# Food Security Question



## BrianAz (Oct 2, 2012)

Hey Folks,

I'm a newbie around here. Been lurking for awhile....SO much info to take in. About me: I'm a recently retired Army veteran. I did tours in Operation Desert Storm/Shield, Operation Iraqi Freedom. I was a first responder to Hurricane Katrina, and I am S.E.R.E. trained. I have alot of family who are U.S. Navy SEALS. My specialty is in wildeness survival. The first book I ever read was My Side of the Mountain. In other words, I have been interested in wilderness survival since I was a little guy. I have taught both of my boys to make a fire from flint and steel since they were old enough to handle the equipment. 

That said, there is alot I still need to learn when it comes to prepping. Many folks visit this site for many different reasons. Me personally, I believe the economy is going to crash. I believe this so strongly that I have become what many might call "a goof-ball prepper". I'm fine with that. 

Call me what you will, but the one thing I have learned is NOT to become reliant on the government. I believe strongly in self-suffincency. I am independent vs. dependent.

That said, here's my question: I have food stores in my home. They are stored in two different locations. One of the locations is in my hall closet. I converted it by adding shelving for the canned goods. 

The closet door currently has just a knob on the door. I have been considering changing the knob to a locking one. Obviously this brings to bear the question of "If it has a lock on it, there must be something to hide". So, I'm stuck in a cunundrum. Do I leave it open, or do I lock it? I really have no other place to hide this one-half of my food stores. 

Any and all input is appreciated. Mods, please move this where it belongs. Thanks everybody! I hope that those in the NE are doing well!


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## kejmack (May 17, 2011)

Do you own your home? If you do, you can put a false panel in your closet and store the food behind it. Can you cache food?


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## Davarm (Oct 22, 2011)

"My Side Of The Mountain" was a book I also read in my early years and it also had an similar effect on me. The best thing about it is that most of the foods and ideas were sound. Good book for "young uns" to read.

The bottom line on the food storage in the house is that if someone is looking, they are likely going to find your preps if they are hungry, the more they find the deeper they will dig. IMO its best just to keep them out of open sight and protect the house.

Welcome to the Forum


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## BillM (Dec 29, 2010)

Hideing your food storage will only prevent your friends and neighbors from knowing you have food for a while but that is advantagious to you.

Welcome to the forum


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## Tweto (Nov 26, 2011)

I agree with Kejmack. If you can don't lock it, that just attracts attention. Make a false wall so that it still opens as a door but looks like just apart of the wall.

I will be doing the same next year.

Welcome to the forum!


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## hiwall (Jun 15, 2012)

I think I somewhat disagree with the others, I would put a lock on it. The lock would only prevent the "accidental" viewing of your preps. Any interior door can be easily broken into. But the lock would stop anyone from looking around in a "friendly" situation.


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## Woody (Nov 11, 2008)

I have my preps on metal shelving in an extra bedroom, no lock on the door at all. They are covered with sheets but easily viewable if anyone cared to look. I don’t get any visitors so the only ones who will know they are there are zombies breaking in or the police breaking in to my place. It is what it is.


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## GrinnanBarrett (Aug 31, 2012)

First welcome to the forums. Second I agree with Kejmack that one good option is to put a false front on the closet. I have one friend who built book shelves around a room with two being movable so he could access the closet behind them. He was storing guns in there but food works as well.


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## mamacita (Aug 17, 2011)

You could change out to a locking knob, and if guests question you, just say it's where you stash birthday/Christmas gifts for the kids.


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

Depending on size and location of closet door; I have seen people remove the trim and mount a bookshelf where the door used to be. A concealed hinge on one side and a hidden wheel on the other. Opens like a door (if you know how to open it) but looks like a bookshelf sitting in a hallway. Another option is building a tall base for your bed. Make on about 18-20" off the ground for use with just a mattress. You may be surprised at how much stuff you can conceal there.


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## Caribou (Aug 18, 2012)

Typically closet doors are inexpensive hollow core doors that one could easily put a foot through. My point is this is not a high security situation. You just want to stop the casual snoop from looking around your home. Replace your door knob with a bathroom type. Lock it before you close the closet door then use a nail, hairpin, or other thin item to unlock it when you want to get it. This gives you increased security without the outward appearance of a keyhole. If someone makes a comment you might remark that the contractor put a darn bathroom lock on and you have never bothered to change it. Did it lock itself again? Is there something in there you need?

Just like using local foliage for your gillie suit, the eye may see it but the mind doesn't perceive it as being out of place. You can also raise your bed a bit, use a bed skirt, and place supplies under the bed. There are many places to hide stores in a home with a little thought. Today a burglar is more likely to steal your TV than a can of corn. I would suggest that you basically want to keep the knowledge of your preps from as many as possible. Few people that I invite into my home are likely to do an exhaustive search, except of course my mom.

I once built a closet with a small storeroom behind it. I did not have a hidden door so anyone that opened the closet could readily see the entry but that could have been easily fixed. I don't ever recall anyone noticing my hidden storeroom.


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## kappydell (Nov 27, 2011)

I was going to suggest the lock (I used to do that all the time when I lived in apts) then a knob-cover (made of rubber to keep the knob from banging against the wall and marring it. It would look normal to have one there. Quicker than the false panel, though I love that idea, too - maybe I'll put one in my hall closet, which is very deep and has a sliding door - no knob!


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## invision (Aug 14, 2012)

kappydell said:


> I was going to suggest the lock (I used to do that all the time when I lived in apts) then a knob-cover (made of rubber to keep the knob from banging against the wall and marring it. It would look normal to have one there. Quicker than the false panel, though I love that idea, too - maybe I'll put one in my hall closet, which is very deep and has a sliding door - no knob!


I like this idea a lot.

First, welcome to the forum,a and thank you for your service, I appreciate it very much.

Second, I am going to make an assumption so please excuse me if I am wrong, that you are in an apartment. I would look other hiding places as well - under beds, under couches, behind the couch up against a wall. Depending upon kitchen cabinet space, you could look at using one or two of the lower cabinets - first thought by people is that those hold pots and pans.


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## BrianAz (Oct 2, 2012)

invision said:


> I like this idea a lot.
> 
> First, welcome to the forum,a and thank you for your service, I appreciate it very much.
> 
> Second, I am going to make an assumption so please excuse me if I am wrong, that you are in an apartment. I would look other hiding places as well - under beds, under couches, behind the couch up against a wall. Depending upon kitchen cabinet space, you could look at using one or two of the lower cabinets - first thought by people is that those hold pots and pans.


Nope. Living in a 3 bedroom house. Purchased 3 years ago for $130,000 and now valued at $75,000. Yipee! Thank you Barney Frank!

Thanks for all the input everyone. I've got some talking to do with the Mrs now.


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## invision (Aug 14, 2012)

BrianAz said:


> Nope. Living in a 3 bedroom house. Purchased 3 years ago for $130,000 and now valued at $75,000. Yipee! Thank you Barney Frank!
> 
> Thanks for all the input everyone. I've got some talking to do with the Mrs now.


3 bedroom house, if all three are in use, then there are 3 beds, plenty of floor space should be more than you half a closet...

And agree with the Frank comment....


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## ashley8072 (Apr 26, 2011)

No idea on the To Lock or not, but we use 4 different areas to keep our preps. One obviously is the kitchen, 2 is the bookshelf filled with mostly spices and dehydrated veggies, 3 is in our bedroom stashed under the bed (also our INCH bags are stacked across the wall hidden by the bed), 4 is the bulk main area located in the baby's closet. We figure that if the house is ransacked, their going straight for the food they can see and grab what they want. We don't have electronics or expensive things in plain view in any bedrooms that would make anyone ant to venture into them. And if for some reason they had enough time to load up everything we got, we've got the same stuff stored at my dads house. My system is all off rotation. A case of each canned goods in each of the 4 in the home, on the counter we have the basic jars of dried foods. Those are filled from the 2 gallon buckets on top of the cabinets. When those get low, their filled from the 5 gallon buckets from the baby's closet. Theres nearly 2 buckets of each staple stored in 5 gallon buckets. You get the point. Anything extra goes to my dads house. I've recently started buying 12 items rather than 10 (2 in each location per buy), and stocking our BOL.


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## BillS (May 30, 2011)

I could see getting a lock for the closet door just to keep visitors from knowing what you have there.

There's no reason to safeguard it for any other reason. I can't imagine someone breaking in and stealing all your 99 cent canned goods. Not unless the burglar was a prepper! They'd take things that are more valuable. If I was a burglar (and I've never been one) I'd take your laptop, your big screen TV, anything else laying around that was valuable and I'd be out of your house in less than 5 minutes.


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