I just bought a solar panel and generator. Along with 3 large bags of rice.
Does Anyone Here Prep for if the grid goes down or a cyberattack?
- Thread starter TomFord1980
- Start date
I got a few cans of chickpeas and sardines in the cupboard. And some dried cranberries
I got some old paper Playboy and Hustler mags in case a nuclear armageddon EMP takes out my MacBook!
Oh, and a can of smoked oysters somewhere. I should be good.
Oh, and a can of smoked oysters somewhere. I should be good.
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How long will the gennie run on three bags of rice?
Prepping involves being prepared for those events, likely events and unlikely events.
It starts small, but it becomes a habit, snowball effect.
Most recently focus on radiation protection & meters have been the hot trends. Educating yourself can be the most useful thing & usually doesn't cost alot to download pdfs or listen to audiobooks etc.
3 - 6 week supply of everything you & your dependants need.. More water reqd than what most people realize, cooking cleaning drinking etc.
en.m.wikipedia.org
It starts small, but it becomes a habit, snowball effect.
Most recently focus on radiation protection & meters have been the hot trends. Educating yourself can be the most useful thing & usually doesn't cost alot to download pdfs or listen to audiobooks etc.
3 - 6 week supply of everything you & your dependants need.. More water reqd than what most people realize, cooking cleaning drinking etc.
Nuclear War Survival Skills - Wikipedia
en.m.wikipedia.org
How do you plan to cook the rice without a burner or pots and pans? Unless you like eating raw rice?
I bought a Honda gas generator after that North american blackout about 20 years ago. I was glad to have it during that big Toronto flood in 2013. I used it to power an old sump pump to keep my basement from flooding too much. Most of my neighbours were fucked. I also use it for camping. I always have gas in the lawnmower snowthrower or car so it's always available. I wired the Important appliances like the furnace and fridge to the generator and can switch to and from the grid at will.
I've seen a few houses with those giant Generac units which are overkill IMO. You pay through the nose to have automatic backup power that switchces when the grid power goes out. Better to have something that isn't permanently attached to the house and is portable.
I know there's a battery / solar generator called Jackery, which does not require gas or make noise / fumes. I probably would have bought that if it was available at the time.
I also have some butane burners that I use for Chinese hot pot. Since it's butane, I can use it indoors and during a power failure.
All kidding aside...
I live on a high floor in a condo and my biggest concern is water. Building has a diesel generator to run the booster pumps to get the water way up here.. but of all things that go out here most often is water.
So I have 10 cases of 4x2 litre jugs of Walmart ozonated water under a bed in one of the guest bedrooms. And whenever there is a notice of shutoff or any sort of indication of possible water problems, I fill up the bathtubs.
I also have a Group 27 RG battery hard wired to an old UPS in the Utility Room in case of short term power failure.
Various canned goods, Stag Chili, rice, pasta, beans, sugar, oatmeal, tetra pak juice boxes and staples are in the pantry anyways and I just use the old stuff first and replace with fresher whenever. One thing I always keep on hand is evaporated milk for coffee! Oh and a stovetop kettle because we have gas for cooking here.
One thing on my TDL though is a couple of "Bug Out Bags". One in case I really need to leave quickly, even if just because of a flood or fire. And one in case I have to go to the hospital and get admitted. Or in case someone has to come to my place to get stuff for me in case I am in the hospital. It happened once that I got hurt in a sport that I ended up in the hospital for a few days. Wish I had a bag ready to pick up with my toothbrush, underwear, PL's and those old Playboy mags!
I live on a high floor in a condo and my biggest concern is water. Building has a diesel generator to run the booster pumps to get the water way up here.. but of all things that go out here most often is water.
So I have 10 cases of 4x2 litre jugs of Walmart ozonated water under a bed in one of the guest bedrooms. And whenever there is a notice of shutoff or any sort of indication of possible water problems, I fill up the bathtubs.
I also have a Group 27 RG battery hard wired to an old UPS in the Utility Room in case of short term power failure.
Various canned goods, Stag Chili, rice, pasta, beans, sugar, oatmeal, tetra pak juice boxes and staples are in the pantry anyways and I just use the old stuff first and replace with fresher whenever. One thing I always keep on hand is evaporated milk for coffee! Oh and a stovetop kettle because we have gas for cooking here.
One thing on my TDL though is a couple of "Bug Out Bags". One in case I really need to leave quickly, even if just because of a flood or fire. And one in case I have to go to the hospital and get admitted. Or in case someone has to come to my place to get stuff for me in case I am in the hospital. It happened once that I got hurt in a sport that I ended up in the hospital for a few days. Wish I had a bag ready to pick up with my toothbrush, underwear, PL's and those old Playboy mags!
Those Honda 2000/2200 inverter gennies are fantastic. Reliable and energy efficient with the Eco Mode.. Right-sized power output for typical single family home. Plug in the extension cord to the fridge/freezer for an hour, then the furnace, rotate whatever else.
But you might want to take it in for a tune-up after 20years, with special attention to the carb and fuel lines. Over the years, especially if you used normal gas that contains ethanol, the fuel line will rot, the carb bowl, float, needle and seat will get rusty and it might not run when you need it most. If you are handy, you can buy a new carb on Amazon . Do't try rebuilding them. New one is cheap.
Use Fuel Stabilizer in your ethanol-free fuel. And when you shut off your generator, go it by shutting off the fuel so it runs the carb dry.
When you find a gas station that sells ethanol-free gas and buy a couple of 5 gallon jerry cans. Put a tag on with the date and fill your car with the old gas every year or so and get fresh gas. Gas deteriorates.
All of this goes double important for a good quality Briggs powered gennie and 5x important for anything made of Chinesium.
yeah, I'm thinking an incremental modular approach. Starting with redoing my Second Date/One Night Stand Kit right through to having a fully vac bagged suitcase full of winter clothes ready to go in my locker. Not OCD but I like to be organized... but like you my main closet scores around F2 on the Fujita Scale. Even though I'm not old or sick, I'm in the middle of trying the Swedish Death Cleaning method!Dont forget medical supplies, first aid kits and the like in that bug out bag. Also some ID documents, passports, financial documents etc., I have also thought about putting together a bug out bag, in case of fires etc., However, I need to fix my overflowing closet first. It looks like a tornado just passed through.
Honda engines are like a Timex. That's why the food trucks and hot dog stands always use them. For decades I had a small power boat with a Honda 4-stroke and it always started with just 1 pull.
My uncle came up with the idea to wire up the gen to the house so there's no need for long extension cords to the critical appliances. I do have to manually plug it into an inlet on the side of the house, fill it with fuel and start it, which only takes 10 minutes at most. Besides, I can take the generator anywhere incluidng when I decide to sell the house. I have a manual switch in the basement next to the breaker panel where I can go from grid to generator power.
I've always used premium in my mower, thrower and generator, but I know that ethanol-free fuel is harder to find. I could probably find ethanol-free at a marina, but then I'd have to drive to one and pay much more for it. I only fill the gen to about half when I need it and pump it out / run it dry so there's no need for stabilizer and reduce fuel related damage. I do have a small jerry can and I rotate fuel between the mower and thrower. Anything extra at the end of the season goes in the car. The silly thing is that I only used the thrower once just a few days ago this year.
I'll be really happy if the gen lasts for 20 years, but I'll obviously deal with any problems at that time.
We should add Chineseium to the periodic table because it's everywhere
Other than some food to last a while and a few portable charger/power banks to charge cellphones, I don't have anything else. I'm also not worried about cyber attacks or the power grid going down for any extended period of time. It would be a different story if I lived in a place that had regular tornados, hurricanes, earthquakes etc.
Or the Walther PPK. Actually, a shotgun would be more useless in an apocalypse.Dont forget medical supplies, first aid kits and the like in that bug out bag. Also some ID documents, passports, financial documents etc., I have also thought about putting together a bug out bag, in case of fires etc., However, I need to fix my overflowing closet first. It looks like a tornado just passed through.
Unless you're Schwarzenegger or Ventura, you're not toting a mini gun, ammo and power pack aroundA mini gun maybe to mow down those zombies.
I guess the best would be reliable hunting rifles and handguns for defence.
They eat ammo like crazy and slow to reload.An AK47 might be a better option as they're super reliable and the ammo is widely available. A good backup would be a katana or a barb-wire wrapped baseball bat. No ammo or fuel reequired
If you have a "suicide cord" electrical setup, know that is illegal and dangerous and its mere presence can invalidate your insurance even if it didn't have anything to do with a loss. . Lots of info on why etc but I'm sure you know it and I'm not going to change your mind. https://www.consumerreports.org/hom...extension-cords-are-so-dangerous-a1189731437/Honda engines are like a Timex. That's why the food trucks and hot dog stands always use them. For decades I had a small power boat with a Honda 4-stroke and it always started with just 1 pull.
My uncle came up with the idea to wire up the gen to the house so there's no need for long extension cords to the critical appliances. I do have to manually plug it into an inlet on the side of the house, fill it with fuel and start it, which only takes 10 minutes at most. Besides, I can take the generator anywhere incluidng when I decide to sell the house. I have a manual switch in the basement next to the breaker panel where I can go from grid to generator power.
I've always used premium in my mower, thrower and generator, but I know that ethanol-free fuel is harder to find. I could probably find ethanol-free at a marina, but then I'd have to drive to one and pay much more for it. I only fill the gen to about half when I need it and pump it out / run it dry so there's no need for stabilizer and reduce fuel related damage. I do have a small jerry can and I rotate fuel between the mower and thrower. Anything extra at the end of the season goes in the car. The silly thing is that I only used the thrower once just a few days ago this year.
I'll be really happy if the gen lasts for 20 years, but I'll obviously deal with any problems at that time.
We should add Chineseium to the periodic table because it's everywhere
Here is a proper Manual Transfer switch for $68 on Amazon.
I also have a Honda EU2000i that is 20 years old and had to replace the carb last year... just when I needed it most. Do what you want but fuel seals only last so long and the needle and seat in the carb only needs a little bit of shmutz or rubber gasket debris to cause the carb to flood or not deliver fuel.
No need for an OEM carb, this one for $50 worked like a charm. https://www.amazon.ca/Cnfaner-Carburetor-EU2000iK1-EU2000iT1-16100-Z0D-D03/dp/B08LPR79WS
Easy to change and LOTS of how-to video's on YouTube. Here is the first one that came up for me. Getting a small engine shop to change it probably takes a week or more and $300+. But again, no need to learn from my experience, suit yourself my friend
Always use a fuel stabilizer in your tank, if it sits around for any length of time. Gas goes bad and your engine won't start.If you have a "suicide cord" electrical setup, know that is illegal and dangerous and its mere presence can invalidate your insurance even if it didn't have anything to do with a loss. . Lots of info on why etc but I'm sure you know it and I'm not going to change your mind. https://www.consumerreports.org/hom...extension-cords-are-so-dangerous-a1189731437/
Here is a proper Manual Transfer switch for $68 on Amazon.
I also have a Honda EU2000i that is 20 years old and had to replace the carb last year... just when I needed it most. Do what you want but fuel seals only last so long and the needle and seat in the carb only needs a little bit of shmutz or rubber gasket debris to cause the carb to flood or not deliver fuel.
No need for an OEM carb, this one for $50 worked like a charm. https://www.amazon.ca/Cnfaner-Carburetor-EU2000iK1-EU2000iT1-16100-Z0D-D03/dp/B08LPR79WS
Easy to change and LOTS of how-to video's on YouTube. Here is the first one that came up for me. Getting a small engine shop to change it probably takes a week or more and $300+. But again, no need to learn from my experience, suit yourself my friend
I run a old school 3kW non invertor genny.
Generac with made in usa Briggs & Stratton motor. Noisy, yes.
But with enough surge capacity to start the natural gas furnace glow ignitor while also running the freezer and household LED lighting etc.
Or run a skill saw or air compressor on off the grid construction jobs.
But, yes, one step more I use for reliable start after storage.
While just a bit of gas left in the tank, mix in some SeaFoam at prescribed rate of solvent, shake machine well.
Ride choke so it will stay running on the solvent mix.
And run with a hair dryer load until it runs dry.
Hair dryer speeds the run dry time.
Then drop the carb bowl and toss the last bit of fuel there
I buy CTC supreme grade fuel, allegedly Ethanol free. Then stabilize it.
Usually I fill the cache in mid July before thunderstorm storm risk season comes to town.
Then we consume the over wintered cache in our cars in March when winter storm risk has passed.
I have fleet of 16 Coleman white gas cans that I have rust resist sprayed the tops on.
I use these as my first line of over winter storage stabilized fuel, kept on a shelf under the overhang of my back yard shed.
I have learned that trying to wrestle a 10l or larger red gas jug to fuel a genny in winter wearing gloves is not a very easy thing to do without spilling.
Smaller multiple cans for the first effort of getting gas in and the machine running after a power fail is a much nicer experience.
I still do old school home canning of stuff I cook up.
I typically make batches of 10L of chili, spaghetti meat sauce, baked beans, barley lentil soup etc.
I can fit 7x1l jars into the pressure canner, and the other 3x1l we stick in the fridge and eat up as fresh in a week or two.
The pressure can jars go to shelves in the basement cold cellar.
Along with summer made jams and relishes.
So there is likely 6 weeks easy stashed there mist of the time.
Bulk Barn sells potato flakes, and they are a way easier to cook up side than rice when power is off.
Add boiled water, whisk and wait for a few minutes and then eat.
