food, medical, and armaments

kenny1773

Established Member
Nov 28, 2018
323
316
Birmingham
So from another thread, I agree that a good discussion on these 3 might be helpful

I am not interested in documenting everyone's quantities of anything, but maybe more what are the best items to have on hand and why.

Food

- What is best to have on hand?
Freeze Dried food?
Canned food?
Freezer food? (what if you don't have a generator)

-and what about water?

-But the bigger question I have is, how many days or weeks *SHOULD* one generally be prepared for?

I am not really a prepper, I just like the cost savings of buying in bulk, so what I have on hand is a bit random
My regular routing has me going to the store at least once a week (and there are some weeks its every other day)

I am trying to target 2 weeks worth of food at this point. No idea if that is enough or even what the best things are to stock up on

Water (and water purification)
Canned meats
Canned Fruits
Canned veggies
Peanut butter
Nuts
General baking supplies (flour, sugar, etc, etc) and printed recipes NOT online
Toilet Paper - I think we all missed this one
Propane (Or other cooking method)
 

kenny1773

Established Member
Nov 28, 2018
323
316
Birmingham
Medical

Always have the basic OTC on hand (Alcohol, bandages, Tylenol, etc, etc)

What about prescription drugs?

How do you all stock up when doctors and insurance do not want to give you more than a 30 day supply? Buy from Canada? I am at a loss on this one

Hand Sanitizer and face masks look like a must have, but not on my standard list of stuff for medical

What else should one have on hand?
 

kenny1773

Established Member
Nov 28, 2018
323
316
Birmingham
Armaments - lots of sub topics here

Looks like buying guns and ammo after the cat is out of the bag is a no go
Hearing about NICS problems in various states (I think AL is one state with such a problem, but only if NICS comes back delayed, New Jersey is screwed, NICS is turned off for them)
Hearing about ammo shortages, but I do see online ammo still in stock enough that its obtainable

I doubt we need too much discussion on the type of guns here ;)
Have lots of ammo
Have weapons you know how to use
Have spares and spare parts

What are the odds your local police force will have few on staff if they are all out sick? Detroit is looking like it might have a problem.

I live in a normal house
It is NOT defensible against someone that knows what they are doing. Sure I could hold off looters for a while, but not against someone trained and determined.
 

4CERTN

Established Member
Feb 2, 2016
697
613
Alabama
Regarding TP and other “staple” type items. A few years back...maybe a decade now...I found myself for the umpteenth time entering a 24-hour store at some ridiculous hour to purchase toilet paper, feminine hygiene products for the missus, or some such item that we had suddenly run out of. Stuff we’d failed to put on the weekly or bi-weekly grocery list, etc.

Much like Mr. Costanza (George’s father) on “Seinfeld” and his revelatory experience that led to his creation of Festivus, it occurred to me: “There has to be a better way.”

Thus, I started to slowly stock-up. Instead of one pack of TP, how about 2 for the next several grocery trips. 2 packs of bottled water. 2 packs of pads. An extra box of ammo. And so on.

Before long, the stash becomes something that can be relied-upon if you happen to forget to restock...or called-upon in a time like the situation we now deal with.

I like to buy in bulk, too, when I can. But the slower method over time can work, also.
 

JRiv5

Established Member
Dec 29, 2019
14
13
Marshall County
As far as food goes, I'm a big advocate of getting all the fresh food while its available. It's still important to stock up on dried goods, canned food, MREs, etc. Also want to get all the nutrition avaulable. Especially with the current situation, its important to keep up on vitamin C and other nutrients.
I've noticed stores are stocked up with meat, fruits, and veggies. So while everyone is eating beans and rice, I'll be have steak and potatoes for a while.
 

Rayd8

Established Member
Army
Feb 11, 2019
120
82
Rocket City
These are great conversations to have, I'm glad you started this up @kenny1773!

It's good to have a plan. It's easier to think about these things now before it gets worse/stressful/crazy/locked down.

Water. I've heard you can harvest what's in your water heater, etc. and I think it's good to have some on hand, but I think a long term strategy for clean water is a good bet. Boiling is an option (fire, gas grill, etc), but chlorine/bleach works too. I'm attaching the EPA guide for bleaching water.

Food. I'm a fan of rice....it was actually in large supply at the Asian market store because people avoid that store....anyway they had flour too. You can do a lot with flour. Get in bulk and rotate through casually. Google how the Mormons prepare for dystopia. Many of their foodbanks are open to the public. With this, we can get by several months. I don't have stocked underground bunker ;0. I have some MRE's but wasn't a fan back in the day, but would eat them if I had to. I like the Mountain House freeze dried stuff better. Many of the #25 cans can have an extended shelf life. Attaching another article on food.

I agree about weapons....I did go through and make sure all the slings were properly setup and mags were loaded and staged. Changed out batteries in all sights that take them. Note to self, buy CR2032s before the herd does.

For medical, I'd like to get 90 day supply as you can sometimes get a discount on bulk purchase. I'd recommend any medical training you can get. We have a general first aid bag and then I have a couple of bleeding control setups as well. I missed the boat on N95 masks and sanitizer....

For home security, check this out:



It's a good walkthrough and there is some practical advice. I secured the garage door release (17 min mark) and were looking at 3M film (21 min mark)

Stay safe
 

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kenny1773

Established Member
Nov 28, 2018
323
316
Birmingham
I will check out that video later tonight after the wife goes to bed, but thanks for putting it up

The other thing I have done in the last year is have enough guns for every member of the family and have shown them how to use them and taken them to the range a bunch of times. My confidence level in them is still not 100%, but better than it was. My youngest one is actually pretty deadly with the bow and arrow ;)

I feel like I am about 75% there, but this is really a wake up call as to the missing 25% might be large enough to sink me.

and this forum needs more discussion, maybe get some of the more prepared here (more than me anyway) to share some ideas.

as long as the internet stays up, credit cards stay up, and UPS still delivers, I can find a way. I have a black belt in google fu and have been able to find just about everything but hand sanitzer at reasonable prices. Finding and buying from smaller lesser known stores is the key. Its even too late for that at this point in time though, that trick only buys a few extra days.

But if you want to find out where all the TP went, simply go to ebay and type toilet paper in the search. You will see it there at 3 to 4 times what it normally costs. I would like to infect all of those sellers with the crypto locker virus as they can all eat shit.
 

RandallC

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Dec 26, 2015
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Birmingham Al
Great topic.

We have Toilet paper to last us a few months - just the regular normal purchase 12 rolls.
We stocked up on canned good over the last two weeks and got some meats. We have a propane grill but at the moment I do not forsee not being able to use the stove. I also know how to start fires and boy scouts is always good to remember. I have a working Bow (Bear Archery) and a few firearms to use if needed for hunting.

For meds, we stocked up on babies allergies and pain meds as well as some stuff for us. We have rubbing alcohol and peroxide as well as plenty of band aids and cloth wraps (check the baby section of walmart and you can find birp cloths for cheap, you can do many things with them, I like the large ones.

Protection, I have more 9mm then anything but it works if push come to shove.
 

Rayd8

Established Member
Army
Feb 11, 2019
120
82
Rocket City
I don’t understand TP hoarding. It’s a relatively modern (1857) luxury.

I also do the work small and build up method. My oldest is a pretty good shot and I’d like to start teaching him how to deal with malfunctions. I was scheduled to start the youngest this week on marksmanship, but we’ll be delayed. I do plan on doing a first aid class with them.

Even if you don’t have a generator, I recommend keeping the vehicle gas tanks above 3/4. I was in St. Louis for 9/11 and people scrambled to the stations and priced spiked at $20gal. Yeah, they were later prosecuted, but it was nice to only focus on getting home.

A bow will put food on the table....
 
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RandallC

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I am hoping it does not come to much more then being ready and prepared. I know my family and I will be fine but I fear for many of my neighbors.
 

kenny1773

Established Member
Nov 28, 2018
323
316
Birmingham
TP hoarding is just people being stupid, nothing more
That is the one of the last things I think I would hoard, so many things can become toilet paper in an instant ;)

I also hope for nothing more than a small disruption of life, then things start getting back to normal. I have been full tome work at home for 3 years now, part time work at home 2 years prior to that, so I am use to being a home body.

Here is what worries me,
Police will get sick too, at some point they slow down or can't respond to calls
The economy is breaking down fast, poorer people are going to be hit the hardest and hit first
They get laid off, then the company they work for goes out of business
Unemployment is back logged liked crazy, people are not going to be getting checks
Federal help is, well, useless thus far (not a political comment, its all of them)
Credit will get shut down

I am glad the public school system is handing out free lunches like crazy right now. I think that might be a major cause of many being able to hold on

We are 9 meals away from severe crime increases, think about that one, studies show that when a person misses 9 meals, that is the breaking point

When a large number of people hit their 9 missed meals, what happens?

I worry about my neighbors too, they are all between the ages of 70 and 92. I live on retirement row lol

I have cameras up all around and watch my elderly neighbors houses as well (they know, I asked them if it was ok before I put up and positioned cameras) but I can't see everything all time.

The crisis that people are just starting to talk about is the failure of amazon prime :D How crazy am I gong to get now that prime is out to a 1 month delivery on a lot of things???
 

RandallC

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Dec 26, 2015
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Birmingham Al
I have been fortunate to continue working at the moment, the owner called my super and said its going to get rough and prepare to do crappy jobs and stuff. As long as I am able to work Ill be fine. We are watching the news and staying up to date.

We will know more March 30th when the 14 days from Pres is up. If it keeps going up, the count, I think we will see some changes about how trump targets this.
 

kenny1773

Established Member
Nov 28, 2018
323
316
Birmingham
I think this stay at home for non-essential will go longer than anyone originally thought simply because large numbers of people are ignoring it and/or rebelling against it. 2 weeks can easily turn into 2 months.


Confirmed cases going up about 10,000 per day for a few days now, let's hope it does not start going up any more than that per day
 

Rayd8

Established Member
Army
Feb 11, 2019
120
82
Rocket City
We are 9 meals away from severe crime increases, think about that one, studies show that when a person misses 9 meals, that is the breaking point
I think this stay at home for non-essential will go longer than anyone originally thought simply because large numbers of people are ignoring it and/or rebelling against it. 2 weeks can easily turn into 2 months.

I agree, these are the ingredients for a bad soup. I too hope it will pass fairly uneventfully....
 

kenny1773

Established Member
Nov 28, 2018
323
316
Birmingham
Going up significantly more than 10,000 per day now
Looks like the US is now on the wild ride, going to go wildly out of control from here I bet

Not sure why people can't social distance and not be stupid. Too many stories of people trying to go on spring break like normal

Some friends in DC told me people were turning out in large crowds to see the cherry blossoms
Its a flower, stay home

Unemployment also way up
 
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