FYI, Spam does Not last forever.  A while back, I had 7 cans go bad on me. 
I admit that they were almost 8 years old.  They were in a box waaay in the back of the pantry.

FYI, Spam does Not last forever.  A while back, I had 7 cans go bad on me. 
I admit that they were almost 8 years old.  They were in a box waaay in the back of the pantry.

Noooooooooooo!!!!!

I thought I'd share some pictures.

Rice sealed in mylar with an oxygen absorber.
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Empty bags of rice.
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Buckets where the rice is stored after being sealed in mylar.
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Nice.. 

But how do you keep the beer from going bad??

Thanks 2aHawaii. 
Wondering though if you have anymore info on your rice in mylar storage? How did you seal the bags?

Thanks 2aHawaii. 
Wondering though if you have anymore info on your rice in mylar storage? How did you seal the bags?

I just poured the rice in, stuck in an oxygen absorber, and took a hot iron to the mylar. I don't know if that is how you are supposed to do it, but it seemed to seal it just fine. We'll see how it worked in 10 years.

Should be fine, esp if you're storing it again in those buckets. The dessicant should take care of the moisture, so long as you don't open it prior to use for whatever reason 

Where do you keep all your buckets? I can only fit 8 or so in my closet in my small quadruplex we live in. lol.

Nice.. 

But how do you keep the beer from going bad??

You drink it and store it as survival-hibernation fat like a bear. 

You drink it and store it as survival-hibernation fat like a bear. 

Didn't think about it that way.  I've been storing it that way for years!

Any one have any Info on the use of add on faucet mounted water filters(Brita or PUR)?
 
I have a PUR mounted on my kitchen faucet.  Takes the treated taste our of the BWS supplied water.
 
If time permitts, Wife will fill up our water gallons with filtered water.  Takes a long time per gallon.
 
Same time she will be filling our City & County supplied trash bins(after good rinsing) with water for toilet.
 
All this while I'm out getting gas for vehicles And 2 Honda generators.
 
Funny:  While getting food at Foodland just before Iniki hit Oahu, Wife saw people stocking up on Frozen TV dinners......

Old Guy,

    I'm not really sure what you're asking...but I think you're asking for a faster alternative to get as much potable water as possible prior to a natural disaster hitting?

I would say that depending how much other stuff needs to be done, perhaps you're better off doing the vast majority of your water unfiltered and using other methods to purify as needed. Also, why not just have a couple 5 gallon water jugs stored for drinking purposes?

Furthermore, if you were so inclined and have the space, you can set up a collapsible rain catcher (http://www.improvementscatalog.com/product/code/372529.do?cm_mmc=Shopzilla-_-GutterAccessories-_-2010-_-372529&code-macs=MP0SZILLA&code=MP0SZILLA&mr:referralID=6eac3fad-e1ac-11df-ad8e-001b2166c62d) to give you more than enough water after the storm.

- Alex

Alex, thanks for the tip.

Yes, my question was in reference to potable water for drinking.

Your suggestion is great for general storage of water for non food purposes. 

I would never ingest rain water off the roof or let the dogs drink quantities of it. 
   Good for toilet use.

 Another way is to fill extra large plastic refuse bags for emergency non drinking use.  I would question drinking that water because of chemicals
   leaching out of the plastic.  Make sure you have ways of holding the filled bags to keep from spilling.  In our case we have several plastic rubbish
   containers (Very used and not really cleanable) which would well as a container.

Again in these situations, thinking out of the box is the rule.

I would never ingest rain water off the roof or let the dogs drink quantities of it. 

Neither would I...until it was purified. It is quite easy to set up a small filtration setup and then use the various methods of purification (sunlight, chlorine, etc...) to render it potable. The reason I prefer this method over trying to get all of your potable water needs met from the beginning is two-fold: 1) the infrastructure is already in place in the event that the "fallout" of the disaster runs much longer than originally anticipated, and 2) if done properly, this method can save alot of time since it is kind of a set it and forget it purification setup (and can be done as needed) as opposed to trying to front-load all of the effort when there are so many other important tasks to take care of in preparation for a disaster.

But of course, YMMV....I personally just have a bunch of guns, ammunition, and camo paint...I figure that'll be enough to get me through any disaster that comes our way. 

- Alex

About rice, good idea, but what about the pre-packaged 1 minute micro wave stuff? 

I know you need power.  I have Honda generator and given enough notice hurricane or tsunami, I can get gas before hand.

I'm out of luck with an earthquake.  Only 24 to 36 hours of gas on hand at any given moment, plus what's in the 2 vehicles.

I usually have at least enough for 40 meals on hand.  And rotate stock as we eat and renew.

About fire power,  Never think you're the best on the block.  Always figure that there is some one Better or Luckier than you out there
and Plan accordingly.

Do Not get over confident in what You know.  I'd rather be Lucky than be good........

Ahh yes, I hear the voice of Yoda whenever OG posts! lol

"This be true young padawun" (hope I spelled it right) 

I only keep the instant rice around for my disaster preps....saves propane because instead of having to cook the rice in boiling water, all you have to do is bring the water to a boil and then add it to the rice. The generator is nice, but it's important to have a plan B (i.e., small camp stove).

And the guns and ammo thing was a joke. I actually have far more disaster preps than I do weapons and ammo.

P.S: I'll take good over lucky any day.

- Alex

Quote from: Old Guy on October 30, 2010, 06:38:16 AM

I would never ingest rain water off the roof or let the dogs drink quantities of it. 

Neither would I...until it was purified. It is quite easy to set up a small filtration setup and then use the various methods of purification (sunlight, chlorine, etc...) to render it potable. The reason I prefer this method over trying to get all of your potable water needs met from the beginning is two-fold: 1) the infrastructure is already in place in the event that the "fallout" of the disaster runs much longer than originally anticipated, and 2) if done properly, this method can save alot of time since it is kind of a set it and forget it purification setup (and can be done as needed) as opposed to trying to front-load all of the effort when there are so many other important tasks to take care of in preparation for a disaster.

But of course, YMMV....I personally just have a bunch of guns, ammunition, and camo paint...I figure that'll be enough to get me through any disaster that comes our way. 

- Alex

Rain water is great. You can easily use SODIS to treat your rain water as long as your roof and your gutters aren't holding  much debris. Ever looked in your rain gutters? SODIS will kill any bad bugs, but it wont remove chemicals collected from the roof. Leptosporosis is the main concern here in Hawaii , it can get anywhere animals take a dump. Your roof is that place (birds, rats, parrots if you live in Wailuna, etc).

Nice thing about Hawaii is that it rains often and your roof is usually free from crap that collects. Bad thing is your gutters trap most of that crap and it sits there unless you ensure they are clean. I have found some strange shit in my gutters....dead geckos, birds, and once a greasy tool (no idea where that came from)

Most roof materials are made from petroleum based shingles and that stuff washes off after heating up, but it usually reaches a point of no return in that its done leaching out petrochemicals. Unless you have recently had your roof reshingled or are in question, consult your contractor to find out what you have above you. Always look for sand (or gravel) ...seems to be the biggest offender with shingled roofs in my experience. Sand sinks, so set your cistern up to draw from mid level or put a filter in it if you are paranoid.

I have a friend on the mainland who's entire household's water supply (5 people) comes from the roof alone. You would be surprised by the amount of water caught by one rainstorm on a flat surface. He live exclusively on this and has had his water tested VS the available  public supply and his is much cleaner in comparison in the mineral  and chemical department. This is consumed only after treatmeant  VIA SODIS on the same roof! I have a design for a SODIS disenfection setup that will cost you a few bucks and lives on your roof. It is adjustable based on your view to the sun (not an issue here as long as you can see south).

He does not treat his bath, dishwasher, or clothes water. He uses a simple roof t and gutter to funnel water to his cisterns. He uses several drums that are painted black and some white and has never had an issue. He has been using this for about 10 years and hasn't paid a water bill since then. His power is strictly solar and has a generator, but can't recall the last time he fired it for other than making sure it was still operational, it runs on LP gas and Petrol as well.

While he is truly living off the grid in a 2500 square ft house in TX, he is very well armed  (25+ guns and over 500 rounds for each) and retired. He is also well prepared and has been practicing food rotation for over 10 years (since Y2K). 

Out of all the shit he has going on, I  asked for the ONE thing he felt was necessary for survival and his answer was CLEAN POTABLE WATER..

Seems this is the worlds' elephant in the room.

I think at one point we were going to grab some stream water and SODIS treat it and either drink it or have it tested....

What is SODIS?

Got a link to a site?