How reliant are you on the products and services of others? We rely so heavily on the system that if the system went away many would be lost and desperate. We all use electricity and buy our food from the supermarket but if there was a major power outage and the supermarkets closed would you be prepared with a cache of survival items? Have you been watching the economy and our government lately? Look at what is going on in other countries; we are not that far away from similar events.
Supply lines for food distribution in this country are about three days, meaning a dependence on "just in time" distribution systems, which will leave store shelves empty in the event of even the smallest crisis. If you don't have the ability to grow your own food long term, your life could be in danger. Start by planting a garden to grow your own food it can be fun and rewarding as well. Learn about home canning to increase your survival food storage bank. For a small investment you will end up saving over time as the jars are reusable and this will get you started in getting off of the food grid. Find seeds that are authentic strains which are NOT genetically modified in any way. When the going gets really tough you will only want this special type of seed which will produce not only outstanding nutritional plants but will allow you to plant the seeds from the plants you grow unlike sterile hybrids that will not reproduce. Start your survival seed bank now!
Electricity is a little harder problem to overcome the avenue that I have chosen to overcome this problem is solar panels. They are expensive so I add one at a time to the roof when I can afford a new one and hope to eventually get enough to stop my meter or run it backwards. If you Google solar panels you will find a wealth of information about how they work. I chose this method over generators as I will eventually run out of fuel, they are noisy and you have to run them outside alerting your neighbors or other prying ears you do not want. Wind energy is not an option for me in my suburban setting however you may want to look into that as well. The first unit I recommend is a portable unit that does not hook into your home. It has its own battery pack in a self contained unit with one or two panels outside that you can position. This way I can power the basement refrigerator getting it of the grid and keep the unit charged while it pays for itself.
By using these tips you gain some independence from these systems, and start saving money on electric and grocery bills. In this economy it will only benefit you and if there is a disaster or heaven forbid the economy collapses you will be better prepared with these family survival essentials. You can find more information about these survival products by going to my web page (link in author resource box).
With all of the severe weather events seemingly on the increase I have been stocking some canned goods for an emergency. Last year when the wind storm from the hurricane came through my house was without power for two weeks. After this I began looking for ways to better prepare for my family and found a lot of good advice and products. Unfortunately I cannot share them all in this short article however you may find more information in my web page Family Survival Essentials.
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Sunday, June 27, 2010
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Preparedness BookStore
i finally got done with my new Prepared For Survival Store!! It took me a while to add the items and I still have some more to add. It has books , tools, solar powered items, and more. Anything that someone preparing for survival would need.
If there is something that you think that my store should have please comment on it.
Thank you for checking it out.
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Friday, June 25, 2010
Survival Foods - 3 Options You Have to Prepare For Emergency
In times of distress, natural disaster or even terrorist attacks, survival foods are one of the most important things to have on hand.
Having enough food to eat will help you and your family survive most emergency situations. Survival foods can also help you in case of a job loss or in the case of an illness or pandemic where you don't want to leave your home.
Most people today are taking steps to make sure they have a supply of survival foods on hand. What are your options? Here are 3 different types of survival food to consider with advantages and disadvantages of each:
#1 Can or Preserve your Own Food
If you are the Martha Stewart type, have hours of free time, or have nothing better to do on the weekend, then canning or preserving your own food might be for you.
The advantage to this option is that you can choose what kinds of foods to have on hand and preferably choose something you'd actually enjoy eating. You might also save a bit of money doing it this way as well.
The disadvantage is of course time. If you're like most people, you don't have much free time after work and the thought of preserving food all weekend doesn't excite you.
Plus you have to be aware of the shelf life of this food - probably around 1 - 2 years at best. So you'll have to make sure you eat your preserved food and add in some more newer foods as time goes by.
#2 Dehydrated Foods
You can dehydrate your own foods with a food dehydrator. This option gives you a little more variety and again, you get to choose foods that you like to eat.
Many of the higher end food dehydrators have timers so you can "set and forget", which make things a little easier. I consider dehydrated foods more of a short term food storage item, as you should (according to some sources) consume them within 1 year of making them.
Experts also recommend that any dehydrated meats be placed in a freezer to help them from spoiling.
You may also need to place your newly dehydrated foods in the freezer right after dehydration for a few days to help reduce the possibility of insect contamination.
Again the two issues you may have with dehydrating food is preparation time - which can be long, and shelf life - which can be quite short.
#3 Freeze Dried Foods
You can also buy prepackaged freeze dried food that is easy to stack and store.
Freeze dried meals that are easy to prepare are one of your best options for survival foods. Most meals only require you to add water - which in an emergency situation might be all you have.
Plus in a true emergency if you have young children, the simpler the meal is to make, the better. You can ask them to help (this will also keep them distracted from the problems outside).
And contrary to how the name sounds freeze dried foods can taste remarkably good. Some companies have made their freeze dried foods almost to gourmet levels.
For example you can get Chicken a la King, Italian wedding soup with meatballs, vegetable stew with beef, and even blueberry pancakes.
Plus unlike the two options above, some freeze dried survival foods have a shelf life of 25+ years (depending on storage temperature). So as a long term food storage option they fit the bill.
Basically all you do is store them in a cool dry spot, and inspect them on a regular basis.
So those are 3 options for having survival foods on hand in case of emergency. No matter how you choose to prepare yourself, it's important that you do take some steps to have food on hand should you be stranded in your home and/or unable to find food.
Being properly prepared can mean the difference between barely surviving and thriving should the worst happen.
Want more options? See Survival Foods for more suggestions and tips on emergency preparedness.
Or visit Food Insurance for freeze dried foods with a 25 year shelf life.
Download our free toolbar
Having enough food to eat will help you and your family survive most emergency situations. Survival foods can also help you in case of a job loss or in the case of an illness or pandemic where you don't want to leave your home.
Most people today are taking steps to make sure they have a supply of survival foods on hand. What are your options? Here are 3 different types of survival food to consider with advantages and disadvantages of each:
#1 Can or Preserve your Own Food
If you are the Martha Stewart type, have hours of free time, or have nothing better to do on the weekend, then canning or preserving your own food might be for you.
The advantage to this option is that you can choose what kinds of foods to have on hand and preferably choose something you'd actually enjoy eating. You might also save a bit of money doing it this way as well.
The disadvantage is of course time. If you're like most people, you don't have much free time after work and the thought of preserving food all weekend doesn't excite you.
Plus you have to be aware of the shelf life of this food - probably around 1 - 2 years at best. So you'll have to make sure you eat your preserved food and add in some more newer foods as time goes by.
#2 Dehydrated Foods
You can dehydrate your own foods with a food dehydrator. This option gives you a little more variety and again, you get to choose foods that you like to eat.
Many of the higher end food dehydrators have timers so you can "set and forget", which make things a little easier. I consider dehydrated foods more of a short term food storage item, as you should (according to some sources) consume them within 1 year of making them.
Experts also recommend that any dehydrated meats be placed in a freezer to help them from spoiling.
You may also need to place your newly dehydrated foods in the freezer right after dehydration for a few days to help reduce the possibility of insect contamination.
Again the two issues you may have with dehydrating food is preparation time - which can be long, and shelf life - which can be quite short.
#3 Freeze Dried Foods
You can also buy prepackaged freeze dried food that is easy to stack and store.
Freeze dried meals that are easy to prepare are one of your best options for survival foods. Most meals only require you to add water - which in an emergency situation might be all you have.
Plus in a true emergency if you have young children, the simpler the meal is to make, the better. You can ask them to help (this will also keep them distracted from the problems outside).
And contrary to how the name sounds freeze dried foods can taste remarkably good. Some companies have made their freeze dried foods almost to gourmet levels.
For example you can get Chicken a la King, Italian wedding soup with meatballs, vegetable stew with beef, and even blueberry pancakes.
Plus unlike the two options above, some freeze dried survival foods have a shelf life of 25+ years (depending on storage temperature). So as a long term food storage option they fit the bill.
Basically all you do is store them in a cool dry spot, and inspect them on a regular basis.
So those are 3 options for having survival foods on hand in case of emergency. No matter how you choose to prepare yourself, it's important that you do take some steps to have food on hand should you be stranded in your home and/or unable to find food.
Being properly prepared can mean the difference between barely surviving and thriving should the worst happen.
Want more options? See Survival Foods for more suggestions and tips on emergency preparedness.
Or visit Food Insurance for freeze dried foods with a 25 year shelf life.
Download our free toolbar
Survival Preparedness - Practice May Save Your Life
A Survival Story
This story is just a product of my own imagination, but my hope is it may be food for thought for at least a few people. The setting is a rural farm in Kansas. Miles from any neighbor or town. John and Mary Smith and three children. Sally, age 7, Billy, age 5, and Kathy, age 3.
They have always relied on their own strength and determination to see them through. Emergency preparedness supplies had never seemed necessary. Like the pioneers they were descended from, they took care of their own. No need for fancy survival kits, or survival tools. They had seen many tornadoes, and their farm had always been spared.
But then one day in early spring, a monster tornado came crashing through, headed straight for their farm. They ran for the cellar, where they had always been safe before. This was their only survival preparedness plan, except for a few home canned foods, and a gallon or two of water.
As they huddled there, listening to the screaming, roaring, destruction above them, terrible fear on their faces, they lost their generator. Their only source of power was now gone. There in the dark they waited. Something heavy crashed on the door above them. The children screamed in terror.
At last the horrific noise outside was gone. John attempted to open the door. It was jammed tight!
Reality struck him like a ton of bricks. Their meager disaster preparedness supplies may not be enough. They had not one survival tool, very few survival supplies. They were trapped in their own cellar. They had no other family near by, or even close friends.
My point here is, we must all practice survival preparedness. This scenario is fictional. But could easily be true. Our world is in turmoil. A simple inexpensive survival kit could save your life. The proper survival tool might get you out of an otherwise hopeless situation. Emergency preparedness supplies, such as food, radios, water purifiers, etc, may keep you and you family safe until help arrives.
We are all busy. Making a living, taking care of our families. But take a minute and think. Its happening all around us, every day. Terrible things that could have a positive outcome. Spend a little time and thought to insure your families safety. Expect the unexpected, always, and be prepared for it.
My name is Sharon Rowe. I am hoping I can convince a lot of people to practice disaster survival preparedness. The terrible earthquakes, monster storms, terrorism, and even just getting lost on back roads can be devastating, and life threatening. These are some of the reasons we built our web site. We truly want to help. http://www.lifelinesurvivalkits.com
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This story is just a product of my own imagination, but my hope is it may be food for thought for at least a few people. The setting is a rural farm in Kansas. Miles from any neighbor or town. John and Mary Smith and three children. Sally, age 7, Billy, age 5, and Kathy, age 3.
They have always relied on their own strength and determination to see them through. Emergency preparedness supplies had never seemed necessary. Like the pioneers they were descended from, they took care of their own. No need for fancy survival kits, or survival tools. They had seen many tornadoes, and their farm had always been spared.
But then one day in early spring, a monster tornado came crashing through, headed straight for their farm. They ran for the cellar, where they had always been safe before. This was their only survival preparedness plan, except for a few home canned foods, and a gallon or two of water.
As they huddled there, listening to the screaming, roaring, destruction above them, terrible fear on their faces, they lost their generator. Their only source of power was now gone. There in the dark they waited. Something heavy crashed on the door above them. The children screamed in terror.
At last the horrific noise outside was gone. John attempted to open the door. It was jammed tight!
Reality struck him like a ton of bricks. Their meager disaster preparedness supplies may not be enough. They had not one survival tool, very few survival supplies. They were trapped in their own cellar. They had no other family near by, or even close friends.
My point here is, we must all practice survival preparedness. This scenario is fictional. But could easily be true. Our world is in turmoil. A simple inexpensive survival kit could save your life. The proper survival tool might get you out of an otherwise hopeless situation. Emergency preparedness supplies, such as food, radios, water purifiers, etc, may keep you and you family safe until help arrives.
We are all busy. Making a living, taking care of our families. But take a minute and think. Its happening all around us, every day. Terrible things that could have a positive outcome. Spend a little time and thought to insure your families safety. Expect the unexpected, always, and be prepared for it.
My name is Sharon Rowe. I am hoping I can convince a lot of people to practice disaster survival preparedness. The terrible earthquakes, monster storms, terrorism, and even just getting lost on back roads can be devastating, and life threatening. These are some of the reasons we built our web site. We truly want to help. http://www.lifelinesurvivalkits.com
Download our free toolbar
Friday, June 4, 2010
4 Ways to Start a Fire Without Matches Or a Lighter
Starting a fire is essential to your survival, without a fire you can't keep yourself warm, you can't cook or boil water, and you cant dry out clothes and shoes that are soaked. Having a fire is also a way to boost morale especially after a catastrophic event such as the collapse of civilization. Remember before starting a fire with any of these methods it's important to have all the available materials available. You want your logs, kindling and smaller twigs and paper beside the fire so it's easy to grab once your fire starts, you might only have one shot at doing this. You may also need to create something called a "bird's nest", simply put this is a gather of dry grass, leaves, or whatever material you can find that burns very easily and can be bundled together to look like a nest, hence the name.
Magnifying glass
One way to get a fire going is with a magnifying glass. I recommend using a smaller one as this will take up less space when travelling, and many of the smaller versions come with their own protective cases built in to protect the lens from scratches. To use a magnifying glass to start a fire, first build your bird's nest using dry grass, paper, whatever you can find. Then placing the bird's nest on the ground align your magnifying glass to the sun. The glass will concentrate the sun's rays into a much smaller focal point causing that area to heat up very quickly. Once you see smoke starting gently blow on the bird's nest until you see fire, then start adding you're kindling on top
Steel wool and a battery
One of the easiest ways to start a fire is with a 9 volt battery and steel wooI.'ve used different brands of steel wool such as S.O.S pads, but the generic brand I found works the best because it doesn't have the added cleaning agent in it. To do this simply take a piece of steel wool and start opening it up, the goal is to turn it into a bowl like shape. Once this is done fill that bowl with easily burnable material such as dry grass, leaves, paper etc. Now taking the 9 volt battery touch the top end of the battery (The end with the positive and negative ends) to the steel wool. Very quickly the wool will catch on fire, allow a couple seconds for the fire to spread and start to burn the dry kindling before you add more.
Magnesium fire starter
If you're using a magnesium fire starter you don't need to necessarily make a bird's nest, but there are a couple extra things to consider when using one. First find a flat piece of cardboard, bark, or other easily burnable material, this is what you will use to place your filings on, don't just have the filings fall into the dirt because they will get buried in there and become ineffective. Using a saw blade or file not a knife blade (This will quickly dull your knife unless you have no other choice) starts shaving the flat side of the fire starter. Make sure to avoid injury that the saw blade is moving away from your fingers not towards it. Continue this motion until you have a pile of filings a little larger then a quarter (Loonie if you're Canadian), of course you can also go a little bigger if you feel that isn't large enough. Remember to keep those filings together, what your essentially doing with them is creating kindling, magnesium burns very hot and fast (About 5000 degrees), and keeping them together will allow them to burn longer.'t strike the flint. The filings will go up very quickly so remember to have your kindling very close by. Once its lit start adding your kindling, don't heap it on top all at once but add a piece at a time allowing the fire to start burning each piece. Throwing everything on all at once is a good way to kill your fire before it has a chance to catch.
Pop Can Or Beer Can
In the post apocalypse world discarded pop or beer cans should be very easy to find. To use this you're going to need a can, something to polish the bottom of the can with, a small piece of flammable material such as paper or cloth, and a roach clip or small object to hold the paper or cloth such as a small twig. First you need to polish the bottom of the can, it's important that it's not scratched as this will act as a mirror to collect the sun's heat. One way to polish it is to use tooth paste and some toilet paper since neither one is abrasive enough to really scratch up the can. After polishing the can for about 45 minutes to an hour you then want to align the can so that the sun's rays are running parallel and will allow it to collect heat. To ensure its parallel you want the shadow of the can to be as small as possible, the smaller the more in line to the suns rays it will be.
Once your can is aligned you want to find the focal point, or where the sun's rays will be most concentrated on the can, you can check this by moving your finger a couple of inches above the can until you find the hottest point. Then take your flammable material (paper, cloth, etc) place it on your twig or small stick and position it at the focal point, remember that you want the twig, roach clip or whatever you decide to use as small as possible to reduce the amount of shadow cast onto the can, obviously the more shadow means the less heat will be collected. If this is done right your flammable object should start to smoke fairly quickly, once it does place it into your bird's nest (Which you should have made already) and gently blow until it catches fire.
An important note to remember when using the sun as you're source to start a fire is to always use protective eyewear. The last thing you want to have happen in the post apocalypse is to permanently damage your eyes.
To learn more about post apocalypse survival check out my website The Razors Edge a post apocalypse survival guide for additional information and tips to you prepare.
A little about me
I am a former Canadian Forces soldier who has served the military honourably for 7 years. My website http://www.therazors-edge.com is a collection of that military experience mixed with my fascination for the apocalypse and end of the world related topics. I wanted to create a practical real life guide that can help you survive if our civilization collapses.
Magnifying glass
One way to get a fire going is with a magnifying glass. I recommend using a smaller one as this will take up less space when travelling, and many of the smaller versions come with their own protective cases built in to protect the lens from scratches. To use a magnifying glass to start a fire, first build your bird's nest using dry grass, paper, whatever you can find. Then placing the bird's nest on the ground align your magnifying glass to the sun. The glass will concentrate the sun's rays into a much smaller focal point causing that area to heat up very quickly. Once you see smoke starting gently blow on the bird's nest until you see fire, then start adding you're kindling on top
Steel wool and a battery
One of the easiest ways to start a fire is with a 9 volt battery and steel wooI.'ve used different brands of steel wool such as S.O.S pads, but the generic brand I found works the best because it doesn't have the added cleaning agent in it. To do this simply take a piece of steel wool and start opening it up, the goal is to turn it into a bowl like shape. Once this is done fill that bowl with easily burnable material such as dry grass, leaves, paper etc. Now taking the 9 volt battery touch the top end of the battery (The end with the positive and negative ends) to the steel wool. Very quickly the wool will catch on fire, allow a couple seconds for the fire to spread and start to burn the dry kindling before you add more.
Magnesium fire starter
If you're using a magnesium fire starter you don't need to necessarily make a bird's nest, but there are a couple extra things to consider when using one. First find a flat piece of cardboard, bark, or other easily burnable material, this is what you will use to place your filings on, don't just have the filings fall into the dirt because they will get buried in there and become ineffective. Using a saw blade or file not a knife blade (This will quickly dull your knife unless you have no other choice) starts shaving the flat side of the fire starter. Make sure to avoid injury that the saw blade is moving away from your fingers not towards it. Continue this motion until you have a pile of filings a little larger then a quarter (Loonie if you're Canadian), of course you can also go a little bigger if you feel that isn't large enough. Remember to keep those filings together, what your essentially doing with them is creating kindling, magnesium burns very hot and fast (About 5000 degrees), and keeping them together will allow them to burn longer.'t strike the flint. The filings will go up very quickly so remember to have your kindling very close by. Once its lit start adding your kindling, don't heap it on top all at once but add a piece at a time allowing the fire to start burning each piece. Throwing everything on all at once is a good way to kill your fire before it has a chance to catch.
Pop Can Or Beer Can
In the post apocalypse world discarded pop or beer cans should be very easy to find. To use this you're going to need a can, something to polish the bottom of the can with, a small piece of flammable material such as paper or cloth, and a roach clip or small object to hold the paper or cloth such as a small twig. First you need to polish the bottom of the can, it's important that it's not scratched as this will act as a mirror to collect the sun's heat. One way to polish it is to use tooth paste and some toilet paper since neither one is abrasive enough to really scratch up the can. After polishing the can for about 45 minutes to an hour you then want to align the can so that the sun's rays are running parallel and will allow it to collect heat. To ensure its parallel you want the shadow of the can to be as small as possible, the smaller the more in line to the suns rays it will be.
Once your can is aligned you want to find the focal point, or where the sun's rays will be most concentrated on the can, you can check this by moving your finger a couple of inches above the can until you find the hottest point. Then take your flammable material (paper, cloth, etc) place it on your twig or small stick and position it at the focal point, remember that you want the twig, roach clip or whatever you decide to use as small as possible to reduce the amount of shadow cast onto the can, obviously the more shadow means the less heat will be collected. If this is done right your flammable object should start to smoke fairly quickly, once it does place it into your bird's nest (Which you should have made already) and gently blow until it catches fire.
An important note to remember when using the sun as you're source to start a fire is to always use protective eyewear. The last thing you want to have happen in the post apocalypse is to permanently damage your eyes.
To learn more about post apocalypse survival check out my website The Razors Edge a post apocalypse survival guide for additional information and tips to you prepare.
A little about me
I am a former Canadian Forces soldier who has served the military honourably for 7 years. My website http://www.therazors-edge.com is a collection of that military experience mixed with my fascination for the apocalypse and end of the world related topics. I wanted to create a practical real life guide that can help you survive if our civilization collapses.
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