Dada "Store-and-Ignore Disaster Kit" - would you buy one?

[Dave Ridley]

i'm redirecting this discussion to
http://newhampshireunderground.com/forum/index.php?topic=12492.0
and locking the thread

I'd like input from you guys before I go too deep into this project...

I am thinking of designing and producing a low-cost disaster kit primarily for use *after* the first week of a catastrophe.   It would also be designed so that every item had an indefinite shelf life.   Its contents would be barter-friendly consumables you could make easy use of with or without an emergency, at a better price than you would usually find them at the store 

In other words, a safe microinvestment.

Here's a list of items I might include...but mainly I am wanting to know how much interest there is in something like this.   If interest is limited , I may not do much.   However if interest is high enough, that would give me an excuse to start collecting a lot more survival friendly stuff and turning this kit, or something similar, into reality. 

Chlorine Water treatment tabs  - plus printed instructions on how to use them, even in cloudy water.
http://www.lesliespool.com/jump.jsp?itemType=PRODUCT&itemID=9151&iMainCat=14&iSubCat=104&iProductID=9151&tabID=3   
There is apparently debate regarding the indefinite status of this item's shelf life. 
Alum - for de-clouding water and making it easier to treat with Chlorine.  I'm uncertain regarding the indefinite status of this item's shelf life. 
Ammo - Something the Red Cross and Wal Mart kits never get around to including...fortunately it is still legal to sell without bureaucratic obstacles.  Ammunition historically becomes a currency in protracted crises. 
Candles -
Laptop Friendly Disaster Survival Library - this is a keyword searchable disaster survival document on CD; compiled by me but written by the U.S. Army and the Red Cross.
Matches - Matches became a currency in Bosnia during the 1990s conflict.  To limit fire hazard issues, I could store them in sealed glass jars?
Sterno - good for cooking indoors without electricity
kleenex - ideally, I should leave you a room full, but this will have to do.
Lamp Oil - apparently odorless mineral spirits are better.  u get them at home depot.   
honey - will crystalize eventually but can be reclaimed by _____
salt - the world's ancient currency.   Became very valuable in central Bosnia during the war. 
Wheat - plus printed instructions on how to sprout it.    This will keep you eating veggies for another week or two.   
See thru trash bags - double as low-budget greenhouse device in the sun.  Useful for all kinds of things and rarely in plentiful supply.
Baggies
Tampons - barter friendly even if you don't use them.

Ideally the biggest advantage of buying these things in this disaster kit form, might be that they are actually cheaper to own that way.  I already know how to find things really cheap around here and I'm just getting started...  Your thoughts?

[error]

I'll take two.

[Dan]

Two here too.

[Dave Ridley]

wow...ok I will accelerate my research on prices and get a little more aggressive on buying .    i scored a good candle deal earlier today and scored a good but limited ammo deal a few months ago, tissue paper too.    but this will take a while to put together at the right price.

much honored by your faith in the idea.

i think it might be practical to list every item and let you decide how much of each you want.  rather than building a custom kit. 

are there any restrictions at all that apply to ammo?   I heard there weren't but at wal mart they ask for my i d to buy ammo...wondering if that is still totally unregulated or if I need to jump thru some hoops to be legal....

I wont see a single round until i'm sure that it's legal .... violating laws I wish to do only openly/intentionally, not by accident

[Otosan]

honey - will crystalize eventually but can be reclaimed by _____


I was told/read/heard somewhere that honey with honey comb in it has a longer shelf life.

[Puke]

I am interested in this. 


One thing to note is that chlorine and iodine tablets corode everything around them, even when inside a container.
So, would it be better to have a modern filtration thingy, or are those limited in life-span?

[Kat Kanning]

How about making a male kit and female kit?

[porcupine kate]

Glad brand trash bags are food grade.  I don't know if they have clear plastic ones.

I would add coffee filters for water treatment.  They can remove some of the grit before you filter or treat  water.
Iodine for water treatment.  It may have a longer shelf life to supplement the chlorine tablets.
Thick warm socks
hand warmers
candle wicks, the kind you can get at the craft store with the wire core.  You can use with any glass jar to make an oil lamp.  Also some wire to make a stand to support the candle wick.  Bill and I have done this and it works quite well.  Any vegetable oil will work in it.
I would do a roll of toilet paper instead of kleenex. More tissue and you could squish it flat to reduce space.
Baggies-I would do gallon sized freezer weight bags.
Maybe some Mountain House freeze dried food in pouches.  They last up to 7 years.  and just need water.
I would also include directions and some supplies to sprout the wheat in the kit.

Dave if selling the kits doesn't draw enough interest to make it worth your while I would love to start a "co-op" style buying plan. One person finds a deal on a good supply of something useful and lets other people pitch in and divide the goods.  This way we have a pool of people looking for stuff and we can take advantage of bulk purchasing.  Also it isn't the same person ordering stuff and having it shipped. Members could join by organizing a purchase of an item.  Toowm did this with a silver purchase and I loved it.

[KBCraig]

are there any restrictions at all that apply to ammo?   I heard there weren't but at wal mart they ask for my i d to buy ammo...

You must be 18 to buy ammo for a long gun, or 21 for ammo for a handgun. No ID is required, unless you run into a doofus who can't tell you're over 21. I've heard some stores ask for ID or date of birth for all purchases, but I don't think that's a national Wal Mart policy. (Of course the funny part is that almost any handgun caliber is also available in long guns, with .22 being the most obvious. There are also plenty of carbines in .38/.357, 9mm, .40, .45 ACP, .45 Colt, and .44 Special/Magnum.)

[Dave Ridley]

How about making a male kit and female kit?

i think what will happen initially is people can simply pick from a list of items that could be in the kit...and I custom-load it for them.

If they don't want to do any thinking then I could sell them a standard kit based on the various feedback and research that ocurrs.

the idea of lots of us wondering around hunting for bargains sounds fun....  we are the people who man the "cheap bastard subforum," after all...

[MaineShark]

honey - will crystalize eventually but can be reclaimed by _____

Boiling in a double-boiler.

As far as the male/female kit, I don't think there are any big differences.  The basic kit looks good.  Products that are designed to soak up blood are useful, regardless of gender.

Joe

[Eli]

Running war water over the jar will do for honey in most cases.  And it is just as useful in granular form.

[Kat Kanning]

Do you have to go all the way to Iraq for war water?

[Lloyd Danforth]

Back in the Cold War days we could never get the honey to de-crystalize that way