Grain storage
- Thread starter Entropyfx
- Start date
I started with 1-gallon paint cans and food grade nitrogen for much of what I put away. I have kept them all in the dark and so far, none of them have shown any evidence of spoilage (as noted above). The paint cans, of course, were new and had a Teflon lining inside them. I didn't learn about mylar bags until much later. These are 10 years old right now and seem OK. We use them from time to time just to be certain that they are good. We refill them with things such as beans.
I was always taught that there are four things you want to store because they have an exceptionally long shelf-life, assuming they are kept away from moisture. Those were 1) wheat berries (NOT flour) 2. Nonfat dry milk 3) beans and 4) honey. To this list was added salt, and sugar because they are stable if kept the same way.
At the beginning of 2018, I got a Freeze Dryer. The most important lesson I have derived from using it is that while it will preserve almost anything you can imagine, it is very time intensive and also requires a lot of attention, especially once the freeze-drying cycle is over. I managed to find a good set of plans for an oil filtrations system and built it. Still, it is material and time intensive. I did not get the oil-free vacuum pump and that might have been a better option but it was $1500 and that was almost as much as the freeze dryer itself!
Most of what I have been freeze-drying is meat and eggs. Both are the things that will be the most difficult to obtain in a "difficult situation" and protein is the hardest food substance to obtain in tough times or preserve now. Vegetables, beans, and grains are generally easy to grow and dry, so for the amount of effort and time (and cost) meat and eggs seemed to be the most valuable items to process. Some folks are concentrating on pre-cooked meals and I may start trying that but those are exactly the types of things that will be stolen because they don't require work from the thief. Convenience is NOT a good way to prepare IMHO.
I was always taught that there are four things you want to store because they have an exceptionally long shelf-life, assuming they are kept away from moisture. Those were 1) wheat berries (NOT flour) 2. Nonfat dry milk 3) beans and 4) honey. To this list was added salt, and sugar because they are stable if kept the same way.
At the beginning of 2018, I got a Freeze Dryer. The most important lesson I have derived from using it is that while it will preserve almost anything you can imagine, it is very time intensive and also requires a lot of attention, especially once the freeze-drying cycle is over. I managed to find a good set of plans for an oil filtrations system and built it. Still, it is material and time intensive. I did not get the oil-free vacuum pump and that might have been a better option but it was $1500 and that was almost as much as the freeze dryer itself!
Most of what I have been freeze-drying is meat and eggs. Both are the things that will be the most difficult to obtain in a "difficult situation" and protein is the hardest food substance to obtain in tough times or preserve now. Vegetables, beans, and grains are generally easy to grow and dry, so for the amount of effort and time (and cost) meat and eggs seemed to be the most valuable items to process. Some folks are concentrating on pre-cooked meals and I may start trying that but those are exactly the types of things that will be stolen because they don't require work from the thief. Convenience is NOT a good way to prepare IMHO.
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