Prepping & Supplies for SHTF

Your number one asset is your brain. Learn all you can. Take up knitting, learn how to fish, and how to set a snare etc. Your knowledge will serve you, and your community well.

My neighbor and I have a plan b to load up the trailers with everything we can and head for higher hills, but again, we may make our last stand where we are unless it is a forest fire or comet . . .
Some very good prepping is to know your local elected officials, know who you could trust and whether the local government will continue through the crisis or fold.

Very true, if you have something to protect. And, it sounds like you may well have. But most "preppers" are living in a fantasy that they will stay in their homes and use their supplies for the next "ump-teen years", which is what people have to be mindful of. There should be rally points, exceptions to the rules and contingency plans "if all else fails". That is the essence of survival. Dealing with the unknowns.

Kudos to you for realizing if you, "Feed them, support them, advise them, lead them and you will be one of them."

There is safety in numbers. Humans are herdings animals, just like the rest of the world we have chosen to not pay attention to. Yet many of us are too wrapped up in our own inner circles to understand this.

You too are very wise on planning and preparing. I always hope such prepping is never needed, but the longer I live, the more I see, the happier I am that I have a plan or two.

I put antacids and anti-diarrhea tablets in my supplies. I figure the stress and unusual eating might upset my stomach a bit. Also, a small bible.

Rather than reinventing the wheel, you might try combing through here for some tips:
Thread: Last minute tips for parents when the SHTF (Page 39)

In at least three places I located two free Latter Day Saints (LDS or Mormon) sites that offer free ebooks on comprehensive prepping. 95% of those books are not about their spirituality. They had experts in multiple areas discussing nutrition, cooking, growing, harvesting food. In addition lots of things like water purification and many useful skills.

About a year ago, a prepper wrote an excellent book on preparedness that was many hundreds of pages long. He freely gave it away because he was selling a bound paper edition. A link is in there as well on just downloading the ebook version for free. It's quite extraordinary.

Most people have an idea about storing a few basic necessities. That's what they mean by preparedness. Others store up more materials because it's cheaper that way with rising prices. You buy when items go on sale or when locally harvested. Others learn how to can or dehydrate foods. Others then learn to identify wild edibles or grow them. Still more begin a lifelong journey of learning ancestral skills. Others hunt or trap animals. Some raise them especially certain varieties of rabbits or goats.

The important thing to do is to start in a slowly collapsing world. As the economic situation becomes more untenable, and more and more are unemployed or on public assistance or both, then learning ancestral skills becomes an economic necessity. It's practical knowledge, not just theoretical in case the SHTF.

The reality is it save you MONEY, and who doesn't need to save money nowadays? Not only that, but if you learn valuable skills, have seed, have supplies, and spirituality, you can weather all kinds of storms.

Will the end of civilization come soon? I doubt it. Humanity always comes back. What is more likely will be weathering disasters, economic decline, unemployment, divorce, the death of a spouse, etc. Make your knowledge practical and not based upon FEAR.

I know the staple of most preppers is rice. I have also seen many mention stocking up on powdered foods, potato flakes, etc.

Each of these items needs water to prepare. Well, maybe not, you could munch down on a handful of dried potatoes or crunch some dry rice. But then your body will use up more water to process these foods. Thinking ahead, water is obviously the most precious and valuable resource you will need. Unfortunately, it is one of the harder items to transport.

I have tried to keep my food stash as "water free" as possible. I have tons and tons of canned soups, veggies, peanut butter and honey. I try to only store foods that don't require water to prepare. Plus, in a can of soup, you would essentially be getting water when you eat.

I do have rice, but I'm not planning on it as being my main source of nourishment. Canned soups may not be all that healthy, but they taste pretty good, contain water, are easy enough to transport and store well.

Just some more thoughts...

Pancho multiple use

Re: Rice

Before the Great Depression, food items were not fortified, nor was anyone taking any vitamins. While I'm not a fan of fortified foods, they were intended to beef up the nutrition of prepackaged food items either to help preserve them with ascorbic acid (Vitamin C) which can be lost in the canning process. In addition, there used to be a lot of children born with cretinism which is a deficiency of iodine. Likewise lots of mothers didn't know that they were in the early stages of pregnancy and so were not getting enough folic acid and so they might deliver a child with a neural tube defect.

Not only that, but certain amino acids might not be present in the average person's diet. As such, some of these were added to foods to ensure that people didn't have a protein deficiency. What happened was it was poorly understood that you needed to combine different food items containing protein, and hence have all of the essential amino acids. They're like building blocks which can reassembled with metabolic functions in order to form the proteins in the body.

If you store rice, then you must store beans. The same is true of corn, you must also eat something like beans or lentils. If not, then if there was a time of severe hardship, you'd begin seeing protein deficiency. See that link I mentioned for a long exhaustive treatment on this and cachexia which can manifest as Kwashikor (distended bellies and hair breakage and mental retardation) or Marasmus (wasting away).

Don't store just rice for that alone will not help. Brown rice has more oils in it and will go rancid sooner but is healthier to eat versus polished white rice.

Hint: if you bought lentils, not only could you prepare a cheap meal once a week, but lentil rehydrate EASIER and FASTER. A little carrots and onion, or if there was a collapse, a little meadow herbs and wild garlic/onion and maybe a squirrel (beaten with a meat tenderizer hammer a lot) and you'd have a fine stew to eat with that rice.

This is why I mentioned the LDS Prepping manural and the non-LDS prepper manuals in that link. They had nutritionists look at those kinds of issues plus worked with cooks plus worked with the authors to carefully prepare inexpensive cooking supplies. It makes it way easier than trying to research and guess what would be best.

For most of the year you can collect rainwater on the Eastern side of the USA. That won't work on the Western half. In addition many folks can dig a well without too much effort (the main issue being bedrock and proper sanitation so human/animal waste doesn't get into the well). Most of the local water sources that you might harvest from will be too polluted with agricultural or commercial runoff. While you can purify water without a lot of trouble, you cannot remove the chemicals that might be in it without distillation. Even then, some chemical impurities might still be in distillation without an expensive setup.

In Winter on the Eastern side of the USA, there's not a lot of rain or snow, and you could die of dehydration.

The Majority of people do not have the right kind of Clothes for outdoors activity.


You dont have the Right Pants or Shirts, Long underwear, or jackets, Socks or Gloves.



If the SHTF you cannot dress the same way you do today.


Cotton Socks Cause Blisters. Jeans retain water, and cotton t shirts will get soaked with sweat.


The rule is that: Cotton Kills.


Exposure is the number 1 reason that people die in a crisis.


They dont own a single pair of wool underwear.

They dont have synthetic pants or shirts.


Most people dont even think about fabrics.

They dont understand that Cotton holds water and wool or synthetics wick away.


Because of their lack of knowledge they will perish.


They will get wet and when night comes their clothes will not dry out like synthetics would.



Remember the rule of 3's


3 mins to suffocation

3 hours to exposure

3 days to dehydration

3 weeks to starvation



What is important here is Exposure to the Elements.


If you have Wool Socks and wool long underwear on then you have the best Baselayer system. I also have some wool liner gloves for my hands and a wool balaclava.

Then you can put over that a Thermal Midlayer.

This is you insulative layer. It also needs to be wool or maybe fleece.

It should be semi form fitting so that its close to your skin.

Then you will need an outer layer, some synthetic pants and jacket are good for this purpose.

Put on some smartwool gloves over your glove liners if needed.


This is how you Layer yourself for outdoor activity.


If its too warm you can remove the thermal mid layer, and if its really hot you can take off your baselayer too.


I keep wool t shirts for summer

And long sleeve wool shirts for winter

This needs to be pinned so more people see it and contribute more amazing advice!

Thanks OP!

5*s

Re wool:

Yes, absolutely is wool ideal in winter especially if you get wet versus all other types of cloth.

A lot of people don't buy long underwear. They don't ever use them because they think of it as old fashioned. The newer kinds are made of silk and quite comfortable and thin and still keeps you warm. It's far cheaper to turn down the thermostat and wear long underwear instead of heating the whole home in Winter.

One could be bugging out and wearing the wrong clothes, have things stolen as you were fleeing, and then only dressed in the clothing you have. If that was so, then proper clothing would be essential.

Every year I see all kinds of people walking with improper clothing since they're running into the store and don't feel like wearing a heavy coat, gloves, and hat. It's criminal when I see children without these. Do you realize how easy it is to be stuck somewhere in your car due to an accident, running out of gas, a broken car part, etc?

Break in those new boots now. The worst time to break in boots would be when you're forced to walk 10 miles a day. If you are used to walking that much, and even with broken in boots, do you think that you "tenderfoots" will manage very well?
...
When was the last time you cleaned your chimney? Chimney fires are common and terrible as it becomes a rocket stove and the air velocity accelerates and ignites the creosote and makes the loudest racket you can imagine.

You are planning on some well seasoned firewood to be delivered or collected for Autumn/Winter...right? How many cords of wood would you need if you were solely heating/cooking with wood?
...

You will for sure need that especially if you have to start eating survival foods like the freeze dried stuff.A total change in diet like that usually causes problems.People that plan to eat that stuff need to try it and see how it affects them before it gets to that point.

re Freeze Dried Foods

Let me give you a tip about these items. In order to make freeze dried foods, they eliminate the fat or else it will go rancid. This means a significant reduction in weight BUT a similar reduction in calories. That's fine on a short camping trip but not great for a survival situation.

If you look at the basic caloric requirements for a 70 kg Man, then normally one eats 2000 calories a day under fairly sedentary situations. However compare the standard military MREs to a normal diet: 4200 calories are in the three meals plus snacks! Why? You're busting your butt to get all of the work done.

If freeze dried foods could provide anything close to that, then they'd be fine but only as an offset for weight in a backpack.

In reality, while some backpackers can do short bursts with them, over at the other SHTF tips topic, I showed a video demonstrating what happens even on a two week trip on freeze dried food. The people started to go into a severe caloric deficit, got grumpy and weak, and ended up cheating by purchasing food and/or meals on their big trip.

How could you most easily repair that? Oil. Find a stable oil to carry in a backpack and deliberately add in oil to boost the calories.

Freeze dried food is EXPENSIVE. Some people make something like it. Others dehydrate their foods into jars or packets and take those. That's a much better option.

The reality is that canned goods, dehydrated foods, and freeze dried foods all have a place in prepping. If there would be a collapse, then you would expect to make hunting parties to go to where the game animals are, stay overnight, then come back. In that instance, because they're carrying so much weight, then reducing carried supplies has a role. For most of us, freeze dried foods are too pricey even if we'd like some. There are much less expensive options.

Re: antacids and diarrhea medicines

When you have a pretty fixed diet, then your body adjusts to it. Alter that up, even a little, and you begin to see some issues.

I can tell you that a lot of people are addicted to caffeine in their coffee and cola. The problem is, in a collapse you will run out of them. Those products stimulate the smooth muscle contraction that works on the digestive track muscles, particularly in the small and large intestines. As such, the shorten the length of time for food to transit and be digested, sometimes imperfectly.

Because water will be an issue, even dehydration, that slows down digestion even more, for that's the main job of the large intestine to conserve what water is in the foods. As such, almost always you end up with constipation.

When you're on a survival diet, then you're eating a lot more wild edibles and hence a lot of meadow herbs. Well those of us who can identify them. That's a problem for leafy green vegetables can cause exacerbate irritable bowel syndrome. Add in these meadow herbs, start eating grass seed porridge, stop drinking coffee, do more work, and well you're going to alternatively have diarrhea and constipation. That is until your system adjusts to it.

A major problem in even military campaign in history as well as for pioneers and in present day 3rd world countries is dysentery. It can be caused by bad water, either bacteria in it is too high and you improperly purified it (if you bothered at all for maybe you have no fire, no chlorine, no pot, etc to clean it), or it's caused by amoebic dysentery most likely from a rotting creature that's in the water source somewhere and polluting it. It might be caused by animal/fish/reptile manures as well.

This means it is very common to have dyssentery, and when the body detects it, it contracts the smooth muscles of the small intestine, even blocks certain ion channels such that water is not able to be reabsorbed in the large intestine. This is bad all the way around. Always purify water before drinking it.

If you had a case then you'd need not only immodium (loperamide) after most of the pathogen was passed, but you truly need to determine if it's bacterial if serious and then need antibiotics like: trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (Bactrim, Septra), nalidixic acid (NegGram), or ciprofloxacin (Cipro, Ciloxan). If it's amoebic then you need: diloxanide furoate (Diloxide), iodoquinol (Diquinol, Yodoxin), and metronidazole (Flagyl).

Will you have those? Not very likely. Don't risk eating contaminated water. Under collapse conditions without doctors and medical centers or clinics, then you could easily die.

Reminder: always thoroughly cook all meat well-done in a collapse for the bacterial count is likely HIGH from improper butchering.

Just one fat Jammy Pac is my prep

I'm going to where
The people all dance,
With their big long arms,
And a peach in their pants.
Picking fruit from the sky,
As the demon ship,
Goes passing them by.

One thing that I see that hasn't been covered is planning.

You need to have a plan and a back up plan. And those plans need to have back up plans.

Keep in mind that any doom-type situation will be fluid and perhaps rapidly changing.

Will you bug out or hunker down?

Is you're home easily defendable or can a small group of zombies walk right through taking whatever they want?

If you bug out, where would you go?

I live in Tucson, and literally half of the city is planning on going up Mt. Lemmon when the SHTF. I can see it now... 400 thousand people trying to drive up a narrow two lane mountain road....

Obviously, I am not going there.

Constantly evaluate and reevaluate.

Remember the 5 'P's... Proper Planning Prevent Poor Performance.

Well said... ^^^^

It seems backwards but wool can be cooler than cotton in the summer.

Because of the wicking properties of the wool it evaporates the sweat and the evaporation brings a cooling effect.


This is why a thin wool shirt is superior to cotton.


Synthetics are good for wicking too, but they tend to carry Body Odor, while wool does not.


Synthetics are cheaper but during a SHTF scenario you will be a smelly guy.

But the guy wearing wool will not smell as bad, as fast.

Thank you for the comments & replies everyone

Another life saver may be can beef broth, chicken broth, nice to have to add to rice and beans and not having to use your water. Also check dates on cans, some really go far out, others are in 6 months. Good luck everyone.

Great thread and great lists. I saw a couple things I need to pick up, including another set of wool socks and wool gloves.

Take a few extra bucks and go hit a military surplus store.

You'll find all kinds of cool things you'll want/need when you see 'em.

Ever see those little solar lights along sidewalks? Dump the candles and buy those... Set them out during the day to recharge and bring them in at night... Water water water should be your number one concern... About a half gallon per person per day... If you cant store enough find a good source... boiling and bleach is ok but a good water filter is best... Rice dried beans and pasta... instant spuds will all store for long periods of time... start your canned goods storage by shooting for a weeks worth... Then two weeks etc... Make a plan with your loved ones... Kids especially... If this happens while you're at school... this is where you go... I'll meet you here... or make your way to this location along the stream... etc... Remember that everyone who isn't prepping will want you to share or simply just steal from you... get a weapon... a .22 lr is easily carried and can take small critters for food... Every ones situation is different... If you live in the city verses the country... Your personal situation will determine the most important items that you need... My suggestion... Go a weekend without electricity... try to make some meals... that will show you most of the areas you are lacking... Good luck.

Some items for self-defense, maybe? Some wasp spray by the door to deter unwanted "guests." Shoots 15 feet and would send someone to the hospital if it got in their eyes. A firearm (or more). I carry a 2,000,000 watt taser in my purse. It only cost $40.

Anyone else keep a nail gun handy?

May I suggest get some coconut oil. Thousand of uses for it. They sell it at walmart in the vitamin section.

[link to www.coconutresearchcenter.org]

Also if you haven't get a few large boxes of baking soda.

oil of oregano
lavender oil
tea tree oil
vitamin D
ginger

I can go on and on,but this is the basics. Best wishes.

weapons, to defend yourself.

Thanks for the pin mods! :)

Ruger SBH 44 Magnum, nuff said