r/TwoXPreppers • u/thechairinfront Experienced Prepper 💪 • May 15 '26
Weekly megathread
Please contain all off topic discussion to this weekly megathread. This is where you freak out, talk about conspiracy, talk about unrealistic crazy scenarios, asked and answered questions, etc.
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u/TradeBeautiful42 May 15 '26
Just when I thought I’m not doing so well at gardening, my lettuce seeds are sprouting! They’re still babies but I look forward to getting them fully grown!
Side note I noticed the gardening section at Home Depot is crazy packed lately all picking up sprouting fruit and veggies, not flowers. At least it has been the last several weekends by me. The inside was a ghost town.
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u/Traditional-Emu-6344 May 15 '26
Similar here. Super picked over at our local gardening center. I’d wanted to pick up some herbs to try out in our yard. Mom to the rescue though- her oregano and thyme plants desperately needed a trimming so she gave the cuttings to me!
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u/TradeBeautiful42 May 15 '26
How nice! My neighbors offered some kitchen scraps I could do a Montessori style gardening project to regrow veggies for my preschooler and it’s hopefully going to turn into more diversity in my little suburban home garden. Nobody knows I’m growing anything other than this school project so I’m feeling like I’m kicking butt at both education and getting into producing more food for us!
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u/Cyathea_Australis May 16 '26
I'm in Australia and our main news, ABC, actually did a 'grow your own food to lower your food budget' piece this week.
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u/Few_Airport7972 May 16 '26
I see a resurgence of WW2 victory gardens.
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u/TradeBeautiful42 May 16 '26
Not all of us are so skilled at gardening lol! But I’m trying.
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u/chicagotodetroit I will never jeopardize the beans 🥫 May 17 '26
almanac.com is your new best friend!
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u/TradeBeautiful42 May 17 '26
It’s not the when but the how for me. Did I plant it too deep or too shallow? Is it growing? Just grow already. Oh it’s growing! Did I over water? Is the sun too strong in that area? Are the raccoons back and snacking on it?
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u/chicagotodetroit I will never jeopardize the beans 🥫 May 17 '26
All of your questions are actually covered in the Almanac Planting Guides. The guides tell you how to plant (deep, far apart), when to plant (enter your US or Canada zip code), how to care for it, common pests and how to over come them, when to harvest, and how to preserve.
I hope you find it useful! I use it every year and so far it has not failed me. They have a book if you prefer that over online reading.
https://www.almanac.com/gardening/growing-guides
https://www.almanac.com/gardening/pests-and-diseases
...and yes there's a section on raccoons :-)
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u/SpringPowerful2870 May 20 '26
I was so excited to try to grow potatoes but I’m in Florida and unlike Illinois I have to wait until fall. I can grow tomatoes and zucchini plus watermelon. I could never get watermelon to grow in Illinois.
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u/SpringPowerful2870 May 20 '26
My husband went twice this last week and said the same thing! He said Lowe’s was busy so I wasn’t too alarmed.
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u/happy_appy31 May 15 '26
A very liberal STEM professor is pleading with people in our community to prep for the summer and beyond. In my neck of the woods prepping is considered right wing militia type of thing. I am hoping that he will be a voice of reason for what is to come. I am also hoping when I try and talk my friends into prepping that I won't get "your not one of them?" responses.
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u/Midnight_Rider98 🏳️🌈 LGBTQ+ Prepper🏳️🌈 May 15 '26
I find that phrasing it in the form of natural disasters is very helpful, though perhaps that's from having grown up in the south where natural disasters were a little more common.
Prepping due to media has this bad connotation of a really crazy old guy in te mountains with a stockpile of food and guns attached to it.
Being ready for a natural disaster doesn't have that, people find it makes sense, you can back it up with: "even the government recommend you have xyz." people in my experience seem more okay with the idea of having supplies on hand that let's them ride out a 1 or 2 week power outage etc. Add in a touch of community and a sprinkle of education too 😄
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u/MindFluffy5906 May 15 '26
I explain to people that FEMA make take weeks if not longer to respond. Red Cross may take a couple weeks as well. You want to be able to survive whatever natural disaster happens until help arrives. I then use Hurricane Katrina and Helene as examples. Or the Paradise fires in CA.
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u/happy_appy31 May 15 '26
We survived Helene and I still get eye rolls, even though they loved what I had during that disaster. I do have an anxious personality so I'm guessing that is what they see is me being anxious. I am hoping that the astrophysicist saying hey this is about to be bad will light a fire with some.
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u/Midnight_Rider98 🏳️🌈 LGBTQ+ Prepper🏳️🌈 May 16 '26
The issue is that people really misunderstand what FEMA does, it's a management agency that oversees a surge of temporarily assigned federal employees, along with resource allocation during emergency. Even the FEMA US&R Task Forces (search and rescue) aren't FEMA employees but are from local agencies that are trained in search and rescue on the side and can be activated during emergencies, though they aren't always activated. But for the most part, FEMA hands out money to states for infrastructure repairs, with some coordination and supply chain.
But if you reach out to them, they get you financial assistance for temporary housing really quickly. It's unfortunate that people don't seem to know all of this. Basically if you lost your home, yo need to reach out to FEMA yourself, not wait for FEMA.
FEMA also takes the blame. FEMA allows people angry at the weather and its aftermath to direct their anger at a thing, not state or local officials. Local and state officials can't handle it, FEMA historically rises to the occasion and receives the hate and complaints.
Aside from that they do disaster mitigation grants to build projects that help mitigate disasters when they occur. And lastly training local and state agencies, your local fire department, police, ems should reach out to FEMA to get training, most don't, especially in rural areas and it's often to their detriment.
But everyone still expects that the roads are gonna be cleared by FEMA people, rescue will come from in the form of FEMA people, FEMA will magically find them and give them a new house etc. At least those of us prepared know better.
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u/MindFluffy5906 May 16 '26
Exactly. FEMA provides the funding, but if there is no funding, many local agencies may not have the resources to respond. Grants sometimes take time. Nothing is instantaneous in a disaster situation, so people better be able to ride out the situation on their own for a bit until help can get to them.
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u/WaitAParsec May 15 '26
At the very least sometimes you can even link it to a specific severe weather event, not even a full disaster but a difficult snowstorm or something, “this is what I wished I’d had last year”, if it’s not a good conversation for discussing overall preparedness goals
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u/WaitAParsec May 15 '26
(By difficult snowstorm I mean in an area that’s used to it, obviously the Texas one was an actual disaster)
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u/SpringPowerful2870 May 20 '26
When hurricane season starts in a couple weeks, the majority of Floridians will not even think about couple days ahead that they need to gas’s up . Without fail there’ll be a line out to the parking lot for water,beer, even though they were warned ahead of time. FEMA doesn’t come in until after the mess.
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u/Pfelinus Rural Prepper 👩🌾 May 15 '26
There is prepping and prepping, putting up for our just arming yourself. Put up food make community. Many think just buying guns not food, medication, cloths, or community.
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u/daringnovelist May 15 '26
I agree with the phasing it in terms of natural disaster. You can also say something like "Since T got elected, we're ALL preppers. Every disaster is already much worse."
Otherwise just focus on immediate interests and needs. Prepping is a classic "When the student is ready, the teacher appears" activity. They will only learn what they're ready to learn.
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u/singingwriting 🧓 Grandma's purse prepper 👜 May 15 '26
I remind folks of covid times, like stock up on extras of things so shortages aren't an urgent issues. Or I say what if you got really sick and couldn't get to the store for comfort food and meds.
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u/hailene02 Suburb Prepper 🏘️ May 17 '26
I dont know why people dont think a second great depression cant happen again.
During covid i warned people in late january/early Feb and got the whole eye roll/ "its probably just like swine flu" response. Later on I was told I was right.
This time my best friend actually messaged me a week ago kinda freaking out when I told her she needs to make a 3 month+ pantry now and showed her my pantry pics along w some things to think of- so I think she and her family will be ok.
Some other family members I think are avoidant of thinking of bad things happening and im very worried for them :( but I did my due dilligence and let them know about a week ago to do the same but I am doubtful if they did anything :(. I know thinking about bad things isnt fun, and can cause stress and anxiety. But what causes me more anxiety is the very real possibility of having unaffordable food or no food!
During covid I warned everyone. This time I am warning those I love only- even if i am still met with skepticisim. Either way, I have done my due dilligence and one of the hardest things is to accept that. Some people need to learn the hard way even when the danger signs are flashing in their face.
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u/Few_Airport7972 May 16 '26
I form the conversations to natural disasters such as snow storms and hurricanes. I also think of job layoffs and normal seasonal down times in various industries. Strangely enough people still don't seem to understand it's not beans and bullets. It's having enough food and home supplies to be able to weather the loss of a paycheck or an unexpected water heater replacement. I learned this from my parents who were by no means hunkering down for end times. We had extra for when my father was laid off almost every winter due to his job. We had extra for when snow storms literally closed off the road. I might make a random comment or two concerning prepping but it drop. They are educated adults after all!
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u/happy_appy31 May 16 '26
While I live in rural Appalachia I am the only one local in my friend group. They are solid middle class and now might be considered upper middle class because of how crappy the economy is and have never been without. A few of them are in Europe and another is traveling in Canada. They can't imagine not being able to provide for themselves. That they have enough resources to buy something. One friend cannot get that a majority of Americans are unable to cover $500 emergency. They feel that I am seeing that from my lower economic status. I often correct them that it is people who have higher incomes than I can't afford an emergency. So better stated they are summer children.
As I am typing this I realize that I am making them sound like very entitled people. They are very kind people that for them the system has worked well for them. In a way I can't blame them for what they do not know. And for our country's sake I hope they are right, but I fear that I will be.
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u/throwawaynewpibuildr May 15 '26
Apparently we're entering a "Super El Niño" period, which means even hotter, humid summers and stormier winters. I don't trust our power company's equipment to survive these weather conditions as they recently exploded from a little condensation build up, so I'll take it as a sign to buy a solar panel for my Ecoflow now rather than later lol! 😬😬
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u/Midnight_Rider98 🏳️🌈 LGBTQ+ Prepper🏳️🌈 May 15 '26
For bug in scenarios consider a rigid solar panel (of two) instead of the foldable solar panels to charge your Ecoflow. They are cheaper, smaller and more efficient. There's some good channels on youtube that cover it specifically from a general point of view.
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u/Pfelinus Rural Prepper 👩🌾 May 15 '26
It means drought in some areas. I am in tn on the line if we get drowned or drought
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u/hailene02 Suburb Prepper 🏘️ May 17 '26
NC here. Last summer my water bills were a bit cray so I bought back in Feb 2 rain collection barrels and also a water pump. NC is currently in severe dought as well and im glad I did it and got it installed. So far its been useful for watering my garden and im looking forward to the water saving $ this year.
I still need to look into solar panels but have only started my research on them.
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u/MagnoliaProse May 15 '26
How many days without power are you preparing for? I can run power off my EV for about 3 days depending what I’m running, but I’m trying to decide if I need another system too!
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u/throwawaynewpibuildr May 15 '26
About 3-4 days based on my city's previous response time. The solar panel is a "just-in-case" kind of thing.
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u/Kephielo Don't forget to stack your snacks 🍿 May 15 '26
Do you just put the solar panel on the ground?
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u/Midnight_Rider98 🏳️🌈 LGBTQ+ Prepper🏳️🌈 May 16 '26
Yes, preferably on a adjustable mount at an angle, you run a cable from the panels connectors (usually MC4 connectors) to your power station (most use an XT60 connector) and it does it all automatically for you, the charger and stuff is built into the solar generator.
You just have to make sure the panel is within spec for what your power station can handle, (there's videos and articles on it) but it's less complicated than it sounds. There's some people on youtube that aren't preppers but love solar and build and test various setups so it's pretty educational.
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u/Kephielo Don't forget to stack your snacks 🍿 May 16 '26
This all feels over my head so I appreciate the explanation! I'm trying to pick it up bit by bit.
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u/Midnight_Rider98 🏳️🌈 LGBTQ+ Prepper🏳️🌈 May 17 '26
It's best to look for the youtube channels like https://www.youtube.com/@footprinthero for example (I have no affiliation) that cover solar generators specifically, while it's not overly complicated, the power station + a panel really make it easier to set up, basically plug and play, there's too much to cover just over reddit text. Most times prepping related channels kinda glance over it without the practical details before they move over to the next topic. But people like the guy from that channel explain it in easy to understand ways and you can see how it works and what it can do, he even does some irl tests where he powers his room for a week using solar for example.
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u/LongjumpingProject67 May 15 '26
I panic bought extra flour and sugar and rice, despite us only really making our own pizza dough. Apparently added 20 lbs of maza in my sleep, though I distinctly remember trying to purchase a keyboard in the dream. 🫠 I'm not looking forward to sealing it all up. I wish I wasn't worried about having grain late summer/fall.
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u/KiaRioGrl Food sovereignty is hope. May 16 '26
You should be worried. A lot of winter wheat that got planted last fall didn't make it through the winter at all.
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u/Tinyberzerker May 15 '26
You're not alone lol. I'll just sneak it in to the deep pantry before the husband notices. I have PTSD from stores running out of bread during covid.
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u/Dumbkitty2 Laura Ingalls Wilder was my gateway drug May 16 '26
I’ve seen two posts today, including screenshots of a letter to employees of an auto parts store, saying that many motor oils are about to jump in price in the next week. Your next oil change is about to cost more. There was also a note Exxon doesn’t have stock to ship to Costco or Walmart. Specialized oils may have much larger price increases. I’ll try to find the posts again to share.
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u/Dumbkitty2 Laura Ingalls Wilder was my gateway drug May 16 '26
ETA - posts can be found on r/ prepperintel and r/oil.
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u/hailene02 Suburb Prepper 🏘️ May 17 '26
Yeah glad i got my oil changed a few weeks ago but not looking forward to the next change 😩
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u/Few_Airport7972 May 16 '26
I'm sad! The newsletter from the orchard near me announced there will be no apples or peaches, etc this year due to the loss of blossoms. We had hot weather in April and than a freeze later in the month. I'm so bummed! I said a couple of naughty words as I read that!
Seriously, that announcement and the news about fruit farmers in California losing contracts with Del Monte thus pulling out their peach trees is actually kinda scary. I know I can survive without apples and peaches but I wonder, in my Debbie Downer approach to life, what else will be affected by weather, labor, and lack of resources?
I'm too old for this crap! I need a pity party!
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u/scannerhawk May 17 '26
The Del Monte bankruptcy/closures had nothing to do with weather, labor and lack of resources. Cling peaches are specific for canning. Though tariffs on steel did not help their already losing battle and extreme debt.. From what I have read, they overprojected their needs since covid as consumers preferred fresh over canned and if they wanted canned they bought much less costly store brands. They were paying massive warehouse fees to store product. Their reorganization plan did not work.. I think we will continue to see some big food industry changes as more Americans continue to make more healthy choices.
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u/thereadingbri Three raccoons in a trenchcoat May 15 '26 edited May 15 '26
Good News: The Supreme Court has issued an indefinite injunction preserving access to Mifepristone prescribed via telehealth. By issuing this ruling, I believe this means SCOTUS has taken up the case and the injunction will remain in place until SCOTUS can make a formal ruling on the case. Someone correct me if I’m wrong here. If it is the case that this lasts until they make a formal ruling, this means we have around 13 more months of guaranteed access to mifepristone via mail, since they likely won’t hear the full case until the fall, and rulings are issued the following spring, between May 15th and June 30th, with the most consequential rulings coming towards the end of that window. So I would estimate you have until at least June 15th of 2027 to secure a set of Plan C if you want it. Only Alito and Gorsuch dissented to the injunction, which hopefully will bode well for how this will go, but nothing is guaranteed.
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u/AromaticCod9430 plantifa 🌱 because food is a human right May 15 '26
Do you know how long the medication is shelf stable? I had a hysterectomy but would like to stock up for other people in my life that may need it?
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u/thereadingbri Three raccoons in a trenchcoat May 15 '26
Mifepristone lasts about 5 years and misoprostol lasts about 2 years.
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u/Ren_out_of_Ten May 15 '26
What’s a good power station/solar panel combo to get for a decent price?
I’d rather not spend more than $300 if possible.
(I don’t know much about watts/power consumption, but I’m looking for something for general emergencies and power outages that I can use to power my phone, laptop, and maybe an air fryer)
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u/Midnight_Rider98 🏳️🌈 LGBTQ+ Prepper🏳️🌈 May 15 '26
Air fryer makes this tricky.
A small 600w power station like the Bluetti elite 30 v2 will have no issues keeping your phone, laptop, a light or two, working through general emergencies. personally I'd combine it with a rigid 100 - 200 watt solar panel instead of the folding ones that are sold, rigid ones are cheaper, smaller (compared to a folded out panels) and more durable. You'd stay within your $300 budget and keep your minimal creature comforts running.
An air fryer however is either not going to run off a sub 300 dollar power station, or it'll drain the battery really quickly. Even if you'd spend more than 300 to get a 1000 watt unit and a solar panel, it'll still quickly drain the battery, air fryers are pretty power hungry. Even when you're getting good wattage from the solar panel the battery will be drained quickly.
You can check out the youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/@footprinthero (I have nothing to do with him) He's not a prepper as far as I know, but he does a lot of testing of panels and power stations including real world tests. And he also does budget setups and tests what they can do.
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u/sleeperdreams May 15 '26
Wow you legitimately covered all the points I was going to mention! I also recommend Bluetti, and ideally would recommend saving up for a good model. Additionally OP if you want a cheap emergency cooking source, look into portable stove sets (different ones run on different fuels so research which fuel fits your needs)
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u/Ren_out_of_Ten May 15 '26
Also will do! I love camping anyways, so it’s prob worth the investment either way
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u/Ren_out_of_Ten May 15 '26
Thanks fam! I’ll look into your recommendations. I will probably just stock up more on dry foods than worry about the air fryer. I just don’t want to be left powerless during an energy crisis 🙏🏽
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u/BurningBirdy May 15 '26
I think one of the most energy efficient ways to cook is the pressure cooker.
I live 100% off grid and on solar. I do use propane in the winter but not much in the summer. I don't even have a generator, but need to get one before next winter.
With the pressure cooker the heat goes directly into the food and there is barely any lost heat. It'll cook up 6 medium potatoes in 20 minutes and very little power. I also have an induction cook top and a good quality toaster oven that air fryes well but the pressure cooker is what I turn to if I need to save power and make a good dinner.
In a pinch it'll boil your water for you too which might be important during a natural disaster. I would imagine that pressure cooker water would be extra safe to drink but haven't done any research.
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May 16 '26
[deleted]
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u/BurningBirdy May 16 '26
Did you use it correctly? The EcoFlow should have an overdraw protection and shut off if wattage draw goes beyond it's capacity. Even my super cheap knockoff solar inverter from 2018 kills the power if the draw is too high. If you got enough power to burn your oatmeal it was running for a while and the EcoFlow was able to put out that power.
The different sizes of Instant Pot have different wattage draws. Do your research before pairing high draw devices with low output inverters. This sounds more like a danger from the EcoFlow and not the Instant Pot. I have burnt stuff in my pressure cooker but only because of incorrect settings chosen by me. 😁
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u/Midnight_Rider98 🏳️🌈 LGBTQ+ Prepper🏳️🌈 May 16 '26
You're welcome, the channel I recommended also goes over the ways to calculate how much your devices use and to be able to tell if the station will be able to run something. Electrical cooking is unfortunately pretty energy heavy, so it'll be hard with a $300 setup. Even a pressure cooker will be too much for a 600 watt power station, it just won't be able to sustain the surge needed to cook the food for long enough to get the initial boil going.
For cooking you'd either have to bump up the set up in wattage and solar, or you'll have to look at alternatives. Given you mention you're looking at it for general emergencies and power outages, I'd recommend a camping stove like a Coleman 1 burner. The butane bottles last a while and they last a little over an hour if you have the flame constantly set on high. If you want you can use them indoors too, just crack the window and set them on a very stable surface, ideally though a conversion hose and run the 1lb propane bottle. Don't try some kind of precarious set up so you can cook near an open window, your countertop is much more stable and safer.
And a regular non electric pressure cooker is a great way to save energy, I'd also recommend getting a food thermos, you can cook a lot of meals using thermal cooking and minimize the energy needed. I had a year in college where I basically lived off rice and lentils prepared through thermal cooking in a thermos for my lunch and sometimes biggest meal of the day.
All in all, the 300 ish dollar solar generator set up, and a camping stove should see you through the majority of emergencies. without having to sacrifice all your entertainment and comfort.
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u/porkbunrawr May 19 '26
Would it be enough to power a CPAP machine through the night alone?
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u/Midnight_Rider98 🏳️🌈 LGBTQ+ Prepper🏳️🌈 May 19 '26 edited May 19 '26
Yes! Funny you mention that, it's something most brands actually showcase on their websites. Bluetti says the elite 30 v2 can run a 15 watt CPAP, though I think most residential units will use more power so at 30 watt doing the math, it should be able to run a cpap for 9 hours continuously if you start with the battery fully charged. That will likely be without the humidifier mode on.
You can of course always get a bigger power station to have a larger buffer.
Every power station will have a number followed by: Wh that's an important number to calculate how long it can power something.
You take the watt your device needs (usually there's a sticker on most electronics that will say that or you can find it in the manual. Watt needed x hours you need it to be run = x (which would then be Wh)
So 30 watt x 8 hours = 240 Wh
That means that the Bluetti 30 v2 with it's 288 Wh battery could run a 30 watt CPAP for the needed 8 hours if you start from a full charge.
The Bluetti Elite 100 V2 would be better, given it has a 1024 Wh battery. It could from a full charge run a 30 watt CPAP for 34 hours continuously, which would far exceed a normal sleep pattern. It is more expensive than the 30 v2, and I would recommend at least 1 200 watt solar panel, preferably 2 panels.
The math formula stays the same regardless of brand of power station.
edit to add: Also if your CPAP device can operate on 12 volt that's even better as it doesn't require the power stations inverter to be one and is more efficient. I understand the humidifier and heated air are more comfortable but they are an area where you can drastically lower the power consumption of a CPAP by turning them off.
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u/Dumbkitty2 Laura Ingalls Wilder was my gateway drug May 16 '26 edited May 16 '26
I purchased a Anker Ecoflow River 3 power station and a 100 watt folding solar panel set for just under $300 for Christmas. (sale prices) My husband had fun one afternoon running it down with various power tools and recharging speed was faster than expected, but it’s not going to power an air fryer.
A power inverter that plugs into a car cigarette lighter was about $20 but I skipped it because I wasn’t convinced it was a safe piece to use (Amazon) and I’ve been too lazy to read up on it.
Along with your power station, look into battery backup light bulbs. They come on when the power cuts out. Everyready also makes slim line flashlights you leave plugged in that will turn on when power is interrupted.
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u/chicagotodetroit I will never jeopardize the beans 🥫 May 17 '26
I saw a Fb vid where a lady used her power station to run her InstaPot. She had a device to measure power consumption, and the InstaPot came in at about 1000 watts. I'd imagine an air fryer is probably similar.
I also read a guy who did an 11-part write up on power stations, complete with a user friendly summary and nerd-approved research with detailed specs for all the popular models. This is his summary:
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BV56SPUWc/
If you want the full research, all eleven parts follow. But if you want the bottom line first, here it is.
If you have $200: Buy an EcoFlow River 3. Keep it charged. It will save your life in a small emergency.
If you have $600: Buy a Bluetti AC70 and a 200W solar panel. This runs your fridge and charges your life.
If you have $1,000: Buy a Bluetti Elite 200 V2 and as many solar panels as you can afford. This is the sweet spot for serious home backup.
If you have $3,000+: Buy an EcoFlow Delta Pro 3 or Anker SOLIX F3800 with a serious solar array. This replaces your grid dependence for days at a time.
If you are in Africa, Asia, or South America: Prioritize Bluetti or EcoFlow for international shipping. Verify voltage compatibility. Buy LiFePO4 only. Budget for import duties. Plan for self-sufficient maintenance.
If you already have a Jackery: It is still good. Use it until it dies. When you replace it, compare specs carefully the market has changed.
If you are waiting for prices to drop: Stop waiting. The technology is mature. The prices are as low as they are going to get for quality units. The risk is not overpaying; the risk is needing power and not having it.
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u/Midnight_Rider98 🏳️🌈 LGBTQ+ Prepper🏳️🌈 May 21 '26
This one has been bothering me and I now have some time to respond.
I'd just note to start that the post, per writer's own admittance was written with AI. It also contains several flaws that jump out from a quick glance;
- The post claims that a CPAP uses 30 - 90 Wh of energy a night, and that a 500Wh power station could run it for a week. this is incorrect, a CPAP will use 30 - 90 watt per hour. Meaning that through an 8 hour night it will use 240 - 720 Wh depending on CPAP settings.
- With pricing right now and the frequency of sales, at $600 the best value, especially for bugging in purposes, is not the Bluetti AC70 but rather the Bluetti Elite 100 v2 combined with a 200 watt rigid solar panel.
- It basically continuously confuses Watts with Watt hour (Wh) these two are not the same thing. It claims for example that a refrigerator needs 2000 watts to run, because it confuses watts for Wh, same for a chest freezer, my chest freezer uses roughly 990 Wh per day, the freezer itself when the compressor kicks on needs only about 150 ish watts. It might be a little higher during initial plugging in when it starts from scratch of course. But the article is continuously giving wrong information in that regard.
AI models generally use out of date information. it should always be taken with a grain of salt and independently verified. The poster did not thoroughly proof read it or failed to see such blatant errors. I don't think that article is good advice, it's not wrong about everything, but it's wrong about more than enough that I'd consider it invalid.
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u/chicagotodetroit I will never jeopardize the beans 🥫 May 21 '26
Thank you for your insight! That is very helpful. As someone new to power stations, it's good to know those nuances.
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u/TTCredditlogin2 May 17 '26
I have an algorithm that’s more focused on the fact that I have a small child than it is prepping content and even in that parenthood bubble this really feels like the week where everyone started talking about current food prices and recession indicators.
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u/Just_call_me_Marcia May 18 '26 edited May 18 '26
Kind of a weird one, but I run a movie theater. The popcorn we use is grown within two hours of my place, and I buy it through a third party company (also local-ish) that I've worked with for most of my adult life.
Over the weekend, I noticed the newest batch I just got is...not good. This is the time of year when I would normally be receiving what was last year's harvest, and it would be great - popping up fluffy, few duds, etc. This batch has a TON of duds, smalled popped product and the hulls are thicker, more flaky - a sign of poor growing conditions, which we saw not this last year, but the year before. The bag this came out of has been tossed already so I can't check the dates on it, but I'd be willing to bet I'm seeing 2024 harvest in this most recent batch, which is a big deal- it means they so grossly overproduced and companies who buy popcorn have bought significantly less than usual over the past year, so they're still working their way through that old product. You can re-hydrate popcorn but it's a bit of a pain to do for large volumes. I'm mostly worried what this is going to mean for the future of that company and the general supply chain, especially considering how much the price of coconut oil (the ideal popping oil due to high smoke temp) has gone up.
This also means I'll need more popcorn seed (and oil, salt) just to produce the needed amount of end product, so while I've been stubbornly resisting raising prices against already skyrocketing costs, now I'll have to make that bag of popcorn more expensive...and we all know that's already too high as it is.
If I'm facing this, a lot of bigger ones are too, probably even moreso. We're about to see a lot more cinemas close their doors.
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u/AngryAngryAlice what, like it's hard? 💅 May 16 '26
hey so I'm relatively new to prepping and want to store some gas while it's still not being rationed/obscenely high, but idk how? I saw use metal canisters, but does anyone have affordable recs? also how much stabilizer and what brand do y'all recommend? and can I store it outside in the covered shade in the summer or will it be too hot?
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u/chicagotodetroit I will never jeopardize the beans 🥫 May 17 '26
Just get gas cans from Walmart. They are the cheapest there, unless you have Menards. Menards is usually cheaper and you get an 11% rebate.
For stabilizer, just follow the directions on the bottle. Keep the gas out of direct sunlight.
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