am I done prepping do I have enough prepping supplies for long term short term emergencies hi
it's AlaskaGranny Alaska Prepper do you ever ask yourself when am I done prepping for emergencies
do I have enough prepping supplies have I gathered all of the emergency prepping survival supplies
that I need prepping is an ongoing lifestyle activity it's not a matter of I'm ready for
it to happen because we don't know what could happen prepping for emergencies is a lifestyle
choice where you have the things that you need to take care of yourself and your family
no matter what happens food water first aid shelter tools hygiene some
of the prepping problems that we may encounter during our lives could be short-term emergencies
a power outage the water gets shut off someone is sick we have a snow storm the pipes are frozen
there are all kinds of things emergencies that can happen that are short-term problems that
could last perhaps a few days and you need to take care of yourself most of us can be ready for
that short term emergency simply by filling our pantries with a few weeks worth of food and having
some extra supplies on hand then we can have a bigger emergency disaster event that could happen
for example a forest fire a hurricane where we perhaps have to leave our home we're forced to
evacuate we may not be able to come back for a few weeks then even if we can return to our
home or we weren't forced to evacuate but we may experience the after effects of long-term
power outages road blockages from downed trees flooding in the area that may cause
problems with the supply chains where things can't get in and out people can't travel freely
in an emergency that could last for several weeks you need at least a month or two of food on hand
but then we have the real emergencies that are longer lasting that we can't really deal with
just with a bug out bag or a few cans and packaged foods in our pantry what if you lose your job what
if someone in your family becomes severely ill and you can't go to your job because you need to
stay home and take care of them 2020 has really shown us what a long-term emergency can look
like covid 19 coronavirus pandemic second wave many people have lost their jobs many people have
been forced to stay home supply chains have been interrupted the pandemic started as a few weeks we
stay home we'll flatten the curve everything will be okay and here we are months and months later
and we just still don't know what the future holds now we have an election looming on the horizon and
there are just all kinds of chaos in the streets we're now facing a longer term emergency where
it's so important that we do have the supplies we need this isn't just a matter of having a few
extra cans and goods in your pantry we're looking at things food supplies are not really available
in the stores like we have seen in most of our lives many people that we know don't have a job
there are threats on the streets that it's not really safe to go out how do we know what's coming
we don't and that's why we want to make sure that we're prepared for long-term emergencies
if everybody wakes up tomorrow and they're happy guess what we'll all still be fine even if we have
a stockpile of food water prepping supplies in our home because we're stockpiling foods
and supplies that we would normally use that's why we're not saying do I have enough supplies for it
there is no it we're supplying ourselves for the things that we need for our everyday life
and prepping and having a stockpile of food water first aid hygiene tools prepping gear means that
you have given yourself insurance that you have enough of those supplies going forward
for a long time so before you ask yourself am I done prepping do I have enough what you need to
say is do I have enough supplies to last for the time period that I would want all of the food and
supplies that you've been stockpiling are supposed to be foods that you're willing to eat supplies
that you use and rotate prepping is a lifestyle it's not prepping for a certain event do you have
water in your stockpile do you have enough water you need to have several weeks supply of water at
least one gallon water per person per day for as many days as possible you can store water
in everything from clean soda bottles to bring home bottles of water you purchased in the store
you can buy five gallon containers you can even buy 55 gallon water barrels then you also need
to make sure that you have a way to purify water should the water become contaminated in your home
most of us aren't going to bug out to the woods with our bug out bag and drink water out of wild
streams but we can find that we run out of the fresh drinking water that we've stored and the
water coming into our home is contaminated you need to be able to purify the water that you have
next you need to look at your food storage pantry do you have a wide variety of canned
and packaged goods that can last for several months are they foods that you know how to
cook that you're willing to eat that you know how to combine and make simple meals
make sure you're not storing any food that you're not willing to eat
also make sure that you're rotating the foods you need to be using those foods and then replace them
if you use a jar of pasta sauce and a package of pasta a can of green beans put it on your shopping
list and replace it that's how you make sure that you're rotating and maintaining your stockpile
are you gluten intolerant are you vegan do you have special dietary concerns or just foods that
you care to eat or not eat make sure that you have adequate foods that meet your specifications do
you have supplies for your pets they're part of the family too make sure you have extra pet food
you want to make sure that you store more than canned foods once you have a nice full pantry
that's called short-term food storage foods that you need to rotate because they don't last for
years and years at a time foods come with a best buy used by sell by date on them you should try
to rotate them within that time frame food sometimes will last longer than the date on
the package but don't just count on buying food setting it away and counting on it last forever
because that's just not what's going to happen it's not reasonable expectation and you don't
want to go to your pantry in an emergency and find that your food is no longer safe to eat
once your pantry is full you need to stock up on long-term food storage foods that you can
set away for many years decades even and they'll still be safe to eat you want dried foods that are
naturally designed to last foods like rice beans oatmeal many of the dehydrated foods we can find
already packaged you can buy it in the store or order it online that's already sealed to last
when I'm referring to number 10 cans I mean the cans of dried and packaged foods that are designed
to last for 20 30 years I'm not talking about the cans of institutionalized things like green beans
pork and beans creamed corn that you would open in like a school cafeteria those foods are not going
to last any longer than a smaller size can of food in your pantry and once you open it you need to be
able to use it and if you don't have a huge family a lot of it's going to go to waste so when I'm
discussing number 10 cans I mean foods that are naturally dry or dehydrated the number 10 cans
of food like rice beans oatmeal pancake mix butter powder powdered eggs there's a huge variety of
foods you can order them from the lds or the mormon church you can order them from walmart
look for foods like augason farms you can also order dehydrated long term food storage on amazon
whether you choose to bring foods home store it in buckets yourself
order food online in cans and packages that's designed for long-term food storage make sure
that you're getting a food supply that can last for many years that's your long-term food storage
make sure that your food is stored in airtight containers the more air you keep out of it the
longer it will last you can put it in five gallon buckets you can store it in empty canning jars
you can store it in foodsaver containers you can use oxygen absorbers mylar bags there are many
ways to store food there's never just one right way there are many ways to store food long term
some are better than others but having some food and store it the best you can
is what you need to be doing at this time it's harder to find the supplies we need right now as
far as buckets mylar bags oxygen absorbers but if you have a chance to get the food
bring it home store it the best you can if you can get buckets mylar bags oxygen absorbers
later you can repackage your food to last longer but at this time make sure that you are stocking
up on the food that you have available to you and store it the best you can for now
it's also a good idea to store food in more than one location store some in your pantry
store some somewhere else in your home maybe you have a secondary location where food can be stored
in a cool dark dry location do the best that you can to figure out because the more places
you have to store food the more foods you can store we also need emergency tools and gear do
you have a camping stove some way to prepare food if your power goes out make sure that
you know how to use that stove do you have the cooking pots and pans that are okay to use over
an open fire probably your fancy kitchen gear is not what you should be using in a campfire
make sure you also know how to use your lanterns any kind of emergency heaters that you have
we need to store sanitation and hygiene supplies make sure you have a portable toilet and then pay
attention to how to actually use it it's not okay to just have a bucket that's not going to be very
sanitary for more than one use I'll put a link to a video I made about how to use a portable toilet
like a luggable loo or a honey bucket which is a like a five gallon bucket with a seat
that's the most basic way to have an emergency toilet I'll also put a link to a video I made
about a portable flushing toilet that I have that is really great especially if you ever go camping
you can use a lot of these emergency type gear for camping because you have stoves lanterns
portable gear tools and things that you can use for a lot of other purposes besides just
stockpiling in your home for emergencies be curious learn new skills study your first aid
do you know how to start a fire do you know how to put up a tent do you know how to make
an emergency shelter with black plastic bags there are all kinds of skills that we need to know and
if you think about all the things you might want to know and be curious the more likely you are
to learn more new things emergencies don't always happen when we're at home you need a get home bag
in your vehicle so that if you are away from home you have the ability to take care of yourself
until you can get back home you need to have supplies just like in your bug out bag all the
different areas of emergency food water warm clothes a few tools you need to also have cash
with your emergency gear and a copy of all of your identification and your important papers you would
need if you couldn't get back to your home such as your medical insurance your house insurance
your a copy of your identification make sure that you have cash on hand in your home with your bug
out bag and in your get home bag the time seems to have come that we need to keep our prepping to
ourselves more so than we have in the past we've always tried to encourage others talk about things
but it's becoming a more dangerous world and if people know that you have things that could put
you at a greater risk going forward we seem to be living in more dangerous times I don't mean
to be an alarmist but that's just how I feel about what's going on around me and how I feel about the
safety of my family it's time to be quiet about your prepping but continue to gather the supplies
that you need the final tip I have is to stay as healthy as possible which means eating the best
nutritional foods you can and exercising I know I have been very guilty of not exercising or eating
the best I can since this pandemic started because we've been told to stay home we're not allowed to
go to the gym some areas are not even supposed to go out and walk on the street we are not allowed
to go dancing or meet with our friends a lot of the normal life has been curtailed
we have not been allowed to do the things we want and so it's harder to keep a positive outlook on
taking the best care of your help that you can but it's very important no matter who you are where
you live or what's going on around you that your number one responsibility is to take the best care
of yourself as possible just like in an airplane when the oxygen mask drops take care of yourself
first because if you can't take care of yourself how will you take care of those around you
make sure you're doing the best that you can to stay as healthy as possible so that you can have
the best outlook going forward no matter what the day brings if you liked my video I hope
you'll share it with someone else you think might enjoy it learn more at alaskagranny.com
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