This weeks preps check-in

[Mountain trapper]

Got the windows, doors and the front deck done on the cabin today. Built a roost for the chickens today too. Looking for a new electrician to come out and wire the cabin. The one we've been using is out hunting and won't be available for awhile. Still splitting firewood.

 

[Brent S]

Got the windows, doors and the front deck done on the cabin today. Built a roost for the chickens today too. Looking for a new electrician to come out and wire the cabin. The one we've been using is out hunting and won't be available for awhile. Still splitting firewood.

People around here seem to take hunting season off too! I wish I could come out to help you and see the country there! I'm having a hard time getting two days off in a row right now..... business is good, almost too good.

 

[DrPrepper1]

It was kind of an off week for me. We repainted our bedroom which looks nice, but it doesn't really do anything for prepping. I found I had an old carbon monoxide detector plugged in behind my dresser (I also had one in my kitchen) both were over 10 years old and not considered functional, but they still have power. When I unplugged them they made a high pitched squealing noise. I couldn't figure out how to turn them off. I filled up my mop bucket and drowned both of them. They continued to squeal under water for a good 5 minutes, but then they finally died out. I need to get a couple of new ones to go in the house.

My bedroom furniture is heavy. I bought some of those plastic circles to put under the feet of the furniture to move the furniture across the carpet more easily. I got them for moving the furniture while painting the bedroom, but I will leave them there so I can move the furniture and vacuum behind the furniture more often.

We went to a gun show last weekend. I got a switch blade type knife and my husband got another gun.

 

[Mountain trapper]

It was kind of an off week for me. We repainted our bedroom which looks nice, but it doesn't really do anything for prepping. I found I had an old carbon monoxide detector plugged in behind my dresser (I also had one in my kitchen) both were over 10 years old and not considered functional, but they still have power. When I unplugged them they made a high pitched squealing noise. I couldn't figure out how to turn them off. I filled up my mop bucket and drowned both of them. They continued to squeal under water for a good 5 minutes, but then they finally died out. I need to get a couple of new ones to go in the house.

My bedroom furniture is heavy. I bought some of those plastic circles to put under the feet of the furniture to move the furniture across the carpet more easily. I got them for moving the furniture while painting the bedroom, but I will leave them there so I can move the furniture and vacuum behind the furniture more often.

We went to a gun show last weekend. I got a switch blade type knife and my husband got another gun.

Well??? What kind of gun did he get??

 

[DrPrepper1]

Well??? What kind of gun did he get??

Oh a 38 special revolver. Not really special, but he said he always wanted one. He thinks it would be easier to reload than the magazines for his other guns, but I think it was just an excuse to buy it.

 

[jimLE]

i had gotten out my 5 lil buckets i had gotten for emergency foods..got the foods out.and redid/separating the foods for each bucket,then taped a list of what's in each one,to the lid..i now have all my 1st aid supplies sitting on the living room floor for reorganizing that stuff,..i've been looking for some 3 ring notebooks i have..but cant find the darn things..in which i plan on using one of them.for what's in what storage buckets/tote bags..

 

[Mountain trapper]

Just splitting firewood. Tomorrow I'll start running the exhaust out through the wall of the generator building. We had a funny little episode yestersday. Actually I thought it was funny. My wife is still mad because she didn't see the humor in the incident. Anyway the wife was moving her Jeep when she thought she heard air leaking out of the back tire. She got out and put her ear up to the tire to find the leak. As she was listening for the leak a rattlesnake came part way out of the wheel. The snake was coiled up around the disc break and the tire. I had to crawl under the Jeep (laughing of course) and drag it out before I could shoot it.

 

[jimLE]

i take it,that your now sleeping on the sofa..LOL

 

[Gazrok]

My prepper update....just got power back after being without due to Irma rolling right over us.

Talk about a field test!

It certainly pointed out areas where we succeeded very well, but also a couple of glaring holes I never would have guessed on (namely the importance of A/C and in charging cell phones during a localized emergency).

That's my big prepper tip of the day....not all disasters are going to be end of the world scenarios, so you have to realize that short-term, localized disasters, may require some different prep needs.

 

[jimLE]

i already have a way of keeping my cellphone and cell phone charges charged up.that b,a car lighter,and car chargers for the phones.i even have a usb port set up.in which it plugs into a car lighter.i think it has 4 usb ports..as for ac goes..that depends on the outside weather at the time,when it comes to me handling it or not..

 

[jontte]

I'll put this weekends CQB and other training as this weeks preps.
not much sleep,but,hey these tired eyes still see something.

 

[Maverick]

Picked up 2 32oz TW25B grease $100 for both unopened, he also had 12lb container unopened for $225 I might go back and get it tomorrow.

 

[Gazrok]

Coming off the aftermath of Irma, and the resulting power loss, definitely learned a few holes in our preps.

1. THE HEAT - No A/C in FL is just unbearable. I used to consider it more of a luxury, but trying to sleep in 90 degree weather, nope...it's a necessity, or at least a damn fan. To this end, we are now resolved to getting two window A/C units and a small genny. (We have central A/C).

2. CHARGING CELL PHONES. Used to think, can just use a car charger. Yeah, until you kill your truck battery. And you don't want to drive much, because you don't know when you'll find gas again. I even stocked up on gas though, so I should have done more here. However, we ordered a solar powered cell phone charger. $25 is a cheap solution for a big problem.

3. BATTERIES AND CANDLES. No store had 'em, or at least not enough D cells, for my lantern lights (which were by far our favorite to use). While we did have enough candles, if it had gone on for more days, we would have been out. That's just unacceptable. We also need a few more hanging candle holders around the house. It made for a very nice nighttime lighting solution. It was actually kind of nice with the whole house in candlelight.

It's funny how the biggies, food, water, were well taken care of, so no worries, but these other concerns, then became IMPORTANT....

 

[Gazrok]

Worst part is that I can't even order bulk candles. They will simply MELT in the FL heat when the UPS driver leaves them.

 

[jimLE]

i have a under the bed tote full of candles,in which my mom had gotten over the years.we also have a few that are 3 to 5 inches across.that are sitting out.throughout the house..

 

[Maverick]

Worst part is that I can't even order bulk candles. They will simply MELT in the FL heat when the UPS driver leaves them.

Have you looked into these Gaz? Granted, not a true candles nor as cheap but somewhat compact and easy storage. A defuser/globe can be purchased for these, in my case I picked up an old lantern globe from a second hand store.

115 Hour Plus Emergency Candles from Emergency Essentials.

 

[Gazrok]

Nice, I may have to look into getting some of those. But yeah, I do want a lot of the more traditional candles too, just as we already have a lot of holders around just for decoration, that hold more traditional candles. I like the fact that these are always ready to go, and just look cool (many of them are dragons, and/or fit the theme of the room they are in, etc.)

 

[Proud Prepper]

Hey Gazrok, have any good RPG's going on now? Would have been a good thing to do with candle light during an outage for some stress relief and distraction.

And of course im referring to scifi/fantasy role playing games.

 

[Gazrok]

If it was more than just me and my son, probably. But our daughter bailed day after the storm, as a friend had power, lol. My wife was in Dallas as part of an emergency payroll team (so her office could continue processing even though shut down by the storm). She flew first class, got dinner and drinks each night, and stayed in a nice hotel...the entire time we dealt with all this storm crap.... Oh well, glad she didn't have to go through it...

Back on topic though, A buddy of mine wants to start a new campaign, so we'll see how that goes.

 

[Brent S]

It's funny how the biggies, food, water, were well taken care of, so no worries, but these other concerns, then becameIMPORTANT....
The little comforts and luxuries help make a stressful situation a lot more bearable.

 

[jontte]

it was quite nice to come home after that training,had a few pouches I made to carry stuff and found out,not all was functional,so they got some re-design.
now it's better.

 

[Brent S]

it was quite nice to come home after that training,had a few pouches I made to carry stuff and found out,not all was functional,so they got some re-design.
now it's better.

Real world use is the best engineering for most things.

 

[Maverick]

I know when I changed out some of my bugout/INCH bag and contents with more modern equipment if I didn't test it in the real world more than once, I would have been in some serious trouble. Equipment and health needs to be tested, I certainly found limitation in both.

 

[Mountain trapper]

Got 3 cords of firewood split and stacked. Got about 4 more to go. Ordered a wood stove for the cabin. Putting more gravel down on the driveway. Still need about 40 more truck loads to finish the driveway. No progress on the cabin this week. The electrician still hasn't shown up. It's hard to get anyone around here to work during hunting season. Got the new generator plumbed to the fuel tank and the exhaust ran outside the building. I added two mufflers to help quiet it. Once the generator building and cabin are insulated we won't be able to hear the generator running from inside the cabin.

 

[DrPrepper1]

We are getting a new home security system. We have camera's outside and an alarm, but we found out yesterday, our alarm is the "old kind". If someone knows what they are doing they can cut the wires and prevent the alarm from going off. Our house is small, so it wouldn't be hard to find where the box is located. We are getting a new one this morning that works if someone cuts the wires or not.

 

[DrPrepper1]

Have you looked into these Gaz? Granted, not a true candles nor as cheap but somewhat compact and easy storage. A defuser/globe can be purchased for these, in my case I picked up an old lantern globe from a second hand store.

115 Hour Plus Emergency Candles from Emergency Essentials.
View attachment 7634

These are really nice. I may look into getting some. I just have some extra religious candles. They are cheap and in tall glass so they last a while. This are more compact and will last longer.

 

[Psalm7]

it was quite nice to come home after that training,had a few pouches I made to carry stuff and found out,not all was functional,so they got some re-design.
now it's better.

I always recomend if You set up some web gear (indavidual load bearing equipment) or a back pack or any kind of field gear to take it hikeing or camping . Thst way You will not be surprised in actual use .

 

[Brent S]

I got an 8 piece stainless camp cook set and a stainless canteen from amazon yesterday. I realized that I didn't have a good option for boiling water in the BOB. I really don't think I would ever bug out, but just in case.

 

[WGregMiller]

I got an 8 piece stainless camp cook set and a stainless canteen from amazon yesterday. I realized that I didn't have a good option for boiling water in the BOB. I really don't think I would ever bug out, but just in case.

Not a bad idea. We’re pretty well stocked.

Going to far northwest Alabama tomorrow to look at some land. I suppose it’ll be BOL west if we buy it.

 

[Brent S]

Not a bad idea. We’re pretty well stocked.

Going to far northwest Alabama tomorrow to look at some land. I suppose it’ll be BOL west if we buy it.

Having some kind of backup plan makes sense. Good luck. A good water source is my most important feature to consider.