Extreme Weather Prepping

[Scythe13]

Okay, if you've been a member of this forum for a week, you would have read plenty about the floods and things like that, but there has not been much information on what to do about it, other than being told your house sucks and you should have moved out of it over 100 years ago. Not that useful and not always an option either. So...The Glorious S13, with super sexy facial features, whom shoots lazers out of his eyes, and with buns of steel (haha, yes I know, there is a lot more about me that's amazing HAHAHAHA, sorry, I'm just messing about. I'm crap really...so the wife says) is here to help.

Yes, this will probably be a long post, but there has been a lot of thought and research that's gone into it. So if you think there will be extreme weather conditions on the horizon, similar to the last few years, then you'll hopefully benefit from this read.

Okay, first up we'll be exploring the various concepts of 'extreme weather' and how to prep for them. There is probably a lot more that can be said, and hopefully the comments and possible spin off threads will cover that which I missed or omitted for the sake of the reader wanting to have a life.

Right, let's begin with Extreme Rain.

Somerset Levels, The Thames, and my bathtub have all flooded recently. To solve one of these, just turn that tap off and don't get distracted by Pop Tarts! But if something happens, how will this weather situation effect you?

Well, if you have Waterbutts, you'll be fortunate to have a bountiful supply forever, right? Well, not exactly. The Plains of Africa experience extreme rains, and they dry out pretty quickly afterwards, so if you're getting extreme you should probably prep for a super dry few months later on. Sorry, drifted off topic a little. Waterbutts. If there's more water being dished out, it means you'll have a larger chance of flooding and thus a lack of clean water around. Will your current system have enough storage to not only water the garden when it's dry...for 3 or 4 months at a time, but also enough storage to feed you and yours while the area is flooding AND during the potential dry season? For just 3 or 4 of us, we're looking at a MINIMUM of 3000 litres of storage...plus the garden plant's storage supply too. That'll supply 3 litres a day for drinking, each, for 500 days. Add washing the alike, and we'll have about 300 days worth of water...minimum.

All the rain coming down over a prolonged period can lead to more contamination of flood water, but the rain is of benefit...if you can use it right. If you only have a small catchment AREA, e.g. a conservatory, you'll be pleased to know you can catch a lot more water now! So expanding your barrel supply would be fine, you'll not need to worry about having too small an area for rain-harvesting. You would even gutter up your shed (if it isn't already) and store what you can from there.

Next up, do you have some kind of water transport? Preferably one that keeps you dry? Swimming in flood water can get you from one place to another. But it can also get you killed or infected. Neither is ideal or fun. So, you want to be able to travel on or above the water. Think boat, raft, dingy, kayak, bridges, pontoons, plane, helicopter, auto-gyro, even a ladder or rope bridge between trees (just a thought, not necessarily a recommendation). But if you're bugging out, you might be caught with a hell of a situation. Your BOL is across a flooded area of potentially contaminated water. With this situation, beware of inflatables. I'm not against them, and if they're your only option, GO FOR IT! But if you can chose between hard base or inflatable, go hard base. The reason is that if you can't see what's below you, you run the risk of a puncture or similar. Then you're up a creek, and you have a paddle, but you're still screwed. Like I said, if you have no other options, of course, go for the inflatable.

A quick question, can you replenish the soils of their nutrients in your planting area, after a period of extreme rain? Nutrients are washes out of certain places, while flood plains are known for ultra-fertile soils. Fun with silt? If you've not thought about this much, then consider this a quick reminder. It might be time to start building that compost bin, as well as store a little extra fertiliser.

Last, but not least, how to stay dry. Have you got a waterproof cover, or 3 for your BOB? Do you have waterproofs strapped to or inside your bag? So you have spares? If you're camping out enroute to your BOL, do you have space to let your waterproofs hang and dry while you sleep?

Next up, let's have a look at extreme dry.

Droughts are becoming increasingly common. Last year, the year before, and so on. Hosepipe bans are not what we're on about. We're on about genuinely prolonged periods where there is no rain. In a working society situation like we have now, it's not the end of the world. It's just an inconvenience. A major annoyance at worst. But what about if you have survived a year post societal collapse. There is no longer ANY running water from your taps. All you have left is your water storage. Remember that huge quantity of water that your had to pour away mid winter? I bet, now it's in a drought, you wish you had additional water collection and storage systems?

Look at things like ponds and the alike. Also, why not use the drought to your advantage? What about setting up an algae or duck-weed tank? Depending on the algae, you could have many different uses for that, e.g. fertiliser, food, methane, etc. And duck-weed has a high protein content. But more importantly, why not be a little lazy? A small solar panel and a relatively small battery can power a water pump or air pump, and can water your plants for you. You'd need a small timer switch, but they're pretty easy to source. Some pumps have timers build in. When it's hot, your garden will just water itself. You can get some pretty quiet water pumps or air pumps. If you can't figure our how to use the air pump, look into water pressure or even something super simple like windowfarms. Imagine, post SHTF, your garden waters itself, and you just defend, check, and eat. Pretty good idea hu?

What about drying and solar cooking? Why not use the drought and high temps to start a solar cooker to dry meats and the alike for when the weather changes again?

Okay, now for bugging out questions. Do you have a small solar charger system for your BOB? It might seem pointless, because your iPod has an awesome battery life haha, but it might be nice to keep your radio charged. It may also be worth looking into solar battery chargers, and even power stores, such as the Veho Pebble. I use that to power my micro projector when I want to watch a film on the side of my tent or tarp.

For even more fun, and possibly being a bit wasteful, what about filling a 40 litre solar shower and enjoying a nice hot scrub later in the day, after the sun has warmed it? If you stand in a bathtub, you can collect the water and solar-still it clean for use the next day. Damn right, get the solar-stills running!


What about extreme Wind?

What is going on at the moment? Extreme wind everywhere. I bet HL is enjoying the extra power from his wind turbine?

This can be used to disguise noise and the alike. If it's blowing a hoolie, what a great time to get out and make some noise. The sound will travel, but it will be so masked, and so few people will be out in it, you'll be laughing....even if you did actually laugh nobody would hear.

Okay, but what other uses is wind for, other than to Dutch Oven your wife? This is where you bow to the insanity that is Scythe13. If you're feeling a bit lazy, you could hack into a tree part way, then let the wind finish knocking it down for you. You weaken the tree, the wind finishes the job. Easy. Plus, as long as you have the tree far enough away from you and yours, you don't need to worry about what direction it falls in. You could even just dig around the rootball and cut through some of the major roots keeping it in place. That way you can use the upturned earth, once it's fallen, as part of a hide or trench. I feel really lazy now.

As for how to defend against wind, you'll need to protect fences and the alike. Aside from strengthening the posts of your fences, you need a way for the wind to be able to be slowed down, but still have a route to travel. Look at more of a trellis style system instead of a full 6 food fence. Or look at upgrading your posts to concrete or something stronger.

Again, when it comes to bugging out, you'll want to find routes that provide shelter and the alike. You'll need to be ultra vigilant, because you'll not be able to hear people coming, however, they'll not be able to hear you either. Also, there is the potential for trees to be falling over, especially in areas where there are a lot of lazy preppers haha.


I hope this gives some idea and starts to get you thinking.

There is a lot more stuff on extreme weather that could be looked at, but the thing is, I'm a bit bored of typing and am in the mood to go out for a run in this weather.

TTFN.

I may take up where I left off, but probably not.