Winter Scenarios
Posted by hawg_fan72@reddit | preppers | View on Reddit | 85 comments
It’s January 1st and the switch gets flipped, whatever doomsday, SHTF, EOTWAWKI, Apocalyptic scenario you think is most likely takes us out, cyberattack, physical terrorist attack on the grid, EMP, nuclear war, super volcano etc. It is winter, even for those of us in lower latitudes will likely experience some sort of extreme cold snap during winter. How are you prepared for a major event in winter?
If SHTF during winter, I don’t know that I’m prepared. Our house is all electric(not what we wanted, but didn’t have the money or credit to do anything differently at the time), we have a generator, but the fuel will run out eventually and I need that to run the well also. Blankets and sealing off one room for living might work until the temps are single digits. Any ideas or preps that you have to help in this situation?
slo-snoo@reddit
Doomsday winter, try a 50 years of winter. All the nukes exploding from all the nukes beary countries. The ash will block the sun, and we'll have a 50 years of deep freeze, where plants and animals will cease to live, and mankind will end.
davidm2232@reddit
What is your source for that? Everything I have read says even worst case is like 5-10 years of nuclear winter.
slo-snoo@reddit
It's 5 to 10 years for a atom bomb, Multiple Thermonuclear bombs are different by far. "Google it" It takes a atom bomb to detonate a Thermonuclear bomb. Can you imagine multiple Thermonuclear blasts!!
Outside_Rooster1583@reddit
modern warheads are generally less than 600 kiloton and would be mostly airbursts on counter value targets . less particles will be injected in the higher atmosphere . temps will drop several degrees after an exchange and crop failures will occur mostly within the first 5 yrs . starvation will kill far more than fallout or direct explosions will.
slo-snoo@reddit
Boy you are so out-of-date, with the modern warheads. Does your history books stop in the 1980's? There been upgrades since then. You're not the cock of the walk,Outside_Rooster1583.
Outside_Rooster1583@reddit
You aren't very bright, are you ? follow along if you can . the desired explosive yield is still the same , but with thermonuclear weapons ( atom bomb detonated hydrogen bomb ) they can be made smaller ( allowing Mirv and smaller warheads ) . with todays accuracy ( cel ) more destruction is done by multiple smaller warheads , rather than a single large one . the method of " encirclment " does far more damage and is the most likely method to be used in a nuclear war. theres more for you to learn about all of this , but im not writing a book , and your nastiness doesn't deserve a reward .
ryleg@reddit
Nuclear winter is very controversial. Maybe believe the models used to predict nuclear winter are very sketchy and the impacts of full nuclear war on climate will be insignificant.
Mustang_Tex@reddit
Our house and situation was similar: all electric, water well, no propane/gas. After living through a very difficult and prolonged winter event a few years ago, I since 'prepped' for this same scenario by developing a multi-phase plan that we would build upon over time. First was to be able to have a generator to power the water well and indoor small electric space heater(s), minimal low-wattage lighting and basic electronics. Opted for a 12kw generator that can run on gasoline and propane (sized primarily for well pump surge, refrigerator, and space heaters), and set up dedicated limited circuits in the house, such that the generator could connect as needed and also connect to the well pump house as needed to power the pump. Once set up, obtaining a stash of fuel was next, in a mixure of 2.5 and 5 gallon gasoline containers and 20-lb propane tanks. If you use a gas grill, the propane can be cycled through your normal grilling, and it lasts a long time. For gasoline, we cycle through it, adding stabil to the fuel when filling and running it through vehicles as it gets older. This provided simple, basic, power capability with enough fuel to run continuous generator for over a week (or 4-6 weeks if running it only at times).
We had a 'test' of our prep the following winter, lost power for a week. We ran the generator almost continuous; I did change the oil halfway through the week, but other than when refilling gas, it ran 24/7. We kept one room warm, was able to use microwave, make coffee, and used two space heaters to stay warm and comfortable. We kept the water dripping so the well pump would run at times and pipes wouldn't freeze.
The lessons learned showed a couple of weak spots in our prepping, which have since been corrected. But the basic purpose of being comfortable for a short period of time was tested, successfully.
For longer-term and a subseuquent phase of prepping, we have already invested in inverter/battery power to supplement the generator approach, wih solar panels coming soon.
If it came down to it for a long term SHTF scenario, we woud use firewood to provide heat and cooking (plenty of accessible firewood), although we do not yet have a best way to make use of such a unit indoors. Someone mentioned a portable wood stove, and that's an intriguing option. We have been through winter power outages in a house with a permanent wood stove, and although it was a lot of work, it worked quite well for heat and even for basic cooking. Wood should be obtained ahead of time of course before needed!
I would say though, once you have something in place, or even just thinking about it, try going through appropriate scenarios as test runs. You WILL learn stuff specific to your needs and preferences!
Such-Bug82@reddit
Solar panels work surprisingly well in winter. AFAIK usually the most power generated is not in July and August as those have the most sunshine hours but sometimes in March because the panels are cooled by the outside temperature and thus more efficient. So might be worth getting panels on your roof, but make sure to have it setup in a way it still works for your home when the power network is down
ExtraplanetJanet@reddit
We have a fireplace but the log pile hadn’t been replenished for years before we got the place and it was slowly rotting in place. I got a new cord of seasoned wood and devoted the rotting wood to a hugelkulter experiment in our yard. That’ll provide some heat for the home, plus we have an indoor buddy heater and electric blankets that will provide heat with less pressure on the generator. Thermal underwear and good winter coats for all of us, and layering, layering, layering! Honestly, just wearing more clothes is the best and most energy efficient way to stay warm.
FatBlackandAngry@reddit
There are mixed reviews on the safety aspect of using my buddy inside. Many fire departments say NOT to use it.
ExtraplanetJanet@reddit
I’m in WNC, about half the people I know used buddy heaters to get through this past winter. I imagine they’re not as safe as central heating or an electric space heater, but with battery powered smoke detectors and CO2 detectors, they’re reasonably safe indoors.
FatBlackandAngry@reddit
Go for it then.
ColaEuphoria@reddit
Of course they would say that. They're speaking under the assumption that the general public are bumbling idiots who won't make sure the heater isn't near something flammable. They're not even generally wrong about that, but if you aren't dumb, it's fine.
davidm2232@reddit
You have to be careful and use common sense. Many people heat with buddy heaters and kerosene heaters every winter with no issues.
Lopsided-Total-5560@reddit
You’re not wrong. I’ve been in places that are very cold and it’s amazing how warm it feels to go inside where it’s 35-40 degrees. After a while in those climates, you’re sitting around in almost nothing inside. Not gonna lie, when I get home and get re-acclimated, I get cold pretty easily.
Present_Figure_4786@reddit
Also my main concern. I have a natural gas furnace that requires electricity for the blower. I can't afford a generator. So we will huddle together I guess.
davidm2232@reddit
You really don't need much of a generator to run a gas furnace. A little 1500w will do the job. They are for sale all the time on FB marketplace for like $50-100
Lethalmouse1@reddit
How much electricity? Car inverter is cheap and your maintenance is defacto, vs the generator that never works when needed. If a multi car house, that's multiple backups.
Can usually run an inverter between 800-1300 watts depending on factors.
If the things you need to run are able to be handled with modified sine wave, cheapest option. Pure sine wave (electronics in particular) runs a bit more.
Something like this is cheap:
https://a.co/d/2bBu1PU
If you're only running it during max cold times/at night and letting the sun and sweatshirts do the day time, you're maybe at 30hours per 15 gallon tank.
So maybe 3-ish days per gas tank.
Level-Blueberry9195@reddit
Build yourself a solar cooler. It's easy to build. Just cardboard, glue and aluminum, a protractor and a ruler.
Save yourself the wood for cloudy days or cold days. I tested my diy solar cooler and it got a pot HOT HOT
Jussi-larsson@reddit
Masonry stove and root cellar full of potatoes
blacksmithMael@reddit
I'm fortunate enough to have an artesian well and have put hand pumps on the downstairs sinks to draw water from the storage tanks, so should have water even if we're completely without power. I've setup an overflow pipe that connects to our irrigation system which would keep the plants in the greenhouses watered, we'd just need to open and close the valve manually.
We have solar and batteries along with a generator and buried propane tank which should give us a fair bit of resilience in the winter. Heating is via a heat pump and the solar system can run that, but that gets turned off if the batteries discharge below a certain point (and we can do it manually if, for example, we're told the power cut will be prolonged). Our house is old so most rooms have a fireplace, we've got plenty of seasoned wood in the woodshed, a good few stacks seasoning and our own woodland to stock up from. We can cook with wood easily in the kitchen too.
flyinmonkees@reddit
Don’t think you’re spared from this possibility if you live somewhere with mild winters. Due to climate anomalies, a cold snap can happen anywhere and it’s more devastating where it’s a freak occurrence. This happened to us in Oregon a couple years ago. The windchills had us in single digits for days and we had mass power outages combined with roads too icy to travel.
Then-Departure-4036@reddit
What about Arizona?
HappyCamperDancer@reddit
Put up a tent in the living room. Much warmer in a tent.
jkubus94@reddit
I have about 300 of those hot hands packets, USB powered heated blanket, and lots of battery banks. I also have a camping heat stove that I could set up at the patio door pretty easily. It would be hard up here near the border, but we would survive lol
XRlagniappe@reddit
NWYthesearelocalboys@reddit
South Eastern AZ.
This thread reminds me I need to install the wood stove I bought two seasons ago before next winter.
Plenty of wood and trees on the property.
Buddy heater and propane stored for backup.
Two solar and one duel fuel generator.
Whole home solar but grid tied, which can be bypassed. (Safely)
Above ground pool and pond that can be processed for about 30k gallons of water.
Two way radios.
ATV's for fuel efficient transportation.
All of the above to buy enough time to start organizing the surrounding area for security and longer term survival. Presuming grid attack which I believe is the most likely of the scenarios presented.
davidm2232@reddit
You may want to rethink that. ATVs are not very fuel efficient. Even the best ones are going to be under 30 MPG.
NWYthesearelocalboys@reddit
Thats still quite a bit more than my trucks.
davidm2232@reddit
Sure. But it's not nearly as good as a small diesel car.
Hot_Annual6360@reddit
Double windows and doors, fireplace, iron oven inside the house, burning wood of course, warm clothes, feather blankets and flannel covers (they don't get cold)
dittybopper_05H@reddit
Radioisotope thermoelectric generator.
Not only will it provide electricity for dozens if not hundreds of years (depending on the isotope), it will also provide plentiful heat to keep your home warm.
They're a bit spendy, but extremely reliable.
davidm2232@reddit
I really wish this technology was more developed. It would be so great to have. The USSR did a bunch but it fell off.
dittybopper_05H@reddit
Oh, it's highly developed.
The issue isn't the technology, it's the issue of allowing every Tom, Dick, and Harry to have a significant quantity of radioactive isotopes in their home. Not that it would be dangerous from a "normal use" standpoint: It wouldn't. The isotopes used have (usually) low gamma and neutron emissions and they can be shielded.
The danger would be that you could cut one open and marry it to a pipe bomb and have ready made dirty bomb.
Not the kind of thing we want to be commonly available.
davidm2232@reddit
From my understanding, something like a pipe bomb dirty bomb isn't really that big of a deal. You could do worse with a 55 gallon drum of diesel fuel and some fertilizer.
dittybopper_05H@reddit
Except it's a terror weapon.
People have a huge fear of radioactivity, because you can't see it, hear it, smell it, taste it*, etc. It's an invisible killer.
Don't be married to the idea it has to be a pipe bomb, either. Imagine your 55 gallon drum with ANFO being used to spread radioactive material. Or a rental truck filled with it and radioactive material.
But even the small size ones will have an effect all out of proportion to the actual real harm they can possibly cause because *RADIATION!*.
I don't know how old you are, but I'm old enough, and lived close enough, to Three Mile Island during their issues there. The amount of radioactive material released was small enough that it wasn't, from an objective standpoint, of significant concern.
But because it was radiation, people were very, very concern, and I had friends whose parents went to relatives houses in other states for a few days because of it.
Remember that the object of terrorism is to spread terror: It doesn't have to be a big splashy thing like 9/11, it can be much less impressive in terms of victims but still arouse a visceral fear.
For example, take the DC Sniper case. Your odds of being a victim, if you lived in that area, were essentially zero. But it tied the area up in knots for weeks:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D.C._sniper_attacks#Public_reaction
*Louis Slotin, second victim of the "Demon Core", reported that the intense burst of radiation that would eventually kill him gave him a sour taste in his mouth.
Nearby_Impact_8911@reddit
We have a fireplace and wood. Could always use more wood.
Responsible-Annual21@reddit
I’ve been preparing for this exact scenario. My weakness is I need power to survive winter. Here’s what I’ve done and what I plan to do: 1. Purchased a kerosene heater and mybuddy propane heaters. 2. Had an electrician wire a 30 amp, 220v outlet to my sub panel. 3. Purchased a dual fuel, 9000w, inverter generator. 4. Topped off my furnace oil tank (+224 gal).
Plan to do: Purchase a pallet of wood pellets for my pellet stove. Purchase 100lb propane tank for the generator. Purchase a small ecoflow battery generator to alternate between inverter generator and battery generator.
I’m trying to be prepared for an extended power outage in the middle of winter because I’m concerned that’s what’s coming.
MOF1fan@reddit
What's the 30amp outlet for? To back feed from the generator?
Responsible-Annual21@reddit
Yes. I run from the 220v outlet on the generator to the 30 amp outlet I had installed. Back feeds the house.
gremlin50cal@reddit
Running primarily off the battery generator and only running the propane generator for maybe an hour a day to recharge the battery generator will make your fuel go significantly farther. The amount of wasted fuel from running a generator all the time so it can be available when your fridge compressor kicks on or your sump pump kicks on or whatever is insane.
Responsible-Annual21@reddit
Correct. That’s the plan however, inverter generators typically have much better efficiency. With 100lb propane tank I could run in nonstop for a few days if I had to..
But, consider.. The concern isn’t a fridge or sump pump. It’s a furnace and stove when it’s -30 out.. I could run the stove on an ecoflow, but I need the generator for the furnace.
Usernamenotdetermin@reddit
Floridian here. What happens if you can’t ac the house? Un livable is unlivable? No. You adapt. You deal with what is in front of you first and pray that you have planned accordingly. Relax, it’s not end of the world. It’s Tuesday and we all have to plan how to handle the normal shit.
Fickle_Stills@reddit
Cold is deadlier than hot before modern civ
hawg_fan72@reddit (OP)
Exactly, if it’s hot, stay hydrated, jump in a body of water, take off your clothes, sit in the shade. Even 100+ temps are easily survivable if you stay hydrated and rest during the hottest parts of the day. Cold is a different beast survival wise. That’s why they never do real survival shows in tropical climates, it’s always about surviving the winter.
Signal_Wall_8445@reddit
It’s still much deadlier now. Roughly 9 times more temperature related deaths are from cold than heat each year.
Fickle_Stills@reddit
I kinda thought that might be the case but I wasn’t certain. Heat deaths tend to make headlines more frequently! Maybe it’s because they are more rare or they happen in bigger clusters?
Signal_Wall_8445@reddit
I think it is because heat deaths are often related to an event like an abnormally high temperature heat wave, while cold deaths are just constantly happening in any normal winter.
Canadian_shack@reddit
That’s right. I’m in the West, and temps regularly hit 100°+ here. I’m old enough that my parents grew up before AC was around and I heard all the stories. You slept on the sleeping porch with a damp sheet, you used dress shields, kept the windows open for a cross breeze, cooked outside if you had a second, outside, kitchen (common in some areas). You got used to summer being hot and everyone sweating at least a little.
dinkydinkyding@reddit
I have been looking into wood-burning stove’s for just this reason as I live in a northern climate
davidm2232@reddit
It's all about diversification.
If you live in a cold area, a woodstove and woodlot are a must imo. I have a woodstove, wood furnace, and 2 cords of wood cut and split in the basement. I'm on 10 acres and can cut as much firewood as I will ever need. I try to have at least a season of wood cut into logs so it can start to season.
For shorter emergencies where there will be supply shortages but not total grid down, I have 500 gallons of fuel oil. With moderate supplementation with the woodstove, that will get me through an entire winter (Oct-Apr) without needing to refill. I can also heat probably 50% with electric/heat pump but it would not be cheap.
Lethalmouse1@reddit
Gas stove will buy you a lot of time as a "cheaper" and functional in normal life prep.
Obviously a wood stove or such is more self sufficient if you can access wood etc. And wood will be purchase able more in a worst case. In a medium case you'll still probably be able to access some propane.
A couple hundred pound tank basically buys you a whole winter in ration mode. And for normal life purposes doesn't add any fuss and muss.
SeaGurl@reddit
I had a 4 month old during the snowpocalypse down here in Texas, and we lost power for 78 hours. It was probably the scariest 78 hours of my life.
Here is what I learned: •I will never ever ever ever ever give up my gas stove. If the electricity goes out, we can still manually start it with a lighter. I'd suggest a grill or camping stove if you don't have a gas stove inside.
•LAYERS. I live in Houston. It's a swamp, and layers are not usually our friend. BUT have layers for the winter, even if it's basic long johns or something.
•cold weather camping gear. We go camping, so setting up a tent in the living room helped. It wasn't rated for freezing temps so we have since bought one that is. (And we have actually used it for camping too)
•have something that tells you the temp that runs on a battery. Our thermostat went out so I was using the meat thermometer.
•for infants and toddlers, I was so incredibly glad I bought this like, teddy bear outfit/onesie for my 1st kid and kept it. Because I think it may have saved my daughters life. So, having a nice warm jumpsuit on hand eased my mind the next couple of years until I felt I could have her sleep with all of us under the blankets in an emergency and not get smushed.
•get shelf stable milk. Target and Costco sell cases of small bottles of shelf stable milk. I grab a case during winter, just in case. They don't last years, so I've been getting powdered milk for my preps lately.
•Non-electronic entertainment. It got so cold here the cell towers froze. So while we had battery backups, no cell service to do any games, doomscroll, etc.
•service your fire place periodically! Especially if you dont use it regularly. Soot builds up, lines can get wonky, etc. And know how to use your fireplace again, even if you don't need to use it often! There were a number of people who died down here because they left their flue closed.
Some of this stuff, depending where you live you may already have, if you're in the south, you'll probably be able to get by with only one or two pairs of cold weather clothes. I wore the same thermals for 2 days before changing and in a similar situation, I'd do it again. So you really don't need a whole lot there since any cold snap down here isn't going to last too long. And my daughters onesie, we just had the one and she wore it the entire time since it was the outermost layer I had her in.
OnTheEdgeOfFreedom@reddit
When I lived in New England, I prepared for 6 months without the grid, mostly as an experiment. Well, I tried to. I covered food and water reasonably well. I stores a lot of gas and propane for heaters, cooking and generators. I had wood for a fireplace and a wood stove, back up ways to cook...
The one scenario I was never certain I could completely cover was preventing the house pipes from freezing. It was a large house, I had one fireplace and one insert wood stove in another fireplace, and I had fans I could use to move heat around that I thought I could probably keep going with solar panels and batteries... but I was never convinced I could get through an entire difficult winter that way. It was too much house to keep above freezing with just two fireplaces, even burning wood constantly, and you can only stock so much propane before it becomes more of a risk than the problem you are trying to solve.
I was certain I could keep one small room warm all winter if I was willing to risk the rest of the house having frozen pipes, and you could argue that if some epic disaster, all that matters is staying alive and huge repair bills for moldy walls are irrelevant. But I don't believe the US is going to collapse in that fashion in my lifetime; I was trying to prep for the worst case scenario that I thought the US could actually recover from, which I decided was 6 months. (After that, if the US grid is still down, I was shot for my supplies no matter what I did.)
How did I eventually solve the winter problem? I moved to the tropics. That turned out to be simpler than prepping a large house in New England for an entire winter. Now I can sleep outside all year long with a tarp over me if I have to. Zero fuel cost. (When I say "simpler" I do not mean "simple". Going ex-pat is a big effort and it rarely comes cheap.)
All this said, for a small house, the solution is a wood stove. You can stack cords of wood, and in some regions it's relatively cheap. Yes, installing a wood stove isn't dirt cheap, and wood takes a lot of handling, but it's the safest fuel to store in quantity. It's even possible to cook on some stoves.
Then you can save the generator for your well, and lighting.
Big-Preference-2331@reddit
I am in Arizona. It would be a relief if SHTF in January for us. The weather is perfect for us. I used to live in Wisconsin and I always kept a couple kerosene heaters available in case the power went out. Kerosene doesn’t go bad and the heaters worked alright. Obviously not as good as an actual furnace but they will keep you alive.
Rough_Community_1439@reddit
I have free unlimited gas and heaters that don't require electric. For cooking it's a little tricky but I have two hard drive magnets to bypass the electric child lock solenoid. I think I would be pretty screwed if it was a volcano since I am on off grid solar but I think I would be mostly fine as long as it don't go to that negative 30 temps we had a while back
Socialimbad1991@reddit
In terms of energy use this is the big one, by far: heating your home (and in second place, heating water). It's energy-intensive, and if the grid is down the only energy you have access to is what you've stored or can harvest without too much effort... and, unfortunately, when it comes to heat, the easiest options are not very long-term sustainable off-grid and the most long-term sustainable options are not very cheap.
For example, it's easy to buy a generator and some gas... but the gas won't last forever, and you're going to need a big generator to do any electric heating. Oh you were hoping to save some cash because you were already gonna have a generator anyway? Too bad, if the generator is responsible for heating then that's all it can do AND you still need a bigger one.
Okay electric's out, how about propane? Gas? Fuel oil? All gonna run out, eventually. Oh and you'll still need electricity to run the blower motor if it's forced air.
Yuck, let's go old school. Wood stove? Has some advantages. It will destroy your air quality. Better get some CO alarms. You may be able to harvest wood from the environment, of course you'll be competing with everyone else who had the same idea. Wood is heavy and you need a lot of it. Also, it needs to be processed. All doable, but you're going to have your work cut out for you. Much of the heat goes out the chimney too, might want to come up with a way to recapture some of that. Stoves also require some regular maintenance to avoid tripping those CO detectors (mainly, clean the pipe out). Probably not going to want to use this as your primary heat source pre-SHTF... plus side it will double as a stove (it's right there in the name) in case you can't use the one in your kitchen for the same reason you can't use your furnace.
If you have a pile of cash lying around you could maybe do solar and/or geothermal. Not sure how well it works in colder climates, and it won't be cheap, but once installed it's practically free and completely off-grid. Can be used to heat your water, too!
Tl;dr there is no one-size-fits-all solution, everything has its trade-offs. Have redundancy in your system. Buy CO alarms (more than one)
Unlikely-Ad3659@reddit
I lived off grid for years, no genny, no solar, no mains water, I know I can live without power.
I have a kerosene heater and at least at the moment, 1 years worth of kerosene. I just need to get a kerosene lamp for when the candles run out.
Cooking I will do via generator or on a wood fire outside, there is plenty of firewood round here.
Bobby_Marks3@reddit
It's tough, because the answer to freezing temps is to start a fire with wood, which stores well and doesn't face the same kinds of challenges electricity or petroleum-based fuels do. Short of that, options are limited:
The best way to improve this situation is with a wood stove. Not cheap, but a game-changer for prepping to live without power.
Elegant-Procedure-74@reddit
I live in Southern TN - and the last few years I have been here we have had a snow storm to where we are snowed in and can’t leave our home. That’s been happening for 5 years - (I moved here in 2020).
So I expect it now.
We have a small camping stove to cook with, and the fuel it needs. We have canned goods, water bottles. Plenty of warm clothes / socks / winter boots. (Originally from New York and our blizzards are insane). When I see them I stick up on those hot hands packets, figure it’s better than nothing honestly.
I’m really wanting to figure out some type of heating since our home is electric. We have a lot of blankets and we have some sleeping bags too. Kinda in the same boat not sure what to do about it. Thankfully the power hasn’t ever gone out with these snow storms, but you never know.
We have a fire pit but it’s outside so we could use it to cook on - but we would have to go outside lol.
Inner-Confidence99@reddit
Need an old fashioned wood cookstove or wood burning heater. Keeps house warm and you can cook.
AdditionalAd9794@reddit
Wood stove, i mean we don't even have a heater.
Biggest problem would be food, though i have a pretty big garden kale, Swiss chard and the vegetables i am able to grow through the winter don't provide many calories. So I would definitely have to dip into the pantry.
dallasalice88@reddit
Do you have room to do potatoes, carrots, turnips, cabbage? You can get some calorie density there. I have a small root cellar so we go all winter on my stock of those. You could blanch and freeze as well. Mashed turnips are really good, or mix mashed potatoes and cooked cabbage together. Old Scottish recipe. I do greens as well, just don't seem to have much luck with squash or anything that needs heavy pollinators.
AdditionalAd9794@reddit
I do grow all those things. Though admittedly I don't even eat radishes, I mainly just grow a bunch of daikons as an over winter cover crop.
I kind of struggle with alot my cool weather crops, cabbage, Brussels, brocoli and cauliflower. I think my timing is wrong, like I plant them too late in the fall.
I've kind of opted away from potatoes. I can grow them 365 in my climate. But at the price I can buy them at the store it doesn't really make sense to grow them myself.
That said i still do get volunteer potatoes popping up from spuds I missed in the ground and failed to harvest the first time.
Winter squash i do alright, I actually have a few spaghetti and pumpkin I harvested last November.
The two varieties I like for squash are the Warsaw pasta, it's a spaghetti squash. And Lodi Squash, from Row 7 Seeds. It's essentially a small sweet pumpkin. It's good for pies, or i will literally cut them in half, olive oil, salt pepper and cook them at 400 for 40 minutes.
dallasalice88@reddit
Makes sense. I'm in a cool crop area. High elevation. Nighttime temps in the 40s all summer. I struggle to grow anything that needs hot weather or humidity. I do have a greenhouse as well but still have to run a little heater in there at times. I'm going to have to check out those squash varieties, I have such a short growing season that smaller might work better.
We are still in the 30s at night right now, 50s daytime. Come late September we will start to see freezing temps again at night.
AdditionalAd9794@reddit
My night time lows are high 40s for the 10 day Forcast, rain next sun/mon.
We rarely see freezes, some winters we dont
dallasalice88@reddit
Oof. No freeze, I wish sometimes. We see -10 and lower sometimes. But it's beautiful here. Rocky Mountain West.
PhoenixHeat602@reddit
Winter scenarios are not pretty, even with a remote cabin. The storage in one’s home is important, but burning wood gives the telltale visual and smell for miles. Those without heat will come knocking, just like with those who are hungry. Inclement weather ups the ante for those on the outside to lose their sh!t if you refuse. If any of you have ever seen some of the 18-19th century pictures of whole families sleeping in the same bed, that was not because they were just poor, it was for heat, as coal cost money and cutting wood although needed, was a resource to be used for cooking, mainly. So, how to cope when the temps get low? Ice caves, with a candle lit have proven to raise the temperature by a few degrees. Having the proper sleeping bags, layers of clothing designed for extreme cold and wet weather, wool is a good natural insulator of heat, even when wet. Keeping a layer between your body and concrete floors, and having clean clothes and a clean body helps. Your food intake should also be geared for the colder weather. Many people like to stick with always being lean today, it’s a feeling, a societal status and a trend toward being healthy, however, in a real-world SHTF situation in extreme cold scenarios, consuming fatty foods and even certain types of tallow fuels the body. I’m sure most people know about the native Eskimo tribes eat blubber in the winter months, it has its purpose. As a modern, civil person, modern materials will do in layers, stay warm and dry, and keep your head on a swivel to see what others around you are doing.
dallasalice88@reddit
Wood stove, actually two of them. We cut an ass ton of wood in the summer. Also have three gennies, one gas, one dual, one propane. 250 gallon propane tank plus about 10 smaller tanks. Freezers could go outside. I have a root cellar. I'm close to mountains and forest so wood supply is not an issue. Multiple off grid cooking options.
Western Wyoming.
incruente@reddit
Really, this is more of a blessing than a curse. I can move everything from the chest freezers outside; saves a lot on the electricity needs. The fireplace insert can keep right on heating the house like it usually does in winter. The fact that cooking heats up the house is a good thing rather than a liability.
ryleg@reddit
Is this a gas or wood fireplace insert? How much wood do you have? What is the plan when the gas goes off too?
incruente@reddit
Wood, about 2 and a half cords now but planning for more like 6 or 7 by the time winter hits, and N/A as regards the fireplace insert.
ryleg@reddit
Yeah NA. Awesome sounds good. I'm planning to upgrade to a gas insert but I'm thinking about switching over to wood for this reason. Hope it is working out for you well.
Wayson@reddit
I have built two small solar systems to manage cooking and device charging and freezer power. I have butane for 24 hours continuous burn for cooking if there are a few days with zero power due to bad storms. For heat I have 50 lbs of propane and a propane heater. I also have a gas and propane generator in case gas is available or if regular propane refills are possible.
I wouldn't mind a wood stove but that would require that I store a cord or two of wood and pay higher insurance premiums and also have some work done to manage the chimney and the setup of a tile hearth. The logistics of it do not make sense for me sadly.
Successful-Street380@reddit
Kerosene heaters
Virtual-Feature-9747@reddit
I have three solar generators (6kWh primary, 2kWh secondary and 1kWh backup) - two of them stored in EMP shielded containers - plus a TON of solar panels. But I have noticed solar input seriously degraded during the winter months due to shorter days, lower sun angle, and more cloudy days in my area. Running an electric space heater at even 700 watts per hour is a heavy lift under the best of conditions.
But an electric blanket or heating pad is much more energy efficient.
I do have an inverter generator to top off the batteries and a store or gasoline and propane... as well as propane space heaters. But as you noted all fuel is finite.
The only other idea I had was to buy a small portable wood stove designed for a camping tent. With a little work I could install this in my basement but it's a *really* sketchy setup. I have enough woods in my area to harvest a steady supply of firewood... and I just bought an EGO electric chainsaw with this very idea in mind. I'll probably buy this toward the end of summer.
Other prep ideas: micro climate areas in your house, share body warmth, lots of layers, get used to being cold.
Mechbear2000@reddit
There is a reason that life formed and evolved around the tropics. Life is much easier closer to the equator.
ManyARiver@reddit
I am moving to a house on a well. One of the early projects is installing a back up hand pump. I lived in a cabin with a manual pump back up and it was great for when power went out for a few days.
AudienceSilver@reddit
I have a Mr. Heater Buddy, a tent to pitch in our living room, a large box of hand warmers, hot water bottles, and several different ways to heat up water/food (alcohol stoves, chafing fuel, a small camp stove with fuel tablets, two sizes of buddy burners). For light: candles, headlamps, flashlights, electric lanterns (one is solar). And a carbon monoxide detector in case I get careless with a heating method.
Icy-Ad-7767@reddit
Propane furnace, generator, wood stove.
KJHagen@reddit
We’re in western Montana.
Wood stove and propane for heating and cooking. We just need to manually light the oven and range. Water to the house is a problem since the well pump is on electric power, but we can get water from a nearby creek to supplement our stash of bottled water. We can use this to flush toilets too.
SecureResolution3836@reddit
I literally don’t prepare for winter other than 2 space heaters. I live in Houston. Even the coldest days here I could just do some push ups and run up and down the stairs and I’d be comfy
Ryan_e3p@reddit
Wood stove. More than heats up the house.
ommnian@reddit
We'll be ok. Two wood stoves.