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Feedback and feature updates for this forum
John AdamaStaff - December 20, 2020 In this thread we’ll share updates we’re making to the forum (in comments below) + it’s a good place for you to share any feedback about how we can make things better.
Had “The Preparedness Talk”
LNMOt - December 19, 2020 We had a long time friend come up to visit us recently. None of our friends are aware of our preparedness. The conversation went in a direction where I thought it would be a good time to start talking to our friend about preparedness. The conversation went well I think – I did my best to explain the importance of being prepared and self reliant. Hopefully at the very least the discussion got him thinking – and perhaps he will continue to take steps in the preparedness journey. He could also just think I’m crazy! I did send him the link to this website 🙂 curious to hear if anybody else has had similar conversations with family or friends and how they went? What approaches worked well and which ones didn’t?
Why did you start prepping?
LNMOt - December 18, 2020 Wanting to hear feedback from this community as to why each of you decided to start prepping? Was it a particular situation you experienced? A book you read? Discussions with a family member, friend or neighbor?
For me, I had toyed with idea of prepping for multiple years and I even had a good stash of freeze dried food and a biomass stove. Lots of camping gear. But COVID-19 was ultimately what did it for me – seeing how quickly and easily things could truly fall apart. It was eye opening.
My two rural retreats in Australia
Downunder - December 17, 2020 Hello, and thankyou for accepting me into your online community.
This post is just to introduce myself and give some background about myself and my prepping journey. I’m mid 50’s, married with two adult children and one grandchild. I followed my elder brother into prepping in the early 1980’s, buying my first rural retreat as a 21y/o, then lost some interest as I started a family. Later on in life I returned to prepping, and now own two rural retreats, one close to the coast, and one in the mountains. They are about 50 miles apart in a direct line, but further via road. I live in my house in a coastal city several hours drive from my… Read More
The importance of knowing your way around
matthew.Contributor - December 17, 2020 Sorry this is such a long post. The idea was inspired by a recent thread about roads vs interstates, and then again in a thread about cost-free preps. It got so long and specific it felt like it should be its own topic…
One incredibly important aspect of prepping, in my opinion, is becoming keenly familiar with the road and highway system in one’s town and region. Too often people rely on their phones and navigation devices to get them from point A to B, and it seems to me a real, yet avoidable, vulnerability. While such devices can be great for avoiding traffic jams and road closures, it’s a real fool’s errand to rely on them completely. Networks can fail or get overloaded, devices/batteries can die, and it wastes time to type in/search for your destination – all things you want to avoid during an… Read More
FEMA’s 2021 “Ready” calendar now available
Bob - December 16, 2020 https://www.ready.gov/sites/default/files/2020-12/Ready_2021-messaging-calendar.pdf
The 2021 calendar on readiness/preparedness themes just arrived.
It is well worth the time to glance at and perhaps save.
For visionaries and planners, September’s theme of national preparedness is ideal for TP.com. It’s like making a guaranteed sales call with… Read More
I’m building a physical prepper business where people can ship us things to store
Joseph Ross - December 15, 2020 We just started a website to put together a community of the prepared. The initial idea was to provide a place for people to go who might occasionally need relocating ( hurricane, flood, tornado). This gives them a prepaid long-term place to go without having to purchase or maintain property away from their home. Since then we have added a prepper dedicated storage facility. Its a simple concept. You ship us what you want us to store, we put it in your unit, we mail you a key, then you can either have it shipped anywhere you want when you need it or pick it up in person.
our website is… Read More
Do you buy honey locally? How and why?
Liz Klein - December 14, 2020 I have seen plenty of random articles that say honey never expires. But then I heard a few preppers say you should only buy local because some of the cheaper honey you find in stores is fake or has bad chemicals.
Is that true? Do you buy local and if so, how? Is it more expensive?
Fish antibiotics for humans?
Winston Smith - December 14, 2020 Does anyone stockpile fish antibiotics? For years I’ve heard they’re the same thing as human antibiotics. I plan to stock up in the next few weeks. I understand this guy is pushing his book, but the information is very useful.
Get home bag for harsh winter conditions
LNMOt - December 14, 2020 Hello! I am relatively new to prepping and I am starting to put together a “get home” bag and was hoping for some suggestions and advice. I live in a rural area in the northeast with very cold and harsh winters and I have a 45 minute commute to work each way. If something happened and I had to make it back home on foot in the winter, or if I had to survive the night in my car due to severe winter weather, what would you recommend I have in my get home bag? Thanks in advance for your help!
How do you store your cans?
Jonnie PekelnyContributor - December 13, 2020 My house is reasonably sized but has limited storage space. I’ve been accumulating canned food because of the pandemic, which I’m now also using as a backup food prep — I also have a bucket of freeze-dried food. The cans have mostly been stored in various cubbyholes: e.g. in the space under the couch, under the bottom shelf of my walk-in closet, etc. This works fine for a supply of cans I seldom use, but since I’m trying to rotate the canned food and use it regularly it’s becoming a pain in the butt to crouch on the floor of my closet trying to sort out which cans are which and trying to see the dates. I need a better system. What do you use to store your canned food?
Prepping stocking stuffers
Liz Klein - December 13, 2020 I’m wanting to share the gift of being prepared this Christmas and am having trouble thinking up some $20ish small gifts/stocking stuffers to give to family and friends. What would you recommend?
My social circle is a mix of preppers and non-preppers, so I want something that just about everyone could use.
Sealing push-pin style airflow vents on water containers
JW - December 13, 2020 I have a 10L water container with the push-pin style airflow vent. I know this style of container was not recommended, but it was cheap. It definitely leaks when the container isn’t upright. I plan to store the container upright, but I’m just being extra cautious.
I was thinking of sealing the push-pin plug by wrapping the plug with some Teflon tape. And then some scotch tape over the plug to prevent it from accidentally falling out.
Has anyone dealt with this issue? Any ideas or criticisms of my idea? Would the teflon tape even work? Would it be considered food… Read More
National Space Policy and Preparedness
Bob - December 11, 2020 https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/National-Space-Policy.pdf
Good morning,
Per title, it’s hot off the cyberpress, dated 9 December 2020.
Of prepper interest, at least to me, is the page 17 section titled “Protection of Electromagnetic… Read More
Sutures: Can I use Vet/medical school practice ones to stock my first aid kit?
lsmith - December 11, 2020 I’m having a difficult time buying sutures to stock my emergency med kit with. The only ones I can find online at Amazon are for either medical students or Veterinary uses. Are these appropriate to rely on for my med kits? Thoughts?
BBC preppers going mainstream article
Bob - December 11, 2020 https://www.bbc.com/news/business-55249590
Good morning,
The BBC, with global coverage, has the above article about preppers going mainstream.
Article has a picture of some prepper gear and stuff. I like that textile item displayed on the wall. Hope it’s not used for a… Read More
What’s the best prepping advice you have ever received?
Gideon ParkerStaff - December 10, 2020 Sharing the best advice that we have received will help new preppers and also teach us what others have found most helpful as they got started.
The best advice my wife has ever received is: “Start with the basics” and “It doesn’t matter how much money you have if you don’t have food”
The best advice I’ve received is the advice found in The Prepared’s Sane Prepping article. It really helped me out at a time when Prepping was overwhelming and stressful. It helped me have a level headed look at prepping and made it seem attainable for… Read More
Child needing regular hospital treatments
Darren - December 10, 2020 Hi. We live in the UK and my 10 year old has recently been diagnosed with leukaemia requiring regular hospital visits for chemotherapy (around a 35 mile round trip each time).
Does anyone have any experience or ideas around planning for this? Instead of getting away from a disaster, we are likely to have to drive into it and into a city to still access life saving treatments.
The point I wanted to make (but was cut) on this recent BBC podcast about prepping going mainstream
John AdamaStaff - December 10, 2020 It’s a nice segment that went out to their worldwide audience. About 18 mins long: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/w3csz799, my part’s around 3:00. Another TP community member, Julie Fredrickson, also joined.
EDIT to add: The podcast was popular, so they did a follow-up article with Julie and I https://www.bbc.com/news/business-55249590
There was a part of the interview that was cut for time. It wasn’t hugely insightful, but wanted to ramble the point here since it keeps getting cut from these… Read More
Catalogs with A+ tech information
Bob - December 10, 2020 Good morning,
The catalogs with high-quality and expensive products can also be loaded with high-quality technical information.
One example is: https://www.streamlight.com/ecatalog/2020FullLineCatalog/index.html
DISCLAIMER: Not making recommendations or have any interest in company. I do use some of their… Read More
I am an experienced outdoorsman with an eye for conservation and sustainable land use
Thomas GomezStaff - December 9, 2020 Besides being a writer and researcher for The Prepared, I consult in the outdoor industry and work as a precision rifle instructor. I am an experienced hunter and angler and have spent thousands of hours in the outdoors catching fish, hunting, bird watching, and exploring planet Earth.
Here to answer any questions about hunting, angling, or general outdoor activities. Questions related to gear selection, ethics, game recipes, stalking, training, mindset, and hunt preparation are welcome.
Here are a few photos from a recent mule deer hunt in Central New… Read More
Treking staff; the pike pole
Bob - December 9, 2020 https://www.google.com/search?source=univ&tbm=isch&q=%22pike+poles%22&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjB8arstcDtAhUJ2qwKHXK-CVcQjJkEegQIARAB&biw=1280&bih=641
Good morning,
For those who have basic plans to evacuate from home via walking, it can be advantageous to carry a stick, cane or pole of some… Read More
Everyday footwear
matthew.Contributor - December 7, 2020 When I think of my own personal safety and vulnerability, and the absolute “must-haves” in any kind of emergency situation, a good pair of shoes or boots is very high on my list. I know what I’d want to be wearing if and when the SHTF (in my case a good pair of waterproof, lightweight hiking boots) but I am very aware that wearing such footwear all the time simply doesn’t make sense. Some professional and social situations demand for more formal attire, and sometimes you simply want to relax and “put your feet up.” But let’s face it, much formal attire is ridiculous and makes us very vulnerable. I cringe at the idea of ever wearing something that would hinder me from running, walking long distances, climbing a fence, etc.
I know footwear choices are very subjective, and highly affected by one’s gender, style, career, and environment. That said, I’m interested in… Read More
What are your thoughts on pull-tab lids on cans?
Essie Carroll - December 7, 2020 I am starting to see more and more cans get these pull-to-open type lids. What are your thoughts on these from a prepping standpoint?
I can see them being nice to get into food quickly without a can opener. But I see the traditional style where you do need a can opener being sturdier and less likely to failure.
I’ve heard that you should avoid the pull-tab lids for long term food storage, because they give way over time and can expose and spoil your… Read More
Lockdowns, part 2
matthew.Contributor - December 6, 2020 Welp, a new round of lockdowns in several states across the US, and less than a day after the Governor announced specifics here in Washington state, there are already wide reports of empty shelves and mayhem at the grocery stores. Canned food and toilet paper, once again, have been wiped out (sorry for the bad pun).
My household was already stocked up and steered clear of the stores this weekend, but I can’t help but to shake my head at the inability of the broader public to assess situations and plan ahead – how anyone could be surprised by these new lockdowns is beyond me. It’s really disappointing, and reminds me that we are actually prepping for two things at once: the disaster that strikes, and the disaster of the masses who seem unable to recognize, and plan… Read More
