Act Like You Know: Water, Power, Food & More

Preparing in an Apartment Series

In the previous post, Super Urbanites, we laid the foundation for preparing for a disaster in an urban environment. In this post, we’re going to unpack it, specifically, we’re going to discuss water, power, food, hygiene, and comfort- a calm practical guide to assembling your first kit.

Life unfolds how it unfolds. We’re full of good intentions but good intentions rarely become action. On the periphery, we’re distracted and rapt by the headlines, but the real living is dominated by the demands of family; the car repair bill, rising price of groceries and chronic exhaustion.  Our bandwidth is limited and we can only process one thing at a time. Preparing for World War 3, economic collapse and a tornado at the same time is tough and it’s easy to become overwhelmed. We jump to conclusions based upon perceived threats, political rhetoric and sensational headlines. Preparing is most effective when you’re calm and able to see the real hazards.

If you did a hazard analysis, you would likely identify a couple of weather events as the most probable natural hazards and supply chain disruptions and power outages as the technological events to prepare for. There’s time to get it done so don’t stress about it if you haven’t done it. Either way, let’s keep moving.

Since shelter and security are already covered and not a pressing concern, you’re going to address the following needs:

§  Water

§  Power & Communications

§  Food

§  Hygiene & Sanitation

§  Medication & Comfort

Water

First off, let’s be clear on a few things. You can’t plan for every disaster. Second, by thoroughly identifying your needs in advance, you’re creating systems and pairing them with the necessary resources to create safety and comfort. Finally, by necessity, you’re going to change your behavior not only to ensure that your food and water last, but to ensure that you have the presence of mind to adapt as the situation changes. Power outages are manageable events.

The working assumption here is that you’re preparing to hole up for three weeks. Remember, do the math with respect to household size multiplied by quantities needed. This number gives the total amount of water needed so a single person would need twenty-one gallons of water while a family of four would need eighty-four gallons for the same period. Use the same formula for food and other consumables.  

Water is straightforward enough and it’s important to recognize that you need water for three separate tasks: drinking, cooking and hygiene. The most obvious option is to squirrel away a few cases of bottled water until needed. This is the water you will use for drinking. The second cache of water is used for cooking. Rehydrate the dehydrated and freeze-dried meals as well as things such as oatmeal, coffee and rice. The third is used for hygiene and sanitation. Keep the supplies separate to ensure that you have enough on hand for each purpose. Remember, food is rationed, water isn’t.

Power & Communications

 In apartment settings, fuel-based generators aren’t the most effective use of money so I’m recommending that you opt for a solar power generator. A quick Internet search will turn up dozens of top-rated and highly marketed generators. You’re not going to power your entire apartment with a generator, nor should you attempt to do so. There’s a hierarchy:

§  Refrigerator / Freezer

§  Medication & Medical Equipment

§  Communications

§  Lighting

§  Entertainment

Notice that entertainment is low down on the list. In the hierarchy, food takes precedence over entertainment, but I’ll get to that in a minute.  

My advice is to buy the biggest you can afford. Sales are frequent in this space so a little patience and due diligence will allow you to check this off your list quickly. Many retailers even offer the option of buy now, pay later. Identify what works best for you and get it done. The goal here is to be able to keep your fridge/freezer powered in cycles. For example, you power the fridge for five hours and that’s the only time that you’ll open it. A fridge without power is counting down to the loss of your food so it’s essential that everyone shares this understanding. The fridge is opened when it’s powered. The same applies to the freezer. Food in a full freezer will remain viable for about 2 days while a half-full freezer gives you a day. Fridges last about twelve hours so again, it’s essential not to open either when the power is off.

High-wattage appliances such as space heaters, hair dryers, microwaves and air fryers are nearly instant death for solar generators, so you’ll need to minimize if not eliminate their use outright. Before I move on, I’d be remiss if I didn’t remind you to buy at least one solar panel when you buy the solar power generator. You can connect it to the generator and place it in a window or any space with direct sunlight for convenient charging while you’re working or doing other things. They’re not prohibitively expensive but the versatility is well worth it. 

Next on your list should be solar power banks. They’re small enough to slip into a purse, backpack or briefcase and there’s no reason to not have three to five of them. Of course, they should also be in almost every room of the home as well. They’re best for charging phones, tablets, laptops and hand-held game consoles. Desktop PCs with attached peripherals, TVs and game consoles are also power hogs. It’s possible to power them for eight hours or more, but you run the risk of draining the battery and then you’re left with diminished capacity for your more critical functions. The best option is to use them on a schedule.

In a prolonged power outage, it’s important to make time for relaxation and entertainment, but you must be both smart and frugal. Setting aside an hour a day or a couple of hours once a week is a solid strategy that allows you to conserve the precious resource while allowing for down time.

Food

When it comes to preparing for disasters, food is one of the things that many get wrong. Food should be divided into three categories: no cook; minimal cook; fully cook.  No cooked foods are things like beef jerky, tuna and crackers. Minimal cooking foods are the things you add hot water to such as oatmeal or the dehydrated and freeze-dried food sold by companies such as Augusson Farms or Ready Wise.

Now that you know how to categorize food, the next step is to buy the foods you and your family eat. The meal kits from Augusson Farms and Ready Wise are acceptable, though expensive options. If you go this route, do yourself a favor and try them before you need them. You might not like it and if you’ve built your entire pantry on these kits, you might as well have no food if you don’t like what you have or it makes you sick. Build your three-week supply of foods from each category and based on what you already eat. I built my long-term pantry simply by buying something for the pantry each trip to the store. Every trip to the grocery store, I’d add five to ten cans of beans, veggies and meat to the pantry. If I ran into a store for even a minute, I’d add something to the pantry.

Hygiene & Sanitation

 If you’re single, this may seem obvious but trust me: you still want to stay as clean as possible. Whether you’re living with roommates or temporarily staying with extended family, good hygiene is essential. Regarding not smelling, strong fragrances and perfumes can easily become overwhelming in close quarters. As best you can, opt for the mildest or fragrance-free lotions and deodorants.

Unscented baby wipes replace wash cloths and pair with water from your second cache as you focus on the three zones: face and hands, armpits and groin, feet. Use a separate wipe for each zone and start at the top and work your way down. Hand sanitizer is very effective in cleaning your hands, but it doesn’t replace soap, especially in removing heavy dirt and sweat. If you’re able to do so, individual bars promote a sense of personal space as well as fulfilling its intended purpose. A few sips of water to facilitate oral care and you should be good to go.

The messy business of elimination is always going to be messy so it’s important to get it right. Bodily waste is dangerous and must be packaged and disposed of correctly. There are any number of options once a flushing toilet is no longer available. A five-gallon bucket with a toilet seat lid, portable toilet bags, or a strong trash bag filled with kitty litter, saw dust or newspaper would work, too. Separating the liquid from the solid helps with odor control, but if you’re not able to do this don’t sweat it. One more thing, make sure to keep small children and pets well away from the area you set aside for waste storage.      

Medication and Comfort

Many insurance companies are allowing ninety-day refills of prescription meds, but you must speak with your healthcare providers about this in advance. If your meds require refrigeration such as insulin or you use a device such as a CPAP machine or supplemental oxygen administration, you must ensure that you have a generator dedicated for this purpose. Identify a generator that can handle the wattage requirements of the device, particularly the surge when the device is powered on. This is something you can get guidance on from your healthcare provider.  

You must ensure that your medications aren’t exposed to direct sunlight or other temperature extremes. When I was a Red Cross volunteer, medications were always replaced when exposed to the intense heat of a residential fire or a unit with no heat in the winter.  

Once the priorities are addressed, you can turn to comfort. Cigarettes or the occasional shot of whiskey can be responsibly factored into your plans. For the kids, treats such as candy and cookies are great as a treat for good behavior or used as a well-timed bribe, just be sure to have them on hand. A favorite toy, stuffed animal and blanket should always be close by. Older kids might appreciate a book or a sketch pad. As a family, you can play cards or a board game. This is a great way to promote closeness and a sense of normalcy.

Planning for disasters in an apartment is best done well in advance when resources and creativity are in plentiful supply. Your future self will thank you and others may think that you’re suddenly clairvoyant. The truth is you simply acted like you know.