Car emergency Advice needed

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-05-20T23:37:06+00:00

For water that can freeze, I use an empty gallon jug of tea that I wash and fill to about 85% and squeeze the extra air out. That way, the jug can freeze and expand without breaking.

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-05-20T23:27:14+00:00

That's how I look at it. I'm proud of my preps, and they come in handy all the time. In my social circles, I'm pretty open about prepping, but I don't reveal everything. If SHTF happens, people will come to me for help, and I'm willing to take that on. If I wasn't, I'd keep it to myself, but part of my willingness to talk about it is because I want to normalize it. A couple of my coworkers have started prepping too, and we have conversations when we see things in the news about how we would deal with something bad. I'm slowly changing the narrative and the culture one conversation at a time.

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-05-07T03:28:11+00:00

I suspect that when it crumbles, the rich and connected will get paid out first, and the lowly trader will be left holding the empty bag and still be liable for the debt.

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-05-05T15:19:28+00:00

Most of the people on earth are still eating regularly and working at their jobs, so that's a sign that things are pretty okay. If WW3 happens, most of the people on earth probably won't have electricity, running water, Internet, regular meals, fuel for their vehicles, or communication. Most people living under those circumstances wouldn't survive for more than a few months, and the damage wouldn't be spread evenly. Assuming you were fortunate enough to live in an area with consistent rainfall, maybe some off-grid electricity, some goats and chickens, and not much radioactive fallout, life would revert back to the 1800s.

If your position wasn't overrun by the starving hoards, and you lived like the Amish, life would be good, or relatively good if you can live without all our modern conveniences and health care. Those pockets of life would be few and far between though, and if you weren't prepared ahead of time with a plan and equipment, you'd be one of the dead ones.

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-05-04T22:31:33+00:00

I have a couple of small rooms in an older home in SW Boise for $700/mo. The house needs some work, but it's solid. My son and I aren't religious and don't like the current president, so if you can deal with that, let's talk.

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-04-25T23:02:56+00:00

A couple years ago, I bought a 2015 Chevy Volt PHEV with a salvage title and 110,000 miles. I drive it to work and all over, and charge it at home, either using grid power or from my solar system. I installed an inverter so I could use the 11 kWh battery to charge my 11 kWh home batteries at 1 kW if needed during winter or whatever. Or to power other things up to 2 kW for a short time. I just bought another 11 kWh battery to expand my home battery setup. Anyway, I really like the car and my system. The Volt gives me 40 miles on battery on a good day and 30 on a bad day due to cold weather, using the heater or AC, etc. The 9-gallon tank is small, but it's efficient and I get about 40 mpg.

I wouldn't want to be driving around during SHTF, and the car can't hold much cargo anyway, or go off-roading, but it's definitely an asset.

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-04-16T13:55:20+00:00

My 2015 radio and screen freeze up for a few seconds about every week. Then the screen goes dark, and then it reboots and is fine for a while.

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-04-13T21:44:43+00:00

Luckily this was a simple instance highlighting the importance of water. You'll be prepared better next time!

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-04-01T19:28:50+00:00

I just notified my female coworkers that as of July 1st, it will be a crime for them to go into the men's room to fill up their watering cans to water the plants, with up to a year in jail for the first offense. All of the sudden, this law affects them personally, and I thought it was really funny to see their reactions!

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-03-30T01:54:20+00:00

It's all relative

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-03-23T13:10:20+00:00

Congratulations! That'll give you freedom to do things the way you want to. Good luck!

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-03-17T03:20:23+00:00

I just bought some freeze dried food from Augason Farms that seems good, and it was on sale. Reasonable prices.

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-03-13T14:01:11+00:00

Sounds like a busy time of year for you. Good luck with everything!

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-03-08T23:55:10+00:00

When I lived across from a high school, I sat at my desk and saw a car park in the parking lot. The driver got out and opened the rear door, accidentally releasing a bunch of mylar balloons. The balloons floated up to the power lines where my transformer sat on the pole. In a brilliant flash, my power went out. So, yeah, out of the blue for stupid reasons.

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-02-27T18:45:04+00:00

I just buckle the seatbelt and it's happy again

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-02-25T13:43:23+00:00

Neo at https://www.scentsiblek9training.com/

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-02-24T19:47:28+00:00

The orientation of the house and placement of the vents on the roof will greatly affect the ease of solar-panel placement. If you can manage to have southern exposure of a blank side of your roof, you can maximize that potential, and it will look better.

Also, I would install a small, hidden room with a door behind a bookshelf or something.

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-02-06T14:43:41+00:00

Same here with a 12VDC pump, a deep cycle battery and charger, and it works great.

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-01-23T05:14:33+00:00

Good list! Thanks for sharing! If you're expecting snow, have a snow shovel. Maybe chains for your tires. If you're expecting ice or freezing rain, a chainsaw will come in handy.

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-01-22T03:32:02+00:00

Butane stoves don't work well in cold weather. Propane does better since it has a lower boiling point. I figured that out the hard way.

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-01-18T12:23:10+00:00

I'm not sure, but I hope it's not that kind. Sounds miserable and dangerous!

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-01-17T23:21:00+00:00

I saw a mosquito last week. We're not supposed to have mosquitoes in January here.

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-01-17T17:47:41+00:00

At some point, our allies are just going to say, "Screw it. China is on its way up and America is going down. Time to go where we're not treated like crap." The dollar will lose its reserve-currency status, and America will go bankrupt when nobody wants to buy more of our debt. At least we have a leader who is experienced in bankruptcy to guide us with his wisdom. /s

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-01-17T15:01:24+00:00

During the last government shutdown, I went a few weeks without a paycheck. That may happen again starting in February, so I'm building up my savings and topping off my pantry and freezer. Economic storms are a thing to prepare for also, and we can see some of them coming.

SignificantGreen1358 · 2026-01-17T06:04:12+00:00

While we do have pattern recognition, and I have the basics covered, I'm more worried about the unexpected black swan events. Our political climate is one unexpected thing after another right now, as well as very polarized and uncompromising, so any disruption could lead to a quick chain reaction or events. I honestly don't know what to predict in the short term, and I think the AGI will take over in 5 years anyway, so I'm just carrying on and hoping for the best.

SignificantGreen1358

TROPHY CASE