# Pandemic Prepping



## Ice Queen (Feb 16, 2014)

What if anything are people doing to prepare for a pandemic, Ebola or otherwise? I'm just wondering what actions people are taking and how concerned people are and what plans folks have in case a pandemic breaks loose.


----------



## Ragnarök (Aug 4, 2014)

if you smoke stop smoking.
if you drink alcohol in excess stop drinking alcohol in excess. 
eat a healthy well balanced diet. 
exercise.
Practice excellent hygiene. including washing your clothes after every use with oxi-clean.
Clean your house regularly and properly. I hit major areas like cell phones, remotes, light switches, keyboard, mouse, entry way, bathroom, kitchen for example with disinfectant. I mean declare war and go nuclear on hotspots in the house. 
Try to relax..if you are stressed out your immune system drops significantly.
get a lot of good rest.
Pray to God your insides don't liquify.


----------



## Denton (Sep 18, 2012)

Making sure the family has no reason to leave the house when cases of the disease, make it to my region. 

Avoid people, wash hands quite often, avoid touching my face, wearing gloves in touching objects touched by others (door handles, computer keyboards, etc.).


----------



## oddapple (Dec 9, 2013)

Shao Lin gong fu - no sickness there 

(I was the sr. Health officer for +sons of mercy. Now going back to where I started - my whole life these last years has been a walk backwards through all I have done, reducing back to the simplicity of a 12 year old farm boy with a 50 year bio skill set.)


----------



## cdell (Feb 27, 2014)

Stocked up on bleach in case it gets scarce in the stores, continue building food reserves so we can avoid the stores as much as possible. I'm thinking of what I can sell to put some liquid cash in the bank to keep the mortgage payments and other bills at bay if we decide to hibernate at our farm for any amount of time and can't work.


----------



## big paul (Jul 14, 2014)

just restocked the larder, have 100 pairs of medical gloves in store plus 2 "gas" masks and spare filters, but if it ever gets here i will go into "total lockdown" and total isolation until its over, whatever the outcome might be.


----------



## Ice Queen (Feb 16, 2014)

I am doing similar things. With a limited budget one can only do so much. I did quite a bit of prepping when H7N9 was firing up, and fortunately that died out to a great degree, but, we got our basics taken care of then. We are in need of a few more supplies and we are doing it as budget allows. I'm picking up quality gloves and a few more N95 masks. Altho, if a pandemic should break out, I wouldn't be going out. I am staying put.



cdell said:


> Stocked up on bleach in case it gets scarce in the stores, continue building food reserves so we can avoid the stores as much as possible. I'm thinking of what I can sell to put some liquid cash in the bank to keep the mortgage payments and other bills at bay if we decide to hibernate at our farm for any amount of time and can't work.


----------



## Kauboy (May 12, 2014)

Being a prepper, my answer is simply, "the usual".
Keep the basic medical supplies stocked.
A few boxes of gloves on hand(no pun intended), a few N95 masks, disinfectants, goggles, etc...
Continue to stock food and water.
Ya know, the usual.


----------



## oddapple (Dec 9, 2013)

Hey just FYI and before it's gone too - vinegar is cheap and makes a great surface sterlizer. So does peroxide if used in conjunction. I believe some nurse or student demonstrated this? (You can find a ref.) But yes, if I could only get one it would be vinegar and with this being a blood thing, the good 'ol oxi power on ugly proteins makes peroxide desirable too.
We have critters and pups. I like all the less toxic we can do. Plus, it will be easier for you to make vinegar yourself than sodium chlorite.


----------



## CWOLDOJAX (Sep 5, 2013)

Here is what FEMA suggests for biological "threats"

Biological Threats | Ready.gov

I like the vinegar and peroxide. Simple. Easy to get. Similar to what the more experienced Kauboy sez, keep up with the usual, steady as she goes, prepping.
Keeping lots of honey and crisco is also good.
Recently, I took the wife to the Movie "Equalizer" and she was amazed that he used boiled honey to treat a cut on his leg.
Crisco make for a nice long lasting candle.


----------



## Kauboy (May 12, 2014)

CWOLDOJAX said:


> Recently, I took the wife to the Movie "Equalizer" and she was amazed that he used boiled honey to treat a cut on his leg.


Why did he boil it?
Honey is naturally antibacterial.
It may fall into the "that's just Hollywood" category, but if there is merit to it, I'd like to know.
From what I've read on using honey as a wound treatment, you just pack it in and bandage it up, like a sugar dressing.


----------



## oddapple (Dec 9, 2013)

Kauboy said:


> Why did he boil it?
> Honey is naturally antibacterial.
> It may fall into the "that's just Hollywood" category, but if there is merit to it, I'd like to know.
> From what I've read on using honey as a wound treatment, you just pack it in and bandage it up, like a sugar dressing.


That is correct. Do not heat process the honey at all.


----------



## preppermama (Aug 8, 2012)

I'm in kind of a conundrum. It's just me and my little one right now as daddy is working on the other side of the country and we are moving 2800 miles away in the next 12 weeks. There's no way I can go out and buy 3 months worth of food and then have to transport it across the country with me. However, I do think it's foolish at this point not to have any preps at all. 

I went out in August and did some prepper shopping around the time they said they were flying the infected Ebola patients to the US. I stocked up on masks, gloves, Lysol, bleach, bleach wipes, etc. I have about 100 pounds of rice, 25 pounds of dry beans, plus a cabinet full of canned goods at the moment. I think I'll probably go out and replenish my water supplies this afternoon. 

One thing I think people should definitely stop doing is using public bathrooms. Ebola is transmitted through bodily fluids. Handwashing is sooo important. 

I am also planning on wearing leather driving gloves out in public. I know my hands always feel filthy after I'm done grocery shopping. At least the weather is getting cold so I won't look like a complete idiot. LOL.


----------



## Ice Queen (Feb 16, 2014)

I think you will be fine for 12 weeks. It takes a long time for these outbreaks to fire up, unless something about this virus changes. I would relax and concentrate on your move.



preppermama said:


> I'm in kind of a conundrum. It's just me and my little one right now as daddy is working on the other side of the country and we are moving 2800 miles away in the next 12 weeks. There's no way I can go out and buy 3 months worth of food and then have to transport it across the country with me. However, I do think it's foolish at this point not to have any preps at all.
> 
> I went out in August and did some prepper shopping around the time they said they were flying the infected Ebola patients to the US. I stocked up on masks, gloves, Lysol, bleach, bleach wipes, etc. I have about 100 pounds of rice, 25 pounds of dry beans, plus a cabinet full of canned goods at the moment. I think I'll probably go out and replenish my water supplies this afternoon.
> 
> ...


----------



## preppermama (Aug 8, 2012)

BTW - people need to remember that the disease could get to your region long before anyone realizes it. It can take up to 21 days to show symptoms. Best to take precautions now regardless of where you are in the US.


----------



## oddapple (Dec 9, 2013)

Yup. Especially since it is being seeded in more places than texas and there have already been official efforts to control news.


----------



## TG (Jul 28, 2014)

Just the usual, I'm not crazy worried.


----------



## TG (Jul 28, 2014)

Worth reading, although SARS is a bit different: SARS, 10 years later: One family?s remarkable story | Toronto Star


----------



## CWOLDOJAX (Sep 5, 2013)

A few years ago I would take Clorox wipes and wipe off all our groceries because my wife was going through chemo therapy. 
I don't do that any more, but I am very diligent about keeping my hands clean.
I love the hand cleaner gel which is also good fire starter.


----------



## Ice Queen (Feb 16, 2014)

I have switched back to diluted bleach for the recent issues, EV68 mostly, but for Ebola, I would rely on bleach, not on food tho. Not all Clorox wipes contain bleach. They do make some type of food cleaner in a spray bottle but I can't think of what it is. I didn't use much bleach because I am on a septic and it doesn't do well with a lot of bleach, but, when it gets iffy with viruses like now, I up the ante. I also use Lysol spray. I believe Lysol in the old brown bottle, that smells medicinal is pretty good too.


----------



## oddapple (Dec 9, 2013)

Thymol, the base oil is highly effective. Homemade lysol for the bulk prepper.


----------



## CWOLDOJAX (Sep 5, 2013)

Kauboy said:


> Why did he boil it?
> Honey is naturally antibacterial.
> It may fall into the "that's just Hollywood" category, but if there is merit to it, I'd like to know.
> From what I've read on using honey as a wound treatment, you just pack it in and bandage it up, like a sugar dressing.


It is not very well shown in the movie. I know that some folks suggest heating honey up to make it easier to use. I suspect you're right with the "Hollywood" category.


----------



## indie (Sep 7, 2013)

If you have kids, reiterate the importance of not touching faces and washing regularly. I'm not a fan of hand sanitizer, but it's warranted now. We just hit Costco to get some extra ebola crap and had some thorough hygiene lessons along the way. Kids touch everything, so _hound them about being clean._


----------



## TG (Jul 28, 2014)

Hand sanitizer does not work at all for Ebola.. CDC said so


----------



## indie (Sep 7, 2013)

Oh, good! I dread using that stuff.


----------



## oddapple (Dec 9, 2013)

That is basically saying isopropyl alcohol is not "contact effective". Even if you have to use it for instruments, they soak in it for at least a minute and the Alco hand cleaners don't saturate nearly long enough to do much but spread it all around on your hands I guess?
Using vinegar, bleach solutions, lysol can dry out your hands. Better add some Olay to your list.


----------



## pheniox17 (Dec 12, 2013)

Wow a serious conversion on Ebola/pandemics here (I'm shocked) 

First before rushing out and purchasing massive amounts of kit understand illnesses and treatment... (Start with the common cold, highly contagious, a epidemic every year, and how to treat naturally, this is a good starting point IMO as information is out there, and we have all had experence first hand)

Then what?? Look into bugs like Ebola, try and find dumbed down information (like how they treat it in Africa, and its hydration and blood transfers from survivers, so stock up on hydration kits, learn to make your own) 

So we have treatment, now avoidance, that's all no brainers, avoid big crowds, stay healthy, fit, get ppe in order, get any underlying medical issues sorted, be prepared to "bunker down" for a decent period of time (at least 3 months but judging by the rate this is spreading, and its not burning out as it should, even longer will be wise) 

End of the day with a pandemic, you will get it or you won't, can put measures in place to reduce risk, but even with reducing risk it doesn't mean 0 chance of contracting it... So be proactive, but be prepared to react, you may find yourself chasing your tail due to incubation time, but your body has a immune system, and will fight till you die, so help your immune system, and try and buy as much time as you can, hydration is the most important... Then immune boosters like vitamin C if you can

We do have some things in our favor, ignorance is not one of them, but availability of knowledge, and diet give some of us a edge


----------



## Slippy (Nov 14, 2013)

I'm going with an oldie but goodie; Severed Heads on Pikes at my front gate to keep the West African idiots out.


----------



## thepeartree (Aug 25, 2014)

oddapple said:


> Hey just FYI and before it's gone too - vinegar is cheap and makes a great surface sterlizer. So does peroxide if used in conjunction. I believe some nurse or student demonstrated this? (You can find a ref.) But yes, if I could only get one it would be vinegar and with this being a blood thing, the good 'ol oxi power on ugly proteins makes peroxide desirable too.
> We have critters and pups. I like all the less toxic we can do. Plus, it will be easier for you to make vinegar yourself than sodium chlorite.


Be really really CAREFUL with peroxide!!!!!

Putting even a tiny amount in a container with any trace amount of water is like having your very own Saturn 5 rocket in the house. I once launched a 55 gallon barrel which ricocheted off a wood beam 20 feet up and bounced a hole in a wall... Also, don't try to rely on the processed honey you find in stores. What you need in order to get any good out of it is RAW honey. You may find it in some stores, but more likely in a health food store.


----------



## thepeartree (Aug 25, 2014)

preppermama said:


> I'm in kind of a conundrum. It's just me and my little one right now as daddy is working on the other side of the country and we are moving 2800 miles away in the next 12 weeks. There's no way I can go out and buy 3 months worth of food and then have to transport it across the country with me. However, I do think it's foolish at this point not to have any preps at all.
> 
> I went out in August and did some prepper shopping around the time they said they were flying the infected Ebola patients to the US. I stocked up on masks, gloves, Lysol, bleach, bleach wipes, etc. I have about 100 pounds of rice, 25 pounds of dry beans, plus a cabinet full of canned goods at the moment. I think I'll probably go out and replenish my water supplies this afternoon.
> 
> ...


Peanut butter in #10 cans is pretty good for protein and good fats. Just sayin'


----------



## TacticalCanuck (Aug 5, 2014)

Water food meds and protection. Cleaning supplies and protective gear should be high on the list as well. I dont like the idea of investing huge dollars in guns as if u need to bug out your leavimg a good deal of wealth behind.


----------



## indie (Sep 7, 2013)

Not sure if this was posted in another ebola thread, but WHO has instructions for disinfecting for ebola here: http://www.who.int/csr/resources/publications/ebola/whoemcesr982sec5-6.pdf

Our Costco currently has 3 gallon packs of Clorox for $10. As we were driving home from the big, dirty, germy city, I saw a spa supply store with a sign for bleach tabs on sale. That's next on the list, especially if liquid bleach becomes scarce.


----------



## Kauboy (May 12, 2014)

That's a great link indie! Thanks.

Good to see that 70% isopropyl can work too, for small items.


----------



## rucusworks (Oct 3, 2014)

Long time reader here finally decided to take the plung to join.  I am monitoring Ebola closly. I have now just recieved word that there is a confirmed case of Ebola in DC. At what point do we raise our threat level.


----------



## TG (Jul 28, 2014)

rucusworks said:


> Long time reader here finally decided to take the plung to join.  I am monitoring Ebola closly. I have now just recieved word that there is a confirmed case of Ebola in DC. At what point do we raise our threat level.


Welcome, rucusworks


----------



## rucusworks (Oct 3, 2014)

TorontoGal said:


> Welcome, rucusworks


Thanks Gal.


----------



## oddapple (Dec 9, 2013)

We aren't. It is not a foreign enemy.

DC huh? Well, they were on notice to be ready Oct 1st so we can see why. 
There's a grossidity even make "kauboy" shudder. DC with a infectious disease.....

It is "when does martial law happen?" And I think in dc it just did. Now we will begin to see if some states treat their situation differently than others.


----------



## TG (Jul 28, 2014)

BTW, the DC case is not confirmed.


----------



## oddapple (Dec 9, 2013)

TorontoGal said:


> BTW, the DC case is not confirmed.


Ah. We watch them because they have been stacking up for a veritable "seige with disaster" for 2 years straight, wanting big tickets "deliverable in 48 hours" and such....we figure here that whatever they get up to may be a sign of things to come.

As I get it now we are waiting on hawaii, utah, toronto, florida and dc? Anybody fall off the list yet?


----------



## TG (Jul 28, 2014)

People in Toronto are very easy-going, they already experienced 2 SARS outbreaks and learned a lot from each, Ebola seems like a walk in the park compared to how SARS is transmitted. It's just not as big deal here compared how Americans are reacting  I do understand the fear though and I respect it.


----------



## oddapple (Dec 9, 2013)

There are 13 million people in Canada
There are 313 million people here
Half of them are utterly system dependent

There are some differences.


----------



## rucusworks (Oct 3, 2014)

TorontoGal said:


> BTW, the DC case is not confirmed.


The media has not confirmed this case. I have a contact (lets just say in a lab somewhere) who has confirmed this case to me personally. But for the sake of being fair, your correct. The DC case is not officially confirmed to the public at this time.

When I said raise our threat level, I guess I am just wondering if anyone is shifting their prep planning into high gear as I am considering doing. I have been only prepping steadily as cash funds are avalible to me. I can however dust off a credit card and buy a plethora of supplies. I just do not know if this is "The One" I need to blow that money access on.


----------



## indie (Sep 7, 2013)

I don't think it'll happen that fast, rucus (welcome, btw). I feel like we'll have enough notice to react appropriately before it's that serious. Wouldn't hurt to add gloves/masks to your regular purchases in any case.


----------



## rucusworks (Oct 3, 2014)

indie said:


> I don't think it'll happen that fast, rucus (welcome, btw). I feel like we'll have enough notice to react appropriately before it's that serious. Wouldn't hurt to add gloves/masks to your regular purchases in any case.


Thanks indie for your thoughts. I will do that for now I think and continue to stay on top of the spread. I did see online you can purchase full body suits, like the people are seen wearing near these patients. Think those are worth the 25 bucks each to have on hand??


----------



## Kauboy (May 12, 2014)

rucusworks said:


> Thanks indie for your thoughts. I will do that for now I think and continue to stay on top of the spread. I did see online you can purchase full body suits, like the people are seen wearing near these patients. Think those are worth the 25 bucks each to have on hand??


Unless you intend to venture into infected territory, no, not really.
Also, welcome!


----------



## oddapple (Dec 9, 2013)

When I said raise our threat level, I guess I am just wondering if anyone is shifting their prep planning into high gear as I am considering doing."

Ah! My confusion and yes, absolutely kick it up all you can. Doesn't matter if ebola is there, people that watch the news are and will clean those shelves pretty soon.

And yeah, woo, if that is true, dc is done. Stick a fork in baby and watch a good example of what to expect.


----------



## Ice Queen (Feb 16, 2014)

I would not switch to high gear yet. If green was normal with no prepping, I would say I am always on yellow anyway. I'm still on yellow but more inclined to buy a few things I would not normally get. I have not considered switching to orange. Red to me is no one goes out or comes in to my home and my family members who plan to shelter here need to be in place or endure a 21 day quarantine....I am a far ways from doing that


----------



## oddapple (Dec 9, 2013)

Haha I am 20 minutes from Juarez and a couple hours from Dallas - all shopping is getting done we can and we are same isolation protocol but "red" includes the here and there dash out to get anything that comes within 50 yards.
The actual biggest threat to us right now is when they bust open one of those border plague camps and let 'em go zombie-ing past us towards all holy yankee land. They don't want to live here and they've already seen what we got. But they go through like locusts and are amassing in biblical proportions.

Tabernacles starts the 8th and the blood moon. They need to be checked in or not expect room by then. 
Tabernacles ends 15th-16th and by the 24th, I would expect martial law to be in place in at least some areas if not formally "all" even if some areas more lax than others.
The dollar is the hardest of all to try and calculate, but it has been steadily losing ground too. I have been afraid that this was to coincide with the dollar collapse and justify sacking the country in a week all tidy.


----------



## Ice Queen (Feb 16, 2014)

If you do not know how to doff one of those, it could give you a false sense of security. I depends what you plan on doing with it. If you plan on using one to bug out somewhere, I would say maybe. If you plan on caring for sick family, then you need many and you have to know how to properly don and doff a suit. They are not comfortable to sit in for very long. I use them to clean my coop and I have about an hour in that thing and it's full of sweat and I'm ready to pass out. Cheap ones tear. Get a very large size.



rucusworks said:


> Thanks indie for your thoughts. I will do that for now I think and continue to stay on top of the spread. I did see online you can purchase full body suits, like the people are seen wearing near these patients. Think those are worth the 25 bucks each to have on hand??


----------



## pheniox17 (Dec 12, 2013)

rucusworks said:


> The media has not confirmed this case. I have a contact (lets just say in a lab somewhere) who has confirmed this case to me personally. But for the sake of being fair, your correct. The DC case is not officially confirmed to the public at this time.
> 
> When I said raise our threat level, I guess I am just wondering if anyone is shifting their prep planning into high gear as I am considering doing. I have been only prepping steadily as cash funds are avalible to me. I can however dust off a credit card and buy a plethora of supplies. I just do not know if this is "The One" I need to blow that money access on.


You have confirmed case 2...

Dusting the credit card off and blowing that cash doesn't seem wise, its a world changing event but could take 6-12 months before it is the "Apocalypse" (it hasn't spread all over Africa, yet, and expecting it to reach millions of deaths by 2015)


----------



## HuntingHawk (Dec 16, 2012)

http://urbansurvivalsite.com/the-9-best-survival-antibiotics/


----------



## Maine-Marine (Mar 7, 2014)

Read the book Jakarta pandemic


----------



## Moonshinedave (Mar 28, 2013)

If it becomes necessary, I have the equipment to protect me and mine from most any disease.


----------



## PaulS (Mar 11, 2013)

HuntingHawk,
You do realize that antibiotics won't help for virusus like Ebola, flu, and the rest?

Prevention is the best way to avoid viral infections. Some are easier to avoid than others.


----------



## Ice Queen (Feb 16, 2014)

Marburg has broken out in Uganda. One death, 80 people in surveillance. It seems kind of odd to have two Ebola outbreaks going on (The one in the Congo is unrelated to the one in West Africa and Nigeria) and now Marburg in Uganda. I wonder if something environmental is going on?

PaulS is correct. Antibiotics are good to have on hand for bacterial illness, but will do nothing for Ebola. Social isolation for as long as it takes is what you need to survive an Ebola pandemic. Diluted bleach/water is the only approved disinfectant. Alcohol gel won't penetrate the cell wall of Ebola. Antibacterial does not always mean it kills viruses. Some do, some don't.

In terms of protective equipment, it isn't something you would live in at home. It's suffocating. It would be useful if you had to go out into an infected environment, or if you plan on caring for ill family members in a makeshift isolation unit. If this broke out big time, like it has in west Africa, your best bet is staying home....no one in, no one out until it is done. I sincerely, truly doubt it will get that bad here, but we will start having more cases now.


----------



## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

We are trying to stay away from ******* who talk with a funny accent.


----------



## Piratesailor (Nov 9, 2012)

Good thread. I realized I'm short on some of the medical stuff like gloves specifically. I have a respirator and other items. 

Other than that, it's status quo should anything actually materialize as a pandemic.


----------



## paraquack (Mar 1, 2013)

Just picked up 6 more N95 masks. Otherwise, I think I'm good to go. Famous last words.


----------



## thepeartree (Aug 25, 2014)

I agree that it's not time to hit the big red button just yet. However, when we get to the point of cordoning off the first major city... Well, we'll see what happens. Thank God I live in a backwater kinda place. Trouble is, there isn't anyplace that doesn't have truckdrivers going through... And that's the kind of thought that can produce panic: do we let truckers into our town or keep them out even though they may be carrying food, etc.? If it gets to that level, it may be time to go to red. I sure wouldn't care to live in a big city!


----------

