Supplies for a Family of 5?

Hi, all the dangers we now face and the chance of a nuclear war, i was wondering what supplies would be needed for a family of 5 per day. Amount of water for all of us, food, we have shelter, how much gasoline and other neccessary supplies to survive?

Any ideas?

reply to post by Rimaster


Hello,
give this calculator a try...pretty cool

reply to post by Fathom


what calculator?

Wow... so many variables.

For a quick overview it would depend on area and risk. If you live near a major city or are already in a rural area.

I for one would prefer to be out of a major city as the looters or officials may confiscate or steal your stuff.

Budget is a factor. If you could afford 5 years of dehydrated mountain house food for 5 at a cost of thousands I would recommend that course of action.

Otherwise buy lots of canned food and rotate it / donate it before expiration. store it by expiration dates in an underground storage / living area.

Water is a bit harder. There are many ways to store water, Drums, underground tanks, etc.

My opinion is camouflage is the best policy. If nobody knows or can see where you are then you are that much safer.

reply to post by infolurker


well i live in upstate NJ in the suburbs a small town but its only around 10 miles away from NY which is a major target, so there is a huge chance if war does break out i would be hit.... we have a vacationing home in Upstate NY which we would probably go to if war did break out, but i was just wondering what supplies i would need.

A well in the basement, with a solar or hand powered powered pump, and a large poly-tank for water would be a good idea.

I can't see any calculator either. When I click on the highlighted word calculator, an add for "Microsoft Live Search" comes up.

Rough one on location. Your in the same situation I am in. I live in a suburb but have a "property" out a bit farther.

The killer is the unknown factor: Will you be at home sleeping, at work, or have enough time to make a choice on exodus.

I have taken to storing allot of canned food at home but hope to stock my property in the near future. Luckily the off-grid property is a days walk (if we had to walk) from my residence on back roads but If I am at work, it would be 50 miles away. I stock what I eat pretty much. I do buy a bit more vegetables for my stock than we actually eat but they are cheaper. A good liquid source is fruit packed in juice. Also vegetables in cans are in water.. may not taste great but it will work in a pinch. Tuna in oil, you will need oil to cook eventually. White pasta stores well, not very nutritional but it is calories. White Rice frozen and put in a bucket stores well and you can get the oxy absorbers and mylar bags if your hardcore on long term storage.
www.sorbentsystems.com...


Of course with rice and pasta, have to have something to put over it like beef stew, chili, tomato sauces, etc.

Buying normal cans and rice/pasta is a fraction of the cost of long term stored food but you have about 3 years before the expiration date on the cans. Now, many things are good for years after the expiration date but just know when to donate upcoming expirations to a food bank and swap to avoid any problems.

The hard thing of course is Where to store it. Will you be able to get to your out of the way place? That is the hard one. If in a subdivision, it is a bit hard to put an underground shelter in place without the whole neighborhood finding out which kind of defeats the purpose except in the most extreme cases.

In either case, better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

2 items that have not gone down in value recently are food and ammo.

here are some helpful links:

100 Items to Disappear First
www.thepowerhour.com...
www.cedarcountypublichealth.org...

hubpages.com...

bulk-survival-food.com...

www.birdflumanual.com...

www.whenshtf.com...

www.sportsmansguide.com...

abcnews.go.com...

[edit on 1-9-2008 by infolurker]

Wow, thanks for the links, very helpful....hmmmm any ideas on recommended firearms?

Firearm choices are personal depending on experience, safety, and know-how of the users and family members. Remember "Safety First", don't want to operate something that you are not used to.

A must have in my opinion is a ruger 10/22 and some extra mags. Good for small game and ammo is cheap.

If you are inexperienced with pistols, choose a revolver. Pretty point blank in operation and easy to clean.

As for big game rifles or shotguns, all the choice of the user depending on budget and taste.

Find a rifle range if possible in your area and give it a try (I have no idea if you are new to firearms or have an FFL so sorry if I make you laugh.) hehe.

nope i'm only 17 haha so i got another year before i can get anything but thats like first on my list once i'm 18. just want to know what to get you know?