The Prepper Thread

A bit of a necro, here.

My preparedness/"prepping" is centred around the things that are most likely to happen to us:

Power outages (we've had 3 in the 18 months I've lived in this house), Earthquakes (we've felt the shake from quakes centred both in Wellington and off the Taranaki coast and Hawke's Bay is also close enough that we'd certainly feel it if they had another decent one), volcanic eruption (we got ash and a strong smell of sulphur compounds the last time Tongariro got "stroppy"), storms (we've had a few doozies but nothing too major yet) and, because I go camping, getting lost/stranded in the bush.

The Civil Defense "Get Thru" site recommends a certain amount of stuff - 3 days' food and water, emergency light sources, battery or dynamo radio, first aid kit, warm clothes etc as well as a "Getaway Kit" comprising some of the above things as well as personal essentials (prescription medicines, glasses etc) and important documents.

Much of what the "Get Thru" site recommends is stuff I already have in my camping gear and on a number of occasions in the past we have used it to cope with short term power outages.

This current house has one peculiarity that I'm going to have to buy specialised equipment to address - we're on collected rainwater with an underground tank and we rely on an electric pump to get the water. So, of course, every time we've had a power outage we lost our ability to get water.

I've got plans to get a 12VDC-to-240VAC converter unit (when I can afford it) so when we have a power outage I'll be able to run the water pump off the car's battery - should be sufficient to tide us over for a few days, if the power were off that long (I doubt we'll be able to have baths, but at least we'd have the water for cooking and food preparation covered).

Other than that, we're as good as gold - there's a large amount of water in the tank (though I suspect I should really fill up some bottles of purified water to keep on hand in case we get another decent eruption that covers our roof with a layer of ash and contaminates our water supply), we have first aid gear, camping equipment (both for use at home and as a bug-out-bag/"getaway kit" if we have to evacuate) and a small village community that would mostly pull together and help each other out if there were a major emergency.

My niece and her family live two doors away and my sister lives at the other end of the village, so we've got a pretty good mutual support network.

We could certainly survive for the recommended three days and then some and evacuation would not be a big problem.

If things got really weird and somehow food supplies were badly interrupted beyond the 3-day mark, I've got rifles and a shotgun with which to get game - but frankly, I don't see that as a particularly likely scenario.

When I go camping, the stuff I have in my pockets and on my belt at all times should be sufficient to provide me with the means to survive for at least the usual 72-hour period during which most lost/stranded people are found/rescued, and my day bag (which I carry separate from my main camping pack and tend to keep with me wherever I go) has even more stuff that would facilitate not only survival but some level of comfort (extra clothes for warmth, waterproofing, snacks etc).

edited 2nd Jan '14 1:41:48 AM by Wolf1066

They also make dedicated generators if you'd rather not risk draining your car's battery in an emergency. Basically a little gasoline motor with some outlets.

Or go eco-sustainable and invest in a hand-pump.

More then eco-friendly — in the worst-case scenario, what happens if there's not enough charge in the battery?

Adding an extra pump would be problematic due to this being a rental accommodation and I really can't do to many mods to the place. I've so far found no easy way to put an extra pump into our tank.

A generator would be ideal, and if I could afford one I'd get it, but at the moment, the 12V inverter looks the cheapest option and I could always start the car if it looked like I was going to drain the battery.

My brother and his family (partner and two teenage children) managed for more than a couple of months without power with just a couple of 12-240V inverters powered by his cars and their camping gear - gas cookers and torches (flashlights).

My prepping is centred around short-term scenarios from which relief can be expected fairly shortly - the Civil Defense 3-Day "Get Thru" preparations for coping with a natural disaster long enough to evacuate or for service to be resumed.

We're fortunate in that our climate here is such that we do not require electricity to keep us comfortable during extremes of temperature, so the only essential thing that relies on electricity is our water pump.

If the scenario were bad enough that we had more than just a couple of days (or even months) without power, we'd probably be having to evacuate anyway.

I'm not prepping for cataclysmic TEOTWAWKI/WROL/SHTF scenarios as I don't think them particularly likely (OK, admittedly The World As We Know It has ended numerous times in my lifetime and will probably end a few more times before I die, but I've done all right with the previous ones so I'm not too worried about the others) but if they did happen, I'm sure that I could get through by repurposing whatever I have around here.

I've looked at various scenarios that have been proposed. I haven't been buried in a concrete bunker for the last 40 years so I'm quite aware of them. I grew up through a large chunk of the Cold War (and that World As I Knew It ended), I've heard all the hysteria of Y2K (in fact, I was given the task of creating my work-place's Y2K plan and ensuring that we had no legacy systems that were susceptible), the JW's numerous "The World's a-gonna End tomorrow - for realsies this time" announcements, the Mayan Calendar/2012 hysteria and numerous other more realistic/plausible options.

I've seen various Discovery Channel "what-if" scenarios from the lack of fresh water to Peak Oil to pandemics to comet strike and Carrington Events.

I'm a member of two different "prepper" forums as research for stories I planned to write and most other special interest forums, like this one with this very thread, have a "prepping" thread or six, I've seen a few episodes of DP and similar.

For the purposes of plots for stories, and also because it would be remiss not to, I've looked into likely outcomes very deeply and I've come to the conclusion that whatever happens, we'll wind up managing them.

I can't ever see a WROL scenario: short of the comet strike actually hitting our parliament buildings - and even then, there's no guarantee it'd get all of the bastards - there's not going to be a time when we don't have The Powers That Be being in power. They are a pack of self-serving arseholes who have the money and resources to ensure that they'll survive far better than the rest of us - we'll be shovelling volcanic ash off the roof in the dark and straining our water through our socks while they're washing down their Beluga caviar with Bolly in their well-lit luxurious emergency shelter.

No matter what hits us, the politicians will survive - just like all the other cockroaches.

And no matter what hits us, it won't be a long-term scenario, solutions will be found, Civil Defense will do their stuff, the generic action plans will work, important infrastructure will be protected or be fixed first and eventually we'll crawl out the other side.

So all we've got to do is get through it - and I'm certain that whatever "it" is, we can manage.

I mostly think of these scenarios pretty much because I'm bored.

• Zombies: Guns aren't exactly easy to get in the UK, and the ones that are legal are either bolt/lever-action or exceedingly weak (or both). On the other hand, a crossbow might work pretty well, though. Food & stuff shouldn't be hard- there's plenty of places to get tinned food.

• Nukes: At present, I am 100% boned in case of nuclear war. I can pretty much see Greenham Common from my house, and AWE is about 5 minutes away. If there were Fallout-style vaults set up, I wouldn't fancy my chances of getting in. I can't really think of anywhere in the UK that wouldn't be affected by a nuclear war in some way, except maybe parts of Wales and the Highlands.

• Carrington event: Not particularly good at fighting for things, but I could probably do OK in this scenario. The worst-case is that I go insane from not having access to Tumblr.

• Robot War: Whilst I think this is unlikely, if a robot war in the same style as Terminator or The Matrix happened, I for one, would welcome our new robotic overlords.

• Alien Invasion: THROW THE CHEESE! Serious mode: I'd be signing up for my local resistance. Not sure what I could do, but it's better than nothing.

A hand pump is too expensive? Are you sure?

Hmm...for me, Greenham Common is about 20 minutes away up the A339, and AWE is about 15 minutes away up at the A340.

I said generators were too expensive. Hand pumps are problematic as there's nowhere to fit one to our tank without modifying it, which I can't do as this is a rental property. Landlord could get a bit tetchy if I went around modifying the place.

A 1-1.5kW inverter would also be able to power other things if need be.

I'm less worried about Robot Wars than I am about how our economy would survive increased automation and resultant increases in unemployment - that would require a change in the way people get money to keep it in circulation and keep the economy rolling.

I'm not worried about AI-controlled machines rising up against humans, I'm worried about machines controlled by greedy corporate CE Os who care only about the bottom line (and the fact that a $20,000 dollar machine is cheaper than a year's wages for the humans it replaces and doesn't take sick leave or vacations) - and sadly, the latter scenario is very likely.

edited 2nd Jan '14 2:16:37 PM by Wolf1066

A possible resource for those in this thread is nukemap, which tells you what will happen if a nuclear bomb lands on your city. Might be useful.

Bloody hell, there's a google map extension for everything!

Had a bit of a play with it. An interesting diversion, but nowhere near as likely as a halfway-decent quake hereabouts.

When we had a television, the "Fix Fasten and Forget" ads were a regular feature. Up in the Waikato, we hardly felt any quakes (but we did have a great view of the plume from Ruapehu when it erupted) - all too distant to register - since we've moved down here, a) there have been more quakes and b) we're closer to the fault lines so we're more likely to be close to an epicentre.

So here, earthquake-preparedness has taken the place of flood-preparedness - we're way less likely to experience bad flooding here than in the Waikato (a.k.a. "the piss-ant swamp").

P.S. if terrorists detonated a 10kt improvised HEU device in our regional centre right at this moment, my family and I would be pretty much safe from both initial damage and, thanks to strong norwesterlies, fallout. We'd have to have something bigger than a 4Mt yield before we had to worry about 3rd Degree burns.

And I suspect that more likely targets of nukes would be Wellington (our capital city) and Auckland (you'd understand why if you met any Aucklanders).

edited 2nd Jan '14 4:36:15 PM by Wolf1066

Nice. I didn't realize that most common ICBM's wouldn't really touch my city despite its proximity to LA, even Tsar Bomba can't easily reach us.

Radiation drifting on the wind is obviously a problem, but I'm on the coast, so the wind usually is going towards LA, not towards us from LA.

Even the biggest, dropped in the heart of Wellington wouldn't touch us.

Wouldn't want to be in Picton, though.

I almost forgot about this thread. I don't have much to say right now, but I recommend purchasing a sturdy pair of hiking shoes with at least two pairs of socks. If you want military-specification boots, I suggest buying a new pair with a great deal of water resistance. When you first get them, break each shoe in by showering with them. After the boots have become wet, continue to wear them for a few hours and then apply waterproofing spray as needed. Most of this gear can be found in a military surplus store.

The reason why I stress the importance of water-resistant shoes that fit your feet is because you may find yourself on foot for extremely long periods of time. I notice many preppers (both hobbyists and hardcore doomsday types) in the United States spend way too much time bragging about how many geared up guns they have locked up, but they don't take the time to consider how much time they will spend on foot, how much weight they will carry, what terrain they must navigate and how much water they need each day. Good shoes make a huge difference in both your physical health and your willpower. A minor blister, when aggravated from miles of hiking, can turn into a serious morale-killing ailment that could lead to a life-threatening infection.

When one of the tracking instructors taught us hiking techniques, he encouraged us to wear two pairs of socks to prevent blisters. It's not for everyone, but I noticed a huge difference in foot health when I wore an extra pair.

In my experience, water resistance is rather pointless as, unless you're wearing a bib-style set of waders, sooner or later you're going to be in water that's deeper than the height of the boots.

My camping/trekking/hiking shoes are not waterproof - synthetic, mesh-sided hiking shoes - but I wear wicking base-layer socks (polypropylene, but Merino wool would be better) under Merino/Nylon/Elastane tramping socks.

Water gets in, but it drains out quickly as well and my feet are dry pretty soon after. The wicking layer keeps my feet from having water trapped against my skin.

My camping, and therefore evacuation, gear is chosen on the assumption I'm going to get bloody wet, therefore it must enable me to get dry again, quickly.

I fully agree that a decent set of shoes and some good socks are essential. If, for whatever reason, you have to evacuate an area on foot (very likely in a number of natural disasters), you must have the means to do so without causing discomfort, delays or further harm.

The only time that waterproof shoes becomes essential is when you're walking through snow and ice - wet feet that get frozen become frost-bitten feet very quickly.

edited 2nd Jan '14 6:43:02 PM by Wolf1066

My favorite trick for winter hiking is putting plastic sandwich baggies over my toes. Keeps them dry and warm, until they wear through.

I took plastic bread bags for precisely the same reason.

I also always carry extra pairs of warm socks - there's a pair in my day bag as well as other pairs in my main pack.

I've got a few pairs of Rockys, which are specifically not waterproof. Their reasoning is that if waterproof boots keep water out, they'll also keep it in, so they instead put a bunch of drainage holes in the insoles and the sides of the boots. In theory, your weight pressing down on the insoles should actually pump the water out the sides of the boot, but I never got around to jumping in puddles to science this theory properly.

re: Showering with boots on: I've read in various places that this just helps your boots wear out faster (granted, breaking boots in is just the first step of wearing them out). I'd instead say wear the boots around for a few weeks to break them in. Or just make a habit of owning good boots and shoes and be mindful to put them on before you have to leave. My hiking boots are my day-to-day walking around shoes anyways.

I did use to have waterproof boots years ago and found that I'd wind up with painful waterlogged feet by the end of the trip - white necrotic skin and cracks forming. Not good at all.

Last river hike we went on, we were wading through the crossings and my feet were fine. The shoes squelched a bit for a few metres after each crossing then all the water was gone and they dried out quickly - those were just Mizuno running shoes with a few mesh panels on the side.

When I got to the camp site, my feet were damp but not water-damaged.

Frankly, if I were forced to leg-it out of a bad situation in gods-know what weather/terrain, I'd put my trust in hiking shoes or even lightweight running shoes before solid leather boots.

Supple soles that flex both ways, with good grippy rubber are also important if the terrain is likely to be uneven or strewn with large rocks - you want the soles to bend concave to a degree to provide extra surface contact on rocks and other curved surfaces as well as curve convex to allow your feet to flex at the toes.

Heavy rigid soles are bloody dangerous on uneven terrain (one river hike with the aforementioned waterproof leather boots, I actually took the boots off and went barefoot from rock to rock to get a more stable footing).

Guys, it depends on the shoe and the weather conditions. That was what I meant. It's not always an issue of keeping water out so much as it's an issue of breathability, the level of hydrophobic quality of the material and what you plan on doing near a body of water if you are near a body of water. As for showering with boots on, again, it depends on the shoe. Not all shoes are going to hold up to immediate exposure to water. It's not intended to be a catch-all, hard and fast rule for all footwear.

That Nukemap was scary to say the least.

I can personally recommend a few peices of footwear, the British Army boot is amazingly comfortable and tough, as well as Karrimor trainers and Magnum Boots, the ones Royal Marines use, wonderful but not as waterproof as the British Army boot.

edited 9th Jan '14 7:06:38 AM by RevolverZen

@Barkey:

Don't you live quite close to Air Force bases? I assume Vandenberg would get hit hard.

edited 9th Jan '14 7:46:33 AM by Achaemenid

Vandenburg is farther away from me than LA, so I'm not too worried about that.

I've been looking around, and have discovered that it is surprisingly difficult to find a retailer who offers a well-build, winter-insulated hiking boot. So far Walmart, Cosco, Sears, Target, and K Mart have all crapped out. I dont want to spend much more than $60 or so, and I didnt want to order a pair over the internet, but it looks like I'm out of luck so far.

edited 9th Jan '14 5:49:07 PM by demarquis

Barkey: It isn't the deliberate targeting you need to worry about so much as the Russians and Chinese really like MIRVS and scattering nuclear warheads over a large area. You might get wacked by accident from a "near miss". Especially considering quite a few of the Russian ICBM's have a rather frighteningly large CEP. Then again that doesn't matter as much when you dump 10-20 warheads who typically measure in multi hundred KT's at the low end.

edited 9th Jan '14 6:24:38 PM by TuefelHundenIV