[snork]

Living in south Florida, we only have a handful of cold days, and it never snows, so heat is the main issue here. I was planning on storing things suck as bar soap, laundry detergent, dish detergent, deodorant, aluminum foil and things like that in several new, clean aluminum garbage cans with tight fitting lids. Thoughts?

I was thinking that the bar soap may melt some, but if they are still in the original packing, and on bottom of can, it should still retain basic shape I figure.

 

[Rigged for Quiet]

Living in Texas we have the same heat concerns. I have stuff stored in the garage but it is done on the down low and doesn't really stand out.

I live in a neighborhood with alleyway rear entry garages, and the garage is a major social gathering place for the 6 or so houses neares me on either side of the alley. Think, "King of the Hill" like wanderings between the garages. I also have a standing open tool box agreement with a couple of guys. If they, or I, need something and the door is up we are free to grab what we need. They have proven they will return it immediately after it's use has been fulfilled.

EDIT: A soon to be project is to put together a "Shelter Can" using a large plastic trash can. The idea is to stock it for being forced to rely on a shelter for a day or two after a natural disaster. Immediately following a natural disaster all first responders are in search and rescue mode and it takes days for actual aid to reach shelters. Items such as sleeping bags in vacuum compression bags, extra clothing, non perishable food, and water for the family for three to 5 days should do it. make it lockable and make a way to chain it down.

 

[Verteidiger]

Michael Janich is an edged weapons expert, and used to work designing knives for Blackhawk. He is a co-host on "Best Defense" a TV show on personal defense and emergency preparedness. Check out his video on this link - he uses the new (unused) trash can storage idea (no affiliation with him or his companies, just a big fan of his edged weapon design skills - I met him personally at an industry event, when I was looking for a new self-defense all-purpose knife - I ended up choosing his design to purchase, then he told me the story of how he had designed that knife; then he helped me pick out more Blackhawk gear, and also showed me some knife-wielding techniques - very well-trained guy, and a cool person to talk to and learn things from):

A Home Preparedness Kit | Down Range TV

 

[paraquack]

Be careful when using those vacuum bags with "fluffy" items like sleeping bags and such. I had a set of sleeping bags that I stored in the winter in one of those things you use a vacuum cleaner to suck out the air. Reduced the size by more than one half. Come spring time, I opened them and the sleeping bags only fluffed out to about 2/3 original size, shape and loft. I took them to the Laundromat and ran them in the dryer for a couple of hours with no success in fluffing them back to normal. Screwed up a pair of really good sleeping bags.

 

[Montana Rancher]

You are spot on with the METAL garbage cans, they will keep out rodents when the plastic ones fail.

 

[paraquack]

Garbage cans will serve many different purposes. Hell, they might eve be stealthy storage container.

 

[Inor]

Wife is trying to tell me that a metal garbage can is useful as a Faraday cage. I have always read about Faraday cages being made as a wooden frame covered with brass screen and well grounded. So I am inclined to go with the more complex option, but... What do you all think?

 

[paraquack]

What I have read, says that there can be no gaps in the metal covering. Did some looking around and found a 16 gallon drum with a ring type fastener to hold the metal lid on. I used a power wire brush to remove the paint on the rolled edge of the top of the drum and removed the rubber gasket in the lid and got rid of the paint and glue in the lids ridge. I used styrofoam to line the drum so none of my radios, etc. will touch the metal of the drum. The one thing I didn't know was that the farraday cage has to be grounded. The article called for #6 copper wire ( I went with welding cable for flexibility) going to a separate earth ground, sunk down 8 feet. The article said to stay away from the house because the house grounding is thru the water pipes, usually. The EMP hitting the house (like a giant antenna) is going to flood thru the ground system and try to go to earth. This could result in a lot of EMP energy not being carried away from the faraday cage quickly enough. Going the electric supply store this weekend and will try to sink the rod if the ground is soft enough. Plan to put the drum in the shed out back, so it's as far away as possible form house. On the plus side for the drum, it's dust proof and more or less water tight unless the water gets to about 3 feet deep.