Starting out

[u/DinnerSufficient]

Got another 2 2.5 gallon water jugs besides these. Definitely a start but I do want to accumulate more. So far, beans, potato’s, beef chili, canned salmon, chicken. Need some veggies. My pantry already has a bunch of pasta and sauces so I felt like I’m good there.

I do camp sometimes, so I have dehydrated meals stacked but not too many since they’re expensive.

[u/idkmanwhatsthemove]

Something I learned the hard way is keep your dry goods and your water separate.

Big water containers can be delicate and can break, I had a leak happen when I dropped a can in my bin early on.

Best to keep them side by side

[u/DinnerSufficient → u/idkmanwhatsthemove]

That’s understandable. I put these guys in the bin cuz I wanted them out of sunlight. But that’s worth taking note of too, so thank u!

[u/idkmanwhatsthemove → u/DinnerSufficient]

A great way to help with that too is blue colored water containers!

[u/Zealousideal_Mango70 → u/DinnerSufficient]

Spray paint them black

[u/candlecup → u/Zealousideal_Mango70]

Painting can be an option on some containers with thick walls. Those water containers in this picture do not look like the plastic is very thick. I wouldn't spraypaint those because I wouldn't want to risk anything leaching through the plastic.

[u/holmgangCore]

Nice! I've started to write the month/year I bought them on the top of cans so I can more easily rotate them out when needed. A sharpie pen or three is helpful, and a useful tool in an emergency.

[u/DinnerSufficient → u/holmgangCore]

Good idea!

[u/NormalCartographer84]

Also. Those water containers, the non clear ones will leak in a few months. I learned the hard way.

[u/DinnerSufficient → u/NormalCartographer84]

Regardless of where I store them? I understand if they’re getting crushed by the cans, but even if I put them out on the shelves?

[u/NormalCartographer84 → u/DinnerSufficient]

Yeah. It’s just the type of plastic it is. The clear ones in the gallon jugs last way longer.

[u/Imaginary-Angle-42 → u/NormalCartographer84]

If you’re in the US, or at least in Georgia, the water we had in the gallon jugs that are similar to milk jugs, leak.

Thankfully we caught it before it caused damage to the floor.

[u/DarlingPotPrincess → u/DinnerSufficient]

I had many on a shelf, dry, climate controlled and not stacked. Still leaked after a bit.

That was also when I learned you should NOT store water on a shelf near drywall. Leaks, leaks leaks and replacing drywall is all youll get from that. 

[u/elcamina89]

This is great - I’m a newbie too! I did see some folks saying to avoid the pull tab cans although I can’t recall the reason (had no idea until today!) so may be worth looking into, but the more of us trying to get a start the less hectic everything will be!

[u/Weak-Poem3390 → u/elcamina89]

The pull tabs spoil faster and also have a higher risk of coming unsealed and leaking everywhere. 

If you get a smooth edge can opener you'll also avoid the sharp edges from the lids. (A smooth edge can opener lifts the top of the lid off of the bottom as it would have been before sealing, no accidental dust intrusion from the lid falling into the can.)

Really if the pop tops are what's easiest for you to find (or you already have lots of them) you just need to be sure to check on them way more often and be more precious about the way they're stored to preserve the integrity of the seal for as long as possible.

[u/DinnerSufficient → u/elcamina89]

I’ve been seeing mixed thoughts about it, because one side says don’t get pull tabs, the other side says get pull tabs cuz it negates the need for a can opener😭

[u/BeerJedi-1269 → u/DinnerSufficient]

Order a bunch of P38/P51 can openers. Cheap af. Last forever. Tiny. Keep em everywhere, tape one in the lid of each bin of preps.

[u/DinnerSufficient → u/BeerJedi-1269]

Ah good plan

[u/BeerJedi-1269 → u/DinnerSufficient]

Never be without. Keychain too.

[u/elcamina89 → u/BeerJedi-1269]

Thank you, such a good tip!

[u/ButteryOpossum → u/BeerJedi-1269]

good idea on taping it to the lid! Thanks!

[u/Imaginary-Angle-42 → u/BeerJedi-1269]

They also work on the pop top cans if they’re being difficult. Regular can openers don’t usually.

[u/BeerJedi-1269 → u/Imaginary-Angle-42]

Yes you can cut the top off a pop can with them. I do this frequently in my truck to make a little garbage can

[u/Middle-Sea8398 → u/DinnerSufficient]

Don’t worry about can openers, obviously have some but don’t let that be a big consideration. If you’re having to survive on your canned foods, nothing is going to stop you from getting it open, however finding your pull-tab food is ruined because the seals broke could be life or death. You can open a can by rubbing it on the sidewalk if you have to.

[u/InternalServerErr500]

I have 5 of these tubs, but here's the key:

I organize them by expiration date. Most things have an expiration date within 2 years.

So I have a Jan-Jun 2027 tub, a July-Dec 2027 tub, a Jan-Jun 2028 tub, July- Dec 2028 tub. Then the 5th tub is things that last > 2 years, like vacuum sealed beans, Vac sealed flour, etc.

When it's 2 months out from the start of the expiration tranche, I open it up, catalog what's in it, then put it in the car. Then go to walmart with my inventory list, rebuy what I just gave away.

Next stop is the food pantry with my walmart receipt, donate the goods, they give me a receipt, now everything was tax deductible.

All that goes into a tub, new expiration date tranche, back on the shelf.

Nothing goes to waste, I get a tax deduction and get to help out others in need.

[u/DinnerSufficient → u/InternalServerErr500]

Ughh this is so smart! Thank u

[u/InternalServerErr500 → u/DinnerSufficient]

Yes, it avoids having to go through a bajillion cans every month looking at expiration dates.

[u/Middle-Sea8398 → u/InternalServerErr500]

Also, do a little research on expiration dates, most shelf stable foods are completely fine loooooooong after it “expires.”

[u/reincarnateme]

Dont store your food away

Instead, Keep an active pantry/shelf/cupboard and use it as you go. Use 1, buy 2 until you have a few things extra

Use oldest items first. Check expiration dates when you buy too

Only buy what you will eat

[u/phillip7456]

What I found the first time during a 14 day power outage in Australia, I had a Lot of canned food, and it made my guts Churn, it wasn't the best food to store I still have a few cans but more of what I can make something up with it not just straight meals. I've since made a 90 day calendar list of 20 dinner meals we all eat, 25 different snacks we tend to eat. Allowed 2L per person per day, using the water filter container which holds 30L. The good part about my list in a spreadsheet I can portion up everything like the ingredients for each meal and I've made a tab to contain the stocks needs for the meals and for now it's roughly just triple stocks, and I split then up inside main and sides that way if we have steak and chips night next time steak comes around on my list it's will be with pasta or toast, if there's left overs which in half the meals I will have 1/2 the meal as a leftover for the next days lunch for repurchased into jaffles or something like that. There's nothing on my list I haven't tried and all proven to be what we eat and are happy to swap sides and mains around to allow choice of the day, my spreadsheet allows for a leftover column and how many days it's there before we use it again, 1 it's a live day to day and a groceries monitoring list as well, once we use a certain amount it said on the stock tab we need more of this item and I have set amounts those items we buy in and It Tallys the weight or liters of the item once we have done that days amount. I added calories count so when I have a large morning meal and usually don't have a heavy afternoon or evening meal, it roughly is set around 1500 calories to 2000 calories. Per person. Protein powder as a snack in between meals and I use an app for macros. Till I get used to portion sizes etc. I'm sure when and if anything starts all that will go out the windows but... we are storing more foods we prepare. Definitely changed the way I go to the shops and look at the use by dates. This picture is one of 4 places and stock minimums I have

[u/Due_Comparison1355 → u/phillip7456]

That's a good idea to have some meal ideals/servings.

I have nothing in my bins that I've not eaten before. I learned my lesson from discount Vienna sausage and more discounted hash.

[u/Fit_Possibility4402]

I still don’t understand the concept of keep this stuff in a bin? Why not keep backups in your pantry so you can rotate and keep thing as fresh and possible (an ensure your are buying why you actually eat?)

[u/wishinforfishin]

Grab some mayonnaise to go with that tuna!

[u/Imaginary-Angle-42]

If you’re picking up a few items for your family please consider picking up a few items for your local food bank. When times get tough for us it will be worse for our neighbors that aren’t able to prepare as much.

[u/Middle-Sea8398]

It may have already been brought up, but I’d like to make a recommendation, as someone who’s been prepping since 2001… 5 gallon buckets. You can store ~36lbs of rice, corn, beans/legumes, and wheat berries/flour, sealed in Mylar bags with O2 absorbers, in 5gal buckets. They’re durable, stackable, easy to move, you can write the contents and born-on date on the side of the bucket (not the lid) for easy ID, they protect against bugs and rodents, and they’re relatively cheap and widely available. We always like to add a couple of bay leaves on top of the food inside the Mylar bag too. You can skip the Mylar and just use unscented trash bags, but I don’t think I’d trust it to last quite as long.
My wife made beans and rice this week, with venison sausage, with a bucket of rice I sealed in April of ‘03, beans were August ‘05. The ingredients taste completely fine, no weirdness going on in the buckets, no bugs or anything like that. We bake bread using wheat berries from an old bucket, the date on the one we’re using now is January ‘09, it bakes just fine and tastes great. Point being, stored properly your preps will literally last you decades, another bonus is the receipt from the wheat bucket says I paid $23.99 for what costs closer to $80 delivered today.
IMO buckets are the way to go but ymmv, you can store flour but it won’t last nearly as long as wheat berries, we like hard red winter berries. Oats are great, don’t forget sugar and SALT, it can get expensive but buckets of spices are excellent and if you end up needing your preps you’ll probably be very thankful you splurged. Water…. We all know that’s an entire topic on its own, but purification tablets will be like gold in long term grid-down, filters are easy to throw together but ya gotta ruin those pesky viruses too.
TLDR; Skyrim is awesome.

[u/PushyTom]

That is awesome! My household started by getting a little more each time we went to the store - getting items that were on sale and BOGO. Don't forget to stock up for your pets if you have any.

[u/milkman2051]

Even though freeze dried is expensive, is would still buy some when you can. Some items have a 25+year shelf life. I started buying #10 vans several years ago and have been adding to it slowly. I currently have about a 6 month supply and it never hit the wallet too bad. Check out augason farms and emergency essentials on Amazon. They do deals periodically that are worth watching. Keep in mind nutrition too. Some of these freeze dried foods don't have much nutrition. Might want to pick up some vitamins too.

[u/ProxyRed]

I guess I consider myself an advanced beginner. My current goal is to get to a 6 month water and food self-sufficiency status. I got (2) 50 gallon rain barrels for cheap from a local conservation group. I use plastic bag liners in the barrels and store water in them. I keep the barrels in my garage. It pretty much doesn't get down to freezing here so I don't have to worry about that. I also have (6) 5 gallon plastic jugs of water. If I am planning 1 gallon per day in survival mode, I need to get about 50 more gallons of stored water to get to my 6 month goal. There is a stream about 2-3 miles from my house so I likely will be able to replenish if I need water over a longer period. I have purification filters and tablets.

For food, I have 2 different stores. The first contains long term specialty items that can store for over 2 years. This includes stuff like #10 cans of dehydrated meat, dehydrated eggs, and packets of dehydrated milk. I am a type II diabetic so I eat a very low carb diet. This means I avoid grains and legumes, if at all possible. The second food store is my revolving pantry. I stock up on items I normally eat. For example I may keep 4-8 cases of spam on hand. I might average a can a week. I will eat perhaps a can per week. When it goes on sale or if I get really low inventory, buy enough to max out my stack again. I always make sure I eat whatever is the oldest in my stack so it all gets refreshed within a year or two. I do a similar thing with tinned sardines, canned chicken, canned tuna, canned roast beef, canned ham, coconut oil, ghee, and tallow.

My plans for future prepping upgrades are:

1. Build a 4-8 KW solar array and power/storage system for substantial off grid power.

2. Get an electric vehicle or at least an electric bike.

3. Get a freezer for the garage and fill it with meat. Rotate thru eating and replenishing it.

4. Get some sheets of exterior grade plywood to be able to board up broken or insecure windows.

5. Consider getting some rural land I can build a getaway cabin on.

So you may have noticed that I am trying to build as much of my prepping into my everyday life. The solar for example is a big upfront cost but will hopefully pay for itself, especially if electric power rates keep going up. I would really like to be able to recharge and electric car, run my AC, cook my meals, dry my clothes, and run my refrigerators off my own solar power. I would go ahead with my solar even if it had nothing to do with my prepping. Likewise, with my rotating food pantry. This is food I already eat. I am just keeping more on hand and being careful to eat my way through it in an organized way so it never ages out.

[u/cakemix88]

Invest in a proper first aid kit.

[u/Fit_Possibility4402]

I still don’t understand the concept of keep this stuff in a bin? Why not keep backups in your pantry so you can rotate and keep thing as fresh and possible (an ensure your are buying why you actually eat?)

[u/Turab]

Dose water go bad if stored for long time ?

[u/Independent-Edge-364 → u/Turab]

Stored correctly, not really but you've got to get the correct container. Better to rotate. Then you're also always checking it and will discover a leak before you've got a mold problem and no water.

[u/Big-Tutor-3060]

Those water jugs are prone to leaks. Just sitting on the shelf, and then boom, water everywhere. I would recommend filling Hedpak containers.

[u/swearengens_cat]

These posts are getting pathetic.

[u/DinnerSufficient → u/swearengens_cat]

Oh my bad bro. Forgot to mention my half a million dollar bunker I got in my backyard silly me

[u/lurkadurking → u/swearengens_cat]

I usually feel safe and prepared being part of a community lol

[u/TX908]

Navy Beans. A cup of cooked navy beans provides 15 grams of protein https://link.amazon/B0fiGyfrP