" The Top 100 Items to Disappear First" - LewRockwell.com

[coastie]

Nice list, I have been thinking about assembling some necessities for a long time and this has given me the jumpstart I needed. I printed out the list and mad a trip to Walmart yesterday. I realize it is going to take awhile to stock up so I will take it slow and get what I think are "must haves" first.
Here's my first run;
8 boxes diamond strike anywhere matches (I might get a zippo or two and a couple of cans of lighter fluid, flints as well)
1 Coleman folding compass
1 Coleman kerosene lantern
8 kerosene lantern wicks
12 propane lantern mantles
2 quarts Coleman kerosene
4 small cans of propane (2pks for $5.12 a pak)
4 pkgs of water purification tablets
4 packs of 10x20 plastic sheeting (2per pack)
1 gas/oil/fluid siphon manual pump
1 Magnesium fire striker
1 1liter canteen
1 8 pack socks
1 8 pack underwear
2 pairs Denim cargo type pants (seemed rugged enough)
All for $102.25
I do like camping out, so this stuff just gets added to my already large quantity of outdoor stuff. Tents, sleeping bags, propane stoves etc..

Does anyone know the difference between Coleman fuel and kerosene? Are they interchangeable? I read the label but it wasn't specific. I specifically bought the kerosene for the kerosene lantern but the Coleman fuel is available in larger container for less money than the 1 quart kerosene jobs.

What are you prepping for? Do you have any other preps started? This list reads like a panic have to buy stuff now list. Dont buy stuff based on this 100 things list, buy stuff based on your needs.

Is it a Coleman kerosene lantern or a barn or tubular lantern that you bought? It sounds like a barn lantern as the Colemans dont have wicks. If it is a barn lantern you can also burn lamp oil in it which is in 1/2 gal containers at walmart. You can also buy clear kerosene in 1 2 and 5 gal jugs at hardware stores. If you are looking for a large amount try to find a pump that still sells clear kero and use 5 gal cans. That is what I did and it is the cheapest route but clear pumps are getting harder to find.

 

[WanMan99]

What are you prepping for? Do you have any other preps started? This list reads like a panic have to buy stuff now list. Dont buy stuff based on this 100 things list, buy stuff based on your needs.

Is it a Coleman kerosene lantern or a barn or tubular lantern that you bought? It sounds like a barn lantern as the Colemans dont have wicks. If it is a barn lantern you can also burn lamp oil in it which is in 1/2 gal containers at walmart. You can also buy clear kerosene in 1 2 and 5 gal jugs at hardware stores. If you are looking for a large amount try to find a pump that still sells clear kero and use 5 gal cans. That is what I did and it is the cheapest route but clear pumps are getting harder to find.

It is a barn/tubular lantern that specifies kerosene. I'll check out some hardware stores around town to see what kind of pricing they have. The prepping I am doing is a combo storm prep and minor shtf type prep. I am looking to supplement what I already own with what I perceive to be holes in my stocks. I perused the list and saw some things that were cheap/useful and would be a pain to not have if there was an extended power down condition.

Atmay--- Thanks for the warning on the white gas. That was why I didn't assume they were interchangeable. I am leaning towards a kerosene type solution because I think it would last longer than propane based items (the fuel at least).

The water filter is high on my list along with a few others. I did not like the quality of some of the items I wanted to purchase so they are on my to do list.

 

[WanMan99]

What are you prepping for? Do you have any other preps started? This list reads like a panic have to buy stuff now list. Dont buy stuff based on this 100 things list, buy stuff based on your needs.

I didn't bother to mention the whole guns, ammo, reloading prep as I figured everyone on this board should have that part figured out (whatever you think is enough, multiply by 5 minimum.).

Also, I am buying some of the things on the list so I do not have to panic when everyone else will be (the preppers credo).

 

[atmay]

Atmay--- Thanks for the warning on the white gas. That was why I didn't assume they were interchangeable. I am leaning towards a kerosene type solution because I think it would last longer than propane based items (the fuel at least).

Don't forget....kerosene skunks after a while. It's still burnable, but it won't burn nearly as clean or good-smelling.

As with most consumables, get into the habit of using your prep supplies regularly and rotating stock.

 

[MrsStrangeNH]

If any of you have water purification tablets without the "taste neutralizing" second stage tablets, you can use 1/2 a Vitamin C tablet crushed up instead. Don't forget to allow ample time for the first stage to work before doing the neutralizing stage.

 

[coastie]

Don't forget....kerosene skunks after a while. It's still burnable, but it won't burn nearly as clean or good-smelling.

As with most consumables, get into the habit of using your prep supplies regularly and rotating stock.

Properly stored kerosene will last a good long while. I have used kerosene from the 70s with no issues and it was in a shed at my buddys camp. It got left there and forgotten about when the camp was converted from kerosene to propane. The key is putting in a metal storage container. I store mine on 5 gal NATO cans.

If you go the all kerosene route look at the non pressure wick stoves as they are dead simple and work well. St Pauls Mercantile sells them IIRC. Also for more light the Aladdin lamps are great and they are again a non pressure light that uses a mantle. My long term storage fuel is kerosene. I am about done with propane for anything but the grill. I still use Coleman fuel for camping and any of the short term power outages we have but will be slowly getting rid of those as well.

 

[radioman]

Out of all the fuels kerosene stores the longest and gasoline the shortest. White gas kept in its original container will last a good long time also but not as long as the kero.

 

[atmay]

Properly stored kerosene will last a good long while. I have used kerosene from the 70s with no issues and it was in a shed at my buddys camp. It got left there and forgotten about when the camp was converted from kerosene to propane. The key is putting in a metal storage container. I store mine on 5 gal NATO cans.

Key word being properly stored. I cleaned out my boss's basement several years ago...and there were several 2-5 year old cans of kerosene sitting in a corner, skunked as could be. We ended up getting rid of it via a pile of rags, and some sunshine.


Do you use your kerosene on a regular basis, coastie? Or is it just being stored "JIC"?

 

[je25ff]

101. Antibiotics
102. Beer or iodine tablets (in case water safety becomes an issue)

 

[coastie]

Key word being properly stored. I cleaned out my boss's basement several years ago...and there were several 2-5 year old cans of kerosene sitting in a corner, skunked as could be. We ended up getting rid of it via a pile of rags, and some sunshine.


Do you use your kerosene on a regular basis, coastie? Or is it just being stored "JIC"?

Mostly stored JIC. I bet I dont burn a quart a year and that is just practicing our various setups. Only way a can will get rotated is keeping a friends basement heated during a power outage. I am not worried about it as I have almost never seen kero go bad when stored in metal cans. The stuff I have seen "bad" has been the stuff in old oil lamps and other appliances and it has been there forever. Even then with a little new kero it all burned. Was that stuff stored in plastic or metal?

 

[atmay]

Mostly stored JIC. I bet I dont burn a quart a year and that is just practicing our various setups. Only way a can will get rotated is keeping a friends basement heated during a power outage. I am not worried about it as I have almost never seen kero go bad when stored in metal cans. The stuff I have seen "bad" has been the stuff in old oil lamps and other appliances and it has been there forever. Even then with a little new kero it all burned. Was that stuff stored in plastic or metal?

It was plastic cans. There was also some in a heater tank (not attached to the heater at the time) which was metal. It was their summer estate, and they were rich...so it definitely wasn't well cared for. It's good to know that it does actually last when you take care of it.

 

[mannydog]

This is an excellent thread. To me the weak link in my preps is the meds. Antibiotics, insulin for your mother -in law (no m.i.l. jokes, she' a sweetheart) and stuff like that aren't available off the shelf. And all the beans and rice you have don't mean anything without water. Regarding water: A buddy of mine and I bought Berkey water purification systems. Mine was around $250. He's set his up and uses it every day for cooking water, for his daughter's baby formula, and making coffee but mine is still in the box. The claim is you can purify a couple of gallons an hour. Google Berkey water purification. In case of a long-term emergency, the plan is to draw water out of a shallow well (available) with manual inertial pumps and/or "guzzler" type manual pumps with hdpe tubing. Or use surface water. Filter the water through cloth, purify with the Berkey, and finish with a little chlorine bleach. And have clean jugs to store.
In the case of any large-scale, sudden and immediate emergency, my thinking is to be able to step back and wait out any immediate panic by the unprepared. It could be ugly.

 

[coastie]

This is an excellent thread. To me the weak link in my preps is the meds. Antibiotics, insulin for your mother -in law (no m.i.l. jokes, she' a sweetheart) and stuff like that aren't available off the shelf. And all the beans and rice you have don't mean anything without water. Regarding water: A buddy of mine and I bought Berkey water purification systems. Mine was around $250. He's set his up and uses it every day for cooking water, for his daughter's baby formula, and making coffee but mine is still in the box. The claim is you can purify a couple of gallons an hour. Google Berkey water purification. In case of a long-term emergency, the plan is to draw water out of a shallow well (available) with manual inertial pumps and/or "guzzler" type manual pumps with hdpe tubing. Or use surface water. Filter the water through cloth, purify with the Berkey, and finish with a little chlorine bleach. And have clean jugs to store.
In the case of any large-scale, sudden and immediate emergency, my thinking is to be able to step back and wait out any immediate panic by the unprepared. It could be ugly.

FOr antibiotics do some research on fish antibiotics. Search the net, there is a fair amount of good info. Also books like Where there is No Doctor and Auerbachs Medicine for the Outdoors provide good dosing info and give you an idea of what to store. As for the insulin? Maybe look at storage methods and alternative ways to keep it cool. Down the well for example. My boss' teenage daughter is diabetic and I think of it often after reading "One Second After". I have looked at how it was produced in the past and it certainly isnt something that can be homebrewed.