Anyone planning on buying a wind up FM radio?

It doesn't work like that, it's not a closed loop.

Isn't it "don't be dependent on fuel from a hostile nation"?

I agree about fossil fuels on the whole, but there's more than one issue at play.

The more things are run online, the greater the risk of cyber attack rather than just a physical issue. Harder to fix.

Yes quite.

Thank you I was going to ask if battery powered was enough.

Where are you going with your go bag?

Had one in my go bag for ages

In terms of the three day food and drink, you could have some items that aren't traditional 'meals' as such - I could survive on crackers and peanut butter with chocolate and fruit cake to bolster me 😋and those items will never be wasted in our household.

Or… the chances Putin will interfere with our gas supply is strong, so become self-sufficient, and in the mean time stock up to be personally resilient?

We've a single ring camping stove we could use if we needed to cook anything (or boil water for tea).

We have a couple of good torches and plenty of food and water. I renew all prescriptions as soon as I can so we tend to have at least 10 days of prescription meds in at any time.

I bought extra water because I know damned well that if the family with young children next door didn't have any I'd share ours. They are so lovely but a bit scatty and I couldn't see them go short.
So we now have our supply plus extra to share as needed.

If you're being serious about this you need a radio with more than just the FM (VHF) bands..on top you need at least AM (the old medium and long wave) and maybe even short wave.(SW).

Reason being FM is pretty short range, whereas AM and certainly SW gives coverage from more (or much more) distant stations.

My parents shopped (and shop) regularly for fresh food but there was always a well stocked cupboard of staples. My mum had no issues in lockdown, loads of loo roll under the spare bed 😆

I think a lot of it came from a fear of not being able to shop. If money was short or health meant you couldn't get out. Also there were actually shortages in the 70s, and their parents (and them as children) had lived through rationing.

Both my Grandmothers, and my Mum, would be able put a good meal on the table for unexpected guests from what they had in.

@Hyroplate I am in my sixties and live in a city. We did not keep a stocked larder a generation ago in case of power cuts. In fact my grans generation did not do weekly shops and shopped for food most days. Rurally was different.

This requirement is new. I will do it, but I am not going to be gas lighted about it.

@Hyroplate wrote "Yes, I'm going for supply chains disrupted, but still have power, so keeping good stocks of things that keep but need the freezer or cooking. Things we'll use over time anyway

Then a seperate plan of things that would keep us alive, even if the meals aren't inspiring. Mostly tinned beans, tinned fish, tinned and dried fruit, porridge (overnight oats if necessary) and evaporated milk.

I'm not buying anything we don't use ordinarily."

That's as far as my crisis planning goes. If things are awkward, fine. Uncomfortable for a short time? OK.

Much beyond that would be challenging.

Actually, oatibix make a very nice easy porridge substitute that doesn't need heat. Good for camping, we found.

Don't, for any extended period of time they are shite. Yes we have tried.

Get a small 2x AA battery radio and 4 decent batteries, this will keep you going for ages.

I’m off to Costco to stock up on booze. If I’m stuck in the house without power for at least 3 days I may as well enjoy it 🤣

No need for a wind-up radio as we have multiple battery powered radios and a good stock of batteries.
Unlike power-hungry tape or CD players, a battery radio lasts for weeks on a couple of AA's.

Yes we have one, plus camping lights, a well stocked larder, matches and candles but then we live rurally - it only takes one tree to fall on a power line. Power outages are not uncommon here in bad weather.

Yes, I'm going for supply chains disrupted, but still have power, so keeping good stocks of things that keep but need the freezer or cooking. Things we'll use over time anyway

Then a seperate plan of things that would keep us alive, even if the meals aren't inspiring. Mostly tinned beans, tinned fish, tinned and dried fruit, porridge (overnight oats if necessary) and evaporated milk.

I'm not buying anything we don't use ordinarily. So no UHT milk, the evaporated milk will serve, and no corned beef!

I really think we're only looking at managing for a few days, things will quickly decend in to chaos if it goes beyond that. I never let the fridge/cupboard run bare anyway, so realistically things like milk, cheese, yoghurt will be fine, even if the fridge goes off.

I think it's good to think about these things, and only a generation ago, everyone had a store cupboard that would see them through a few days of illness or bad weather. We've got so used to having everything easily accessible 24hrs a day, that it doesn't hurt to have a bit of a reset and think what if.

I am not buying a camping stove that I may never use, and if the issue is storms, I wont be able to use outside anyway.
If only electric goes down I have a gas hob. If all power goes it will have to be cold soup, nuts, chocolate and ice cream from the freezer before it melts.

I do have an old radio that takes batteries and several torches.

@AnnaMagnani wrote "I can't really think of a good way of covering cooking and heating without spending £££ on stuff that will, hopefully, never be used"

Those costs and storage for things I will rarely use are part of why I'm reluctant to start gathering survival "hardware".

I've nearly sorted back ups of prescriptions (one medication remaining). Longer lasting basic food is being purchased slowly. Without a heat source in mind choices are limited.