There are more than a few problems with that idea in my opinion and lm assuming here that when your talking about a landowner your talking about a farmer.

There are few places in this country that dont flood unless its sitting half way up a hill somewhere which means levelling the ground it sits on.

Trying to get 13 people to agree on anything is next impossible and 13 who dont know each other........

But firstly the frieght container, you are not going to get a 40 footer in good condition and moved to were you want it for much under $10000 and you dont want one in poor condition that leaks or youve got a sauna. The doors will have to be metal and weather proof because rural theft rates are just as high as city ones and if its left alone on someones property it will be broken into!
3 ft wide compartments is about as wide as a person, how do you reach the things in the back without pulling every last item out each time?
They easily get to 60+ C in the summer time and freezing in winter so they are no good for storing food, gas bottles, butane canisters etc and if they develop a leak and in my experiance they all will eventually, then everything in there will either rust or rot. So what does that leave to store, tents, chairs, cookware hardely worth it for that, it would be easier and cheaper to get a storage unit somwhere.

Now you want to put it on a landowners place and he supposedly owns it for the bargin basment price of $13000. Lets deal with the obvious first, to make it fire proof he has to clear an area of at least 50 meters all the way around it and 100 would be better(radiant heat is a killer in bushfires), it will have to be ploughed/sprayed and probably both at least once a year, maybe twice(cost to him). He then has to put in an access track and maintain it(cost to him) because you or one of the 12 others will come in there in the wet. He also now has up to 13 people arriving at his farm when ever they want to, but it wont be 13, they will have partners -26, maybe kids -39, bring some mates??
Now lets say you want to put a roof over your container, one of the better ways of keeping some of the weather out and the sun off. Roofs can be mounted onto a freight container but it dosnt really allow enough cover or breathing room so you want to mount one to the ground, it is now no longer a temporary structure so he has to go and get council approval and a planning permit(cost to him). Then there the less obvious, gates will be left open, people will inadvertently stir up livestock, get bogged, stuck and just generally be a pain in the ass.

And of course and this is the Big one! if something does happen do you really think any landowner is going to want up to 50 people he barely or dosnt know at all! showing up on his door for the next who knows how long.

Anyway that my 2 bobs worth

 

I had a quote before, $5k for a 40ft delivered to a families property. Its possible, it had more holes then a sieve.

Your right. There are many holes in the plan, but surely there is a solution? Issue of security will never go away though.

For comparison, the only other viable storage options, is kennards has self storage, 1.5m x 1.2m (5ft x 4ft) for $133 a month. Over 10 years, thats $16k. Its not realistic. You do have security.

Surely there is a solution?

The only community bunker / shelter that I know of in NSW was built out at tenterfield in 2012. Designed to accommodate people with enough food for 3 months (from the known information, I doubt it would have, or could have been successful, but the information available to the public is likely very different to those that invested)

Exact location only known to those that invested, with a cost of $5k per adult - the $5k was essentially a 'lease' to give you access for that 3 month period.

Built from 3 shipping containers, concrete and rebar on the outside, and then covered with dirt. Estimated $60k cost to build.

Im not after anything that I can sleep in... just a way to store a few things. I know other people have buried a cache of food or other. Burying a cache on public land is not something all of us want to do.

I really think more people could prepare for SHTF if there were more viable alternatives.

 

Australia has preppers and some generally 'prepared folk' in its harsher regions( cyclone, flood, drought) which is why we don't get the death counts the rest of the world does. But no not the prepper communities the US does, our population too small and spread out.

As to viable alternatives if you are only after a few cubic metres ( container divided by 13 folk) instead of managing complicated group container storage on other folks land, why not go for underground or low profile storage in some waterproof cases.? This is what a lot of folk do.

Far less obtrusive, burying means fire/theft/sun proof. Double or triple up with a few locations for flexibility. Its not as easy to manage stock rotation since you can't just walk in and access stuff of the shelf like with a container. But its a lot easier to find places to hide them

 

Bugging out. Going bush.

I have looked at other peoples BOL plans, and sometimes, I think they are seriously lacking. In some cases, the plans are to literally carry everything they need. Its not a plan that can be achieved for everyone.

What I am looking for doesnt seem to exist. My current BOL is a property belonging to a family member. There is risks of:
- theft,
- fire,
- flooding,
- property being sold / rented in the near future
- I dont have keys to the property, so there is the risks that if they are not there at the time, that I cannot gain access.
- they are old, so high risk they might pass on. My stuff could be 'lost'.

So currently at my BOL, I have very very limited stuff. I like the location as it has unlimited drinking water nearby.


For a while, I have had the idea that a group of people could do something with shipping containers. Lets say that we use a 40ft shipping container. Lets assume its $10,000 total for:
- the cost of the container
- any applicable repairs / repaint
- mods to add partitions internally and access doors externally
- transport costs to the site.

If we divide that shipping container into 13 different sections, each section is approx, 8ft deep, by 3ft wide. The cost of each section would then be approx $770 per section.
The section of the container with the double doors, it would make sense to make this into a 'double', approx 8ft deep, 6ft wide, with a door, and or, with rear access. A cost for a double would be $1540.

This is a pretty sizeable cache. They are not designed to be slept in. Merely protect basic supplies, tents, etc.

Take a moment to think about what you could use to store in that space.

What if my numbers are off? Even if it is $1000 per single section 8ft by 3ft, this is still an affordable cache.

I understand "ownership" may be a problem. One solution is this. The property owner, will have full ownership. Users could then pay a lease fee. Ie, $2000 for a 10 year lease. This fully pays for all costs to build, any maintenance, as well as a profit for the owner. The idea being after 10 years, they are re-leased.

While users pay in advance, the average cost to users, is a mere $200 a year. I cant see how owners could lose. If nothing happens after 10 years, they only need to maintain the structure (repairs / repaint), and can release it. The income would be small, but could help support a prepper.

I know there are pros and cons, and I would never want too many caches in a single central location, but really, why arent we doing it? Surely I am not the only one who has thought of this?

Doing the 10 year rent up front, means Min $13k profit upfront to the owner, and a mere average cost of $200 a year to the user. Seriously why arent we doing it?

I already live off grid, have done for about 40 years now. If I were in your position, I would be talking to these family members. Explain what your needs & concerns are. Perhaps ask if they are willing to sell.

If that does not work for you then seriously think about saving to purchase your own property. It does not have to be large, & accommodation at this time is NOT a priority. A garden shed would suffice. A property with timber would supply your needs for shelter.

If this does not work for you then concentrate on getting some decent sustainable equipment together. That means no gadgets, just 18th century or earlier gear. Make sure it all fits in a knapsack (except arms/weapons/tools) & that you can carry it, regardless of whether you have transport or not. We have plenty of bush in Australia, & a skilled & properly equipped person can live well long term in a wilderness situation.
Keith.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9NWSJv2EGQ&t=4s

 

If this does not work for you then concentrate on getting some decent sustainable equipment together. That means no gadgets, just 18th century or earlier gear. Make sure it all fits in a knapsack (except arms/weapons/tools) & that you can carry it, regardless of whether you have transport or not. We have plenty of bush in Australia, & a skilled & properly equipped person can live well long term in a wilderness situation.
Keith.

Why not have both, primitive and modern gadgets? If society falls you may find the transition hostile in which the ability to use modern weapons, radios, optical devices, stored power will give folk an advantage.

Also regardless of whether you prefer primitive or modern tech, leaving permanently 'just with a backpack' is a good way for most people to die. I don't see this as being usefully prepared.

It is not difficult to bury or hide small caches, aka plastic trunks all over the countryside, even if you own no property. Just naming a few you can have 6-12 months of dried food stores, a few rifles and muskets with lifetime supply of ammuniton, some tarps and clothes, basic tools, a 10-20 year supply of electronic devices, solar panels, rechargable and lithium batteries just a couple feet under the ground at prepared locations. It will still help a great deal in the meantime, especially for those who need to develope skills.

I always respected the primitive technology guys, but I don't see it as a reason not to use all technology available, while you still have it.

 

What about those abandoned opal mine underground homes?

I bet those are expensive though.

 

Joining or Setting up a Community.

I had at one time considered joining a community, I decided I should visit this community for a day & check it out. A day was quite long enough for us to discover all the problems in that particular community. We did not join!

We purchased land with a friend & his wife as partners. This did not work out either, & we finished up having to make all the vendor finance payments ourselves.

IF I were to allow outsiders onto my property to add to my post shtf community I would have to be in charge & there would be rules. When I am running a group or event I like to be able to consult with others before making any decisions. But, my word is final unless things change, or something comes up that had not occurred to me or others at the time.

Everyone is different, some may agree & get on with others very well, others for one reason or another will see certain decisions as a threat to their freedom. Sometimes the objections come from a simple dislike of the person making these decisions. The point is that it is very difficult to live in a close knit post shtf community without encountering those that will annoy you, antagonise you & eventually if not checked could turn really nasty.
I recommend thinking long & hard before you decide to join such a community.
Keith.

 

I dont really want to join a community... but if there was an option, I would look into it. I would actually be better off with a community of like minded people, then say, with family, that hasnt prepped, nothing to contribute, and just a massive burden for everyone to support.

In the US, I love the vivos project that is in south dakota. For $25kusd for 99 year lease, ($252usd per year), you have your own bunker and enough room for 1 year of food. You really only have to talk to your neighbours if you wanted to... but almost nothing like that available in Australia, and I have looked.

What I hate about people in general is that there is a risk that 1 in 100 people are likely to be murders, rapists, pedo, etc. Even police checks cant weed everyone out. School massacres are an example of people with no history, suddenly going nuts, so I do not really want to be in a community, but on the other hand a community might stand a chance to defend against a small gang, while a family on their own would be easy prey.

You are damned if you do, and damned if you dont...



But the main reason for starting this thread, is that I want is a place to safely store some gear on the way to somewhere else. For example, to rent a safe storage locker that is 20" cubed space is over $280usd a year, for that much money all you can store is maybe a mini BOB -> whereas I would need to store an INCH bag, with camping stuff for a family of 4.

Let that sink in. For $252 a year, in the US I can rent a massive bomb proof shelter, big enough for a 10people to live in it with food and other supplies for over 1 year, while in Australia, $280 a year gets you 20" cubed space. (500mm x 500mm x 500mm)
Thats an insane difference between the two countries. More people could store and stockpile if there was a cheaper, viable alternative.

No matter how you look at it, I cannot justify paying $280 a year (or $2880 over 10 years), for something that can maybe fit a max of $50 worth of stuff.

Now if I could find a way to store, say $1000 of gear for $200 a year, that sounds like a more viable option.

I think its clear that my original idea is no good, and I know many others simply bury caches on public land, and I dont like that idea either. But I am going to keep looking at this problem until I find a solution that I am happy with and that will work for me.

 

Another Choice.



The only other thing I can think of is renting shed space from a friend you can trust. Maybe even purchase or construct a shed yourself to store your equipment in. Somewhere out bush like my place would be ideal if you have any friends out bush.
Keith.