Household Preparedness

My gosh!  I have been watching the coverage of the vicious storms and tornados hitting the midwestern US states.  There are nineteen active tornado warnings and six on the ground with total devastation in some areas!  Now, I am a very firm believer in being prepared for emergencies.  I ensure we have twelve to eighteen month supply of food on hand, safely stored mainly below ground.  I have seeds to start a garden safely stored, extra medications, emergency lighting and a wide range of emergency equipment.  But looking at the devastation from these storms, I'm just shaking my head.  I know enough not to put all my food storage in one basket.  Home canned and dried foods can withstand tornados, flooding and extended power outages.  Frozen foods will last 4 days providing the freezer remains shut.  The thing is with these tornados, freezers and refrigerators have become airborne so the food is simply gone.  Those who prepared enough to keep emergency supplies below ground may have a chance providing the house didn't collapse on top of them.  Those just out of the path of the tornados would be fine and that path can really be defining with houses on one side of the street unaffected with those on the other side completely destroyed.  Complicating matters is some affected communities have decided to immediately start bull dozing buildings meaning home owners can't get back into their homes to get those precious emergency supplies.

Despite this, I feel every household should have emergency preparedness supplies including enough food to last 6 months or more.  That food should be stored in such a manner as to even if you lose a portion of the stored food (eg. frozen foods) there is still enough stored using other methods to provide for your family.  There should be enough emergency medications, clothing and other supplies securely protected from water damage.  All emergency preparedness supplies should be stored below grade (eg. basement, cellar).  Barring a below grade location, choose a location in the centre of your home.  There is always a chance your emergency supplies will be lost but there is a greater chance your emergency supplies will come in handy.  It is better to have emergency supplies than it is to go without them.

There is no doubt our weather is changing.  Many areas are experiencing more volatile weather including more vicious storms.  This past winter has been beyond abnormal for us with no hard freeze (virtually unheard of for our area of Ontario) that has resulted in more illness including norovirus.  The midwest is already seeing a severe change in weather with storms hitting a good month earlier than what they normally would.  That means we need to stay vigilant and be prepared!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2012

Back-up Heating

We heated solely with wood for almost 16 years.  During that time the only time we worried about back-up heating was if we wanted to go away for a few days during the winter months when the possibility of freezing was high.  We could stoke up the fire in the morning and that would get us through most of the day and then again at night so for the most part unless being away from the house more than 12 hours we were good.  Then we moved into a house with a HVAC system.  On the surface controlling heating and cooling via a flick of a switch seemed like a marvelous except as we quickly found out the furnace needed electricity meaning if the power went out we had no heat.

Regardless of any heating system a secondary, back-up heating source is necessary if you live in an area where winter heating is a must.    That source of heat should not be dependent on electricity in the event the electricity is knocked out via a winter storm.   Remember that during a power outage the HVAC and any electric heaters will not work.

We have a natural gas fireplace with an electronic ignition so it is electricity independent.  We can heat the main living area with this fireplace by closing off other rooms and in fact in the cool but not cold months this is what we heat with.

If you use a secondary or back-up heating source that requires some type of fuel such as wood or kerosene, be sure to have enough on hand to last 2 to 4 weeks.  In most cases you will not need this amount of fuel but it is a good, safe rule of thumb. 

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

Two More Styles of LED Emergency Lights

A couple of days ago I posted about the new lantern style LED emergency light we added to our emergency preparedness supplies.  LED lights are perfect for emergency lights because there is no flame, they are battery friendly and the bulbs never need replacement so you don't have keep replacement bulbs on hand.  On average each LED last about 100,000 hours which means each LED run for 24 hours per day would last 4, 167 days or 11 years on average.  The manufacturers have made these types of lights so that they have more than one LED so even if one diode goes out the rest will continue to light up until they too  fail.  The downside to LED lighting is they do eventually end up in the landfill but at a much lower rate than a CFL light

Easy stick on LED lights that use 3 AAA batteries are widely available even at the dollar stores in single packs or in triple packs in department stores.  Essentially these light fixtures are meant for temporary use in places where running electrical wiring is not as convenient (eg. closets, under cabinets, in cabinets, etc.).  They come with an easy stick on base that can go anywhere and they are small enough to fit anywhere.  Most of them have 3 LED lights.  The outer covering comes in a variety of colours.  Once the base is pressed into place you replace the top portion with the LED lights.  The light is turned on by simply pushing on it which makes this type of emergency lighting ideal for every room of the house.

It is small, compact, comes in a variety of colour and it is inexpensive.  The light can be installed near the light switch in every room so it is as simple that in the event of a power failure there is always a back-up light source.  One can be easily installed in your vehicle or boat and because the stick on there is no danger of them getting lost in the glove compartment.  Turn on or off as needed.  There is no searching for flashlights or other alternative lighting during a power outage.  The only thing you have to do is check from time to time to be sure the batteries are charged.

We are advid campers turned boaters so know one of the first places to look for emergency preparedness supplies is in the camping section of any department store.  I spotted this great 24 LED camp light with hanger that can be used to light up the interior of dining tents as well as regular tents.  This LED light puts out a considerable more light than the 3 LED diode versions.  What is really nice about this light is it could easily be hung from a hook in a main living area in the house to provide evening lighting during a power outage.  It can also be installed in a more permanent location using two sided tape.  This fixture would be great for emergency lighting in the family room where everyone is gathered giving enough light to perhaps play a board game until the power comes back on.

Both of these safe, supplemental emergency lighting fixtures will operate on rechargeable batteries that can be recharged using a solar powered battery recharger.  This is important during prolonged periods of power outages.  More importantly they are very low cost solutions that can be attached in convenient locations throughout the house.  The smaller ones will cost between $1 and $2 each costing less that $20 to have one in every room of your house.  The larger one will cost about $8.  In addition to the cost of the fixtures you will have to buy rechargeable batteries (highly recommended) but I also recommend keeping a small supply of regular alkaline batteries on hand for emergency purposes in the event there isn't enough solar power to recharge the rechargeable batteries if needed.

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

New LED Lantern Added to Our Emergency Preparedness Supplies

We are always on the lookout for items to add to our emergency preparedness supplies.  Lighting using LEDs is perfect for emergency preparedness because the LEDs don't draw a lot of energy meaning your batteries last a lot long.  The lights are fairly bright but not the same as regular CFL lightbulbs.  Still when the power is out they provide enough light that you can get around by.  They are safe to use anywhere without a fire risk so are perfect for homes with children and pets.  I'm currently working on installing a push style LED light in each room of the house so if the power is out we still have a bit of light as needed that can supplement candles and the battery operated Coleman lantern and camp lamps. 

My husband brought home this cute LED super-bright 12-LED indoor/outdoor lantern by Illumibeam.  It is about 8½- inches tall and designed like the traditional camp lanterns.  The lantern can be operated using 4 "D" batteries using the holder or it can be plugged in using a 6 V adapter.  It is not deep enough to use 6 V battery. We have rechargeable "D" cell batteries that can be charged using our solar battery chargers.  The lantern has a dimmable control for the long-life LED lights (100,000 hours) which is a nice battery saving feature.

This lantern is a nice addition to our emergency preparedness supplies.  I especially like that it is portable.  This is very important in the case of the event of emergency evacuation.  Not only that a portable lantern means you can take it wherever you need the light.  Now I need to do a bit of stocking up on rechargeable batteries but I'm holding off until I see how the start of our solar system install goes.

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

Benefits of a Well Stocked Pantry

I recently read that the average family keeps a 3 day supply of food in their home.  That really surprised me!  I am a firm believer of keeping a  well stocked pantry so a fair amount of energy goes into to stocking a maintaining my pantry for a 2 year food supply.  Between the months of April and October jars and jars of home canned foods are added to my pantry as each type of produce comes into season.  Jars of dried fruits, vegetables and herbs are also added.  Mid spring we pick up our beef on the hoof to restock the freezers and a bit later meat from our pig will be added along with a few pieces of home cured meats.  During the nice weather any fish we catch that isn't used fresh is frozen for use in the winter months.  If we're lucky a bit of venison is added to the freezers as well.  Of course I take advantage of grocery sales for staples like pasta, rices, flours and baking needs.  The question many ask of anyone who keeps a well stocked pantry is why?  The quick answer to this question is there are a multitude of reasons so I'm just going to highlight a few reasons why keeping a well stocked pantry is a prudent idea.

• saves money -  A well stocked pantry saves a considerable amount of money by removing the temptation to eat out or pick-up take-out food.  Home cooked meals and foods from scratch are almost always less expense than eating out or even convenience foods.  In the time it takes to go out of your way to go through a drive-thru for take-out you can easily make an inexpensive, healthier home cooked meal. 
• guard against inflation -  A well stocked pantry serves as a guard against temporarily inflated food prices that occur due to produce and grain shortages caused by regional weather.  Recent examples of this has been inflated prices for rice and wheat products.  Use your pantry stocks of temporarily inflated food items until the price returns to normal then restock your pantry.
• garden failure - A well stocked pantry can help lessen the blow of a year's garden failure.  The weather patterns have been changing which has resulted in violent weather in some areas that quickly can wipe out a garden in a few moments.  In other areas gardens have been wiped out by an unexpected frost.  This is one reason why keeping a two year supply of home canned fruits and vegetables is often recommended.
• unemployment -  Unemployment can happen at any time as a result of a variety of factors.  A well stocked pantry helps to keep good healthy food on the table during periods of unemployment allowing you to focus on finding employment and freeing up money needed for other necessities such as utilities. 
• emergency preparedness - Emergency situations can happen anytime, anywhere and when you least expect it.  Part of your pantry storage should include emergency preparedness food supplies.  Additional foods that you may not normally use on a regular basis (eg. powdered cheese, powdered milks) should be part of your emergency preparedness food supplies along with any special needs foods (eg. baby formula).  Your emergency preparedness food supplies should be in the amount that could support your family's needs for a full month and should include safe drinking water. 

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

Emergency Preparedness

My goodness over the last few years we have seen a rather dramatic increase in violent weather that is reeking havoc world wide.  Haiti is still recovering from a devastating earthquake,  China is still doing search and rescue from a recent earthquake, now the volcano eruption in Iceland is creating even more problems due to the ash cloud.  On the home side the spring season has yet to become violent with severe thunderstorms and/or tornados.  Just on the basis of weather it is extremely important that Canadians help themselves. 

The Canadian Red Cross recommends recommend all Canadians have and maintain a 72-hour emergency kit that include food, water, clothing, candles and other emergency supplies.  The kit should have enough to cover the needs of all family members and should include any necessary medications or special needs items.  The kit should be kept close to an exit to take with you should the need arise. This allows the Canadian Red Cross to focus those most in need first.  We take emergency preparedness a bit further.  At one time we had a large, self contained travel trailer that had all the amenities of home so when the hydro was out for 4 days we simply used all hydro related and some cooking needs out of the trailer.  Anyone with this option can easily last about 10 days for electricity and heat but drinkable water will be needed after about 3 days.

Essentially if we had to go an extended period of time in and around our house without being able to get out for food or other resources we could do so for well over a 6 month period.  If we had to vacate our house for a safer area we have enough for a good 1 month period along with whatever else we could hurriedly toss into the vehicles.  We have also made provisions to help our neighbours if needed.  Here is our emergency preparedness plan:

•  well stocked emergency first aid kit - Actually we have 4 well stocked emergency first aid kits, one for the house, one for the boat and one for each vehicle.  These are checked every 6 months to be sure any medications and salves are not expired.
• a six month emergency food stock in addition to to our normal 18 -24 month food stock - Emergency food items include those not normally used for day to day cooking.  Each list will differ depending on the family.  Our emergency food items include: powdered milks, powdered cheeses, powdered butter, dried fruits and vegetables, dried meats, water purification tablets, 20 L filled water bottles, instant and rice noodles, additional beans for sprouting, yeast, dried sour dough starter and that type of thing.  In addition to the food I also keep a good stock of items such as mason jars, canning jar lids, and that type of thing.
• a 6 month supply of personal hygiene items - This includes the basics of soap, shampoo, toothpaste, toilet paper.
• emergency equipment - This includes: candles, lamp oil, replacement wick, rechargeable batteries,  solar battery chargers, solar lights, wind-up/solar radio, butane flame lighter with extra cartridges, filled gerry cans of gasoline, back-up heat source.  While we do not have a generator we have access to generators on each side of us and we are considering buying our own.
• survival equipment - This includes: fishing equipment, cloth bags/equipment necessary for any edible plant foraging, and seeds to re-establish a garden. Food preservation equipment is necessary to replenish used food supplies.
• emergency escape routes planned - It is important to have more than one route of escape from your dwelling but also from your location if necessary.  A GPS is ideal however having paper road maps is a good back-up in case the GPS system is knocked out.
• alternate phones and communication - It is important to keep a rotary dial phone to replace cordless ones that will not work during power outages.  It is also important to have at least one working cell phone but realize that you will need solar powered charging capabilities for longer term outages.  It is also advisable to have 2-way radios for each family member in the event they get separated from other family members.   A CB radio located in your home is also a good idea if you need emergency help and the phone lines or cell phone transmission lines are down.
• good neighbours - I honestly cannot stress the importance of good neighbours in time of an emergency.  Get to know your immediate neighbours and foster a good relationship with them.  Do what it takes to nourish a good neighbour relationsip.  In times of emergency or disaster your neighbours are your biggest assets when it comes to preparedness!

Garden Gnome
©2006-2010

Solar for Emergency Preparedness

Solar Emergency Preparedness

As summer comes to an end it's time to make sure we are well stocked for the winter months. Not only am I busy making sure the pantry is well stocked with home canned and dried foods, I'm also adding to the freezer stock. However, preparedness is more than just have a 1 - 2 year supply of food on hand. This is also the time of the year to stock up on sundry type items such as laundry soap, personal needs items, toilet paper, First Aid supplies as well as emergency preparedness items. I'll be making a few posts on getting prepared for winter.

During winter storms the prospect of having no electricity for short periods of time increase. The normal recommendations is to keep oil lamps with plenty of fuel and lots of candles in your emergency preparedness stores. In cold climates both serve to provide light with a bit of heat. I keep a good supply of homemade beeswax and soy candles on hand for regular and emergency use. However, in homes with pets or children using oil lamps and candles can present a risk of fire and/or injury if they get bumped or knocked over. Battery operated emergency devices only work if you have sufficient batteries. I've turned to solar devices as part of my emergency preparedness.

Pictured is the wind-up/solar powered radio, Coleman camp lantern, a few of our many flashlights, solar light stakes, battery operated lights, rechargeable batteries (AAA, AA, D), 6 V battery adapter and solar battery chargers. Not pictured are a couple of small camp lanterns that use only one 6 V battery and a wind-up flash light. The principle of using solar rests on turning solar energy from the sun into usable energy for lighting and heating. In emergency situations you cannot always rely on the sun however in most cases you will be able to get enough sunlight exposure to power emergency equipment such as the radio, some lights and solar battery chargers if need be. Combining wind-up power for essentials like flash lights and a radio makes good sense as these can be used without relying only on solar.

The light stakes are meant for garden use but can easily be charged in a sunny window to provide indoor lighting for the evening during a power outage. I like keeping a good supply of charged batteries on hand that can be recharged if necessary using the solar battery chargers. The 6 V battery adapter is a rather interesting find. It uses 4 - D cell batteries and can be used in place of a 6 V battery. I think these are great items to have in our emergency preparedness supplies.

Garden Gnome
©2006-2009