I’m revisiting my preps. Suburban apartment dweller. No outside space (patio/balcony). Tell me what you’d include (beside the usual). Looking to see if there is anything I’ve overlooked.

Does your apartment offer you a storage cage in a basement level?

I had a few friends that lived in Apts when I was much younger, they always had storage cages with a padlock...
Not very secure, but you could get creative and disguise stuff and hid it there.  Not a lot of options. Maybe rent a really spall storage unit, bonus if its temp controlled.

I have a storage closet in the hall outside my unit that locks. No basement. I have a decent bit of storage inside.

Are you mostly around single family homes or in apartment complex land?

I've lived in a couple during brief and prolonged issues in all kinds of areas.  Biggest issue was people around us being VERY poorly prepared for literally any disruption.

Complex with maybe 50 units. Otherwise single family homes. I sort of know the people on my floor (two floors per building, I’m ground floor) enough to chat and say hello a bit. I’m the gimpy chick (severe osteoarthritis in both knees) who dives. No one has any idea I shoot let alone any thing prepper related.

Got it.  Think power outage for 2-3 weeks.  Ground floor is good because of no elevator dependency, but bad for security.  I'd look at being able to reinforce windows and doors if you haven't already, and continue to not speak about guns.  Getting to know more people in your building is a very good thing.  

We lived on a high floor at one point and during Hurricane Sandy or whatever it was, it was suddenly a couple hundred people who didn't know each other.  I had made it a point to get to know the maintenance staff as well as a number of people on each floor.  I also knew who the assholes were.  The "wheels came off" after just a couple of days and people were angry and hot, and hungry. Nearly everyone in the building relied on going out and getting groceries, delivery, or takeout a few days a week.  Nobody had solar panels or Jackery-type devices to charge. Surprisingly few people had battery powered radios for source of news.  Those who had cars would go sit in them for air conditioning and radio.

Summer power outage due to storms is the most likely scenario.

I have a Jackery 300, but no solar panels for it as I have no outside space to charge them. Multiple Anker smaller backup power packs. Rechargeable fan, plus two that take D batteries. Battery operated radio I use daily, plus two hand crank radios (one takes batteries). One has NOAA weather alerts. Usual assortment of battery operated LED lanterns, flashlights, etc. Plenty of batteries.

I'm gonna guess that you are in the slab foundation of the building so weight on the floor is not an issue in my musings.

You've been here a while so I expect you have all the firearms you need and any future additions will be wants and bucket list.

Got your ammo up to good to go status?
I've been issued more ammo than I could carry when I was in the Army but I've never had too much ammo.

Safe drinking water?
 It is an issue where I live.
 I got all the Scepter MWC that I thought I would use when Lowes had them on sale.  I was wrong and should have bought all they had.
 I can do 50 gallons in rotation.
 Filtered water is brought home in the MWC and then put into a a drink dispenser that I got at a restaurant supply.
 Then we use the water from the drink dispenser.
 If a 20L MWC is too big heavy then there are 10L MWC also.

Cooking
 If a utility disruption happens are you able to prepare something to eat that you like.
 Camp stoves and their fuel.
 I have a 2 burner and the adapter to use 20 pound propane bottles.
 I also have a little one that uses the 1 pound bottles and it has a heat exchanger pot that will boil water right now.
 My brother has a 1 burner that uses the butane bottles that are so common at Asian food stores.
 The 2 burner that can feed a dozen may be big and indiscreet for you but the 1 burner butane might provide the cats meow.
 Use what fits.

Stored foods
 Canned goods are cheap and cheerful.
 MREs can be gotten for a reasonable price when compared to restaurant costs.
 Freeze dried can be reasonable especially when you snag a sale.
 Fresh food and frozen food in the fridge/freezer has a time stamp if the electricity is disrupted.

Good Ice Chest...useful when power is disrupted
 Needs to be fully insulated.
 The box and the lid need to foam filled.
 When the box and lid are fully insulated any Igloo or Coleman will do fine.
 You don't need the Himalayan Sasquatch brand unless you want to flex.
 When shopping ice chests look at the day rating "keeps ice for X days" and get the longest rating in the size you want.
 
First aid and meds.
 You know what prescription meds you need so be prepared for disruptions.
 First aid is variable and over the counter so cover you detailed needs and some general stuff.
 My work tool box has liquid Benadryl, Ibuprofen, Tylenol, and Aspirin for my need.


Hope this helps.  

When the Great Texas Deep Freeze of 2021 happened, I got to test my level of preparedness for 3.5 days with no power with high temps in the teens and lows near zero.

We live on a 3rd floor apartment. So, anything we want to bring into the apartment has to be hauled up to the 3rd floor. Great for security, bad for logistics.

Things I didn't have that I wished I did have:

- A way to generate heat inside the apartment. It got down to 47 degrees 3 mornings in a row inside the apartment. If the cats had opposable thumbs, they would have found a way to set something on fire for the heat. I now have a Big Buddy heater but I'm not certain it wouldn't set off the smoke/fire detection system. If it does, oh well, at least we'll be warm.
- A method to get into the storage garage. The garage that we use for storage here has a door that is key FOB operated. No power = no way to get into it. In theory, the maintenance people can unlock the safety release cable and open the door. Problem is, they weren't at work and we had no way to contact them because of the power outage. I'd really like to get a master key for the door lock mechanism.
- A way to take a hot shower. Electric hot water heater here in the apartment. Not that it mattered since water pressure fell to zero due to the power outage (and the whole city being told to run all the faucets in their homes at a constant stream to keep pipes from freezing). Am considering one of those Zodi or similar camping showers now.
- I have a 2kW "quiet" Honda portable inverter generator but no good way of running it on the balcony without somebody noticing. Fuel availability would have been an issue as well as we're not supposed to store gasoline in the storage garages.

Things I had that made life better:

- Had multiple solar/battery power supplies and multiple LiFePO4 batteries for other things (like my ham radio). I kept phones, laptops, and other small electrics (including my CPAP) in power the whole time. Having multiple folding solar panels helped because I could take them down to ground level with the power supply and recharge outside in what sun there was.
- Had hot water heater wrap insulation (stuff that looks like aluminized bubble wrap). We used it to make igloos for the cats and threw a hand warmer in there for them. They stayed in the igloos most of the time until power came back on. It also helped to put over the windows to keep what little heat there was from escaping.
- Had plenty of water and food and winter clothing. Had MREs with heaters so we could heat non-MRE food as well as MRE food. Not much need to go anyplace (and most places we would have wanted to go had no power anyway).
- Had access to the charcoal grills scattered around the apartment complex. Some folks were burning their charcoal to make a fire just for something to do. We didn't need to do that.

If it had been a multi-day power outage in the summer here, it would have been truly miserable. It's unbearably hot and humid in the summertime and I would not have been able to sleep at all. Not sure anything short of a generator and portable AC unit is going to fix that.

In general, we have a couple months worth of food, several months worth of things like toiletries, cleaning supplies and paper products, a couple of weeks worth of water (and multiple filters to make more), tools, power supplies, folding solar panels, communications gear, a few gunz and some ammo. Don't have much in the way of fuel (gasoline or propane) due to storage restrictions here.

It's about all I can do given the constraints of living in an apartment.

You could always put your solar panel in your window or on the dashboard of your vehicle if you have space and it is safe to leave it for a few hours.  We had a balcony which was optimal for this kind of stuff and for overall sanity.

Rather than guess, I would suggest a springtime "drill" before the weather gets too hot or too cold in the winter. Try living without power for a few days.  You'll figure out real quick what you're missing.

Believe it or not, a couple cases of tealight-style candles and holders does wonders both for you and your ability to gift a few to a neighbor. The absolute and utter darkness of several days without power is creepy and unnerving. Throw a bunch under your bathroom sink along with a couple of lighters.

Food, food prep, all that stuff.  More like camping.  

When I lived in an apartment, I stored and rotated through bottled water, canned goods, et cetera. I also had a way to charge electronics. My concern was tropical storms rather than DOOM! so prepping was focused on getting through a week or two without utilities. I also had a plan for human waste if there was no running water for several days.  

Hadn’t even considered window or car dashboard for solar panel. I’ll have to look at solar panels then.

I actually have a couple of cases of the little battery powered tea lights. I’ve used them before as a night light in the bathroom when my plug in night light broke and they worked pretty well.

Thanks for all the ideas! I’ll be doing some research this weekend.

@planemaker

Winter power outage wouldn’t be as big of a deal for me. I love cold. I’d leave the heat off all winter if I didn’t have to worry about pipes freezing.

Good luck!  We were without power for weeks and I was REALLY glad that we had simulated it at one point prior and prepped accordingly.  The last thing I'll mention is that anyone who's been caught "with their pants down" doesn't forget.  

Keep your gas tank full, both literally and figuratively.

Does your apartment complex have storage lockers. Some do…most probably don’t. Can you rent a small storage unit close by? You could store all your extra supplies there and treat it like your personal “store” if things get bad.

I’d recommend a buddy heater and some larger propane bottles. 20lb are the most common but you can get 5lb and 11lb bottles for ease of transport and then have them filled at any propane fill place (won’t be able to exchange though)

If you think I’m going to be hauling 20 lb propane tanks into an apartment, you’re off your rocker.

A few years ago I ordered Red Cross-branded nightlights off AMZN that are motion-sensor activated dim-to-bright, have a battery backup, and function as a flashlight if the power goes out. My wife has a balance disorder so being able to walk in the dark is virtually impossible for her. If the power goes out, these stay on.

Guess you didn’t read my entire post. Perhaps read it again.

After living in a owned home for 25 years, a divorce put me into an apartment.  its challenging.

My usual issues are as follows:

Water:  I have about 20 gallons in 5 gallon plastic Scepter (I think) camping water cans. Another couple cases of water in bottles.  I simply cannot store enough water.  My proximity to nearby rivers and a several different purification means (filters etc) means I can make more water.  I love filters.  ensure you have storage containers to haul and keep it.

Security: this means firearms at hand, but also storing said firearms.  With maintenance personnel accessing the apartment, having firearms out is less than ideal.  I've got a 28 gun residential gun safe.  Most are in there.  Two Hornady RFID rapid access safes give me near instant access to handguns (over and beyond what is on my hip).  This provides me with an acceptable balance between access and security.

I also changed locks.  The deadbolt is now new, and only I have the key.  On apartment inspection days, I leave the deadbolt open but lock the apartment with only the key in knob.  Non announced entry?  Tough shit, its the deadbolt and maintenance can't get in.  fuck em.  Its been three years.  no issues to date.

Due to density of people here, I changed my load out.  I dont want bullets zipping thru four apartments.  There is no such thing as a good bullet that will stop an attacker yet not not penetrate a wall.  There are tradeoffs.  My AR is now loaded with 45 Hornady Vmax.  Yup, not gonna get great penetration on an attacker, but I SHOULD see reduced over penetration on walls.  The other available mags are loaded with 65 Sierra Gamekings...  If the first mag doesn't solve the problem, screw penetration  concerns.  Something "bigger" is up.  The Beretta 1301 load out Federal 00 got swapped out and now its 27 pellet nickel #4 buck.  Again, somewhat less penetration.

Food:  I bought a half dozen rough totes.  filled them with basic dry foods and supplies.  Stacked them in a spare bedroom.  All the same size and color, they are uniform, and not terribly unsightly.  Good enough

Heat: Im on natural gas forced air heat.  This is a lake effect blizzard area.  We lose power.  I do have an outside area (patio) so I have a small 2000w inverter generator.  Have fuel for it, an decent extension cord, and made a female plug and pig tail wire combination.  If I loose power for an extended session, I can pull the plate off the furnace electrical box, disconnect the line leads, connect my pig tail, and power up.  Shorter term heating is a $30 radiant heater "head" that sits on a 20 LB tank.

Cooking:  LP bbq with a side burner.  sits on the patio outside. Also butane camp stoves.

A lot of my prep stuff (generator, gas, LP, etc) is stored in a garage that I also rent onsite, and about 70 yards away.  Very helpful.  If you are desperate for space, consider either a rental with garage, or a u store nearby.  In my case, lots of guests (out of town family) mean  I rent a two bedroom even though I live alone. The second bedroom is key for my storage.  There are two twin beds in there.  Each is a simple metal frame, with mattress.  They are platform beds.  LOTS of storage underneath. The closet in the second bedroom is also the ammo fort, coming storage, etc etc

I live and work very near a US Army base.  Ive got pretty good relationships with some of my neighbors.  I deliberately cultivate those positive relationships (example, the 11Bravo next door is a pretty good guy, works hard, has wife and baby.  He's off training for 6 weeks during February.   They have an infant son, and she's home alone.  I make sure their car and sidewalk is shoveled out).  SHTF, Ive got zero issues handing this guy a spare AR.  He's gonna know the basics and in this case, he's much farther ahead with me than against me....  This is a debatable approach.  There are no blanket "this always works" approaches. Im not saying I would always do this, but its one more potential tool at my disposal.  I also try to track the local shitbags, and figure out where the problem are going to be.

Maybe stupid, but since this is also a rural area, I track nonconventional food sources...  Example:  Immediately behind the apartment there are a couple 200 acre fields. Always planted in corn.  Always combine harvested for the grain.  This means there are bushels and bushels and bushels of corn drying on teh stalks September to December (usually harvested mid Dec).  Im not a fan of taking what isn't mine, but when SHTF, odds of someone firing up the combine and harvesting this is slim. If its there and no one is accessing it, I'm gonna start pulling corn.   Other sources:  Nearby golf course has water features.  Just for shits and giggles, I've fished it during the off season.  They are full of monster yellow perch.  Great big 13, 14" slobs.  Not a fan of chemical laden golf course water, but food is food....  The local rail head here also has some pretty big grain silos.  These monsters hold thousands of tons of grain.....    Sometimes just knowledge can be a significant prep.  Unconventional yes.  But knowledge doesn't hurt.

Make friends and have communication.

Did a build party for m4s with appropriate neighbors a year or ago.

Had an incident. 4 showed up, appropriately equipped, to help. 15 minutes before the police showed.

Building community is an excellent survival strategy

Another prep for limited space:

If you have a bathtub, check out WaterBob/bathtub liner/water bags.

If you know an impending storm may take out utilities, put the bathtub liner in the tub and fill it. Anywhere between 70-100 gallons depending on the bathtub.

About the size of a shoebox.

Do you have family or trusted friends with homes close? How big is your city? Crime, gangs, etc? Do you plan to stay if SHTF?

I’m in a NW suburb of Chicago with 70K population. Mostly nice. There is an area with lots of Hispanics and sorta run down but not near me. If things meant no power for weeks, I’d head to a friend’s home. I’m very active in my church and we look out for each other.

Lots of good advice already. It would also help if we had an idea of how long you were trying to be prepared for?

Water - store as much as you can, but identify local sources you can borrow from and have a means to filter it. With your knees, you may be forced to take more tips since you'll be limited in weight.

Food - Again, totally dependent on how long you'll need to be prepped for. Don't forget a sweet treats, total moral booster. If only prepping a few days to a week, get a few extra cans of chicken (or whatever protein) and some rice and beans Like This to supplement a few days worth of Mountain House. The bagged rice can also be cooked on a skillet. Rotate through the rice and you'll be golden.

Cooking - I second the single burner butane stove, but look at the models that can run propane. The 1 pounders are light enough. If you can deal with a 5 pounder or two, they are expensive, but last much longer. The butane cans are great, and you can get a 4 pack at Sam's for like $8. But propane can also be used for

Heat - You said you loved the cold, but it doesn't love you. a small Mr. Buddy Heater can be a life saver, or at least take the chill out of the bathroom.

Cooling - You can't run a generator for A/C, so look at fans for the warmer months. Just something to keep the air moving.

Power - Absolutely look at a small 100 watt or so solar panel to see if it can get power through your windows. I would look at a second smaller power station to charge through the car either though the DC connector or another solar panel in the window. Obviously, if you can afford a large power station, that would be great, but they'll all need a re-charge sooner or later. A few thousand dollars in backup power will still only get you a day or two at most and iy's really something you'd have to do that on to see if it's worth it. ETA Power - Buy a solar panel from Amazon or Costco, so if it doesn't work through glass like you hope, it'll be an easy return.

Lighting - the tea light candles are great. A four pack of lanterns is pretty inexpensive these days also. Head lamps are invaluable also. It takes a few types of light to get get by okay in an outage. Direct light through a flashlight or headlamp is great, but you'll also need areas lighting like a lantern.
these can cover a lot of ground and also recharge cell phones.

ETA: Always try to keep at least a half tank of gas. You can't store it, so keeping some in the tank is important. If you do have to go to your friends, at least you know you can get there.

I forgot to mention I just got a Life straw water bottle with the filters. I have a couple of cases of bottled water. Probably need to get a couple more.

The idea to use solar panel through window or car dash was a revelation to me. Never thought about it. So that’s one good idea from this thread. The Jackery 100 watt panel is $200 and doesn’t get the best reviews. Will take a look at others.

Length of time? After probably 3-4 days I’d want to head out to a friend’s. They’re all no more than an hour away. I’m the type that never lets my tank get much below 3/4 tank when I’m on a road trip! :D

I’m good on lighting, food, and such. I want power to keep my iPhone and Kindle charged. I’ve got enough for that.  I have battery fans and one rechargeable one. Do need to get batteries for the battery ones though.

Get out of the city.

Not a dig, just a realistic note. Shit hits the fan, populated areas are the last place you'll want to be. If I lived in the city, I'd have a bug out plan for the first signs of trouble.

Not gonna happen. I’m not a rural/small town person. Born a suburbanite and I’ll die one. Lived a few years in Shitcago. Never again.

Just a note:

ALL solar panels, even the best ones, take a significant hit in output if the light is THROUGH a window.

You need them to be in direct sunlight to get optimal efficiency/output. On upper floors, hang them OUTSIDE the window. On the ground floor, you run the risk of someone stealing it.

I have a stash of NiMh D cells to power the D-cell fans, AND the Streamlight Surge and UST 30-day D-cell lanterns. I have a mix of Maha, Tenergy, and EBL. All have been good.

The D-cell fans can also run on USB power (needs 2A output for the highest speed). My GooLoo GT4000 jump pack will run one of these fans for days.

As mentioned, you’ll see a 70-90% output drop trying to use a solar panel THROUGH a window. They need direct sunlight for maximum efficiency/output.

Do you have the friends that live close into prepping? If you have a trusted friend, stash preps at that house. I have “D” battery adapters for all the AA rechargeable batteries. One less battery to stock.

No.

Can you afford a small storage unit rental?

While those serve, in a pinch, I’d rather stash NiMh D-cells.

10,000mAh vs 2,000mAh.

Especially for things like fans and lanterns that use 3-4 batteries, one of the main things I want, is the runtime.

Then again, many/most of my preps actually get used, which helps a lot in determining their reliability and effectiveness, vs “I hope this will do if/when I need it”.

The D-cell fans work great for car camping, or even hanging out in the backyard (or in the bleachers) in warm weather, or circulating air from the Big Buddy and Mr Heater in a cold weather outage.

The Mountain House is rotated through/used for backpacking and camping trips, because it’s pretty much the lightest option for backpacking anywhere with abundant water.

I either use a homemade popcan alcohol stove with Yellow Heet, or depending on the number of people, an Esbit alcohol stove kit with the heat exchanger pot/kettle. They boil water just fine in normal weather, and they’re far quieter than the propane-butane stoves. Having 2 Esbit sets, and the ability to make a popcan alcohol stove in ~10 minutes, no-rush, with nothing but 1 popcan and my Swiss Army knife, also gives me the ability to have/make multiple alcohol stoves, if necessary. I keep a few 4-packs of Yellow Heet in the house.

Backup beer.  Beer isn't  enough.  Also backup bourbon.

I don’t drink. I like to keep my wits about me. My poison is regular Coke.

back years ago when I lived in apartments,  I always had a nearby storage facility space rented.  Never liked the idea of a landlord having access to my belongings.

If you live in a high-rise you’re going to want an angle cosine indicator on your rifle.

Any decent laser rangefinders can be set to show “ballistic range”, based on the measured range and the angle the rangefinder is being held at.

Should have already ranged different sectors

I’m going to pass on solar for now. Working on paying down my last debt, so $$ is better spent on that. Ordered some more batteries from Amazon and an Energizer branded headlamp (pack of 2 for $13) after I discovered the one I’ve had doesn’t work anymore. It was old anyway. Stock some more food and water which I can work into my grocery budget.

Thanks, guys!

I have to say that I slept like a log during the cold. I love having my face cold when I'm trying to sleep. Heat, on the other hand, makes me completely unable to sleep, especially if it's hot and humid.

Another option for power is to hang a solar panel off the balcony/patio railing. It won't be as effective as pointing it directly at the sun all day, but you'll get some power out of the unit.

During the big outage, the apartment on the first floor underneath us was running a small inverter generator. In theory, we weren't supposed to have such things but when push comes to shove, you do what you have to do. As I recall, they had young kids so everybody gave them a pass.

@Marie

There are some lightweight tanks that can be used that are half the weight of steel tanks: https://www.vikingcylinders.com/

I've got one of those Ignik small 5lb cylinders that fits into a bag that looks pretty much like an igloo water cooler in a bag. It would run a Heater Buddy for several days and nobody's the wiser.

I don’t have a balcony/patio, which is part of the problem. But location is great and rent is $400 below market as I’ve been here for 15 years.

USB-rechargeable headlamp is a nice addition.  On Amazon, look for the Foxelli rechargeable headlamp.  It's like $15.  Way better than stocking up on AA and AAA batteries.

The cost of solar scales pretty well with the amount of power you want to generate. For example, I have 3 different Dokio solar panels. This one is fairly cheap:




as is this one:




(which is showing a 15% off coupon right now)

Also, keep in mind you may want to get a solar "generator" (which isn't a generator at all, it's just a battery with a charger and power inverter built in) at some point. Be sure to match the voltage and power to what the power supply can input. As an example, I have one of these behemoths:




Because its voltage and output power are so high, I have to use it on my larger Pecron units which can handle the high voltage and current.

I will second the need for some small portable solar and a battery bank or three.  Also look at 18650 rechargeable batteries, can charge those from the bank or solar generator that is charged from the solar panel.

Basic food supply.

Multiple water filter options.

Water storage containers.

Plenty of garbage bags.

Keep your vehicle above 1/2 tank gas.

If you need more basic guidance then this book is worth a look.  Its an interesting down to earth read.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/142360105X?tag=arfcom00-20

If you ditch your bed frame and replace it with milk crates, you will gain a bunch of storage area. I don't do it anymore but I believe a queen size bed fits 24 milk crates under it. Roughly 24 square feet.

This is wisdom here. I'd say you were wise beyond your years, but, well, you know.

I have an antique bed that’s higher than the standard modern metal bed frame. I have tons of stuff stored under it.

I actually lived in an apartment in the suburbs for sometime. I can relate.

I had a mix of conventional and unconventional plans. One being entry into adjacent units without leaving your door and risking immediate exposure. Left and right units were merely separated by the thinnest drywall on the planet (isn't that always the case in apartments?). Power tools were always stored at a relative's or in a personal vehicle. We had a little storage locker, but it was just two pieces of hinged plywood above our parking slots, padlocked. So, in that case I kept a heavy crowbar around the place to 'dig' through the other walls if needed -- or to use as a leverage tool when lifting debris. Obviously, if someone's on the ground floor, you can always hop their short walls and possibly introduce brick to glass.

I was located on the top floor of a rectangular building with entries on the far right and far left, with staircases on both ends that led to the ground/open floor. No elevator. Alternate shtf scenario, but if I wanted to restrict or block movement to the second floor, I planned to relocate couches, chairs, other furniture to these ends to partially accomplish this. Helps to know your neighbors and work together to use some of their furniture to accomplish the same task.

Window repair. Always keep some thin plastic sheeting and wind resistant tape around in case anyone else introduces their bricks to your glass, or if mother nature wants to come by and say 'surprise!'. Sealed packs of both mediums are available, or at least were back then, at dollar stores.

Had a few of those collapsible camping water jugs from Coleman, and I think also some Chicom clones from Walmart (Ozark Trail?). Saved a ton of space when not in use.

If I still lived in an apartment, I don't think I'd care about guest comfortability all that much. I would ensure I had a fridge, oven, microwave, sink w/ water, small table w/ chairs, a desk, bed/bed stand, and night table. That would open up more opportunities. I'd stick to the basics, and line my walls with those large plastic shelving units and really go to town with canned goods, etc.

I decided to get the Eco Worthy 100W panel just to see how it worked. It was $85 on all so can’t really beat that. The Jackery 100W panel was more than twice the price.