Guest Post: "What Is The Biggest Failure In Your SHTF Preps?"

MD posts his weekly “What Did You Do To Prep This Week?” article and everyone chimes in with what they’ve purchased, made, or learned during the past week.

Everyone has their own priorities in preparing for SHTF. Some prioritize by the coolness factor, guns & technology but not food; some prioritize by food production with organic farming and ecological balance, but don’t believe in guns; some have bought land, but haven’t improved it with buildings or gardens yet; and some have a wide balance of preps, from 30 days to 30 years worth with some ability to produce more and defend it.

But, what if SHTF happened right now with a huge EMP, or nuclear strikes on several major cities, or an out of the blue meteor? Now… imagine a total loss of the electrical grid, there are no more supplies coming in, no more purchases to make, and no more time to learn a new skill.

So, the question is “What Is The Biggest Failure In My SHTF Preps?“

If SHTF happened right now, my biggest failure is in power production. I have a 5500 watt gas generator and thirty gallons of gas, but those are basic hurricane supplies and are only good for about a week. I’ve thought about and researched other sources of power like solar panels, gasification systems, steam engines, windmills, hydro-electric systems, etc., but I don’t own any, have never built any, and don’t have the tools or knowledge to start building one now with the one week of power I’ve got in my generator system.

Now that I’ve identified my biggest failure, I have re-prioritized my preps and developed a plan to:

1) Buy some type of small solar system ASAP, that will at a minimum charge a hand tool battery and regular appliance batteries (AA, AAA, C, D, etc.), along with purchasing a supply of rechargeable batteries. That way, I will at least be able to use at least one tool, flashlights, radios, and other small electronic items on a continuing basis.

2) Learn how to, and actually build a gasification system and use it to run a motor within six months. If I can build a small power production plant that can run off of wood gas, I can use those skills to barter excess power or even power plants after SHTF, and can continue to support my family and the community.

SHTF just happened… “What Is The Biggest Failure In Your SHTF Preps?”