Winter Prepping

How to prepare for a winter storm

Winter prepping
How to prepare for a winter

How to prepare for winter.
Winter is calling. In preparing for winter you'll need to have some
basics in place. Squirrels sock away their seeds and nuts, bears
begin to hibernate, it's time for preppers to bug in for winter.

How to prepare for a winter storm...
Get ready to weather the winter storms with these ideas of how
to prepare for a winter...

#1: Stockpile water and beverages.
During a storm your drinking water could be contaminated and
you may not have water or sewer from the municipal water
supply. Ensure you have canned and bottled beverages on hand,
starting with an ample supply of drinking water.

Stock up also on tea, coffee, powdered milk, apple cider and
instant lemonade or orange drinks, which are among the eight
kinds of survival drinks.

Water: An area that most preppers have well covered is
water, but if you don't consider these ideas:

Home: While ordinary people have two weeks of water on
hand, a prepper has a minimum of a one month supply! A
family of four requires 270 gallons for a one-month supply of
water. Consider the waterBOB to store 100 gallons in your
bathtub!
Car: Stock up on drinks for the car as well. Ration water is
fine.
Office: Plan for being stuck at the office! Many preppers put
together a "get home" bag, which has the specific purpose of
getting them from work back home to loved ones. It's much
different from a bugout bag, though depending on the
distance, many are similar. The idea is that you'd stock your
"get home bag" at work (particularly if you commute) or in
the car if you drive to work each day.

Coffee. Coffee is a survival food! Find out why.

Tea. Find out why they often put tea bags in survival kits.

#2: Honey, get yourself a honey bucket!
Since you may you may not have water or sewer from the
municipal water supply in an emergency you'll need to think about
sanitation: grey water and honey buckets.

Grey water for flushing toilets. Water for toilet flushing can
come from "grey water." If it's raining you can set out some
buckets to collect water. Flushing the toilet can happen
when you pour water into the toilet.

Honey buckets. Sometimes called honey buckets, your
sanitation may require a simple containment system. You
may want to have two Luggable Loos ~ one for yellow and
one for brown. It's a personal decision.

#3: Stock up on food and a way to cook indoors
You may well have prepared your long-term emergency food
needs with ample supplies of rice and beans, but it's time to
stock up on the foods you'll need to survive a power outage! Your
aim for a power outage is ready to eat, shelf-stable meals, such
as protein and energy bars, nut butters and crackers. If you have
an alternate way to cook, then stock up on soups and canned
foods.

There are 37 foods to stockpile. Get started!
Soups: Warm your apocalypse soup with sweet and savory
soup toppings!
10 "must have" canned foods for your food storage.

#4: Ensure you or your family or group has the right
clothing.
Kids grow out of essential rain and snow gear quickly. Adult gear
finally can give way and tear making them ineffective. Take a
look at your clothing and take advantage of pre-season sales. If
you can't afford new warm clothing, head to thrift stores and
garage sales.

Ensure your family or group has:

Warm sweaters and jackets.
Rain ponchos and parkas.
Waterproof boots, snow cleats
Hats, scarves and mittens

#5: Stock up on personal sundries.
Personal sundries: diapers, feminine hygiene, prescriptions -
whatever is on your list, make sure you get extras while the
weather is good. You won't want to risk a journey to get them
under dangerous conditions.

#6: Generate some heat!
Do you have a secondary source of heat that's non-electric? You
can stay warm without electricity, even if you don't have a wood
stove or a fireplace! One of the most basic things you can do is
to get a propane space heater.

Mr. Heater. One of the best emergency heat sources is the
Mr. Heater propane heater, pictured right. With 10,000
ratings at 4.7 of 5 you're sure to get a quality radiant heater
that's approved for indoor and outdoor use. Mr. Heater is
safe! An auto shut-off kicks in if it's tipped over, if pilot light
goes out, or if it detects low oxygen levels so you can enjoy
warmth worry free!

#7: Get a Generator.
No matter where you live, a generator is one of your most
important purchases in prepping.

Read our G enerator b uying guide! The time to get a generator is
well before you need one. Most importantly, you'll need to know
how to use one properly so you avoid carbon monoxide poisoning.

Stock up on wool socks and blankets.

Solar chargers. Right is an unbelievably cool solar heater!

#8: Light candles.
While you wait for Spring to arrive, why not go off grid entirely
with candles for the evening! Votives are not only decorative, but
useful for preppers in emergency preparedness.

#9: Power up your cell phone, and get cranking!
Communications are essential. Be sure you have an emergency
survival weather radio including the solar and/or hand crank kind.

Make a communications plan. Communications with family
members is key during a catastrophic situation and you'll
need to plan now. This quick list will get you started:

Identify a key contact out of state and ensure everyone
has the number and a way to call (cellphone, prepaid
card, coins)
G et emergency power from your telephone to power up
your cell phone.

#10: Get a sump pump or two!
If you don't already own a sump pump, you may as well buy two.
In this way you'll know how to operate them and you won't need
to bother with the different fittings. Right, is the top selling sump
pump. The Superior Sump Pump pictured right, comes equipped
with a powerful 1/4-horsepower motor that can pump 30 gallons
per minute. It has an excellent track record with nearly 1200
satisfied customers and a near perfect 4.5-star review.

Why an extra sump pump? You won't want to discover your sump
pump is dead at the next major storm because that's when they
tend to sell out.

An extra sump pump is especially important for preppers who live
in a snow region, have a basement or who live next to rivers or
creeks, or anywhere water could flow and be stagnant, such as a
low lying property. Remember, everyone lives in a flood zone! All
it takes is a major snow melt or rapid downpour to cause trouble.

#11: Take care of your regional needs.
Be prepared for inclement weather with Lifeline First Aid's high
quality Aluminum Sport Utility Shovel. The shovels come in three,
bright, easy to see colors to help prevent you from losing them:
blue, red and gold. The shovel also easily disassembles into
three pieces for easy storage and portability, and is the perfect
size to store in your car, SUV or recreational activity vehicle, or to
tote with you in your backpack. The shovels are constructed from
lightweight, durable, high-quality aluminum and weigh just 1.3
pounds.

Do you have gear to remove snow? Last year's equipment
may be inadequate or perhaps you lent your tools to
someone in need and never got them back. Now's the time
to check the condition of your tools to see if they need
replacing.

Snow shovels and snow brooms
Calcium chloride ice melt (also good for correcting
mineral deficiencies in water for home brewing beer,
cheese making and pickling!)

Everyone lives in a flood zone! Prepare now for floods.

Get s andbags and water diversion gear
Check the roof and get roof tar and patches to repair
the damage.
Clear the storm gutters.

Now that you've gathered the essentials, you can
have some fun!

Gather pinecones. Did you know pinecones make excellent
kindling? Have fun gathering and decorating pinecone
firestarters! Spray paint or sprinkle with glitter, hang, make
a centerpiece: Make beautiful pinecone firestarters by
dipping them in wax.

Get a few good prepper books. Get cozy by the fire and
grab some good reading, be it a prepper novel or how to
book. Pick up a few good prepper books!

Make paper logs! You likely have all sorts of wrapping
paper, cards, envelopes and bills for which you can put to
good use after Christmas by making paper logs for your fire
place or fire pit.

And that's how to prepare for a winter storm!

Happy endings...
Preparing for a winter storm is something everyone should do
(even if he or she is not a prepper). Never under estimate the
value of a wool blanket to keep you warm.

The Woolly Mammoth Woolen camp blanket, pictured immediate
right. Made of Merino wool, its double-stitched overseam is a
thick polyester thread that has a classic yarn whipstitch for a
timeless and polished look. Merino wool is renewable and
sustainable. The fiber length, known as the "staple," is longer
and thinner, commonly referred to as the "micron." This
composition results in a soft and durable feel.

Start preparing your car for winter.

Check your windshield wipers.
Ensure you have ice scrapers handy.
Gather a car kit: From car escape tools to repair, blankets
and hand warmers to flares and emergency you'll need to
build a car survival kit!