I like watching "Doomsday Preppers" Yes, sometimes I find myself giggling at some of the things people are doing to prepare, but a lot of the time I am taking note of some preps I may have not thought of.
One thing that confounds me, though, is the amount of toilet paper some of those folks store!
I mean, Holy Cow!, a FOUR YEARS supply of toilet paper? My mind boggles at the thought of the expense and the storage space required for that much TP.
Price some washcloths down at Family Dollar or Dollar General. They sell stacks of them for $5.00. 10 or 15 to a bundle, I think. Or take old towels and cut them into washcloths. Seal them up with your food saver (5 or 10 to a bag when the air is vacuumed out) or just put them into ziplock bags and store them all in a 5 gallon bucket. You can put a lot of washcloths in one 5 gallon bucket! After the SHTF or whatever, use them for bathroom hygiene and wash them, then reuse. Easier and more compact to store and much less expense!
A few rolls of toilet paper for traveling and/other emergencies would be prudent, but for day to
day living and use after the Apocalypse, I'd rather have the washcloths!
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Which brings me to other paper products that so many in modern society depend on.
Paper towels...really? REALLY? What ever happened to sponges, mops, dish towels, dish cloths and cleaning rags?
Tissues....get handkerchiefs for everyone in the family. Right now, around Christmas, is a good time to buy them as it is the only time of the year you see them in the stores...Mothers Day and Fathers Day stores carry them as well, just not as many.You can buy them already monogrammed with the persons initial or embroider on a pretty design or initial. Not talented at embroidery? Inexpensive fabric paint will work just as well!
Napkins....again, cloth napkins are readily available, or you can cut up an old tablecloth to make them.
Some napkins I designed on my zazzle store.
Paper Placemats....no brainer here! There are so many pretty placemats out there that can be wiped clean or tossed into the wash, it is ridiculous to buy the paper ones!
Kotex/Tampons/Menstrual Pads....Yes, you can save money here, too! Get cloth menstrual pads! Many good companies make them and they are actually healthier than using the paper ones...the paper ones are laden with chemicals and increase the chance of yeast infections and rashes.
One source of cloth menstrual pads.
So MANY chemicals are used in the production of paper products. Drive through any town that has a paper mill sometime. Roll down the windows, inhale.
Pretty bad, isn't it? Beside the air pollution, the water pollution is even worse.
Some paper products are currently necessary....cardboard for boxes to ship things in, writing paper, newspaper, paper to print books on.
But paper products that are created and intended for one use and then disposal into our already over burdened landfills....not really necessary.
Think about decreasing your use of paper products and increasing your use of cloth products that can be washed and reused.
I'm glad I'm not the only one that was giggling over that! I think you hit the nail on the head about foregoing these "convenience products" and going back to the old ways. And don't even get me started on how expensive toilet paper and paper towels are! Help the environment, spare the landfills, and save money all at one.
ReplyDeleteAlthough we have paper towels on the rack in the kitchen, they seldom get used, but still nice to have "in case". We've been using old rags for cleaning & cloth napkins for years now and I wouldn't go back. Also have a small stack of paper plates, but those get used for taking stuff over for potlucks or whatever AND they are useful to have around (like the paper towels) for when the electricity goes down & you can't wash dishes or laundry.
ReplyDeleteAs for the TP? Well, I admit we stock up, maybe a case or two, but it does seem a waste of space when one could just use old rags.
People store paper products so we don't have to use precious water to wash non-disposible things. Unless you have a well or cistern, water for washing and rinsing this can be a huge problem. We lived in the country in VA with a well; when he electric pump went out we were without water for five days. We rented that place or I would have insisted on having a hand pump back-up installed. In the suburbs or cities with only stored water, you want to conserve as much as possible, so paper products make sense.
ReplyDeleteI guess I can understand the need for water conservation under urban and suburban area situations After The Fall. However, if someone is in their bug-out-location and has water (THE TOP PRIORITY in picking a bug our location or a homestead is WATER) they should depend more on re-usables than disposables.
DeleteI live in the desert currently. This environment makes it unsustainable for more than a minimal population.
Even so, the use of disposable products after the SHTF will HAVE to be severely curtailed or ended as I doubt toilet paper factories will be running full bore and stores (if open at all) will probably not have aisles of feminine hygiene products available.
I like the show too. My oldest daughter (22 with a family of 5 so far) and I have been just trying to save on things and this is one that we had talked about the TP. What to do. I know my family would never go for it unless it was absolutely necessary. But a good thing to have on hand. Just in case.
ReplyDeleteHugs, Bobbi Jo
We stock a year's supply but we have the space to store it. In a true SHTF situation, my husband and I jokingly refer to it as 'rolled gold' when we are discussing barter goods. : )
ReplyDelete~HB