The Prepping Thread - A Newer Beginning ;)

CCW007

MingVase said:

Several tin openers, spare gas for the camping stove and plenty of matches 

Good call on the tin openers thank you, I've only got one which could be disastrous if anything happened to it. Got lots of matches and one of those flint fire starters.  Will check gas stock when we try the stove but I'm sure we have two bottles.

CCW007

boultdj said:

Batteries for radio, solar charger for mobile phone, wind up radio/ torch are other's that can be helpful.

Hmm, don't actually have a radio here so that's a good idea, thanks.

boultdj

Radios are good for passing on information, which is why I've got the wind up one, they are light weight so easy to carry around with you. 
The thing I'm now thinking about is why the power cuts? Just local? National? One offs? Regular? Or do people think like the 70's with power at set times?
How would we cope with less electric kitchen equipment?  How many of us use bread makers, slow cookers, air fryers, toasters, kettles, drip coffee makers.  
The camping stoves can do so much, but if everyone has to use them would you be able to get hold of gas canisters?
Good question to get us thinking about such things CCW007, and I know you said as a one off, but as you can see my thinking goes off at a tangent.

MingVase

It's never a bad thing to learn to do without,  because for one reason or another that thing you depend on might one day not be there. I think that sentence is a wee bit off somehow lol but do you know what I mean? And if nothing else it might cut your bills down a bit if you dont use gadgets.

dreaming

MingVase said:

It's never a bad thing to learn to do without,  because for one reason or another that thing you depend on might one day not be there. I think that sentence is a wee bit off somehow lol but do you know what I mean? And if nothing else it might cut your bills down a bit if you dont use gadgets.

I don't think your sentence is a bit off at all. The main reason I am fairly thrity now is because I lived through relative poverty as a child in the 50s, then soaring mortgage rates with a young family -  yes and the power cuts of the 70s, then being more comfortable for a while but being left with lots of debt when my marriage broke up . So I never quite trust that the way things are today will be the same tomorrow, and that is probably more true now than it ever has been. I do use an electric can-opener due to arthritis but keep 2 manual ones just in case, and have a few wind-up torches round the house as well. I am also aware that there are quite a number of people who live without power (even in the "civilised" world) due to being unable to afford to top up the electricity meter at the end of the month. So at the moment, although I have tried to look ahead to further lockdowns or Brexit supply problems and make what provisions I can for those (and I am grateful that I am able to) I am also trying to continue to suppport foodbanks and homeless charities as seems pretty inevitable that there is going to be a huge increase in unemployment over the next few years, and I think many people will have to get used to going without things they may have taken for granted.

GreyQueen

Good thoughts to have. Just throwing this out there;

1. If you have a freezer or f.freezer, look at its instructions and see how long it maintains a safe temperature for frozen food with no power. For my 50 litre countertop model, this is a surprising 17 hours. This could be handy in short powercuts as well as estimating the safety of your frozen goods if the appliance dies.

2. An old backpackers' trick is to cook pasta in soup. If you can get the very tiny shell pasta, this is easy enough. But standard size pasta can be broken up eg in a placcy bag with a rolling pin. Perhaps some mini or broken up pasta could be prepped ahead of time? Pasta in soup makes a hearty one pot meal. You can even add a bit of extra water to make up for what the pasta will take out of the soup as it re-hydrates.

3. Pasta and rice can be cooked passively, by bringing the water to a rolling boil, adding them, bringing the boil up again then turning off the power and leaving with the lid on.

4. If you have an open fire, or are making a camp fire, you can bake bread quickly and easily. Roll the dough into sausages between your palms and wind around peeled sticks, prop over the flames and turn occasionally.

5. In your own kitchen, experiment with using a fraction of your usual prep space and usual equipment, and a fraction of the water, and see how it goes. Tell yourself that all the equipment doesn't exist, you just have these few bits, how will you manage?

elaine241

I would add fire lighters to the list as logs just sometimes don't want to light. I collect the pinecones from the trees in the garden as when dried they help the fire start. I keep the ends of candles, melt them down and then dip the cones in these. I also keep a tub of dryer lint as all good preppers do :-)
I would also add blankets/throws etc as if its cold and you are only heating one room you feel more comfy snuggled up. I have built up a collection of oil lamps that are all fully functioning so I would add fuel for these too if you have them.  I would also add hot water bottles as going to bed like wee willie winkie with a candle and getting into a freezing bed is no fun!
I have stored quite a few gas canisters in the shed as the camping stove seems to go through a canister quite quickly. I have a small kettle I leave on the wood burner so that we have warm water or boiling water if we rev the fire up. Another note add a couple of bags of coal to your fuel store as leaving the fire in overnight means the house is a lot warmer and the fire easier to get started again in the morning or if you need to go out for anything for a couple of hours.
Add things to do if the power is out. I am great with a book but not everyone is. An audio book would help to have something to listen to if you are going about housework. Don't forget chocolate, wine and anything else you love to eat or drink as during the power cut the calories don't count!

elaine241

On another note, I have just picked kale ( sorry!), beetroot , carrots and potatoes from the garden, added frozen runner beans and some stewed apples for crumble for todays dinner. I grabbed some ex large chickens the other day on offer in L*dl. All veg will have come from the garden. My hens have gone into moult but I added five extra hens from the battery unit who are laying so we had 4 poached eggs for breakfast. 

CCW007

boultdj said:

Radios are good for passing on information, which is why I've got the wind up one, they are light weight so easy to carry around with you. 
The thing I'm now thinking about is why the power cuts? Just local? National? One offs? Regular? Or do people think like the 70's with power at set times?
How would we cope with less electric kitchen equipment?  How many of us use bread makers, slow cookers, air fryers, toasters, kettles, drip coffee makers.  
The camping stoves can do so much, but if everyone has to use them would you be able to get hold of gas canisters?
Good question to get us thinking about such things CCW007, and I know you said as a one off, but as you can see my thinking goes off at a tangent.

Really interesting questions!  I was thinking more of one-off local power cuts in the first instance because that seems easiest to prep for but I guess I need to consider all those scenarios.  Because of the energy tariff I'm on, there is a premium rate for "peak" time between 16.00 and 19.00, so I'm used to considering my energy use and planning accordingly (we rarely eat dinner between those times) but I also need to consider not having any power.

The bread machine was something I did think about - I could make flat breads in a frying pan on the camping stove but how would I get a recipe if there was no broadband and what happens if it's horrible?  Something to try out in advance as well.

At my last house we did have a day long power cut and survived quite well - one neighbour was amused to find us boiling the ghillie kettle for a pot of tea and having soup and toast cooked on the "old" camping stove" but it was in summer and the power was back on before it was dark.  Our next door neighbours went out for the day because their kids were so bored with nothing to do (no games console) so entertainment is something to think about.

For longer term use, when we moved in here and had no cooker we used the camping stove and a gas cannister lasted a few weeks but sourcing it if there were longer term, rolling power cuts etc might be more of a problem.

I'm going to try dehydrating more meals and see how they store and rehydrate - and also if we like them, no point doing it if we don't enjoy the end product.

MingVase (can't multi quote!) I completely agree.  I worry I rely on gadgets too much and how would I cope if they weren't available?  Actually one of my biggest concerns is access to knowledge and information if I had issues accessing the internet so I think I need to keep hard copies of important information.

MingVase

Oh I forgot about a HBW - essential prep yes!