What's on your hurricane prep. list?

[Dan-0]

I haven't had the pleasure of actually going through the full force of a hurricane, but a few years ago I was in Chetumal when Emily hit the peninsula. I remember spending all week getting ready for the storm, which, by the way, ended up weakening and making landfall just north of Tulum. I'm sitting here watching TS Fay trickle out over us now as Gustav dances around the Gulf. I'm interested in what's on your hurricane prep list and what are your "must haves"? Here's my list, I may have to edit it after I think about it some more:

1. bottled water
2. non-perishable food like Maruchan/ramen noodles
3. propane gas
4. portable TV/radio that runs on batteries
5. batteries
6. beer! (especially in Mexico because of the "ley seca")

[Michele]

Hurricane checklist? Let's see....

Plan trip to Belize.

Check.

All done.

[Libby]

7. cash
8. flashlights
9. candles
10. duct tape
11. first aid kit
12. bleach
13. full tank of gas in the car

[raquelle261]

Originally Posted by Libby

7. cash
8. flashlights
9. candles
10. duct tape
11. first aid kit
12. bleach
13. full tank of gas in the car

Do you know what Libby, I'm not sure there whether you are preparing for a hurricane or planning doing someone in and disposing of the body!

[PlayaWithMe]

Originally Posted by raquelle261

Do you know what Libby, I'm not sure there whether you are preparing for a hurricane or planning doing someone in and disposing of the body!

Hmmmmmm.........

[PlayadelSoul]

Plastic bags. Lots of them. I take them and stuff them in the cracks of the front and back doors, in mass. Then duct tape the cracks to keep the bags in. The amount of windblown water entering my house decreases by buckets.

[Kami]

Does anyone have a generator? Is one really even necessary for hurricanes there?

[Libby]

Originally Posted by PlayadelSoul

Plastic bags. Lots of them. I take them and stuff them in the cracks of the front and back doors, in mass. Then duct tape the cracks to keep the bags in. The amount of windblown water entering my house decreases by buckets.

Ah, there's an idea. Thanks!

Originally Posted by Kami

Does anyone have a generator? Is one really even necessary for hurricanes there?

We don't. I don't think many people do. Necessary? Guess it depends on your tolerance level for living without electricity. We moved here 2 weeks after Wilma, so I don't have any real experience with hurricanes yet. Anyone remember how long the electricity was out during Wilma?

[Kami]

Originally Posted by Libby

We don't. I don't think many people do. Necessary? Guess it depends on your tolerance level for living without electricity. We moved here 2 weeks after Wilma, so I don't have any real experience with hurricanes yet. Anyone remember how long the electricity was out during Wilma?

My tolerance will have to be high...the generator would not fit in the vehicle anyhow. I can live by candle light

[Marman]

Frank Sinatra CD
1.75L Crown Royal
Diet Pepsi
Ice

[Tony&Cheri]

Originally Posted by Kami

My tolerance will have to be high...the generator would not fit in the vehicle anyhow. I can live by candle light

Kami, remember your plumbing in Mexico...it's electric! If where you live is like most places down here it will operate by an electric pump which either pushes water through the system or by pumping the water to a tinaco or storage tank on the roof which then releases the water by gravity when called for in the system.

We have a generator at the hotel. We found that people on vacation will live without lights or a/c, but want showers and flushable toilets. So if/when we lose power for an extended time after a storm, we fire up the generator to pump water.

At home we just make sure the storage tank (which is bolted to the roof of our house) is completely full just before the storm arrives. We then ration our water use until we get power back.

Some stuff on our huricanne check list:

Secure the hotel (anything that will "fly" when the winds pick up);
Cover the windows of the hotel with plywood...then do the same for our house and the houses of our staff;
Get plenty of drinking water for all of us in the LB "family";
Get gas for the tanks at the hotel and home:
Account for all the animals;
Make sure the ipods are charged.

[PlayadelSoul]

Originally Posted by Libby

Ah, there's an idea. Thanks!



We don't. I don't think many people do. Necessary? Guess it depends on your tolerance level for living without electricity. We moved here 2 weeks after Wilma, so I don't have any real experience with hurricanes yet. Anyone remember how long the electricity was out during Wilma?

It works. When Emily came through, our house was flooded. With Wilma, only a couple of drops.

A squeegee is handy, too.

[Libby]

Originally Posted by Tony&Cheri

Kami, remember your plumbing in Mexico...it's electric! If where you live is like most places down here it will operate by an electric pump which either pushes water through the system or by pumping the water to a tinaco or storage tank on the roof which then releases the water by gravity when called for in the system.

Oh that reminds me. We fill up jugs of water to use for flushing the toilets in case the electric goes out. Showers, we'll have to live without though. At least we won't be the only ones who smell funny.

Tony&Cheri - How do you make sure your tinaco is full? And is there a way to manually fill it?

[PlayadelSoul]

Originally Posted by Libby

Oh that reminds me. We fill up jugs of water to use for flushing the toilets in case the electric goes out. Showers, we'll have to live without though. At least we won't be the only ones who smell funny.

Tony&Cheri - How do you make sure your tinaco is full? And is there a way to manually fill it?

If I know we are going to get weather, I start using water from buckets to flush the john, shower, etc. The tank fills up. Then, refill the buckets and garafons from the hose, until the city cuts off the water (usually a day before). I learned my lesson in Merida, after Isidore, when we had no water for three weeks. I was filling garafons from work, friend's houses, etc., the whole time. It sucked, to say the least.

[jamnkats]

We have a genset but only because we got it for the trailer (and boondocking - camping with no services).

(I forgot the number Libby left off at)

12) fill all containers and the trailer with water (no tinaco here)
13) check all the neighbor's palapas
14) make sandbags with sand and plastic bags
15) candles inside the big glass holders
16) flashlights (we have ones that are wind up - charge their batters with a hand crank)
17) precooked food that we can just heat up (cooked pasta, banana bread, stews, etc.)
18) make sure we have a spare full tank of gas
19) get gas for genset
20) make sure we have lots of fresh water (agua purificada) as we go through almost a whole garrafon a day

[Tony&Cheri]

Originally Posted by Libby

Oh that reminds me. We fill up jugs of water to use for flushing the toilets in case the electric goes out. Showers, we'll have to live without though. At least we won't be the only ones who smell funny.

Tony&Cheri - How do you make sure your tinaco is full? And is there a way to manually fill it?

The only way to know for sure the level of water in your tinaco is to climb up on the roof, unscrew the top and check. Your tinaco has either a floatation ball or an electonic sensor to "call" for water from the pump. To manually fill it you physically manipulate either until it registers with the pump that water is needed. You hold either the flotation ball or sensor suspended in the "water needed "position as water is pumped in. When it reaches the top, drop the sensor/ball back into regular position and screw the top back on. A single tinaco should easily last for a couple days if you are conservative in water use.