Ok, so I got a vac sealer for Christmas and I've been playing with it. I know we had some threads on the old board on storing in 5 gallon buckets, but we seem to be lacking those over here...
This will be the start of my first truly 'deep' storage as opposed to general cycling in the pantry...
Someone poke holes in my plan:
I dislike the use of a 5 gallon barrel for only 1 item. Say "Rice". as once you open the bucket, that clock starts ticking again, and there is a whole lot of rice to burn through. I'm looking to make a more...diversified... bucket. Stave off food fatigue, etc.
I have a number of different beans and grains stored in 1 and 2 pound vac'd bags, along with some other essentials (salt/sugar/etc,-no not full vac'd).
My thought is to put a Mylar bag in the bucket, pack in the smaller bags, fill with rice, then seal the Mylar with an oxygen absorber. Seal the buckets.
Math Wise, I should be able to fit in about a month of food for one person, assuming ~1500kcal/day.
Hit me with your thoughts/concerns/questions please?
thanks!
I dispensed with the 5 gal. buckets ,put my beans, rice, flour and spaghetti in mylar bags with O depleters vacuum sealed and then put the bags in large plastic storage bins. Canned meats , chicken and beef stock, pasta sauce and various other canned things are on a storage shelving for easier rotation
Excuse me for being dense, or maybe the coffee isn't doing the trick this morning. I'm having just a little trouble following your problem as it pertains to 5 gal buckets versus any other similarly-sized sealable container.
Absolutely agree better to have different kinds of food items in any one bulk food storage container. As you say, better to open just one and have some variety and ability to make more complicated recipes. Rather than opening five or six different single food item contaners and start the food expiration clock running on all of them at once.
But when you say pack it first with smaller bags (of different food items, I presume?) and then "fill with rice" before sealing, I'm picturing you pouring loose rice into the remaining space. If so, is that because you've purchased a really large bulk bag of rice? Because even after lining the bucket with mylar and adding O2 absorbers, wouldn't it still be a better idea to also divide a large quanity of rice into smaller vacuum sealed packages? That's what I would do.
Again, probably missing something key here and will kick myself after rereading your question later on.
FWIW, I like 5 gallon buckets for emergency food storage. They provide additional uses after you've emptied them. They can be used carry around different items, be used for rainwater collection, clothes/dishwashing and personal hygiene. They're also sturdy enough to serve as a seat, or a field toilet with this accessory and some plastic bags:
bucket toilet seat (https://smile.amazon.com/Camco-Toilet-Seat-Proof-Waste/dp/B07NM39V51/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=bucket+toilet+seat&qid=1673799039&sprefix=bucket+toil%2Caps%2C120&sr=8-6)
(https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/91IR1ueGLvL.jpg)
I use 5gallon buckets with Mylar in them. The Mylar is resealable with 2 1200cc o2 absorbers. The buckets can be opened the Mylar opened and dumped into another container and resealed. Then you don't have to worry about opening a bucket of food and the count down begins.
I keep rice and beans in one but then I have a bucket with mixers. Those are in vacuum sealed bags with 2 cups in them that's enough for about a week use of cooking per bag.
Quote from: majorhavoc on January 15, 2023, 10:45:13 AMBut when you say pack it first with smaller bags (of different food items, I presume?) and then "fill with rice" before sealing, I'm picturing you pouring loose rice into the remaining space. If so, is that because you've purchased a really large bulk bag of rice? Because even after lining the bucket with mylar and adding O2 absorbers, wouldn't it still be a better idea to also divide a large quanity of rice into smaller vacuum sealed packages? That's what I would do.
Nope, you've hit it on the head. I would prefer not to seal the rice in the individual bags so I can maximize the amount of rice stored. Multiple bags leave a lot of dead space that can be filled, whereas loose rice would fill those voids. Then mylar and o2x the whole thing?
Quote from: Halfapint on January 15, 2023, 10:53:28 AMI keep rice and beans in one but then I have a bucket with mixers. Those are in vacuum sealed bags with 2 cups in them that's enough for about a week use of cooking per bag.
Kinda like I have laid out above or you have the rice/beans mixed?
Quote from: SCBrian on January 15, 2023, 01:29:14 PMKinda like I have laid out above or you have the rice/beans mixed?
I think so? Sorry haven't slept well kiddo got hurt and isn't sleeping all that great.
It sounded like you didn't want to our all rice into a bucket. I have rice in one, beans in another. Then a mixed pack where it's got individually sealed packs of things like carrots, bell peppers, celery, jalapeños, powdered butter, spice packets and dried herbs
I keep them together in case we have to bug out grab the 3 buckets throw them in grab the jugs of water, get the go bags and boom out the door in less then 10 minutes with food read. I'd we have more time I've got buckets and #10's of freeze dried stuff
What I'm thinking can be compared to taking a cup and filling it with small rocks. Then taking sand and filling it into the cup as well. 'rocks' are beans, etc, sand is rice...
TL:DR Make meal sized serving bags or weekly sized ration bags and put multiple bags in the buckets.
Here's how I do rice in a standard vacuum sealer. [One sided]
fill an 11 x ~14" mylar or sealable bag with 4-5 lbs of rice. Add an o2 absorber or two.
I place a large hardcover book, that is the same thickness as the sealer's seal height, right in front of the sealer, and lay the filled bag of rice on the book and spread the rice evenly thru out the bag. Place another large hardcover book on top of the filled bag of rice and press down firmly but carefully to flatten both sides and evenly distribute the rice throughout the bag creating a duplicatable size/shape. Then I check/feel the sides' seams and bottom seam area for for any sharp kernels that might puncture the bag either immediately on vacuum sealing or later on moving and jostling the sealed bag. If its all clear I seal the bag, if I find a 'sharp' kernel I turn/adjust it before sealing.
This creates a solid 11 x ~14 x 1.5" rectangle. Sort of like a book, these will fit [standing on edge] into a 'rectangular' resealable bucket that is 12" on one side. 4 or 5 gallons. These are the largest 'bricks' I make and they only fit into a specific sized bucket. [not round, rectangle] You can usually fit about 5 or so bags into the rectangular 5 gallon bucket.
If you make the bags smaller you can fit them in the round buckets. 8 x 12" for instance. But I figure 4-5 lbs of rice should keep for a week or two once unsealed. And we buy 20-50 lbs of rice and I don't want to take to much time to seal it in the smaller ration bags.
I do this for beans and other dry goods also. Putting multiple small bags into the 5 gallon jugs. This way I'd only be opening about 4lbs of rice at a time. Rice and pasta are the only 'sharp' things you have to be careful they don't puncture the bag on sealing.
It's not cost effective on the front end, as the same bucket can probably hold 30+ lbs of loose or once bagged rice. So more buckets/bags to do the equivalent lbs of rice. But I do it for the back end, so I don't have to unseal 30lbs of rice in the rat infested apocalypse.
Quote from: majorhavoc on January 15, 2023, 10:45:13 AMbucket toilet seat (https://smile.amazon.com/Camco-Toilet-Seat-Proof-Waste/dp/B07NM39V51/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=bucket+toilet+seat&qid=1673799039&sprefix=bucket+toil%2Caps%2C120&sr=8-6)
(https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/91IR1ueGLvL.jpg)
I have one of those 😏
Follow up to above post about that seat:
Well today the water in the building full of old and elderly people was turned off from 9am-5pm so I gave it a test run.
👍 👍 👍
Now for a 'Back in My Day' story:
This set-up would have been useful back in the days when I was a kid. There was no AC in cars, four lane interstate in OK and TX were still a dream, two lane driving in the early '50s was slow, towns were far between, rest stops not on the interstate we drove back and forth four, maybe five, times a year. There were LOTS of fruit stands but none with bathrooms. Gas stations few and far between in them days.
So every now and then you'd see cars pulled off to the side of the road (2 lane interstate 😄) for adults and kids to do the needful behind a small rise, bush, or open car door with a dad holding up a blanket for another wall.
That near public view for females of all ages was not a high point I'll tell ya, but had we had that set-up we'd a thought we were living the cutting edge of technology. Yup.