All Levels Start Here
The goal of SHTF Everything is to design a system of prepping that is resilient enough to handle a total societal collapse for an indefinite period.
All the individual pieces seem to be out there on the internet or in books, they just need to be put together and field tested. Remember, there is a lot of uninformed information that is repeated by everyone, but might get you killed in a life or death situation.
This website is my attempt to put all my research in one place, develop a community of local people who have the same ideas and maybe save people some time researching. Please remember it's more of a journey, not a destination. There are going to be tons of failures along the way.
While it seems like an overwhelming goal it turns out Bill Mollison did a lot of the heavy lifting (back in the 70's) when he designed Permaculture.
Once we get the beginning 'keep you alive' preps out of the way, Permaculture will be a large basis of the plan. Mix it up with a little homesteading, some modern security and first aid and we are pretty close.
Prepping can be overwhelming in the beginning. It's such a wide field, it's impossible to know where to focus, so I have broken it down into 4 levels:
Level 0(3 days)
Level 1(3 weeks)
Level 2(3 months)
Level 3 (Indefinite - The final goal)
The Canadian Government suggests everyone have 3 days worth of supplies on hand for an emergency, so we can consider that the absolute minimum.
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Going into debt for prepping.
Just my opinion, take it for what it's worth:
When things start to get a little scary I see people online suggesting to max out lines of credit to get the preps you need.
In a perfect world, if you were able to accurately predict what form of dangers you would be facing this would make sense. If you knew there was going to be a 5 month food shortage, just max out your credit cards and buy as much food as you can. You can always sell the extra for a huge profit.
Unfortunately life is a little messier. During the U.S. great depression many banks went out of business.
Great! no more mortgage... Unfortunately it doesn't work this way. Creditors want their money and seized a lot of houses, kicking out the occupants and sold them to recoup their money.
Imagine if you just installed a new solar system on credit because you foresaw things getting tough. If your house is not completely paid off, or if you used your house as collateral and things go wrong the new owners are going to love you for it.
Now what are you going to do with all that food you put away? Many people in the great depression were forced to live in their cars, or tents. Nowadays you can bet it's all getting stolen the second you leave.
However you decide to prep, do it incrementally. This is why we set it up as 3 days, 3 weeks, 3 months. You are knocking off the most likely scenarios in order, then working to more unlikely -albeit more devastating ones.
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A couple of rules for myself and the site.
For expediency I have decided to let myself 'cheat' a little when setting up all the systems.
In a perfect world, I would do everything by hand every time as if a real world emergency was on. This would allow me to develop my skills to their maximum degree, but in practice I find it's just an excuse to not get stuff done.
For example:
To practice fermenting vegetables I should have the seeds on hand, plant them, harvest them at the end of the summer and then ferment.
The problem with this approach is you get one chance at each step:
-If you plant the seeds and they don't grow, you have to wait another year to try again.
-If the plants are eaten by animals or die of disease, you have to wait another year.
-If you mess up the recipe you have to wait another year.
-You only get to try one or two recipes per year, making finding favorites a life long ordeal.
So, here's the rules:
You need to have any items you need to complete the task before you start experimenting.
For the above example, you need to have heirloom seeds for every plant you would need. Pickling cucumbers? You need vinegar, heirloom dill seeds, garlic cloves, and cucumbers, stores of salt and sugar, and jars and lids, and a canning pot.
Why would I make this rule for myself? If something does happen I have everything I need to get the job done. It's easy to put off doing things like buying the seeds needed and just practice the good stuff, until you can't get seeds any more.
Any equipment you need should take into account a SHTF situation. To this end before using the quick way, do it by hand first.
For example. I use a bread machine to try different recipes. In a pinch, I can pull all the ingredients from my stores and beak some hand. The difference is I need manual scales, and a Dutch oven to cook over a fire.
I need to be actively planning to do the other parts.
Don't be the person who half-asses their preps. Reading an article or two prepping, or maybe reading a book on fermenting and calling it done.
If you start your preparations journey in the middle of the winter, it's unrealistic to wait until next fall to learn to ferment. Go ahead and start fermenting stuff from the store, but plan the type of garden you will make. Buy the seeds you need. Get all your ducks in order. Then when spring arrives you can complete puzzle.