# Keeping Organized



## ItsJustMe (Dec 12, 2020)

How do you keep your food stuffs organized? I am running out of room.

Most of what I have is canned goods, well organized with dates marked, although the rotation process is becoming cumbersome. Will be adding more shelving units soon. But everytime I have to add new stuff, it means pulling out the older stuff to add the newer stuff in the back.

Is there an easier way to do this??


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## rice paddy daddy (Jul 17, 2012)

This is my wife's area of expertise.
She mainly keeps canned goods in cardboard boxes that are not too heavy for a 74 year old lady. Those are easier to shift around.
Like items together - soups, beans, tuna, chili, meats, ravioli,etc.
Several hundred pounds of rice in food grade 5 gallon buckets properly sealed and with oxygen absorbers the whole bit.

We also have repurposed the chest freezer that died on us as canned goods storage.
The stuff is everywhere. In the spare bedroom, out in the hay shed, kitchen cabinets and built in pantry. Everywhere.

Two freezers and another refrigerator out on our enclosed porch.


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## Back Pack Hack (Sep 15, 2016)

ItsJustMe said:


> ........ But everytime I have to add new stuff, it means pulling out the older stuff to add the newer stuff in the back..........


Rotating your stock should be part of the plan. You can't just keep adding.


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## Slippy (Nov 14, 2013)

ItsJustMe said:


> How do you keep your food stuffs organized? I am running out of room.
> 
> Most of what I have is canned goods, well organized with dates marked, although the rotation process is becoming cumbersome. Will be adding more shelving units soon. But everytime I have to add new stuff, it means pulling out the older stuff to add the newer stuff in the back.
> 
> Is there an easier way to do this??


Rotation/Rotation/Rotation!

That's the secret!


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## 1skrewsloose (Jun 3, 2013)

Have you looked at something like these?

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=can+rotation+storage&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIk6i_wbHH7QIV8wytBh20mgPc

I understand that you understand rotation, some folks need better reading comprehension.


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## ItsJustMe (Dec 12, 2020)

1skrewsloose said:


> Have you looked at something like these?
> 
> https://www.amazon.com/s?k=can+rotation+storage&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIk6i_wbHH7QIV8wytBh20mgPc


Hmmm... it would take an awful lot of those, though.

Yeah, anything that says "Best By" 2022 or later goes in boxes in closets, pretty much. Will move them to the shelves next year.

Keeping track of what I have has become my second hobby. Spreadsheet?


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## Camel923 (Aug 13, 2014)

new meaning to sit on it and rotate.


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## CapitalKane49p (Apr 7, 2020)

This won't help you with your space problem but may be worth a look if you haven't already seen it. BPH did this YouTube video a few months back about organizing items by BB date and not product. I tried it and it was an eye opener in identifying holes in my supply.






Godspeed


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## paulag1955 (Dec 15, 2019)

Back Pack Hack said:


> Rotating your stock should be part of the plan. You can't just keep adding.


Easier said than done. I have things in storage that we don't typically eat on a regular basis. Canned vegetables and soups, for example.


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## Back Pack Hack (Sep 15, 2016)

paulag1955 said:


> Easier said than done. I have things in storage that we don't typically eat on a regular basis. Canned vegetables and soups, for example.


Storing things you don't use to begin with is a bad idea.


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## paulag1955 (Dec 15, 2019)

Back Pack Hack said:


> Storing things you don't use to begin with is a bad idea.


In this case, no, it's not a bad idea. If I want long term storage, shelf stable storage of vegetables, for example, how else am I going to get it? It's not that we wouldn't eat them and be glad to have them in a SHTF situation. We just prefer fresh or frozen.


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## ItsJustMe (Dec 12, 2020)

Until about six months ago, I mostly ate fresh only. However, I realized that had to change or all this stash would end up in a landfill as it aged. And when the supply chain crashes, all that fresh won't be available. So diet has changed a lot. And guess what? Less cooking, fewer dishes, much easier! I'm sorta liking this.

Kinda funny. At first, I thought a full pantry was a lot. Then I started using that little shelving unit in the laundry room and felt really proud. Then added two more shelving units and filled them up. Now it's boxes in the closet, too. Planning on adding more.

You folks are a b-a-d influence on me! Thanks!!


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## danben (Mar 23, 2020)

For rotation rotation rotation, buy or build a large Lazy Susan. If you have a barn, you could buy a used carousel from a defunct carnival. OK, so that last is an unkind cut.


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## pakrat (Nov 18, 2012)

We’re fortunate to have one room where we’ve erected three walls of floor-to-ceiling shelves, though we still get short on space from time to time. We use shallow cardboard trays to group most things… plastic bins for others… grouped by similar approx BB dates and labeled. Our stock method goes from the furthest BB dates on the bottom shelf and advancing up to the nearest dates on the top shelf (so we have can goods of the same item, like beans, on each shelf in a vertical column by BB date). As we empty trays from the top, we move the next nearest-date tray up from the shelf below. This gives us a quick visual of quantity and time-line.


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## Elvis (Jun 22, 2018)

paulag1955 said:


> In this case, no, it's not a bad idea. If I want long term storage, shelf stable storage of vegetables, for example, how else am I going to get it? It's not that we wouldn't eat them and be glad to have them in a SHTF situation. We just prefer fresh or frozen.


Like Paulag we stockpile less tasty long term foods we may end up tossing in 20 years. Like insurance payments we hope to never use.. #10 cans of rice, pasta, ect good for 20+ years, Some stuff like powered milk and powdered cheese that may only last for 10 years before needing replacing. I've told our kids that I pray that some day when we pass they will end up tossing a bunch of old cans of food in the trash because SHTF never happened. Long term prepping has a cost, similar to your home insurance; hopefully never used but there just in case.

Since we prep food for a few family members who don't normally eat here we have to put up more food than we normally can eat in a year. A few family members contribute to our food supplies so we have to also store their foods. Prepping is not a "family tradition" but everyone knows to come here in a pinch.

We try to keep the paltry, freezer, and kitchen shelves full with what we normally eat but we don't keep the longer term foods in the kitchen area; not enough room. We do keep a shelf in the pantry loaded with prep type food such as freeze dried mushrooms and onions for daily cooking.
The super long term foods like canned rice and soy products that can survive better in a non tempature environment are in the barn with conservative use by dates written on the cans. The spices, powdered milk, freeze dried mushrooms ect live in a closet in the insulated garage.. The expensive freeze dried meals are in another closet in the house. Preps like sugar and salt are in a barrel in the barn with desiccant packs tossed in.

Think of it this way. 100 years ago before Walmart, Kroger, and Dollar General stores were on every corner people had to store food to get through the winter so they had to have storage space in every house. 
Find the space in your home.


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## Annie (Dec 5, 2015)

Back Pack Hack said:


> Storing things you don't use to begin with is a bad idea.


That's right. Who needs a belly ache or a case of bad constipation when shtf. Best to use a little weekly at least.


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## charito (Oct 12, 2013)

ItsJustMe said:


> How do you keep your food stuffs organized? I am running out of room.
> 
> Most of what I have is canned goods, well organized with dates marked, although the rotation process is becoming cumbersome. Will be adding more shelving units soon. But everytime I have to add new stuff, it means pulling out the older stuff to add the newer stuff in the back.
> 
> Is there an easier way to do this??


I put particular canned goods of same due date in boxes (with a label sticking outside box indicating what canned good it is and due date). 
You can stack them up. They're easier to rotate. If they won't be used and they're nearing the due date - I donate them to the food bank.


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## charito (Oct 12, 2013)

ItsJustMe said:


> Hmmm... it would take an awful lot of those, though.
> 
> Yeah, anything that says "Best By" 2022 or later goes in boxes in closets, pretty much. Will move them to the shelves next year.
> 
> Keeping track of what I have has become my second hobby. Spreadsheet?


I don't have many varieties of the *canned* stuffs of the _same kinds_ - like, I've got only three kinds of chunky soups (lots of pea soup) as an example (what we normally use) - but I really stock up on those. It keeps it simpler to manage. 
I've got lots of pork and beans, tomatoes and paste, some zoodles and Spam/Corned beef, some tuna.

Some odd varieties are minimal. After they're gone, I won't be replacing them.

I've got lots of bottled pasta sauces (2 kinds), jams, Peanut Butter etc..,

Then, I've got the boxed stuffs like Kraft Dinner and Cup-O-Noodles. Also not that many different kinds.
Then of course oatmeal, pancake mixes, pasta (macaroni, spaghetti, egg noodles), mung beans, etc..,

I'm prepping for only a maximum of 8 months to a year.


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## ItsJustMe (Dec 12, 2020)

Good ideas here. Thank you!


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## Annie (Dec 5, 2015)

If you're gonna do it right, it's time consuming. Unfortunately there's no getting around that as far as I know unless you can get someone to do it for you. .


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## charito (Oct 12, 2013)

If they're in boxes, you can use spaces under furnitures as well - beds and sofas. Just label them so you don't have to dig out everything looking for something. Create your own system that makes it easy for you to manage as far as rotation goes. I box items that are good for at least 2-3 years or longer (and they're the ones that are stored "out of the way"). They move up, and are replaced, as time goes by.


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## charito (Oct 12, 2013)

Back Pack Hack said:


> Storing things you don't use to begin with is a bad idea.


Lol. That's how we ended up "hoarding" stuffs that "maybe, we'll need someday." Before you know it, you're swamped.
Hubby just had 2 bin-fuls of items we never use hauled away - accumulated over 20 years! But I hang on to those grocery plastic bags!


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## charito (Oct 12, 2013)

paulag1955 said:


> In this case, no, it's not a bad idea. If I want long term storage, shelf stable storage of vegetables, for example, how else am I going to get it? It's not that we wouldn't eat them and be glad to have them in a SHTF situation. We just prefer fresh or frozen.


If you actually like them - then that's a different story. 
Like, I only eat canned green beans and corn, and cream of corn (and I use fresh ones but have _those_ canned ones stocked). Those are it for me. I'll probably have three cans of carrots and potatoes.....but I don't really use them. 
The taste of canned veggies aren't really my thing. I've got lots of potato flakes, though.

Of course it's hard to keep up using the stocks even if I try to do it diligently. We have to _*enjoy normal eating*_ while we can, too!
Why would I eat SHTF stuffs all year when we're not in that situation? 
Have stocks (as an _"insurance"_).....but, _don't make life revolve around them. _ Just my two cents.

I know, we may not all see things and plan the same way. That's just me.
Hubby and I can eat the same thing and easily get it in a routine - that's why we don't really need lots of varieties.

Honestly, I open a can of soup maybe.....once or twice a month? Peanut butter, I have tons - but I share them with the squirrels! :tango_face_smile:

Anything that goes near the due date - I give them to the food bank. _They're planned that way._


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## ItsJustMe (Dec 12, 2020)

Good ideas and food for thought (sorry) here.

So after a fairly large shopping expedition yesterday, I spent the day reorganizing and used some of your ideas.

First, using the tray (box bottoms) helped tremendously with not needing more shelving units. I cleared out and moved closet stuff around to make room on the closet floor to stack the trays. Each item is sharpie marked on the top and front with BB date.

Second, each year is in a different location, mostly because it won't all fit in the same place. So 2021 is in the pantry and three trays on top of the 2022 shelves. The 2022 shelves are in the laundry room, next to the kitchen. Everything 2023 is stacked in a spare room closet.

The exceptions were meats, tuna, etc. They have much longer shelf life, so I separated them and placed them in trays in a different closet by themselves.

I must say that this was an eye opening experience. I realized I do not have nearly enough! And so much is BB 2021. Of course, it will probably last longer than that but still...

I also sat down a did a rough estimate of daily calorie intake. THAT was scary! I figured a can of beans, maybe rice, a veggie or two. That came to 700 cals. Then when I counted what I have, all I could think was, well, I always wanted to be a size 8.

So, tomorrow, if it doesn't snow again tonight, I am headed back out to shop for more. I have this feeling that I need to hurry, that time is running out.

Many thanks to you all for replying!


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

ItsJustMe said:


> How do you keep your food stuffs organized? I am running out of room.
> 
> Most of what I have is canned goods, well organized with dates marked, although the rotation process is becoming cumbersome. Will be adding more shelving units soon. But everytime I have to add new stuff, it means pulling out the older stuff to add the newer stuff in the back.
> 
> Is there an easier way to do this??


you need to hire my wife to come down there to help get you organized. I will really miss her. The pay best be good. Thanks.


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## rice paddy daddy (Jul 17, 2012)

Remember - the "best by" date is not an expiration date.
I have eaten canned pinto beans that were 5 years past the BB date with no problem.

As long as the can is not bulged, rusty, or leaking you should be OK.
Just put your nose right down close to the product and take a whiff. If it gags you, toss it.


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## Prepared One (Nov 5, 2014)

Rotation is good, but keep adding. No big worries, most can goods will last years if stored in a good place. Don't buy crap you don't like. For instance, Lima Beans.:tango_face_grin:


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## rice paddy daddy (Jul 17, 2012)

Prepared One said:


> Rotation is good, but keep adding. No big worries, most can goods will last years if stored in a good place. Don't buy crap you don't like. For instance, Lima Beans.:tango_face_grin:


Buy a LOT of limas, and butter beans.
I'll PM you my address, send them all to be.

There is no finer dining than eating room temp butter beans straight from the can, with a spoon.:vs_love:


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## Prepared One (Nov 5, 2014)

rice paddy daddy said:


> Buy a LOT of limas, and butter beans.
> I'll PM you my address, send them all to be.
> 
> There is no finer dining than eating room temp butter beans straight from the can, with a spoon.:vs_love:


I've hated Lima beans since I was kid. We came up poor so my Mom liked beans, which didn't bother me but it seems she was favorable to Lima. I love red beans and pintos so I have plenty of those on hand. I am fresh out of Lima Beans. Sorry.:vs_smile:


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## ItsJustMe (Dec 12, 2020)

Lol! Not a single lima bean in the joint. As a kid growing up, we ate what was served, like it or not.

I figure if you are hungry enough, you will eat whatever is available and be glad to have it. I do try things before I buy a lot of it. 

Everything food (and batteries) is inside the house since winter temps here are well below freezing for months. I am also trying to keep things out of sight.

Thank you all again! This is a great group.


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## rice paddy daddy (Jul 17, 2012)

Prepared One said:


> I've hated Lima beans since I was kid. We came up poor so my Mom liked beans, which didn't bother me but it seems she was favorable to Lima. I love red beans and pintos so I have plenty of those on hand. I am fresh out of Lima Beans. Sorry.:vs_smile:


Ask any Old Soldier about Ham And Lima Beans C-Rations. :vs_laugh::vs_shocked:
:vs_poop::armata_PDT_27::armata_PDT_23::armata_PDT_33:


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