Morning Armouries. I too live on the 3rd floor with not much room to swing a cat let lone 2 yrs of food storage. the odd time at VV or recyclers you can find low, long plastic containers, or even cut a box down to size. I'd put my supplies in them and slid them under the bed , sofa etc. I am also on a budget as I'm a senior. The dollar stores have can meats and all kinds of dry stock. You can approach a bakery, cafe etc for food safe pails that you can stack in a corner. I got a plastic garbage can on wheels from the recyclers. If SHTF and I have to leave and there's no hydro there's no elevator but I can roll it down the stairs. Buy some seeds. I've grown cucs, toms, radish, lettuce , etc in containers on the balcony. I tried corn but the cobs only grew the size of my baby finger LOL. You ask what are you prepping for, we both live in a earth quake zone for instance. Store for the what if's and if it doesn't happen then you are ahead of the game if money gets tight. There are many sites that give you approx life of your food storage. Just plug away, slow but sure. Things will come together for you. Hope this help a bit.

I never even thought to check out bakeries or grocery for surplus buckets! That's a great idea.
The elevator in our building is a death trap even when the power is on, so we take the stairs 90% of the time anyways. Save for when we're hauling in bulk items of course. I did however fashion a crude but effective rope ladder than reaches the ground, and rolls up small enough to fit inside a a paper box. $8 for the rope at the local Canadian Tire, and 30 minutes online checking out effective knots!

Good morning. People prep for many different reasons. We do live in an earthquake zone, this is very true. Because we haven't had a major one in 300 years really makes people think something major wouldn't happen here or in our lifetime. This is the main reason I got into prepping, but after a while there are several other reasons as well - civil unrest, war, solar flares... These events are extremely unlikely in my views but I prep for them as well.

As for inexpensive food prepping, of course store canned goods, inexpensive staples in your buckets - rice, oatmeal, beans, flour/unground wheat. If you want to step it up one notch get into home canning. Yes it sounds daunting but it turns into a fun hobby. I bought a pressure canner from Canadian Tire for $100 and many cases of reusable jars. It's best to buy jars during harvest season when they are on sale.

The rope ladder is a great idea!

Even if you don't manage to hook up for a meet and greet there is a great community of preppers on this site and others, and u tube, that have loads of info.

Good luck and happy prepping!

emergancy fire excape ladders are cheap and roll up and made to except heat and weight,also made for one thing and has been tested.

Good point, you should always test your equipment. Climbing down my ladder with a 20kg sack was akward, but quite doable. I tried with a 30kg sack just for the sake of it, but then I'm too top heavy and can't keep much balance.
Anyone using rope / poly / twine for anything that your safety or well being depends on, I highly advise pre-stretched, non elastic rope.

Hello Armourries:
While it may seem a good place right now but if/when the SHTF an apartment is not going to be the best place to be.
That doesn't mean that you can't begin your preparations and it sounds to me like you are making great progress. You have valuable skills and you would be a great candidate to live in a survival commune or compound if that is something you would ever consider.
Once you have at least a months worth of food stored I would suggest that you start putting away some money away every month for the purpose of buying land somewhere. I don't mean in downtown Chilliwack but rather an acre way off the grid back of Hope. I know the area and have hunted throughout the region. The reason I suggest buying an acre (at least) and paying for it outright is that the bank cannot come and take it away from you. Plus you can go there and start digging and putting together your hidden stash.
The place we have right now is off the beaten path but with fresh water and lots of trees and we go up there on a regular basis to make improvements with the coming crisis in mind.
You are doing all the right things and are a good example to other younger folks.

Almost like you snuck under my tinfoil hat and read my mind;) Haha. Unfortunately for me, my financial situation doesn't offer much in the way of savings...I'm another one of those poor suckers who didn't know a single thing about money when I finally made some, and now I'm paying (literally and figuratively) for it.
I suppose there's always well secluded Crown land squatting...

Squatting is my plan:)

Haha, in the event that I need to leave my 'home base', then squatting is our plan as well.

Now here's a tangent - anyone married, who's significant other either isn't really into it, or you find it as a source of contention? I feel my wife really dosn't take anything I have to say about the topic seriously, and often we end up arguing priorities when I want to keep the tank topped up but she wants a new scent for the bathroom candles and there isn't always money for both...

hi, FV_Armouries,

Keeping the gas tank topped up is not just a prepper thing, according to my dad. He says it helps keep condensation from building up in the tank and contaminating the gas.

As for the part about differing priorities, I can't speak to that, I'm divorced. Hopefully there is someone on here with some wise words about budgeting, compromise, negotiation...
🙂

Hi FV_Armouries

My husband isn't as concerned about prepping as I am however he's more than happy that I'm doing it. He likes that I save money buying a can of tomato sauce at 99 cents rather than $1.79 for example. He also likes that we don't run out of food, someone uses the last drop of mustard or bbq sauce we just grab more off the shelf. Or if we are having a busy day there's always something I can throw together and make a decent meal. It's a scary thought that at some point there might not be food in the grocery stores, no wonder people don't want to hear it. Emphasize the savings and the convenience of food on a shelf in your home rather than launching into how we'll all be starving soon. With keeping the gas tank filled up try explaining that you want to keep it filled up while it's a few cents less per litre and that you don't want her to run out of gas or have to go to the station at an inconvenient time. I don't go into details about what I've got stored away, I just get what I think we need to get unless it's a big ticket item. It's just quietly stored away. We live in an earthquake area so that is what I talk about, how if something happened we'd be okay. Another option is to negotiate a set amount per month that you can use for whatever supplies you think you'll need and that she doesn't need to be concerned with it. I think a softer approach is your best chance that she'll come around and eventually she might want to become involved. Good luck.

Foxglove

I certainly hope so. This is one time where I'd rather not find myself doing the 'I told ya so' thing.
I worry though, because she refuses to participate in any planning so I find myself concerned that I won't be around when SHTF and she will just...stop functioning. Panic, turtle, whatever.

Hi FV_Armouries

If you're worried she'll panic if there's an emergency perhaps a binder with instructions on what to do. Make up a BOB for her so she knows where it is and add the binder. Things like how to turn off the gas, water, a meeting place if she needs to leave home and you're away, how to purify water, how to start the camp stove etc. You know her best so if you think she'll fall apart then plan for it and give her something to follow. If she doesn't want to do any planning with you then just let her know that the binder is there if she's bugging in and that all she has to do is grab the backpack and leave if the situation is bad enough. The survival instinct is really strong so she might suprise you especially if there are children to be taken care of.

Foxglove

Well said Foxglove. My wife isn't really on board but food prepping she's starting to like. Less trips to the store sounds logical.
FV , as long as you start introducing prepping slowly and gently to your wife , possibly subliminally, she won't get totally turned off it so much. You have to make it sound like a good idea to her. Saving money, learning camping skills - ok thats a hard one.. We do live in a major earthquake zone so having emergency supplies on hand makes sense. You just don't have to let her know every detail and to the extent that you've taken it. My wife does not know the extent that I've taken our preps, nor does she have to know, until the time comes. A binder would be a cool idea.
She does need her own BOB - call it something else...
She doesn't know i was just teaching my 2 year old how to light birchbark with a fire steel:)