What Did You Do Today To Prep?

[Reno-Kid]

Lastly don and doff body armor and ballistic helmet and procure weapons in the dark. I'll do that tonight, then cuss my age and sore muscles.

[user120312]

This is the one I bought about 18 months ago, the U.S. made 'Lite' model from Hard Head Veterans. It weighs about 35 oz bare. So far it's been working well and is comfortable to wear for long periods of time. Being old on a limited income I don't have coin for spendy stuff, yet, like night vision binos/monos. Also, I use it for cycling and on the beach when buggying with locals and hope to never use it to stop bullets or shrapnel and execute their life-saving warranty replacement.

IMG_2100.jpg

Donning it in the dark by feel is the hardest part, if not done often, due to the strap/latch setup. Good memory test. I think one should learn to prep in the pitch black, like it was at my place yesterday due to high winds and rain causing a power outage. It's literally black. Night vision can help with some things but that's five to ten grand I don't have right now.

Today's prep is weatherproofing the outside outlet on the deck that right now provides power to the Christmas lights so that it doesn't trip the GFCI in the bathroom. With the rain and, especially, wind, even with the deck roof providing shelter, moisture gets in and it takes a heat gun on the outlet to clear the fault. I used to get occasional trips and didn't know why so did some circuit testing this time and found out. I'll also install new GFCI's in the bathroom and kitchen since the old units are 40 years old.

Always something to do.

[twinfin]

…Today's prep is weatherproofing the outside outlet on the deck that right now provides power to the Christmas lights so that it doesn't trip the GFCI in the bathroom. With the rain and, especially, wind, even with the deck roof providing shelter, moisture gets in and it takes a heat gun on the outlet to clear the fault. I used to get occasional trips and didn't know why so did some circuit testing this time and found out. I'll also install new GFCI's in the bathroom and kitchen since the old units are 40 years old…

Never underestimate wind-driven rain! It’s the thing that will make rain hitting a home travel uphill, sideways and downhill all at the same time with water showing up in surprising places. Glad you made it through the storm without additional drama.

[OlderThanDirt]

I read an X thread regarding the power outage in SF. These people live amongst us...

- I couldn't use the gas stove because the igniter is electric.
- Using the gas stove without the electric fan is dangerously toxic (I guess hot air doesn't rise into the hood).
- Natural gas service doesn't work during power outages.
- SF Mayor - be careful when using space heaters (almost all of which are electric) and keep at least 3 feet from flammable materials.
- Using an inverter stresses the power system and causes more outages???
- It is hard to do anything in the dark.
- I don't own any extension cords long enough to plug in where there is power (neighbor down the street with backup).
- It isn't fair that some people have backup power.
- Climate change is real (like there were never power outages before).

I finally had to stop reading because laughing with a cracked rib is painful (thanks tequila and Bluetti BK500 battery).

[user120312]

Never underestimate wind-driven rain! It’s the thing that will make rain hitting a home travel uphill, sideways and downhill all at the same time with water showing up in surprising places. Glad you made it through the storm without additional drama.

Yes, the wind was so severe rain covered windows 10-12 feet under the awing over the deck. I had to hold the storm doors with my hand when going outside lest they be blown wide open. I trust you got the same treatment down south there.

The current outlet cover is an older one, with the receptacle in the cover with the weather caps and angled downward. I've got a new one coming that's designed for cords being plugged in and under cover.

For now I rigged up a deflector to keep rain off of it and that's working but the wind isn't currently severe. Normally not a problem except at Christmas when I have the decorative lighting plugged in. I doubt it would be a problem if not for the GFCI the circuit operates downstream from. Those things are sensitive. Better safe than shocked though.

[twinfin]

Yes, the wind was so severe rain covered windows 10-12 feet under the awing over the deck. I had to hold the storm doors with my hand when going outside lest they be blown wide open. I trust you got the same treatment down south there…

During the height of that wind and rain storm, I was committed to an hour and a half drive down coastal Highway 101 in the dark and in sections directly exposed to the wind coming straight off the Pacific Ocean. There were few other cars on the road but for the ones that were, no one was interested in driving faster than 45 mph or following too close to the car ahead. It wasn’t my first choice to be on the road but it’s just how it worked out. Happily, the few others on the road drove with due regard for conditions.

The big gusts and drenching rain coming head on and sideways really tested our nimble little Toyota 4x4 but reduced speed and keeping 4x4 engaged kept us firmly planted to the road. Thankfully, we encountered little in the way of downed limbs, trees, rock's or flooding. It was still blowing strong at our home in the hills just a few miles inland but it was right at the coast that the gusts were the most intense.

[twinfin]

I read an X thread regarding the power outage in SF. These people live amongst us...

- I couldn't use the gas stove because the igniter is electric.
- Using the gas stove without the electric fan is dangerously toxic (I guess hot air doesn't rise into the hood).
- Natural gas service doesn't work during power outages.
- SF Mayor - be careful when using space heaters (almost all of which are electric) and keep at least 3 feet from flammable materials.
- Using an inverter stresses the power system and causes more outages???
- It is hard to do anything in the dark.
- I don't own any extension cords long enough to plug in where there is power (neighbor down the street with backup).
- It isn't fair that some people have backup power.
- Climate change is real (like there were never power outages before).

I finally had to stop reading because laughing with a cracked rib is painful (thanks tequila and Bluetti BK500 battery).

Thanks for sharing that. Yes, they live among us!

I heard also that the self driving cars in San Francisco just stopped in the road where they were because they couldn’t make sense of how to navigate darkened signal lights at the intersections which only added to the traffic drama. One more reason not to live in any city.

Good luck with that cracked rib!

[user120312]

As a prep point, though I no longer have any gas service, prior to installing the generators decades ago I set critical appliances up to ignite either manually or using the battery and inverter out of the camper. I lived in the country and had a 500 gallon propane tank behind the shop office for fuel. As a backup, I had a manually fired BBQ that ran off the propane system on the patio.

Here in Oregon, and all-electric, cooking is, yep, electric, but I have three backups, one electric, the microwave and air fryer that will run off the Jackery, then a backpacking stove that runs off pump gasoline like I use in the mower, etc, and lastly the trusty portable Weber BBQ and a couple 10lb bags of briquets.

Backing those up is wood fire and using the old cast iron pots and pans from my grandparents ranch for cooking utensils.

Stuff happens. Things fail. Tech is nice, sure.

If it had been necessary, since that GFCI not only covered that outdoor outlet but also both bathrooms plugs and one bahroom's lighting, I would have dried the outdoor plug out with the heat gun plugged into the Jackery, if needed, or, as I did, into the extension cord from the garage. That was a great lesson. I'd had nuisance trips before but never investigated them. Now I know.

When I put the new GFCI in I'll pull the wiring apart and circuit trace it to mark the outdoor plug circuit and then I'll know how to abandon it if needed in the future.

Lastly, if a prepper has one headlamp, IMO have two. That's been the single most helpful tool to my old eyes during these challanges. Puts light wherever I point my head. I don't have one of those fancy ones that cost a hundred bucks, just a couple B&D's that cost around twenty. They've been rock solid for a number of years now.

[user120312]

The big gusts and drenching rain coming head on and sideways really tested our nimble little Toyota 4x4 but reduced speed and keeping 4x4 engaged kept us firmly planted to the road. Thankfully, we encountered little in the way of downed limbs, trees, rock's or flooding. It was still blowing strong at our home in the hills just a few miles inland but it was right at the coast that the gusts were the most intense.

I was curious how things went down there. Usually that part of the coast gets it worse then we do.

This wasn't as bad as some here. Sometimes in the past when the gusts hit I feel the house shake and that moaning wind does. This time the only startle was some branches falling off the redwood tree and sliding down the roof and awning. Redwood branches aren't much, even on a big tree like mine, but when they fall from 30-40 feet up they get one's attention.

I watched the neighbor's trees, mostly firs, which have some branches overhanging the creek and my roof, swing pretty wildly in some of the gusts. Heard the impacts of cones but fortunately no branches. All part of living in a dense forest.

The roads were quiet. Tonight it's raining again but no wind. Big difference. Rainfall in the storm over 24 hours was close to 3". Pretty good drenching. One day and it soaked right up. Living on sand and gravel does that. No mud either.

On that note, mud, last prepper tip. If stormy weather is a factor, get some good milking boots and maintain them and periodically check them if not used regularly. Lifesavers here in rain country.

[zatoh]

Tested power stations. If you are boiling water with them the initial investment is steep. Get a butane, propane stove or rocket stove. It's much cheaper.

[twinfin]

Tested power stations. If you are boiling water with them the initial investment is steep. Get a butane, propane stove or rocket stove. It's much cheaper.

Exactly. Heating anything with electricity is very inefficient. As a preparedness principle, one should be invested in multiple energy sources and use each one to its most efficient advantage.

[user120312]

Today was updating radio frequencies and checking radios and, respecting how easily my old brain gets befuddled, practicing programming them into the Baofengs. How easily one forgets when old and not constantly using the information.

RE: water heating......My default is all electric in the forest but short term I find the microwave efficient for small water heating, or putting water through the small Mr. Coffee. After that is an immersion element. All work great off the Jackery (power station). Big water heating, like for a bath, I build a fire outside and hang a cast iron pot. I do have a camp stove that runs off pump gasoline but don't use it much, so I guess I should pull it out and test it.

Also, something to consider is having a backup water heater for the primary. My primary is a 50 gallon electric heater but I'm plumbing in a backup in the outdoor kitchen, a 6 gallon LP RV heater under the counter which will supply the dishwasher and sink there but will also be able to take over minimal household duty through a plumbing interconnect. Those who have RV's already have that redundancy.

Always something to do.

[harbormaster]

NY Day range morning;
100 rounds through 2 Ruger MKII
40 rounds through Kimber 1911 22
50 rounds through new Girsan Hi Power, my Browning look alike
50 rounds through CZ Rami
6 rounds Tauras 44 mag ouch
20 rounds through RIA 1911 45
Great outing. Everything worked well with one hiccup on the Kimber 22 as it often does but it cleared easy and went on. Need high compression rounds for that even with it being so light it just doesn't work the action if the 22LR is not powerful enough.

[WOODY2]

Went thru my first aid kits replacing any aged supplies and relearning where the
individual components are located.

[madland]

It's January so I have a whole laundry-list of things to get done at the beginning of the year.
Just to name a few:
Change out the WML batteries regardless of usage throughout last year...if at all on some.
Water barrels storage/sanitize/refill.
Check all flashlights and IFAKS in all vehicles.
Check the home med kits.

Recently did a bit of re-organizing in the safe. Made use of old ammo cans to transport all rifle/pistol mags given enough time to evac that I can pack them up.
I already have a RIDGID hard case with ammo to-go. Plus another one ready to throw all pistols into if I'm in a hurry. A microfiber cloth to wrap each one. Not too
concerned with them banging against each other if I'm to the point I need to throw them all in there.

The list goes on......