Buysellpoultry

What can we do to begin preparing for possible disasters? The ideal situation is to purchase a piece of ground that has a well, a pond or a creek and some woods. But all of us cannot do that. If you do a lot of rough camping out, chances are you will have several things you would need to survive in a wilderness type of situation that you could start with and build on. There are many survival books that you can purchase to get ideas. Keep these books with your gear as they will be a help in trying to find something to eat and stay alive, should you be put in that situation. If you live in a surburban area or a small town like I do, there are some things we can do to prepare for survival.

The most important item is water. Try to purchase a good water filter that does not take electricity. You will need to have several filters on hand for it as well. There are some that work by gravity and there are some smaller ones out there that are not quite so expensive. There are also large water bags that can be purchased to fill and can be hung up (outdoors on a tree limb). This way you could keep a little filtered water ready for drinking or cooking. Find or purchase some rain barrels and place them under the eaves spouts of your house.

If you live in a warmer climate, you could probably do this year round. For those of us who have cold winters, there are special water barrels that may be purchased and filled, if you have room in your house to store them. Purchase several water purification tablets to have on hand to purify it for drinking, if need be. Store some filtered water in large containers (preferable glass or at least the big blue water jugs). Smaller jars could be placed in the bottom of a closet, place a heavy card board or one inch plywood on top and stack another row. Place a sticky note on them as to the date you put water in them. Begin to use them with the oldest date first and refill and date again. This way if the electricity is off for a few days, you will have some to drink and cook with.

And, if the worse scenario happens, you will have some prepper food to use (as well as the filter to do more) until you can get organized to do what you need to do. Usually, you will have an opportunity to draw some water from the city tank to use for other things. But keep in mind others may have that same thought. I think it may take electricity to pump water to the tank and it could empty quickly. Be sure to have some water boxes available to use if you run out of water. I do not recommend that you buy a lot of the plastic bottles of water to store, as I am not convinced that the plastic is that safe for long time storage. However, it is up to each individual to decide.There are water bottles (usually quart size) available that have the filter right in them. You can fill them from a creek or pond and put the lid on and suck the water up through the straw. It filters as it goes through the straw. Some of them guarantee 99.99% bacteria and chemical free. If you would purchase one for each of the family, now and plenty of the filters, if you are not able to stay in one place long, these would be very handy. You can purchase water boxes to fill in for your water supply as well. They are fairly inexpensive and long lasting.

The next important item, would be food. Each time you go to the grocery store, pick up some dried foods, such as rice, beans, noodles or something on that order. Some extra canned goods, anything that will keep for a time. There are canned meats, food bars, MRE meals and canned cheese available that have a long shelf life. Try to purchase some of these each month to supplement your survival food pantry. These are ready to eat and will save you time in having to fix something under less then good conditions. Keep in mind there is no microwave or electric stove without electricity. And there may not even be gas available if you have a gas cook stove. Like the water, you will need to have a rotation plan. As you use one item, purchase another one. Watch for sales and stock up on paper plates, cups, plastic silverware. You may not have water to waste to wash dishes.