The Prepping Thread - A Newer Beginning ;)

MrsCD

Si_Clist said:

For those who have been seeing all the stories this morning telling us what the new Ofgem price cap is but who still have no idea because all they tell you is about "average bills", the figures you need to know are on the Ofgem site. For the period 1st Oct to 31st Dec they are electric 52p per kWh, gas 15p and standing charges 46p and 28p respectively.

Thank you, @Si_Clist
...I think 🤔 
My electric is 30.165 on the dearer rate and 16.476 on cheaper rate, so I'm hoping it won't go up much more than that 52p you've quoted! 

pineapple

Si_Clist said:

For those who have been seeing all the stories this morning telling us what the new Ofgem price cap is but who still have no idea because all they tell you is about "average bills", the figures you need to know are on the Ofgem site. For the period 1st Oct to 31st Dec they are electric 52p per kWh, gas 15p and standing charges 46p and 28p respectively.

Cheers. I wish they would stop with all these 'average prices'. The 'average' part doesn't always register with people and sometimes the media even misses it out. My bill shouldn't be anywhere near that but others' will be a whole lot more. I find unit prices much more useful - ie looking at it in terms of percentage increase.

For the moment I'm sticking my fingers in my ears and averting my eyes....

    

euronorris

You also have to look at your area cap, as it varies by region. And meter/payment method seems to make a difference too. For the south west, with standard meter (ie not economy 7), if I've understood it correctly, it will be:

Gas standing charge - 27.13p per day
Gas cost - 14.97p per kWh

Electric standing charge - 50.14p per day (!!!)
Electric cost - 55.15p per kWh

Based on our usage over last 12 months (which was less than the previous 12 months), we're looking at an annual bill of £3,425.62, or £285.47!!!

ariarnia

can someone recommend good camping style lanterns? we want to buy two or three to haven the house in case of power cuts (planned or unplanned) over winter. but we've been stung in the past with things bought that work fine when tested for a month but then dont work when needed.

i like the torches with the huge square batteries that seem to last forever but they all seem to be rechargeable now so priorities are holding charge once charged and put away and then being able to run all night (my daughter still doesn't like to have the house completely dark if she needs to get up in the night). light doesn't have to be too bright but enough to not accidentally fall down the stairs! other priority is something that will last a few years being in a cupboard and only being checked/charged once or twice a year. 

houseinafield

I have a couple of these https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0078ZTWP4/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&th=1
First one bought in 2017 and rarely gets checked but still working well. They take D cell batteries and are extremely bright. Maybe too bright for your needs but will come in very handy should the 'we won't be having any power cuts' power cuts materialize!  

ariarnia

thank you. i have bought one of those (reduced from the warehouse 'like new') and one of these https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B078R2F81T/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00? (also reduced) 

i probably need another one as if theres a power cut id like to have one at the top of the stairs all night plus one in our bedroom and one at the top of the stairs someone can grab to wander around the house. but i can wait until these two arrive and see if either of them are what i really need before buying a third. 

plus stocked up on some more rechargeable batteries for both sizes and some slow burn candles. i've done a mini audit and before winter hits properly i also want to get us new pillows and new jackets/boots for OH and me. hopefully that plus the stuff i've already got in and ready will put us in good stead. 

anyone else struggling with the insticnt to buy everything and anything now as almost a panic reaction to the anxiety that's going on? i keep adding things to my amazon basket thinking 'just in case' but could have spent thousands by now if id checked out with it all. am i the only one struggling with the urge to over prepare just because the waiting is horrible? i feel like a squiral in september worrying about if i have enough acorns to see me through... 

weenancyinAmerica

No - you are not the only one with squirrel tendencies now. With an ex-president threatening civil war, problems overseas, and the rising inflation rates, I am feeling it a lot here. Unfortunately have very little money to buy anything new so checking for used sources for many things, especially clothes.

bupster

anyone else struggling with the insticnt to buy everything and anything now as almost a panic reaction to the anxiety that's going on? i keep adding things to my amazon basket thinking 'just in case' but could have spent thousands by now if id checked out with it all. am i the only one struggling with the urge to over prepare just because the waiting is horrible? i feel like a squiral in september worrying about if i have enough acorns to see me through... 

I'm not a real prepper but I am thinking about prepping for winter. I have set aside £400 that I've got coming in from a bit of extra work - it would have otherwise gone to paying off debt/adding to savings. £300 of it is going into my energy account so I don't go into so much debt that they insist on my DD going up. The other £100 is for purchases.

I worked out that, given last year's energy expenditure on this year's bills, I would be spending £8 a day - if I can cut that down by a quarter by turning my heating down/off earlier (I'm hoping to save more), that's £2 a day, and my £100 will pay for itself over six weeks (ish). Spending much more than that and I'm not really saving enough to make it worthwhile. 

Short version - you can cope with anxiety *and* keep a handle on spending if you set yourself a very strict budget! 

thriftwizard

I'm worrying for those that are going over the top with panicky, ill-thought-out preps. My neighbour's just informed me that she's turning off her chest freezer (cheaper to run than an upright!) and buying an air-fryer, having also invested in a slow cooker & a smaller under-counter freezer. Fine if that suits your style of shopping & cooking! But turning off a freezer that doesn't actually cost very much to run & is likely to stay cold in power cuts is actually cutting down your options to store bargains & gluts & keep your household going if for some reason you can't get to the shops... not to mention the idea of buying stuff to save money is a bit of a red flag, although it may be a great investment in the long term. Or not... I've lost count of the money-saving/labour-saving gadgets I've given away!

I do own & frequently use two big slow-cookers (one for omnivores, one veggie-friendly!) but have never used an air-fryer, though I'm not set against them. I'm just not convinced that they'd work for a larger household (still 4/5 living here) & our style of cooking, i.e. a couple of big "foundation" dishes at weekends (when we're often up to 8/9, sometimes more) usually a roast or slow-cooked ham & a big chilli/curry/biryani sort of thing, then quick & easy leftover & stir-fry dishes cooked mostly on the (gas) hob for the rest of the week. Not to mention the batch-baking; we're often baking two or three different things (say bread, choux pastry, savoury flapjacks, then fruit cake for example) at the same time or staggered according to oven heat. I suspect that an air-fryer would need to be on for several hours to bake the same quantities, which are often being consumed outside our household - for charity, or as a gift - which might cancel out the savings. 

But I have invested in some Le Parfait jars & will attempt some water-bath canning (or bottling as we used to call it!) to save some of this year's bounteous apple crop & foraged blackberries, now I'm short of (chest) freezer space, having repurposed our ancient chest-freezer as a grain store; the other one's already full. And I'm also re-purposing textile scraps to make a quilted door-curtain to keep heat in our living room should push really come to shove; I've already announced that the heating will only be on for a couple of hours, morning & evening (with the thermostat at 17) to keep the damp at bay. Also investigating lining the conservatory roof with space blankets stuck onto the usual bubble-wrap; DD1's energy-advisor boyfriend approves! But it will be a challenge...

cuddlymarm

I find my air frier is ok for 2 but not big enough for when there are more of us. I have two slow cookers, one large, one small, a microwave and a health grill and must really get organised with them as I’ve just started to work full time. So I aim to menu plan so that meals merge into each other, cooking veg for two days at a time and larger amounts of meat that can cover a few meals.
The up side of having the oven on is that it warms the living room too as it’s a kitchen / living room.