MSE Blog: MoneySaving for Doomsday

Former_MSE_Helen

Hi all, this is a thread to discuss the MSE blog:

MoneySaving for Doomsday

"I’ve discovered Doomsday Preppers, a programme about American families so concerned the world is going to end at any moment, they are preparing now to survive the fallout...."

abailey54

I absolutely loved watching this programme, particularly the episodes about food storing.

I also thought it was a good way of saving money and thought it would be good to start prepping - not for the apocolypse, but for losing a job, or having an unexpected large payment to make. I'm pretty sure that a lot of people on here already do the food side of things for prepping, but just don't think of it in that way

I'm sure that the answer to my scenarios would be to put money by each month but in our house we're appalling at doing that sort of thing. But once you've bought a bargain, you've got it stored. Presumably you'll then eat/use it later when its price has inflated

I got such a warm cosy feeling from some of the episodes, but did feel like it would be hard work rotating some of the size of stock that some of them have (apart from a psychiatrist, who didn't seem to mind throwing away £ks of medication, doesn't really save money if you just throw away things you've stored).

One lady had solar cookers in her garden - love that idea!

They seemed to jar up loads of meat - do we do that in this country? I've never noticed jars of meat in the shop

Clowance

surely if the world is going to end, we would be better off blowing the lot! I have never understood the mentality of the people with nuclear bunkers - even if they survive several years, what would they come out to at the end of it? It would surely be better to die in the blast and get it over with.
Didn't see the program though so may have got wrong end of stick.

Ken68

I bought a gas canister camping stove about twenty years, thinking it would be handy for when the electric goes off.
The electric has never gone off for any length of time to warrant using the thing. A bit rusty now, is it safe to have around!!!.
Should I take it upstairs in case of flooding in the ground floor.!!!
Decisions decisions.

ALIBOBSY

I watched both the UK and US versions of these prepper programmes and enjoyed them. I do think though that the programme makers have deliberately filmed people from the angle of trying to make them look like there are crazy.

I look at "prepping" as a kind of insurance, like any other. I buy and stock up on foods/household goods when on offer as an insurance against higher prices and variations in income-self employed. Also when we had all that snow, in the last 2 years we could stay in and not have to risk travelling in it.

We also live in a semi rural area with alot of overhead electric wires, so its quite common to get power cuts so we have wind up torches and a rechargeable lantern, plus candles of course.

TBH you only have to look at something like Sandy in the US to see how nature can hit an area suddenly, with little warning and how long it can take for things to get back to "normal".

The chances of the world as we know it ending are slim and like another poster said especially a nuclear war it may not be worth surviving. But there are a number of things that can and could happen that are more likely and in come cases virtually a certainty-food prices shooting up, snow at some point.
You assess the risks and make your choice as to how much you want to cover your self against things going wrong.

Some people have house insurance, some don't.

The only thing I know for certain is I would much rather rely on myself than the faint faith that the "powers that be" would sort it out-they do their best, but help can end up spread very thinly in a crisis.

Ali x

LillaLoves_2

I've only ever thought about prepping as an apocalyptic thing, which I though was pointless as what happens when your supplies run out and you are left to starve to death etc!
But I might start prepping in case of redundancy or a bad month. Although I noticed on the programme they are often prepping for financial collapse and every one going crazy and not the actual end of the world. So it might be worth preparing for stuff like that, I might start collecting silver in case. Possibly take a survival course (this would be more for fun, I can imaging going with OH and friends).

zaber86

Financial Collapse does seem a possibility if you watch the movie "The End of the Road" by 100thmonkeyfilms

Also there's a book called "How to invest in gold and silver, by rich dad's adviser - Kevin McElroy"

I've began hedging myself against this possibility, I hope it doesn't happen but am not a fool to think that it can't. Need a lot more time to pay down some debt though unfortunately.

blackburn_w

I bulk buy things on offer anyway, so we have a shed half full, sure we could go a few months with just buying milk and bread..... (hmm should buy more flour make my own)

Quasar

I think knowing how to preserve food and generally how to make do is a skill worth having, whether times are good or bad. Good blog, I shall certainly keep up with it.