Survey: What prep turned out to be most useful in Pandemic?

What prep turned out to be most useful in Pandemic of 2020?


  • Total voters
    89
I know what I need when this is all behind us. A chest style feezer in the basement. Or maybe a 2nd refer that only gets plugged in when It's needed. The POS in my kitchen is just too damn small. Maybe looking into solar battery charger also to keep a bank of batteries for the inverter charged up.
 
I thought I'd NEVER EVER say I NEEDED my iPhone but it has been and indispensable tool in my 2020 arsenal . That and an internet connection the whole damned supply chain is at your finger tips!! Had my groceries delivered today by the cutest seniorita, Even if our conversation was thru the glass storm door at 10 paces. And all it took was a couple of swipes of a keyboard, This may be how I do it down the road.
 
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Very tough to say as its not over yet. TP, purell, wipes initially, then N95 Masks. If this continues into the late summer, other preps will come to the lead for sure as this will turn into a banking crisis.
 
High-ABV ethanol. Oddly, people still haven't figured out that "Everclear 151 Vodka" is basically hand sanitizer; it's still in stock at NH Liquor stores. Or if you're in MA, there's a few bottles of 190 proof grain alcohol left on the shelf at Total Wine in Shrewsbury.

TP, chest freezer, and a new job that lets me work from home.
Chest freezer helps make each supply run count.
 
Frog lube.

Dan-Bilzerian-guns.jpg
Where can I get one of these?
 
I'm surprised "Internet" isnt listed as an important prep....cuz in many/most cases its the underlying tool that people use to do everything from gather information to order various things online if they are not picking up directly from brick/mortar vendor.
Starlink will be a real game changer if they can meet half of what they've promised to offer in Canada and the northern US by 2021. Though until they get the inter-satellite laser linkages up and running, a major NE power outage would likely still take out regional starlink Internet once the generators in the Data Centers run dry or if the fiber goes dark.
 
My wife has officially labeled me a "Prepper".
And I'm ok with that.[rofl2]
The firearms,gear, ammo, mre's, generator, tools and other food stores are now making sense to her. LOL
In fact she has a list of her own that wants to stock up on when all this has blown over to keep handy!
Thank god in all the years of stocking up she didn't question why I purchased something and give me "When are you going to use that?".[smile]
 
Most useful thing I had stocked was several excess gallons of pool shock. 12.8% bleach.

Make my own disinfectant wipes with the excess paper towels and baby wipes i had on hand. Could make drinkable groundwater in a pinch.

I haven't had to use anything else yet.

In a real SHTF i'd be f***ed, but I'd have guns, ammo, & super bleach!🤣

ETA...
My house came with a bonus fridge, so i've got 2. that has been indispensible for maintaining food levels. I've got a full sized upright freezer sitting empty in the garage if necessary. Had considered splitting a cow with a buddy or taking a deer or 2 out of the back yard to fill the freezer.
 
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Already had tp from a recent sale, water, masks, and a full freezer.Best thing was peace of mind coming from the trips to the range(ours is still open) to hone skills in case they might be needed. Also, plenty of ammo is always good. I sleep better at night knowing our stash of water, food, and Cottenelle, as well as ourselves, could be protected in case of a break in or food riot.
 
2 or 3 years ago I decided to slowly build up a 6 month supply of 25 year shelf life emergency food, enough for 3 -4 adults. My wife thought I was going a bit over the edge but I convinced her it's better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it - she agreed. I have a 14 cu. ft. upright freezer that is packed full of meats, vegi's, butter, etc..., plus I have quite a store of dry goods such as pasta, jarred sauce, canned vegi's, canned meats, tuna, sardines, rice, dried beans, etc.... I'm not a clairvoyant and only had about 30% on-hand of what I felt was needed of these items prior to the SHTF. I did kind of see the handwriting on the wall and started to accumulate more of the basic staples as well as items of "higher" value, such as TP, before the run on these items began. I was in pretty good shape when the lines were out the door and around the corner, so to speak, at most places.

My parents had a "bomb shelter" style food pantry down in the basement of our home when I was growing up in the age of the US/USSR MAD "agreement". Fun times were had for all! I've always stock piled items that I felt were important. Why buy one or two when you can buy 3 or 4 and save it for later, "just in case". This was true for food, ammo, firearms, self defense weapons, TP, H2O (even though I'm on a well), generator, spare fuel and the list goes on. I lucked out with N95 masks from previous woodworking projects and had about 75, some of which I doled out to family members in critical jobs or compromised health conditions. I also had a couple hundred heavy duty black rubber gloves that I had bought for oil changes and mechanical fixes on my power equipment. Never thought both would become as valuable as they did - who knew?

Lack of food, IMO, would be the major reason for a breakdown of societal norms and lead to riots, looting, etc... I'm planning on sitting tight in a defensive position as long as possible should this happen. I'm in a fairly rural area and can't see "bugging out" from a good, defensive position with plenty of water, food, ammo and manpower. I really hope it never comes to that!
 
When the SHTF, what turned out to be the most important prep you had made?

Getting a job where I'm actually valuable. Got laid off 3 years ago and found a job doing field service, which is a valuable job so I'm still employed. My previous coworkers are furloughed and wouldn't surprise me if they get axed.
 
Thinking deeper about this, the one prep I took on that paid off the most started back in 2013 when I passed papers and moved out of suburbia Massachusetts.
 
I'm surprised "Internet" isnt listed as an important prep....cuz in many/most cases its the underlying tool that people use to do everything from gather information to order various things online if they are not picking up directly from brick/mortar vendor
very true. i didn't even think of this, the obvious, until i read this post. mind blowing just thinking how many people depend on the internet for info. i remember my mom telling me how important radio was during wwII for info, thoughts and ideas throughout the country. this internet thing...i think she'd get it, lol.
The case of hand sanitizer I bought a few years back has been great to have
some sanitizers have expiration dates. i haven't researched this past asking my pharmacist but she said the alcohol base they're made from may evaporate over time rendering them "less effective." she was going to try and get a more clinical explanation but i dropped the ball and never followed up. actually my fault since i don't want to go down to the pharmacy and i'm sure she's busy as well.
 
I know it. Mine had passed a year or so ago but they were still in the box and with the plastic wrapping on them, unopened so presumably the alcohol didn’t have anywhere to go.
 
Liquor stores are still open but I had stocked up on supplies for making beer just in case they were not available. Last weekend I bottled 16 pints of cerveza and 16 pints of a Czech pilsner. Both will be ready a few days before cinco de mayo. I have enough stock to make 128 more pints of various flavors. In hindsight I should have also dedicated a freezer to chicken wings :rolleyes:
 
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So far most important prep has been husband's ability to work his job remotely in an industry that is essential. This wasn't "done by design" for a pandemic or anything like that. But it was done intentionally - left JC Penney over a year ago because it was beyond obvious that their days were limited and then got into this industry to expand his resume. Also, he has slowly been inching more towards being able to work remotely as we plan on going 100% mobile next summer when our lease is up. I think this experience will show those who have been resistant to remote employees how it's not an issue really. One of his managers actually told him that he will be advocating that the IT teams all work from home even after this is over. My husband is a SCRUM Master on 3 IT teams for a major bank. 2/3rds of his teams were already located 200 miles from him so he was already "remote" from them. Beyond that we have a pretty sizable savings in case he loses his job.
 
So far most important prep has been husband's ability to work his job remotely in an industry that is essential. This wasn't "done by design" for a pandemic or anything like that. But it was done intentionally - left JC Penney over a year ago because it was beyond obvious that their days were limited and then got into this industry to expand his resume. Also, he has slowly been inching more towards being able to work remotely as we plan on going 100% mobile next summer when our lease is up. I think this experience will show those who have been resistant to remote employees how it's not an issue really. One of his managers actually told him that he will be advocating that the IT teams all work from home even after this is over. My husband is a SCRUM Master on 3 IT teams for a major bank. 2/3rds of his teams were already located 200 miles from him so he was already "remote" from them. Beyond that we have a pretty sizable savings in case he loses his job.

This is what I was getting at with my post - one of the most important preps is to keep making yourself valuable to employers - that requires constant vigilance in this high tech economy. Especially as you get older, you don't want to become the old guy (gal) who can't keep up with technology.
 
So, a question for the tech guys/gals that are working remotely. Do you get a sense that this is an area where employers will try to keep these skills in the U.S. as opposed to farming it out to India? Hopefully we will bring a lot of manufacturing back for sure. I am just curious what the perception is in regards to customer tech support. To be honest I just don't have an ear for most accents. This is compounded for me by the choice of words that people in other countries use for items.

I work daily with mostly people from other countries. Last year a lady came to me and asked for my help. She said "I have a puncha." I told her that I didn't know what that was. She just kept repeating it without changing any words. She got frustrated with me. Eventually she got to "My car. The tire. I have a puncha." She had a flat tire and was calling it a puncture.
 
So, a question for the tech guys/gals that are working remotely. Do you get a sense that this is an area where employers will try to keep these skills in the U.S. as opposed to farming it out to India? Hopefully we will bring a lot of manufacturing back for sure. I am just curious what the perception is in regards to customer tech support. To be honest I just don't have an ear for most accents. This is compounded for me by the choice of words that people in other countries use for items.

I work daily with mostly people from other countries. Last year a lady came to me and asked for my help. She said "I have a puncha." I told her that I didn't know what that was. She just kept repeating it without changing any words. She got frustrated with me. Eventually she got to "My car. The tire. I have a puncha." She had a flat tire and was calling it a puncture.

Nope... I think this may go the other way and show that you don't need people locally to support/develop IT. It may not continue to be India though... the costs there are starting to rise. It may start going to other developing areas.

For some companies, I think they'll start to shrink their office space to reduce costs and allow people to be remote, but as mentioned above... what's the difference between someone in Foxborough or someone in Bangalore.
 
very true. i didn't even think of this, the obvious, until i read this post. mind blowing just thinking how many people depend on the internet for info. i remember my mom telling me how important radio was during wwII for info, thoughts and ideas throughout the country. this internet thing...i think she'd get it, lol.


A few years ago I realized how dependent I am on the internet for just about everything. A pandemic wasn't on my top 5 prep for list. Realizing how a grid down situation would really suck, I started a few binders with hard copies of useful information just in case I'm ever disconnected long term.
 
A few years ago I realized how dependent I am on the internet for just about everything. A pandemic wasn't on my top 5 prep for list. Realizing how a grid down situation would really suck, I started a few binders with hard copies of useful information just in case I'm ever disconnected long term.
very smart ms. cowgirlup!
 
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