I live in an OLD, old house. When the wind blows outside I feel it. I think jumping into a hefty bag with my husband, dog, and 3 cats would be more effective - an no, I’m not doing that either!!
I have some extra water on hand and pet food. Canned food for us (yum) - I figure if my number is up I will die with dignity thanks - not frantically duct taping my house up. Inane!
With proper use of duct tape, you will need no carriers!
As an added bonus, you will be able to use your new arm-mounted cats as melee weapons, to amaze and confuse those seeking to get in your way, as we enter the New World Order of the Day After Doomsday!
Yess… the duct tape is good.
This whole duct tape and plastic sheeting scenario reminds me of Raymond Briggs’ comic book “When the Wind Blows” where the government provided leaflets on how to prepare for the impending nuclear war, suggesting the taking down of the house doors and hiding under them.
Truly scary stuff
However, E-Sabbath
this is without a doubt the best use of duct tape I have read all day
I heard a commentary on our local public radio station. The commentator said the only good that will come out of everyone buy duct tape and plastic tarps is the stuff can eventually be used. Such as painting and repairs.
Otherwise, in the case of an attack, the only good that duct tape and plastic will do is you can use it to wrap up the bodies for disposal.
I understand that the air in my house comes from outside, but there is no vent or anything that sucks a large amount into the house through the ventilation system. Doesn’t the air in the system come from the intake vent in my kitchen? Or are there other sources? I thought the vents on my roof were strictly exhaust for the toilets, attic, kitchen fan, whatever. Are some of them intakes?
Am I risking oxygen deprivation in the fall and spring when the system is turned off if I keep my doors and windows closed? 
Heck, in real life the government distributed leaflets suggesting that you protecting yourself from nuclear radiation by holding a newspaper over your head.
I’m buying lots of plastic sheeting and duct tape. And I’m wrapping up the next government official that tells me this will help me in the event of a bio-terror attack!
I saw a guy on TV wrapping his entire house in plastic. He didn’t bother with duct tape and used a staple gun instead.
Oh that’ll be effective! At least he won’t suffocate with all the little holes in the plastic, though.
The intake vents are often on the sides of the house. Or they are just in your attic.
(That’s why attic’s are so environmentally unfriendly for an a/c - want to save a good deal of money every year? Insulate your attic and/or put some silver reflective material up against your roof. They should sell something for the purpose at your nearest home center. The investment will pay for itself in 2 years or less. And it will make trips to the attic for xmas decorations and whatnot less punishing.)
I’m in a real bind. I use duct tape for little jobs here and there and my roll is just about gone.
You would have a hard time paying me enough to get me to buy a roll of duct tape right now.
I hope this idiocy passes before I run out.
David… don’t let idiots stop you from doing work. What, are the clerks going to laugh at you? Big deal.
Not every HVAC system uses the same configuration. Some heating/AC systems need not use external ventilation to move heated/cooled air around (e.g. split AC consoles, hot-water radiant heat); but others DO have venting to the outside. A combustion-based furnace will necessarily have an air intake somewhere.
The exhaust vents, specially those fan-driven such as the kitchen’s, will have the collateral effect of sucking in external air through the various crevices and joints in the structure; plus, of course, when air is NOT being forced out under pressure, atmosphere exchange will happen between the inside and outside through those very vents, unless the dampers are airtight.
Also, of course, there is no such thing as a truly airtight house. Some leakeage always happens. And the normal everyday opening and closing of the door provides ample opportunity for air exchange for most homes (though it’ll get pretty dank).
I believe that a modern, high-energy-efficiency home, with all the weatherstripping and sealing and insulation and triple-glazing, is probably already as well-sealed from gross airborne contaminants as is practical to consider, except perhaps for a vented HVAC system (which could be equipped with HEPA filters). If you can bring “This Old House” up to THAT standard with stuff from Home Depot, that’s not too shabby (plus think of the energy savings, reducing our oil dependency, reducing our need to mess around with Middle East politics:) ) Whether that’s anywhere near ENOUGH for people near but not directly under the cloud o’spores, is a different story. True weapons-grade NBC attack protection, however, would be beyond the skill level of anyone not specifically trained, and may be unfeasible for a civilian home. However, let’s also consider, that (a) a majority of the population will NOT be directly in the “kill zone” and (b) much of the stuff we’re talking about will tend to precipitate shortly after the attack – the radiological contaminants may be persistent, but not necessarily mobile, so at some point you could step out, and take a tolerable-risk exposure while getting the hell outta the hot zone.
In my case, my home was designed physically impossible to seal. But the nearest “symbol of US power” is a Naval Station 30 miles away that’s demobing down to Reserve status by this Fall anyway so I’m not excessively worried.
OTOH since this is hurricane country a good stock of basic survival supplies (water, batteries, MREs, medication, etc.) is always a good idea.
Oh, I’ve still got about 3/16" left which will carry me through. I think.
I’ve got the same problem. Just a little bit of tape left, and really, we need more, because yeah, duct tape is Deity’s Own Tool. And yesterday, we had a water main break near our house (very, very common this particular winter) and we were without water for a while, so I stopped at the store to pick up some bottled water. The clerk was giving me a *look, * you know? I had two jugs of water. Two. Like two jugs is going to see me through the Armageddon. :rolleyes:
The overly-paranoid folks are really making the lazy, unprepared procrastinators like me look really bad!