Thread: BASIC LIST / SUGGESTED ITEMS FOR LONG TERM SURVIVAL

Homestead Survival

http://thehomesteadsurvival.com/solt.../#.UoroA-JnOIw

Three Ways To Bake Bread In Different Ovens – Solar, Camp Stove/Oven & Conventional Oven

Amazing Things

Smart & Healthy - creative garden bench!

Clearing the House

Posted on by Home Defense Gun

Ensuring there are No Intruders

So you have been out for a nice dinner and a movie with your spouse. You arrive home and note that the front door is open slightly. Did you shut it tightly? Or has someone forced it open? This is a very uneasy feeling.

There are a couple of ways to handle this. One is the call the police. Then withdraw a safe distance and wait. This is the smartest way. You might consider clearing the house yourself. Please understand you could find someone there, perhaps someone armed. If you are not trained, not armed, and there is no hurry, opt for the professionals.
Another scenario is you think you hear something in the house and want to check it out. Again, be wary here. If you can summon the professionals, go to the safe room, or lock yourself in a room and call for help.
Having a weapon for home defense in case things go from bad to worse is a good idea. If you live in the country, sometimes what you hear are marauding animals thumping around on the porch. Even living in the city, I once had a raccoon come into the house through the cat door. If you live in a crime free area and the odds are it is not a threat then clearing the house might be a first option. But just in case, there are specific techniques that make this safer.
First is how to carry a weapon while clearing. We carry the weapon at the high compressed ready. This position is defined by having two hands on the weapon at center chest. The muzzle is pointed down 45 degrees. Your finger is off the trigger and the thumb safety, if it has one, is on safe. Your elbows are straight out from your body at chest level. Forget what you saw on television. The elbows keep someone behind you from easily accessing the gun. If approached from the front, leveling the muzzle, flicking off the safety and squeezing the trigger brings the weapon into play. Sticking the muzzle straight up with elbows at 90 degrees or out in front of you with arms extended (the isosceles stance) like they do on TV allows someone to grab the gun from in front or from behind and control the muzzle.
So we start our tour of the premises. If others are sleeping then we might not want to wake the whole house and have family running around when we are carrying a weapon. Plus they could become hostages. So we use a flashlight. Many newer hand guns have a Picatinny rail under the muzzle where you can attach a flashlight.

I would suggest you do not do this. If the flashlight is attached to the gun, then you are waving the muzzle around the house with it. If the intruder is your teen age son home from his first encounter with alcohol, you do not want to be aiming the pistol at him. If you were startled by a small, scared, sleepless child running to you in the dark, would you want the muzzle pointed at him/her? The second reason is that the flashlight is an aim point for a bad guy. Keep it offset from your vital organs and the weapon.
Now, how do we proceed? As we approach an open door way, we stay back from the entry and slowly work ourselves in an angular method around to see as much of the room or area inside as we can before getting close to the door. This is called slicing the pie. Think of pie wedges centered on the entry way.
Once we have worked our way around then we slowly approach the doorway. If in a hallway, we hug the opposite wall. If the door is closed, and it opens away from you, reach for the handle, unlatch and push the door away while stepping back. Slice the pie before entering. If the door opens toward you, stay out of the arc of the door opening, unlatch, pulling the door briskly open while stepping back. Again, slice the pie.
The thought process here is look from a distance. Then ensure we cannot easily be surprised or overcome with someone pushing the door in our face or jumping out. The more distance we have the more time we have to react. We keep as much distance as the house allows until we have situational awareness.
Proceed from room to room until the area is cleared. Then secure the weapon, return to the bedroom and announce the “all clear.” I am sure your spouse will applaud.
Do you have any tips on house clearing? Please let us know in the comments.


http://www.homedefensegun.net/clearing-house/

Homemade Ice Wreath Bird Feeder Project

Crafts, DIY Projects
by admin
November 13, 2013

Trish P

Trish P shares how she recreated a ice wreath bird feeder that she found in a Better Homes and Garden magazine.

During the wintertime, birds have a harder time finding food and could use a little extra help.

My grandmother used to make a very similar project.

She loved to hang these from her outdoor porch so she could enjoy watching the different birds visit for a snack.

Click here to read the article:

http://flower-pot-crafts.com/pdf/Spa..._Pinterest.pdf

Tags: bird feed, bird feeder, bird watching, birds, homemade, Homemade Ice Wreath Bird Feeder Project, Ice Wreath, project

http://thehomesteadsurvival.com/home.../#.UoicM8Mo61t

by Off Grid World on November 17, 2013 1 Comment

How To Choose The ‘Perfect’ Location For Your Off Grid Homestead or Community



What exactly is “the perfect off the grid location“ to build your cabin? Well, ideally there are some things to look for in a piece of property that make it a good off the grid location. This is not a comprehensive guide, but only meant to give a good general point of reference to start from.
In our quest for the perfect off grid location we’ve literally searched all over the United States from the East to the West. We know what we want, and we know what we need, but finding a good balance between the necessities and comforts and balancing that with budget and location sometimes is difficult. Like most folks, we can’t afford a huge piece of land, nor can we be too picky about the land we buy.
First determine your needs. What do you really need?
Do you need power hungry appliances, central heat and air, and all the luxuries of a tradition suburban home? Not really. So you make a list of things you “need” to survive in the wilderness in order of importance.
Going into this with an open minds is important, but also with a realistic point of view. It’s not going to be easy, it will probably take longer than you think, it will probably be more expensive than you think, but it’s probably going to be a lot better than how you’re living now.
“The perfect off the grid location” doesn’t exist in a one-size-fits-all package. The point being it’s all about personal preference and what you feel you need, versus what you want balanced by your goals.
Goals are relatively simple; to become 100% self sufficient, spend more quality time together with family, and experience to good things in life without having to worry about the mortgage, bills, and whether you’ll have a job next month.
Like most folks, you probably want to be independent, yet, you may want to keep the social aspect of living in a community of like minded individuals with similar goals.
So, you ask yourself what you really truly need.

NEEDS: The “Holy Trinity” of survival.

• #1 – Water: No animal on Earth can live without water, and we’re no different; this is why it’s #1 on my list instead of shelter. You’ll need a local water source, river, stream, lake, pond, spring, etc. Or you’ll need a machine to produce water, and a large plastic container for water storage.
• #2 – Shelter: Technically in a milder climate you don’t even really need shelter, maybe a wind break or lean-to would be sufficient for survival. But in most areas, a shelter is needed for protection from the environment.
• #3 – Food: We have to eat to live, so look for an area that in an emergency situation wild game and/or local plants can be harvested for food. Also choose an area the lends itself to growing your own food either in the ground, or in a greenhouse. I personally like a hydroponic/aquaponic system myself. It’s efficient and you can grow food almost in any climate with current technology.

That’s really it. The property you choose must have these 3 resources available to produce them from the land without importing them. There are very few place on Earth where this is NOT a possibility. So what does that mean?
With current technology, and the knowledge of traditional building and survival techniques, you can live almost anywhere on the planet except maybe the North and South poles. There are even people in South America (and other parts of the world) who build their homes on the water! Talk about off the grid… WOW!
OK, since you can pretty much build anywhere on Earth, the question is not whether it can be done, but what you personally prefer. Some people love cold weather and the snow, others prefer the desert heat, while still others like milder tropical zones.
Once you figure your “needs”, you then list your “wants”. This of course varies widely.

WANTS:

• Amenities & Luxury: Electricity, hot and cold running water, major appliances, TV, internet, cable, satellite, comfortable furniture, etc.
  
• Large Land: A nice big parcel of land to expand and build. You don’t “need” a big parcel, but we’d like one large enough to experiment with different building techniques, and grow our ranch.
  
• Affordability: Anyone can go crazy and buy an outrageously expensive piece of property, but the point of living off the grid for us means not having a massive mortgage payment each month and being completely self-sufficient. We’d like a piece of property that’s affordable which we can pay off within a couple few years, this way we can concentrate on the important things like FAMILY for example. This limits the land selection somewhat, but, it also opens doors to things that might normally be overlooked for a good off grid location to build on.
  

Practicality becomes the determining factor at that point. Most people will need a job to live and pay for their normal bills, but for us, the goal is 100% self-sufficiency.
To do that, we must have a home based business, and be able to make our living off the land, literally. Some folks will opt into working a 9-5 until they can become self sufficient.
It helps that we’re experienced and have owned our own successful company before. It’s imperative that we are able to make a living from home to be completely off grid. This doesn’t mean if you live off grid that you wouldn’t be contributing to society mind you. Creating products and providing services for the local economy is part of the plan.
The Internet:
The advent of the internet and high technology is enabling people to rethink the way we live as a society, and is bringing with it major cultural change. It’s now possible to not just survive off grid, but to thrive and live very well. The internet allow one to reach literally hundreds of millions of people all over the world. This expands everyone’s horizons and provides opportunity such that has never been seen before in the history of humankind.
Hi-Tech Off Grid Living
Combining high technology with an internet based business, means you can literally live just about anywhere on the planet. Now that people can do this I believe it will contribute greatly to the overall economic stability of the entire populace, including the local and world community, especially if one is contributing to society with their valuable products and services.
Start a Home Based Business
Living off the grid, and owning your own business (becoming self sufficient) isn’t just the American Dream, it’s the dream of millions of people. People want their independence, but they also need the social aspect of life. Having the internet provides this social connection, while allowing one to keep their private lives private.
Our world is much smaller now that technology has made it possible to travel anywhere on the globe, and communicate with anyone, anywhere with the click of a mouse, or dialing a cell phone number.
We’re quickly becoming a mobile society, and there are those of us who see this as an opportunity unlike anything that’s ever presented itself. to make our living while still providing for and spending valuable time with our families.
Energy is crucial, and most off-gridders will generate their own power, so pick a place that has good wind and/or solar energy potential. This, is the most important thing next to your water source.
So, how do you pick that perfect off the grid location?
For example, northern Arizona has everything a person would need…except easily accessible sources of water. It has tons of Sun, trees, good cheap land, and mild winters.

• TEMP: 22 – 91 degrees (MILD CLIMATE)
• SUN: 77%-90% Sun (HIGH POTENTIAL)
• WIND: 6.5 – 9 mph (HIGH POTENTIAL)
• RAIN: .5″ – 2″ (LOW)
• HUMIDITY (LOW to AVERAGE)

This is just an example. Are there better places for an off grid homestead than this? Sure… But price and affordability is most probably an issue for most folks.

• Pick an area where the property is very affordable, and not that many people have figured it out yet. If you play your cards right, perhaps you could bring business and more homesteaders and off grid people to the area and that might actually create a land rush and make our land even more valuable; we can dream right?
• Pick a property where the potential for wind and solar energy production is great.
• Picking a place where the climate is mild and the winters aren’t that bad, and/or have low snowfall levels; which means you won’t have to shovel snow all day everyday just to drive around your property or go into town.
• Pick a location is relatively near multiple popular major national parks, tourist attractions, and has LOTS of outdoor adventure activities which can be a BIG income opportunity year round if you’re creating a community. It will become a draw for people, and a source of income for your off grid community.
• Pick a location isn’t that populated, but where cities nearby are growing, and the potential for expansion in the area is great.
• Pick a location is close enough to major shopping destinations to resupply weekly, or if you wanted to cruise into town for dinner and a movie it’s practical.
• Pick a place where the land is beautiful. Where it’s not too hot in the summer, not too cold in the winter, and there are lots of TREES and GRASS.

To really do this, you’re going to have to change the way you live. Family is more important than paying the banks for 20 years only lose your job and your home you’ve paid on for decades. Having your property paid for so you can concentrate on enjoying your family life and making good memories is by far the most important thing.
Going off the grid is how to do it. Living small is how to do it.

You can do it.
—————————————

Historical Weather Graphic SOURCE: http://www.city-data.com/

Cabin Photo 1: http://almanachouse.tumblr.com/post/64057570991

Cabin Photo 2: http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/63137...s-to-the-Views


http://www.offgridworld.com/how-to-c...-or-community/

10 Day Survival Pack For Your Car

Bug Out Bag, Emergency Preparedness

by admin2
November 14, 2013

Jeffrey Yago shows us how to pack 10 days worth of survival into a small cooler to keep in our car for emergencies on Back Woods Home. The article is older but we still hear of folks getting stranded or lost in winter time so the instructions still apply today. This would be really nice to have if you had a break down or were lost and it took a while to be found. You could stay with your vehicle for a few days instead of having to start walking in maybe a blizzard to find food and water.

photo credit Jeffrey Yago


http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles2/yago104.html

Tags: 10 day survival kit, 10 Day Survival Pack For Your Car, car kit, emergency survival kit for vehicle, preparedness

http://thehomesteadsurvival.com/10-d.../#.UoiclcMo61t

Homestead Survival

http://thehomesteadsurvival.com/blis...oothie-recipe/

Blissful Banana Oatmeal Smoothie Recipe.

Homestead Survival

http://thehomesteadsurvival.com/buil...s-wranglestar/

How To Build A Greenhouse – SIX Part Video Series – Wranglestar

Wranglestar is an incredible teacher, builder and homesteader who is kind enough to share his wisdom and his creative do it yourself spirit. Each of his videos are clear and concise as he guides you through the instructions as he builds so that you can do the project as well.

The Homestead Survival website has featured many of Wranglestar’s homesteading building projects because he is in our opinion one of the very best. If he had a TV show, I would be a loyal viewer.

Optimum Energy Products

Take a look at the armasight Zeus thermal sight!

http://www.scoutbasecamp.com/product...ng-riflescopes

Craft, Home and Garden Ideas

37 DIY Hacks and Ideas To Improve Your Kitchen
http://diygardenandcrafts.com/roundu...e_your_kitchen

-----> Pin it for later <-----
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/473581717037087416/

Follow us on facebook --->
https://www.facebook.com/DiyGardenAndCrafts?ref=stream

--♥--> Sign up for our newsletter <--♥--
http://diygardenandcrafts.com/newsletter_signup