Year-Round Disaster Preparedness Guides for Burners?!

[xtine2]

n the wake of Hurricane Katrina and increasing Global Warming in general, Burners may want to start thinking about disaster preparedness at home too!

BM has a lot of knowledge to share with others -- such as ...how to survive in a harsh climate, how to quickly build temporary shelters, basics of water conservation, the principles of reduce/reuse/recycle, sources of renewable energy (solar, etc), living without running water and electricity, life without motorized vehicles, respect for the earth, and gift giving, just to name a few....

Let's not forget that San Francisco, the birthplace to Burning Man, is in the heart of earthquake country, and we're still waiting for the big one!

Are You Prepared?

[theCryptofishist]

If you're lucky enough to live or work in Berkeley, contact the fire department and ask to be put on the mailing list for Community Emergency Responce Training (CERT). If you're in San Francisco they have something similier, but apparently not as good. This is also a good time to get your niegnborhood organized or to expand it beyond crime watch. One of my favorite ideas is the Berkeley street that has a twice a year pot luck when they rotate out their earthquake supply food and cook it.

[AntiM]

I've had "disaster" preparedness drilled into me since childhood. First was all the Navy moves with Dad; do you have your ID, are all the important things in the car where the packers can't get to them? Being raised as a Mormon, once we moved to Utah, we had a two year food supply in the basement. I think the original wheat containers and grinder are still down there at Dad's place. My current home has a basement pantry and racks for canned goods, betcha anything the first owner was LDS. Then there were all the years in Japan; the military family services provided checklists of what to have and how to pack for emergency evacuations or earthquakes. We kept a backpack or two in the genkan, plus the cat carriers, and a grab-it filebox of important papers.

Here's a good start: a working flashlight under each side of the bed.

There are two types of preparedness, mobile and holed up in your house. Plan for both, but don't be paranoid.

Oh, and there's a third, an emergency car kit, for repairs, first aid, with walking shoes, blanket, water and snacks. And a booster pack. And a flashlight.

[Rob the Wop]

Yup, got six months supply of dried/canned food, 20 gallons of fresh water, a well on the side of the house, a water purification system and iodine, wind up powered flashlight and radio, a fireplace, a fence/big ass tree/half cord of firewood in the back to burn if need be, ammo and guns, and a couple pretty good med kits.

The one thing I would really like to add to this would be a generator and a full set of Foxfire books. Neither are completely necessary though.

Oh and a couple cases of BBQ sauce in case I have to eat the nieghbors.

[Magikal]

Oh and a couple cases of BBQ sauce in case I have to eat the nieghbors.

Rob, I luv you, man .

Got a pretty good setup, 25 gallons of water (5 military "jerry cans"), about two weeks' supply of canned food & MREs. Not expecting to have to go much beyond that. Hey, the Feddle Goobermint will be in to save me after that, right?

[Rob the Wop]

Oh and a couple cases of BBQ sauce in case I have to eat the nieghbors.

Rob, I luv you, man .

Got a pretty good setup, 25 gallons of water (5 military "jerry cans"), about two weeks' supply of canned food & MREs. Not expecting to have to go much beyond that. Hey, the Feddle Goobermint will be in to save me after that, right?

Y'know, you would be surprised at how cheap it is to have a stash of food handy. I went to Costco and got 50lb bags of flour and rice, and huge bags of pasta, giant containers of dried spaghetti sauce, dried veggies for soup, soup seasonings, olive oil, etc. It cost us a total of about $200 for two people to eat for about 6 months. And we could have cut that down to $100 by not getting canned stuff. The bare neccessities are really not that expensive. Then we tossed it all in huge plastic containers and sealed it with duct tape after writing the date on them. Yah the meals would get repeatative, but we would be alive even if we couldn't find other food sources outside.

[dj big E]

Dam i spent all my food and water supplies on guns and ammo. Lmao

[AntiM]

I forgot to mention BFKs. Our house is full to the brim with BFKs (big fucking knives). I even store family members BFKs when their moms won't let them keep them in their own homes.

Larry's a hillbilly, knowing he owns guns is like knowing he breathes.

[xtine2]

Wow, this is great!

I'm already taking notes!

I knew I came to the right place for advice!

C

[Rob the Wop]

I forgot to mention BFKs. Our house is full to the brim with BFKs (big fucking knives). I even store family members BFKs when their moms won't let them keep them in their own homes.

Oh hell yah. Don't skimp on this one. In a true survival mode, you would be absolutely astounded how vital a really good set of cutting instruments are. They can be used to kill, skin, cut plants for shelter/food, whittle arrows and bows, etc. Spend the money and get a really good survival knife. I have a sweet Kershaw with interchangable blades- one standard, one fillet, and one for cutting tree limbs.



Also a nice framing axe (axe blade on one side and hammer on the other) is great when power tools are not an option anymore. Smaller than a big axe, yet can still do the job with extra elbow grease plus you have a hammer to build things with (nails can be taken from other things or made from a lot of existing metal objects like metal rods). Easy to stuff into a case with your emergency supplies.



Toss in a couple wetstones to keep them sharp- and you're set.

[AntiM]

Larry's rather fond of kukri, sort of a curved machete, infinitely useful. He had one from Cold Steel, after 15 or 20 years, the blade snapped on him when he was lopping a branch into pieces. They replaced it, no questions asked, no receipt, he couldn't even remember exactly when or where he'd bought it. I know that's not their warranty as printed in the catalogs, but it was superb customer service!

And if you have BFKs, learn how to sharpen them; invest in a decent stone. If you borrow a knife from Larry, trust him when he tells you it is sharp, don't test the fucker on your thumb, m'kay?

[calsur]

OK, I will beat on myself so you all do not have to. BAD Calsur, BAD!! Commerce free site! BAD BAD BAD!!

OK so now I can say what I want. There is a knife sharpener that is fantastic. Everyone who has ever borrowed it and used it has bought one for themselves. Its called the Lansky Universal System. This is a little hard to explain but I will give it a shot.

The system uses a guide that clamps to the blade that keeps the stones at a constant angle for a quick and easy perfect sharpening. The basic system costs around 40 bucks but the diamond system for 120 works a whole lot better.

For the survival stuff, get a gas BBQ with a side burner and 3 or 4 spare tanks. I also have this accessories that is a pipe with some gas taps and a lantern on top. You screw the pipe into a gas cylinder and the lantern end is about 6’ off the ground and you can attach the BBQ to it. Which is nice because you can see what you are cooking. I do want to get a water purifier. I have 35,000 gallons in the pool and enough plastic sheeting to cover it but I would like one of the purifiers for drinking water. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

There is a lot of stuff you can do to prepare, the biggest thing is just doing it.

[Rob the Wop]

One thing to think about water purifiers, they don't do chemicals that I know of. They are mainly used for bacteria, virus, and other biological nasties and I think they can get some of the heavy minerals. Pretty sure chlorine would go right through it.

Which is why I was thinking about a generator. I haven't tested the well water, and the previous owners were kind of redneckish. I have a bad feeling that he may have dumped oil or something in the well. I do have a distillation unit that can make distilled water, which is gauranteed safe. it runs on electric, however. Also I hate relying on petroleum products as they are gauranteed finite, whereas wood will always be around in Oregon. I could rig some kind of outdoor wood pit and place the still on it, then rig a cool water condesor from an elevated tank.

Dammit, know I have to hit the hardware store and get parts. When the fuck will the revolution hit so I can play survivalist?

[calsur]

Rob,

If you are going to rig this up use a copper tube that is rated for food service or all your hair might drop out or you may just get sick from other contaminants.

I am not worried about chlorine as I intend to dose the pool hard with it. But chlorine eveporates out of water in 24 hours. Ask anyone who owns a fish tank. A couple of buckets and some cheese cloth will be good to get rid of it.

[AntiM]

Rob,

won't your county or state do a well water purity test? I have in-laws in WV, and everyone who has their own well has a certificate about the potability of the water. Sort of a guarantee against the gas and mining companies in case there's blasting a few hills over and the bedrock cracks ad lets in saline water from other levels (that's incredibly simplified as I understand it). Then again, I think much has to do whether it is an open well or a drilled pumped well.

[Rob the Wop]

Calsur,

Got it covered. Been using the still for 4-5 years. Stainless steel. Made in New Zealand.

Anti-M,

I'll have to check on it, but I was told that you have to get the water commercially tested. It could be because the water is only 16ft below the surface.

[xtine2]

Does anyone know if it is possible just to store tap (or boiled tap) water in a large closed plastic container as your water reserve, or does it have to be purified or store-bought?

I mean, the water should be clean enough not to kill you if you were desperate.

On the one hand, someone told me many of the impurities tend to evaporate or settle on the top if it is allowed to sit a long time.

On the other hand, standing water starts to smell if it sits too long....
Is the key to keep it airtight?

I only ask because I have 3 large water containers that I use every year at Burning Man, and it would be SO EASY just to fill them up right now in my tub and store them in my house (as opposed to making a trip to Smart N Final, for example, which I usually end up drinking anyway...)

Anyone that has some insight would be appreciated.

Thanks

[theCryptofishist]

You should probably be able to store the water for 3 to 6 months. You might want to put in a couple of drops of bleach when you rotate, to keep critters from growing. I'm sure survivalist sites can tell you more. And if your water is past due when disaster hits, you can still use it for washing, most likely.

[Lassen Forge]

We use old alhambra jugs and change them out (one at a time) every 6 months - use the water to water the garden or something. Works well, and you can see if there's something growing in there. And don't forget the basic rule we all know so well - minimum of 1 1/2 to 2 gallons a day per person. It's not just for the Playa anymore! >>grins<<

Abut food - you want to be nutritious and varied. Beans and rice and pasta store well, but how many times can you have beans and rice for 3 meals a day before you get sick of beans and rice? Combining MRE's and freeze-dried camping-style meals give you some variety in your diet. And they're fast - you may not have time at times to cook up a pot of beans, especially if society goes to hell in a hurry (like in N.O.) - but you can always throw hot water in some freeze-dried goulash and scarf it down while you're shooting at the bad guys. >>grins<< MRE's, while rather nasty in some cases, are varied and will sustain you, and have the "instantly edible" edge. Just make sure they haven't gone bad. (They *do* go bad after a while!)

Plan your meals, and plan for at least 2x the people you have in your housing unit - this protects you if (1) your extended family evacuate to *your* place, and/or (2) if the infrastructure really goes to hell, you may be "on your own" longer than you think.

[Magikal]

Does anyone know if it is possible just to store tap (or boiled tap) water in a large closed plastic container as your water reserve, or does it have to be purified or store-bought?

On the other hand, standing water starts to smell if it sits too long....
Is the key to keep it airtight?

Don't know on airtight. Like I said, I have the five military jerry cans, keep 'em shut tight mostly to prevent spillage & keep spiders out, and the water has still been sweet & pure up to a year later. As Bay Bridge Sue sez, swap 'em out one at a time over the course of the year and water the lawn. And I just use tap water, personally.

I only ask because I have 3 large water containers that I use every year at Burning Man, and it would be SO EASY just to fill them up right now in my tub and store them in my house

Absolutely, I'd do it, and now, before disaster hits. Keep an eye on them, check them often, just to see how they're coming along, until you know how they react long-term. Some plastics can leach into the water, making it taste awful. If in doubt, start hitting the Army/Navy stores, pick up the plastic jerry cans like what I have, which are purpose-built from the get-go for water. It's the right formula of plastic.

[Magikal]

One thing to think about water purifiers, they don't do chemicals that I know of. They are mainly used for bacteria, virus, and other biological nasties and I think they can get some of the heavy minerals. Pretty sure chlorine would go right through it.

I think they do. You have to specify between water FILTERS (which just filter out the worst gunk) and water PURIFIERS (which are like a little water purification factory right in your hand). Check out the Pur unit, which is what I got. They hawk to backpackers and the LNT crowd, so they are my go-to source.

[Lassen Forge]

The thing about survival stuff is, if you don't do it, then it isn't there.

ANY water (as long as it's potable) is better than none, when you don't have any.

If the biggun hit this afternoon, would you be ready?

Hugs 2 you,
bb

[Rob the Wop]

One thing to think about water purifiers, they don't do chemicals that I know of. They are mainly used for bacteria, virus, and other biological nasties and I think they can get some of the heavy minerals. Pretty sure chlorine would go right through it.

I think they do. You have to specify between water FILTERS (which just filter out the worst gunk) and water PURIFIERS (which are like a little water purification factory right in your hand). Check out the Pur unit, which is what I got. They hawk to backpackers and the LNT crowd, so they are my go-to source.

Yup, the unit I have is a Sweetwater purifier. They state that, while the activated charcoal can screen some chemicals, the don't guarantee it and suggest you find another water source. You're right about the chlorine though, I wasn't thinking about it. Weird as I have a hot tub and have to constantly replace it.

Not sure what you can do about nastier chemicals (especially radiator fluid, which I have a bad feeling the last owners might have dumped- they had an RV parked over the well for years). But when it comes down to it, you just try you best in a bad situation and cross your fingers.

[calsur]

xtine2,

From the American Red Cross on storing water :

http://www.redcross.org/services/disast ... water.html

My disaster water supply is the 2.5 gallon “suitcases” I buy at a big box supplier, left in the box, and switch out on about a 6 month rotation. I find if I let it go longer than that there is a plastic taste to the water. But I am extremely sensitive to hydrocarbons and other people who taste the water I complain about can not taste it.

Rob the Wop,

If you have a “well” that is only 16 feet deep, you do not have a well. You have a ground water run off pit. Get it tested. This might explain the hair. Is there a Rogain plant upslope from you? Wells are normally drilled down to at least the second aquifer if not the third to make sure there is no ground water contamination.

Update : The price I quoted on the diamond stone Lansky knife sharpeners is wrong. I found them online last night for 80 bucks.

[Rob the Wop]

Rob the Wop,

If you have a “well” that is only 16 feet deep, you do not have a well. You have a ground water run off pit. Get it tested. This might explain the hair. Is there a Rogain plant upslope from you? Wells are normally drilled down to at least the second aquifer if not the third to make sure there is no ground water contamination.

Let me rephrase, the water level is 16ft below the ground surface. I am unsure as to depth of the well. It is covered in concrete with a 1ft diameter covered hole. So the ground water can't get into it per se, but it probably gets the majority of its water from the wet ground around it. Either way, I would most probably distill it in an emergency- but I might be forced to use the purifier in a worst case scenario. I'm making an assumption that it is a well rather than a pit since the previous owners used to have an electric pump and used the 'well' to water their lawns. I do know that it is a minimum of 25ft deep since that is the length of the electric pump piping. Now I'm thinking I make have to used a weight and some twine to determine the depth.

[calsur]

On preparedness,

The big thing that most people forget is cash, folding green dollars.

When the Loma Prieta earthquake hit October 17, 1989 it knocked out the banking system for a lot of people. Wells Fargo and B of A had their regional centers located, guess where, San Francisco! No power to the banks located there and no bucks at the ATMs anywhere.

The opposite if you get hit on the other end and there is no power to the ATMs. Same result, no bucks.

It’s a good idea to have a stash of cash. How much and where you keep it is up to you .

[xtine2]

Any suggestions on where to store this stuff in case of an earthquake where your building is likely to collapse pretty quickly???

By your bed (easy to find)?
Outside (unikely to be buried by rubble, but exposed to elements)?
In the Basement (plenty of unused space, but might be dangerous)?
Kitchen?
In Your Car?

Several Places at Once?

[Lassen Forge]

By the bed? Buried and you'll trip over it.
Outside? OK if covered and protected.
Basement - prolly accessable but could be a loss due to burial.
Kitchen? Why? Back porch, maybe, but kitchen is 50/50.
Car - Yes yes yes... Of all places this is one place that you need a kit in.
Several? Mo Betta.

We have a "go" kit in the trunk of each of our cars. Unlikely to be buried in the rubble, and if we're elsewhere or evacuated, well, we got something. These are *full* kits, BTW - in case we're separated. Meaning tents and food and water and the whole casava.

Then there's the one for home. Since our bathroom is the "hard point" of our house, gonna go in a cupboard there. Othrewise in the studio or woodshed in back. Also, our regular camping (my burner) gear is in the basement, behing an exterior false (removable) wall, but unless the house falls *that* way will be accessable in a ohshitdamnit.. OK, it's a gamble, but it's better than naught.

Important papers in the safe - the house can fall on *it* and it'll survive. If we have time to evacuate, we can pop it and grab the folders.

Other stuff? Oil Lamos everywhere. Colemans in the cars. Potbelly woodstove in the woodshed. Tools, nails, screws, in my toolbelt next to the back door where I can get them. Water? 30 gallons fresh (for 2 of us) in Alhambra Jugs,, 45 available for otherwise. Cash in small denominations (1's, 5's, 10's) - a couple hundred worth minimum. Think trade and barter - if all you have are $20's, that $3.00 bottle of water (marked 99 cents) and $6.00 sandwich ($1.99) just cost you $20. Seen this too many times.

Firearms? Yes. Many. Secure and accessable. With imperial shitloads of ammo. Rifle, Handgun, and shotgun. Available whereever. No further info available, but suffice it to say looters would not be too happy to try our place. Prolly enough for a small army or for a DPW weekend or Apokioliiptika Overnighter... Holsters, extra magazines, slings for longarms, and cleaning kits with oil and rags. Even have a leeloader for my .45 with sundry stuff in my big go kit..

Б. Б.

[Magikal]

Whoo-hoo! Guns everywhere! My kinda' gal...

Hafta ditto that, details must have gotten lost somewhere, but looters would be very unhappy at my place, too. And they WILL be there. This is what really makes me want to flush the whole human race; how quickly the human rats crawl out from under their rocks during disasters to steal and make life miserable for people already miserable enough. Be ready to deal with them, falls into the same catagory as having the BFKs...

But off my soapbox. Survival kits, kinda' a fave subject of mine. Rule #1, it must be portable. Best survival kit in the world is no bueno if it's left at home when the doodoo hits. Mine lives by the front door, ready to be grabbed on the way out. It's made up in a USGI large ALICE pack (forget what the acronym stands for, Advanced Load Carrying something or other). Again, the Army/Navy store is your best friend, gear that's literally designed to go thru a war, and all for very low prices. Standard school pack'll do, too, just not as much room, no easy-off harness, and no pack frame.

Pack #2 lives in the car, a (much) smaller version of #1, made up in a standard school backpack, but then I have more water & such in the car, both for the radiator & for me. The key is to spread it out, not keeping it all in one place. If you have one big cache and the roof falls in or a fire breaks out, you are SOL.

And oh, have an extra door/ignition key in one of those magnetic key holders hidden somewhere on your car. I can jump out of my apartment, buck naked, and be clothed and shod and on the road in about five minutes.

And here, too, is another important piece of advice: when my tank gets to half, I refill it. To me, 1/2 = empty. Note that a lot of people don't have enough gas to get out of town, the pumps likely won't be working anyway, and even if they do, they will prolly be price gouging you.

Another trick I have heard about is keeping your disaster kit in one of those plastic 5-gallon buckets (Gamma Seals make good lids, and are screw-off). This gives you something to sit on, something to carry water in, and something to use as a porta-pottie (in the gravest extreme, and obviously in that order). They are tougher than nails, can thump around in the trunk of a car for years while keeping the contents clean & dry, and the best part is, they are cheap (usually free, if you keep your eyes open).

Not that I claim any great pedigree as a preparedness guru, my pack weighs some 80 lbs. and tends to make me tip over backwards (but I DO have one! ). Really need to go thru it and throw some stuff out, ain't goin' far with that much weight on me. Perhaps split it up in two, one 5-gallon bucket, one pack. Whatever, remember you're going to be living out of this for a week or two (or that's what you should be planning on). And remember, always pack extra water. It's heavy, but it'll quickly get lighter. And yeah, greenbacks, they don't weigh much, and in a pinch, you can always use 'em to start fires or wipe yourself.

And finally, my buddy sent over this list of websites to check out. I haven't personally had time to look thru them but I trust his judgement, these are mostly earthquake preparedness, your milage may vary, blah blah blah take it for what it's worth:


Earthquake Preparedness Links
http://www.oes.ca.gov/Operational/OESHo ... endatabase
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/hazards/prepare.html
http://www.johnmartin.com/earthquakes/E ... I_1000.HTM
http://www.lafd.org/
http://www.pgc.nrcan.gc.ca/seismo/eqinfo/prep.htm
http://www.silicongold.com/article_eart ... edness.htm
http://survival-preparedness.info/earth ... paredness/
http://theepicenter.com/howto.html
http://www.earthquakecountry.info/

Experts challenge quake advice e-mail "Triangle of Life"
http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking ... -6106r.htm

[AntiM]

plastic 5-gallon buckets

I still call them "pickle buckets" from when I worked at Wendy's in a universe long ago and far away; any burger joint gets pickles in five gallon buckets.