"Preppers" Shows on TV

[Rock Home Isle]

In the last few months I've been watching several "Preppers" shows: "Meet the Preppers"..."Doomsday Preppers" and the latest, "Doomsday Bunkers". They come on weekly, usually on the National Geographic Channel.
 
I enjoy the shows and there is a bit of a giggle factor with some of these "preppers." But the Cardinal Rule in prepping is to keep your activities secret or limited to a small group of trusted associates, so that you do not become a target of the truly desparate when an "TSHTF" or "TEOTWAWKI" event should occur.
 
These people are on national TV talking about their prepper activities, and some are really pasting a huge target on their backs. So how serious are they? Or are they just seeking their 15 minutes?
 
What is your opinion?

[gdog]

Yup, OPSEC is the first rule.  Some of those folks will be recognized and their preps will be community property.  I laugh at the folks that have good intentions but poor visions. The nature boy in Los Angeles will be eaten by the cannibals.  The nice folks that don't believie in guns because they live in a nice neighborhood will watch their new neighbors from a few blocks over haul their preps away and be fortunate if they live through it.

[Dixie Dude]

The only ones I see surviving are the ones already in rural areas or have true bunkers.  I noticed on some, they blurred out the license plates and some stuff, probably at the request of the prepper, so you really don't know where they are except the local people.  I like the ones with the bunkers with blast proof doors.  They will probably survive longer, but will eventually have to come out.  One good thing about the shows is maybe it will wake some people up to what can happen and have more people prepping.  The more that prep, the more that will survive.  The show has stated that 45% of Americans prep to some degree, probably all the Republicans. 

[Rock Home Isle]

Anyone see the episode where the guy is teaching his son proper shooting skills and he winds up shooting the tip off his thumb.
 
Why anyone would put their hand in front of the muzzle of a gun that has miss-fired is beyond me. 

[Dixie Dude]

If you pay attention to what the "prepper experts" tell each one of the preppers, it makes a lot of sense.  From what I have learned is you prepare for whatever YOU think might happen.  However, they all seem to recommend the following:
1) Adequate food supply.
2) Bug out equipment, bag in case you have to bug out.
3) If you are going to bug out, adequate caches if needed along the way.
4) Adequate defense.  Some preppers didn't have guns, and they were recommended.
5) Barter items, silver, extra supplies, etc. 
6) A secure underground bunker or basement. 
7) Prepping neighbors.  Prepper friends and community, try to include a doctor, and other people with skills to rebuild society, welders, carpenters, mechanics, electricians, nurses, vets, supporting family members.
9) Adequate water supply or filtration system, portable, and/or a well.
10) Adequate medical supplies and medicines which includes masks, gloves, and suits in case of a pandemic. 
11) Have a "ham" radio as well as an emergency radio.
12) Adequate power supply, generator, solar cells, windmills, etc.  Have 12 volt power system.  This will be needed to operate radio's and power tools, and maybe freezers and LED lights.
13) Adequate sewage and/or waste disposal system, outhouse, septic tank if adequate water supply.
14) Keeping vehicles filled with fuel in case of bug out and have your secure location within range of one tank full.
15) Having several alternate routes with maps to your secure location away from heavily traveled areas.
16) Keep your mouth shut about prepping unless you can trust them to agree and be preppers themselves. 
17) Practice with your weapons at least once or twice a week to keep fully familier with your weapon(s) in case they are needed. 
18) Have an adequate supply of ammo, cleaning supplies, and spare parts for your weapons. 
19) Have adequate hand tools for in case of long power outages and/or no fuel for generators. 

[Couger]

Objections to the hokey "preppers" shows?  MANY!
 
 But I think the most GLARING (besides the producers' desires to make preppers look stupid)
 
..... is the GLARING absence of any wimmins!  Who are not going to allow themselves to be forced into all those "PLANS" made only by men!
 
Who wants to say they really expect women and children to agree to live in a "hole" for 6mos!!??  Ain't gonna happen. 
 
 
 

[SHOOTALL]

most I have seen had women , one was a lone woman.
 
Hey this is not new , back in the mid 70's -80's there was a magazine called "AMERICAN SURVIVAL GUIDE " it had all sorts of survival articles . Some were of questionable scope and the mag was forced out of business and "BACKWOODS " took over their readership. Anyway there was a story about a group that met to dicuss what they had prepared to do and what supplies , hide out etc they had ready. Much like the show it was diverse. There were pictures of different preprations . Well it got around to this really good looking woman ( pictures remember) well it showed her opening this long coat to her in a skimpey bating suit . She said she thought she could get by. Guess some think women come set up to survive 

[Dixie Dude]

Cougar, have you seen the shows?  Most all had women preppers.  Lots had good ideas, especially about food storage.  One girl in Houston was keeping in shape for a long hike out if necessary with her BOB.

[Couger]

None of the shows i saw (only a few) had women.  But we could probably digress into what local programming we each receive ...... 
 
Literally the only prep or survival shows I've seen with any females is the one survival show where a husband and wife team "survive" together.  Not too unpleasant to watch!  And they seem much more successful than Les 'Survivorman' or Bear-Pee Gyllis! 
 
There was also the show about the guy who wanted to make his own black powder and moonshine!  Was that one finally cancelled?
 
In truth I'm not impressed with the preppers shows.
 
I used to attend a 'civil defense volunteers' group in Utah that trained people how to deal with crisees, including nuclear attack and fallout.  None of what they taught included imprisoning oneself in a hole for half a year.
 
What the CDV group taught was that if properly sheltered in a homemade bomb shelter or properly prepared basement, unless the country was nuked with some especially nasty devices the alpha, beta and gamma radiation that might fall in area should dissapate in two or three weeks.  The gamma radiation is the most dangerous and most lingering with worst half-lives.
 
Also discussed was sheltering in "target areas" (around military bases, large population centers, industrial centers, etc.) versus being 10 miles or more from such places (to survive ground shocks), or whether or not one was in a fallout zone.
 
There are several books i could recommend that touch on those concepts.  And the CDV group certainly thought a geiger counter was a useful device, along with taking iodine pills (blockers) by family members and small children who could be especially susseptable to radiation poisoning or harm.
 
And consider ..... unless trying to escape radiation or something in the air, why hide in the ground?  (provided you're not dodging mobs or gangs in a city!).  The HUMAN BODY/BEING needs sunshine and daily light.     
 
If an area was radiated, living in a shelter for two, three weeks - amonth! makes sense!!  (and however often an enemy might nuke the country in subsequent strikes, if one was in a downwind fallout zone from a target area ......)
 
Seriously, four or five FEET of soil bermed over a shelter, cave, basement, etc. will provide adequate protection for fallout to dissapate enough in most instances (unless the chicoms, rooskies, UN-zombies started coating hydrogen bombs with Strontium-90, gold or even Carbon-14!  I know Carbon-14 has a half-life of over 5,000 years!  Most "enemies" will never use such devices, and 99% of them couldn't afford to).
 
I started studying a lot of political stuff right after Ruby Ridge, but before Waco occurred.
 
I remember the day Waco went up in flames.  That was HARD to watch, and I still blame the feds, not the Davidians.
 
Also relatives of mine have been practicing storage and self reliance for generations.  Even the non-Mormon ones in non-Mormon states too.

[SHOOTALL]

the hole as you call it might survive longer than a house etc. under many circumstances like wind . No one says you must lock the door and throw away the key. It would offer a warmer or cooler places to stay depending on outdoor temp. Think of it as a root cellar with a bunk .

[bilmac]

The only show we get is the bunkers one. I can't believe the amount of money these people throw at being prepared. I hope I'm right and they're wrong, but I think it is a lot more about having skills like gardening and maybe hunting and building trusting relationships in your community.
 
 The people that are spending multi thousands on holes in the ground may still have lots of trouble waiting when they come out of hiding. What happens when they've eaten their years worth of rations and can't make something as simple as  beans or squash grow.

[Couger]

..... What happens when they've eaten their years worth of rations and can't make something as simple as  beans or squash grow.

+1!  A much more sensible approach methinks. 

[SHOOTALL]

like a ground hog getting poped when they stick their head up ? 

[Dixie Dude]

I did forget in my list, some people were saving lots of non-hybrid seeds, which is not a bad idea either.  When food preps are gone, you have to grow or raise more.  I just hope a LOT of people are prepping, especially food.  If things really get bad, the preppers will last a while longer.  Biggest problem is the people in the inner cities who go from paycheck to paycheck or welfare check to welfare check.  They will be hungry first, and will riot.  People in the country can survive much longer.  I think the biggest thing is to stay away from hurricane areas, earthquake areas, tornado areas.  UNLESS you build an underground or semiunderground home in tornado areas or high ground away from hurricane areas.  Also away from flood zones near rivers or streams, but close enough to fish. 
 
I was in a civil defence meeting back in the 80's and MOST nukes today are hydrogen bombs (Russia and China) and what radiation they have will dissipate in 2 weeks to safe levels.  So, just staying in your home with windows and doors closed is adequate, no bunker needed.  However you need to be away from the drop zone.  In the town I live in, we are supposed to take in 50,000 people from Montgomery IF we are under attack.  I asked where are we going to put them.  I live in Auburn, Alabama so, they said on the Auburn University campus.  They have plenty of showers and bathrooms at the stadium and baskeball arena.  The classrooms will be come shelters for individual families.  School would be closed.  If possible, the students would be sent home when things were sorted out.  They said if Russia launched missles, they would hit in 35-45 minutes.  Hopefully most would have time to drive out of town when the blast occured and on their way to safety.  Well, they probably need to widen I-85 to 20 lanes for that to happen.  Most would take time to get their kids, some stuff and get out.  They won't be too far away from ground zero.  I think 50,000 is a hopefull estimate.  Now, most are concerned with an EMP bomb from a rogue state or a dirty bomb in a big city. 
 
I want to move to a more remote area and commute to work until I retire.  This town has grown too big for me.  52,000 now.  30 years ago it was 25,000. 

[SHOOTALL]

in reality we would live like 1950-40 America
 

[Scibaer]

I like the show.  its an example of what 'not' to do.
 this is just my 2 cents, and im not about to bash others ideas, but i believe when you store up and make preps, you have to stay in one place and defend those preps. you have to know how, why and when to use those water recycling systems and self sustained systems. it ties you down. and makes you vulnerable.
 i think skills and knowhow is better then tech. in essences you could live like a caveman, and get by with real skills.
 if the area your in goes sideways, gets over run with zombies or canabiles, then what ?
my doomsday plan consists of 1 med backpack with everything i need to get by water ( collection and prep ) , fire ( making tools and tinder collection ) food collection tools and weapons, manufactured and hand made.
and i go out into the woods at all times of the year and practice, practice and test myself  so i am ready if i need to be.
one very over looked places to get need supplies is the local scrap yard. most ppl never mention it but you can scour the yard and find a large amount of things needed.

[Swampman]

I think they are mostly idiots.  They act like it anyway.  They give the rest of us a bad name.

[SHOOTALL]

I don't see how really ,

[Rock Home Isle]

The only show we get is the bunkers one. I can't believe the amount of money these people throw at being prepared. I hope I'm right and they're wrong, but I think it is a lot more about having skills like gardening and maybe hunting and building trusting relationships in your community.
 
 The people that are spending multi thousands on holes in the ground may still have lots of trouble waiting when they come out of hiding. What happens when they've eaten their years worth of rations and can't make something as simple as  beans or squash grow.

I'm amazed at the cash that people are dumping into survival bunkers as well. One guy spent $450,000 for his underground complex...that he could also use as a training site.
 
I watch these programs about everyone going under ground and it reminds me of  "A Boy & His Dog"

[Dixie Dude]

There are several advantages to being underground:
 
In Alabama if you have 3' of soil on top of a gas line, the temperature when I use my formulas, is 60 degrees F year round.  If you had a bunker or underground home 3' below the surface it would stay 60 degrees.  Food wood keep for a much longer period of time.  Humidity being the only real problem.  When people inhabit the home, body heat, lights, cooking, etc will warm it up.  There again, a dehumidifier would be the only necessity to keep it somewhat comfortable.  I think in the northern states 5' deep might be necessary to get well below the frost line. 
 
Another aspect, with the right door(s), it would be easier to defend.  Bullets, bombs, nuclear fallout, would not affect you, especially if you installed a safe type door.   
 
I would probably put one in a remote area, with folage around and on top, and have an escape tunnel with a hidden door or have it burried with a foot or so of dirt, to be opened from the inside, remove the dirt, and get out. 
 
The steel underground homes seem very expensive.  I know a guy in Auburn who built an underground home and lived it it a year without heat or air conditioning.  He used 12" block walls reinforced with rebar and filled solid with concrete.  He ran a crane company, so he had prefab concrete bridge spans brought in and he lifted them and placed them over his concrete walls.  He has one end (north end since he was in the south) opened to the outside with glass doors and windows.  He built his walls 12' high so he could install a drop ceiling for wiring and ductwork.  He had a fireplace on the north wall where all the glass was.  His living, dining and kitchen were on the half that was opened to the outside.  His bedrooms, closets, baths, and utility room (laundry) were in the back with no windows.  Basically 3 sides were sealed and covered with dirt along with his roof.  Only the north side was opened.  When it got down to 14 degrees that winter, it was about 55 inside so he lit the fireplace to take the chill off.  This only happened about 3 times that winter.  In the summer it got up to 102 degrees with a few 100 degree days.  He said it got up to 85 inside.  He said the humidity was the biggest problem and a dehumidifier was absolutely necessary.  He finally installed a gas furnace with electric air to keep it a little more comfortable and dry.  However, his utility bills were minimum.  This was back in 1978-79.  He did think about changing his incandescant light bulbs to stick florescent. The squiggly kind were not available then.  Today, LED lights would be better.  The guy also said the winter wasn't bad at all other than when it got down in the teens a couple of days.  He said heating was easy with lights, body heat, showers, cooking, and clothes drying.  Cooling is a bigger problem here in the deep south.   
 
If I ever do something like this, I would probably build a full basement with solid concrete reinforced walls and a roof made the same.  Then build the house on top.  Have a hidden access to the basement like a closet with a removable carpeted floor to get down that would flap back down to conceal.  I would want a safe type door opening.  I would also have a tunnel escape running about a 100 or so yards away from the house with a camoflaged exit into woods or something.  It seems it would be cheaper than the prefab steel bunkers, and it would be at your primary residence.  It would protect from tornados, a band of thugs, or some other event.  Being a basement underground, food storage would be easy. 

[Swampman]

I know of a fellow that has one.  It's a buried cargo container.  Cheap and strong.

[SHOOTALL]

my back door neighbor had one but lost the house . no one has lived there for several years . he also had over a year of food , stored in a room about 20 X 14 , wall to wall buckets and cans. the first two shelves off the floor held 5 gal buckets of wheat and rice the rest #10 cans of everything fron fruit drink mix to beans to meat etc. His church got it in quanity then canned it .

[Swampman]

Could you rent the place?

[SHOOTALL]

Doubt it the bank has it , it was about a 500000 dollar house , I did the plumbing a HVAC work on it. Now it has been broken into and tore up. Last Fall I talked to the guy that had owned it , he still owns part of the land it was two lots that made up 40 acres . He ask me to watch it which I do now and hunt it ( got deer and turkey there last hunting season. The drive way is a mile long and has become a lovers lane and place to grow pot. I like my place better IE he has drilled 4 wells , lost three pumps and still has only about 5 gal min .all his wells are in the 300 ft range .  I have a 100 ft deep well with a recorded over 60 gal a min. drill rig only can record up to 60 gal . The guy 3 doors down can't keep the top on his well .

[Dixie Dude]

Yes, I think the burried container would be much cheaper.  You can seal it with several layers of tar before backfilling.  Leave only the end open, can always install a vault door just behind the outer doors in case someone finds and breaks into it depending on what you keep in there.  A small one would make a great root celler.  I know of a truck driver that can get me one for about $2500.  I just don't have a place yet. 
 
Shootall, is the bunker still loaded with food?  Or has the bank confiscated that.  The previous owner should have been able to get his food. 

[Rock Home Isle]

The guy that built his shelter out of Shipping Containers that had been welded together...really caught my eye.
 
His site was interesting in that it reminded me of an old medieval castle. But it was not very asthetically pleasing to look at, in fact it looked like a junk heap. But it was very functional. I did some checking in my area and these shipping containers are not that expensive. And if I don't like the looks of it...then I just bury it.

[SHOOTALL]

He kept his food in a speical built room on the second floor.

[Dixie Dude]

Keeping food in a dry basement or underground room like a root cellar or bunker would keep the temperature constant.  I think that is why cave men liked caves.  Warm in winter, cool in summer.  Just a little fire or torch for light, they just had to make sure there were no bears hybernating in there, or lots of bats.

[SHOOTALL]

Cave women didn't pester them to build a new house 

[Lost Farmboy]

  Some of them are already targets. One guy was declared mentally defective and had his CCW and guns confiscated. Another was saving hundreds of thousands of heirloom seeds. A group of gardeners lured him into a wooded area with the intention of killing him. He was lucky to escape with his life. The S hasn't HTF yet and people are already targeting these preppers.


I have got a few good ideas from the shows. Mostly ideas of what not to do.