What Preps are you doing this week? Part 6.

How are you preparing
preppergb
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Re: What Preps are you doing this week? Part 6.

Post by preppergb »

in our last house I had a lot of preps stored in the lofty in sealed cardboard boxes, Went up there late one summer to fund a colony of wasps has converted most of the cardboard into a huge great wasps next. Stopped using the loft for perishables.
jennyjj01
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Re: What Preps are you doing this week? Part 6.

Post by jennyjj01 »

preppergb wrote: Sat Oct 26, 2019 10:59 am in our last house I had a lot of preps stored in the lofty in sealed cardboard boxes, Went up there late one summer to fund a colony of wasps has converted most of the cardboard into a huge great wasps next. Stopped using the loft for perishables.
Hmmmm. you are 'bugging' me now. Going to lay mouse/rat/wasp/moth traps and keep a close and regular eye up there, as part of a routine weekly rotation visit. I suppose I could put perishables into steel biscuit tins or similar. But I'll need quite a few of them.

Any suggestions for cheap big tin boxes?. I don't think plastic buckets would be quite enough against rodents..
I still think traps and vigilance will suffice..
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preppergb
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Re: What Preps are you doing this week? Part 6.

Post by preppergb »

old ammo boxes, cheap tool storage boxes, but the best policy is simply ensuring the critters cannot get in.
Arzosah
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Re: What Preps are you doing this week? Part 6.

Post by Arzosah »

jennyjj01 wrote: Sat Oct 26, 2019 12:56 pmAny suggestions for cheap big tin boxes?. I don't think plastic buckets would be quite enough against rodents..
Weirdly, poundland type shops might be your best bet - I've noticed some of them have big glass storage jars, which would be just as effective against rodents for packets of dried goods :)
jennyjj01
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Re: What Preps are you doing this week? Part 6.

Post by jennyjj01 »

preppergb wrote: Sat Oct 26, 2019 2:21 pm old ammo boxes, cheap tool storage boxes, but the best policy is simply ensuring the critters cannot get in.
Thanks, but have you seen the price of those? I baulk at spending more on the box than the contents. Note my adoption of free cardboard boxes.
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Deeps
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Re: What Preps are you doing this week? Part 6.

Post by Deeps »

jennyjj01 wrote: Sat Oct 26, 2019 4:47 pm
Thanks, but have you seen the price of those? I baulk at spending more on the box than the contents. Note my adoption of free cardboard boxes.
Just read that and aye, they wouldn't be my recommendation for a cheap option. They're handy for some things but for a years supply of scran.... you're gonna need a lot of metal. Plastic would be alright if its not smelling of food maybe, you can get the airtight containers too which are pretty handy, I keep rice and some of my pasta in them (could do with a few more myself). Think it was the dear departed Brambles who pointed me towards this lot, I've never used them so can't vouch for them.

https://www.dvcontainers.co.uk/

Plenty options though.
preppergb
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Re: What Preps are you doing this week? Part 6.

Post by preppergb »

Wide mouthed barrels, good stuff I bought some years ago along with a couple of IBCs from a place in wales.
jansman
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Re: What Preps are you doing this week? Part 6.

Post by jansman »

Good housekeeping is the secret of pest control. I keep aviary birds, fowls and rabbits. I keep them regularly cleaned and debris swept, feed and bedding pest proof ( or protected via poison and traps). Our pantry is no different. Sealed and rodent- proof containers for foods that vermin can get into, and bait stations in case. I operate the way that we have to at work( by law) as if it’s good enough there , then it’s certainly right for my home.

However, lofts were never an area meant for food storage, owing to wild temperature fluctuations. Also, as they are places that are infrequently visited, vermin make their home quite often.
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jennyjj01
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Re: What Preps are you doing this week? Part 6.

Post by jennyjj01 »

Deeps wrote: Sat Oct 26, 2019 5:35 pm https://www.dvcontainers.co.uk/

Plenty options though.
Cheers Deeps. Some spectacular prices there. 2 quid for a 20l plastic bucket with lid!
Though rodents could eat their way in, it would surely give some time barrier in which to detect the blighters.
Wasps, I'm not worried about at this time of year. Thinking about it, I have had moth lavae in some bran at the previous place. Soon became conspicuous.

I'm not going to panic. I'll just keep my eyes peeled and keep a look out for critters and free/cheap containers for later.
Graceful Degradation! Prepping's objective summed up in two words. Turning Disaster into Mild Inconvenience by the power of fore-thought

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Deeps
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Re: What Preps are you doing this week? Part 6.

Post by Deeps »

jansman wrote: Sat Oct 26, 2019 6:00 pm Good housekeeping is the secret of pest control. I keep aviary birds, fowls and rabbits. I keep them regularly cleaned and debris swept, feed and bedding pest proof ( or protected via poison and traps). Our pantry is no different. Sealed and rodent- proof containers for foods that vermin can get into, and bait stations in case. I operate the way that we have to at work( by law) as if it’s good enough there , then it’s certainly right for my home.

However, lofts were never an area meant for food storage, owing to wild temperature fluctuations. Also, as they are places that are infrequently visited, vermin make their home quite often.
We're in a relatively new build and we occasionally hear mice in the wall, we have a lethal moggy too. I've not noticed any rodents in the loft but we have had the odd bird get in, for the life of me I can't figure out where. As you point out, lofts aren't ideal for storing food and water, the temperature fluctuations don't do it any favours. Saying that, I've had to start storing some stuff in a shed as I've lost my garage to a granny annex. I'm keeping an eye on things, fortunately no rodents, as I have cat and dog food in there (amongst other stuff), some in plastic boxes, some not. Its a good excuse to ring that site I posted to see how much the postage would be for a delivery to sunny Alba. That's next months prepping budget blown....