My All American is by far my favorite, for sure. I did convert my AA to a jiggler, not just the gauge. All of the others have the jiggler. As long as I can hear it, I can be working on other things.
It kind of grates me wrong when people say to save, and only buy an AA. All of my other ones...
Canning water in a water bath canner has saved me many a broken jar! The violence of the water boiling, with a less full than canner seems to eat jars. I always reuse a used, clean lid. If it doesn't seal, no loss, except for a jar that may have not broke. I have also never had a used lid not...
I don't poke my snout in here often, but just wanted to say that canning meat is no different than water bath canning, the processing time takes longer.
5 years ago, I had around 3 dozen jars, and a water bath canner. Now, I have close to 3000 jars, 4 or 5 water bath canners, and I think 6...
All of the things that "go on sale" run in a cycle at most stores. It isn't hard to figure it out after a little time. The wife used to work retail grocery, and knows the game. Get your pantry built, and well stocked. It takes time, and some money upfront, but in the long run, it will save you a...
Don't know if you got your canner or not. I have an All American, and love it. I also have 2 mirros, and they work just fine.
Having more than one will speed up your pressure canning a lot.
Any pressure canner is better than no pressure canner. That is just my opinion though.
Archdigger, good for you on your camping stove find. I have used 2 liter soda bottles to store water. It is good that you can rotate them. If the flashy lids you are refering to are the Gamma lids, those are great. So easy to get into, and provide a great seal. That 50 lb bag of flour will...
Dolldoctor1, small steps will eventually get you there. Save what you can, and look for a woodstove in the summer, when the demand is low. Buying an extra can, or two when something is on a good sale will add up faster than one would think it would. Do you need a generator to pump water? They...
Storing whole grains, etc is fine, as long as you use them regularly. Suddenly switching to a whole wheat diet will deplete your TP supply pretty quick, as well as make for a miserable time for a while. Store what you use, use what you store. Rotation is critical.
In my mind, it would come down to how many people are you planning to store for, and in what capacity? The occasional company over for dinner is usually no big deal. Even if they are unexpected, at least around here, there will be something for everyone. You might not be overstuffed, but you...
For running a generator, looking at propane, or natural gas could help. Propane never goes bad, and the NG supply typically stays up, unless a break in a line occurs.
If you do look at a weed sprayer for a shower, if you paint it black, it will apsorb the heat from the sun better. It could end...
Living in areas where Mother Nature has certain patterns can make a big difference in how, and what needs to be planned for.
It is amazing how animal people will help each others out in times of crisis. That is a good thing.
Hope things are going well Botar. Nothing like trial by fire?
Simple things like having some water stored, a good source of light, a simple way of heating up a meal make all the difference. It doesn't have to be fancy, or expensive.
I am not sure that anyone could prepared for everything, but every little bit helps. Keeping track of things that are "missing" or could be done differently helps me become better off for the next thing.
Hope everyone fairs well.
Keep a list of the problems, or the things you would do differently in the same situation. It may help be a leg up for the next time.
Unclejoe, the pellet stoves that I have draw less than 100 watts. A small, cheap 400 watt inverter should easily run one. As a side note, you can still get heat from a pellet stove if you don't have pellets. You cau burn small chunks of wood, but you have to be watching, and feeding the fire a...
Glad to read that you are ready baymule. That is a good thing.
hqueen13, with the pellet stove, you may be better off to buy a couple of deep cycle batteries, and a cheap inverter. Much quieter than a generator, and should run the stove for a while. It would cost much less to run than a...
The biggest natural disaster we should have to worry about would be an earthquake. We are working to get all of our breakables, ie home canned foods and oil lamps behind closed, latching doors. I wouold hate to lose all of our glass items. Seems like there is always something to do.