of debris and people. Your car may not even be in the same county after a tornado, if it survives in drivable condition. The hardest part will be leaving things behind. Remember, that is what insurance is for.

Also note that hotels will spike the prices on you. Unfortunately, after a disaster is when the opportunistic scum of the earth come out of the woodwork.

Don't rely on hotels, motels, or extended stay hotels as a permanent solution. There were many cases of actual storm survivors being kicked out to make room for contractors/utility workers that were coming in from out of state to help with the rebuilding.

Depending on how long it takes for city workers and emergency workers to do their jobs, you may be out of your house for weeks, even months. Reason being is because they will say the neighborhood is unsafe with the power lines, water lines, and gas lines being broken. They will not allow anyone back into the neighborhood until the workers have done their jobs unhindered from civilians getting in the way. That does not mean that the scum sucking parasitic thieves will not go into the neighborhood under the cover of darkness and steal from your home that is now wide open.

Please, have a plan in place for where you can go in case something bad happens. Some place for you and your family to stay for a long time until you get back on your feet. Family, friends, co-workers- this is a good reason why having a network of people you can rely on is important.

In a later article, I'll talk in more detail about the people who stayed in their homes. That was a nightmare for everyone. The stories I heard from the people that refused to leave their homes were of nightly police foot pursuits for thieves. No power and no light emboldened the thieves. It was a big problem for police and unfortunately a lot of peoples' personal belongings were stolen from their storm-damaged homes. That is the reality that you will have to deal with when you make the decision to leave your home. By storm or by man, more than likely you will lose a lot of possessions if not everything. Again, good insurance is a must.

Always remember that people will try to scam you. From insurance adjusters to contractors, it seemed like everybody was trying to screw somebody. Don't get me wrong, there were some good people out there that wanted to help (I still thank the local pizza company that fed us for days) but the good ones were outnumbered by the bad one. So beware. Best advice would be to look around for local contractors now. Roofing people, foundation people, tree removal companies, etc., and have those be your go-to people. After the disaster is not the time to try and find them. They will be a little busy. It doesn't matter that your home is brand new right now, do your research and get the contact information, you will need it later. Yes, insurance does pay eventually, but they do not do the legwork for you to find the people needed to do the work.

Remember the most important things. You are in the middle of a disaster. Just because the tornado is gone doesn't mean that the disaster is over. You have to rely on yourself. You also need to be able to take care of yourself. Emergency crews will not be able to take care of the minor injuries that you would normally call an ambulance for. The ambulance crews and other emergency workers are looking for people who are trapped and badly wounded. A twisted ankle or a broken wrist is on the bottom of the totem pole.

The First 72 Hours: Where To Now?

Part 11 of a continuing series on prepping for a disaster, with an emphasis on how and where to start while on a Blue Collar budget.

Where To Now?

If you have been following this series, the intent has been to get myself ready for a local emergency, with enough food and other supplies to get 2-3 people covered for 72 hours. As I have (mostly*) reached that point in my plan, the question is "Where to now?"   From here the next step is 2 weeks of stored food, portable shelter, alternative water supplies and a plan for leaving the area if necessary.

Stored Food -

This will be an expansion of the food types to include items designed for long term storage, while continuing to buy more of the staples already on my list. On the To Buy list are freeze-dried, dehydrated and other types of easily stored foods, with taste tests and ease-of-use comparisons on camping trips this Spring and Summer.

Water Supply -

With the potential for staying in place or leaving the area after evaluating conditions, a stable supply of  water is a critical part of my plan. To get there, something better than a personal filter is needed to supply the volume of water required for the group. Water sources that are close to where I'm at will be mapped out and checked for year around use. What is bought will also be tested on trips this year.  Recommendations are appreciated, so please promote your favorites!

Evacuation Plan  - 

Bugging Out! This is part of every disaster plan, and mine is no exception, it is not necessarily at the top of the list due to my situation. With 1-3 days to evaluate local conditions, whether it will be better to leave or stay should be a simple decision. There are out in the S.F. Bay Area people where I will be welcome, as well as local folks if my home is too damaged but the conditions allow local 'bugging'. 

Portable Shelter  - 

Here is one of my sticking points: Shelter. I do not have light weight, easily portable tents. I am still shopping for 1 or 2 person tents that can be loaded and carried in a backpack. A larger 4-6 person tent is available when more permanent camps are needed, so that is covered.

So, that is what is in store on this small portion of the BCP blog. I thank all of you that have commented here, on the BCP Facebook page and directly to me for your input so far and in the future.

As always, if you have comments, suggestions or corrections, please post them so we all can learn. And remember, Some Is Always Better Than None!

The First 72 Hours: EDC in a Professional Setting

Part 10 of a continuing series on prepping for a disaster, with an emphasis on how and where to start while on a Blue Collar budget.

Urban Every Day Carry 

I've mentioned in earlier posts that I have Every Day Carry items and a Get Home Bag in my vehicle, and now is the time to share what's in my EDC kits. Since California is almost-but-not-quite a Shall Issue state, I do not have any personal defense items.

On My Body

Here are all the items (minus coins) I have on my person every day:

Top Row

• Vertical iPhone 4 case w/ phone below, work
• Horizontal iPhone 4S case and phone, personal
• Leatherman Kick, sales goal reward
• Coast PX25 LED flashlight, all mine

Middle Row

• Wallet, unknown brand, big enough for DL, Credit Cards and receipts
• Kershaw Leek, in Stainless Steel, pointy and very sharp
• Unknown small folder, also in Stainless Steel, utility knife
• Keys, assorted
• Kleenex tissue, Tacti-cool package

Bottom Row

• Money clip, not enough

On weekends, the work phone is off the belt and sometimes the flashlight too, but everything else stays. The Leatherman Kick is a compact tool (now discontinued), that I really like for its light weight. The Coast PX25 was a splurge buy several years ago, as an upgrade from the five-for-$10 Home Depot Christmas specials. It's very bright at over 200 lumens and does not quickly drain the batteries like some of the cheaper lights. The left front pants pocket has the wallet and Kershaw Leek, right pocket gets keys, money clip, coins, small knife and during allergy season, Tacti-cool Kleenex in a hip pocket.

If you don't know already, Kershaw makes a quality knife here in the U.S. at a very affordable price.

In the Bag

This is a bit complicated, as my carry bag is a soft-side salesman's grip, which needs to be replaced and down-sized.*

These items are in the bag that goes to work with me and at the end of the day stays in the truck, but not what makes up my Get Home Bag (that is the basis for a later article). 

Top Row

• Plano Waterproof box filled with band-aids, triple antibiotic and gauze pads 
• Write anywhere pen and waterproof pad
• Nail File, disposable
• Box cutter, Hi Viz Green and spare blades
• Tooth brush, tooth paste and floss

Middle Row

• Alka Seltzer
• Aleve
• Generic Tylenol
• Wet Wipes
• Kleenex
• Hand Sanitzer, unscented
• Reading /magnifying glasses
• Disposable Lighter
• Micro fiber cloth

Bottom Row

• Emergen-C vitamin packets
• Gum
• Claritin allergy tabs  
• Small spiral notebook

Not shown are my catalogs, small binders and other portable office items used during my day such as highlighters, pens, pencils, paper clips, and mini staple gun.

The Plano Waterproof box was purchased in Home Depot for $7 and filled with assorted knuckle, fingertip and strip band-aids, plus some gauze pads and the smallest triple antibiotic cream tube I could find. This is a work in progress and I refer everyone back to the BCP First Aid series, starting here.

I believe the pen and note book were a gift. The nail file is also unknown; the box cutter and blades, approximately $6 from Home Depot. Dental stuff purchased from various stores.

The items in the middle row are self explanatory; general personal care items, lighter and wiping cloth. 

And on the bottom row, vitamin packets for immune support and trace minerals that dissolve quickly, gum to help keep your mouth moist, allergy tabs for the obvious uses and a plain notebook I can share with someone else in need.

Items to be Purchased

• Inexpensive Pepper Spray, legal here but check your state
• Expanded 1st aid supplies
• New bag* to carry items

* I am actively looking for suggestions for replacement bags. The small bag (sling) needs to be small enough  to carry all the time, but large enough to hold a Kindle Fire or B&N Nook, plus most of my belt worn items and pens and note book. The larger bag needs to hold the rest of the listed supplies and binders, whether a Messenger, sling or another style, I'm uncertain. I am not looking for an obvious tactical bag with MOLLE and PALS attachments everywhere, but a sturdy, clean designed bag.

As always, if you have comments, suggestions or corrections, please post them so we all can learn. And remember, Some Is Always Better Than None!

The First 72 Hours: REI re-cap

Part 9 of a continuing series on prepping for a disaster, with an emphasis on how and where to start while on a Blue Collar budget.

(Editor's note:  why is this not titled "REI-cap"? ) 

REI Sale Review

Garage Sale and Returned Goods

For those that may be unfamiliar with REI, it is a co-op membership store offering a great selection of both brand name and house labeled outdoor equipment. As I said in last weeks post, my local store was having their sale April 5-6, and I went to check it out.

The Line

When I arrived at 7:30 Saturday morning, there were already 30 people at the door waiting to get tickets to see the Returned /Damaged items. At 8:00 sharp, employees started to hand out tickets to all of us in line with access times written on the back. Tickets were passed out on the hour until the last tickets were given right at 10:00, when the store opened. This was to insure orderly entrance to what turned out to be a very small storage room FILLED with damaged, returned and lightly used or worn items. Defects were clearly listed on attached tags, with excuses ranging from 'didn't fit right', 'customer didn't want' after it had clearly been used more than a day, to 'stitching unraveled', 'zipper pull broken' or 'seam sewn crooked'.  This was were where your luck just might hit and let you find the item(s) to fit your needs. Unfortunately, I was not close enough to the front of the line to get first pick, and when my group was admitted the best items were gone and I didn't find what was on my Want or Need list there. No Power Ball for me.

Garage Sale

Scattered throughout the rest of the store were the Rental items being sold from this location. Items were stocked several times throughout the day to allow regular customers who did not know about, or were not interested in, the damaged goods sale to find bargains as well.  When I came into the store I looked for packs first, and already the selection was thin. The quality and brands I saw were middle of the road, and the ones left behind looked like rentals.

Conclusion

If you need good quality and are willing to settle for less than brand new, I think REI might do for you. You will need to take at least 1 other person with you, have very clear notes on what you are looking for and with what you are willing to settle, AND BE AT THE FRONT OF THE LINE FOR THE FIRST TICKETS FOR ACCESS TO THE ROOM! Bargains were to be had, as I saw 4 people checking tents in the store to verify damage listed on the tags, and there were 2 people with 2 sleeping bags each in the checkout line when I came in.

Check them out - membership is easy and cheap, PLUS rebate/dividend checks are in the mail this month AND members have until the 13th to use a 20% off coupon on 1 regular price item in the store. See the store for details and limitations.


Current Purchases

• 2 40oz. jars of Chunky Peanut Butter from Sam's Club, $9.80.
• 24 count box of Clif Bars, Sam's again for $17.77. These go in my stock and are moved out regularly.

 As always, if you have comments, suggestions or corrections, please post them so we all can learn. And remember, Some Is Always Better Than None!

The First 72 Hours: The Buffet post

Part 8 (7.5?) of a continuing series on prepping for a disaster, with an emphasis on how and where to start while on a Blue Collar budget.

Multiple Topics

Future purchases

To add to the Sunday Slide-In post on REI closing out their equipment rental: yes, it is true, and all locations are closing out their rentals! However, not all locations are having what they (REI) are calling a Garage Sale on the same weekends, though. My store (Concord CA) has had their sales in the 1st weekend of the month, with people lining up at 7 AM to get into the store when it opens at 10! To eliminate a crush, employees are following a number system for admittance, so you can come back before 10 and not lose your spot. Rental equipment offered will be varied, with the 3 employees I spoke with not knowing or not willing to say what items might be on display this weekend.

Needless to say, I will be there very early in an attempt to fill some of my 'Want' list, along with the much more lengthy 'Need' items for my BCP goal.

On the List:

• A 3-Season sleeping bag. Having a spare is just good planning. My family all have bags, but someone could be away, have something damaged or have a friend in need. Down or synthetic, not picky.
• 2-3 person tent. Light weight, easy up, 3 season backpacking style. While I can show you how to do some nifty shelters with 4 mil plastic and duct tape, none of them are very portable or durable in the long run.
• 1-2 Day Hike sized  backpacks. These are to be used for Get Home Bags when further out than my 7 mile drive to and from work. Need to be roomy enough to hold 2-3 L of water, rain coat, change of underwear, socks, shirt, food and the transferred items in my Everyday Bag.
• A full-size backpack, to replace the very old and no longer waterproof one I have now. I carried in my truck, when covering most of N. California to the Oregon border, enough supplies to get me back to civilization, if not quite back home. 400+ miles is too far to hike but 20-50 is manageable. Has to be able to hold ~ 50lbs. of gear.
• Gore-Tex rain gear. I could use some replacement pants, since mine were destroyed in 1990.
• 1 or 2 sleeping mats. closed cell or preferably self-inflating type.

Current purchases

• Light My Fire 2.0 ferro rod. Sparks!!! $15.95 and tax at my favorite "Toy" store, run by The Crazy Russians .
• 8 cans of white Tuna, to be rotated into the stores. $8.08 from Sam's Club.
• "G" series Gatorade in a 72oz. (4lb 12oz!) can. This will make 36qt. for only $6.41!!  A Close-Out item in the Concord, CA Sam's store.
• Previously mentioned on the Blue Collar Prepping Facebook page, 4lbs of Iodized Table Salt. I had to go back and look to verify price- $0.98 for the commercial use box.

Please join us on Facebook if you haven't yet!

So to recap, last week's buys totaled a bit over $33.00, with the big purchase being a wanted item for the longer term plan.


Next Week

Finally, a look at my gear for Every Day Carry and Getting Home, along with what happened at REI.



As always, if you have comments, suggestions or corrections, please post them so we all can learn. And remember, Some Is Always Better Than None!

The First 72 Hours: Adding to the stores

Part 7 of a continuing series on prepping for a disaster, with an emphasis on how and where to start while on a Blue Collar budget.


Newest Additions

While talking about this series with an old friend, he mentioned some of our early hiking and camping trips into the Sierra Nevada back-country. This was when freeze-drying became popular and food items were available from most camping supply stores. He mentioned one unfortunate trip with a friend who had a very limited menu packed, lacking in bulk and fiber, with the unfortunate but predictable result: high protein, low fiber, easy to fix and cook foods may result in constipation. Add in stresses from dealing with a disaster, family injury, emergency repairs to homes or leaving in the face of an on-coming event, and a healthy gut could get ignored.

Added

• Dried Blueberries, Cherries, and raisins. One 14oz. package each for the first 2, and 30oz. for the raisins. This goes into the Disaster Stores. I make my own trail mix with almonds to take to work so I don't buy candy bars when I want something sweet in the afternoon. The local discount grocery has bulk bins for serve yourself and I get raisins from Sam's Club or Costco, whoever is the closest when I run out. Mark purchase dates on your items and rotate them into your regular pantry!
• Almonds. Raw, no salt, also from Sam's or Costco in a 3 lb bag. With less natural oil than peanuts, almonds have less chance to go rancid, and if you have had packaged trail mixes with peanuts from stores or kept some in your gear too long, you know what I mean! The fruit was mixed together (with 1/2 of the almonds and most of the raisins) and split into 10 zip lock bags and put into my freezer. This keeps it fresh longer and cools my lunch all at once. 
• Total cost for stored fruit: approximately $20.

Next to buy

• Food Grade plastic pails. I have had no luck trying to salvage restaurant reject buckets, so ordering is next. The pails will be used for storing items that do not come in hard, rigid containers like pasta, flour, beans , rice and similar items that might be contaminated by the out-gassing from plastic pails from your local Home Improvement store. Try this: next time you're in Lowe's, Home Depot, or Menard's, stick your head in the stack of pails you see everywhere and sniff. Yeah, I don't want that on my dinner plate during a trying time either.
• Sleeping bag and blankets. I need one more 3 season bag and several all wool blankets for my emergency stores. 
• Spices and other flavor enhancers. Please see the post by Evelyn Hively here for ideas on what to have and how to store your items.

Next Week

My EDC items and the Get Home Bag I currently have, plus the latest food finds as I close in on my 72 hour storage plan.

As always, if you have comments, suggestions or corrections, please post them so we all can learn. And remember, Some Is Always Better Than None!

The First 72 Hours: Gear Review and Update

Part 6 of a continuing series on prepping for a disaster, with an emphasis on how and where to start while on a Blue Collar budget.

Gear Review and Purchase Updates

I had the opportunity to try a stove mentioned in a comment to a previous post, either here or on the Blue Collar Prepping Facebook page. If you don't belong to that group, please apply, the comments and new information available there is great!

So, on to the stove. What I tried was the JINYU Butane canister stove, available in several of the Asian food stores in my area. Retail prices were around $20 for the stove and 4(!) Butane canisters. My friends use it for camping and to fry fish and to cook on their patio other items too smelly to do indoors.

Plus 

• Very light weight- less than 2 lbs with canister installed. The stove comes in a molded plastic box with flip over catches for storage and transport.
• Very fast cooking- less than 5 minutes to boil 1 qt. of water. Probably a lot less, but the old proverb, 'A watched pot doesn't boil' and some beer came into play and I missed the boil point. This was tested in a standard kitchen 2 1/2 qt. pot, and as hot as it got, my expectation is in my light-weight camping pot it should be equal to or faster than my old WhisperLite due to burner size.
• Low cost fuel- 1 canister is less than $2 and can run (I am told by the owners) over 2 hours. YMMV, and all those other disclaimers! 

Minus

• Very light weight- I can see that packing this very far or using it heavily could be an issue. The case will prevent damage to the stove but the molded-in latches are a problem I've seen before on some of my job's accessory boxes. The stove itself, while light weight, seems sturdy enough to hold larger pots within reason.
• Fuel Supply- The compatible gas canisters have to be used. I can see this stove used in a short term disaster situation, but for longer term I personally prefer dual-fuel liquid stoves.

My vote is a YES, with very minor qualifications.

SUPPLY UPDATE

Those of you NOT on Facebook are missing out! One member questioned my inclusion of sea salt in my food stores, due to Iodine (in table salt) being a required nutrient not found in sea salt. The reason sea salt was purchased (Asian markets rule!) is that it came from the factory in a heavy duty vinyl, zip-lock bag. My planning has to expect stored items may/will be crushed in an earthquake, so packaging has to be resistant to those forces. And I do have table salt in my stored items.

Coffee and Tea
Trader Joe's has 10-count instant coffee packets (with cream and sugar included) for $1.99. I bought two.
Also at Trader Joe's I found various teas 10 for $1.99, so I bought two boxes of them as well.

And for the last item, the Trader had 1 qt. cans of olive oil for $10.99. Pricey, I know, but since they come in a very crush-resistant can, I had to buy one.


As always, if you have comments, suggestions or corrections, please post them so we all can learn. And remember, Some Is Always Better Than None!

The First 72 Hours: Prepping and Pets

Part 5 of a continuing series on prepping for a disaster, with an emphasis on how and where to start while on a Blue Collar budget.

Prepping and Pets

Keeping the 4-legged (and other) 
members of your family safe

Pets are an important part of many families. There are as many pets in the U.S. as there are people, not including exotics (reptiles, rodents and fish) or wild animals. These all can feel like a part of our family and in a disaster will have us making very difficult decisions.

Have a Plan

Make your pets part of the plan now, not after your most likely disaster hits. If sheltering in place is not an option and you had to leave, DO EVERYTHING IN YOUR POWER TO TAKE YOUR PETS WITH YOU! If Hurricane Katrina is used as an example of a wide spread disaster (and the human failings before and after made it worse!), lost and abandoned pets by the thousands were never found or reunited with their owners.

As always, take this information and adapt or change it to your specific, most-likely-to-occur disaster.

Before the 8.0+ earthquake

• There should already be water, food, treats, crates and leashes for your pets available in or near your storage area, along with any medicine they require. Two weeks of dry food for each pet should be your easy goal. 
• Alongside your other important papers should be several pictures of your pets and copies of their licenses and vaccination records. Put this info on a thumb drive as well. 
• Have up to date ID and licenses on your dogs and or microchips on your cats. Check with your local animal rescue groups for low-cost chipping. Here in the S.F. East Bay area, I have a friend who can get animals chipped for $10! Collars and ID tags can cost as much, and the chips cannot be slipped out of or broken.
• If you have to leave your home but can’t ‘Bug Out’, be aware that Service Dogs are the only pets allowed into most government-run emergency shelters. Have a list of friends who could care for your pets or check with your Vet for boarding kennels and catteries. Have a list of hotels that allow pets, also.

During the Big One

• Having grown up in N. California and having felt literally hundreds of earthquakes, I know that there is little you can do during an earthquake to make your pets safe. In the 1989 earthquake (during which the actual shaking lasted 20 seconds), I was outside and my dog ran out of the house and tried to jump in my lap. I was standing at the time and a 55lb. Airedale Terrier running at top speed is not exactly lap-friendly! 

Aftermath 

•  Check the area your pets have access to and make sure there are no hazardous conditions like broken glass, spilled chemicals or exposed wires. Confine or leash your pets while cleaning up or until they have calmed down.

• If the very worst happens and your pet is injured, do you have First Aid supplies appropriate for them? Here is one place to find this info, along with other handy tips on caring for your pet.  Look at the link for suggested supplies. Plan on extra water to wash your pets’ feet, at a minimum, if there is the possibility of any contamination from chemicals, sewage or waste water.

• Have a favorite toy, blanket, bedding and treats available to help calm them down. Other family members, especially children, can be given the job of caring for your pets. This comes with the side benefits of calming themselves at the same time and feeling like they are helping out.    

• After looking after your pets, check on your neighbors' and friends' pets. The safety of you and your pets could very easily be affected by loose and frightened animals around you.

• If ‘Bugging Out” is required, your pre-planned and in-place pet supplies will take up very little room and will reduce the stress of worrying about your left behind pets!

Next Week

An update to my Blue Collar Prepping supplies and a Gear Review of a small, inexpensive portable stove mentioned in a previous post's comment!

As always, if you have comments, suggestions or corrections, please post them so we all can learn. And remember, Some Is Always Better Than None!

The First 72 Hours: Inventory Time

Part 4 of a continuing series on prepping for a disaster, with an emphasis on how and where to start while on a Blue Collar budget.

Recap and Refresh

This is the first list of what I have done in building a 72 hour emergency supply cache. The goal is to get to 72 hours, from there to 2 weeks, and then followed by 2 week additions as far out as I can go. These lists will be posted (hopefully) every 4 weeks, broken into the primary topics previously covered:

Food

• 5 cans of Chicken 
• 6 cans of Tuna 
• 5lbs of white rice in a zip lock bag 
• 2 1lb pkg. pasta 
• 4 cans pasta sauce 
• 6 cans of Spam 
• 4 cans green beans 
• 4 cans of peaches 
• 1 lb. sugar 
• Self-contained pepper grinder 
• Self-contained sea salt grinder 

Total Cost- approx. $70

Water

• 1 Case (35 bottles of 0.5 liter each) spring water 
• 1 6 gal. water storage jug 

Total Cost- $26

Safety, Shelter and Hygiene

None. Sleeping bags and rain gear previously purchased.

Cooking/Heating

None. Cooking supplies previously purchased.

First Aid

None. Previously purchased, specific supplies coming soon.


So to recap: from January to today, the first week of March 2014, I have spent an extra $100 dollars towards my goal of being self-sufficient in the event of a disaster.

Useful Things

Evelyn Hively concluded her great Security series with a list of extremely informative sites.

As promised here is a (partial) list of the books I have read, with more being added as I uncover them in my Great Big Stack-o-Books™:

• SURVIVE!, 1st Ed. Les Stroud, Wm. Morrow 2008 
• How To Survive The End Of The World As We Know It, James Wesley, Rawles. Plume, 2009 
• The Disaster Preparedness Handbook, 2nd Edition, Dr. Arthur T. Bradley Skyhorse Publishing, 2010 
• PreparednessNow!, Revised Ed., Aton Edwards. Process Self-Reliance Series, 2009 

Please feel free to ask any questions, make suggestions, or offer improvements to what has been done. This is a work in progress; if we all work together, we all get ahead.

Some Is Always Better Than None!

The First 72 Hours: Hygiene & Security

Part 3 of a continuing series on prepping for a disaster, with an emphasis on how and where to start while on a Blue Collar budget.

Hygiene

Since the disaster I am most likely to face is an earth
quake, this is what I am planning around. Your prepping plans need to consider your local conditions and change them accordingly.

Let's say that the ‘Big One’ hits your area. Everyone is home safe and your EDC, GHB and CSK equipment worked as planned.

Let’s look a bit at what should be in our ‘Get Home’ supplies:

• Hand sanitizer. I work around contractors, builders and their employees (truly the unwashed masses), so I wash my hands multiple times and use sanitizer when I can’t get to a sink. It also makes a dandy fire starter. I think I found this at Walgreen’s.
• Toilet paper, pocket pack tissues or baby wipes. Do you need a diagram?
• Soap. I found this in the local health food store. A little goes a long way. 

So you are home and someone uses the toilet and things don’t move down like they should. What is your plan for dealing with human waste? Your plan should include items for short-term and long-term waste disposal.

Short Term (Less than 72 hours)

If you can find a toilet that has not backed up, line the toilet with a heavy duty trash bag and use that. If all toilets are backed up, use a 5 gallon pail with the center of the lid cut out, lined with a bag. To help control odors, kitty litter or a 1-to-10 chlorine bleach to water mix can be added. Bleach is one of the most effective sanitizers and is an item most people have on hand. Remove the bags when ½ to ¾ full, seal tightly and store away from direct sunlight in a cool, dry place.

Do not pour bodily waste into storm drains, creeks or into any body of water! You or someone downstream may be using that as a source of drinking water soon.

Long Term (More than 72 hours)

If after 72 hours conditions haven’t improved and evacuation is not an option due to:

• Bad roads or directions to shelter in place;
• Limited mobility or family obligations;
• Being at your ‘Round Up’ or Rally location;

... then other, more permanent solutions are needed.

Latrines and other methods

This is only an option to those with access to open areas at least 200’ to 300’ from any camp, buildings, food storage area, springs, wells and water pipes. I am not going to detail how to build large latrines or pit toilets (those plans are all over YouTube and the Internet), and I hope not to be required to do any of those ever again.

Apartment and city dwellers may have to continue with small scale waste disposal methods. My small scale waste disposal method is a biological treatment method like this pet waste disposal system with super digester powder. Solid waste goes in, the enzymes and bacteria are added along with a small amount of water, and the solids are dissolved and absorbed into the soil. This requires soil that drains fairly well to work as advertised. If you have flower beds or the ground digs easily, this might work for you. Certain cities don’t allow what is actually a doggie septic tank, so check first. This works best in warm climates, so cold areas may be out of luck.

A larger version (for up to 6 people) uses a 5 to 15 gallon metal pail with 4 rows of ¼” holes spaced 2” apart drilled around the pail, starting 1” up from the bottom.

IMPORTANT! 

• Paper waste cannot be used in this system, as it will clog the drainage holes! Paper or wipes need to be collected in a separate container and buried or burned.
• Hand washing needs to be a priority! More people get sick and die around the world from bad water and poor food handling than get shot, so keep on top of washing utensils, bowls and food preparation areas. 

Security

This is going to be even less exciting than hygiene, but keeping the people in your house safe in a disaster is possibly more important. Evelyn Hively is doing a wonderful series starting here, and be sure to follow along through the other parts!

Part of being prepared for earthquakes is the bracing of furniture, cabinets, closets and objects hanging on walls. There are specialty suppliers of strapping and hold-downs for all items in your house like (this), many of which can be duplicated on the cheap:

• Old web or leather belts can be used to keep tall cabinets and dressers from falling. Cut the belt into 12” long pieces and screw one end to the top back edge of the cabinet and the other end into the wall. 
• Screws in the wall must hit studs and have to be construction grade, not black drywall screws!
• Velcro strips attached to stereos and other boxy items on shelves will hold them in place. This will work for many TV’s, but pedestal Flat Screens need extra care. See these Quake Hold pages for how they do it and modify from there.
• Glassware and other trinkets can be secured with Museum Wax and Putty, also from Quake Hold. I don’t have any better suggestion than to use the best!
• Kitchen drawers can be retro-fitted with child safety catches similar to these, from many suppliers. 
• Cabinets, hutches and other furniture with 2 opposing swinging doors can be secured with these. 
• Pictures need to be secured to walls with closed end hooks, or secured around the wall hook and hanging wire with tie wire or zip ties. 
• Nothing should be mounted to the walls above beds, desks or other areas where people of limited mobility will be!

The State of California has several very short PDF files on Emergency Preparedness located at the bottom of this page. Look over all of this information, adapt it to your situation and remember, Some Is Always Better Than None!

Next week: How Are We Doing? A recap of my progress, on a Blue Collar Prepping budget.

The First 72 Hours: Shelter & Energy

Part 2 of a continuing series on prepping for a disaster, with an emphasis on how and where to start while on a Blue Collar budget.

Shelter

Since the disaster I am most likely to face is an earthquake, this is what I am planning around. Your prepping plans need to consider your local conditions and change them accordingly.

Buildings will be damaged depending upon how close to the epicenter or fault line they are located, how they are constructed, and how solid the soil is under their foundations. Most of the major damage that the 1989 San Francisco earthquake caused was to structures built on fill land (swampy) and not solid bedrock.

You should be prepared to turn off your gas and water if there is obvious damage to gas or water lines. If there is no obvious gas smell and the structure is stable, your best option is to shelter in place. I do not recommend using any utilities if there has been structural damage, like partial collapse of walls or roof, foundation damage, or house movement off the foundation, until the local emergency services or fire department inspects the structure.

Staying where you are requires some pre-planning and possibly busting our BCP budget. Items that you should already have in your house for disaster preparedness are:

• smoke detectors (one in each room)
• carbon monoxide detector
• fire extinguisher (ABC rating)
• flashlights (at least one per person)
• batteries (enough for 2 complete changes for each person)
• First Aid supplies:
• Band-Aids
• antiseptic wipes
• eye wash
• anti-biotic cream
• sun screen
• dust masks
• nitrile gloves
• any medicines that your family needs. 
• blankets and/or sleeping bags
• jackets and rain gear
• 2 complete changes of clothes for each person
• and, of course,  your prepping supplies! 

If you don’t have all of these items now, get them. Right now.

Items you should be looking to purchase are:

• 2 mil plastic sheeting and duct tape (to cover the possibly broken windows and cover the doors to prevent dust from entering and heat escaping)
• utility turn off wrench
• small pry bar
• hammer
• screw driver set (flat head and Phillips)
• nails & screws 
• LED or CREE flashlights
• 2x the number of batteries you have on hand (brand name only) 
• blue plastic tarps
• several rolls of duct tape (it fixes almost anything)

If your budget allows, look into buying a tent big enough for the number of people in your group to sleep in. Look on Craig’s List, want ads,  and if you have a college close by, see if there is an Outdoor/Hiking club to purchase surplus gear from cash-strapped students. In Northen California we rarely freeze or get much rain or snow (<200’ altitude here), so the tent only needs to be waterproof. There is no way I can tell you how to improvise a shelter here, and if it comes to that you should look into evacuating and sheltering with friends or family outside the disaster zone. More on this in the upcoming Security post.

Energy

Here is another potential BCP budget buster: cooking after a disaster. Ideally, your house is okay, your water seems to be okay, and the power company says the electricity will only be out overnight. Worst case, the power won’t be back for 2-5 days, minimum. How do you cook or stay warm in the winter?

In the short term, you can eat your stash of supplies that don’t need cooking - crackers, peanut butter, canned tuna or chicken and the like. In the long term, however, you could have a few very interesting meals! Unless you own a generator (I don’t), your freezer or refrigerator is going to warm up in as little as one or as many as three days. Generators large enough to run a refrigerator can cost $800 and up. For me, this means everything will start to go bad and be unusable very quickly, so I plan on having a cookout. Invite your neighbors and share the bounty. If you have met them before, great. If you haven't, why not? You don't know who has needed skills until you make the effort.

Apartment dwellers, I’m not leaving you out. You will have to be a bit more creative with disposing of your fridge full of food by having a small charcoal grill to use OUTSIDE, well away from windows and doors. The rest of us will have to do the same on whatever we have on hand for grilling.

If you do not have cooking equipment other than your stove in the kitchen, I have made very good buys from garage sales and Craig’s List on camping supplies. I am the owner of a 3 burner Coleman liquid fuel (adaptable to propane) stove purchased at a garage sale for $40. It looks like new and works perfectly. Other options would be to use your existing grill or purchase new, smaller propane camping stoves ($80-$100 and up). My personal preference is for liquid fuel, since those stoves will run on unleaded gasoline as well as stove fuel. Another option is the BioLite stove which has a thermocouple to generate power from the heat of the fire! However you choose to cook, make sure that your fuel is stored away from your food, any heat source, or anything that could fall and bury it.

Heating

If everything is the same as previously stated, you can shelter in place in your storage room by blocking the door and window with double layers of plastic and duct tape. If the weather is not too bad, huddling together with each other under the blankets or in the sleeping bags will keep everyone warm. If it is too cold, like the month of January here (it actually was as low as 28* F), extra steps are needed to stay warm.


At no time should you use a charcoal grill, propane heater or similar item to heat your shelter-in-place room! People die every year doing that. If necessary, and with proper care, candles can be used as an emergency heat source to raise the temperature of your room several degrees. Search for ‘tea lights/ emergency heat,’ or see this article. Be careful! Candles are an open flame and could catch surrounding items on fire.

Power for cell phones, laptops, GPS devices and radios is another potential BCP budget buster. In the short term, you should have car charger adapters for cell phones & GPS devices and rechargeable battery packs with a USB outlet for quickie recharges. If you can afford it, solar charging panels with rechargeable batteries are recommended. A two battery charger can cost as little as $24.95 plus batteries, to as much as $250 (or more) for a charger that recharges 2 items directly. A radio of some kind is a requirement, whether battery or hand crank. The C Crane company makes bullet-proof versions of both.

This is enough food for thought for now, so check your funds, spend them wisely and remember, Some Is Always Better Than None.

Next Week: Security & Hygiene

The First 72 hours: Water & Food

The Next Big Thing for your area is overdue and you want to get ready, but you think family or economics will keep you from preparing? Living in an apartment, condo, or house in the city is not a reason to ignore planning for you or your family's safety.

As I am currently rebuilding my preps, I will be following these recommendations as well as writing about them every week. I will also list how much it costs to do, because I am on a Blue Collar Prepping budget.

Your plan should list your goals for 24-72 hours, 3-14 days and then multiples of 14 days as your budget allows. Write the plan down, put it on your tablet, on your phone and your home computer, but have printed hard copies as your back-up.

There will be a bibliography of the books I have read and use, with excerpts noted to the best of my ability.

The topics to be covered were outlined in my last post, so let's get started.

Water

You need water to survive and with the power off, water mains and sewer lines damaged, do you trust what comes out of the faucet? The answer is a qualified YES. The chance of contamination is low for the first hour after an earthquake (my planned-for disaster), so fill up your bathtub and any containers (with screw lids) you can to supplement your stored water. Save this for your last resort supply. 

How much water do you need to store? 2 gallons per person, per day is the recommended minimum for health, cooking and cleaning. So, you need 12 gals of water for 3 people, per day, stored safely. Walmart* has 5-6 gallon soft/collapsible or hard side water containers for as little as $9 (soft) to $12 (hard). Spend what you can, when you can. Remember that I mentioned recycling? If you have to, use 1 gallon screw-top milk or juice containers to start. Cleaned with soap and rinsed, filled, set in the sun (to remove flavors) and then refilled, you will be fine. Remember, Some Is Always Better Than None. So if you don’t see a movie this month, give up one lunch out, and don’t buy a half-caff Mochajavafrappachino or two this week, you could have $20-$30 to spend!

Food

As I’ve said, this is a project that I’m doing right now for myself, so take all of this as a guide, not Gospel. Tailor it to your situation financially, storage-wise and disaster-wise.

The food you are eating now should be the core of what is purchased for your emergency supply, but in another condition. Whether this is dry, dehydrated or freeze-dried is entirely budget defined. To get the most from your blue collar budget, you should be shopping at the local dollar store, food outlet, ethnic markets, and if you can afford the membership, Costco or Sam’s Club. Start with buying 2 extra cans of the core foods you regularly buy when you shop and put those aside. Start purchasing extra packages of rice, flour, pasta, beans (dry and canned), lentils, couscous and whole grains. Don’t forget oatmeal, tea, coffee, brown and white sugar, dry soup and your favorite seasonings and spices. Also put away canned tuna, chicken, dried and canned fruit and other family picks. Don’t forget hard candy! 

As you purchase these supplies, use a permanent marker to mark them with date of purchase and type (in case of label damage) to prevent spoilage. These items will be rotated into your kitchen, used up and re-supplied as you go. Canned goods will store well if placed off concrete floors, away from moisture and temperature extremes. Bagged goods that might get crushed need to be stored in other containers like 5 gallon plastic pails with snap down lids, or metal trash cans if space allows. Try to get discarded restaurant food storage pails, purchase food storage pails and specialty food storage bags. At the least, double-bag your items in white kitchen bags, duct tape them closed and mark what is inside before placing in your cans. If you find restaurant pails, try not to use sliced pickle or garlic cans! Remember, start with what you have, do what you can, and Some Is Always Better Than None.

Next week: Shelter and Energy



* Walmart will be used for much of my shopping, since it gives me more bang for my buck. Many items stocked there come from China. Get over your geo-political sensitivities; I don’t like a government who murdered 30-50 MILLION of their people either. However, I am not willing to die nor let those I care about die for a political statement. After our families are safe and homes secure we can have that trendy coffee and compare notes. Until that time, let’s stay alive.