Where Do You Store a Year's Supply of Food?by Miriam Caldwell | More from this Blogger 13 Jul 2006 09:05 PM Storing a year's supply of food creates many challenges. One of these challenges is where to store the food. If you are lucky you will have a huge pantry and a room in your house that is devoted entirely to food storage, with shelves from floor to ceiling so everything is neatly arranged. Unfortunately this dream is not available to most of the population. You should rule out the garage as a safe place to store food. Garages usually are not very well insulated and as a result the temperature will vary a great deal. This can lead to your food spoiling sooner than the expiration dates on your cans. If you store your food in your basement you will need to watch out for dampness and flooding. You never want to store items directly on the floor, but at least a few inches higher. People become very creative when storing food. One common place to store food storage is under the bed. This space is very seldom used effectively, and cases of can's fit quite nicely underneath the mattress. I recommend storing cans only in the bedroom, because they are less likely to attract pests. A hall or linen closet is another way to extend your pantry. This is ideal if there is one located near the kitchen. You can store items, which you usually stock up on in a hall closet, such as flour or sugar. If you do not have the extra closets in your house you may consider purchasing shelves or stand alone cabinets to store your food in. These can be put against a wall in your kitchen or along the hall. They will add extra room in a fairly unobtrusive way. When storing your food remember that you want it to be easily accessible, because this makes it easier to rotate. You will also want to write down where you have stored every item. You do not want to forget about a case of green beans that you have stashed in the back of a bedroom closet. A simple list will help you to stay on top of your rotation and storage. Learn more about Miriam Caldwell  Miriam is a SAHM mom of three children. She has a daughter who is seven, and two sons, four and two. She loves being a parent and spending time with her children. Relevantpreparedness tags User Comments ToltecaTodd (17) 02 May 2009 08:22 AMI have seen hundreds of food storages. I have helped organize & consult on what to have included in your food storage. I share the ideas that I have accumulated over the years. Along with your wheat, beans & rice, your canned foods etc. Some even have MRE's & freeze dried items. Whatever it is you have in your food storage, I just want to give you a few ideas & suggestions. I am also open for suggestions, after 17 years, I still come across great ideas. First, make sure you have a good variety of spices. You can eat the same beans or rice a lot easier when one day they taste like taco spices & the next day curry etc. A variety of spices will make anything easier to eat long term. I personally have many bottles of tobasco. I can eat bugs with tobasco, crickets, worms etc. I am serious. In many emergencies clean water is a big problem. You will go through hundreds of gallons of water in just a few short weeks. Make sure you have a good water filter with your food storage. You use a lot of water to cook with & drink. A water filter that you hand pump will turn rain water, canal water or saved water from cooking etc. into good drinking water again. Have some good vitamins. Make sure they are good natural vitamins that your body will digest & absorb. 90% of vitamins pass through you & end up clogging the sewers. True. I came across Lifecaps, that is what I have in my food storage, 72 hour kits & bug out bags. They digest & get in your system within 20-25 minutes. All natural. You can survive on lifecaps & water alone for months. They have all the vitamins & minerals, also iodine & a little natural sugar to keep your blood sugar level stable. I bought 25 bottles before I found a coupon code & then bought 75 more bottles. The coupon code is "healthcap" (save 33%) & you can find out more at lifecaps.net. Keep hand sterilizer with your food storage & hydrogen peroxide. In an emergency people get sick & die from simple infections. In an emergency, you lose your appetite & forget to drink water, under stress. Your immune system suffers tremendously & small infections grow large. Under stress TAKE YOUR VITAMINS & DRINK WATER! You will have more energy to deal with the emergency & have a healthy immune system. Keep your hands clean when dealing with food & use the hydrogen peroxide even on small cuts as a precaution. It can save your life. Community Tags food storage, Preparedness, Storage Options Discuss this article
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