April 28th, 2008, 12:48 AM
Quoting Tonington
Oh absolutely. The problem with the tablets though apparently is that many don't contain enough chlorine for purifying water effectively. And they're expensive. And small. Bleach is something most houses have on hand, and, a bottle will disinfect an awful lot of drinking water. That and a Brita and you'd be set.
Many of the purification tablets contain available chlorine, and many also contain flocculants which will enhance the disinfection. The benefit of having filters, such as the regular activated carbon in the Brita filter, is that they will help reduce the turbidity. In the end, the more choices you have for disinfection and sterilization the better.
April 28th, 2008, 12:55 AM
Quoting gerryh
I agree gerryh, to an extent. As prices climb, I'll be doing more bulk buying, trying to get stingy, because voting with my dollar matters, and even if it doesn't in the long run, I'll feel I tried.
My wife tell's me that they are rediculous....I look at it like this....I have no control over what the prices are.... we have to eat.....I pay whatever the going rate is.
April 28th, 2008, 01:07 AM
Forgot to add a tried and true method, boiling water, lol.
Quoting karrie
That's true. Buyer beware
Oh absolutely. The problem with the tablets though apparently is that many don't contain enough chlorine for purifying water effectively. And they're expensive. And small. Bleach is something most houses have on hand, and, a bottle will disinfect an awful lot of drinking water. That and a Brita and you'd be set.
Forgot to add a tried and true method, boiling water, lol.
April 28th, 2008, 01:15 AM
Distilling was another thing mentioned (tie a cup to a pot lid handle, and boil with the lid on, upside down, so that it drips into the cup).
And for those in homes who haven't thought to keep a water supply on hand, one site also discussed the fact that your hot water tank (turn it off first) can serve as a reserve of water.
Quoting Tonington
easier said than done if you don't have electricity, lol.
That's true. Buyer beware
Forgot to add a tried and true method, boiling water, lol.
Forgot to add a tried and true method, boiling water, lol.
Distilling was another thing mentioned (tie a cup to a pot lid handle, and boil with the lid on, upside down, so that it drips into the cup).
And for those in homes who haven't thought to keep a water supply on hand, one site also discussed the fact that your hot water tank (turn it off first) can serve as a reserve of water.
Knows Too Much
Posts: 2,100 
Location: Backwater, Ontario.
Location: Backwater, Ontario.
April 28th, 2008, 05:00 AM
Are we talking about a continuing natural disaster or just a spike in scarcity? If the former:
Even if you get right into the survival thing, and stock a warehouse full of food and the rest of the good stuff that has been discussed on this thread, such as water purification tablets; in the long run we're all screwed (not skewed - screwed) And royally so.
A warehouse full of supplies is finite, and unless a semblance of normalcy returns, and one can garden on a big scale, or buy food at a reasonable price again, everyone is going to go hungry.
That's assuming there's seeds to plant and food to buy, and jobs to make currency in order to buy.
If we're talking about a total collapse of the worlds' food supply with concomitant riots, murder, and mayhem, just tell me where ground zero is in this calamity, and I'll go there, put me head betwixt me legs and kiss me arse goodbye.
You can have my spinach.
Are we talking about a continuing natural disaster or just a spike in scarcity? If the former:
Even if you get right into the survival thing, and stock a warehouse full of food and the rest of the good stuff that has been discussed on this thread, such as water purification tablets; in the long run we're all screwed (not skewed - screwed) And royally so.
A warehouse full of supplies is finite, and unless a semblance of normalcy returns, and one can garden on a big scale, or buy food at a reasonable price again, everyone is going to go hungry.
That's assuming there's seeds to plant and food to buy, and jobs to make currency in order to buy.
If we're talking about a total collapse of the worlds' food supply with concomitant riots, murder, and mayhem, just tell me where ground zero is in this calamity, and I'll go there, put me head betwixt me legs and kiss me arse goodbye.
You can have my spinach.
April 28th, 2008, 08:29 AM
We're more than aware that should food become truly scarce, it won't matter how much we bought. We only have room for about a 4-5 week foodstock for a family of four. That's not nearly enough for crops to start coming in.
Quoting Nuggler
As I said, the notion of some specific things becoming scarce prompted me to stock up on a select few things. But, while we were at it, we figured we'd stock a kit for a 'natural' disaster. Of course, the only 'natural' disasters I've been through in recent memory were a result of infrastructure problems, like a week in Grande Prairie over Christmas vacation with no running water.
Are we talking about a continuing natural disaster or just a spike in scarcity?
We're more than aware that should food become truly scarce, it won't matter how much we bought. We only have room for about a 4-5 week foodstock for a family of four. That's not nearly enough for crops to start coming in.
Steven Hawking's Tutor
Posts: 4,604
April 28th, 2008, 08:45 AM
People might want to consider obtaining articles that don't necessarily fall into the catagories of food and medicine. (Prescription meds, anti-seizure meds, alergy etc.) It may prove useful to store items that can be traded for goods you need at some later time down the road. When a family can't buy bread or "normal" kinds of things that we all take for granted, sometimes a diversion of sorts can be provided through substitution. I'm thinking mostly about kids and what they've taken for granted as readily available. It's a good idea to prepare children for difficult times ahead.
People might want to consider obtaining articles that don't necessarily fall into the catagories of food and medicine. (Prescription meds, anti-seizure meds, alergy etc.) It may prove useful to store items that can be traded for goods you need at some later time down the road. When a family can't buy bread or "normal" kinds of things that we all take for granted, sometimes a diversion of sorts can be provided through substitution. I'm thinking mostly about kids and what they've taken for granted as readily available. It's a good idea to prepare children for difficult times ahead.
April 28th, 2008, 08:51 AM
The biggest thing that our kids take 'for granted' and enjoy as a diversion is readily available electricity. Be it to power a radio, a PlayStation, the computer... they love their power. I don't know how one would go about preparing for that being gone, aside from perhaps setting up a wind mill or something.
Quoting MikeyDB
I was pondering on that last night Mikey. We added a couple luxury items to the emergency kit like some hard candies, some iced tea mix, and the honey was largely the kids we were thinking about. Aside from the lack of fruits and veggies, the kit isn't far off from their normal diet though. We eat a pretty basic diet here. my kids don't get much in the way of processed foods. No juices normally, no boxes of cookies.
People might want to consider obtaining articles that don't necessarily fall into the catagories of food and medicine. (Prescription meds, anti-seizure meds, alergy etc.) It may prove useful to store items that can be traded for goods you need at some later time down the road. When a family can't buy bread or "normal" kinds of things that we all take for granted, sometimes a diversion of sorts can be provided through substitution. I'm thinking mostly about kids and what they've taken for granted as readily available. It's a good idea to prepare children for difficult times ahead.
The biggest thing that our kids take 'for granted' and enjoy as a diversion is readily available electricity. Be it to power a radio, a PlayStation, the computer... they love their power. I don't know how one would go about preparing for that being gone, aside from perhaps setting up a wind mill or something.
Steven Hawking's Tutor
Posts: 4,604
April 28th, 2008, 09:07 AM
Karrie, your postulation regarding the absence of electricity to power entertainment is provocative. The situation wherein the infrastructure suffers serious calamity resulting in loss of power is akin to the notion that Tonnington has raised. Our dependence on electricity for everything from hair-curllers to X-Boxs is demonstrative of the loss of coping mechanisms from bygone days. We insisted that modernities clamor for techy-types harbored the promise of "careers" and employment for lengthy periods while we forgot about the necessity of electricians plumbers and skills that our perverted sense of values relegated to the unsavory. Similarly we expect our TV and our electronic gizmos to baby-sit our children and while it might be too late, the more appropriate defense to our nearly automatic consideration of continued reliance on wind power or water energy or any other means of producing electricity is to encourage children (everyone) to begin to re-learn the happiness of reading and individual expression. Family nights with table games or even more physically demanding family efforts serves many purposes. When we believe and teach our children that the "first choice" in recreational activities is plugging one's self into the grid....we create a psychological structure of dependency. Making a game out of practicing skills like weaving sewing, baking, building etc. etc. ensures that in times of disruption of our "normal" endeavors that we have mechanisms in place capable of keeping hands and minds busy.
Karrie, your postulation regarding the absence of electricity to power entertainment is provocative. The situation wherein the infrastructure suffers serious calamity resulting in loss of power is akin to the notion that Tonnington has raised. Our dependence on electricity for everything from hair-curllers to X-Boxs is demonstrative of the loss of coping mechanisms from bygone days. We insisted that modernities clamor for techy-types harbored the promise of "careers" and employment for lengthy periods while we forgot about the necessity of electricians plumbers and skills that our perverted sense of values relegated to the unsavory. Similarly we expect our TV and our electronic gizmos to baby-sit our children and while it might be too late, the more appropriate defense to our nearly automatic consideration of continued reliance on wind power or water energy or any other means of producing electricity is to encourage children (everyone) to begin to re-learn the happiness of reading and individual expression. Family nights with table games or even more physically demanding family efforts serves many purposes. When we believe and teach our children that the "first choice" in recreational activities is plugging one's self into the grid....we create a psychological structure of dependency. Making a game out of practicing skills like weaving sewing, baking, building etc. etc. ensures that in times of disruption of our "normal" endeavors that we have mechanisms in place capable of keeping hands and minds busy.
Chief Mogrifier
Posts: 8,796
April 28th, 2008, 09:34 AM
Someone earlier talked about having two fridges and a freezer full of food but if the power went off that food will be gone in little more than a week or two. I don't know if I'm prepared to address the calamity that the loss of infrastructure and electric power would bring. Food is going to get more expensive for sure but unless we are bombed or something, our electric power will be just fine.
Someone earlier talked about having two fridges and a freezer full of food but if the power went off that food will be gone in little more than a week or two. I don't know if I'm prepared to address the calamity that the loss of infrastructure and electric power would bring. Food is going to get more expensive for sure but unless we are bombed or something, our electric power will be just fine.
Steven Hawking's Tutor
Posts: 4,604
April 28th, 2008, 09:38 AM
Juan
Were you perhaps off-planet when a breaker in Cleveland (somewhere in Ohio) didn't respond correctly and fifty million people lost their electricity? Don't "expect" that your conveniences will be there all the time forever because they won't be!
Juan
Were you perhaps off-planet when a breaker in Cleveland (somewhere in Ohio) didn't respond correctly and fifty million people lost their electricity? Don't "expect" that your conveniences will be there all the time forever because they won't be!
Chief Mogrifier
Posts: 8,796
April 28th, 2008, 10:01 AM
Quoting MikeyDB
I was here Mikey but in B.C. we weren't affected. I understand that that problem was a once in a million thing and steps were taken to prevent it happening again. There was no power shortage. There was a power handling problem that took a while to fix. I have a small generator that can provide most of my electrical needs(fridge, freezer, a few lights, some heat, etc.) for as long as we need it.
Juan
Were you perhaps off-planet when a breaker in Cleveland (somewhere in Ohio) didn't respond correctly and fifty million people lost their electricity? Don't "expect" that your conveniences will be there all the time forever because they won't be!
Were you perhaps off-planet when a breaker in Cleveland (somewhere in Ohio) didn't respond correctly and fifty million people lost their electricity? Don't "expect" that your conveniences will be there all the time forever because they won't be!
April 28th, 2008, 10:17 AM
Quoting #juan
The ice storms are a prime example of what can happen to take out your electricity and keep it out for a good long while. This thread isn't dedicated just to food shortages, it's discussing emergency food stores for any eventuality. For the food shortage possibility, fridges and freezers full of food are a great idea. Even in a disaster like an ice storm causing massive power grid damage, those freezers full of food can help a lot of friends and family (no need to let it all spoil).
Someone earlier talked about having two fridges and a freezer full of food but if the power went off that food will be gone in little more than a week or two. I don't know if I'm prepared to address the calamity that the loss of infrastructure and electric power would bring. Food is going to get more expensive for sure but unless we are bombed or something, our electric power will be just fine.
Steven Hawking's Tutor
Posts: 4,604
April 28th, 2008, 10:19 AM
Juan
It happened. It wasn't the only time it's happened. And it won't be the only time it will ever happen.
My grandmother lived through both world wars and her kitchen was a marvel! Right up until her death she canned and pickled, baked and pre-prepared many different kinds of food that would store easily without refrigeration. Her kitchen had bins of flour and baking power and sugar and so on...and she lived three blocks from down-town! She resisted the advice of her chldren to scrap the coal furnace that was in the house in favor of an oil furnace. When there were winter storms that disrupted the oil truck and brough down power lines...her house was warm!
I'm not arguing with you Juan so please don't be offended but the attitude that it can't happen here...is the mother of all disasters.
Juan
It happened. It wasn't the only time it's happened. And it won't be the only time it will ever happen.
My grandmother lived through both world wars and her kitchen was a marvel! Right up until her death she canned and pickled, baked and pre-prepared many different kinds of food that would store easily without refrigeration. Her kitchen had bins of flour and baking power and sugar and so on...and she lived three blocks from down-town! She resisted the advice of her chldren to scrap the coal furnace that was in the house in favor of an oil furnace. When there were winter storms that disrupted the oil truck and brough down power lines...her house was warm!
I'm not arguing with you Juan so please don't be offended but the attitude that it can't happen here...is the mother of all disasters.
April 28th, 2008, 10:25 AM
I can't remember which winter it was, but at about -30C in High Level, the power went out to the whole town. Living in an old single wide trailer at the time, it hit the point that we were draining pipes and moving anything living (plants and pets included) into one small room which we filled with candles. We were bundled in blankets, reading books and snuggling. The town had emergency generators operating at the local gymnasium, and were slowly evacuating people there, because without electricity, most homes now don't have heat, and an old trailer doesn't take long to get mighty cold at -30. We were just starting to truly panic and think we might have to evacuate when they managed to get the power back on. Had it been much colder, it may not have happened nearly as quickly.
If the same happened here, we'd be in the same boat again. No fireplace means no heat without electricity.
I can't remember which winter it was, but at about -30C in High Level, the power went out to the whole town. Living in an old single wide trailer at the time, it hit the point that we were draining pipes and moving anything living (plants and pets included) into one small room which we filled with candles. We were bundled in blankets, reading books and snuggling. The town had emergency generators operating at the local gymnasium, and were slowly evacuating people there, because without electricity, most homes now don't have heat, and an old trailer doesn't take long to get mighty cold at -30. We were just starting to truly panic and think we might have to evacuate when they managed to get the power back on. Had it been much colder, it may not have happened nearly as quickly.
If the same happened here, we'd be in the same boat again. No fireplace means no heat without electricity.
Clever Clogs
Posts: 709
Location: Ardrossan, Alberta
Location: Ardrossan, Alberta
April 28th, 2008, 10:41 AM
My mom and dad were brought up on a farm in the thirties- Both Grandmothers Baked, canned, pickled, milked the cows, gathered eggs, while the guys worked in the fields all day, they also raised and slaughtered their own livestock- they had no electricity or gas and a woodstove for heat. She told me they didn't have time to play many games as they had chores and lots of them - they didn't have a choice, it was just how you lived back then. I wonder how many people could make the switch from an SUV to a massey ferguson.
My mom and dad were brought up on a farm in the thirties- Both Grandmothers Baked, canned, pickled, milked the cows, gathered eggs, while the guys worked in the fields all day, they also raised and slaughtered their own livestock- they had no electricity or gas and a woodstove for heat. She told me they didn't have time to play many games as they had chores and lots of them - they didn't have a choice, it was just how you lived back then. I wonder how many people could make the switch from an SUV to a massey ferguson.
Steven Hawking's Tutor
Posts: 4,604
April 28th, 2008, 10:53 AM
Lester
That's how I lived as a youngster. It may be ..what does Springsteen sing..."Glory days"...my memory of those times, but we were healthy and we worked hard and played hard. We were self-reliant not dependent on the municipality for electricity or dependent on city-hall for licensing our animals and emptying the parking meters!
Self-reliance has been conditioned-out of modern society and we're left feeling helpless and disconnected...see Jellyfarms thread.
We've become so enamoured with "disposability", so caught-up in "instant gratification" and so dependent on systems of government and the social organizing principles that we've lost the facility and ability to take care of ourselves and each other.
Lester
That's how I lived as a youngster. It may be ..what does Springsteen sing..."Glory days"...my memory of those times, but we were healthy and we worked hard and played hard. We were self-reliant not dependent on the municipality for electricity or dependent on city-hall for licensing our animals and emptying the parking meters!
Self-reliance has been conditioned-out of modern society and we're left feeling helpless and disconnected...see Jellyfarms thread.
We've become so enamoured with "disposability", so caught-up in "instant gratification" and so dependent on systems of government and the social organizing principles that we've lost the facility and ability to take care of ourselves and each other.
