Ten Items for Your Home With No Power
February 26, 2012, Submitted by: Lauren (Mrs. MSB)
In today’s world, so many of us have become used to a relatively ‘cushy’ life. We can set our coffee pots to have the coffee made and ready for us when we wake up. We blow dry our hair and many of us have electronic toothbrushes to assist us in the physically exerting task of brushing our teeth. Speaking of physically exerting, thank God we have electric can openers to open our cans of food! And let’s not forget the machines that wash our clothes and our dishes. Those are pretty nice! And when we flush the toilet, the stuff just goes away, we don’t have to give a second thought as to where it all goes. We read on our Kindle’s, work on our laptops, text our friends, watch TV in our well lit home. Oh, and those blankets we can plug in to help keep us warm…aahhh!
Now you have lost power.
We have probably all been without power for a few hours or a day at some point in our lives. No big deal. As a survivalist let’s take a more detailed look at your home with no power. No power for 5 days due to a storm, or even longer. What are the things you should make sure you have in your home so that you are prepared to be without power for more than one day?
This list is simply to inspire you to think about it, and not meant to be ‘the’ list, or an ‘end-of-the-world’ list. Just a few basic thoughts for the main-stream without main-stream conveniences for a few days.
A quiet generator
A coffee percolator
– An absolute item in my house! 
Percolating a nice pot of coffee will be a comfort. It may also help to be a motivator reminding you of what life was like when you had power not too long ago. Having extra coffee and an extra percolator can also be great barter items with your neighbors, if things carried on for very long.
A manual quality can opener
candles
Extra water – Depending on how long you are out of power, sanitation may become an issue. Being able to pour water into your toilet tank will allow you to flush. If you have a well, you will lose your water pressure immediately. Do you have an alternative energy battery back up source for your well pump?
Camp stove
Washboard
Heaters/warm clothing – If you live in area where heat would be a priority in a power outage, please make sure you have an alternative source of heat. Portable heaters that run on propane
Hand flour mill
Books – OK, no cell phones working, no laptops, no TV, restless and cranky kids…how about some books? Also, remember you won’t be able to access your survival books if they are online!
There are many, many things to consider having as a backup to our modern conveniences and our modern way of life. It all depends on how serious you want to get about preparedness, and what scenarios that you consider to be remotely possible. Start simple, but keep going.
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Moving Boxes for Storage or Shipping
February 26, 2012, Submitted by: Ken“Moving Boxes” in the context of cardboard boxes that you would or could use for storage or for literally moving your ‘stuff’. What are the best moving boxes? How about boxes that are strong enough to hold what’s inside!
Recently, while we were in the process of moving to a new location, we had to move a-lot of ‘stuff’. In addition to our storage containers, we purchased lots of moving boxes. Some of the boxes we packed in our cargo trailer, while we shipped lots more. Our moving experience will hopefully help you if you ever decide to purchase some moving boxes.
The best lesson that we learned was to spend the extra money and get the Heavy Duty moving boxes. This made a huge difference in many areas.
Heavy Duty moving boxes allowed us to…
Comfortably pack more weight inside. You may be surprised at how quickly a seemingly small amount of things will be heavy beyond the load capacity of a standard cardboard box. This alone makes it worthwhile.
You can stack more boxes on top of each other, safely and securely. When I loaded up parts of the cargo trailer with stacks of heavy duty boxes, it became immediately apparent that the load was more secure. It just felt more solid – none of that partial squishing while stacking loaded ‘normal’ cardboard boxes.
Not to worry as much about damage, should boxes fall while moving.
My personal experience was with the Home Depot heavy duty moving boxes compared with the standard boxes (also from Home Depot). We used lots of the medium sized heavy duty, while HD apparently does not make the small size in heavy duty. The difference between the two was quite evident, particularly after seeing the results having shipped some of them.
Many of the small, regular variety moving boxes did not survive well after shipping across the country. Granted, they were loaded up pretty well, but I had taped them very, very well and they still suffered heavy damage in many instances.
The following photos shows the biggest difference between the two style moving boxes (heavy duty versus normal duty).
The next set of photos show the resulting difference between the heavy duty medium size moving boxes versus the small normal size moving boxes. Disclaimer: the small boxes were loaded fairly heavy – more than ‘normal’, however I have no doubt that they still would not have fared as well as the heavy duty, even if loaded lighter.
Heavy Duty Moving Boxes (medium)
No problem stacking – and they weighed 30 – 50 pounds each
Normal Duty Moving Boxes (small)
Damaged after shipping – they were on the heavy side (20 – 25 pounds)
So, when it comes to storing some of your survival gear, survival food, you name it… or when it comes to shipping ‘moving boxes’, it is highly recommended to pay for the double-walled heavy duty variety! A simple thing, but worth mentioning…
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Storage Containers for Emergency Preparedness
February 25, 2012, Submitted by: KenStorage Containers go hand in hand with emergency preparedness. Preppers collect all sorts of survival gear and survival food, and they (we) need storage solutions. Storage containers fulfill that need!
Over the years I have settled upon a variety of methods for food storage and survival supplies. For the most part, we keep many of our ‘things’ in plastic storage containers of one size or another. Some containers are see-through while others are opaque. Some are large 70-quart containers while others are small 18-quart containers.
We also use lots of smaller storage containers for day-to-day use of various foods so that we can keep them air-tight and fresh. Rubbermaid makes lots of these.
We have tried all sorts of brands. I have learned that in general, you get what you pay for. Meaning, if it’s real cheap, it will probably break or be inferior in some way. The best plastic storage containers will cost more, but you will get several very good advantages and features for your money.
Before you buy storage containers, review this first…
Look for heavy-duty plastic. That means plastic that is thick compared to the cheap ones. The thin, soft, pliable plastic will not support much weight when stacked on top of each-other, especially if they contain canned foods and other heavy items. Thin plastic will deteriorate quicker and will become brittle over time, especially when cold.
Get containers with flip-over latches that snap over on top of the cover (see picture). Many containers do not have this style latch and the covers will annoyingly fall off when handled or twisted in any way.
Favor storage containers that are designed to stack well. The cover needs a unique design to not only hold the container above it, but also to secure it if the stack is jostled or tipped. Some styles are better than others in this area.
A final decision is whether to use see-through containers or opaque (not see-through). For much of our food storage and gear, we now use see-through because it just makes it so much quicker and easier to know what’s inside when we’re looking for something. Some may wish to use only opaque (out-of-sight, out-of-mind), but you should think that through… You may realize that the advantages of see-through outweigh the desire for privacy.
Advantages of using plastic storage containers rather than cardboard boxes are many. It will definitely cost you more money than cardboard boxes, but once you’ve purchased them, you’re set for many years. Whereas a cardboard box will not last and is obviously inferior when it comes to comparing strength, durability and usability.
Another advantage of storage containers over other methods, including shelving, etc. is that it makes for easy and quick mobility. You can easily move your ‘stuff’ or rearrange it. Moving or packing individual items on shelves is tedious at best.
So, in summary, when considering storage solutions, give some thought to the the notion of storage containers for your food storage, survival gear, or other emergency supplies.
Here is one of the styles that we use around here. Sterilite 30-Quart Ultra Latch Storage Containers
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Coconut: Healthy Survival
February 25, 2012, Submitted by: Lauren (Mrs. MSB)
Reader Question:
Wondering what you think, re: coconut bars ( right from grocery store, etc), as inclusion in survival food?
It seems coconut is very good for you, they are high calorie, easy to eat/carry. Have never seen them listed (regular reader), but wondered, if they would be a good inclusion?
Answer:
Absolutely, coconut can be good for you! (in moderation – like anything else) I can tell you that from first hand experience. In fact, I wrote about it awhile ago titled, Home Remedy for Upset Stomach. Having gone through some terrible stomach ‘episodes’, I went to a specialist and had several in depth tests done. After being diagnosed, I was given some medications to take during my next stomach attack. When the next attack happened, the magic pills did not help. I was immensely disappointed, but decided it was time to seek out my own natural remedy. There were two natural remedies that worked liked charms, ginger tea and coconut water.
One thing I can tell you is that I have never looked for coconut bars in the market myself. I’ve always just purchased a real coconut. My suggestion would be for you to simply read the label. As long as the first few ingredients listed are coconut, coconut oil or coconut water or milk, it should be fine. Just make sure it’s not ‘junk’ being promoted as ‘health’ food.
I’ve recently come across small containers of 100% coconut water. Thank God they are something new my grocery store started to carry. The last time my stomach acted up, our grocery store had no real coconuts. I told Ken we should check the natural foods section of the store. That’s when we found the containers of coconut water. We bought one and I felt wonderful in about 20 minutes! So, for both short term and long term storage, coconut is a plus!
To go a little further in depth, the studies that have been done on the benefits of coconuts are producing phenomenal results. Coconut Water
Coconut oil also has numerous health benefits
It’s also an effective moisturizer for skin. It prevents dryness and flaking of skin, delays wrinkles and also helps in treating psoriasis, eczema and other skin infections.
Most of the benefits of coconut oil comes from the presence of lauric acid. Our bodies convert the lauric acid into monolaurin. Studies have shown that monolaurin helps in dealing with high cholesterol and high blood pressure. Monolaurin has also been claimed to strengthen the immune system in humans. Lauric acid has antifungal, antiviral and antibacterial properties. It has been shown to help fight influenza, herpes, H-pylori (bacteria on the inner lining of the stomach), to name just a few.
Another nice survival use for coconut oil is by applying it on infections. The oil forms a chemical layer which protects the infected body part from the air and all of the dust, fungi and bacteria it can carry.
By the way, coconut oil will last a year to a year and a half. Fresh coconuts in the husk will last two to three months.
So, yes, coconut is a survival tool. Stock up on some coconut water and coconut oil (coconut oil, like other oils, contain fats – so use in moderation). Coconut flesh and coconut milk are good as well. But be careful if you are watching your sodium, coconut milk is high in sodium. Also, remember when stocking up to consider any special dietary needs of yourself and your family.
Coconut oil, like all saturated fats, should be limited to 7%-10% of calories. Unlike animal fats, tropical oils — palm, palm kernel, and coconut oils — are saturated fats that are called oils but depending on room temperature can be solid, semi-solid, or liquid, and do not contain cholesterol. “Because they [coconut blend of short and medium chain fatty acids] come from coconuts, they may contain beneficial plant chemicals that have yet to be discovered,” says Mozaffarian, researcher and co-director of the cardiovascular epidemiology program at Harvard. Mozaffarian agrees that coconut oil is better than partially hydrogenated trans fats and possibly animal fats. “But even though coconut oil is cholesterol-free, it is still a saturated fat that needs to be limited in the diet.”
Source: WebMD
Nutiva Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil
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Best Food Storage: Canned or Freeze Dried?
February 23, 2012, Submitted by: Lauren (Mrs. MSB)
Reader Question:
I’d like to hear opinions on canned vs freeze dried food in an area where clean water would not be abundant in a disaster, Southern California.
Answer:
The thought that immediately comes to mind is find a way to store more water! Not only would you need water to rehydrate your food, but you will also need water to drink. You will need water for sanitation too. The general rule of thumb is a gallon of water per person, per day, minimum.
“Unless you live on property with natural occurring water, you need to have excess water storage available for an emergency. Depending on your weight, physical activity, and environment, the human body needs nearly 1 gallon of water per day. Human beings are made up of about 60% water. We sweat out about 2 cups water per day. We lose 1 cup per day from exhaling and we eliminate about 6 cups of it. Your life depends on daily replenishment of water.”
Source: Modern Survival Blog
The next thing I thought is that I would store both types of food as I do right now. Canned foods will last for several years (or more – depending) and are essentially already cooked, so you can eat them right out of the can, without heating, if circumstances do not provide you with a means to heat your canned food.
Canned foods will last for a few years, but they are also heavier to carry if you have to bug out. Canned foods will also take up a fair amount of physical space. Freeze dried food is much lighter weight and has a shelf life of about 25 years, but you do need to add water.
Why should you store both types? Well, if you really want to be prepared, then you should be ready for almost any kind of situation that can occur. Some may be short term while others could be very long term. Both types of food could be used as you hunker down and stay inside your home. The emergency situation or disaster that you are preparing for will lead to whether you will ‘bug out’ or ‘bug in’ and will help you determine which food to store or to carry with you.
Freeze dried food is light weight and some of it could be put in ziploc bags or containers for example, for a survival pack or bug-out-bag. Canned foods won’t be practical here. On the other hand, canned foods are ready-to-eat and are simple for at home.
In summary, I would suggest for your situation to concentrate first on canned foods and then build up a supply of water storage and freeze dried food. I would also determine where you would ‘bug out’ if you had to leave for greener pastures.
“Whether you live in a region prone to natural disasters or if you are emergency survival preparedness minded, it is imperative that you store water for you and your family, BEFORE you think about storing food.”
Source: Survival Water Storage
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