toilet and tooth

TOILET PAPER AND TOOTHBRUSHES
There are one hundred and one different products that are mass produced and sell for fractions of a penny that we have no idea of how to reproduce at a cottage industry level come a major SHTF scenario. Whether it be clothes pins or safety pins or needles or ink pens/pencils or slightly more expensive but still dirt cheap items such as rifle primers or .22 caliber ammunition or zippers. We need to constantly be on the look out for the old pre-Industrial mass production methods for alternate low tech substitutions. Ten years after the last pre-collapse ink pen has dried out are we back to dipping a metal point into a cup of ink to write on paper? Are there ways to duplicate fabricating metallic ammunition at a village level or must we go back to paper cartridges with black powder and corrosive primers ( and if we do I’ll bet my bolt action is much handier than your semi-auto )?
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Unfortunately I have little aptitude for the sciences and even basic chemistry is beyond my comprehension so I have no answers as far as substituting primitive ammunition for modern types. But at least a little research on the Internet led to solving the supply problems of two very important items we all need and love, toothbrushes and toilet paper. The basic tired advice to stockpile old phone books is a clever way to compactly stockpile TP but long term it is useless. After the last page has been used you are back to using your hand, sand or pine needles. Just what I need in my old age, painful toilet paper. And tooth care is very important. The next generation of dentist post-collapse will be back to using rusty pliers and shots of whisky.
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In ancient Rome there was a quaint custom of putting sponges on a stick to wipe ones bung. After use the sponge was left in a bucket of salt water. This is thought to be the origins of the phrase “wrong end of the stick”. Now, sponges and salt water were plentiful in that area of the world. But, really. That is just gross. But what else can you expect from the users of the vomitorium? I would skip this method. A much better way would be to stockpile cloth diapers. And powdered bleach to mix up a soaking solution. This will see you through until you can build a bidet or a paper industry. Yes, squirting water on your hindquarters afterwards will see you clean in a sanitary manner but I sure hope it is warm water. So, start with a few extra packs of TP on hand that you gradually add to. Then add a few thick phone books as the next stage of useable material. After that have enough cloth diapers on hand along with bleach. After those wear out have a means of water under pressure or at least warm water and soap to really stretch out your paper or cloth.
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Using water will drastically cut down on your paper use. Even now, if you wish to cut down on paper use, use the first piece of paper to remove the large solids. Then a slightly wet piece to more easily remove those little stubborn buggers. Then a piece to dry. And it causes less irritation. After a collapse and paper supplies are gone you can use a combination of cloth and soap and water. A makeshift bidet could be a weed sprayer for pressurized water. I would rather not risk misaimed shots spraying fecal water on the bathroom wall, and if needed would prefer to use another means. That is why I recommend the cloth diaper in combination with soap and water and after use soaking in a bleach solution. After the bleach runs out you need either a disinfecting agent to replace it or homemade toilet paper. If a cloth industry springs up you just need a bleach replacement. Salt water just might have to do. We won’t run out of salt. If a paper industry springs up you have no more problem.
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But you need to approach the problem with multiple solutions. Stocked TP, then replacement paper, then cloth with a disinfectant. A bidet would work long term if you figured out the design. Much more sanitary than using cloth exclusively rather than just for drying. Clearly, toiler sanitation is a complex problem without toilet paper. But go beyond the telephone book, at least by getting some cloth diapers ( enough to last you through bouts of diarrhea on cloudy days when the old cleaned ones don’t dry out quickly ) and bleach powder.
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Toothbrushes are a lot easier. The old style of toothbrushes called for bristles from the neck and shoulders of swine. You know, pigs. I imagine some pigs are better than others as pigs from northern Europe were favored for a superior product, but any port in a storm. Drill holes in a handle and thread through the bristles and hold them in place by wire or other means. Use salt as a toothpaste substitute. For substituting dental floss you are going to need a silver toothpick.
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I looked on line and the pre-made items were insanely expensive. I’m talking Charles Manson insane. $60 and $70 and up for a piece of silver in the shape of a toothpick. I would image material costs were under $5. Or less. You don’t need an once of silver to make a toothpick. You can stockpile boxes of the wood variety. The dollar store has them something like 500 or more for a dollar. But they will be used up one day. Better to just get a silver one. But not factory made. Make your own. Buy some silver wire from a craft source. The wire might bend and look ugly but it will do the trick a lot cheaper than $60. You might need a torch or sander to smooth out the ragged edges if they appear. But buy a lot and make your own for later barter. And you do need silver. It won’t harbor bacteria. Or make your own for little over spot price of the silver.
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So there you go. Long term toilet paper sources and tooth care products. Far longer than what you can stockpile. And if anyone has a grasp on the chemical side of things for ammo replacements and what not e-mail me and I’ll share with everyone. Jimd303@netzero.com
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