Practical Tips and Suggestions for Surviving

[kj35]

just starting a topic for Stormy

[Storm in the garden]

Thanks kj 

 

Given the fact that most peoples world has been turned upside down in a matter of months and we don't know what's coming down the pipeline (we might think we do but we might also be wrong!), I thought it might be beneficial to start a thread with practical hints, tips or suggestions to be at least a little bit prepared.

 

Disclaimer: I'm no expert on any of these subjects. These are just my own personal opinions I'm sharing and I would advise anyone considering what I suggest to seek expert advice.

 

Now that the disclaimer stuff is out of the way...

 

In an ideal world I would suggest that people should move out of the big cities if possible and find somewhere they can grow their own food to some degree, but I also realise that we don't live in an ideal world (far from it) and to most people this option would be difficult or impossible. The one suggestion I would make for everyone is to try and avoid being in debt as much as they possibly can.

 

Food and Water:

 

We know that without food and water we die. Lots of people (including David icke if memory serves) have suggested that food and water are going to become the method of control. This makes sense as "fear of death" is what drove the whole Coronavirus panic and the ultimate weapon to control people is food, so having some food and water in reserve is important. Because the supermarkets are open today doesn't mean they will be open tomorrow.

 

Foods with a long shelf life:

 

White Rice, Canned Foods, Sugar, Coffee, Tea, Powdered Milk, Pasta, Dehydrated Fruit and Vegetables, Alcohol, Maple Syrup, Dried Spices, Honey, Baking Soda, Dried Beans, Chicken/beef/vegetable stock, Rolled Oats, Lentils, Potato Flakes, Powdered Eggs and so on...

 

The shelf life is determined by storage conditions (usually dry, cool and dark) but if kept properly some examples would be:

White rice - up to 20 years, Pasta - up to 30 years, Sugar - indefinitely, Honey - indefinitely. It is believed that undamaged canned products may be still usable 3-5 years after their BB date.

I recently bought a 10kg bag of white rice for around €20. I also bought some cans of mackerel for 60c each. I was surprised to discover that the BB date on the mackerel was 2025. At 100 grams per portion of white rice that bag will produce 100 servings costing 20c each, so in 5 years time I know I can have a meal of rice and mackerel costing 80c. It may not be the most appetising meal ever created, but at the end of the day food is better than no food.

Five months ago practically nobody would have predicted the situation we are now in, so who has any idea what the situation will be in five years time?

 

Water:

Drinking water is not only desirable but vital to life. You can survive a lot longer without food than you can without clean drinking water. So you turn on the tap and it's there, but who can guarantee it will be so readily available next week or next year?

 

At the very least everyone should have some drinking water put away for err...a rainy day? Half a dozen of those 5lt containers of spring water would cost less than a tenner, and in the wrong circumstances could prove priceless.

But what about in a situation where clean drinking water becomes unavailable in the long term? Well it does fall from the sky for free occasionally doesn't it, so all you need to do is to harness it, filter it and sterilise it.

There are plenty of videos available for this process, but if I were really stuck a t-shirt folded a few times will filter out the debris, and a few drops of household bleach (un-perfumed!) would sterilise it.

That's just me..It's vitally important to know how much the ratio is between volume of water and drops!!!!!

 

A few other suggestions...

 

Freezer: I wouldn't "put all my eggs in one basket" by relying on a freezer for survival, because how do you know there's going to be electricity?

 

A good hunting/survival knife: Useful for many things... preparing kindling to start a fire, as a makeshift axe, opening cans in an emergency, and even personal protection.

 

A wind up/solar powered radio: You may not be a fan of MSM but it might help to know what's going on through news bulletins etc. (even if you don't believe them others will, and you can plan accordingly).

 

A wind up/solar powered torch and candles: Because it nice to be able to see what you're doing in the dark.

 

A solar powered charger: For your electronic do-da's

 

A decent first aid kit: For obvious reasons...

 

Vaseline and cotton balls: Vaseline has numerous uses like keeping dirt out of cuts temporarily and moisturising dry skin but a cotton ball rolled in it makes a great firelighter too.

 

Lighters and/or a firestick: You may need to start a fire for heat, cooking or simply to keep your spirits up in adverse conditions.

 

A notebook: It might be an idea to keep a notebook for any information, recipes etc. which may come in handy when the time comes. It's no use seeing how to make bannock bread on youtube for example if you haven't got access to youtube anymore and have a poor memory?

 

A book on foraging: (or notes in your trusty notebook). What can you do with dandelions in spring? What wild berries are available in Autumn? Wild garlic. Nettle soup. Wild mushrooms....Nature provides if you know what you're looking for and know where to look.

 

I'll leave it at that for now and you can take as much or as little from the above as you see fit. There's no point in saying "yes but what about if this or that scenario happens?". Nobody can legislate for every situation and any preparation is better than no preparation in my book.

Anyone else wanting to chip in with other tips or suggestions?

[A_Grand_Tale_Of_Horror]

 

I'd love to hear more about long lasting foods and about how long water stays drinkable for, how to make old stagnant wanted drinkable and other purification methods.

 

Starting a fire with a magnifying glass etc.

[Storm in the garden]

52 minutes ago, A_Grand_Tale_Of_Horror said:

I'd love to hear more about long lasting foods and about how long water stays drinkable for, how to make old stagnant wanted drinkable and other purification methods.

 

Starting a fire with a magnifying glass etc.

 

Some foodstuffs will last indefinitely if stored correctly (airtight, cool and dry). They apparently found honey buried beneath the pyramids which was still edible after 3,000 years!

I saw a professor who worked in the government purification lab in Sweden talking about visiting his holiday home, and how he had no problem drinking the water which was left in airtight containers from the previous summer. AFAIK once you keep water airtight (so no foreign matter or insects can contaminate it) it should be fine.

There was a well known bottled water company who had a tv ad boasting about how their water was 5,000 years in the making, yet still had a BB date on the bottle?

I think it's 8 drops of bleach per US gallon to sterilize water.....BUT don't quote me on that!

I think I've seen tablets that can supposedly sterilize stagnant water, but personally I'd keep well away from that option if at all possible! Rainwater, streams and lakes would my preferred choice if the need arose.

A magnifying glass would work...provided you have the sunshine? A packet of those cheap disposable lighters from the pound shop could be a handy thing to have put by

Edited May 29, 2020 by Storm in the garden

[Guest]

This is an interesting short read .... It is supposedly the short story from someone who lived through the Bosnian shit between 92-95 .... whiskey and lighters!

 

https://personalliberty.com/one-year-in-hell/

 

 

[Storm in the garden]

1 hour ago, ink said:

This is an interesting short read .... It is supposedly the short story from someone who lived through the Bosnian shit between 92-95 .... whiskey and lighters!

 

https://personalliberty.com/one-year-in-hell/

 

 

 

Yes, definitely interesting.

Funnily enough, there were a couple of things in that article I had planned on posting when I had time...having a skillset and goods for bartering.

There are so many people nowadays that are incapable of doing absolutely anything apart from the niche work they've been trained to do and if anything goes wrong they simply pay someone else to fix it, which in future scenarios may not always be possible.

When I was growing up money was tight and you'd try your hand at anything before even thinking of paying somebody else to fix it. Paying someone was regarded as a last resort. The more skills you have the better. You don't need to be brilliant at anything, just adequate, and if you can do practical basic things that others can't then you're going to be in demand.

 

It's always good to have some items that are readily traded for when you're looking for something you haven't got yourself.

I never actually thought of antibiotics, but I was going to suggest having a stock of paracetamol both for own use and for bartering. Doctors and dentists may not be there when you need them. Coffee and tea would be two things which can't be sourced locally (although you can make 'coffee' from dandelion roots apparently, but not being a coffee drinker I've never tried).

A good indicator of prized items for bartering are what's highly sought after in prisons? People in desperate situations crave escape, even if only temporarily, so you're talking drugs, alcohol and tobacco. I'm not advocating stockpiling illicit drugs mind but a couple of naggins of whiskey/vodka or some cigarettes/tobacco could prove very desirable, irrespective of whether or not you drink or smoke. Petrol/diesel could be desirable items except for the fact that they have a very short shelf life and start to break down after only 6 months or so.

I did smile when he mentioned the lighters though.

 

Reading his story brought to mind a film called "Shot Through the Heart", which was based on the true story of two lifelong friends who were marksmen preparing to represent Yugoslavia in the Olympics. When the conflict erupted they found themselves on opposite sides in the war. What he wrote about was very similar to how it was portrayed in the film. What really shocked was how rapidly the tranquillity of normal life swiftly transitioned into a struggle to survive. It's a film that's definitely worth a look.

 

 

 

 

[motleyhoo]

You need something to do while you're surviving and I would recommend the board game "This War of Mine" by Awaken Realms.  It's a really great simulation game about living in Sarajevo during the Bosnian war.  Throughout the game you have to make real-world moral choices, like do you help the little girl across the street if it means the sniper might get you. The same company currently has their new game, Nemesis: Lockdown running on Kickstarter.  I have the original Nemesis game, which is a really good game based loosely on the Alien movies.

 

 

[Storm in the garden]

16 minutes ago, motleyhoo said:

You need something to do while you're surviving and I would recommend the board game "This War of Mine" by Awaken Realms.  It's a really great simulation game about living in Sarajevo during the Bosnian war.  Throughout the game you have to make real-world moral choices, like do you help the little girl across the street if it means the sniper might get you. The same company currently has their new game, Nemesis: Lockdown running on Kickstarter.  I have the original Nemesis game, which is a really good game based loosely on the Alien movies.

 

 

 

When I read your post initially I was a bit dismayed that someone had made  a game out of such a tragic event as the siege of Sarajevo, because I remember the horror of it all unfolding nightly on the news of the day. However having checked out the board game I relented somewhat as rather than simply being a "fun game" it appears to be more thought-provoking and about conscience, decisions and consequences. It does look interesting and I'll check it out some more.

On the other hand, if I'm ever in a survival situation I think the last thing I'd be wiling away the hours with is a darkly themed survival game. I reckon I'd be looking for something more uplifting and life-affirming to pack away in a bug-out backpack.

[hokuspokus]

4 hours ago, Storm in the garden said:

 

 

 

There was a well known bottled water company who had a tv ad boasting about how their water was 5,000 years in the making, yet still had a BB date on the bottle?

 

I believe this is due to the plastic bottle not the water itself .

Anywho

 

Seeds/walk in greenhouse/ compost 

If you have room 

[Storm in the garden]

13 minutes ago, hokuspokus said:

I believe this is due to the plastic bottle not the water itself

 

Yes it could well be, although if that was the reason should empty plastic containers designed for food storage not have a BB date?

Or... perhaps all foodstuffs must have a BB or use by date

Or...maybe the manufacturers would prefer you throw away any unused bottles by a certain date and buy more

 

22 minutes ago, hokuspokus said:

Seeds/walk in greenhouse/ compost 

 

Yes definitely if you have the space

If I had the funds I'd love to build one of those geothermal greenhouses which keep the greenhouse at a constant 10c/50f by simply utilizing the underground temperature.

There's an old guy in Nebraska who built one an has 30 year old orange trees and grape vines growing in it.

[kj35]

As we are seeing they can control weather and rain. In Spain they have large plastic greenhouses with ditches dug around and through them . You can fill the ditch with seawater which evaporates and  re condenses on the plastic (Or glass) as fresh water leaving the salt in the ditch (which you can use for preserving food)

[Tinfoil Hat]

I fancy learning about aquaponics, but it looks like it might be expensive to set up initially unless you're a good DIY'er - I'm not, but I bet some of you are.

 

 

 

I just picked a random video on the subject - I'm not promoting this person's on-line work shop.

 

Edited May 30, 2020 by Tinfoil Hat

[Storm in the garden]

The polytunnel/greenhouse ditches in Spain sound like a good idea. Unfortunately it's not applicable for those of us who don't live near the coast.

 

15 minutes ago, kj35 said:

As we are seeing they can control weather and rain.

 

So that's what all those chemtrails in the sky were.....during lockdown when there were supposed to be little or no flights?

Which is why I was saying in a previous post that I'd love to install one of those geothermal polytunnels. 

6 feet or so below ground the temperature remains constant at around 10c/50f and if you can harness that then they can do what they like with the weather.

 

[Storm in the garden]

20 minutes ago, Tinfoil Hat said:

I fancy learning about aquaponics, but it looks like it might be expensive to set up initially unless you're a good DIY'er - I'm not, but I bet some of you are.

 

Interesting video. I get the impression from looking at it that it would be costly even if you were a good DIY'er though, in spite of what he says.

I've seen aquaponics videos before but there's something about it that doesn't sit quite right with me.

It's hard to explain, sort of like if someone told me they had discovered perpetual motion. This whole idea of a closed loop system that "feeds itself" doesn't feel right to me because if you're taking from it (food) we then it's not a closed loop any more and if you take out it means you have to put back in?

Maybe I'm missing something....

[kj35]

24 minutes ago, Storm in the garden said:

The polytunnel/greenhouse ditches in Spain sound like a good idea. Unfortunately it's not applicable for those of us who don't live near the coast.

 

 

So that's what all those chemtrails in the sky were.....during lockdown when there were supposed to be little or no flights?

Which is why I was saying in a previous post that I'd love to install one of those geothermal polytunnels. 

6 feet or so below ground the temperature remains constant at around 10c/50f and if you can harness that then they can do what they like with the weather.

 

Yes x and if nothing else get near water sources. Sea . Tops of mountains (ice) and major rivers. But personally I prefer sea.

Edited May 30, 2020 by kj35

[Tinfoil Hat]

4 minutes ago, Storm in the garden said:

 

Interesting video. I get the impression from looking at it that it would be costly even if you were a good DIY'er though, in spite of what he says.

I've seen aquaponics videos before but there's something about it that doesn't sit quite right with me.

It's hard to explain, sort of like if someone told me they had discovered perpetual motion. This whole idea of a closed loop system that "feeds itself" doesn't feel right to me because if you're taking from it (food) we then it's not a closed loop any more and if you take out it means you have to put back in?

Maybe I'm missing something....

 

 

Well he says he shows you how to cultivate your own fish food to make it viable. I think that's the only regular input once it's up & running, as the fish poop feeds the plants. I'm not that knowledgeable though, it just appeals.

[Storm in the garden]

7 minutes ago, kj35 said:

Yes x and if nothing else get near water sources. Sea . Tops of mountains (ice) and major rivers. But personally I prefer sea.

 

Well I do love the sea and living beside it does have advantages, but it can be pretty wild and inhospitable in wintertime. Where I live now the land is much more fertile and there's a lake down the road with about a trillion gallons in it, so if that dries up I think we're all pretty much doomed anyway 

[Storm in the garden]

15 minutes ago, Tinfoil Hat said:

 

 

Well he says he shows you how to cultivate your own fish food to make it viable. I think that's the only regular input once it's up & running, as the fish poop feeds the plants. I'm not that knowledgeable though, it just appeals.

 

He says lots of things but he also says he's looking for $$$, but then again I'm a cynical fecker anyway.

To me it goes against the laws of nature and physics. To produce the fertilizer to feed the plants you're going to need quite a few large fish. To feed those fish you're going to have to grow the plants, which are going to take time to grow, which is going to cut into your growing space for food, and if you eat some of the fish the fertilizer will be reduced, and stay reduced until the baby fish you hope will replace them grow etc. etc.

It seems like he's claiming he can take quite a lot out of the system (food for a family) without it affecting the system.

It would be a bit like putting 5lbs of mince into a mincer, getting 10bs out the other end, keeping 5lbs of that to eat and putting the other 5lbs back through again.

Maybe it does work but I'm a bit sceptical 

[Tinfoil Hat]

You might be right, Storm. I'll still swot up on it if I can ever retire, and have space to entertain it. If not, I'll just grow fruit, veg & herbs & keep chickens. That would make me happy.

[Storm in the garden]

2 hours ago, Tinfoil Hat said:

You might be right, Storm. I'll still swot up on it if I can ever retire, and have space to entertain it

 

Exactly. Look into it a bit more and it might work for you ...I could be talking bollocks....it's been known to happen

 

2 hours ago, Tinfoil Hat said:

If not, I'll just grow fruit, veg & herbs & keep chickens. That would make me happy.

 

Well it's not everybody's cup of tea.....but it works for me

[Brad the lad]

I live in the city and was looking to move way out to Wales or Devon when this kicked off. We had 7 house bookings today to view our house but we made the choice to stay put because there is only so much stress you can handle and moving to another county in normal times is hard enough but during this Sh$t is beyond our stress limits. It was all starting to feel like it could have been the nail in my coffin just through the stress of sorting it all out. We are staying put and now at least I can sort out and work with what I have got here. Im growing veg and turned 1/2 my garden into an allotment and I'm now about to adapt all of it to be a growing space for food. The neighbours ALL think I'm nuts and well over the top!!!

 

I would suggest that what anyone who is growing food with very close neighbours should buy LOTS of seeds. Enough for you and your neighbours. This way when the sleeping souls start to wake and realise that they have to grow food you can dish them out in the hope that they don't steal your veg and all work together. This is a better option than sleeping in he garden with the dog to protect my cabbage anyway.

 

No one can plan for this and that's how it has been masterminded. All in stages to keep us confused. Goal posts moving daily and constantly blurring your vision in the process. All said though I think it is our duty as the ones awake to pull them in and try our hardest to not become one of them. Gifting seeds is a great example that is very cheap.

[jonesthepost]

Someone made a similar thread to this a while ago, forget who sorry; but they included this nifty device in it.

 

https://www.lifestraw.com/products/lifestraw/

[oz93666]

6 hours ago, Brad the lad said:

I live in the city and was looking to move way out to Wales or Devon when this kicked off. We had 7 house bookings today to view our house but we made the choice to stay put because there is only so much stress you can handle and moving to another county in normal times is hard enough but during this Sh$t is beyond our stress limits. It was all starting to feel like it could have been the nail in my coffin just through the stress of sorting it all out. We are staying put and now at least I can sort out and work with what I have got here. Im growing veg and turned 1/2 my garden into an allotment and I'm now about to adapt all of it to be a growing space for food. The neighbours ALL think I'm nuts and well over the top!!!

 

 

Your original instinct to get out was correct 

 

Stress ??? You ain't seen nothing yet ... these are the quiet times ....

 

How the hell do you think you're going to stop people stealing your veg in the night ??? Presumably you are growing this to avoid food shortage , You will be surrounded by hungry people ...People even steel from allotments in normal times , what do you think it will be like when there are food shortages ....good luck . 

Edited May 31, 2020 by oz93666

[oz93666]

3 hours ago, jonesthepost said:

Someone made a similar thread to this a while ago, forget who sorry; but they included this nifty device in it.

 

https://www.lifestraw.com/products/lifestraw/

 

Brilliant ! (sarcasm) ...this straw enables you to drink pond water without getting sic ... So you're on the run , out in the wilds , drinking pond water ...and what will you be eating ???

 

Get it together people , you cannot survive on the run ! 

 

Only hope is get somewhere remote , get dug in with plenty of supplies 

[jonesthepost]

Just now, oz93666 said:

 

Brilliant ! (sarcasm) ...this straw enables you to drink pond water without getting sic ... So you're on the run , out in the wilds , drinking pond water ...and what will you be eating ???

 

Get it together people , you cannot survive on the run ! 

 

Only hope is get somewhere remote , get dug in with plenty of supplies 

 

Get lost oz; you’re a right pain in the arse sometimes.