It would be nice if there was a best food storage tips at a glance... posts made by others that helped save us from ourselves. We obviously can't read every thread at this site so if there's anything that comes to mind that saved you from ripping your own hair out.... please add it if you have time. -- Here's a start. Who knows how much $$$ this saved me. I'd stacked my 5-gallon buckets 3 deep. I think the day would have come where I ultimately would have discovered a trashed bottom bucket and.... I doubt seriously if that day would have come BEFORE I needed to tap into the contents of that bucket.
With decent lids you should be able to stack 4 high with 6 gallon buckets- And up to 6 high with 5 gallon buckets with a pallet or sheet of plywood in the middle. The sheet of plywood helps make the stack more stable- the buckets under the plywood are held in place by the weight of the ones above it. You can also get this feature with a piece of 6 mil poly- the weight of the buckets will hold it in place. In earthquake country you probally want to wrap it with stretch wrap for safety.
This is another one I didn't know when I 1st started canning jams and preserves that's actually pretty important or it'll cost you big time in the long run- And.... he nailed it.... leave them on a shelf long enough and they will weld together.
Dairy cases make a wonderful way to stack canning jars. They will hold four gallon jars perfectly and several quarts with room on top for other stuff. I use heavy cardboard on top of the quarts and as spacers to insure there is no breakage in case of rough handling. I have three stacks all the way to the ceiling and they are extremely stable. Old plastic drink flats work well also but not as well as the milk crates.
8" cinder blocks, 8' 2x4's, and standard sheets of 1/2" plywood (48"x8') ripped to 8" (can get 6 rips) make excellent canning shelves for the basement. Alternatively, for larger shelves you can rip the plywood at 16", getting 3 out of each sheet -but you will need more blocks if you do. Fix the plywood to the 2x4's with drywall screws. For added strength, you can fill the blocks (with Quikcrete) and use bolts if desired. If stacking the shelves higher than 3, be sure to fix to wall using strong ties (concrete fixtures).
Of course the all time easy tip is "eat what you store and store what you eat". We have switched entirely to dry beans. When we made some chili with canned beans(new cans) we came down with tummy upsets. I also store comfort foods because in any crisis even small ones like job loss stress goes up. I don't want to change our diet during stressful times. Plus Chocolate is a food group right? LOL. Teri J
