Prep Genrl Weekly prep thread Dec. 27- Jan 2nd, 2021

Cag3db1rd

Paranoid Pagan
Gold star!

I got some money from my mom for xmas. I think I will be hitting up a local surplus store and buying a case of Crider ground pork 1.5lb cans. At the same time, I feel I might better spend the money on more guttering for the house. I'm taking votes.
 

prudentwatcher

Veteran Member
Gold star!

I got some money from my mom for xmas. I think I will be hitting up a local surplus store and buying a case of Crider ground pork 1.5lb cans. At the same time, I feel I might better spend the money on more guttering for the house. I'm taking votes.

My vote is for the meat.
 

briches

Veteran Member
Gold star!

I got some money from my mom for xmas. I think I will be hitting up a local surplus store and buying a case of Crider ground pork 1.5lb cans. At the same time, I feel I might better spend the money on more guttering for the house. I'm taking votes.

It’s hard to know what to advise without knowing what you have. I think I’d lean towards the gutters, especially if damage is happening to your house without it. You could always build up on your canned pork storage even if saving to buy one at a time. Perhaps a combo of both would work - ;)
 

briches

Veteran Member
Should have also added, I’m fully aware you can’t eat gutters so if your pantry / shelves are low, I’d go with that.
 

nomifyle

TB Fanatic
Gold star!

I got some money from my mom for xmas. I think I will be hitting up a local surplus store and buying a case of Crider ground pork 1.5lb cans. At the same time, I feel I might better spend the money on more guttering for the house. I'm taking votes.
I like the Crider brand of food, but I can't find it anywhere except a couple of things at Dollar Tree.

As for how to spend the money its hard to say. You need to have a full pantry but on the other hand you can collect rain water from the gutters.

ETA: Just looking at the week ending date, where has this year gone. I know its not been a great year, but wow.

God is good all the time

Judy
 
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SouthernBreeze

Has No Life - Lives on TB
It's hard to say without knowing your situation. If you don't have a stocked pantry able to sustain you and your family for a few months, I'd put the money into that. If your house is showing damage by not having the gutters, I'd go with that. You are going to need both shelter and food in the future, so it's hard to say. Only you know how you stand on either of those choices. It really is a matter of priorities.
 

WanderLore

Veteran Member
Praying closing on daughters house happens soon.
She and I have been looking at shed to house conversions. Or possibly a larger newer 5th wheel.
We will be adding solar panels. One reason for the shed to house is its better insulated and more room. Plus it will be tucked away on our property out of sight kind of.
Due to the large home she had, she only wants something small now. Propane heat, solar for a small bit of electric and more batteries. Rainwater. Compost potty. We have a good burn area that is fenced in. (dogs).
I've been looking at the mini splits for a/c. Thats the only big issue as its needed for about 6 weeks in the summer.
We always put up a big pool and there is everything in the farm house too. She does like her Kerig coffee, though she has a coffee press.
Right now the camper is staying toasty warm since we had a 100gal propane tank set. She has to haul water and can't use sinks right now due to winter.
just rambling
 

WanderLore

Veteran Member
When I had my other place, I used a dry sink. A laundry sink with a bucket. I hauled all my large trash cans for water, in the house in the late summer and hand filled from the gutters. Have had a water filter I bought 10 years ago still going strong. They don't sell it anymore.
Wood stove kept everything warm and unfrozen. I had my compost potty. Burn pile. Some solar, some oil lamps and some batteries.
I charged my phone in the car and a battery bank. Charged my little laptop too. I have a portable DVD player that will last over 4 hours when charged too.
Heated water on wood stove in winter and took a bath at the dry sink. Washed clothes outside until winter then went to laundromat about every 2 weeks. Kept a cooler on the porch in winter for food. In summer I used all shelf stable stuff or ate it within a day. Gardens were large and produced well.
I mean that there are lots of ways to be off grid without going whole hog. Sorry, just rambling more
 

Digger

Veteran Member
We got an instant pot for Christmas from our Daughter and Son in law. So today we are going to try making split pea soup in it. We got some other nice, and useful stuff.

We also got an answer to prayers we have been praying for 6 years. That was the best present of all. It is a long anguishing story. I don't want to put on social media at this time. Karma is still playing out and the truth is starting to see the light. The karma is not my present, though I am glad to see it. The present is the good to come from those affected by karma taking out an evil person from their lives.
 

moldy

Veteran Member
We got an instant pot for Christmas from our Daughter and Son in law. So today we are going to try making split pea soup in it. We got some other nice, and useful stuff.

We also got an answer to prayers we have been praying for 6 years. That was the best present of all. It is a long anguishing story. I don't want to put on social media at this time. Karma is still playing out and the truth is starting to see the light. The karma is not my present, though I am glad to see it. The present is the good to come from those affected by karma taking out an evil person from their lives.

You gotta try the creme brulee in the instapot. Absolutely fabulous! Feeling rough today. I think perhaps trying to catch the rona. Using tonic water,elderberry, and some tinctures from Desert Tortoise botanicals.
 

briches

Veteran Member
You gotta try the creme brulee in the instapot. Absolutely fabulous! Feeling rough today. I think perhaps trying to catch the rona. Using tonic water,elderberry, and some tinctures from Desert Tortoise botanicals.

You’ve got my prayers! Do you have vitamin c, zinc and d you could add to your arsenal?
 

Cag3db1rd

Paranoid Pagan
Put another pack of tea lights and lamp oil on the shelf. Found frozen, bone-in turkey breast for 88c/lb. Bought about $20 worth. I should get a fair amount of pints out of it.
 

ginnie6

Veteran Member
Do you ever get stuck on what to prep? I KNOW we need more stuff but for the life of me I can't decide what to get. I need to go find that list I printed off of what goes first I guess and start there. Sigh....I wish all this would just go away but since I don't think it's going to I need to keep on.
 

briches

Veteran Member
Do you ever get stuck on what to prep? I KNOW we need more stuff but for the life of me I can't decide what to get. I need to go find that list I printed off of what goes first I guess and start there. Sigh....I wish all this would just go away but since I don't think it's going to I need to keep on.

When I’m not sure what to prep, I pray. I also tend to stock primarily what we use so it makes it easier knowing it won’t go to waste. Slow and steady .....
 

20Gauge

TB Fanatic
WE managed to pick up a new canner this weekend. Wife went in early to work and they had 1 on the shelf. So she bought it. Cost $88 for something that sold for $60 last year. Talk about inflation. Either way, we are happy to have it.

We decided to get a 2nd canner based upon what everyone advised here. Thank you to everyone who responded as it did help us decide.

We are still working on our first use of O2 absorbers. We have 14 80oz jars filled with rice or noodles. We are going to fill another 6 with noodles. That way we have something put away for very long term. Not that we don't have others things, but we used ball jars for those. So this may save us some cash.

Worth the effort.
 

summerthyme

Administrator
_______________
Do you ever get stuck on what to prep? I KNOW we need more stuff but for the life of me I can't decide what to get. I need to go find that list I printed off of what goes first I guess and start there. Sigh....I wish all this would just go away but since I don't think it's going to I need to keep on.
Ginnie... I always recommend this book.... Making the Best of Basics, by James Talmage Stevens. It's THE best basic prepping manual I've found in my 40 year prepping journey. If you haven't seen it, consider buying a used copy off Abebooks... I think there are something like 20 editions, but I owned one of the very first and a much later one and while he definitely kept adding info, I didn't think the later edition was enough better to have paid full price for it (I didn't)

Summerthyme
 

hiwall

Has No Life - Lives on TB
Yesterday I got an old cast iron brake drum. Not much to be excited about. But I plan on making that drum into the pot for my coal-fired blacksmithing forge.

Likely won't work on that project much until it warms up in a couple months. One of my sons is really into blacksmithing and has both coal and propane forges.
 

Marseydoats

Veteran Member
Do you ever get stuck on what to prep? I KNOW we need more stuff but for the life of me I can't decide what to get. I need to go find that list I printed off of what goes first I guess and start there. Sigh....I wish all this would just go away but since I don't think it's going to I need to keep on.

I would prep for your new grandbaby. Make sure your daughter has enough formula and non-disposable diapers for awhile. anything else a baby might need? Shoes in various sizes? I can tell you what to buy for livestock but I don't have a clue what to stock for a human baby.
 

Kathy in FL

Administrator
_______________
Up at our BOL. Just hubby and I. He's gloomy because with our last chick turning 17 the empty nest is really looming. I expect within 2 years we'll be an empty house. Unless something changes. I always knew it would affect hubby more than me. I started having kids with the understanding they would eventually fledge and fly on their own. It has been my job to get them to a place personally and spiritually that that can happen. Hubby ... I don't know ... he always thrived and lived for the kids and it is hard on him for them to not so much get their independence, but to start life separate from us. That's a prep a lot of parents don't think to deal with. Doing for your kids becomes your whole life and then boom, you have to figure out a whole 'nother way of looking at life.

And speaking of planning, I'm scouring my files to try and locate the old excel spreadsheet I had developed. I've let my inventories go and have been rotating food storage out more than in the last couple of years. We would still more than make it with our LTS but even that I split with my parents. After the beginning of the year I will definitely be going through another 'round of decluttering. At the same time all the space I create will be used for the new food inventory I will bring in. Mom and I plan on canning quite a bit. We were going to do some for Christmas and give it as gifts but ran out of time, a commodity that I seem to always be in short supply of even with this damn constant corona-idiocy. We are so busy in our business you wouldn't know there was a pandemic except for the mask inconvenience and the occasional renter trying to blame their lack of budgeting on covid issues. We've had 3 evictions already ... and they were denied stays because they wouldn't put any money with the court and couldn't prove their lack of payment was related to covid ... will probably have a couple more after the beginning of the year. Sorry, no sympathy for people that can pay for cases of beer and cartons of cigs but can't pull together a few bucks to pay their rent.
 

ginnie6

Veteran Member
Ginnie... I always recommend this book.... Making the Best of Basics, by James Talmage Stevens. It's THE best basic prepping manual I've found in my 40 year prepping journey. If you haven't seen it, consider buying a used copy off Abebooks... I think there are something like 20 editions, but I owned one of the very first and a much later one and while he definitely kept adding info, I didn't think the later edition was enough better to have paid full price for it (I didn't)

Summerthyme
Thank you! Found one on thrift books.
 

ginnie6

Veteran Member
I would prep for your new grandbaby. Make sure your daughter has enough formula and non-disposable diapers for awhile. anything else a baby might need? Shoes in various sizes? I can tell you what to buy for livestock but I don't have a clue what to stock for a human baby.
I think they are pretty well set for a bit on diapers and things. My sil doesn't want a lot of food in the house (I know, I know) but he has stocked up well on baby supplies. Surprised me actually. But some larger sized clothing and stuff is a good idea. The hard part is them being so far away.
 

nomifyle

TB Fanatic
Do you ever get stuck on what to prep? I KNOW we need more stuff but for the life of me I can't decide what to get. I need to go find that list I printed off of what goes first I guess and start there. Sigh....I wish all this would just go away but since I don't think it's going to I need to keep on.
We had a power outage about a year and a half ago. It was local so we could go somewhere else to eat out. I've had a full pantry for a good while but I was short on shorter term foods. I would scour the grocery isles looking for something easy to prepare that we would eat.

The other day I ate a shelf stable spaghetti and meat sauce that (ugh) expired in 2014. It had turned dark but I stirred it out and ate it anyway. Not bad, but DH would not even taste it. He'd probably starve before I would.

I had the Stevens book before Katrina and was completely overwhelmed with the amount of food suggested. I lost that book in Katrina but later bought another. The other day I was looking through it and was not overwhelmed anymore because I'm well stocked.

As I've said in the past I do not like to use much in the way of boxed, canned or jar'd processed foods but now I have them in my pantry so I need to rotate them. I've used the velvetta cheese sauce a couple of times lately and its really tasty (I have not read the ingredients because if I did I would not eat it). Yesterday we had roast pork with canned gravy, broccoli with cheese sauce and boxed mashed potatoes. It was all good. My only concern is that it will affect my health since my body is not accustomed to much in the way of processed foods. My thinking is that if I only use the stuff (any of it) a couple of times a week and not every day that I might be able to keep from getting a chronic illness.

God is good all the time

Judy
 

mecoastie

Veteran Member
Do you ever get stuck on what to prep? I KNOW we need more stuff but for the life of me I can't decide what to get. I need to go find that list I printed off of what goes first I guess and start there. Sigh....I wish all this would just go away but since I don't think it's going to I need to keep on.

Take a break. Take that money and go get dinner or do something fun and different. Get away from the doom and gloom. Buy something nice for the house that isn't necessarily survival related. Do something other than prep. Then next week dive back in.
 

mawmaw

Veteran Member
I would prep for your new grandbaby. Make sure your daughter has enough formula and non-disposable diapers for awhile. anything else a baby might need? Shoes in various sizes? I can tell you what to buy for livestock but I don't have a clue what to stock for a human baby.

cloth diapers
diaper pins
plastic diaper covers
formula
nipples
distilled water
baby food
clothes in different sizes
wash soap
wipes
 

prudentwatcher

Veteran Member
I stopped by Walmart this afternoon. Not much Christmas stuff left, though I did find a couple of spatulas that were marked down. Those are always helpful. I bought a lot of stuff for our "to be redone" bug out bags. I bought some pancake, muffin, cake and cookie mixes that were marked down so I can donate them to the food pantry. And for our preps, I bought 2 2lb bags of rice, 2 2lb bags of beans, and 2 cans of roast beef. I'm trying to do that every time I do in. The meat is for us, the rice and beans are more for bartering at this point.
 

summerthyme

Administrator
_______________
had the Stevens book before Katrina and was completely overwhelmed with the amount of food suggested. I lost that book in Katrina but later bought another. The other day I was looking through it and was not overwhelmed anymore because I'm well stocked

The book does have that effect! But it's very well researched, and his amounts aren't at all unreasonable. But since most people buy food weekly (or daily!), they literally can't imagine how much you'd need for a month- or a year! It definitely is overwhelming at the start.

Summerthyme
 

nomifyle

TB Fanatic
I stopped by Walmart this afternoon. Not much Christmas stuff left, though I did find a couple of spatulas that were marked down. Those are always helpful. I bought a lot of stuff for our "to be redone" bug out bags. I bought some pancake, muffin, cake and cookie mixes that were marked down so I can donate them to the food pantry. And for our preps, I bought 2 2lb bags of rice, 2 2lb bags of beans, and 2 cans of roast beef. I'm trying to do that every time I do in. The meat is for us, the rice and beans are more for bartering at this point.
Recently I got fresh items for the to be redone BOB. I added nice size ponchos for each bob, 9" extra long handle spoons, hand warmers and one thing I just though of are the little usb"air" conditioners that we got last summer. I have a small solar generator that will charge them. I also got, on sale, two new back packs at walmart. I use to have a nice size orange tool box for first aid items. Some how DH thought it was his so I lost it for that, I now have a nice lime green one and my name is on it. Now to get it all together.

God is good all the time

Judy
 

Digger

Veteran Member
We finished deep mulching the garden. I did not have enough leaves to do the whole garden last year. We started mulching earlier this year and began adding leaves as they fell. We would loose some to the wind by waiting. My seed order came in also.

I bought marked down gift bags at our local grocery store for next Christmas. That was the only after Christmas shopping I needed to do. We passed by Walmart after finishing my contract job on Saturday. It was so crowded that there was no way I was going in there.

I tried out my Instant Pot by making split pea soup. I think I will like it. The soup pressured for 8 minutes and was perfect.
 

aviax2

Veteran Member
We finished deep mulching the garden. I did not have enough leaves to do the whole garden last year. We started mulching earlier this year and began adding leaves as they fell. We would loose some to the wind by waiting. My seed order came in also.

I bought marked down gift bags at our local grocery store for next Christmas. That was the only after Christmas shopping I needed to do. We passed by Walmart after finishing my contract job on Saturday. It was so crowded that there was no way I was going in there.

I tried out my Instant Pot by making split pea soup. I think I will like it. The soup pressured for 8 minutes and was perfect.
I love my Instant Pots.
 

aviax2

Veteran Member
I guess due to all the stress this month, I’m having a fibromyalgia flare up. At times the pain gets bad but mostly I’m just so exhausted. I planned on using this week to get caught up on housework, getting things ready for 2021 since we don’t have child care duties this week, but I’ve been barely able to move today. I have an appointment in the morning that I really need to keep but wishing I had canceled. Oh well, one day at a time. The kids will be back next week so I’ll have to decide which of many things need my attention first.

I am needing to get the pantry organized in a bad way. Ugh, what a mess.
 

briches

Veteran Member
I guess due to all the stress this month, I’m having a fibromyalgia flare up. At times the pain gets bad but mostly I’m just so exhausted. I planned on using this week to get caught up on housework, getting things ready for 2021 since we don’t have child care duties this week, but I’ve been barely able to move today. I have an appointment in the morning that I really need to keep but wishing I had canceled. Oh well, one day at a time. The kids will be back next week so I’ll have to decide which of many things need my attention first.

I am needing to get the pantry organized in a bad way. Ugh, what a mess.

Hope you’re feeling better soon. Sending prayers for you.
 

Illini Warrior

Illini Warrior
WE managed to pick up a new canner this weekend. Wife went in early to work and they had 1 on the shelf. So she bought it. Cost $88 for something that sold for $60 last year. Talk about inflation. Either way, we are happy to have it.

We decided to get a 2nd canner based upon what everyone advised here. Thank you to everyone who responded as it did help us decide.

We are still working on our first use of O2 absorbers. We have 14 80oz jars filled with rice or noodles. We are going to fill another 6 with noodles. That way we have something put away for very long term. Not that we don't have others things, but we used ball jars for those. So this may save us some cash.

Worth the effort.

All American canners had years of backup orders - demand drives $$$$$ >>> doubt if that demand continues unless a war(s) starts this Spring >>> this Virus crap will disappear with a continued Trump Administration and vaccine spread ....
 

20Gauge

TB Fanatic
All American canners had years of backup orders - demand drives $$$$$ >>> doubt if that demand continues unless a war(s) starts this Spring >>> this Virus crap will disappear with a continued Trump Administration and vaccine spread ....
No doubt. We got a Presto. Not top of the line, but we now have 2 so we can rock them both at the same time and improve our use of time. What was taking several hours can now be done in about half the time. That plus having a 2nd set of parts means we are never totally down and can still always can. So a big win.
 

20Gauge

TB Fanatic
Question for all. We just sealed 20 80oz jars with O2 absorbers. How long does it normally take for the button to get depressed? A day ? A week? An Hour?

Thanks for the information!!
 

briches

Veteran Member
Went to the dollar tree today. Picked up four things of mouthwash - was hoping to get their shelf stable milk, but they had none.
 
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