Cash on hand

[Icu4dzs]

If the SHTF silver is where it will be at.
guess it depends on what kind of S is in the fan.

If it is minor, then enough CASH to get though one months bills. If it is major three months bills.. I guess. But what would make a bank close for 3 months if not mega collapse?

You should have enough savings to get though at least 6 months of expenses if you are unemployed, that use to be the rule, but in this day and age I would up that to one year... and if you can up it to two years.

In a totally busted economy silver will be a fair trade item. Junk silver, dont bother with primo proof or collectors stuff.
Gold too but to difficult for the multitude of small tranactions needed in everyday life. Never purchase gold or silver certificates. You want gold under your floorboards, not on paper.

Then the other trade goods, and around here in Idaho alcohol certainly is a primo commodity, I have never been around more alcoholics in my life! Stash vodka and whiskey and wine. I would expect it to quadruple in value and I might need a machine gun to protect it

Cooking oil, crisco for those who want that.
Matches or fire starters, we all got wood stoves around here
Chain saw repair items, sharpening tools
medicines of all kinds
Salt
Soap
Light bulbs
propane. 10 or 20 filled 5 gallon propane tanks could make for some valuable trade.
space heaters
reading glasses
socks
gloves, especially work gloves
lots of condoms, and I ain't kiddin

MacKay has a good list but there are things that you might not think about. I read a paper written by a guy who survived the war in Kosovo. It really opened my eyes to things I had never considered. What impressed me about his paper was the fact that he was clearly living through a SHTF scenario that lasted years. We in this country seem to feel that such a scenario will only last a few days, maybe months at the most. It seems to me that the ability to re-cycle and re-supply things we use will be of paramount importance. Gardening tools for instance are often rather cheap. They are worth their weight in gold if things get really bad.

MacKay mentions chain saw materials and space heaters. All true as long as you have petrol. No petrol...no nothing that has a motor. An axe, an adze, a lot splitter, a wedge etc. will have a great deal more value than things that won't work without petrol. As she also mentions having things out in the open such as seen in the photo would seem to invite folks whose attitude is "I don't need to prepare, I'll just kill the folks who did and take what they have". If you think that is absurd, don't...I've actually heard some folks say that. Having things to barter and trade is going to be important but knowing who to trust will be even more important. Folks will ask"where'd you get that?" Your innocent friend says "O my friend Sue trades stuff"...and then your "stash" gets diluted by vandals and you life is in jeopardy. Keep your stuff hidden and essentially secret if you expect it to continue to serve you in those types of scenario. Be careful who you trust and who knows what you do and with what. You want to help your neighbors, but you have to have them help you. Showing your cards early in the hand is a sure road to losing the game.

The guy from Kosovo mentioned the "100 things that disappear first in a serious emergency" He also mentioned things that surprised me.
Of course TP is near the top of the list as were cigarettes. But then he mentioned cosmetics. The thinking behind that was that even during a prolonged period of depravation cosmetics do a great deal of good for a woman's morale. Spend enough time deprived of many things and the slightest little "luxury" seems to be signficantly valueable.

Expendable items that are stable are particularly good to barter. Cash is interesting because you can't eat it and if banks are closed and the SHTF that badly, cash won't do much. If the SHTF that bad (i.e. nuclear disaster, etc) banks will be not working, mortgage houses will not be working, power company's will not be working or not for a while any way and the entire system to which we are accustomed will be severely impaired if functioning at all. Paying your bills is fine if you get a tornado or short term natural disaster but something serious like war/violent revolt etc. will impair the current economic system we have and make things change radically. Ever see Dr. Zhivago? Good lessons there in how things change.

You have to realize that folks with guns and an attitude will appoint themselves "in charge" and you may become their serf rather than an independent functioning self-sufficient person. Watch "The Postman". Good example of what happens in such a situation. General "Bethlehem" becomes a little Hitler and has a cavalry of henchmen who raid the local towns, loot the villagers and conscript the men to serve in his little army. A very possible scenario in a real serious TSHTF situation. If you get the chance watch "Jericho" from the CBS channel. You used to be able to see all the episodes but many have been taken off and the ones left are full of "commentary" so you don't get the information that comes through. It is an excellent study in a SHTF situation.
I'd love to know why they took it off the website. Probably too many people were wising up to what might happen soon.

Barter system will be a much more viable technique. Storing beans, grains, and dry goods (sugar among the best) seems like a more viable commodity. Little things like spices will work very well also, especially if they are the ones more commonly used in your particular area.

Women's hygiene products are valueable, as are soaps and cleaning materials for laundry. Water purification equipment is very valueable. A pressure cooker will be worth a lot if traded. (be certain to keep at least one for your self) Ammunition is valueable but unwise to barter because it attracts vandals. If you have ammo for your own weapon, stash it in a varity of places where you will find it but curious or viscious predatory folks won't find it. Stashing a weapon is a good consideration. If folks come by and confiscate your weapons, having one in reserve for later may be of significant importance. Hunting is much less easy if you have no bullets for you weapon. Then it is just a "baseball bat" and very heavy.

Of course the most important item to barter is labor. You work for me, I work for you. It is fair, equitable and requires no "specific value" such as "things" require.

Last but by no means least are books. Books on how to do things and how to make things can provide immeasurable value to you and all around you. The entire FoxFire series is among some of the best. Storey's Country Living, and Country Wisdom and Know-how is great. Any book that teaches you how do do something that doesn't require electricity or petrol will become exceedingly valueable as well as useful. Hand tools, such as saws, planes measuring tools, etc will become valueable because they don't require electricity. Repairing homes becomes possible with good hand tools. Security is much easier to do when you have good tools, too!

O and by the way, expect the Internet to be the first casualty!

YMMV

 

[KnittyGritty]

Ammunition and whiskey, per our accountant!

 

[Boyd]

Ammunition and whiskey, per our accountant!

? That's what I've always thought myself but its great to see that reflected by someone else.

 

[Mackay]

. But then he mentioned cosmetics. The thinking behind that was that even during a prolonged period of depravation cosmetics do a great deal of good for a woman's morale. Spend enough time deprived of many things and the slightest little "luxury" seems to be signficantly valueable.

O and by the way, expect the Internet to be the first casualty!

You ought to see my stash of cosmetics! It is any woman's envy!
I worked on it for two years when Laurael had 2 for 1 sales about every six months.

I had heard that there was some bill before congress that would give the president the ability to turn off the internet...no thats dam scary! don't know whats up with it

So much of what you said we have had on many lists... but we have a lot of new folks here lately so I guess its good to go through it again.... and again....and again.

Everything you do with a power tool you ought to be prepared to do with a manual tool... I think we are about there.... except for the horse and buggy... have to talk to DH about that one. I know what he will say already... But you could eat a horse if you had too!

We have a long history of villians on my husbands side of the family going right back to the Mormon settlers and some of the dastardly deeds they did. . Some quite notorious and semi-famous... so I know what he's got in his blood if it comes to it. Nobody better mess with us. Where I would be hesitating, he'd have it done.

 

[Icu4dzs]

A useful item often overlooked is called an INVERTER. This is a small electrical device that will change 12v DC to 110 v AC and will provide power for many of the more recent electrical and electronic devices. It is an essential part of any wind or solar power system in order to continue using the items you currently have in your home. This can be connected to your automobile and often it can be connected to your lighter outlet or one of the other 12v outlets in the newer vehicles.

In order to remain in the "20th Century" you will need two items. The first is refridgeration/freezer and the other is electric well pump.
It doesn't take a great deal of power to operate either but there is no time like the present to secure these needs. Once the SHTF, you won't be able to do anything like that unless you are handy enough to build it yourself. While many folks are that capable, the majority are not.

An inverter at least capable of 1100 wats will operate most power tools as long as you have the engine running in your car. Large table saws may not start but hand power tools will work. Again, this is all predicated on having petrol to operate your engine. Having a generator that hooks to a 3 point hitch of your tractor is a very useful item, but again it is dependent on petrol.

Since most folks can function without electric lights, the well pump and fridge are the two main elements that will keep you well satisfied in the event that things are "going south" (pardon the expression.)

Not sure why folks think they necessarily need an out house because there are a multitude of solutions for this that can make life a lot more tolerable.

Having a septic system relieves the need for an outhouse as long as you can get water to the toilet. If you can operate the well pump, you are still able to stay indoors when it is 0200 and -25F.

Keeping a few pails of water in the house will ensure that late night trip to the loo is considerably warmer than to an outhouse.
Obviously, the most important consideration here is a reliable and safe water source. A toilet does NOT need clean water to work. Clean water takes some doing unless you get it from a well where you trust the water. Gray water can operate a toilet just fine and it is much more conserving to do so. There are some folks in California who have converted a toilet tank lid to a small sink so they can wash their hands with the water that fills the tank after the flush...very clever. Saw the same thing in Okinawa in the late 60's. They want $90 for it, but if you are in a "water austerity program" it is a great technique.

In order to remain relatively healthy for whatever time the SHTF takes, you need very few things. One is clean water, another is soap for hygiene and decent food. Most folks who lived in the 19th and early 20th century did just fine with those items. If you could put a name on the one thing that changed the health of human beings in the last 2000 or more years, I would vote for the humble "bar of soap".

YMMV

 

[justusnak]

Several great item listed. Think again...what will you do when your clothes wear out? Needle and threads, zippers, buttons, clasps.
Every time I go to the local auction, if there is a sewing box, I bid on it. Now, I have several. I am a button collector from way back. I just love buttons!! So, I have enough to get me and probably the entire county through several years of buttons. :/
Garden tools...yup, I buy them when I see them, yard sales, auctions, etc. Hand drills, with bits. We have a few of those. Hand saws, hammers, hatchets, axe's, awls, sickles, and the necessary hand tools to sharpen them. Spare hard wood boards. Stacks of plywood, buckets of tar and paint. Nails, screws, washers, bolts...etc. Yup, I get the toolboxes at auction as well.
Now, for the body....seeds....Lots and lots of garden seeds, veggies and wheat, etc...and flower seeds! Just like the makeup, women "need" pretty! Don't forget those hand grinders for grains!
As for the canning...I am starting to buy the Tattler lids. They are reusable and so far, I really like them! I will be buying them as I can afford, as they are a little expensive. Jars, water bath caners, pressure cookers, and plenty cast iron pots and pans.
As for the TP...well...we DO try to keep "plenty" for us, however, we are prepared to use the old rags when needed.
Wheel barrows, hand carts, and extra parts!
I save all the baling twine from the hay...chains..large, medium and small. LOCKS!!!! Cant have enough of those.! Panes of glass...yup, for building a green house.....or whatever you might need them for. Old wool blankets. If I find them at auction, I get them as well. No one seems to want them, so I can usually get them for $1.00 a piece. They are very handy to cover windows and doorways in the winter...or to use inside a quilt.
I also am trying to save to get a solar charger for the fence....and whatever else I need to electrify.
Then I was thinking....my animals are pretty far from the house because of the smell and such. However...we have a 2 car garage that sits partly underground and is under the living room. I could EASILY convert it to an animal shelter...it would keep them safe, and help warm us in the winter. Yes, the smell could get to be strong, but, smell vs safety and warmth? And, if TSHTF THAT bad...everyone and everything will stink! LOL
Am I in a panic? Nope...am I a hoarder? I don't think so. Everything I have "stored" is tucked away, unseen, unless one was to really poke around looking for it.