'Resources that will last for generations without requiring electricity to function'

...or, "If you're so smart, why are you sitting there in the dark?"

I struggled with the title for this thread, but after being without power during Hurricane Florence these things have started to take on greater significance to me. I've always been the guy that asks, "What happens when the power goes off?" The answer for most modern electronic gear is "Nothing." That thumb drive with all your survival resources is as useless as a stick, and makes worse kindling. All your family photos, books, references... Everything electronic can be gone in a flash.

We think we're so smart, with our gigabyte storage capability and cloud back-up. How long before everything you own today is obsolete and you can't even view it? (can you still play 78RPM records? Eight track tapes? Super 8 or even BETA home movies? How's that floppy disk library working out?)

This is a thread about powerless resources, entertainment and things that bring comfort and ease to our lives without batteries or plugs. Non-electronic resources that Grandma and Grandpa would feel comfortable with. I'm old enough to have smashed my fingers in a laundry mangle, and used a wash board, and I used to stand on the laundry stove to reach the basement window. The old folks were pretty smart, and we can learn much from them as survival monkeys.

 

Old photos. Some are 70 years old. How do you suppose your electronic media will hold up after 70 years? Will your grandchildren be able to see how you lived?

 

These work when there is no power. They provide comfort, enlightenment, entertain, and inspire. Batteries not included.

 

It's no smartphone, and it can't do a web search, but it can take the viewer away from their troubles for a little while and that can be important.

 

I'm trying to get s platinum 63 beta generator. Should last about 100 years.
Only problem is the Russians made the only good ones and getting one of those into the country, umm yeah.

 

Look me up in 50 years and tell me how that's working. I'll stick with my old fashioned stuff that's time-tested and proven.

 

I would rather rely more on books I can actually flip the pages on . The computers make it quicker and easier sometimes , but the books can be everlasting.
I was on my way to work one morning , stopped by a store for a soda,, walked in , grabbed the soda , went to pay for it , and they wouldn't let me pay for it because the computer was down . So there business just stopped over a computer.
You are correct , our parents and grandparents were pretty smart. What we call prepping , they called everyday life.

 

An old saw from a previous life: "A computer with a bullet hole in it is just a door stop, while a paper map is still a map" ...
I personally like books. Technology is wonderful. Until it isn't.
I dearly wish I could purchase the old farm/inn I grew up in. Ex it's in NY state, taxes are phenomenally bad, no jobs, and I wouldn't move back until every dem is composted.
But the old timers knew. 10,000 gal cistern in the cellar, fed by all the gutters collecting from the entire (tin) roof. Never had to plow: white pines planted exactly the right location to keep the drives clear after the snow drifted. Multiple dug wells with "GEM" crank pumps. On-site gen-set. Why did they use sliding barn doors? only under gable ends? You can open them easily after three feet of snow. THREE heating systems, wood stove, coal furnace, and a modern oil fired unit. You know what a "Summer Kitchen" is? and why? How about a "Hay Hook"? Rows & rows of shelves just the right size for mason jars.
...

 

We have oil lamps, real books that never need charging and old fashion toys/ learning material. I plan for the future so if I ever have grandkids and lights out, I can still teach them.

 

Trucker was selling these by the case out of his trailer a couple of years ago (Don't know why and don't care why) but I heard him on the CB as I was filling my truck up. Picked up two cases (24 of them) for $50 figure a hair over $2 per lantern I couldn't go wrong. They have proven to be very useful little tools. Crank them for 2 minutes and you get 20-25 minutes of decently bright LED light. Brand/name on them is Country Trails. I have one in every building and one in every room of the house and one in each vehicle. And use two of them pretty much every night (the one in the outhouse and the one in the feed shed) they have been working reliably for 2 years now and not showing any sign of dying anytime soon. Saw some of the same at Lowes or Rural King can't remember which but retail they were only $14-$15 each. I will say they are not the most durable and the one I dropped did not survive hitting a concrete floor But hey cheap light that requires no batteries or cords.

 

This one is a true multi-fuel. After conversion to kerosene it still runs well on Coleman fuel or regular unleaded gasoline. I prefer older stuff, but this little 285 is a runner.



Shades and reflectors help tame lamps and lanterns and make them much more functional.

 

Having/using old stuff conflicts with modern society .
What do you do when the government has gone cashless and now they can dip into you bank account ay time they want ?
If they out law barter, and you have a trade dispute, your in trouble.
Or the once quiet farm area you live now has, not just one winery with a band but 3 in ear shot less the 300 yards away . and they don't cooperate they compete.
There are towns that demand you are hooked up to the utilities and or will charge you for the capacity whether you are hooked up or not. they resent any one being off grid .it might start a trend .
As for personal off grid people powered entertainment; I have several musical instruments, a wind up phonograph and 200 lbs of 78 Rpm records , a small library of books roughly a 1000 at least,. puzzles ,pictures ,stereopticon and a box full of pictures for that ,
weaving loom , several sewing machines, some hand operated .. tons of machinery and tractors and a few hundred gallons of fuel. generators and solar and wind power. ect………………………..
I have lots of electrically powered entertainment should they survive what ever happens ,every thing is an investment option if they survive the apocalypse .

 

I've seen big houses built Up North that could never be occupied because they couldn't get a hook-up to power lines. Folks around here might have 55 gallon drum septic tanks, but every trailer has power. ;-)

My grid-down plans have always been for the power not to come back on... ever. I enjoy the comforts of modern utilities, but plan for life without them.

 

Yeah, I don't have anything in the way of hard/soft cover books. It became impossible to haul them around the world with me so as soon as possible I went with eBooks and/or data files. I do have a ton of them and on thousands of subjects but all hard copy is gone. Since I've returned, just a few years ago, I seldom purchase hard copy books because the space they require, as house is a smallish one and books are like rats and coat hangers that multiple exponentially especially with me. So, at present, it's numerous backups, batteries and battery banks. Currently, I'm researching the best solar recharge station available but haven't found anything as of yet that seems durable and reliable while still being a bit portable, something I can roll out when needed. It won't need to be backpack portable but something that can be stored then set up quickly. Of course, we welcome any and all recommendations.

 

Books also serve as insulation. I stayed with an Uncle in Northern Michigan that had all the exterior walls stacked with books. No book shelves, just books. Added another layer of insulation to the old farm house.

 

My long-term plan is to get some basic reference books in hard cover, especially in things like medical procedures (with photos) and a good PDR for meds, also on things like preserving meat, canning...

 

tools


if more is more better


a full, non-powered tool kit





sorta an all-purpose Civilization starter kit, eh?

 

I had to put great grandma's spinning wheel and niddie noodie in storage after the storm. Amazing in its simplicity, and foot powered.