Hi, I'm new here and as the heading says, living with my small family in a condo (high-rise), two adults and two little kids, we do not have a bug-out option but we live on one of the upper floors (20+ floors) and have a very easy access to the roof with 4 fire exits, we also don't have a balcony, which makes me feel safer here, less likely to have people jumping balconies and break into units.
Right now we have a 1 month-supply of food, supplies, water and waste management, we'd like to work on 6 months..
We do everything in secrecy, even the kids don't know that we're storing supplies in case they tell their friends.
Would love to hear from other condo/apartment-living families who decided to bug-in, what are you working on right now?
Hi there,
Look in the BC forum, there were two women preppers who posted a ton of info and ideas on what they are doing in their apartments in Vancouver area.
welcome and good luck
Hi there,
Look in the BC forum, there were two women preppers who posted a ton of info and ideas on what they are doing in their apartments in Vancouver area.
welcome and good luck
Thanks so much!
I looked in the BC board but could't find the threads you mentioned
look up Paintergirl, then do a search. Not sure what they called the threads.
check out http://apartmentprepper.com/ and http://apartmentprep.wordpress.com/begin/ .
Not a whole lot there, but some good ideas none the less and maybe they will grow over time.
Thanks, Mike 🙂 I know, the best thing is to bug out, I'm working on finding a location, sadly my hubby is not a prepper and thinks I'm totally crazy.
You have some advantages in the short term at least. You should be able to avoid the effects of social unrest (looting/riots/etc...) being high above the ground. No worries about anyone climbing in your window at night. You likely have only one door to harden from unwanted entry. I'd do some research on the best and least invasive way to keep that door closed unless you want to open it. Next on my list would be a small "inverter' generator. They're about the size of a suitcase and can provide emergency backup power without the size or noise of a open case regular generator. I don't know, but it might be possible to put tubing on the exhaust to vent it outside. It could run for an hour or two in a closet and be used for heating or to keep the refrigerator cold. I'd have a headlamp for each member of the family, and a few extra flashlights. Apartment buildings without electricity are very dark, and if you have to use the stairs they'll be pitch black.
One little trick I've seen on the web is to keep a can full of broken glass in the closet. If you need it, you can throw down the glass in the hallway outside your door. It can be used as an early warning system (it crunches when you walk on it), and as an overall deterrent to intruders.
Oh yeah, maybe the most important of all - FIRE EXTINGUISHERS AND FIRE BLANKETS. The number 1 most likely thing that will make you leave your home before you're ready is fire, especially in a high rise apartment.
These 'S' hooks might be a good idea since your evacuation plan could likely involve an emergency stairwell. I think I saw them first on the Homestead Survival facebook page.
http://campingsurvivalblog.com/urban-survival-tips/s-hooks/
I have something similar, also I made a small fabric seat to pull/lower the kids through emergency ladders.
TGrl,
You may want to visit Goal Zero and investigate their solar kits. They build top of the line solar, not low end crap. A solar generator and battery system with an inverter would give you power without noise.
If your condo tower is not concrete construction, find out what your walls are made from. If they are only steel studs with gyproc, you will want to think about the problem of someone "mouse-holing" through walls to get passed locked doors.
Glow sticks are good to have. Caltrops would be a good defense tool for hallways in addition to broken glass, suggested before. Of course, kids marbles, and a few sets of jacks could also make stairs noisy to navigate by those without nightvision goggles.
Would Lake Ontario be a worthwhile evacuation route?? In the early stages of a disaster or crisis the water may be safer than roads?? In time I realize pirates will take to raiding the inland seas.
Best of luck,
Mountainman.
IMO, regarding the broken glass/caltrops idea... If my neighbour started dumping glass and spikes in OUR shared hallway, I'd be pretty miffed (even in an emergency).
MikeMcG,
If you and your neighbour decided to hold up in your 20th level condos and the dirtbags of the world were roaming freely about waiting to rob, loot and rape, I think you and your neighbour may make the joint decision to make travel in your shared hallway as difficult for the bad guys as possible.
If life is too difficult for free travel outside your building, you may want to make travel into your building even more difficult. If you do not have the total commitment and cooperation of every tenet in your 20 or 30 story condo building to keep the dirtbags from getting in the lobby, the next best thing is to limit which floors they can gain easy access to, preferably not the one you live on.
I just hope that those that chose to hold up in their skyscrapers, have chosen to live in tall buildings that do not burn.
Good luck to you all in the concrete jungle!
Mountainman.