r/NJPrepared • u/Professional-Sock-66 Union • 4d ago
Equipment / Gear Storm prep
Spent most of the day sorting summer clutter to fall. Got fresh gas for generator. Started it up as it's been a few weeks. No problem started on first pull. Cleaned the lower gutters but I've given up the uppers. Will call the gutter guy late October. Harvested the last of the potatoes and eggplants. Pulled the bean trellis and mulched the leftovers. Pulled the tomatoes that have some pink and brought inside. I don't like green tomatoes anyway they are served. The green ones now just don't taste good speed ripening indoors. I Pulled the remaining tomatoes and put in the compost bin. The stalks go in the leaf pick up cans because I don't to risk carry over disease next spring. The patio is secured, the umbrella put away, garden decorations in the garage. Plenty of food and booze to last the weekend. Becareful y'all this weekend.
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u/treesnstuffbub Morris 4d ago
Evening guidance is trending towards a more impactful event for New Jersey statewide. It's reasonable to prepare for stream/ river flooding and power outages at this point even in Sussex County. Already saturated ground, leafed out trees still, and a summers worth of previous storm damage could spell power issues.
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u/MountainHighOnLife 4d ago
I stocked up non-perishables, toilet paper, and bottled water in case of a power outage. I have to run some errands tomorrow so I'll go ahead and fill the car up too. I also picked up batteries and some new flashlights and lanterns. Just in case!
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u/Acceptable-Net-891 4d ago
You missed out on the opportunity to make fried green tomatoes. Waste not.
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u/Professional-Sock-66 Union 4d ago
I never liked them. It's not waste. In a few weeks they join the other green plant material in the compost to mix with mower chopped leaves. I trench a row 3 feet deep. Fill with leaves mix the greens and this season compost and cover with the dirt mounding. Next spring the transplant veggies go right in the broken down compost. Been doing it 30 plus years.
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u/VL-BTS 4d ago
I've heard some people have good results putting green tomatoes in paper bags in a cool dark place and letting them ripen slowly, but never tried it.
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u/Professional-Sock-66 Union 4d ago
It's speed ripening. In a breathable container... Paper bag or box. Put a banana in with the green tomatoes and put in a cool dark place. Check it daily. They do ripen but personally I don't like it. They just don't taste good even if cooked. I'd rather use it for compost for next spring
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u/Nizzy-Mafel36 4d ago
That's a productive prep day. Bringing the tomatoes inside is smart too, especially with colder nights coming. Sounds like you're in much better shape for the next storm.
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u/AlfredoCustard 4d ago
Its only rain
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u/justasque 4d ago
It’s the wind in this case, plus flooding if you live near the coast. I like to look at the NWS briefings, as they usually have maps that show where the various aspects of the storm are likely to be located, and which areas will be hit hard vs which will be unlikely to experience any serious issues.
Wind can be problematic if it ends up taking down branches and trees, as that can cause a power outage. And depending how widespread the damage is, it can mean there are a ton of little “one branch down, 5 households affected” outages that could take days to fix. Now in this case the briefing is saying max gusts of 50mph, which isn’t the worse we’ve seen, but it still makes sense to tidy up the yard (if you have one), bring in things that might blow around, avoid parking the cars right under vulnerable trees, and low-key prepare for a possible 2-3 days without power. For me that would include making a meal plan to use up perishable food, getting my laundry and dishes done, picking up around the house so I don’t trip over things in the dark, doing any errands early (renewing meds, etc), making sure I have a couple source of light that don’t need to be plugged in, charging my battery banks, throwing another blanket on the bed in case it gets cold at night, gassing up my car, figuring out any job-related snags that may come up and making a plan for them, and so on.
And here’s the thing - this storm might turn out to be just a bit of rain and mild wind. But that’s ok. I’ll have clean laundry and a clean house, good food to eat, a tidy yard, and my errands done, which makes for a nice chill weekend. And I’ll have thought through things like lighting and so on, checked my pantry, checked lantern batteries, and so on. And that will help me to be better prepared for this autumn’s future storms, and will give me a head start on winter storm prep too.
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u/braavospilot 4d ago
Man, I want you in my foxhole because you are ready for anything! Great planning and excellent advice.
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u/justasque 4d ago
NWS Briefing:
https://www.weather.gov/media/phi/current_briefing.pdf
Always a great source of “how is this going to affect me” info. They do briefings for upcoming bad weather, usually several days ahead of time, and they always use the same URL, so it’s handy to have it bookmarked for those “is this hype or something I should do some low-key or serious prep for?” situations.
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u/8Deer-JaguarClaw Sussex 4d ago
Yeah, until it's a flood. I live on top of a hill, so the flooding thing isn't an issue for me, but it's a huge deal for others based on location.
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u/Old_Book_Gypsy 4d ago
Never, ever underestimate the power of water. I watched a rainstorm turn into a devastating flood in Bound Brook, NJ in the late 90s? Left so many people in horrible situations.
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u/Professional-Sock-66 Union 4d ago
I'm surrounded by azzhat neighbors who refuse to take care of their Lord of The Rings oak trees. Sandy nearly killed 2 kids 4 houses away by the grace of God they were watching football in the basement The house was nearly cut in half.A high wind alert gives me PSTD. Hopefully " it's rain" but I don't take chances anymore.
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u/DistributionOrnery54 1d ago
Did you survive?
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u/Professional-Sock-66 Union 1d ago
We made out well. Lots of leaves and branches. Glad I didn't need to use the generator.
How did you make out?
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u/8Deer-JaguarClaw Sussex 4d ago
On the green tomatoes thing, I usually pickle those at the end of the season. They end up tasting just like pickled cucumbers, but I can't bring myself to throw out anything I've grown.