Has anyone ever run a drill?

Have any members here ever run a bug-in drill before, for X number of hours? Picture just about any possible scenario that could cause this to occur, almost without warning...

I have to be honest. it has never really crossed my mind to do this before. The closest I can think of, were the Cold War Bomb Drills we had during school, when I was a child.

Anyway, it finally did cross my mind, while I was reading some information a bit ago.

So, has anyone ever gone outside and closed the natural or LP gas line feeding your appliances, closed the water valve with a "T", and killed the main breaker feeding your humble abode, all for a given length of time, simply to run a test and see how you would fair?

If you did, what were the results?

 

Yes but it's been quite awhile ago.
My biggest problem was when I threw the main breaker. 30 seconds later the genset kicked on

 

Other than fire/tornado drills when the kids were little, no.

The wife and I did decide spur of the moment and treat a trip home to Dallas from Pensacola as a bug out and live off only what was in the vehicle. Fuel, water, food stocks were fine. We didn't need the overnight gear.

 

Every time a hurricane or ice storm drops the line for a week or more. Once or twice a year typically.
Barely notice unless it's 0 deg F out. Then I need to fire up the genny, or stoke the stove.

 

Not BI. I have done a Bug Out drill, by DS motorcycle, camping in the woods for a couple days with my BOB and gear.
My longest power outtage here at home was about 23 hours. I was already set for hurricane emerg3ncy, so no problem.

 

if you really want a real life drill - shut off the utilities as indicated - including the phone(s) - and lock down the kids to only a portion of the house >>>> see if you can keep them entertained and quiet like a real SHTF might require ....

 

Duct tape....

 

Had snow here a few years back , used to use a kerosene heater for supplemental heat. We got a snow storm,,,maybe 14 inches,,,that's a considerable amount in my AO. Knocked the power out for 3 days. Kept the heater running full time,,the kid the loved it , rode the 4 wheeler like crazy. Was on well water , so couldn't get any water , so we were melting snow for water, and flushing the crapper. Cooked all our food on top of the kerosene heater. Fared pretty well.

 

The first year on the Mountain in our new home we didn't have a reliable genny and enough power when it did run, but with a wood stove and several Storm lamps, we made out fine for about 3 weeks. I tells you what, that was a pretty good test for things to come. We were able to cook on the wood stove, we had heat from it and the lamps, plus workable light, we still had running water, but had to heat it on the stovetop for things like laundry and washing dishes! The coldest it got during that stretch was -17° F for 4 days! No problem! The next spring, we got a super deal on a brand new Genny and hookup, I got the Grist Mill re built and working and installed a second Genny on it, and got my steam engine/Steam plant up and running which also drives a genny! We have so much power now, it's awesome! The Steam set up its self can power the entire house, the steam heat and electrical needs as long as you don't run a "Hotel load" it keeps up fine, the Grist Mill can boost it if we need, and it also backs up the feller for running the deep freezer! The emergency genny can keep up with the house and part of the garage/shop, but I need twongennies to run every thing! Again, the steam set powers heat for every thing In the home, shop, and garage! We also have back up well water with a new pump, plus hand pump, and we have the spring water from up the valley thay runs through a filtration setup, so we have the three things we need most! Beyond that, we have about 2 1/2 years of put up food, and lots of other nice things we may need! Other lesson learned, I run diesel rigs for working the ranch and my pickups, and sno-cat, so I needed to bring in a storage tank set up to keep us in fuel for the winter, I also bring in Jet-a for a winter blend which keeps the needed Diesel engines warmer when left to idle for long periods! I can leave the Tucker idle all night with the hand throttle set just above base idle and it stays nice and toasty and keeps the ice and snow off of it! Same deal with my pickup! All in all, we are ready for any thing we could plan, o my problem, we're now living back in the Peoples Republic of OryGun, so we have to start all over! Then there's other things we have on the burner for long term preps that we are working on, so that's our focus now! If SHTF today, we would be sort of screwed, every thing is back home in Colorado, and only what fits in a Pickup and the boat is what we have right now here! Sad times!

 

I wasn't asking anyone to perform miracles here.

How much fuel will it burn overnight, idling, you think?

Looks like, next time, you will need a spare engine block, if your luck is anything like mine.

 

For a nuclear event you need to have an under ground shelter that is already established .
If the bomb is at a distance and you have no shelter the house needs to be sealed up like a tent to prevent the dust from entering .
Sealed up that tight your not running any flames for heat ,and you need filter masks and gumby suits for going out side .
the same thing for volcanic events , even worse. If there are cinders accumulating on the roof, they need to be removed asap wearing the gumby suit and breathing devise. Unlike snow It does not melt and wash away . If your in an under ground shelter , the air vents need to be serviced regularly .
Growing up we went through several outages in severe snow storms . So it was natural to be prepared .
My own little family living on the desert were off grid for a few years , no big deal .
I am probably more prepared now that I ever was , and from time to time the power goes off here, but being on battery wind/solar I almost don't notice it. I have the means too seal up the house ,but more importantly is to have the green house in operation so I'm not using up my canned reserves prematurely .
Another issue frequently discussed is dealing with the neighbors during the event. and that is a really tough question .
During a storm there is hope that it will pass and help for the unprepared will arrive eventually . However,
The events we are preparing for are long term which may mean , what you have is all you will have indefinitely and chance of the economy picking up the loose ends is thinner than cellophane .

 

We did regularly when the kiddos were still living with us. The idea was to give them confidence.

Not that our family has a motto or anything, but if we did, it would prolly be:
If you are prepared, you need not fear.

 

Very similar to what LDSPrepper states at the end of his videos on YouTube, "If you are prepared, you shall not fear."

 

Probably a good reason for the similarity, eh DKR?

 

I always like to use "I sleep in a storm" from a parable like story worth knowing.

 

I mean, we have bad weather that regularly cuts power/cooking apparati for hours/days. No need to drill, too busy dealing with it.

 

One's tooling should reflect the need ,for all the terrain they will be in .
Improvising with some tooling can compromise it's performance for it's primary task . like using a knife to dig a hole.
with my current vehicle I have NEVER yet used the spare tire. should I throw it out?
I don't know that I will have to fight a fire in the woods, though i did professionally in the past . The likelihood of having to fight a fire post SHTF is very high .Any one with good common sense knows this . So why enter the woods with out the proper tooling?
There are a lot of people that assume they will be surviving in the woods having no actual experience doing so .And having don'e nothing to build or sustain the game, assume it will be continuously be available .
Just a the Indians fought over hunting territory, every one else will as well .

 

Also, run your planned BO route before you need it! I used Google Maps to plot a nifty quick and easy route from my house to the National Forest. Took my DS bike up that road....... Ruh Roh!! DANGGITT!! Somebody ran a wire fence across the dirt road!! Turns out this was private property and the owner closed off the forest access!
Good thing it was a scout run and not the real thing.
Had to find a different route for BO.