Emergency long term food storage

[wahoonc]

One thing I do keep in my car trunk (and truck box) especially when traveling are some Heater Meals They are good for 5 years or so and have come in handy more than once when getting stuck somewhere there weren't any stores open, or in the one case it snowed and nothing nearby was open, roads weren't really clear enough to drive on. They are better than MRE's.

Aaron

[AWCHIEF]

Some good responses from everyone, thank you.

[Len n Jeanne]

Yeh-- fruitcake is a great emergency food because it is a dense source of calories and few people would be tempted to eat it unless there wasn't much else.

Nutritionally and in terms of shelf-life, I'd go for raw nuts (Costco's are good and fresh,) peanuts, a granola or familia cereal,and either canned/tetra-pac milk or soymilk; or the dry powder to reconstitute, if you can stand it. These would supply a decent amount of protein, need no refrigeration, and will easily stay edible for a year. Water and meds, for sure! Full propane tanks. Maybe some backpacker's freeze-dried meals that can be reconstituted with boiling water poured on them. But you can make your own, using Minute Rice and a few veggies and/or meat dried in a home dehydrator. You could put this stuff in the AS cupboard, and just forget about it.

If the above don't sound highly appetizing, that's almost the point-- it should be there if you need it.

[cwf]

Originally Posted by Len n Jeanne

Yeh-- fruitcake is a great emergency food because it is a dense source of calories and few people would be tempted to eat it unless there wasn't much else.

Nutritionally and in terms of shelf-life, I'd go for raw nuts (Costco's are good and fresh,) peanuts, a granola or familia cereal,and either canned/tetra-pac milk or soymilk; or the dry powder to reconstitute, if you can stand it. These would supply a decent amount of protein, need no refrigeration, and will easily stay edible for a year. Water and meds, for sure! Full propane tanks. Maybe some backpacker's freeze-dried meals that can be reconstituted with boiling water poured on them. But you can make your own, using Minute Rice and a few veggies and/or meat dried in a home dehydrator. You could put this stuff in the AS cupboard, and just forget about it.

If the above don't sound highly appetizing, that's almost the point-- it should be there if you need it.

And you ca use as large "Lego block" before and after consumption. DAMHIK..

But you are right.. I have some very good one from a Monastery up North of the M.D. Line.

Yes Peanuts, pecans, cashews, etc. check out "Austin nuts". They have many flavors to change the boredom.

I will neither confirm nor deny protective measures. What they don't know can't hurt you.

The "Wise" pre packed sounds good. About similar to REI. Except at REI you can make your own selections. Without buying a crate.

MRE are good because you will "lock up" in most cases. The one-dose Tabasco are indispensable.

Adult and baby wipes.

Hormel meals. Store without fridge. There are red beans and rice... Etc. yummy but need Microwave or ability to boil water. To heat the bag/container. You can save the water for other items...it will be sanitized. The meals are in a small tray so no plates needed.

Hand sanitizer. (Great firestarter)

Fire start (fat wood), steel wool, cotton batting and a couple 9volt batteries. PM if you need to know How to use. Also save the wax from all your "used" Candles.

Fix a flat. Compressed air.

Water purification system and a collapsible water storage bag.

[Hibby]

I would recommend considering Mountain House foods, which are dehydrated and vacuum sealed meals. Just add boiling water and seal the bag for two minutes. They work very well, and in general, taste very good. When I hunt in Alaska, we use a jetboil to heat water, and the Mountain House foods are the entree for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Hibby


Sent from my iPad using Airstream Forums

[mefly2]

Originally Posted by AWCHIEF

I recently bought a months supply of long term storage food from Wise for the trailer. Living in a storm area we can never tell when either food or cash might be in short supply. The Airstream is my escape capsule if it is necessary to leave town in a hurry. What are others thoughts on this?

And, some of the freeze dried foods are not only convenient, but also quite palatable. PM for our choices.

[paiceman]

Today the average response time nationwide of a LEO coming to your aide after you call 911 is about 20 minutes, therefore, if a crisis happens, some form of personal protection is just as important as food, water etc. as it will most likely take much longer for help to arrive. Ones personal protections does not have to be an actual weapon if one is not comfortable with such. A can of wasp spray will immobilize any person for up to several minutes if sprayed in the face and eyes. Does no permanent damage, but will stop them.

[r carl]

Originally Posted by AWCHIEF

I recently bought a months supply of long term storage food from Wise for the trailer. Living in a storm area we can never tell when either food or cash might be in short supply. The Airstream is my escape capsule if it is necessary to leave town in a hurry. What are others thoughts on this?

Something like this?
Augason Farms 30-Day Food Storage Emergency All-in-One Pail - Sam's Club=

[r carl]

Originally Posted by paiceman

Today the average response time nationwide of a LEO coming to your aide after you call 911 is about 20 minutes, therefore, if a crisis happens, some form of personal protection is just as important as food, water etc. as it will most likely take much longer for help to arrive. Ones personal protections does not have to be an actual weapon if one is not comfortable with such. A can of wasp spray will immobilize any person for up to several minutes if sprayed in the face and eyes. Does no permanent damage, but will stop them.

You have Abby.

[sparkymark]

I have mre's (drink lots of water) a rifle and a shotgun...good to go


Ford F-350 crew cab 4X4 diesel, 25' Jack Bauer edition AS

[batman]

Originally Posted by AWCHIEF

I recently bought a months supply of long term storage food from Wise for the trailer. Living in a storm area we can never tell when either food or cash might be in short supply. The Airstream is my escape capsule if it is necessary to leave town in a hurry. What are others thoughts on this?

Great idea!
We keep our shiny aluminum escape pod fully stocked.
We have been buying and using, Mountain House and Backpackers Pantry freeze dried meals for years.
We put up our own stuff as well. I hunt and fish, I also grow fruit and vegi's every year. We have a large dehydrator, pressure cooker, water bath canner and a vacuum sealer.
Like the Scouts say, "Be prepared".


-Dennis

[Gearheart]

My Dad always kept a supply of honey, dry salami and hard toasted bread.

[Kevin245]

Originally Posted by Gearheart

My Dad always kept a supply of honey, dry salami and hard toasted bread.

We keep a few gallons of raw honey in reserve. The one food that never spoils.

[AWCHIEF]

Originally Posted by Gearheart

My Dad always kept a supply of honey, dry salami and hard toasted bread.

My Dad would add cans of sardines, cheese and crackers to that list.

[Kevin245]

I like my sardines fresh off the grill with a ice cold beer.

[AWCHIEF]

When I lived in Venezuela we would hit the market every morning. Pick up a dozen or so fresh sardines for the day. People that have only eaten the processed canned ones do not know what they are missing.

[ZBoater]

Patriot Pantry Emergency Food Storage | Lowest Price & Free Shipping!

I've seriously considered buying a week or two of this stuff. Seems like a prudent thing to have.

[Kevin245]

Originally Posted by AWCHIEF

When I lived in Venezuela we would hit the market every morning. Pick up a dozen or so fresh sardines for the day. People that have only eaten the processed canned ones do not know what they are missing.

Absolutely no comparison. This was at the La Noche de San Juan in La Coruna Spain.

[Gearheart]

Repurposed Beltane fires.

[slowmover]

Originally Posted by AWCHIEF

I recently bought a months supply of long term storage food from Wise for the trailer. Living in a storm area we can never tell when either food or cash might be in short supply. The Airstream is my escape capsule if it is necessary to leave town in a hurry. What are others thoughts on this?

Part of owning a trailer is, IMO, to logically extend its capacities to their full extent, in concert with the TV. This is a function of weight capacity, partly, but more wise planning against water capacity which is the real limiting factor.

Propane is the reason camping RVs are possible. Cooking and refrigeration have priority over internal air temps. But some trade off will have to be done to keep fresh water from freezing.

The other system, electricity, isn't important at all past the furnace fan. (More below). Same for clothing. Cold and wet gear, not just shirt sleeve weather clothing. Always aboard, in my case.

That said, what is the maximum number of people to sleep aboard? Not just beds, but floor? Or the trailer as center to a group of those in tents. What then is the best use of that trailer? Etc. Plenty of scenarios depending on family. Radio transceivers, WiFi, a trailer can be useful as an electrical source to some extent.

So, much depends as well on those it would conceivably serve. And how.

Living in hurricane country brings more of this into focus. I look at two weeks without re-supply for two as being a reasonable, easy, goal for my rig. And could carry a good deal more food than two weeks worth.

So at some point a water bladder to carry in the bed, or a big tote carried empty on the trailer exterior (pump and filters and connections) would be the easiest way for me to re-fill the fresh water tanks.

Some ice chests that can carry food frozen the full 8-10 hours which hurricane victims tell me are necessary to use as a round trip. Better to stock up on No. 10 cans as I see it. (I have unused CCC). Make that an optional trip, IOW.

That, and extra propane tanks covers most everything past a decent solar system. If all I had to do was get water and propane, the trailer could conceivably set a very long time against what constitutes an emergency.

The need for air-conditioning is the real bug-a bear. Wet bulb temps of 85F are classified as unendurable in very short order. This isn't a matter of personal comfort, it is deeper. And dead serious. Oldest and youngest suffer the most. Lack of sleep makes everything else worse and the likelihood of accidental injury higher.

What passes for RV gensets are a short term bridge. A few days. A joke, compared to the other systems. One that is costly as it needs almost daily oil changes and constant fuel re-supply.

In the oilfield, gate guards are supplied 15-25 KWH trailer-mounted diesel gensets as these are the only long term solution.

Moving along to a place with full hookups is a short matter of time in hottest weather.

Extra battery capacity makes sense, but not so it upsets the TT weight and balance. Quality (battery design) seems most important as a path to follow.

A trailer beats no shelter, and it seems prudent to me to get the most from a given rig. To do some testing to plug any leaks in the dam before the real thing.

I'd much rather be in my TT than a motel in the event of leaving home in a disaster. This makes my concept of RV more inclusive than "travel " or "recreational " suggest.

So I think it a matter a working with what one has to make the most of it. To know the limits.