# Surviving in the city



## Ant_dawg (Jan 28, 2019)

I have been prepping for about 6 months. I have come a long way. I have about 3 months worth of food so far. Stock piling ammo and gaing gardening skills. I am on my way to being fine on my own. I plan on moving in a more rural place in the next few years. I know survival is gonna be hard living in a suburb. Most people arent prepared. These people can become my friends or the might even try to eat myself and my family. The only way that i can see it not becoming extreme is to work with my neighbors and help them survive. Not with my preps but show them how to forage boil water stay warm and garden. I have thought of maybe digging a hole at the down spout and collecting water. Is that a good idea? Can you boil water or does it have to be filtered as well? Is there a way to turn say a dryer into a wood burning stove? Most of the questions i see like this on these forums theres a bunch of know it alls that say stuff like your screwed in the city and so is everyone else. This is my reality for the time. So please no rude comments only helpful ones.


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## Denton (Sep 18, 2012)

Suburbs will be difficult. Trying to teach others to take care of themselves will only make some realize you have stuff.

Good idea to move to the rurals.

I plan on filtering as well as boiling.

A dryer as a wood burning stove? There are much better ideas.


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## StratMaster (Dec 26, 2017)

Welcome!
Living where you do, I would say that OPSEC is going to be something you want in the very front of your mind at all times. Keep quiet about your preps, and keep them invisible to prying eyes. If nobody knows what you have, or how you have prepared, nobody will come specifically to rob you of said preps when things go south.
Rather than digging a hole by a downspout, find a collection bucket. Source where the water is COMING from as well... is it from the roof? Going to have some bird poop, squirrel droppings, maybe even **** crap up there. Boiling the water will kill microbes. Filtering the water will remove debris. I find a good stainless steel charcoal water filter system to be a good prep investment. Ditto some of those nice 5 or 7 gallon containers which you keep full and rotate (even in the city, a few of these will slide nicely into the back of a closet).


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## Camel923 (Aug 13, 2014)

Water is a top priority. A barrel or catch at a down spout is good for a garden but it would require filtering for human consumption. An under ground cistern from a down spout with a diverter and a sand filter would allow you to create a water catch that would last a month or more of potable water. 

I do not see the practicality of turning a dryer into a wood burner. It would be easier to buy an actual wood burner and have it installed.


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## Ant_dawg (Jan 28, 2019)

I am currently aquiring those things. I dont plan on telling anyone that i have preps. My question is more so how do i turn simple everyday items into wood burning stoves water filters and catchment. I figure if i can show up and show people how to survive i wont have to worry about my neighbors trying to kill me for the most part. I dont want to involve my neighbors now because if they have and idea that im a prepper thats when problems will arise. If i just portray myself as a guy that knows a few things then i think i would be better off. I might even be able to help my neighbors survive and they might help out with security.


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## Ant_dawg (Jan 28, 2019)

Do you have to filter water if you boil it


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## Denton (Sep 18, 2012)

Ant_dawg said:


> Do you have to filter water if you boil it


Boiling kills organisms; it doesn't remove contaminants.


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## StratMaster (Dec 26, 2017)

Ant_dawg said:


> Do you have to filter water if you boil it


I like to do both. I like to boil my water, let it cool some, then filter it. My charcoal filter system will clean out microbes all by itself, but I don't want them building up in my charcoal filters. I kill them by boiling, then remove the corpses by filtering. There are other non living pollutants which can be removed by charcoal filtering... like heavy metals, chemicals, ect.... One or the other is good in a pinch... but if you are getting water out of a ditch and don't know what else is mixed in there? Doing both is better IMO.


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## Ant_dawg (Jan 28, 2019)

Thanks


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

Well us old timey boyscouts (Before the pedophiles took it over) was taught if a person is worried about microbes in the drinking water so many drops of Clorox per gallon can cure what ails it. But then its been so far back I forgot how many drops and how many gallons..so I went and found this for consideration. As the Jack Booted Thug said..if the water is poison bleach or boiling cant help it any. I dont think filtering works either but some of these hard heads thinks it does for some reason. Swimming pool shock is better they claim but its mighty potent. One lb per 10 k gallons. There is math formulas available to get it down to how much for five gallons..but its complicated.

WATER PURIFICATION

1) Clear water is a sign of pure water. Always drain long-standing pipes for 30 seconds to one minute before drinking! (Cheap remote motels?)

2) 1 Gallon water is disinfected by 8-16 drops of regular household bleach (visually about 1/4 of a teaspoon) - double that for cloudy water. Shake and let stand 30 minutes. One teaspoon will disinfect 5 gallons. Immediately after treating, water must initially have a slight smell of chlorine. If it does not - repeat the process.

3) Household bleach is relatively harmless. The smell or "waft" of chlorine is not bad: it indicates that water is treated and germ free. Once treated and disinfected, the chlorine smell will go away in a few days.

4) Regularly used water from large tanks may be treated once or twice a month with 1 Oz. bleach per 200 gallons or 5 Oz. bleach per 1000 gallons.

5) Long-standing water in tanks will be disinfected w/ 1 pint household bleach per 1000 gallons. (2500 gal tanks are fine with 3 pints.)

6) Bleach effectively kills bacteria and viruses, stops smells and then breaks down. It's effective germ killing alkaline property is completely neutralized very quickly. It does not stay chemically active in tanks for more than a few days. Most germs require sunlight to grow. Store water in the dark.

7) If water is relatively clear: but has a noticeable smell of chlorine: it is drinkable, disinfected, and harmless. Humans need 2 quarts per day.rtudsl. . The smart folks on here in times past have said Swimming pool shock is much better and has an infintie shelf life but a pound can do 10 k gallons so be careful on the math to do five gallons. Not testifying this is right but it looks plausible

WATER PURIFICATION

1) Clear water is a sign of pure water. Always drain long-standing pipes for 30 seconds to one minute before drinking! (Cheap remote motels?)

2) 1 Gallon water is disinfected by 8-16 drops of regular household bleach (visually about 1/4 of a teaspoon) - double that for cloudy water. Shake and let stand 30 minutes. One teaspoon will disinfect 5 gallons. Immediately after treating, water must initially have a slight smell of chlorine. If it does not - repeat the process.

3) Household bleach is relatively harmless. The smell or "waft" of chlorine is not bad: it indicates that water is treated and germ free. Once treated and disinfected, the chlorine smell will go away in a few days.

4) Regularly used water from large tanks may be treated once or twice a month with 1 Oz. bleach per 200 gallons or 5 Oz. bleach per 1000 gallons.

5) Long-standing water in tanks will be disinfected w/ 1 pint household bleach per 1000 gallons. (2500 gal tanks are fine with 3 pints.)

6) Bleach effectively kills bacteria and viruses, stops smells and then breaks down. It's effective germ killing alkaline property is completely neutralized very quickly. It does not stay chemically active in tanks for more than a few days. Most germs require sunlight to grow. Store water in the dark.

7) If water is relatively clear: but has a noticeable smell of chlorine: it is drinkable, disinfected, and harmless. Humans need 2 quarts per day.
https://www.pssurvival.com/PS/Water_Purification/Boil/Purifying_Water_2004.htm


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## StratMaster (Dec 26, 2017)

bigwheel said:


> Well us old timey boyscouts (Before the pedophiles took it over) was taught if a person is worried about microbes in the drinking water so many drops of Clorox per gallon can cure what ails it. But then its been so far back I forgot how many drops and how many gallons..so I went and found this for consideration. As the Jack Booted Thug said..if the water is poison bleach or boiling cant help it any. I dont think filtering works either but some of these hard heads thinks it does for some reason. Swimming pool shock is better they claim but its mighty potent. One lb per 10 k gallons. There is math formulas available to get it down to how much for five gallons..but its complicated.
> 
> WATER PURIFICATION
> 
> ...


As an old timey Boy Scout of the '60's, we were at summer Jamboree. We went on a long hike, and these boys were sucking their canteens dry. Lo and behold! There at the base of a long, sloping hill was a low reedy spot with sparkling, clear water for all... and the Scout Master told everyone to fill their canteens. I looked at that long sloping hill, and saw innumerous cow patties scattered along the slope... and realized all that water had to flow through that field of flop to get to where we were filling our canteens. I have had trust issues ever since.


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## Denton (Sep 18, 2012)

StratMaster said:


> As an old timey Boy Scout of the '60's, we were at summer Jamboree. We went on a long hike, and these boys were sucking their canteens dry. Lo and behold! There at the base of a long, sloping hill was a low reedy spot with sparkling, clear water for all... and the Scout Master told everyone to fill their canteens. I looked at that long sloping hill, and saw innumerous cow patties scattered along the slope... and realized all that water had to flow through that field of flop to get to where we were filling our canteens. I have had trust issues ever since.


:vs_laugh:


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## Yavanna (Aug 27, 2018)

So you wish to help your neighbours? Have you ever considered making a comunity food garden in your area? You do not have to say anything about your preps, but you can make it like a " gardeners club", where people can bring they kids and teach how things grow, be more sustainable and so forth... Suggest everyone to plant a fruit tree or two in their home gardens, some people may not be interested, but other might want to learn some new skills and also teach you something valuable.


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## Elvis (Jun 22, 2018)

It takes a lot of wood to boil water, and a lot of energy to gather that wood. I prefer a filter like a Big Berkley or 2 drops of bleach per quart of water.

Bleach gets weaker over time so rotate you bleach every year. Calcium Hypochlorite is a longer lasting form of powdered bleach. One pound of it will sterilize 12,000 gallons of water.

I use and like wood heat but it's a lot of work and requires some tools. Have you considered renting/buying a large propane tank and putting a few propane heaters along with a propane powered stove in?


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## Toefoot (Jun 21, 2017)

Yavanna said:


> So you wish to help your neighbours? Have you ever considered making a comunity food garden in your area? You do not have to say anything about your preps, but you can make it like a " gardeners club", where people can bring they kids and teach how things grow, be more sustainable and so forth... Suggest everyone to plant a fruit tree or two in their home gardens, some people may not be interested, but other might want to learn some new skills and also teach you something valuable.


Love the victory gardens, we have 3 large ones within a 7 mile radius of our home. we have our own garden in the yard but really enjoy going to our local victory garden to converse with my neighbors....

So much good comes from victory gardens.


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## Slippy (Nov 14, 2013)

Yavanna said:


> So you wish to help your neighbours? Have you ever considered making a comunity food garden in your area? You do not have to say anything about your preps, but you can make it like a " gardeners club", where people can bring they kids and teach how things grow, be more sustainable and so forth... Suggest everyone to plant a fruit tree or two in their home gardens, some people may not be interested, but other might want to learn some new skills and also teach you something valuable.


Sweet young Yavanna...

I LOVE to help others! Matter of fact, helping others is my middle name!

BUT...I would never ever ever consider making a community food garden or gardeners club! :vs_laugh: That is so foreign to me that I cannot say much more.

Some people just need to starve to death and in their death, they teach others not what to do, but what NOT to do! :vs_closedeyes:

Hope this help!

Slippy:vs_wave:


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## StratMaster (Dec 26, 2017)

Elvis said:


> It takes a lot of wood to boil water, and a lot of energy to gather that wood. I prefer a filter like a Big Berkley or 2 drops of bleach per quart of water.
> 
> Bleach gets weaker over time so rotate you bleach every year. Calcium Hypochlorite is a longer lasting form of powdered bleach. One pound of it will sterilize 12,000 gallons of water.
> 
> I use and like wood heat but it's a lot of work and requires some tools. Have you considered renting/buying a large propane tank and putting a few propane heaters along with a propane powered stove in?


Propane is a great prep, and doesn't go bad like gasoline.


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## inceptor (Nov 19, 2012)

Reading through here I noticed that no one has brought this up yet so I will. Some states have laws about collecting rain water. Texas is included in that but in digging deeper Texas allows collection for potable water.

https://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/is-rainwater-harvesting-legal-in-your-state-us/61586739

ETA the reason I became aware of this was when I lived in CO, we could only use crap ground water. It was heavy with iron and sulfur. Denver and Aurora owned the rights to our water and we were not allowed access to good water.


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## Inor (Mar 22, 2013)

Rule #1 in prepping is GET OUT OF THE CITY! GET OUT OF THE SUBURBS! If you have more than a dozen people per square mile, it is WAY too crowded!

Once you are out in the sticks, prepping is not weird. It is just a fact of life in the sticks.

Yes - you should filter, then boil your water to make it safe for drinking. (Or boil, then filter if your name is @StratMaster.)

And also yes - @Slippy is right. Community gardens are the dumbest idea since the pet rock. That is all.


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## Chiefster23 (Feb 5, 2016)

A community garden would go something like this:
1. You would be lucky if 50% of your neighbors actually agreed to participate in the project.
2. On the first work day, 80% of those who actually showed up would quit when they realized that they actually had to dig, till, rake, and work in the dirt.
3. Of the few remaining participants, only one or 2 would continue to weed, water, and tend the plants.
4. If and when the garden started producing vegetables, all of the original participants (and some who never participated) would show up to demand their share of the bounty.

I’ll pass on any community garden.


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## Yavanna (Aug 27, 2018)

Too bad comunity gardens do not work for you, folks. I have seen some pretty nices ones around here, even some schools have them (and kids start their own gardens at home) Of course there are lazy people that do not help with anything and only take the produce away, but many people are interested in helping. 
Most of the unbuilt areas in my neighbourhood have something planted on it, like corn, beans, peanuts, sweet potatoes and so on.


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## Ant_dawg (Jan 28, 2019)

I can see where a community garden could be a good thing. Alot of my neighbors already have gardens. You can obviously pick a few of them to help out and get the systems in place. The thing that i think alot of people dont get is the difference between starving people in the city and starving people in the country is country people tend to be better marksmen. I live in st louis and if shtf hit tomorrow its gonna be -3 degrees. Helping people turn everyday items in to wood burning stoves may stop them from kicking my door down to get mine. People in the country are gonna have the same issues just at a slower rate. If you think otherwise your fooling yourself. A good portion of welfare recipients live in rural communities. Dont get me wrong im getting out of the city. I just need suggestions that may help me survive if i dont get out in time.


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## Slippy (Nov 14, 2013)

I fondly remember what the native ***** population did to a nice suburb of St. Louis when they got themselves worked up over some lies...Ferguson, MO if memory serves. Anyway, it could be a hint of things to come post SHTF in The Gateway to the West! :vs_whistle:

(PS I wonder how Ted Drewes Concretes sell in -3 weather? :vs_laugh



Ant_dawg said:


> I can see where a community garden could be a good thing. Alot of my neighbors already have gardens. You can obviously pick a few of them to help out and get the systems in place. The thing that i think alot of people dont get is the difference between starving people in the city and starving people in the country is country people tend to be better marksmen. I live in st louis and if shtf hit tomorrow its gonna be -3 degrees. Helping people turn everyday items in to wood burning stoves may stop them from kicking my door down to get mine. People in the country are gonna have the same issues just at a slower rate. If you think otherwise your fooling yourself. A good portion of welfare recipients live in rural communities. Dont get me wrong im getting out of the city. I just need suggestions that may help me survive if i dont get out in time.


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## Smitty901 (Nov 16, 2012)

All good points. But number 1 you need away to keep what is yours. Without that you are just holding it for the hood rat that will take it. Arm your self and learn to use it ahead of time good luck in town.


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## Ant_dawg (Jan 28, 2019)

Where i grew up we thought the Ferguson kids were the rich kids. Ill take my chances with the guys that hold their hipoint pistols sideway instead of the guys that take 300-400 yard rifle shots. Ive grown up here my whole life. Most of that population has an extreme flight mentality. They are opportunist that always take the easy way. Im not that worried because i doubt most of them will survive the first month. I learned that if they are shooting at you stand still because you dont want to accidentally run into a bullet that was gonna miss you. Im kinda starting to think this is a toot your own horn club and most people see prepping as a hobbie. Other than the water suggestion i have only seen one solution. If you think you aren't gonna have problems with your neighbors your wrong. Whats easier showing your neighbors to survive or having a shoot out with then when they realize your the only one not starving? Have any of you even thought of this?



Slippy said:


> I fondly remember what the native ***** population did to a nice suburb of St. Louis when they got themselves worked up over some lies...Ferguson, MO if memory serves. Anyway, it could be a hint of things to come post SHTF in The Gateway to the West!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


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## csi-tech (Apr 13, 2013)

Was Ferguson not where that lady said "I need my weave" "Don't burn our S#$t, go out into the suburbs and burn they S%&t"? not very wise advice unless you want to see alot of dead people.


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## The Tourist (Jun 9, 2016)

*@Yavanna*, just keep preaching to our better angels. We need someone to keep us from looking at everyone as the enemy.


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