Help Evaluating Preps & Where to Go Now

[GP100]

Hello,

I've been prepping for about a half of a year, and feel very good about what I've been able to put together in that time. Food, water, medicine, defense, etc. are stocked up to a level where I feel pretty comfortable.

But here's the catch now. I've got a bunch of everything, I keep organizing it and putting it away properly. I inventory things with expiration dates and all that. At this point, what do I do?

How do you all evaluate where you need to keep going? Should I stock up on more ammo, more medicine, more food? It used to be easy. "Crap I don't have vegetables, I need to go buy them." Now I've got at least a decent amount of all the above.

Besides basic inventorying, how do you keep track of "next steps" ? How to evaluate readiness and where to go now?

[Tsunami]

Have you thought of getting water filters?

What meds do you have so far?

[pico]

Stored food only goes so far. I have enough food to get my family of 5 plus my two parents by for well over a year and a half now... but the diet will be mostly beans, rice, noodles, and such. It will get old fast. That is why I have lots of vegetable seeds to supplement it. You can also raise rabbits, but depending on climate, living in a fairly heat prone area might not yield the best results.

You can never have too much ammo, unless you plan on moving in the near future. I moved over 50,000 rounds once, and would not recommend doing it again... even if it is just .22 LR ammo.

Stock up on clothing when it is on sale, and buy deep. Recently Target had boys socks clearanced. My wife and I bought over 60 pairs of socks in many different sizes. Get clothing when it is going out of season, and buy it up in several sizes. I would also buy a size or two smaller than you currently wear, as you will likely lose weight when things tank out.

Get firearms that share common calibers and parts. This way you can cannibalize them if needed, and stock up on the same parts.

[GP100]

Good tips ... I'm also running out of ROOM ... gotta figure that one out.

[pico]

I basically have a room that is odd shaped but about 14'x18' that is filled with supplies. Much is clothing, and about 1/5th is strictly 5 gallon buckets and #10 cans stacked on shelves and/or on top of one another upwards of 7 feet high. It gets hard to keep stuff straight.

[dwbeaufort]

Stocked and ready. hmmm...... I guess the next step is preserving technology. Can you repair the batteries you rely on? Think long term and replenishment of resources. Knowing how to work steel and some books on alloys, A good hard blade may be a lifesaver:deal:
In an event where lots of people are gone their knowledge is gone also.
That's what I would do next.

[pico]

I would also think ways to produce energy if the grid goes down. I have solar panels installed which provide minimal energy, but I also have the tools and parts in place to repair or build more in the event they need it. Also, learning about hydroponics would be a big step in being self reliant. I need to find the video of a guy who grows his protien and veggies in a fairly small greenhouse.

[GP100]

Now that I'm thinking more, yes -- I need to get a good blade. Any recommendations? Ka-Bar? $50-$60 should probably do the trick I'd think.

I do want to get some rechargeable batteries and a solar battery charger, that would be good.

As far as meds, I have the basics, I should look into things to keep my *fish* safe though. Have been meaning to do that.

Just wish I had more room. I have a whole garage, but it's disconnected from my unit, and I don't like to rely on it in the event that the grid goes down, power gets stuck, etc.

[pico]

I have an H&K bayonet, as the H&K 91 with a paratrooper stock is my bug out gun of choice. The bayonet is likely illegal in some states to have, but it is a great fighting knife... although I really can't claim I have any of the knife fighting skills. I would get perhaps a machette and a good skinning knife.

[Luxeon Star]

gp100

Have you considered shutting off the utilities for a weekend to find out what you have forgotten to plan for? You will find out rather quickly if you have not thought of the obvious. For example, and not to be crude, but everybody who is prepping thinks of toilet paper. If you shut off the water you will realize that there is more to sanitation than TP.
I would also mention that unless you live next to a river lake or stream, you can never have too much water. I took the time to check out the area I live in on google earth to make sure I knew where all the bodies of water are. I printed out the satellite photos and labeled the locations.

If you don’t care to go camping at home for the weekend you may want to instead devote a chunk of time to mentally or on paper stepping through, in detail what you think you average day in a disaster situation will be like.
In addition to this it is advisable to try out / use everything you buy that is intended for survival. Better yet to do this repeatedly. You may find out after a few tries that some things you thought you would be eating are things that you don’t know how to cook or you find out that some methods of cooking are more energy intensive than other. Also you may find out that some of your survival gear is junk. I had that experience more than once. It is better to find out now, while you can still remedy the situation.
Last of all by using what you have purchased you will find out the actual limits of what you have. You may find that you only have enough fuel or food or water for half the time you thought you had.
I suppose the moral of the story is to make prepping one of your hobbies and not just a shopping list.