Suggestions for a single woman living in the burbs

I have been extremely interested in being prepared in case of a natural disaster for a long time. I have done some things like getting a water filtration system in place, I have a solar oven, a fair amount of stored food for a single person. I am fairly well equipped with tools, and camping supplies, and lived out in the country so I can garden, raise small animals and the like.

I currently live in the burbs in Houston. I am curious if you were me, what would you be doing to get ready. I feel that in case of a hurricane I would be able to make it a several weeks just fine, but I am thinking longer term.

Looking forward to your answers,
StephanieM

Welcome!

Single woman? Houston area (lots of people)? Long term catastrophe? I'd be thinking protection myself ... a firearm, good door locks, etc. Is your "water filtration" just a "taste good" carbon setup on your kitchen faucet, or an actual pathogen filtration device capable of making dangerous water drinkable?

Being single ( I mean living alone ) is good, and not so good. I would suggest finding like-minded folks (especially ladies) and exchanging ideas and more. Making a loose group is not a bad idea.

Just my 2¢

Welcome StephanieM

There are actually several of us women who post here regularly. I too am single (well my 94 year old Mother does live with me) and live on acreage in Washington state with my two Dobermans and a couple of horses.

Dagny is another female here on the forum that should be checking in soon (think she is on a long camping trip) who has vast experience with camping equipment, dogs and preparedness.

Here is a thread that might interest you.
http://forums.equipped.org/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=200777#Post200777

Living in the PSW, I prepare for winter storms as well as earthquakes. I’ve been through several windstorms and one rare for the area ice storm that knocked the power out for over a week. Now that I’m retired on don’t have an office to stock with supplies, I think of my preparedness with what I have carried on me, what’s in my SUV and then what I have at home.

This forum has lots of great info, inluding the master of survival expertise --Doug Ritter.

Welcome to the board, Stephanie!

First, make a list defining the problems you would be anticipating. Long-term, NOLA-after-Katrina problems? Civil unrest? EMP? Terrorist-instigated zombie attack?

The basics are always the same:
First Aid
Water
Fire
Shelter
Food
Signaling

Having first aid supplies that you don't know how to use are pointless. Stock up on the basics. Do you realize how many bandaids you go through for a small cut when you're gardening? Contact your local Red Cross for CPR and first aid classes.

Without water, you're dead. What's your plan if the power goes off? Can you collect rainwater (TX probably has more info on this than any other state, research it) and store it? If you live near a river or stream that runs all year, contact your local water board and find out how toxic it is, and what contaminants you're likely to be dealing with.

Do you have multiple ways to start fire? What will you be burning? Can you store enough for a year or two?

Shelter can be your house, your vehicle, a tent, a tarp. The record cold for Houston was 5ºF, the high was 108ºF. How will you deal with these temps without power?

Food is the easiest thing to store, just remember that a load of frozen food without power will thaw faster than you can eat it. If you can grow food, you need to know how to store it, too: cool storage, dry it, can it, ferment it, pickle it.

If you plan to grow food, have a good soil test done (write ORGANIC on the request). No garden soil is perfect as it is, it's usually high in some things or deficient or totally lacking in other things. Learn what you need to do to fix it. Learn organic -- chemical gardening isn't sustainable.

There is a learning curve on everything, including gardening and raising/slaughtering/butchering animals. Jumping into it when you're really needing it is poor planning.

If you have house pets, what's your long-term plan for them? Children? Babies? Seniors? People close to you with medical problems? Is it likely that people would move in with you during a disaster? Visitors?

Do an experiment when you're going to be home for a few days: turn off your water, then turn off all your breakers except for the freezer. That should bring forth a lot of questions and ideas --- write them down.

Get used to thinking, What If...

Sue

p.s. There are no stupid questions. Sometimes the questions that seem too simple to ask are the most important. So ask, okay?

Most of the people on this board are guys. They are brighter, more educated, more knowledgeable, and more willing to pass on what they know than any place I've been, or any board I've ever seen. No matter what you want to know, someone here knows something about it. Even if they don't know exactly what you want, they can usually point you in the right direction to do some research.

If you need to know how to turn off the natural gas to your house, there are at least 57 guys here who can explain how, what tool to use, and even show photos. They will tell you that you can turn something off, but you will have to have a professional turn it back on, and why. They know how long you can store gasoline, problems you're likely to run into with propane, and electrical stuff. They know about generators, well pumps, cell towers, satellite phones, ham radios, jury-rigging stuff, knots, materials you've never heard of, and pretty much every tool that has ever been invented.

They're just a tiny bit slow with the Spanish name of those big Mexican water urns, but someone will know it, I'm sure.

You can even ask about things that don't have anything to do with survival, just do it here at the Campfire.

Just ask.

Sue

Thanks for the input!

For water, I have 30 gallons stored at all time thanks to Ozarka water delivery. I live near lake houston, I have a berkeley water filtration system, it filters most things out, I also have some iodine tablets as well. My game plan there is to add some more water collection devices such as some really large trash barrels to collect water.

I have a decent amount of dehydrated foods, I have also canned a good amount of food, meat, in addition to making some commercial purchases. I have also done some fermenting of pickles, and a variety of other foods. I am currently in the middle of dehydrating additional foods and placing them into vaccuum sealed bottles/bags.

I have done some gardening in years past, this fall I plan on putting in more of a garden. I do a lot of container gardening currently.

Good thoughts on the fire building, I got a solar stove for cooking, and possibly some water treatment as well. I have very little in terms of heat though. So this is an area where I am lacking.

Do folks plan for Katrina/Ike type of situations first, or more of security and safety in case of civil unrest?

Water is a big priority of mine. I do store quite a bit as the horses take about 10 gallon per day on an average. I’m on a well so I also have a gen set to pump it when the power is out. The generator works for me as I have a storage shed a good distance from the house and barn for fuel storage. Even with that fuel storage is a pia as it has to be treated and rotated out.

I have several of these that were used for juice and was able to wash them out, they make great water storage barrels if you have a place to store them where they can be dumped. I keep mine behind some privacy fencing next to my horse barn in a shaded spot. I paid about $10 each for them. Soda pop bottling companies also sell them for about $10.
https://www.containerandpackaging.com/item.asp?item=D004

For water purification I keep a unopened gallon of bleach at home and rotate it every few months. In my vehicle and kits I keep these rather than the iodine tabs.

http://www.katadyn.com/usen/katadyn-prod...-package-of-20/

I almost forgot, dealing with human waste is a big issue.

For very short-term, a new 5-gallon plastic bucket and a clip-on toilet seat/lid and some sawdust/leaves/stove pellets/organic pet litter/compost, etc. Don't be tempted to use clay cat litter, trust me.

For the longer term, there is a really good book called The Humanure Handbook by Joseph Jenkins. It comes in paper and free online (includes drawings and photos). He answers all your questions, plus some you never thought to ask.

Just digging a hole in the ground and letting the waste get into the groundwater is not cool.

Sue

That is amazing! I think that beats the old fashioned outhouses, I did a lot of camping in colorado, and I could hardly imagine an outhouse in the heat of Houston.

Hurricane country? Do you live in an apartment or house? The reason I ask is that you can make do as an emergency water source - your water heater. Apartment dwellers don't usually have direct access to theirs. You can drain the fluid as required but you may need to demineralize, filter, even boil the water to make it potable, but most of the time it should be OK. Most people think about filling the tub, which is fine if you know before hand that you are going to be without water.

And never forget that running may be your best option under some circumstances.

Keep some bags or totes near the front door with necessities. Even if you have to run from a very local disaster (toxic tanker overturned, etc), all the places upwind of the spill will be stripped of useful goods by the time you get there.

When I saw the lines of traffic at a dead stop on the freeways ahead of Katrina, my foremost thought was, "I would sure hope that I had the sense to bring a bucket toilet and some sawdust along..."

Sue

a couple of suggestions for stay in place hurricane events with probable power outage..fill a 33 gallon trash can in your tub/shower for flushing toilet...slowly add water directly to bowl... try this before you need to use it for real....get a dedicated pump up garden sprayer not to be used for anything else, bungee a small black trash can liner around it, place it in the sun. A warm shower does wonders for your disposition ( I hate to shave with cold water). Place another trash can under the eaves of your house to catch extra water... haven't had a filled one move yet in a 125mph breeze. Obtain a couple of the 3 day ice chests, one for ice (freeze 2 liter bottles (not milk), one for any refrigerated left overs, place in chest before any anticipated power outage so you don't have to open the door of the fridge. I have converted my emergency cooking to propane, and have one of the 1 pound bottle fill adapters from a 25 pound tank. Although not recommended by "authorities" I find the flickering light provided by a couple of Dietz lanterns comforting... running on lamp oil (parafin),but I've used canola/peanut oil in the past. I've got a couple of the closet dome LED lights, but haven't tried them for real yet. Get a NOAA weather alert radio, programable for your specific location. During the 04/05 hurricane season I did not loose internet service. I think a hard wired lap top with a 12v to 5v USB car charger would be great for post storm information/entertainment. Put a split key ring on your LED flashlight (I use a AA mini MagLight as I have tried to standardize batteries) so you can clip it to a belt snap ( I have a tendency to misplace lights) Get an LED headlamp for hands free use. A cordless drill/charged batteries (if you can find a "yankee screwdriver") comes in handy for putting up plywood. "Ply locks" have worked well in the neighborhood if you have a recessed window. If you board up, it gets pretty warm till you get the boards off, might think of a battery fan to sleep with. Just a couple of ideas of things that worked for me living on the Gulf Coast for a little over 55 years. regards Les

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjdQmKJ-aRc

During Rita I stayed in, I thought the chaos on the roads was worse than what the potential damage would be. I have practiced filling every container of water when a hurricane is coming in. Growing up out in the country meant power was more fickle. I have flushed toilets without running water more than once! Living in Houston has meant for me buying cooking fuel, lighting sources, and some no cook food for hurricane season. Ike left my neighbors without power for up to 3 weeks.

I love the idea about the cordless drills and charging them up. I almost purchased one of those portable power things yesterday, but I like the trash liner idea better. I have an ample supply of candles, some battery operated lights, and I have a couple of lights that are charged when you shake them.

Thanks for the many suggestions. Being a single woman, I assure you, most of my friends think I am nuts because I have been making a point to store food, and start preparations like I have. It is good to know there are others out there with similar thoughts.

Get a quality LED flashlight. I like the AA lights from Fenix and 4Sevens. 4Sevens' Quark AA2 is a great light IMO. Its single AA sibling is a bit smaller and gives up little in performance. Fenix also makes a very high quality light -- L2T and LD20 are both two AA battery lights. All lights mentioned use common, easy to obtain batteries. Welcome to the forum.

The general rule is storage of one gallon of water per person, per day. But that's just for drinking and cooking, not for dish washing or bathing or flushing toilets. For Houston in the summer, I would double that. Allow extra for pets -- a large dog will drink as much as a person.

If you only store 30 gallons (of course that might change!), that's not enough for toilet flushing. But if you have access to mildly contaminated water (creek, lagoon, golf course lakes, etc), you can use that for flushing toilets. But not for every time someone uses the toilet. Remember the old hippie water-saving rule: "If it's brown, flush it down; if it's yellow, let it mellow."

If you have people who automatically flush (or kids), slip the top end of the chain off the end of arm inside the tank (the other end of the chain is attached to the flapper).

If you plan on filling your bathtub, fill it now and see if your stopper actually holds it for a day or more. Mark the full line with a crayon or tape. Some metal stoppers don't last much longer than a bath takes. Consider replacing with a rubber stopper, if possible.

Also investigate the bathtub Water BOB, a heavy bag that fits inside a bathtub and holds about 100 gallons of water. Useful if you have prior warning, such as a hurricane. Useless for earthquakes.

Sue

So let me be more clear about my water.

I keep about 30 gallons of bottled water at all times.
I have more jugs in the 5 gallon size that I have on hand, that will give me another 10.
My downstairs bath tub will told water for a couple of days, I haven't checked it past 36 hours.
I have one large trashcan for water right now, I would like to get a couple more of the 50 gallon ones, so that would bring me up to about 150 in trash cans.
I have a small goldfish pond in my backyard that I could utilize about 100 gallons out of it as well.

When a hurricane is on its way I fill all available buckets full of water, which would most likely give me another 25 gallons.

40
50
150
100
25

365 gallons

I do have a natural water supply from my house within walking distance which is a tributary stream to Lake Houston. If that would fail, there are a couple more streams nearby, and then the lake itself. I have a berkeley water filtration system, and I am guessing I could fairly easily set up a gravitational system, should I encounter having to pull water from the tributary stream that feeds into Lake Houston that's close to my house. I also have a solar oven that should aide myself in treating water as well. I thought this was a decent start, it is really just me at my house. Any recommendations on the gallons I should be keeping?

Oooo love the water bob, that would make both bathtubs extra water storage units!

Stephanie, I am "librarian" aka Jackie. I live across I 45 from The Woodlands, on an acre of mostly uncleared land. My husband and I are retired teachers. I am trying to plant edible landscaping, and , of course, I have the usual hurricane supplies to which I am adding as much as possible. i have been on this forum for years but do not post much. You sound like you are well on your way to independence. More later.

Yes, Jackie is right, you're doing well. And you're leaps and bounds ahead of most of America. Just keep learning and building your knowledge and supplies.

If you have a hot water tank, there's another 30-40 gallons.

Sue

Make sure you do drain and refill the tank every so often to get rid of the junk that builds up in the bottom of the tank

Hello StephanieM, its always good to see someone new here, you have my sincerest apologys for not welcoming you sooner but I've had some computer trouble the last few days. As everyone else has said there's no such thing as a stupid question here, I've asked what felt like a few myself. And it seems like your onto a good start, I can't think of anything to what everyone else has said except that you might want to take a look through the old threads, you'll find a tonne of info in them.

Welcome to the forums lots of good people here.

Lee

StephanieM, put hurricane condition checklist or hurcon checklist into the ETS search engine. That may prove useful.

Actually the updated Hurricane Condition Checklist is still on the front page in the Natural disaster and urban preparation section of the forum, right under the Around the Campfire Forum Titla.

Thanks to all for making me feel so welcome. I promise I am the odd duck in my circle of friends. Well actually most are more into security, so they have the guns and ammo, and I tend to have the other things. It is a bit more challenging for me because I live alone, but I appreciate everyone's help.

My current fantasy is to get about a 5-20 acre parcel of land and try to go somewhat off the grid. I gotta pay the bills though


Thanks to all again!
StephanieM

Odd ducks tend to fit in here very nicely.

They even let ME stay...

Sue

Based on the title, I recommend addressing your security and special female needs. The other aspects (e.g., water, etc.) are not unique to being a single woman, and can be found in numerous other threads.



I don't see these two things as being mutually exclusive. As for security, that's a full time thing for me. Security won't suddenly kick-in once there's a natural disaster. A security mindset is one that I always have, even without there being a SHTF situation.

I bet THAT took some persuasion!!

I know, I know, we youngsters have no respect for our elders

Advice that I recently passed onto a member here, "when Susan speaks, it is best to pay attention to what she says and/or where she is trying to direct your attention to. She is one very intelligent and savvy individual!!!"

HEAR HEAR! I will second and even third that motion-

Pete

Thank you very much, guys, but I know I'm a short-tempered, intolerant b... witch. And I know I'm seriously opinionated and have skated really close to locked threads and getting the boot.

It took me a long time to realize that I couldn't please everyone. So now I mainly just please myself, it's much simpler that way!

Sue

Remember Sue we love you!

Hey! No stereotyping Witches! I've known many, and they tend to be very much not intolerant!

I've learned that it is wise to listen to what you have to say!!!!

Hi Stephanie, welcome to the fire. I'm a fellow citizen of the Houston area up on the north side. Having been here since the late 90's I've been here through Tropical Storm Allison (39" of rain in our neighborhood in less than 24 hours), hurricances Rita and Ike (no power for a week after Ike), assorted other flood events, and even an ice storm.

It sounds like you have food and water covered. Other things to think about:

Power
You don't necessarily need a generator but some sort of 12v deep cycle battery and an inverter can keep a small fan running, give you light, recharge your cell phone, and even keep your laptop computer online. Also, standarize your flashlights, radios and other electronic gizmos to just one or two types of batteries and then stock up on those batteries! I like Eneloop rechargable batteries because once charged they self-discharge very slowly during storage and they can be recharged by a solar charger.

Lights
Head lamps are much easier to use than hand-held flashlights but keep a small handheld flashlight in your pocket AT ALL TIMES! House get really dark really fast well before it gets dark outside. After working outside most of the day you'll forget this fact and walk into a dark house. Those glow-stick braclets are great for marking radios, doorknobs, cats, and other items you'll want to find in the dark. The headlamp in the bathroom STAYS IN THE BATHROOM!!
Compact fluorescent lights and the new LED lightbulbs draw a lot less power and don't heat the place up like incandescent bulbs. This keeps your place cooler and doesn't drain your power sources as quickly.

Communication
Okay, I'm a radio nut so I have a bunch of different radios that pick up am, fm, shortwave, etc... These were vital to keep track of what was going on after Ike. Some were battery powered, others had built-in generator cranks, some solar-powered. I found the battery powered ones worked the best. They lasted for days on one set of batteries and I could easily move them around, use them at night, etc.

Figure out how to use the text messaging feature on your cell phone. During Ike the land lines in our neighborhood were "confiscated" by the authorities for their use only and so cell phone towers were overloaded. The only way I could get word out was via text message. Surprisingly, messages sent locally went instantaniously, but texts sent out of the area/out of state were often delayed up to 24 hours. Also be sure to have multiple ways to charge your cell phone.

FMS/GRS "walkie-talkies were a wonderful way to keep in contact. Before Rita and Ike hit all the neighbors got together and made sure every household had one of these 2-way radios set to the same frequency. That way if someone needed emergency help during or after the storm they could call the other neighbors for assistance. That really brought peace of mind to a number of folk.

If there are lots of people worried about you outside the area set up a Twitter account linked to your cell phone. This way you can easily keep everyone updated on how you are doing, what you might need, etc...

Neighbors
Know them, like them, woo them!
And by "woo" I mean nurture your friendships with them. They will be one of your most important resources.

Tools and things
The most important tools I found for the aftermath were limb-loppers for cutting up fallen branches, heavy-duty trash bags to hold the branches, rakes, and leather gloves. Steel-toed boots, safety glasses and ear plugs are good if you are helping clear trees with a chainsaw. Hammer, nails, tarps, strips of wood, tar paper, shingles, ropes are good for patching holes in your roof, but in most cases you are better off letting someone with experience climb around up there. I have my old climbing harness to help me, but at this point in life I think I'll stay closer to the ground.

Extension cords are worth there weight in beer even if you don't have a generator because people who do usually don't have enough power cords.

You need more towels but not white towels. Also, some quick-dry "sportsman" clothing is great because after working all day you can rinse them out in the shower and they'll be ready to go the next day. You can buy these clothes cheap at Academy. I actually spent most of the time after Ike in cargo-shorts type of swimsuit, which worked great.

Other stuff
Keep your freezer filled with as much ice as possible. Buy the best coolers you can afford. Fill these coolers with ice before the storm hits even if your freezer is filled with ice. Ice is like firewood, whatever amount you have you'll actually need twice as much. Any food placed in your coolers should be sealed in watertight bags (Ziplocs or others) to protect them from getting soaked in the water from melted ice. Take care of your fridge/freezer before cleaning the yards. keep a notepag and pen with you at all times as you'll constantly hear or think of something you'll need to act on later. Write it down or you will forget it. You can cook ANYTHING on a grill as long as you have a gridle and heavy-duty aluminum foil.

Anyway, just some thoughts off the top of my head.
-Blast

Cash

Fuel -- top off frequently, don't let your tank drop below half.

In a power outage or widespread emergency don't count on the ATMs, Visa card readers and fuel pumps to function. Expect tremendous lines if they do. And have important papers, such as account statements, ready-to-go at a moment's notice.


Welcome to ETS, Stephanie. I'm also single. I Iive in Washington, DC. I have a dog so she's part of my preparedness effort (food, water and meds). We do a lot of camping in the spring-summer-fall so I'm just now getting to this thread.

Camping gear and the experience of living outdoors can come in very handy in an emergency.

Blast, Susan and others have made many great suggestions. I tend to organize camping and preparedness around themes, such as: shelter (home, car, hiking, clothes), water (storage and purification), food (storage, refrigeration and cooking), first-aid (meds, bandages, instruction).

...and: home and car (you may not be home when an emergency strikes)

I keep stuff organized in containers or bags to make packing for camp trips more efficient (and to lessen the chance of leaving something important behind).

You might begin by keeping a list of what you use everyday and what would be unpleasant (toilet paper, shampoo, toiletries, lights, a/c) or dangerous to run out of (water, food, meds, power -- heat, oven-stove).

Imagination is essential to preparedness. Imagine situations and problem-solve them and then prepare as best you can. That's what's going on in a lot of the ETS threads.

Here's an off the top of my head list of gear I deem essential (am also big on redundancy and have much of this in my car as well as home): headlamps and flashlights, candles (and candle lanterns), firestarters (numerous) radios, batteries, hatchets and axes, knives, stoves (propane, duel-fuel, charcoal, Kelly Kettle and Thermette), water purification (tablets and devices), sturdy boots and socks (car and home), extra glasses, tent, tarps, sleeping bags, gloves (sturdy work, warm and weatherproof), rope, duct tape, tools

No doubt I've left things out, but it's a start.

Thank you for your continued wonderful suggestions, i see areas where i am lacking in. In It is a lot easier when you get input from others with a lot of experience. Thank you for the wisdom that you share.

i second that!