Prepping, homesteading, survivalism, TEOTWAKI and all related items. Take it away, TitL.

Firstly, what is the context? What are we discussing about to discover if we are ready or not for?

Zombies.

Sweet!

SO far, I live on an island, with the land to support me and mine off what we could grow here. We have alternative power for our home, but are still gas dependent( though I hope to change that someday). I have a multitude of bludgeoning devices scattered through the property under the guise of 'landscaping tools'. :D
The property is surrounded by 7 foot tall steel wire deer fence with metal post set in cement. WOuldn't hold off a horde of zombies for too long, but would serve as a suitable first line of defense.

The island i live on is not mine alone. There are 4500 other humans here, so I'm expecting at least some zombie action when Zday finally hits.

:)

I figured this might be a good idea to have links, suggestions, or questions that others might be able to provide.

I've been preparing for a couple years for a "rainy day". Though up until the last year, I only thought a rainy day meant loss of my job, or a car breaking down to the point of several thousands of dollars to repair or replace.

In the last year I have been learning and preparing for more things such as disasters, and recently have been made more aware of the problems with the debt problem that has me concerned that some countries will go bankrupt, and affect the world by the impact.

So to that end, I've been making various preparations. I've seen katisara post that he matched up with the militia description from that pdf posted by sciencemile, and that's when it got me realizing that others on the forum may have their own concerns with having plans in action for various situations.

And after seeing TEOTWAWKI from kat, I'm confident that he's done a bit of reading of the idea.

Myself, I've been getting ready for the move into the country. Currently that means to me buying farmland, and building my own house. I'm going to attempt to do this off the grid, meaning no electrical bills, no city water, no city sewage lines, and ideally no mortgage.

Anyone else making their own preparations?

No amount of preparing can be too small. I'm sure everyone has thought of making bug out bags, or kits made to last 72 hours in the event of some disaster? I think everyone can manage to afford that at the minimum.

So my first question is how many of you do something to prepare, and how many of you think it's not worth your time, or don't believe anything will happen that you need to prepare?

I too am actively working towards a sustainable homestead. I live on a proptery(10 acres) with three families and am hoping to eventually have the ability to grow all of our own food on our property. But that means a large green house because half of the year is not suitable for growing food.

We have our own well for water and it is a good producer, and like I said, am hoping to figure out alternative energy production methods to take us off the grid, but that is a longer termed goal, as it will require a good deal of infrastructure.

So TintL, are you thinking of going for an earth ship style home? That's what I want to do for our green house and have it also house some livestalk. And, after learning about Aquaponic farming, I may want to include a fish farm to grow my own fertilizer for indoor agriculture.

I definitely believe in being prepared. Between being a boy scout and now doing risk analyst work, well... it's where my minds at. I'd like to be self-sustainable, but I live in the city, so that's never going to be reasonable, but I can definitely dependence on outside sources. I've been saving my pennies to rig up a biodiesel generator in my garage. After that I'll probably finally take the nice slate tiles off my roof ( :( ) and replace them with some solar panels. My wife was into gardening for a while, but it's really time consuming, so that'll probably have to wait until things are more settled.

In general though, I'm doing what I can to be prepared for up to a Katrina-level disaster - learning first aid, stocking a week's worth of food and water, storing medical supplies and batteries, learning the evacuation routes in the area. Really, it's all very basic work, ultimately costs me nothing (I've been using those first aid supplies and eating that food, I can assure you!), learning a lot, and having a lot of fun.

#1 resource 100% is survivalblog.com . I visit there every day. A lot of the stuff is on the assumption of no SMALLER than Katrina - which is more than I'm planning for - but the basic preparations apply regardless. Food storage is food storage, I just scale it down a little bit.

I have looked at the earthship design, and think it would be very good for my climate here. Very cold winters, and hot summers. I've read that earths ships get very warm in the summers here because of the south facing windows.


It seems to be a good idea, but the one I'm going to try for a full scale house.

My intent is to buy the land, and get a trailer or large tent on the land. Buy housing materials as I can afford, and build as I can. I'm not sure how far I'll be able to get, but I don't think my wife would even let me consider having the whole family live in a tent or trailer through our winters.

Personally, I'm the gung ho one, while she just likes things in place, and let me handle the details.

So I'm thinking get the shell, insulation, wiring, water and solar hooked up by the end of the fall, and then move into the heated powered house before it gets too cold. Anything extra such as wall treatments, painting, the "finishing details" will be the gravy if it's done before we move from the trailer to the house.

My plan for the house will be using 2X6 wall construction on crawlspace. No basement.  Insulation will be blown in closed cell foam for insulation value, and moisture proof abilities.

Heating will be mainly through propane with woodstove back up. Hot water, stoves will be propane.

I'm going the route of a chest refrigerator, and chest freezer. As opposed to an upright, which will allow the cold air to leak out every time it's opened.

I plan on trying a few techniques for sheds, and storage buildings. I'm going to go for a hoop style greenhouse. I'm planning on 20-25 foot wide by 50 feet long. Modular pieces so I can always add if I need more space.

I'm going to try some strawbale construction for a hen and goat house. I'm not opposed to using the goats and chickens for meat, but I will be attempting to start off with them just for eggs and milk.

I will be building a root cellar for sure, and will be canning as well.

I think it's good you have three families involved. I would like to find some like minded families as well in the area.


I also like your idea for the earthship style greenhouse. I had originally been planning barrels of water to collect heat in the day, and use them for warmth during the evening, but I could see how the earthship greenhouse could be even more effective to trap heat.

For fertilizer, I intended to reuse chicken and goat manure, plus earth worms, and composting.

This is getting a bit long, and almost random with the ideas I am using.

Sounds you are a lot further along with your plans than I am. I guess we'll see if this summer is good for my planning or not.

I've just recently heard of survivalblog. Lots of good information.

I just finished reading Patriots last week, and I enjoyed it immensely. Definitely a how to guide mixed within a novel story.

Tips- if you use a car, keep it full of gas. In the event that you do need to leave in an emergency, do you really want to risk having to find a gas station at 3AM and waiting in line like everyone else did who are not prepared to leave the area immediately?

For myself, I leave in a small town, but not all my gas stations are open 24 hours. Everyone will be going to same few stations that are open if it happens at night.

Next tip-have enough emergency cash

Worse, what if the emergency leaves the electricity out? That means no cash machines or credit cards. You now have a car with no gas, and no money to buy gas.

I would be leary of planning on having a working house within 1 season. I assume you've never built a house alone, so you don't have the experience to deal with unanticipated problems, or worse, with licensing, permits, etc. (which can hold things up for months). I don't know your situation, and I have a friend of a friend who had his whole family live in a basement for a year as he built the house over their heads, but I'm just saying, anticipate the unexpected :)

As for fuel - the problem with gasoline is it goes bad (and the problem with a full tank is it's not a full tank once you've driven twenty miles from the gas station).

Better idea is either buy a extra jerry cans of gasoline with a fuel stabilizer, and rotate your stock (which is also good for your wallet, since fuel prices fluctuate a lot over the year. Buying up in January, when it's $2.50/gallon, and using it in July, when it's almost $4/gallon means you've saved $1.50/gallon).

Or alternatively, buy a diesel like me - not only is diesel less common in consumer vehicles (but still plenty common - our freight trucks run on it, after all), it can use not only diesel, but kerosene, cooking oil, jet fuel, even old engine oil, without any modifications.

There are several different concepts of using thermal mass heating( the bsaics to the heating concept of earth ships) and it seems like you are using one with the foam enclosed insulation. That's great. If you can get the ration of sunlight and thermal mass right you can get your house to be self regulating for the temp.

I have chickens, but have yet to include goats to the mix. I want to eventually have a couple goats, a donkey(for manure and yard security) possibly some swine( mostly for the clearing of new garden and pasture areas[most of the property is all trees and underbrush], and for yummy yummy bacon) and bees.

I have come to realize recently though that it is far easier when you include multiple families and properties. The more of a community effort it becomes the easier and more efficient it can be. Realistically you won't be able to grow everything you want to eat on your own property by yourself. But, you could focus on a few crops if you have other families focusing on the crops that you aren't and then utilizing a food swap of some sort. Though the difficulty in the community one can be in getting others to join you. :P

I've personally had enough of the country and Nature; if I'm going to deal with some sort of Apocalypse or another, I'll take my chances in the Megalopolis of Concrete.

I'd run out of Zyrtec eventually if I didn't stay near a pharmacy, and without Zyrtec I'd die from fatal allergic reactions in the Spring/Summer anyways.

Agreed. The only thing I plan on having done within one season is basically a shell, insulation, wiring for solar power, and some sort of water system. I hope eventually for a well, plus rainwater collection, but I'll plan on hauling water at the beginning. I plan on composting toilet, so I only require a grey water disposal system.

I've never built a house before, but I have some experience with 2X4 framing, house hold wiring, most types of pipes for plumbing, drywalling, and the like. I actually want to keep the house rustic looking as I can though. I'd like to have a rougher wood look to the place.

So I agree with you that I likely won't be getting the house completed within one season.

Good point. I hadn't considered doing that. I'm going to remember this one.

I did intend to get a diesel pick up truck. I didn't consider the idea that ther other sources of fuels could be used. Very good point.

I also read that diesel stores better, and longer than gasoline.

Yes, it's hard to get friends to come out and do this kind of thing. I'm hoping that I'll be able to make friends with the neighbors.

I'm thinking having good neighbors will be very important when it comes to getting some experience from those who are already in the area.

I don't think the country is for everyone.

I read one blog that came up with a very good compromise to your concerns. They set up an "escape" in a smaller town within driving distance. Such as they rented a storage locker, and filled it with supplies and gear in advance. They scouted apartments, and shelters that are for rent, and kept the information handy.

Basically, if an emergency came up, they could leave within minutes, and get somewhere a bit more quiet, and away from a large city. They had plenty of supplies to camp if need be, food, and cooking equipment, first aid supplies, extra gas, etc.


One thing that has me getting away from the city was the fact that if something really bad happened that really disrupted the city, such as earthquakes like in Chile, the distributions channels are affected. For example, people in Chile were rioting over food.

So, since large cities import so much, if a large city is affected, they will also be out of supplies very quickly. I've heard suggestions that many supermarkets would run their shelves dry within days without constant importing.

Worse, in cities, it seems when some emergencies occur, looting just seems to take over. So you'd need to protect yourself if you're still in the city when some emergency happens.

I'm not sure what plan you might have to protect yourself, but it seems reasonable that some looters may be armed with guns, machetes, bats, clubs, crowbars, multiple attackers, etc.

You don't have to be armed with machine guns, just able to make it not worth their while to go after you.

Basic question for you science. Do you have extra zyrtec on hand? Such as a month or more at all times? If it's that important, you would want to make sure that no matter what, you'll have your supply.

They come in 70-tablet bottles, so I'm good for 70 days. It's the long term I'm thinking of in that aspect.

I live in a relatively small town, although it's the County Seat and "relatively small" is around 30,000 in Western Washington.

I doubt that I'm very safe where I live, however; it's a very conservative environment and there's a church every thousand feet. We've had massacres over political differences here before, I'd hate to be outside my house when the opportunity knocks for various sects to settle old scores with each-other, or blame things on non-believers, skeptics, liberals, Wicca, intellectuals, or whoever they give the horns and hooves.

Though I take what people say around here (EDIT: My town, the Radio, Newspaper) with serious consideration, so perhaps they're all steam, perhaps we've grown out of burning people as witches and heretics here. But then again if "perhaps" weren't considered there wouldn't be much of a survivalist movement.
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I'm more of a Macro-Survivalist than a Micro-Survivalist, anyways.  I'm more interested in insuring humanity as a whole survives; Colony Ships over Bomb Shelters.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:28, Fri 12 Mar 2010.

Good to know you'll have a supply for short term emergencies.

Reading your comment on colony ships made me think of the arks from the movie 2012. Boy, was that movie ever stupid. Great special effects though.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:57, Fri 12 Mar 2010.