Earthquake Safe Food Storage Room

BBC: After 7.7 earthquake in Chile

You’ve just set up your food storage room, but did you think to make it earthquake safe? Let me say immediately that I am not an expert on earthquakes, but I know what they feel like and I don’t want my food ruined following an earthquake. I know we won’t be able to save everything, but here are a few ideas I’ve gathered to help keep our food storage safe. And they don’t cost much money.

This soundless video was taken with surveylance cameras in a grocery store during the 7.0 earthquake in Haiti. Could this happen to your food storage room?

1. BRACE YOUR SHELVES

If you have cinder block walls, you can find the right bolts at a hardware store, but be careful not to crack the cinder block. Get some L-brackets and screws to attach your shelves. If you don’t attach the shelves, the entire shelf unit could fall over in an earthquake and block entry to your room as well as damage your items.

SECURE CANS AND BOTTLES During an earthquake, cans and bottles will fall off shelves. I always cringe when I see pictures of peach jars perched atop food storage shelves; peaches that took hours to make, but will take seconds to fall and break.

These look just beautiful. But will they look the same after an earthquake?

Here are some ideas on how to secure you cans and bottles from the Frugal Fraulein.

“a. Drill a hole through sides of shelving and thread webbing, wire, rope through holes and secure.
b. Attach clips to plasticized wire and clip to eye bolts.
c. Dowels can be attached to wooden shelves.
d. Hook bungee cords to eye bolts.
e. Install baby locks on cabinets.
f. Line shelves with rubberized no slip liner.”

Another idea is to attach strips of wood to the front of wood shelves.

China Post Newspaper: After Jan. 9, 2010 6.5 earthquake in Eureka, Calif.

SECURE BOXES

LATCH CABINET DOORS

I know few people that like puting latches on their cabinet doors, but have you ever ridden in a motorhome, and had something fall on your head out of a cabinet during the drive? It doesn’t feel that nice.