So after all the introduction and argle bargle, here’s the start of the relevant material. I’m writing this for the person who may not know much about the subject, may be they are interested but not sure where to start or even if it’s practical. If you are already deeply involved with it, it may be of limited usefulness but might expose some gaps in your own plans.

How to begin

I recommend starting small, with a specific length of “off grid” time in mind. This is the whole idea of prepping (I hate that word but it’s terse), if something happens how can you and your loved ones survive if not be comfortable. When I started, I picked the following goals:

•  30 days
• 3 months
• 6 months
• One year

I have since added “indefinitely” to the list, it’s the Day366 thing but a much more intense and long-term exercise. It may be good to add two weeks on the front, this is a more realistic time frame for common emergencies and doesn’t require the same level of effort and expense.  Let’s walk though that first….

TWO WEEKS

We will assume a standard scenario for most of the timelines, i.e. you’ve lost electrical power, utilities, access to most if not all outside facilities. This one doesn’t include any self-defense, as 2 weeks will likely not lead to unrest.

Water

You will need one gallon per person per day, so 14 gallons each.  Family of four, just under 60 gallons. Distilled water is a buck a gallon, cheap and keeps a long time. Buy these 4 at a time, and cache them in a cool place. You can stack 3×3 or 4×4 in a small area, 4-5 high on plywood and bricks so there’s 36-125 gallons. This one is non-negotiable, you can exist without a lot of things but water ain’t one of them.  Notice I’m not recommending a purifier, too expensive and a hassle to dick with collection. You can supplement your cache with the hot water and toilet tanks, they contain clean water but will probably have some sediment. Use that for washing or a reserve. The hot water tank will have a drain at the bottom, just open the valve and gravity will force it out. Toilet tank (not the bowl!) is accessed by lifting off the lid, dip it out.

Food

I recently read the average family has just two days of food on hand. Judging by the duct cleaning young-uns comments on our modest pantry, I’d say that’s about right. My parents went through the Depression, and always had plenty on had. They weren’t hoarders, just of a different time when food wasn’t readily available. You will need 3 square meals a day, per person, plus snacks. This food will not be low-cal. It needs to have lots of calories and protein, and be tasty so everyone feels like eating. No one wants crap food in a highly stressed environment, just ask combat vets.

Speaking of vets, one very easy way to meet this need is to buy MREs. Uncle Sammy spent a lot of money and time on these, and they are the shit in an emergency. I’ve eaten  aircrew versions, they were pre-MRE but had lots of the same stuff. They were great, I’m not a food snob and think people like to bitch about the grub no matter what.  If you are wise, just buy MREs from a reputable supply house and you are done. Kinda spendy but if you store them in a cool area they last 8-12+ years. They are also a building block of the longer term plans, those incorporate MREs as variety to the stored food and grains. And, you can get the chemical heaters that make the entrees hot without flame. VERY HARD TO BEAT.

Other food options

If MREs just can’t be had, be prepared to spend a lot of time and space on the alternative, plus rotating stock to avoid spoilage. And, you will need ways to prepare said food. Keep this in mind, the last thing you want is to have to run an oven all day to eat. Everyone is different, but here’s some ideas of what and what not to buy:

Yes

• Peanut butter
• Pilot crackers
• Jelly
• Canned meats
• Chili
• Cereal, esp granola
• Mac n cheese (the fattening, in a cup kind). Requires boiling water but not pots full.
• Ramen noodles
• Any “add boiling” water foods, including freeze dried. Those really belong in the longer-term category but will work fine.
• Instant drink mix
• Powdered milk.

No

• Canned soup. Salty and heavy as hell, needs a stove, and no nutritional value.
• Pasta, flour, cake mix, or anything needing cooking.

So if you want to be cheap, eating will not be much fun. Kinda like real life.

Cooking

Notice how you needed boiling water for most foods? You might also need it for other things, like coffee and tea or to sterilize water. A heat source is needed, here’s some options:

• Jet Boil. This company makes climbing stoves, these have an insulated chimney that can boils 16 ounces of water in a minute. Pretty much the bomb for freeze dried grub and hot water. Uses little cans of butane, very light and portable. Spendy but like MREs, hard to top.
• Harbor Freight or Coleman burner. A single gas burner, runs on small propane bottles. Less than Jet Boil, heavier and bigger, sprays BTUs everywhere. Can double as a small furnace, which is tres handy.
• Kindling burner. A glorified camp fire in a can, uses wood so fuel isn’t a problem. Outdoors only, not really recommended.

Heat

Heat Buddy. Runs on the same small propane bottles as the stoves, will keep you from freezing. Anything else is seriously not recommended, for the price this is the way to go.

Fuel

Either cases of the small propane bottles, or 1-2 cylinders. The bottles are a whole lot less to carry, and don’t need complex adapters and hoses. Get enough to last the whole time, both cooking and heating. You can follow the consumption rates listed in the instructions to add up the amount needed.

Light

You don’t need to go nuts with this, although I have found just a flashlight really blows for illumination.  Coleman and others make nice dual fluorescent lanterns, they take a wad of D-cells and can be run off 12 volts. I’d consider that a minimum, along with a few LED flashlights. Stepping up from here is a regular lamp, using CFLs. They use 7-8 watts, but need an inverter and battery bank. This option feels more normal, you can read and do regular activities with that much light.

Power

A couple of options here:

• Dry cells. This assumes you run everything from AAA-D cells. Not a bad choice, just make sure you buy lots of name brand cells and keep them current.  You are limited to lanterns and portables.
• Deep cycle or SLA battery with an inverter. Ahh, now we are talking.  Costs a lot more, but can be set up to run larger loads like a lamp or laptop. I won’t digress on the details, but expect to spend 300 bucks for a decent setup. More than that for a small solar array to charge it. This may not be practical for the 2 week’er, but electricity is sooooo nice.

Sanitation

You will need the following:

• Toilet paper
• Paper towels
• Plastic ware, cups
• Soap. Good old Ivory bars, nothing fancy
• Two buckets. One to wash up, one to..you  know.
• HD trash bags
• Feminine hygiene accoutrements
• Disposable razors
• Travel shampoos
• Kleenex

OK, I think that’s everything. If you have everything on the list, you are good to go for the duration barring any medical crisis.