[PlacidRambo]

I'm trying to figure out the best place to store emergency supplies in my house; My main problem is the fact that the two most likely natural disasters to hit this area are either flooding or tornadoes, both of which require opposite storage locations. If I store in the basement, floods will wipe everything out, but if I store in the attic, tornadoes will.

The middle of the house is comprised of the cellar access and a bathroom so that location is out of the question.

We do have a garage that will need work soon that I could install storage containers in, but that has a lot of stuff in it like the lawn tractor and firewood that would have to be moved somewhere less convenient. It also is not insulated well so water would probably freeze.

My last-ditch idea is to store my supplies in two parts. Half in the attic, half in the basement. that way one stash would be lost whilst the other would hopefully remain unharmed.

Any other ideas?

 

[ecilop]

Your basement is probably the best place (temperature wise) to store your preps. Have you had problems with it flooding before? If so, under what conditions? If you are just concerned about flooding from hurricanes, you can always move your preps upstairs in the event one is coming your way. Just a thought.

 

[PlacidRambo]

In upstate NY hurricanes just give us a lot of wind and rain.

I live in a river valley, so in the spring melting snow causes annual flooding of varying heights. one year we got three weeks of rain on top of melting snow, then while the ground was still saturated later that summer we got another three weeks of rain. the resulting floods wrecked all of the valley. our house was the highest in the neighborhood but our basement was still flooded. It's a laid stone basement with a dirt floor so it doesn't flood regularly so things would be safe for a while, but not from another disastrous flood.

Tempature-wise I agree with you with the basement... My reservations are simply because I've seen it fail to keep things safe. on the other hand, the flood wasn't overnight so i guess I could move everything upstairs if the need arose.

 

[steve5]

dont put all your eggs in one basket

 

[SmallGame2100]

You have tornados down there? Wow I did not know that.

 

[robstar]

Tornado damage seems so isolated and rare but I don't live in a tornado prone area. Do you and what is the likelihood of a tornado for you? Living in a flood prone area seems a bit more predictable and there's probably info as to whether you live in a 100 year or 500 year flood plain.

If you feel vulnerable to either of these and have substantial preps it may be in your best interest to split your preps out into a small rented storage area a short distance away or if you have like minded family members you can trust it may be in both your interests to split up the preps between the two locations?

OFF-TOPIC: Your avatar says "Farmer / Filmmaker" ? I'm a Steadicam / Jib / Aerial Camera Operator for film and television. I don't live it California but most of my work is in LA. PM me and tell me what you do.

 

[phillyyuppie]

I would split supplies to three locations- 1) BASEMENT- for larger, longer term storage. best all around and the most convenient. 2) ATTIC- this is useful for flooding situations, but whatever you store there, be sure it's appropriate- MREs run out fast, I would NOT store volatiles and make sure to label your stuff and 3)GARAGE- this sis more for a "we gotta leave NOW" situation- more for items to be thrown in the BOV and to split. Gasoline would be advisable if you can, as well as items to keep you vehicle on the move. However this can limit regular storage space, as well as items being subjectedt o temperature extremes also.

Just an idea- good luck