The Prepping Thread - A Newer Beginning ;)

ZsaZsa

Happy_Sloth said:

I was wondering if anyone could help,  i've always been a bit of a prepper, i have a basement full of stuff that goes along way beyond just food..  

One thing i've never quite managed to crack is my inventory of food.  In an ideal world want enough food to last 6 months at all time.. i *THINK* i have roughly 4 months atm because we have run some of it down recently because of financial troubles.  

How do other people manage their stock levels?  Ideally i want a "desired amount" of each item which is based on a 6 month supply and an easy way of tracking the actual stock.  

Currently i use the container method.. which basically just means each item on my shelf has a space, when the space is low/empty i buy more.  But it's by no means been calculated v's need... i THINK i have 6 months food ... i could actually only have 2 months or 12 months... who really knows? 

I've tried several times to create spreadsheets there i calculate stock into meals and i always get lost in the detail and give up.  

Does anyone have a good way of calculating how much they need to last a certain duration and then being able to compare that to what they have? Also a better way of tracking inventory/stock levels because my way is a mess. 

Could you write yourself a comprehensive monthly menu of the sorts of meals you might like to eat, and from that create a shopping list, and then times by 6? It might bring you close to an idea of how much you need as it’s such an individual thing. You could, of course, do a weekly plan and x by 26 instead, but I think a month might be more helpful as it would contain more variety, and also take into account things that you don’t need to top up so frequently (eg for me I only buy approx 1 bag of dried pulses a month, and not the same pulses each month because I’m just topping up existing stores).

I don’t know if I’ve managed to explain that very clearly  - but hopefully you get the gist

DigForVictory

<pipes up from a corner, actually the Mormons normally only go for 3 months, not least as they also store drinking water, which I find both admirable & logistically a complete nightmare.>

While I do not expect a tap on the door & "hello, my name is Elder G" any time soon, next time they get around to my ungodly backwater (my perspective, others vary!), I look forward to inviting them in, offering them herbal tea, water or milk (their beliefs do not include caffeine) and taking detailed notes on how and what they store. They'll not be converting me, despite a genealogy hobby, (too many of the ancestors I met were solidly devout in their faith for me to hand them over) but I'd love to learn how they store and what they'd advise on starting, maintaining, revitalising & how you cope with "I've gone off lentils" when you still have 4 kilos thereof... (Prayer is not working. I am contemplating repackaging & sending to Poland on the grounds that even if the entire refugee community does not ordinarily eat lentils, they'll find something to do with them.) 
I suspect the Elders might be mildly pleased to be invited in at all, let alone offered acceptable brews & not pestered with questions about polygamy, That Musical, and how on Earth do you cope without?!

Si_Clist

Happy_Sloth said:

... i THINK i have 6 months food ... i could actually only have 2 months or 12 months... who really knows? ...

The person who knows the answer to that is the person who knows their rate of consumption of each item in their store.

I know I keep banging on about this from time to time, but unless you know fairly accurately how long a packet of this or a kilo of that lasts you, how can you hope to work out how much of them to stock?  If you're guessing how much you consume, you're guessing how much stock you need, which means you're not necessarily spending your money where you should be.

Thriftygifty

I just wanted to apologise if a post that I posted 28th Feb upset anyone, MSE have messaged me and removed it for going off the "saving money topic" although I presumed asking about stoves was saving money.  I guess it was me briefly mentioning I was getting nervous about the current world situation. Anyhow if you've reported me I apologise again and I shall be keeping quiet from now on.  (This post will now also probably be removed) 

MrsCD

I'm not sure which post has been deleted, or what it was all about, but please stick around, @Thriftygifty. 

grace68

Thriftygifty said:

I just wanted to apologise if a post that I posted 28th Feb upset anyone, MSE have messaged me and removed it for going off the "saving money topic" although I presumed asking about stoves was saving money.  I guess it was me briefly mentioning I was getting nervous about the current world situation. Anyhow if you've reported me I apologise again and I shall be keeping quiet from now on.  (This post will now also probably be removed) 

I had my reply to you removed as well for same reasons so wouldn't worry. I wondered how much about prepping is about saving money compared to being prepared for anything that might be thrown at ones life in the future? And our plans for future are often shaped by current anxieties.
 I do think as a prepper we are looking for good value, what's on offer, what has a lasting value so would think there would be some crossover.

CCW007

Thriftygifty said:

I just wanted to apologise if a post that I posted 28th Feb upset anyone, MSE have messaged me and removed it for going off the "saving money topic" although I presumed asking about stoves was saving money.  I guess it was me briefly mentioning I was getting nervous about the current world situation. Anyhow if you've reported me I apologise again and I shall be keeping quiet from now on.  (This post will now also probably be removed) 

It's entirely possible it was reported in error and if it happens so many times the post gets automatically deleted.  Don't take it to heart and don't leave / stop posting / go quiet on us.

euronorris

Thriftygifty said:

I just wanted to apologise if a post that I posted 28th Feb upset anyone, MSE have messaged me and removed it for going off the "saving money topic" although I presumed asking about stoves was saving money.  I guess it was me briefly mentioning I was getting nervous about the current world situation. Anyhow if you've reported me I apologise again and I shall be keeping quiet from now on.  (This post will now also probably be removed) 

I had the same thing happen to me. I couldn't work out what I had done wrong, so I just shrugged and moved on.

On figuring out what we need to store....Similar to ZsaZsa's suugesting, I'm setting myself a rather mammoth task over the next few evenings, and this weekend, to do the following:

- list out the family favourite meals
- for each meal, detail the recipes and quantities required and portions they make
- then make a monthly meal plan based on that, and calculate how much of each we need.
- stock take of all food stuffs currently in the house
- plan to plug the gaps

I'm going to start with a month, as not sure how much extra space we're going to need to carve out. If it's less than I thought, then I'll scale up. I'm hoping this will also give me the opportunity to buy certain things in bulk to make savings also, and cut back further on food waste.

Nargleblast

Thriftygifty, a number of us had our posts removed that day because the subject being discussed was bearing on current events and things had the potential to become shall we say slightly unfriendly? If a post or two start to get contentious, other posts around them also get taken down at the same time. I am guessing if you really had posted something unacceptable then the email you got would have been more than just a reminder to stick to moneysaving subjects. Think no more of it.

And on a financial theme, my concern about the rise in council tax is offset by the fact that those of us in homes banded A through to D will be getting £150 back next month. My energy price rises will be compensated for by the fact we're now in Spring and also by the new cavity wall and loft insulation just installed. It will take a while for energy bills to even themselves out but on a positive note it has made me aware of where I am wasting energy e.g. radiators switched on in unused rooms so that's not a bad thing. 

MingVase

I've just found out that our local council  are taking the £150 off the full year's CT total so I wont see any benefit at all. Isnt it funny how TPTB always seem to score? I was hoping for £150 being paid into my bank so I could buy food with it. Silly me.