Preparedness for when

D&DD

Morning all


oooh bouncing bubsies !! What a lovely name BB Congrats!


I'm a bit under the cosh timewise today so will catch up later have bookmarked the posts to read when I get 5 mins very interesting about the crime figs Thrifty! Hope your Mum is feeling better today and Ali's Dad XX

Frugalsod

Butterfly_Brain wrote: »

This makes me think how many with families who have young babies and children have prepped for them as well as their pets?

I think her bug out bag will be filled with lots of nappies. :beer:

Congratulations as well.

[Deleted User]

Frugalsod wrote: »

I think her bug out bag will be filled with lots of nappies.

Or, if they're American, diapers.

mardatha

The Third Day came from amazon this morning and I'm really enjoying it so far. Was that one of yours D3 or was it GQ? Either way I like it so ta.

jk0

I have been watching an interesting Italian 9/11 documentary today:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QU961SGps8g

Nearly two hours, but worth watching as it gives a slightly different slant on it to our Anglo-centric view.

GreyQueen

mardatha wrote: »

The Third Day came from amazon this morning and I'm really enjoying it so far. Was that one of yours D3 or was it GQ? Either way I like it so ta.

Must have been D3, I've never heard of it. Who's the author?

I've had a mass FB bakethon (OK, did 3 at once) and have allowed two to cool, wrapped in clingfilm and frozen. Once thawed, each one will be halved and then heated through in the bain marie part of my stacking steamer pan. Very efficient use of energy, those thinks.

I only cook on gas, use one unit per month. My block of flats is hooked to a communal boiler house, for which we pay a few hundred a year, and that's where the heat and hot water comes from. Not that you'd suffer too badly here in winter with no heat as it'd teeny-tiny and very well-insulated.

Tomorrow's preptastic plans involve sowing leeks, early carrots and beetroots and if there's any juice left over after that, I shall do some weeding. My old Dad, a very experienced veggie gardener, always says in Spring and Summer that if time is scarce, get the hoe out. You can massively discourage an awful lot of weeds in 30 mins with a hoe.

He's particularly fond of the small-bladed swan necked hoe I keep on the allotment. £1 from a bootfair and, he reckons, sharp enough to shave with. You can show weeds cold steel in a hurry with that thing, and then rasp the blade up with a carborundum stone afterwards.

Always leave the garden tools clean and sharp, lovely peeps, you want to be able to grab and get on with it in a hurry if needed.

Now, all we need is some good weather and I'm cleared for gardening bliss. And I must go for a cherry-blossom ramble around the city as they're particularly fetching at this time of year. GQ xx

Frugalsod

One thing that we should all look at is learning a new DIY skill. Even if it is simply to just maintain your home better and cheaper. This summer I will be cleaning all the windows seals so that I get rid of the salt that has clogged in there. I did this last summer and over the winter I really noticed the lack of draughts compared to my first winter here.

I am also trying to loosen up all the radiator taps as they have barely been changed by previous tenants so it will allow me to control the heating better.

Finally I am looking into the idea of getting some tools and learning to make some simple furniture, rather than buying any.

jk0

Frugalsod wrote: »

One thing that we should all look at is learning a new DIY skill. Even if it is simply to just maintain your home better and cheaper. This summer I will be cleaning all the windows seals so that I get rid of the salt that has clogged in there. I did this last summer and over the winter I really noticed the lack of draughts compared to my first winter here.

I am also trying to loosen up all the radiator taps as they have barely been changed by previous tenants so it will allow me to control the heating better.

Finally I am looking into the idea of getting some tools and learning to make some simple furniture, rather than buying any.

Very good idea about the DIY skills. I seem to have one forced upon me every year by my tenants. Before we got the Polish plumbers, you could not get one for love nor money, so I had to learn to do most plumbing jobs myself.

A good plan is to watch the tradesman next time you have a job done. Then, if you think you could do the job yourself the next time, do so.

Regarding the radiators, have you tried a little squirt of WD40? I wouldn't be without a can in the car, and at home.

Why is there salt on the windows? Do they get lashed by the sea?

GreyQueen

I suffer from Galloping Curiousity, always have, so tend to hover and ask questions whenever I get a chance. I want to know what, how and why. You never know when something bit of info acquired at random will be useful. I also have a fascination with household manuals and have done since a child.

For example, let's say that your home has uPVC double glazing. Do you service these windows? Did you know that they needed any attention beyond cleaning them? I found out that the moving parts should be lubricated by 3-in1 oil but WD40 is a no-no. 3-in-1 was available in little cans with a straw, like WD40 in £land at the time.

Cue windows oiled. A window which isn't oiled could jam, you could end up using excessive force and having a broken or detached handle.

sorryImoved, if 'uPVC' is meaningless to you, over here the majority of window upgrades are to plastic-framed (the uPVC bit) double-glazing. It's ususally white inside and out, although you can get it with wood-effect exteriors. They're sealed units with a bit of dead air between the panes to keep the cold out.

Special historical buildings, called 'listed buildings' can't have them. Listed buidlings are a class of their own. We have a lot of history standing around and 600 year old houses in continuous occupation aren't at all uncommon. Nan's village is heaving with them. My inner city neighbourhood has some timbered houses of a similar vintage, too.

I'm continuing to discreetly prep. Not buying too much at one time so that cashiers notice it, and not buying from the same store or batch. Say you bought a big chunk of tinned goods at one time and they had a fault. If the S hasn't HTF, you've lost money and been inconvenienced. If it has, and you're relying on said supplies to keep yourself fed, you could be in big big trouble.

Si_Clist

GreyQueen wrote: »

I found out that the moving parts should be lubricated by 3-in1 oil but WD40 is a no-no.

Well ... very much FWIW, the uPVC windows in our place are of two different makes, installed by different firms, and we were specifically told by both installers to use either WD-40 or preferably GT85 once a year on the mechanisms - never 3-in-1.

Dunno if the theory is that 3-in-1 can have an adverse effect in the longer term on uPVC, or what, but I do know that if you use it to oil your sewing machine, the day will surely come when you'll wish you hadn't :cool: