Stockpiling against future shortages

Andy Hunt · Post by **Andy Hunt** » 04 Nov 2007, 10:18

Just thought of something else I need to stockpile - a couple of water circulation pumps for my radiators and solar.

Post by **adam2** » 03 Jan 2008, 18:00

Dont forget candles!
I have stockpiled candles, though I forgot to mention this.

Remember that virtually all candles are made from parrafin wax, which is of course derived from oil.
Candles can be made from animal fat, but they can be evil smelling and are prone to melt in hot conditions.
Beeswax is another alternative but is available in only limited qauntities and is therefore very expensive.

Large candles, weighing a kilo or more can be purchased very cheaply in discount stores at present.

It would also be a good idea to buy a large stock of candle wick. Large candles leave a lot of waste wax when they are finished, this could be melted and used to make more candles, provided you have candle wick.

syberberg · Post by **syberberg** » 03 Jan 2008, 18:45

adam2 wrote: It would also be a good idea to buy a large stock of candle wick. Large candles leave a lot of waste wax when they are finished, this could be melted and used to make more candles, provided you have candle wick.

That's exactly what we do with our left over wax.

Got a double boiler pan from Westfalia (the ones eBay sell very quickly, but still worth looking there), a couple of books on candle making, a old cheese grater, some molds and some wicks. Trial and error found out which diameter wick was just right.

If you want scented candles, just add some essential oil to the mix just before you pour it into the mold. Yet to experiment with this one though.

Good place, price-wise for bulk buys.

hardworkinghippy · Post by **hardworkinghippy** » 03 Jan 2008, 19:06

A good substitute for wicks is cotton wool.

Pull and turn the cotton it as though you're spinning wool into a long string and you can dip it in wax until it's a good sized candle. It burns white and even.

omnicans · Post by **omnicans** » 16 Aug 2008, 22:04

My first post, so hi to everyone. I have been reading stuff on here for a while but thought it wsa time that i registered

I made my first purposeful efforts today on stocking up. Have bought extras of many of my usual foods (tinned toms, pasta, rice etc) and it feels kind of strange! I had a wood burner installed a few months ago so i guess it kind of follows on from there.. i want to prepare

RenewableCandy · Post by **RenewableCandy** » 17 Aug 2008, 16:11

omnicans wrote:My first post, so hi to everyone. I have been reading stuff on here for a while but thought it wsa time that i registered

I made my first purposeful efforts today on stocking up. Have bought extras of many of my usual foods (tinned toms, pasta, rice etc) and it feels kind of strange! I had a wood burner installed a few months ago so i guess it kind of follows on from there.. i want to prepare

Hi Omnicans and welcome...sounds like a good start there!

One thing that's quite cheap to do, and in a way complementary to what you've already done, would be to put in a rainwater collector (if you haven't already). Then in winter, even if your electric and water both go down for an evening, you can still have spag-bol and a pot of tea

(in summer you'd need somethng like a Katadyn for the water, instead of boiling it).

We lost our water connection for a morning once, with a house full of guests! Felt great to still be able to do breakfast.

omnicans · Post by **omnicans** » 17 Aug 2008, 23:14

hi

when you say a rainwater collector what do you mean - i'm thinking a water butt in the garden? If so then thats already something i am planning, i live in a terrace house with garden and a communal access thing at the back. My house is two from the end so negotiated with neighbours and have fenced off the back and put shed/woodstore area there, which is where my water butt is going, then my entire garden pretty much is gettin turned into a veg plot for next year, thats the plan anyway

so back to the water butt if i wsa planning to use that for drinking i would need water purification tablets - bought those today. Then i need to price up a camping stove cause i dont want cold beans!

zigspider · Post by **zigspider** » 18 Aug 2008, 03:00

omnicans wrote:hi
Then i need to price up a camping stove cause i dont want cold beans!

If you've got a wood burner, then you should be able to cook on top of it. No need for a camping stove.

Jerry

omnicans · Post by **omnicans** » 18 Aug 2008, 10:10

i know i realsied that would be a possibility when browsing some of the older posts on here! So i just need a good cast iron pan and that should be sorted

JohnB · Post by **JohnB** » 18 Aug 2008, 20:12

zigspider wrote:If you've got a wood burner, then you should be able to cook on top of it. No need for a camping stove.

Jerry

Or make a wood gas stove. One 5 litre paint tin, one 1200 gram dog food tin, one computer fan and a bit of insulation.

I've got the dog food tin, must find the rest of the bits one day!

zigspider · Post by **zigspider** » 19 Aug 2008, 02:29

Damn,

I have everything but the dog food can (ours get dry food from sacks)

Excellent idea though.

I'm looking for a wood cook stove for the new house. Luckily there is a local (within the province) company that have been making them for decades, so no shortage. Looking at about $350 for one with oven and hot water tank - That's about 180 sterling at the last count. (That is second hand I should point out, not new)

We actually do have one in our new shed, but I'm not sure whether it's recoverable. I'll let you know.

RenewableCandy · Post by **RenewableCandy** » 19 Aug 2008, 19:21

omnicans wrote:hi

when you say a rainwater collector what do you mean - i'm thinking a water butt in the garden?

Yup the very same. We now have 2, 200-litre jobs, on discount from our local council. But there are of course also huge 1000-litre cubic jobs (I think Kenneal has one) if you have room.

A slight mistake we made, which you might not like to replicate, is we've put the barrels just on the stands that come with them, meaning their bottoms, and so their taps, are just 12" or so from the ground...this would make for a lot of unneccessary bending-down if we had to fill up very often. Building up a couple of courses of bricks and plonking a patio slab on top for the barrel stand to go onto, would avoid that.