what do you need for a disaster

[meg]

having had two major ice storms, we have had to get by without power...the first time was 9 days in early March. We learned a lot from that. So what are the most important things to have on had in a disaster? I'll give a few of the things that i think should be on hand..please add what you think.

water. Water. WATER! you never know if you'll have a problem with your water source. People require 2 gallons of water a day for minimum hydration and other uses (hygiene, cooking).

heat source. firewood, propane, etc.

light source. battery operated or other....i have candles and oil lamps. they will always work. batteries die. I have my candles in enclosed holders etc so i don't have much of an issue with open flame.

good footwear.

manual can opener.

means of heating food on open flame (i have stainless steel and cast iron cookware)

basic first aid kit.


these are obviously not everything, but it is a start...please add on as you think of things...

[stinkybisquit]

Lights- I have a few Dietz lanterns, as I can also carry them outside. For my stairway & around room perimeters (tucked behind a railing), I bought a bunch of solar Christmas light strings with light sensors. Not a lot of light from them, but enough to get around. They worked well with Hurricane Ike.
Cooking: I have a Coleman quad fuel cook stove, and a massive cheap charcoal grill, which I've also pitched wood into. Still saving for the Buck stove; hopefully within a few months.

One neat idea I did come up with, for showers: instead of a solar shower, I bought an extra garden sprayer I can dump hot water into. Good for saving water, cleaning dishes.

[meg]

Initially, I said you need water. Humans can go without food. Water is not something we do well without. You can store water in 2L soda bottles that have been washed out and rinsed well. fill to the top and put 3 drops of bleach (not the "ultra" stuff....regular bleach.....which is difficult to find now) on the top before you cap. this will keep the water from "going bad".

You can rotate the water out. You can also take what you have and boil it (if it's sat around for a long time). I perfer boiling for 10 minutes. Some places say you can get away with doing less. I'd rather not.

Something like a Brita is nice to filter it with after, in case it has any 'old water' taste to it.

another thing you can do is rain barrels. they sell them at the store and my Lord they're expensive. All you need is something like a Rubbermaid garbage can (the big one) and a faucet.
to make the barrel, cut a hole in the top (or side if you want to use the curved end) and put the opening in the hole. At the bottom of the barrel, cut an opening for the faucet/spigot. if you need it, a couple washers and some caulk might be necessary. The water will be good for gardening or hygiene, but if you boil and filter, should be ok for consuming.


Food: canned foods are fine. have a manual can opener or you'll just be staring at food you can't eat. have a means to heat it. you can get little ........ i don't know what to call it, burner trays that you can put sterno under. Sterno is not expensive. I got a case at a club store. Stores very well.

I have long term storage foods. I don't like prepared meals. I like individual parts so I can make my own stuff. To each his own when it comes to that. Make sure you get 'comfort foods' brownies or some sort of thing that takes few ingredients (ie "add water and stir" kind of things) it makes hard times a little more bearable.

I suggest getting galvanized garbage cans to keep things like flour and mixes in, it keeps the critters out. If you live up north, you are fortunate that you have nature to help you. Keep flour outside (and other packages) for a few days during a really cold snap (around here it gets to zero or below but single digits and teens are fine) and that kills any bugs or whatever in the flour. Prevents moths, etc. you can do this with pasta too.
You can also put oxygen absorbers in the cans (try to make it as sealed as possible), it extends their life.

more another time.

[stinkybisquit]

Not truly a disaster item, but for recording it.

Along with my digital camera, and my & my wife's electronic film cameras, I also dusted off my old Minolta SRT-201.
Old cameras like it have mechanical shutters, and since the meter on it is already broken, it won't get fried by an EMP. Stocking up on B&W film & some chemicals for developing. I'll worry about printing photos, IF I live through whatever happens. A least, I'll be able to make picture records of things.
You can find a camera & lens of the same period on ebay for around $50 or less!