What makes someone a REAL prepper?

[poltiregist]

One gallon of water weighs 8.3 pounds . That likely means toting enough water to keep a family survivable for much of a distance is not practical . I hope everyone already has their outhouse built . To flush a conventional toilet once will mean about 30 pounds of weight flushed down the toilet . -- On hand I have my outhouse as well as a solid rubber tire cart with a board already cut and waiting to be used when the time arrives to fit into my cart providing a flooring for my water jugs , I have two 6 gallon containers that will fit into the cart , for fetching water from the spring or creek . That is near 100 pounds of water per trip .

 

[Mountain trapper]

One gallon of water weighs 8.3 pounds . That likely means toting enough water to keep a family survivable for much of a distance is not practical . I hope everyone already has their outhouse built . To flush a conventional toilet once will mean about 30 pounds of weight flushed down the toilet . -- On hand I have my outhouse as well as a solid rubber tire cart with a board already cut and waiting to be used when the time arrives to fit into my cart providing a flooring for my water jugs , I have two 6 gallon containers that will fit into the cart , for fetching water from the spring or creek . That is near 100 pounds of water per trip .

If everything failed and propane was no longer available, we'd haul our drinking water from the pond 1/4 mile away, after our streams dried up. We'd filter it and it'd be fine for drinking. For bathing and laundry we'd do that at the pond. Plus we'd move the garden to the pond area. We do have an outhouse behind the fur shed. In the winter I'd cut blocks of ice out of the pond and haul home with a sled for keeping things cold.
It'll be hard but we'd survive.

 

[Amish Heart]

If everything failed and propane was no longer available, we'd haul our drinking water from the pond 1/4 mile away, after our streams dried up. We'd filter it and it'd be fine for drinking. For bathing and laundry we'd do that at the pond. Plus we'd move the garden to the pond area. We do have an outhouse behind the fur shed. In the winter I'd cut blocks of ice out of the pond and haul home with a sled for keeping things cold.
It'll be hard but we'd survive.

Moving the garden near the pond is a good idea, unless the pond is there to collect water runoff, then you might lose your topsoil and or seeds. But otherwise, I haven't thought of that. I always put the garden close to the house because I can keep an eye on it and the house at the same time.

 

[Mountain trapper]

Moving the garden near the pond is a good idea, unless the pond is there to collect water runoff, then you might lose your topsoil and or seeds. But otherwise, I haven't thought of that. I always put the garden close to the house because I can keep an eye on it and the house at the same time.

Right now our garden and orchard are near the house, but we have plenty of water pumped from the well. If everything failed we have to move it. We generally get zero rainfall from May through October. Usually our last snow is in mid to late June, so we can't even plant until then.

 

[Mountain trapper]

I was just thinking about this exercise a little more, and it just dawned on me that I have quite a few 55 gallon water barrels laying around. I've also have quite a few stock water tanks up to 350 gallons each. These could all be set up to collect snow melt off the roofs. That would keep us in water for a few months.

 

[Amish Heart]

My 55 gallon water filled barrels don't freeze in the milkhouse, but in the barn they would.

 

[Mountain trapper]

My 55 gallon water filled barrels don't freeze in the milkhouse, but in the barn they would.

Ours would freeze solid in winter here. I'd have to leave them empty until the snow starts melting. Or, that just reminded me, we leave our distilled water in the garage and they never freeze. Without too much trouble I could make room for 4 or 5 55 gallon barrels of water in the garage.

 

[zoomzoom]

Without too much trouble I could make room for 4 or 5 55 gallon barrels of water in the garage.

How available are IBC totes around you? These are what I use for bulk water storage. 330 gallon model and it has a footprint a lot smaller than 4 55-gallon drums.

 

[Mountain trapper]

How available are IBC totes around you? These are what I use for bulk water storage. 330 gallon model and it has a footprint a lot smaller than 4 55-gallon drums.

View attachment 172865

That might be a good idea. I could build a stand so that it's up high enough to put a bucket under the spout. It could be filled from the gutter on the garage too, during the spring melt.

 

[Amish Heart]

Ours would freeze solid in winter here. I'd have to leave them empty until the snow starts melting. Or, that just reminded me, we leave our distilled water in the garage and they never freeze. Without too much trouble I could make room for 4 or 5 55 gallon barrels of water in the garage.

If I do the gallon blocks in the milkhouse, they freeze, but not in the basement. I've been wanting to get the bigger white square water containers with 300 or so gallons, but don't know where I'd put it so it wouldn't freeze. Even thought about some kind of wrap around it while in the barn. I did get stackable water cubes, 8 of them, take up less floor space. But those are pricey. I keep 6 of the 55 gal in the milkhouse and they do ok. Gallon and 5 gallon are in one of the two basements.

 

[Amish Heart]

That might be a good idea. I could build a stand so that it's up high enough to put a bucket under the spout. It could be filled from the gutter on the garage too, during the spring melt.

IBC totes are filled and put on the back of trailers that can be pulled by tractors for fire safety around here.

 

[zoomzoom]

I could build a stand so that it's up high enough to put a bucket under the spout. It could be filled from the gutter on the garage too, during the spring melt.

4 cinder blocks should do it for you. Somewhere on the site, I showed how I made couplings to step down the lower drain so you can connect a garden hose.
A downspout directed into the top hole is easy. My dad did that. IIRC, he also put a 2" hole or did something near the top of the tote to address and re-route overflow.

 

[poltiregist]

My IBC tote catches the water from the roof of my exercise cabin and then is plumbed into underground piping to feed water to the garden and to the chicken pen . I am able to do that as the cabin is higher than the garden , chicken pen and my house so it all can be gravity feed . As for as my house being feed by the tote , all I would have to do is open and close a valve or two , but am hoping to avoid using the run off water catchment system to feed the house . Also I have several 55 gallon drums positioned under the edge of my house's roof for water catchment , mainly for flushing the commode if need be . Again reducing the amount of water that might need to be hauled by the hand cart . Of course the hand cart plan is the back up plan if not any gasoline is available for a vehicle . --- I decided to drop back and say , I also have a back up to the back up system on the commode , if the barrel catchment system should have a failure , then I have my outhouse . Those 55 gallon barrels will freeze up when the temperature drops low enough .

 

[zoomzoom]

If you're thinking of IBC totes or similar for potable (drinking) water, make sure you keep it out of the sun. Algae will grow with sunlight.

 

[Hardcalibres]

This is how we capture rain water.......in two 12,000 gallon tanks.

The tanks are opaque to sunlight to inhibit algae growth. The water in those, gravity feeds to the house......and they are located so as to be defensible.

Every other shed we have has at least a 3500 gallon tank installed beside it.

We have a dozen or so dams, drag holes and soaks on the farm that store about 15 million gallons of water all year round. That water is legally ours.....is good quality (potable)......and many of those dams were located/constructed so as to gravity feed to where the water is or would be used. Some have 4" outlets built into the wall and some have 6" pipes.

There is a creek that runs through our land that runs almost all the year.

We put a lot of priority upon establishing water storage that gravity feeds to where it will be used........that is by far the most efficient way to harvest/use water.

Hilly land has that potential/advantage.

 

[zoomzoom]

This is how we capture rain water.......in two 12,000 gallon tanks.

Slacker.
Just kidding. That's an impressive setup.

 

[Cabin Fever]

This is how we capture rain water.......in two 12,000 gallon tanks.

View attachment 172873
The tanks are opaque to sunlight to inhibit algae growth. The water in those, gravity feeds to the house......and they are located so as to be defensible.

Every other shed we have has at least a 3500 gallon tank installed beside it.

We have a dozen or so dams, drag holes and soaks on the farm that store about 15 million gallons of water all year round. That water is legally ours.....is good quality (potable)......and many of those dams were located/constructed so as to gravity feed to where the water is or would be used. Some have 4" outlets built into the wall and some have 6" pipes.

There is a creek that runs through our land that runs almost all the year.

We put a lot of priority upon establishing water storage that gravity feeds to where it will be used........that is by far the most efficient way to harvest/use water.

Hilly land has that potential/advantage.

Do you live in an area where it's gets below freezing continuously for several months? I assume the answer is "no"?

 

[Mountain trapper]

They'd freeze solid here, unless buried.

 

[Hardcalibres]

Do you live in an area where it's gets below freezing continuously for several months? I assume the answer is "no"?

Correct - it does not freeze here.

Survivalism in places that freeze is quite a lot more difficult in many regards.

 

[Cabin Fever]

Correct - it does not freeze here.

Survivalism in places that freeze is quite a lot more difficult in many regards.

It keeps the riff-raff out.