The Prepping Thread - A Newer Beginning ;)

Muppet_194

thriftwizard said:

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...

Sorry I don’t know how to make a bit of someone’s text bold, I’m still new here ! Please could you tell me more about the bubble wrap/space blanket conservatory roof lining if you don’t mind. How to you fix it and do you get condensation or mould up there by spring? I think loads of our heat escapes from the conservatory roof, we have to use the room all year round as it’s our lounge diner. Our previous lounge is now a downstairs bedroom - long story! 

houseinafield

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. 

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... 

We have a few wind up torches that we leave around the house and always keep one by the bed. Cheaper than batteries. Ours are years old and I can't find them on amazon now but there's plenty of cheap alternatives there. 

I'm a great one for lists. I've been prepping for years so I'm more or less ready for anything (probably spoken too soon!) but I occasionally go through my list and check that if there's a power cut do I have what I need to cook a meal, light the room I'm in, keep me entertained if its an extended outage (ie kindle fully charged), keep us warm? If for some reason the water is cut off do I have enough stored to drink, to wash with (wet wipes?), wash dishes (paper plates?).  Inflation has been my number one concern and that's the thing I've been prepping for, for years. Food, household goods and toiletries. We know inflation is a given so I don't think you can over prepare when it comes to buying what you already use and know you will buy again once you've run out. Prepping for just in case, especially since I think we all feel like it MUST be done before October, could result in spending money on things you don't really need and it's probably impossible to cover every eventuality. Goes without saying it needs to fit in with your budget.

Everyone here is so helpful and if it would help you to decide whether or not you need something, ask here first 

Si_Clist

Coffeeholics stand by for another big price rise before long due mainly to covid + transport costs + drought and frost in Brazil ...

thriftwizard

@Muppet_194, our L-shaped conservatory is on the large/high side, so what we currently do is suspend wide sheets of bubblewrap from the two ridges down to net-curtain wires that run right around the eaves. Another "tranch" of bubblewrap hangs from the net-curtain wires down to the windowsills, and there's voile hung in front of that too. The whole effect is a bit like a tent made of bubblewrap! There's sometimes a little mould on the windows when we remove it all in spring, but on the whole it's clear of the roof & windows so some air is still circulating. (My ex-neighbour had a net of LED fairylights above her bubblewrap & the effect was quite magical; however neither of our conservatories is hermetically sealed, therefore damp is not quite so much of a hazard. Also, her OH is a professional builder/handyman & wouldn't have permitted anything dangerous.) The idea this year is that we will "stick" trimmed space blankets to the roof sheets; it will cut down the light, but also the heat loss. I'm not clear yet whether they'll be on our side or the roof side; I'll be using 505 spray or something similar to attach them. I'll report back!

Muppet_194

thriftwizard said:

@Muppet_194, our L-shaped conservatory is on the large/high side, so what we currently do is suspend wide sheets of bubblewrap from the two ridges down to net-curtain wires that run right around the eaves. Another "tranch" of bubblewrap hangs from the net-curtain wires down to the windowsills, and there's voile hung in front of that too. The whole effect is a bit like a tent made of bubblewrap! There's sometimes a little mould on the windows when we remove it all in spring, but on the whole it's clear of the roof & windows so some air is still circulating. (My ex-neighbour had a net of LED fairylights above her bubblewrap & the effect was quite magical; however neither of our conservatories is hermetically sealed, therefore damp is not quite so much of a hazard. Also, her OH is a professional builder/handyman & wouldn't have permitted anything dangerous.) The idea this year is that we will "stick" trimmed space blankets to the roof sheets; it will cut down the light, but also the heat loss. I'm not clear yet whether they'll be on our side or the roof side; I'll be using 505 spray or something similar to attach them. I'll report back!

That’s fantastic thanks 😊 you’ve inspired me ! 

pineapple

I'm thinking of getting a thermal cooker. I tried a diy arrangement but found it a bit of a faff. Plus as I get chills due to my health, I've ordered a heated throw. Hopefully it will save on the heating. The one I wanted seemed to be selling out. Maybe we'll get a run on throws! 
I'm all electric - apart from the multifuel stove. In an emergency, I can always cook on that. But I also got a little camping gaz stove for use outside.

RAS

Anyone needing short pasta and near a store, my local L**l currently has small stocks of penne at 32p. Got a bag and several for the food bank this evening.

oceanspirit

It seems that firewood and wood burning stoves are the new toilet roll!  I had my usual size annual delivery at the weekend and the chap told me of people buying several van loads instead of their usual delivery size, people stopping him at traffic lights to ask for his phone no to order, tales of theft from his yard and even a whole delivery being stolen off a driveway within an hour of being delivered.  

The local pub had an attempt on its oil tank recently, in broad daylight and during pub opening hours.  This is supposedly a low crime area so goodness only knows what is happening elsewhere.

We managed to get most of mine put away and what was left on the driveway overnight is still there - it will be put away today.

So, make sure your fuel, preps and home are extra secure this winter.

Auntycaz

RAS said:

Anyone needing short pasta and near a store, my local L**l currently has small stocks of penne at 32p. Got a bag and several for the food bank this evening.

I've popped some packets of instant mash in the basket for the food bank . Its quick and easy to prepare even if you don't have proper cooking facilities as long as you have a kettle. 

sammy_kaye18

oceanspirit said:

It seems that firewood and wood burning stoves are the new toilet roll!  I had my usual size annual delivery at the weekend and the chap told me of people buying several van loads instead of their usual delivery size, people stopping him at traffic lights to ask for his phone no to order, tales of theft from his yard and even a whole delivery being stolen off a driveway within an hour of being delivered.  

The local pub had an attempt on its oil tank recently, in broad daylight and during pub opening hours.  This is supposedly a low crime area so goodness only knows what is happening elsewhere.

We managed to get most of mine put away and what was left on the driveway overnight is still there - it will be put away today.

So, make sure your fuel, preps and home are extra secure this winter.

So sad. 
We were away for a few days before the weekend and left the kids and dogs at home. (18 & 12 and in laws live literally 100 yards from us) but all I could see on my FB feed was that the street over from us had had people in balaclavas trying peoples cars and front doors. 
I have just added twin security lights to my amazon wishlist (one to put down the side of the house which is really dark in the evening, and one to go on our shed) and will get them as soon as possible, and my son is looking to build me a new gate for the front garden and then I will put the old one down the side of the house. 
I was debating whether to get a 'Beware of the dog' sign to hopefully act as deterrent as well (they dont know my dogs are wimps) but then I dont want to advertise I have dogs with all the dog thefts that seem to be about as well.