Posted on 02/19/2016 11:53:31 AM PST by TMSuchman
Yes there are canned and dried foods that last for longer but the problem is space.
Two years worth of food takes up quite a bit of real estate and you should have at least that always stored.
Long term (years) gardening is the only way to go.
That’s my idea of ideal food preservation.
For the mechanically inclined, a vacuum pump, vacuum gauge, old freezer, some tubes and a vacuum chamber, one can be made. Youtube has some ideas to copy. A freeze dryer can be made for about a hundred bucks.
Years ago I made my own vacuum pump out of a freezer compressor. If my memory is correct, I think it pulled about 20 in merc vacuum. They are very slow for large chambers, so make a two stage vacuum pump using a common vacuum cleaner as the first stage which evacuates the bulk of the air out in just seconds. The setup requires check valves, gauges and switches, but simple to construct.
Thanks for taking over the prepper ping list, Mike. I read them thoroughly though seldom post.
If Kart is still around and reading these I pray you and the Mrs. are well.
Best to all, OOS
Have you run the numbers on which would be cheaper....this or store bought?
With that many rabbits you should consider trapping some mating pairs for down the road. Live meat beats canned everytime. Pelts are bonus. Learn now and live up later.
;>)
Got a link?
Thanks for taking over, Mike.
2 questions for All:
1. I’m considering building an old-timely smoke house to smoke and dry meat. Does anyone know if smoking meat also preserves it for storage, for any length of time? I mean without refrigeration. Even a few months would be okay, not necessarily years. Wouldn’t be worth the bother if it’s gonna go bad in a week, though. Anyone have experience with a smokehouse?
2. Off topic: awhile back, somebody posted a photo of a manually operated log splitter, now I can’t find it. It was a seesaw-type contraption, mounted on a heavy spring, with a maul on one end. If anybody has that photo or link, I’d be grateful.
Thanks again.
Something I haven’t seen recommended that I recall, but good to have - - extra pair of prescription glasses and maybe some el-cheapo reading glasses too.
Learn to can. It’s not that difficult, just takes some practice.
We also have a vac sealer we use a lot. A foo dehydrator is next on the list.
L
Actually that is of an upcoming thread, medical supplies & equipment
I’m with you, the dates on canned food seem conservative. I’ve opened Wolf’s Chili 5 years past it’s stamped date. It looked slightly different from new, but tasted great - no issue with it. But if it’s not in a can, FORGET IT. A few years ago Sam’s stopped selling canned Mandarin Oranges and went to plastic tubs. One day past the date on it, it no longer even looks orange (I won’t sicken you with the color).
As far as the people here that think they’ll just take their trusty 22 out and shoot varmint, or a bigger gun and shoot deer, my recommendation is to go a cattle farm and look at the number of cattle. It takes A LOT cattle to feed Americans, as in (probably) 100 times the deer population (by weight of the meat). If “it” happens (as in a North Korean EMP attack, for example), in one month there will not be a single deer left in this country. We have 200 million armed civilians - the deer will be gone virtually overnight. People have to GET REAL and stop thinking that just because they see a few deer in the woods, means no one else sees them - no, thousands of people see those same deer. Think about that.
As far growing food is concerned, that all sounds quaint and fun, until your survival depends on it. One strain of bug or mold, and there goes your food for the year. Or maybe some of the varmints that survived get into your garden, or maybe your neighbors do a midnight run. Good luck with your garden being left alone, when the country is STARVING TO DEATH. You better have 24 hour security on it.
Bottom line - FOOD IS CHEAP - now. Buy it, store it. Canned is the best overall. Dried (dehydraded) is probably ok too, but nearly all carbs. Not the end of the world, but a supply of canned food costs relatively little (i.e., skip one exotic vacation and you can feed your family for at least a year) and is much easier to defend than a garden (particularly if you don’t let anyone know you have it)...and the food will be edible for a long time, and after that, it can (most likely) be replaced).
“Something I haven’t seen recommended that I recall, but good to have - - extra pair of prescription glasses and maybe some el-cheapo reading glasses too.”
Go to Zenni...enter your prescription numbers, and buy your glasses for $7.00 each, plus a small shipping charge.
Sounds too good to be true, until you do it and find out for yourself. By the time I’m done, I’ll have at least 5 copies of every prescription (driving, reading, computer) that I will ever need.
Kartographer is still out there. But it’s tough work being a specialist on this site, so like you (no doubt) I TREMENDOUSLY APPRECIATE the work he’s done for all of us and have no issue with him moving over to other venues.
Kart. has not left us & moved on. He has a family medical issue that requires his full attn. for now. But he does plan on coming back as soon as it is possible. And he does plan on dropping in from time to time.
No more bunnies in my immediate area, due to predators living very close to my yard. All I’ve got is squirrels, and I’m not going to trap and raise those. I do have an almost unimaginably large supply of acorns for the squirrels though, with more than 50 large oak trees per home within a mile radius.
Have you tried canned salmon? Last time I looked, the cans at the grocery store had very long shelf lives marked.
For almost a decade now, we have been raising most of our own food. 2000 lbs of vegetables and fruit a year, my wife raises bees so we have honey and beeswax for many products. Our herb and vegetable gardens have at least 60 different varieties of items. We can, dry, smoke, vacuum freeze, ferment, dehydrate and root cellar. Several deer a year from the forest or off the front porch, trout from the stream out back. While we own 34 acres, only 1/4 acre is used for the intensive raised bed gardening we do. What we don’t raise: smoked rabbit, free range chicken, eggs, we get from our neighbors.
Until last July, when we retired, we built this up while holding two full jobs in the “city” 130 miles away.
We live in a fully modernized log cabin, heated by a small soapstone wood stove. If I decide to put in a shallow gravity fed well fed by a spring at the top of our field, then the grid can go completely down and I wouldn’t care.
You need a plan. You need an inventory. You need some, not a lot of land. You need experience. You need mentors. You need a variety of firearms, lots of ammo, and know how to use them. You need neighbors you can trust.
There are millions of families doing some or more than what we do. It’s called “country”.
You need to be doing something about this now, not later.
If you have questions feel free to ask.
Ok. Did you know stinging nettles are one of the most nutritious plants. For real. For tea, greens like spinach or as tincture. Tomorrow I go harvesting.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.