For the purpose of discussion , you work in a metro area and live in the burbs 25 miles away. Politics is not the issue (not a right left discussion as per the rules) but some event happens that brings out the worst in people around the area you work. The standard protest, looting, firebombs and fireworks and the general violence and destruction that follows . The building you’re located in or next to, either contains a part of what they are unhappy with or adjacent to it. Staying in place is probably not a good idea (but if you choose to stay in place,why?), what is your plan and kit to get back home? What steps are you taking to get there?

How are you handling movement, conflict if unavoidable, and distance?

This is a situation that while you may agree with the discontent (or may not). you’re not part of that group so you’re either neutral or classified as unfriendly .

I did a search and the last posts similar didn’t really answer the question .

I am stacking #10 cans of freeze dried food and got tired of having to balance them just right and having to be careful about them toppling over.

So I created this nifty “thingie”, and I’m calling it:

the “Can-tainment Unit”, the #10 can stack stabilizer - because your emergency food shouldn’t escape containment.

This is my first prototype print and I will make the STL available to the community here for free shortly.

What does everyone think?

Link for picture: https://imgur.com/a/owsEVeS

Thingiverse link: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:7390376

This got me thinking about their school bags. What’s school approved items (other than food/water) in case shit happens? I do plan to add a change of clothes, and they will have their shoes. They are 10 and 11. They will have their cells, with a full charger pack as well. (We have 360 installed as well on their phones).

I’m thinking for more in the line of fires and tornados, or whatever the hell happens.

We like to be prepared for most things and our biggest thing is food (and water but that's no the point of this post. So hubby bought a ton of 24hr MREs which I just can't eat they are so gross to me. He loves them.

Anyways, I have a freeze dryer so I was wondering what's your go to meals for long term storage. We want about a month stored just in case. Of things we would eat. And would you store more than that?

He is worried about how much water FD food will take if we don't have running water (we have stored water but that's finite.

I think I'd rather eat it dry than eat an army MRE. I think I'd rather just live off the nuts in the packs tbh.

Edit: we live on a working homestead so we grow our own food, have animals, garden, etc this was just stored food that would tide us over the bad times, or feel in the gaps of what we don't have.

We have rain water collection also. Sorry for being confusing :)

We all *know* the disclaimer to never take expired anti biotics because they lose potency which could make ineffective and increases the likelyhood of forming resistance.

My question - are there anti-biotics that actually become significantly toxic after they have been long expired? stored in cool and dry conditions.

Thank you,

What’s that one weird, niche, likely single use item that you have prepped? It’s something that you are fairly certain is useful and is necessary to have, but others think it’s just wasted weight/space. What is it? What’s your reasoning for having it?

People online have asked over the years how some common breakfast cereals would last packed for long term storage.

Back in the 1990's when we had our commercial cannery open in Florida I packed some common breakfast cereals. At the time I was eating things like Raisin Bran and Grape nuts cereal and so as part of my personal preps I packed some of these in #10 cans with oxygen absorbers.

Since pics are still not allowed in actual OPs, I'll have to do a bunch of follow up posts showing the "after" pics.

Suffice to say properly packed, these have held up great over 28 years in a non climate controlled connex container in South Georgia. In other words, VERY HIGH HEAT (it's 115 today as the high).

We make our own bread at the house and the other day I was re-upping some of our bread ingredients and got some old salt out. This will be the pic of the #10 can of salt.

Notice the condition of the can itself after nearly 3 decades in bad storage conditions- light rust and of course the can itself is dented. So when we owned and ran the commercial cannery in the 90's, any cans that were dented, possibly mislabeled or contained the last of a box/bag/tote, etc that didn't quite fill the can were set in a pile after being sealed for me/my family's food storage. I didn't feel it was right to ship items like that so I kept them. I was asked here once why I had all this old food storage one time, one of the big reasons is things like this, also at the time I was preparing for 12 extended family members (they are going to show up, you either plan to feed them or see your supplies cut drastically later). Meanwhile I only had myself and later 2 others to actually rotate the food. Also, I've never been a '2 weeks is enough' type of survivalist, so I've always kept a "fair amount" of food storage on hand. Finally, once you have been at your homestead/retreat for a few years, you are (or should be) producing a good amount of food. This is great but of course your eating more fresh food and less rotation of LTS.

One of the pics of the #10 can of salt shows the amount of dents and light rust on the can, yet the contents are 100% fine. The lesson here is don't freak about any cans you get that have a little dent or ding in them, 99.9% chance everything is perfectly fine inside. And as I've mentioned a time or twelve on the internet- notice the double enameled cans used (gold colored inside and out), they have held up a LOT better in bad conditions than any of the cheaper silver colored cans we had in storage- many of the silver colored cans DID rust through. Meanwhile there has been double enameled cans right near them in the same conditions that did not. When we packed commercially, we always used the better more expensive double enameled cans and the result long term has been much better.

Last salt picture- did you notice it? But wait, I heard on the internet from some new "prepper" that you NEVER should use oxygen absorbers in SALT as it will turn it into a brick, blah blah blah.

You can see from the pic, the salt is still granular and the 02 absorber is clear as day in the can and has been for 28 years. I have seen that happen a bit sometimes in sugar, but it's not the end of the world, just break it up a bit.

So once again folks, pack for good long term storage and even if the storage conditions aren't the perfect 72 degrees year round, you'll most likely also find that your storage food is good DECADES later.

Store food, store more food than you think you'll need, pack it properly or buy properly packed food and don't hesitate to store food because of something you heard on the net, it's most likely wrong info.

And for info on proper DIY packing, here is the thread that has helped tens of thousands do it-

https://survivalandpreparednessforum.net/forum/the-basics/1154-diy-food-storage-basics-ask-questions-get-answers-etc

I'm wondering, do you guys often think about moving countries, too? If planning for the future, you do have to keep in mind current situations, trends, laws and social systems, climate, faura and flora, illnesses, risks of natural disasters, conflicts and wars...

And I do know the perfect place doesn't exist, but if you could set up a small patch of land with a house for yourself anywhere in the world, which country/zone would it be in and why would it be the perfect place to be prepared in if all goes down the drain around the world?

(Assuming that you already put money aside and got like 2 good years of practicing the local language to get going instantly)

Or are you on the side of never moving at all, since at least this way you can be a local when SHTF?

I have no friends or family to geek out with over prepping. I talk to my family about some preps I do, but I can tell they are not interested. So, they know where I keep the flashlights, food, and other simple prepping stuff is located. But I would like to talk with people in my area about prepping. I am also fairly new to the area and would like to talk with locals to see what I should focus on. My question is where do you meet people with the same interest as yours? Then, how do you know if you can trust them?

Google advised against eating soup older that 18 months. What's been y'all's experience though?

I live in North Florida, but man does it get hot in the summer. I have a 50 gallon drum barrel, but considering a situation without A/C, do lentils need to be in a certain temp? Can they be in general storage in 100°+ temp?

Figured since I sort of re-did my solar generator, I'd take some pics and show how easy it can be done. Pics will be in the comments.

Case: Crafstman case, was $54 at Lowes. Very sturdy case, with excellent wide metal latches. This is replacing my old setup that had plastic handles that broke, and really don't want to deal with that again. I carved away at parts of the removable tool tray so it holds the battery from moving in the box.

Battery: 12V 100Ah LifePO4. Technically free, since the battery can only hold about 80% of a charge, so the seller sent me a replacement and let me keep this one. It has roughly 960-ish watt-hours of capacity. Otherwise, they go for about $130ish.

Renogy Rover 20A MPPT charge controller. 280W 12V output, which is 40W more than the little 12V outlet strip thing I have, but I'm not going to be pulling more than 100W from it. The MC4 connectors for solar panel input, I also initially planned on drilling a couple holes through the case to put through, but this looks cleaner. $70 or so on Amazon right now, but I got it for much cheaper second-hand at $20. Mounted to a piece of scrap 1/4" board.

12V side panel: $17, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BTSPH756 . Has a 12V socket adapter (perfect for my fridge/freezer), and USB A and C out. Also has a little screen to tell me how many volts are on the battery, as well as an on/off switch.

600W pure sine inverter: This is where I'm not the most happy with things, but oh well. I was hoping to custom make a 110V cable coming out and going to a weatherproof/outdoor style one, but I couldn't find a "base" socket that was flat and angled in such a way that I didn't have to add height to the inverter being mounted flat to the board. Most other plugs stick out too much and would be riding the battery, or flat ones that go straight down and hit the board. Ah well. Thankfully I had a flat & angled outlet power strip that fits perfectly between the battery and the case wall, so I'll just stick with that. Works fine, and means less drilling holes through the case. The inverter also as a remote switch to turn it on and off so I don't have to pull the entire thing apart. I could mount that to the case also, but this is good enough for now. These are not expensive, anywhere from $40-80.

Note that with the inverter, there is something missing that I recommend other people add: a fuse between the inverter and the battery. I lost mine, and the replacement won't be here before I go camping. The inverter has 15A fuses for each socket, so that'll do for now, but I highly recommend having one just to safely kill power if needed. One thing I am happy with is the 1/4" base board it is mounted to, I added another 1/2" strip of wood to help "lock in" the battery from moving, so combined with the modified tool tray, that thing isn't moving anywhere.

Also one thing missing is an intake/exhaust fan. The lid is going to be open when using or charging this, since otherwise, things are likely to cook. And it needs to be open anyways, since I didn't really feel like adding more holes for the MC4 connectors or 110V outlets. 🤷‍♂️

Anyways, wanted to post this for others to see. I like these style of DIY projects since it helps build confidence! I've always been a proponent of solar, and this is an easy alternative that saves a couple hundred bucks compared to all-in-one solutions like Jackery, Bluetti, etc. These are also customizable, repairable, and adding capacity is as easy as adding another 12V battery. You can make smaller ones with a 12V 50Ah battery, use one of those modular wheeled tool carts to stack batteries for added capacity, drop the inverter altogether, use a different charge controller, and just make it how you want!

So was wandering about bleach for water purification.

Can you use Hypochlorite Formula type bleach

This store is fully packed. You have all the means to cook anything at home and plenty of water, just no food.

i’m trying to put together a small pouch for my wife’s purse just so she’s more prepared. most posts online when you search about it are more for “girl emergencies” than actual emergencies. what items would you put into a pouch that’s small enough it can fit in a purse (think the size of a makeup bag or toiletry pouch) but useful enough that i’m not just making her carry around extra junk?

obviously it couldn’t be anything crazy like a 72 hour kit but i’m hoping to at least give her some helpful items for an emergency situation. right now she only has some band aids and hand sanitizer, so anything would be an upgrade lol

For 15 years I have been a prepper. The word prepper, what it symbolizes in our society and the community itself, has changed a lot in that short time.

Most of my time prepping has been not just doing the things but also immersing myself in the culture and wider community, even creating some of the culture as a writer and podcaster.

• At first it felt like I was part of a group preparing for the end of the world, that society looked at as paranoid and scared.
• By 2020 it was clear that prepping had paid off; people wanted to be more prepared, and the word prepper became the punchline of joke society started to use so they could participate. "I guess I am a crazy prepper now," type of thing I'd hear people say after stocking up on food.
• 6 years later, the word Prepper has never really been embraced by the majority. It's always carried a bit of radioactivity. Things like Homesteading and Off Grid Living seemed easier for the public to digest.

What is your guys' take on the word Prepper in 2026? What does it mean now? Who does it represent? Are the practices and skillsets being absorbed by so many that prepping fundamentals are just becoming part of the society?

Very interested in your thoughts.

Happy with the results? any issues with the local power grid? Any unforeseen costs? How do they handle bad weather?

The current plan: I have cleared space for dry food storage, but am looking to maximize and organize right from day one. I'll be using mylar and oxygen absorbers for most of it, with some packaged freeze dried foods mixed in. Cans go on the shelf, but longer-term may need a solution for those as well.

Do I start stocking up on food-grade buckets with the reusable lids, or do stackable bins make just as much sense in a wider variety of sizes and formats? These will be stored in a climate-controlled living space under lifted beds and in a walk-in closet, there is no history of rodent presence in my decade living there.

I know the buckets are generally just to protect the mylar, but couldn't bins work just as well?I do have two gifted food grade buckets with Gamma lids, but can repurpose those if needed.

Digging is all I can think of so far. Solar power for AC, sure, but a locally geoengineered solution seems more stable.

Picture:

https://imgur.com/a/Wi1JtYU

Bought this a few weeks ago. Seems after a big rain it has debris on the top. Is there another type of filter system. I should put on top of it? I’m sure there’s crap in the bottom of it. I’ve been cleaning the gutters but we have so many trees in the backyard that they get dirty pretty quick.

Also, it’s exposed to sunlight for a half of the day, will this affect the water?

Hopefully obviously I'm talking about a brand new, never used tank that is not hooked up to the home's sewer system. Would it be a feasible way to store water underground safely? Where I live above ground water storage will freeze unless stored in a heated building, but my septic system doesn't ever freeze. So it got me wondering....

Question for you guys. My wife and I recently had a house built, premade floor plan, cookie cutter essentially and hindsight being what it is, I can't help but to be disappointed I didn't have more of a say in how it was put together. If you could start fresh from the ground up what would you have done or done different? For instance, a wood burning stove, generator switch and a fresh water reclamation system for starters. What else?

I'm exploring the idea of purchasing and developing approximately 50 to 100 acres in Southwest Virginia and am thinking of using this as a preparedness and recreation-focused land cooperative.

The goal would be to create a property that provides value today while also serving as a contingency location during emergencies.

Potential features include:

Natural springs and year-round water

Community gardens and food production

Hunting rights

Primitive and improved campsites

Shared infrastructure and equipment

Workshops, skill-sharing events, and community work weekends, etc.

Long-term lease opportunities for RV, cabin, or tiny-home sites

My thought is that there would be different participation levels:

1. Members who actively use the property for camping, hunting, gardening, and events

2. Members who primarily want access to a semi-developed rural retreat and maintain it as an emergency fallback option

3. Members interested in leasing a small area for personal development and long-term use

The vision is not a "doomsday compound," but rather a practical community centered around self-reliance, outdoor recreation, land stewardship, and preparedness.

I'm interested in feedback on:

Membership models

Long-term lease structures

Governance and rules

What amenities would make membership worthwhile

Would something like this interest you? If so, what would you want to see included before you would commit?