Here is part 2 of the Self-Reliant Living series for travel trailers posted by Karen Anderson of Y2K for Women:

Issue #65 October 20, 1999

Topic: Self-Reliant Living, Part 2

Dear Friends, Since the clock is ticking and I have so much information I want to share with you, I changed my mind (hopefully, still a woman's prerogative!) and decided to send you the second part of Bruce Tippery's report now instead of waiting until next week. Thanks for indulging me! Best, Karen

4) GARBAGE The best thing to do with garbage is burn it. Just make a fire out in your yard. In doing this you may be violating some fire codes, but then again, everybody is going to have the same problem. (I would opt for safety over a technicality in a crisis.) People out in rural areas use a burn barrel, which is a 50-gallon drum, it usually costs about $10, with holes punched in the bottom of it. If any flies have laid eggs in the garbage, a hot fire will destroy them. Burning is a really good way to get rid of garbage, and what won't burn, you should bury.

Garbage is another good reason to get out of the city in a crisis. Can you imagine the city streets during an extended blackout? It will be like cities that have had garbage worker strikes. Trash piles up, the domestic animals get in it and spread it all over, and then rats get to be a problem, and that means disease. Such a life-threatening situation needs to be avoided. If you think garbage collection could be a problem, then I would say you should seriously have a contingency plan to move out of the city. (Take your travel trailer and visit relatives for Christmas!)

5) HEAT The next important system for the travel trailer is heating. The easiest way to provide heat for a trailer is using the installed propane furnace. Some propane furnaces will require electricity and others will not, an important consideration when you are looking for a trailer. If you plan to have a source of electricity, for example, a small amount of electricity from solar panels to run your furnace fan, then you will have no problems. If you do not plan to have electricity, you can still plan to have heat by a direct vent propane heater, one which does not require electricity. This unit you will have to purchase and install separately, and it may run in the $300 to $500 range. Have at least a 500 gallon propane tank filled and ready to use for your trailer. Cooking, heating, and running appliances for a family of two to four would require approximately 300 gallons of propane for 6 months, depending on how cold the winter of 2000 is going to be.

It is also possible to install a small wood-burning stove in a travel trailer (check with your local building codes). The same precautions should be used as with any indoor burning: you should have some combustion air so that the stove is not burning up the oxygen inside the trailer. Combustion air simply means that you have a small pipe that brings outside air into your wood stove. Then, of course, there must be a chimney that goes from the stove up through the side wall or through the roof. A wood stove is a fairly low-tech solution and will continue working for the long-term, and, in most areas, wood is likely to be available, whereas it is hard to store enough propane to heat a home for the long-term.

Two things imperative to a safely prepared travel trailer (or any home!) are smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. Carbon monoxide is what's given off in the combustion process of fossil fuels, and it is a very insidious hazard. You can't smell it or taste it, but it can kill you. The danger is especially high in travel trailers, which have a relatively small living space (some of them are quite tight and energy efficient); when they are sealed up and there is any kind of burning inside, the threat of carbon monoxide poisoning is high. Be sure there is adequate ventilation through the trailer, and get a carbon monoxide detector. A smoke alarm is equally as important. Also, have a functioning fire extinguisher. Another device to consider buying is an oxygen depletion sensor, which will sound an alarm if there is a low amount of oxygen in the room.

6) FOOD What kind of food can people put in a travel trailer so that they have it ready for Y2K or any other potential crisis? I recommend buying food packaged for long-term storage in #10 cans. The reason I am recommending this packaging, is that a travel trailer is very susceptible to weather. It easily warms in the sun and freezes in the winter, so to have food packaged in these #10 cans is very desirable, plus, there is the security of mouse-proof packaging. A food unit to feed four people for one year costs approximately $4,000. That's about $1,000 per person, per year. If you choose, a less expensive route than this kind of long-term food unit is simply to buy rice, beans, oil, sugar and salt, filling in with canned goods that you would normally eat. But be cautious how you store these essentials.

If you store canned goods, be careful not to let them freeze. The shelf life of almost all canned goods is long enough for the potential crisis of Y2K. If you buy rice and beans, which are familiar and easy to cook, you can buy them in sacks and then put them in metal garbage cans so that they will be rodent-proof. Leave the rice and beans in their sacks, line the metal garbage can with a garbage bag liner, put in a sack of rice, a sack of beans, a 5 lb. sack of salt and a 10 lb. bag of sugar all into one garbage can, then seal up the bag and put the lid on, taping it securely with duct tape so that there is no room for a mouse to crawl in. (Mice can crawl through very small holes!)

I recommend that you buy the basics, and buy more than you think you could possibly need. If the Y2K crisis turns out to last longer than we hope it will, you'll be very, very thankful that you bought too much. If we don't use the food that we've stored, then we will thank God for that.

7) COOKING In addition to the propane cook stove that comes with the travel trailer, I recommend having a way to cook outside of your trailer. The first reason is that having a fire outside is much safer than constantly using an indoor stove. The second reason is that if the weather is warm, especially when it comes to basic grains like beans or rice that take extended cooking time, cooking will really heat up your trailer. Cooking outside is more pleasant. Of course, you can cook outside over an open camp fire or a portable propane stove that can be hooked into your main propane tank. Another outdoor option, one which I like very much, is the Volcano Stove, a highly efficient charcoal powered cooker. (Volcano Stoves can also be fueled with wood or even dry cow chips!) They will cook a whole meal on 6 to 12 charcoal briquettes. With this compact stove you can buy a large dutch oven, big enough to cook a whole turkey. In good times, the Volcano stove is a great outdoor barbecue, and you can use it if you use the travel trailer for recreation. In bad times, the Volcano Stove is something that will be working long after your propane supply is gone.

8) TOOLS The kind of daily labor you will be doing will depend on where your safe location is, and you will want tools to fit your needs. But certainly, you will want minimal tools for cutting firewood, digging holes, and fixing appliances. Have two shovels, two axes, and two bow saws, which can all be purchased at most any hardware store. In addition to these, I strongly suggest you buy an inexpensive tool kit for your travel trailer. You can buy these kits for about $50 from discount stores, and though the tools are inexpensive, the kit will provide you with one of all the different kinds of tools homeowners are likely to need, including a hammer, wrenches, a measuring tape and other basic tools. If you hope to do some gardening you will need tools for turning the soil and weeding.

Basic tools for starting a garden: Seeds, preferably non-hybrid; Medium-size shovel; Long-handled hoe; Trowel or spade; GLOVES!; Wheelbarrow or pickle buckets; Stakes and twine; Basic gardening book.

9) HEALTH & HYGIENE (toiletries and medication) Personal toiletry items are high on my "must-have" list. Whether you're using an outhouse or your own facilities in the trailer, toilet paper would be a highly desirable commodity. Generally speaking, two rolls of toilet paper per person, per month is a good guideline, and I would suggest having a little more than that. If toilet paper is in short supply, it's a good barter item, and since you can be sure that you will be using toilet paper whether or not we see a Y2K crisis, it's certainly not wasted money. Here's a case where a little foresight will definitely improve your hindsight!

Go through your own personal toiletries, list and project your necessary purchasing for a year. One interesting psychological point: in times of financial crisis, people often want to distinguish themselves by looking affluent. So if we have an economic crisis, it may be more important to dress up like you are wealthy, if you are looking for work. Who knows? I don't think that beards will necessarily come back in fashion because razors are hard to come by. On the contrary, beards will likely be out of fashion because razors are hard to come by. When silk stockings are a luxury, then that's when ladies want them. But again, first things first, store those items that are essential to survival and then stock up on the relatively luxurious items.

Suggested supplies: Toilet paper; Diapers; Feminine products; Deodorant; Soap and shampoo; Razors (a luxury item you will want!); Antihistamines; Tylenol/ibuprofen; Birth control (or more diapers!); Bandages/Band-Aids; Topical antibiotic; Antibiotics; suture materials; Garbage bags; Unscented Clorox bleach.

10) LINENS In addition to your basic toiletries you will need linens, including towels, bedding, and sleeping bags. Buy warm and durable items. If you are on a tight budget then buying military surplus sleeping bags is a good idea. Major Surplus is a convenient source for these items. Call (800) 441-8855. Or you can shop through a mail order store, such as Cabela's (800-237-4444). Cabela's has new, good quality sleeping bags. Make sure you get sleeping bags that are appropriate to your climate, remembering that if you're conserving fuel, you probably won't want to run much heat during the night. Heavy sleeping bags are cheaper (and more reliable) in the long run than using up fuel. The same economics applies to clothing. Supply your family with warm night and day clothes and warm shoes (remember that children's feet will grow) so that you can conserve fuel.

11) COMMUNICATION An essential tool for receiving communication is an AM/FM and short wave radio that will work under any circumstances. A good radio is the Bay-Gen radio, one you operate using a small hand crank that winds a spring. As it unwinds (like a clock) it makes electricity to power the radio. There are a few other alternative-power radios on the market too, some that use solar power to charge a battery, and some that use a hand crank. Of course, it's possible to store lots of batteries, so you can use a common, battery-run radio. Just be careful to store many more batteries than you think you need.

Another item I think that everyone should have is a Citizens Band radio. I prefer a portable CB radio that you can plug into your 12 volt outlet, so you don't have to depend on small AA or flashlight batteries. These radios can be purchased through a catalog like Damark (800) 697-2002, or the Sportsman's Guide (800) 888-3006. A CB radio is important, not because they reach out so far but because so many people have CB radios, especially in rural areas. These radios are a superior way to be in touch with the situation in your local community.

Another good radio to have is a pair (or more) of family band walkie-talkie style radios, which can be purchased for $50 to $120 each. The family band is a relatively new band that's licensed by the Federal Communications Commission for noncommercial purposes. These radios do not require any license, and they'll reach from two to five miles, depending on the terrain and the model. The family band is great for communication between your family and close neighbors.

After the family band, getting a scanner, which will scan the local police frequencies, is prudent. One of the most important aspects of security during a survival situation is getting advance warning of any problem coming your way, whether it is some kind of police emergency or a civil defense situation. For example, if there is a terrorist attack on the United States, you would like to know about it as soon as possible in order to prepare in whatever way you can. A good place to find a scanner is Radio Shack. A local store of this sort is better than a mail order store, because a local store will know the frequencies used in your area. I recommend Radio Shack, because they are in most locations throughout the country, and they usually have knowledgeable personnel.

Finally, if you have family that's a long distance away, you might consider short wave or Ham transceivers. These radios require some training, a license, and they also require that the people you desire to communicate with also have a radio. If you are interested in these radios then I recommend a book called "Survival Communications," which is available from Universal Radio. Call (800) 431-3939.

12) DEFENSE Finally, I would like to discuss the area of defense and home security. To begin, understand that the first line of defense is your location. If you are out of harm's of way then you probably will not need to defend yourself from harm. The first line of defense is your location. Second, know the people in your area. Who do you know? Who do you trust? Just as important, who trusts you?

I will go into defense in more detail in the next newsletter, which will primarily focus on home security. Briefly, what most people think of when it comes to defense are hand guns. But really, the most appropriate firearm for a variety of home defense situations is the shotgun. (In my opinion hand guns are only useful for people willing to train themselves in their use.) And shotguns are generally safer, because after about 40 or 50 yards their shot is no longer lethal.

In the area of tools for defense, I highly recommend flashlights. The best conventional flashlight to buy is a large Maglight, an aluminum light that uses between four and six D cells and is functional as a powerful spotlight as well as a heavy club. The Maglight is a comforting tool to keep close by.

For intermediate threats which don't demand the lethal force of a firearm, pepper sprays are a good solution. These are effective especially if people are getting a little out of hand and you need to reinforce to them your commands and get them to back off your property.

Remember, the primary tool of defense is awareness of problems before they reach you. If you are able to detect that there is trouble coming and get out of harm's way, you are much better off than if you're surprised.

Travel trailers don't have much extra space for storage. If possible, put aside money for supplies to build a small shed. In it you can store seasonal and extra clothes, books, grain buckets, propane tanks, garden tools, water filters, and any other supplies you need to protect from the elements. (The shed could store a small diesel generator, for example.) A simple shed that can be securely locked is an important addition to your project.

When you have completed the basic survival preparations, you can move on to other items, which, in the case of an extended crisis, will greatly affect your standard of living. Purchase books, games, puzzles, and perhaps even some videos. Music is a fairly simple pleasure to provide, because you can purchase a portable stereo or Walkman that will run off the 12 volt battery in the trailer (or you can store alkaline batteries).

Then, consider decorating your travel trailer as comfortably as possible. Purchase material, such as wood for a small porch and corrugated fiberglass to build an awning off of your roof. Air fresheners, hand sanitizer, bug repellent, and other things that you would take on an extended camping trip may sound like "extras" but may prove invaluable after one month in a travel trailer. For repairs, store things like extra screens and poly sheeting for patching holes. A small pressurized washing machine, like a product from the Damark catalogue, might also be a good investment; these cost approximately $40. Store lots of garbage bags, because they have many uses. Also, put together a small sewing kit for mending (the drug store sewing kits are often too cheap). Similarly, "customize" a first aid kit for the needs of your family.

Travel trailers are perhaps the last good option for Y2K crisis accommodations for you or your friends or relatives that you may need to welcome. They are already designed to allow life to carry on normally even though they are not connected to the power grid electricity or gas lines... trailers are designed to operate disconnected from the basic infrastructure of society. Add a large propane tank, with at least a 500 gallon capacity to ensure that the trailer will provide heat for warmth and food (a wood stove is better for an extended crisis); add a water connection; and add some way to provide electricity for basic lights and communication. Don't forget to store food, tools, and personal items.

With these simple additions, a travel trailer can sustain your family's life for an extended period of time and provide a reasonably comfortable lifestyle that, though it may not be as luxurious as living in a big spacious house, it is certainly comparable to living in a million-dollar sailboat and far better than living in a major metropolitan area during an infrastructure crisis.

Y2K Early Warning and Preparation Report gives concise reporting of the facts you need to know about the Year 2000 Computer Crisis, helps you adapt your preparation efforts as the crisis gets closer, and introduces you to products and services that will help you prepare for the possible outages, rationing, and shortages. While no one knows for certain what the Year 2000 Computer Crisis will bring, the Y2K Early Warning and Preparation Report helps you make the best reasonable preparations for what can happen and not just what we hope (perhaps too optimistically) will happen.

The Y2K Early Warning and Preparation Report is published quarterly ($199 per year) by The Year 2000 Project, WAVE Publications, Inc., P.O. Box 84902, Phoenix, AZ 85071 (800) 528-0559.

Writers and Publishers of the Y2K Early Warning and Preparation Report provide information believed to be correct but are not providing financial, legal, medical or other counsel (consult with the respective certified professionals) and may not be held liable for the results of information published.

Copyright 1999 WAVE Publications, Inc. KA10

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