Hurricane prep...food

[MechAg94]

Jamis,

If you are staying and a hurricane comes through, you will need(or want) a chainsaw.  After Ike, my cousin had me come down and help with cutting the trees up to get out of yards and houses.  Lots of money to be made then. 

Because of the roads, bugging out is not an option unless you leave before it gets there. There is just too much traffic.

IMO, if you prepare and stay on the back roads, evacuating isn't such a problem.  Just stay off the interstates and main roads.  During the Rita mess, the back roads South of Houston were wide open and I was able to go around most of the mess.  You either need to leave early or plan on alternate routes.

[Ben]

Though I'm also a fan of buying food you like to eat anyway and rotating through that, for my vehicle rucksack kits I also keep a package of lifeboat rations. They're good for 5 years and pretty impervious to temp changes, and at a bajillion calories per package, will last you a while. I use the same ones at home that I buy for work kits. Since I was using your taxpayer dollars for the work disaster packs, I purchased several different brands of rations several years ago and had people try them all out. The Mainstay rations (link below) were the clear taste winner (as in, "less distasteful than the other bars" :)  ). Side note: Whenever you have emergency ration / MRE tasting parties at work, wait until after everyone has eaten to tell the women how many calories they just consumed -- then run like hell. Hilarity will ensue. 

Again, I only keep the bars in my small " I got stuck in a bad situation away from the house" rucksacks. For sheltering in place or having time to load a vehicle, I use regular canned stuff I would normally eat, plus keep a case of MREs around. For water, other than filters, I just keep some Costco 1 liter bottles of water in the vehicles, date them, then just change out once a year. In the house I keep a bunch of the gallon Costco water jugs and rotate through them via normal drinking water use.

http://www.amazon.com/Mainstay-3600-Emergency-Food-Rations/dp/B000QZ3CWC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=sporting-goods&qid=1277385814&sr=1-1

[Jamisjockey]

I should get a case of the mainstay water for the boat.....



I think I'll consider the canned food route and maybe a case of MREs as a backup. 

[roo_ster]

I consider having kids to be ready-made for disaster food. 

Even though our kids no longer need it, I buy a big tin of baby formula every year to provide dairy/protein in case of bug-in.

Our kids love PB&J.  PB does not need refrigeration and we always have an extra tub laying around.  Jelly will last for days w/o refrigeration before going bad.  A loaf of double-fiber bread in the freezer keeps indefinitely and will keep for days after pulled out of the freezer when SHTF.  PB&J + DF bread is several day's chow for the kids and they would eat PB&J every meal if we let them.

The freezer chow will keep a day or so before becoming un-froze after power loss.  All of that will be eaten first, before any cans are opened (other than canned veggies).  The london broil that I marinated in cran-grape for 72 hours and then froze in the marinade will be #1 thing on the grill.  We'll start SHTF in style.

I have 2 propane tanks.  One on the gas grill & one on the smoker.  The smoker will not be used during SHTF, as the gas grill is more efficient with propane.  We also have a big-*expletive deleted*ss bag of Kingsford charcoal, which can be used in the smoker if/when the propane gives up.

Ranch Style beans and canned chili are popular with us and lasts a long time.  Just be sure not to re-enact the beans+cowboys+camp fire scene from Blazing Saddles.

Dog food.  We have an airtight plastic dog food bin that holds 40lbs and keep another 44lb Costco-sized bag in addition.  If worse comes to worst, we'll "Mad Max" it.

I do need to keep a bigger supply of wate on-hand, though we have a water heater tank and a 4-stage rev-osmosis filter on the kitchen sink faucet.

[KD5NRH]

The freezer chow will keep a day or so before becoming un-froze after power loss.

You're not doing it right; any decent freezer should keep everything frozen for at least 2-3 days if you're maintaining a decent thermal mass inside.  If you have empty space, fill it with water bottles or even just bags of ice.

A full deep freeze should be able to go a week or more before everything thaws if you're not keeping the lid open too much.

[Jamisjockey]

Excellent points.  I've actually got two empty propane tanks I need to trade in for full ones.  I usually keep extra kid food on hand.  Anything that is cold or frozen will be consumed first after a power outage.  Cereal can also be eaten with water, or just dry. 
Great point on the PBJ.  I usually have at least one extra loaf in the freezer.  I'll intentionally make sure and keep at least 2.

[41magsnub]

I consider having kids to be ready-made for disaster food. 

I chose to stop reading here.

[vaskidmark]

I chose to stop reading here.

Why?  Aren't you interested in finding new recipies?

stay safe.

[roo_ster]

I chose to stop reading here.

Heh.

You're not doing it right; any decent freezer should keep everything frozen for at least 2-3 days if you're maintaining a decent thermal mass inside.  If you have empty space, fill it with water bottles or even just bags of ice.

A full deep freeze should be able to go a week or more before everything thaws if you're not keeping the lid open too much.

I'm thinking worst-case 105deg outside, 115deg inside temps.

[KD5NRH]

I'm thinking worst-case 105deg outside, 115deg inside temps.

Why are you living in a greenhouse?  Sounds like you need a good architect who understands the south.

[P5 Guy]

Just to share some ideas.
Jerry cans, fill with water for other uses. Drinking isn't the only thing you will want water for. How big is your hot water heater?
I live in Pinellas County in Florida. There are four bridges that lead out of the county and to the North there are a few main arteries. When Charlie was coming in '4 all but the Skyway, which goes South., were a total traffic jam and most of the gas stations were empty. Staying put was the next and possibly the best option.
If Charlie hadn't gone to ground in Punta Gorda as a 3 it is possible that it could have hit Tampa Bay as a strong 4 pushing Gulf water up into the Tampa Bay. Washing out the three Causeways over the bay. Shoot a good T'storm has water splashing on the causeways. In heavy weather the Skyway is closed for high winds.
I have two 5 gallon black jerry cans that I fill with water, always keep an extra propane bottle for the grill. I fill a cooler with ice and throw a couple of blankets over the fridge when the power goes out. There is plenty of canned soup and vegetables in the pantry. At worst it will take 5 to 7 days to get the calvary in to help with rescue. Oh and the 870 will protect the provisions.
What was it? three minutes without air, three days without water or three weeks without food and you are dead?
Keep you meds up too, some that are life sustaining may be in short supply for weeks after the storm.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

get a free hot tub off craigs list and enjoy it   you can flush a lotta toilets with that much water

[roo_ster]

get a free hot tub off craigs list and enjoy it   you can flush a lotta toilets with that much water

Is it really SHTF if you have flush toilets?

[Ben]

Is it really SHTF if you have flush toilets?

Well it's S anyways...

[Jamisjockey]

Is it really SHTF if you have flush toilets?

LOL

Fill all the bathtubs when the s hits the F.  Keep a bucket handy and you can get dozens of flushes per toilet.  Just hope the sewer system isn't compromised....

[KD5NRH]

Fill all the bathtubs when the s hits the F.  Keep a bucket handy and you can get dozens of flushes per toilet.  Just hope the sewer system isn't compromised....

Don't forget the water heater tank, though since it's fully contained, you should save it for drinking water.  Cut off the supply side so it doesn't drain back into the supply lines when pressure is lost.