Are you prepared? Trying to be more self sufficient

No real detour. Being prepared for any disturbance is being prepared you may have to hunker down and consume your resources to stay safe. I do sincerely appreciate no politics being brought into this as it was never a political statement or question and we kept it clean

 

Like I said during 2020, 'do not self deploy'. Unless it's for something work or CERT related or somesuch.

 

So topped all the fuel cans off. Filled tractor and filled diesel cans also. Will top off truck tomorrow just in case something unpleasant happens to the grid with upcoming events

 

Guess we will find out

 

Could be January, but who knows even then...

 

Hopefully all for nothing but plenty of work to do anyway so it’ll get used

 

good reminder, I have a couple empty jerry cans. Some could be cycled into the vehicles and then get filled again.

 

I can cycle gas but I have all ethanol free so hopefully it lasts longer.

 

oh ya, non-ethanol with Sta-Bil

I'm not sure how long it really lasts by I cycle into vehicles after a couple of years.
Plenty of 2-cycle oil mainly for the chainsaws.

 

Yep I grabbed another 6 pack of 2cycle oil last week. I’ll burn through this in a year or less. I need to number cans or something so I can rotate them. I got shelves to put them on so I can shuffle around and fill empties as I go
I’ve got water containers I need to fill also

 

Topping off the gas cans and vehicles this morning...just in case.

 

From what I have just experienced after living thru this hurricane, is that comms are going to be priority.

I have ham radios both mobile and desktop. During this cluster fuck of a rescue effort in our community, the only thing that kept the group of us finding people both alive/deceased were having good comms.

Having a solar setup that will power your fridge and your SAT phone/ SAT internet connection is key. The fridge is only necessary to have for maybe someone’s meds, is what I have it.

I have been without power for 34 days now, and watching my neighbors struggle has been the toughest thing for me. No one wants to see someone’s GMA sleeping in a tent in this cold climate.

I live about 4500’ up on a secluded ridge in western NC, our area was completed obliterated by the hurricane. No roads, no utilities, all infrastructure is gone.

I will tell you that when the shit hits fan, you will go out, you will hear screaming, and you will go to help those you consider your family. I am extremely prepared and tested myself, over and over. I could not prepare myself for the screaming for help I heard coming from off in the distance, the gunshots I heard in an SOS pattern, I wasn’t prepared for moving bodies.

When the shit hits the fan, so much more comes into play than supplies. Stay fit, and push yourself. I hiked non stop for over a week, and though I was gassed the drive to help out each person I could reach kept me in the fight.

This is a ramble at this point, but I saw the thread and wanted to touch base with yall. Probably the best advise I can say is to live life everyday to the fullest, tell those you love them so; don’t wait for a chance to see your loved ones, take the time in your life now to do so.
When the water rises 50’ in your backyard and your caught between to raging creeks that are now rivers, you want to be a peace with where your at in your life.
That way you have no regrets, and that when it’s time to tighten those laces and hike 15miles into a blown up gorge to save your friends, you have the strength to do so without hesitation.

I will be back to post up some real info that will be helpful soon enough. I will say that I was able to reach a group of 45 stranded at the mtn next to me @ about 5k’ up, because my buddy hit me up via a StarLink that a neighbor had.

I would get one if you can afford to do so.

 

Thank you very much!

 

Thank you for sharing your experience and knowledge of what you have learned. Your situation is what we all hope we never have to face. Being prepared and sharing knowledge and experience helps us all to succeed.

 

I just started reading through this thread, but I'll throw out one thing I've been really happy with. Jackery solar generator. I've had one for 3 years now, along with their solar panels. Very handy to have. I have a Honda gas generator too, but having something that makes no noise, no gas going bad, and more portable is nice.

 

Re: Solar and starlink - if you're looking at one, get the mini. Constant power draw is about 25W or so, vs 60 or so for the full size.

 

Thanks for this post. I had family in Brevard , passed in now, so we love the area and very sad to see what’s happened to it and its people. Keep us updated please

 

I appreciate the insight and you sharing your first hand experience on what happened. It really upset me to hear how poorly the feds helped and how many people were severely impacted. Keep us updated if you can and more importantly, keep yourself and loved ones safe & well. If you’re able to keep helping those who need it, god bless you.

 

Well I just saw something interesting about how the economy is expected to be handled in the coming two years. Basically it is being said that we're looking at an intentional severe recession to relieve debt and then a rebuilding.

Can we discuss the economy and how best to handle a recession without getting into politics? I'd like to know how people would handle their money if they are anticipating a recession. Keep or liquidate money? Buy gold/precious metals/alcohol/or whatever so you have something to trade? But real estate/rentals/agricultural land? Buy a new car or sell the new car?

 

If you're expecting prices to go down, don't buy anything now.

Make sure you're not overextended on your investments (i e. don't invest money you need). If the market drops out, you don't want to have to sell your stuff at a loss to cover an emergency.

What are you going to trade the metals for? Or with whom? Investing in precious metals (via the stock market) is a way to counter inflation, I don't know how it helps in a recession. Bonds are supposedly best when the market takes a dive, but most people don't include them in their investment portfolios these days (unless you're near or at retirement age).

And definitely keep a good emergency fund, maybe extend it from 6 to 8 months worth of expenses, a lot of people will lose their jobs of there's another bad recession. You should still be able to get it into a high yield (4-5%) savings account right now. (Not in a CD, and absolutely not in the market.)