Preparedness for when

[Deleted User]

Today in Mr.Ts pharmacy I picked up 2 packs of 2 single use handwarmers that say they will last up to 10 hours each for 50p each pair. I think they would be very comforting not used as handwarmers but in a SHTF situation when it was very cold or you were wet and cold to curl up in a sleeping bag and pop one of these down to foot level and hold it between your feet to warm you up if you couldn't sleep due to cold feet. That's one for each of the BOBs.

Frugalsod

GreyQueen wrote: »

Re polytunnels and plastics in general, they wouldn't be a longterm solution in a post-oil world as the plastic would photo-degrade and if you couldn't replace it.........glass would be longer lasting but obviously subject to breakages. Anyone with the experience to estimate the lifespan of polytunnel plastic? I'm expecting that commercial tunnels would last longer as they'd likely have a stronger grade of plastic.

I was actually thinking if you could get a spare and keep it out of the sun somewhere. I agree long term glass is the solution but that would be expensive.

Frugalsod

ragz wrote: »

Margarine... is not food! http://therealfoodguide.com/what-is-margarine-and-why-is-it-bad-for-you/

I stopped using margarine a couple of years ago when I switched to my "clean cooking" regime. So out with margarine, ready meals and anything processed. Over time my diet has really stripped out all the E numbers and additives. Last night while watching Channel 4's healthiest diets I could see how few processed items good diets had and mine is probably very close to the scandinavian diets which were all near the very top.

elaine241

Hello All

Just been wizzing through the daily free Kindle books email and spotted a "Survival Pocket App" that looks on the surface that it could be useful. I havent had chance to have a good look but it has chapters on lots of prepper areas inc survival tips, survival planning and gear, first aid, water, food, shelter, hunting, fire starting etc It claims to consolidate self reliance skills and info into one app, combining what previous generations knew and relied on to live. It says that our generation need to learn these skills, live more healthily, save money and live "in harmony " with nature, peace man! LOL:rotfl:
It makes quite impressive claims but not sure how comprehensive it will be., but then again the more info you have the better.
I get the free book email and so far have downloaded sooooooo many books that I will probably miss TEOTWAWKI as I will have my nose firmly in a book! BB as u are the go to guru on this thread for all things techy any suggestions for a good solar charger for my kindle/Hudl? I will need one when the SHTF as there is so much info on them, and yes I will make a faraday cage for my kindle like the good prepper I am!

paidinchickens

We had one of those food grade containers on the allotment when we moved in which had "food grade" sunflower oil in. It's like thick, yellow, smelly treacle and I will never touch margarine or processed oil again. It was one of the most rancid things I have ever smelt and it was still in date..........yuck!

VJsmum

Hello all, back from Glastonbury - I survived the mud

Here is what I learned from a SHTF perspective

That Kelly Kettles are ace but do take some effort to keep the fire going
That pitching your tent on a slope means you have to hoik yourself up several times each night
That a three man tent is only big enough for two
That She wees are amazing and that comfort (the fabric softener) isn't called that for nothing, when the bottle is used in conjunction with a shewee :rotfl: or if you are a bloke
Compost toilets are very effective
Don't pitch your tent within a fences height of a fence - cos if some idiot jumps the fence and the whole thing falls down - it falls on your tent :eek: the tent, amazingly, was undamaged
That a decent raincoat / cagoule is worth the money. Mine was a cheap one, not really up to the job, DS had a Hally Hansen one which was fine.
Walking in wellies for 12 hours over three days kills your feet
When it is wet and muddy you need something decent to sit on - we had chairs but I would consider a little three cornered stool (pound shop have them) would slip nicely into a BOB.
Self inflating mats are amazing
A decent pillow is a wonderful thing
Solar showers are good if you can shower during the day or early evening, but are cold in the morning.
You can wash yourself very effectively with a very small bowl of water and a facecloth
That one of the first things you miss if you don't have it is soap.


Last but not least, these

Bedsit_Bob wrote: »

Hence why I have two of these.

and one of these.

Can explode if not used properly. The tent next to ours had lit one directly on the grass. I had a fleeting thought of "not sure that should be on the grass like that". Next thing , screams from the two ladies and the blessed thing is on fire. Luckily, we had a collapsible 10l water container by our door and it was full, so I grabbed it and between us we managed to put the fire out :T, screaming at them to get out anyone still in the tent - luckily there wasn't. I think what happened was that the flame from the burner set fire to the grass underneath it. That spread to the canister, which exploded. I think most of the fire was the gas burning but it could easily have caught the tent :eek:

Onto other things

I am also trying clean eating, my middle aged spread has reduced considerably.:T. I have also cut out / down on wheat and sugar, I feel so much better and weigh less than I have for some time :T

daz378

so good to hear today my dad telling me to get some candles.... he d been reading the papers , warning of power cuts if we have a bad winter.... i said dont worry i have back up facilities

nuatha

VJsmum wrote: »

Hello all, back from Glastonbury - I survived the mud

Here is what I learned from a SHTF perspective

That Kelly Kettles are ace but do take some effort to keep the fire going
That pitching your tent on a slope means you have to hoik yourself up several times each night

A mate of mine tells the tale of waking up to find all his gear had been nicked.
He had a sleeping bag and no clothes, doing his best to remain "decent" he set off up the path for a good half mile before he found his tent and gear as he'd pitched them. Slope's are often not the best place to camp.
I bivvied on a sloping path, a storm broke through the night and I woke to a bivvy bag half full of water and a drenched sleeping bag.
[/quote]
That a three man tent is only big enough for two
[/quote]
Try a one man tent, there's more room in a coffin

Don't pitch your tent within a fences height of a fence - cos if some idiot jumps the fence and the whole thing falls down - it falls on your tent :eek: the tent, amazingly, was undamaged

Close guys save lots of accidents, glow in the dark guylines are wonderful in a festival situation, though less discrete in a wild situation.

That a decent raincoat / cagoule is worth the money. Mine was a cheap one, not really up to the job, DS had a Hally Hansen one which was fine.
Walking in wellies for 12 hours over three days kills your feet

A good set of waterproofs is really worth having, I highly recommend Goretex or similar, as these breathe (when I first started climbing and hill walking, the waterproofs could leave you soaked from condensation on wet days).
I also recommend walking boots and a set of gaiters rather than wellies for festivals and the like. Far kinder on the feet.

Wise words regarding the stoves - ensuring there is nothing that can catch the flames, should be the first thing done when setting up a cooking area - unfortunately there seems to be a lot of people at festivals who have no idea about camping basics - I've seen several attempts at barbecues inside tents.

Frugalsod

One of the things that I discovered by clean cooking was that as I stripped out the ready prepared items the sugar and salt levels fell considerably, as most items had excess sugar and salt to start with. So shop bought apple pies have far more sugar than a home made apple pie. Next year I will be buying a dehydrator and will start making my own bran and cornflake cereals and I suspect that will cut even more sugar and salt out of my diet. So even though I eat as much bread as I have before the quality of my food has soared, and home made pasta has no added sugar unlike many dried pasta.

I really need to take my clean cooking further and avoid the YS puddings as well. That is my current weakness.

fuddle

Hmm scandinavian cooking. I will look into that Frugalsod. I'm a 'back to nature' kinda girl with my food and although I can't call myself 100% pure with it we try very hard. I am favouring Italin cookery at the moment - simple, cheap, wholesome and don't need a vast variety of different ingredients.

Eldest DD has come asking if there is going to be a WW3 because of the troubles in Iraq and that so many people hate British people. I didn't know what to say so have dodged the question. I want her to be mindful that anything can happen at anytime from any corner of the world but I don't want to scare her. I'm thinking the best course of action is to use the WW2 cook book (We'll eat again) as a base for talking about coping in WW2.

Talking about how we really want to live our life a few pages back I would like to say that I wouldn't want DH or I to have to work and be paid for our labour but to work in order to be self sufficient in our lives... but I would like to have money behind us because being a crofter fan I know that that way of life is extremely difficult. I think it's ludicrous that as a society we are a million miles away from even dipping our toes in self sufficiency.