Well, I just found out they’re doing a giveaway next Friday (June 26) for a free 72″ Harvest system.  While these units are well worth the price normally, who’s going to complain about FREE?  Not me

Go check it out on their blog for how to enter.  And if you end up winning and don’t actually have a use for it (sure thing right?) I’m willing to take it off your hands…

EDIT: They’ve added a 275-gallon tank option that might be more appealing (and accessible to those outside the immediate area) to some.

Hopefully more consistent updates will flow as I dedicate some quality time to this site, I know I’ve been pretty stagnant for a while.

The woman who wrote it was visiting her in-laws and saw a unique can rotation system composed entirely of cardboard, glue, paint, and a small piece of wood that her father-in-law had built.  She asked how he made them, to which he whipped out a full page instruction set on how he built them.  Pretty amazing really.

A few months ago we bought a large Shelf Reliance food rotation system but I didn’t really want to spend the money on their smaller cabinet/pantry solutions.  As such I haven’t really done anything to fulfil that need.  After reviewing the plans (go to the site for a link to a PDF you can print; want to make sure credit goes to where it’s due!)

I actually have some really good cardboard boxes I’m planning on doing this with.  That’s one benefit of working at a IT shop.  Computers generally ship in very nice cardboard!   I’ll try and post some photos of the process next weekend.

If anyone else tries it I’d love to see your results.  Or if you have any enhancements you make to the design, please share!

When we got there it was pretty busy.  While filling out our order forms, I asked if we needed to put a mask and apron on in order to go pull some of the pre-packed stuff they had in #10 cans.  A younger missionary replied “Yes” (which I was expecting).  Then another missionary who has been there for quite a while said that you can’t buy the #10 cans of stuff unless you’re “working” in there.  I just replied “Oh, alright.”  For a split second I wanted to retort that I’ve come plenty of times and they’ve let me buy a few cans of things when I’ve just been there for bulk items, but I really didn’t have a problem with that rule so figured it didn’t really matter.

I had also thought of mentioning how I’ve served there (at that location and others) countless times in the past few years and sometimes bought stuff and sometimes didn’t.  Adding that I guess I shouldn’t volunteer my time unless I know I want to buy something because that’s the only time I can buy something.  But I quickly realized how prideful and unproductive that would’ve been.  Besides, I think dry packing is actually extremely fun.

So now I’m trying to coordinate with some of my family on when they’d like to go do some dry pack this month so I can get some of the things I need/want.  We like to pack stuff in groups of 6 since that’s how many cans are in a box.  That way we have entire boxes of stuff, not a mix and match scenario.  We still have a few that we need to “true up” and also a few that we’ve used 1-2 cans on that need to be replenished, so it’ll be a fun time at the cannery!

PS – They had run out of both white wheat and black beans (I wanted to pick up the beans).  So we’ve got to make another trip there anyway!

I think the most common time it comes up is during conversations about the continual trend of increasing food prices.  I always chime in, “That’s why we make our own bread.”  While that’s not entirely true (there’s plenty of reasons why we bake our own bread), it fits with the current topic and generally provokes a question of how much we really save.  Based on what our supplies cost at the time of purchase, we’ve estimated our per loaf price is somewhere between $1.50-2.00.  It largely depends on how much honey you add to the mixture as honey is getting very expensive.  We’ve toned it down a bit (also substituted white vinegar for the lemon juice we initially used) and I think we’re right around $1.50.

That might not seem like a huge savings, but extrapolate it a bit and you get some good numbers.  It also depends on what kind of bread you’re currently buying at the store.  If it’s the cardboard Wonder stuff, well ok, maybe you’re not saving a whole awful lot.  Then again, why are you eating it in the first place?  Gross!  Comparing similar quality and taste yields more accurate results:

$4.19 per loaf. Expensive!

This is the exact same brand and flavor of bread we had been buying for a long time.  It’s quite good really and was the goal behind what we wanted our own bread to taste like.  Add tax onto that and you’re at about $4.45 per loaf

Using the figures above, we save almost $12.00 each month baking our own bread.  Or $144.00 per year.  That easily pays for a Netflix subscription!  Plus, it rotates our food storage (especially that pesky dehydrated milk!) and is better for you than even the freshest stuff you’ll get at the local grocery store.  Small artisan bread shops might be as good as good homemade bread, but the premium you will pay in no way justifies going to places like that!

“It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone,” so I thought I’d include some other ways to save on your grocery bill while helping build your food storage at the same time.  With ever-increasing food prices across the board, it’s important to know how to cope and adjust your habits accordingly:

• Buy generics.  At least that’s what I call them.  In Utah at least, that would primarily be Western Family.  Now, I don’t mean to just blindly buy anything with their label (the WF Organic Black Beans are nasty!) but give them a try at least.  I need to figure out exact numbers, but we save a lot doing this and I think quite a bit of it actually tastes better/fresher than the “top” brands.
• Use coupons.  Admittedly I don’t use this technique as much as I should (except at Costco, we are insane Costco coupon cutters).  I remember when I was a kid my mom had a small plastic container group by store and category of food and we’d sit there and cut them out of the mailers every week.  If you’re not a big coupon cutter like me, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t look at those mailers…  That’s why you should also…
• Plan your menu around sales!  Even if you don’t want to clip coupons, look at the ads and plan your menu around items on sale, especially meat.  On sale protein is a great way to plan some awesome meals for cheap.  I’ve found it also forces you to try out new meats and recipe’s.  Granted, just because calamari is on sale doesn’t mean I’m going to buy it.  I do have limits!
• Notice unit pricing.  This one seemed like commonsense to me but I catch so many people not doing this at the store I just have to say something.  The bigger package isn’t always the best buy!  While this generally is the case, if the smaller version is on sale, it’s quite often less per ounce, pound, etc… than the big brother equivalent.  While I don’t think you have to pull out a calculator for each item, you should be able to get pretty close in your head.  If you’re rusty on your math skills, most of the shelf tags will list the price per ounce (unit) of the item making for a very quick and easy way to compare what the best deal is.
• Bulk up.  And I don’t mean protein shakes.  But wait, didn’t I just get done talking about how smaller is better?  Well sorta…  sometimes…  maybe…  I know, how about “it depends”.  Having said that, most of the time buying bulk is the way to go (as long as you plan on using all that bulk before it goes bad of course).  This is where the big box stores (Costco / Sam’s Club) shine.  Although you have to be careful here as well and consider the unit pricing rule.  Not often, but sometimes it’s actually more expensive to buy the super-mega-size mayo.
• Buy in season.  If you have a constant craving for avocado on your burger like me, you definitely know what I’m talking about here.  For the rest of you…  How can you not like avocado!?!  Anyway, it’s bad enough that produce has risen (and keeps going up) so much lately, but when things are out of season the prices soar.  Think about it…  The whole idea of “out of season” implies that it’s not natural for them to be grown where you’re at.  This means one of two things:
  1. They are brought in from other regions where they ARE in season or;
  2. They are grown in a test tube in some scientific facility

  Ok, that might be a slight exaggeration but the principle remains.  Buy in season and save money.  You can save even more by…

• Grow our own.  While our initial attempt at square foot gardening didn’t fare so well, we’re looking forward to round 2 next year.  There’s a lot of resources online on this and hopefully I’ll document our (this time successful) process next spring.
• Shop with a list.  The main reason for this is simply to reduce impulse buying.  Instead of cruising each isle checking out all the selection, you know exactly where you want to go and what to get.  You will be surprised how much you spend when you cut impulse items.  This goes hand in hand with…
• Don’t go hungry!  We struggled with this one for quite a while.  We would head to the store right after work before eating dinner.  One time we stopped at the Training Table first for a nice meal (meaning cheese fries!) and noticed even while we were in the store after stuffing ourselves that even the food we planned on buying didn’t look very appetizing, let alone that bag of cookies or 12-pack of soda.  We try and go on full stomach’s now and it’s helped a lot on stopping the impulse buys.
• Keep convenience foods to a minimum. It should be obvious by now the relevance of this tip.  It’s what started the whole topic!  Sure, baking your own bread, cutting your own vegetables, grating your own cheese, etc… takes time.  Time that seems to slip away more and more each year.

It’s these baby steps that make a difference.  Maybe if you’re able to save on your groceries while simultaneously building a solid pantry of food storage items, you’ll find yourself less stressed financially, less worried about your employment, more confident in your emergency preparedness plans, and just happier in general.  The satisfaction I have gained in implementing several of these things in my own life is immense.  Go bake some bread already so you can feel it too!

It’s SimplyLivingSmart.com and is an ambitious effort by a Utahn woman to utilize streaming video lessons as a method of instruction and informing people about both the basics and advanced topics related to preparing your family for bad times.  Check it out.  Their Food Storage Calculator is more comprehensive than the one at ProvidentLiving.org but just as easy to understand.

My only hesitation with the site is that you have to register and login to view most of the content.  I understand they want to build a community and monetize the site, I’m just the kind of guy who hates to have to register to view content.  Other than that, it’s very well done and has lots of information to go through!

I try and be careful with my finances and personal information, but I guess even when you’re careful, you can put yourself at risk.  Unfortunately there’s not much you can do at some point.  We’ll see how this second order goes.  If it hasn’t shipped by Friday, I’m just going to find it locally.

• Online: This is an option for either those who live in a bunker or just have a hard time getting out of their house for some reason.  There are several places to buy them, just make sure they’re food grade!  Amazon sells a pack of 10 for about $50.00.
• Old Faithful: Maceys sells new 5 gallon food grade buckets.  This is probably the most expensive option as you pay full retail pricing of about $5.00 + tax.  They include a lid (from my experiences no O-ring seal).  If you really need some buckets quick this is a sure but expensive bet.  I only use two of these class of buckets currently.  They house my “currently used” wheat (both red and white) and have Gamma Lids on them.
• Classifieds: Both KSL.com and Craigslist (farm+garden section) are good options for some used food grade buckets of various sizes.  Prices here can range from $1.50 – $3.00 per bucket with lid.  Lower pricing is obviously a big plus, however these buckets have generally had some type of food item in them already and must be cleaned thoroughly before use.  Make sure they’re food grade!  This is where most of my buckets have come from.
• Personal contacts: Most people I’ve talked to (or read about like Bruddah Aloha) eventually develop their own contacts to use as a resource for buckets.  Whether it’s a friend who works in the restaurant business, knowing someone who works in your office cafeteria, etc…  Keep your eyes open for this kind of resource because you can save a LOT of money.  Quite often you will be able to score these buckets for FREE or for very little cost.  Again, make sure they’re food grade and clean them well, but this is bucket utopia!  Remember, even a stranger can turn into a personal contact.  Head down to your local Walmart or bakery and see if they’d be willing to part with their “garbage”.  Now you’ve got your own contact!  I’m lucky that I have just recently found a contact that is able to furnish me with a trickle of buckets.

Why food grade?

I don’t know how many times I’ve talked to people who don’t understand that you MUST get buckets that are food grade.  Those painter buckets from Home Depot won’t cut it!  They might look the same, but they are quite different.  Non-food grade buckets are made of plastic that will leech toxins into their contents.

How to clean?

Cleaning methods vary but here are a few ideas.  Which method you should use depend on what was in the bucket to begin with, what you’re storing, how you’re storing it, etc…  All of these involve water of course so I’m not explicitly stating that

• Dish soap.  This works best on new buckets or buckets that you are rotating back into storage.  Just use normal dish soap.
• Abrasive cleaner.  Something like Ajax works for this.  I use this if bleach isn’t available since it has some bleach in it (at least the kind I get does, make sure to check).  It can work well if you’re using used buckets that used to have something like beef stock, icing, or some other “crusty” contents.  Plus the bleach will kill anything bad and help nuke the smell of whatever was in it before.
• Bleach.  This is my favorite method, ESPECIALLY if you plan on putting the new food directly into the bucket.  This will kill any bad things in there, just make sure to follow the directions for mixing the bleach and rinse well afterwards.

NOTE: The above methods are for cleaning only.  They will only mildly deodorize the buckets if there’s a strong smell.  The best way to deodorize them is with a small amount of baking soda mixed with water.  I just mix it in with the bleach personally but if you want to separate the steps that’s fine too.  If it’s a really strong odor (like pickle juice), you might want to let the baking soda solution soak overnight in the bucket to absorb more of the smell.  Whatever you put in there will absorb whatever odor remains, so it’s really important.  Of course, you could also add another barrier completely, but that’s for another post.

Sometimes when I’m working on my own preparations, I get tunnel vision.  Have I left anything out?

It doesn’t take much. In fact, why don’t you do something today to help you get prepared? I took on this challenge and ordered a NutriMill. While you might not be ready for that just yet, do you have at least one 55-gallon water barrel “just in case”? That’s always a good start. I would suggest one per person in the family honestly. That will give you at least a month’s worth of water. Even a single barrel is better than nothing though. I can promise if an earthquake hits, the last thing you’ll want to do is lug around milk jugs of water every single day for a few weeks while things get repaired…

So then, what did (or are going to) you do today to prepare yourself?

After searching online and reading lots of reviews, it’s obvious the Nutrimill is the best choice if you’re willing to spend the money. After baking three loaves this past weekend (and manually grinding all the wheat), I’m VERY willing to spend the money! I’m hoping to have it by the end of the month and will post a review sometime in June.