Why buy a smaller can?

1.  They are a great size to fit in your kitchen pantry.  I have some that I use and refill from larger cans or containers so I don’t have to pack my limited cupboard space with the larger #10 cans.

2. Product testing.  If you’re not sure you’re going to love a particular brand of sour cream powder or freeze dried pineapple, try it out in a small can first before you spend the money on a larger container.

3.  Cost.  The price per pound is generally higher with a pantry can, but if you have a set dollar amount to spend, pantry cans will get you the greatest variety of food for that money.  Or if you want some freeze dried chicken but can’t shell out the #10 can price, a pantry can will get some in your storage for less.

4.  Shelf life.  The unopened shelf life is the same as a #10 can, but once a product is opened, it usually needs to be used within a certain amount of time (one year opened is about as long an open shelf life as you’ll find).  If you are storing food for a smaller family or just yourself, a pantry can helps you be able to use it all while it’s still fresh.

Pantry cans aren’t for everyone, but they may work for you.  Check out the photos below to see the sizes of small cans from various food storage providers and how they compare with the larger #10 can.  All of the small cans are 4″ in diameter and either 4 11/16″ or 5 7/16″ tall.

From left to right: #10 can, Thrive Life Pantry Can, The Ready Store Pantry Can, Emergency Essentials MyChoice Can, Augason Farms Everyday Can, Honeyville CAN

Center: #10 can, around left to right: Thrive Life Pantry Can, The Ready Store Pantry Can, Emergency Essentials MyChoice Can, Augason Farms Everyday Can, Honeyville CAN

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We have been watering our garden with various modifications of drip irrigation for over 10 years.  We finally got the whole thing almost linked together this year.  We use actual drip irrigation parts and not soaker hose.  We tried soaker hose and although it is easy to find and we got ours on sale so got a good price on it, it has its disadvantages.  The hoses are not made to soak evenly, although they do a pretty good job as long as they are laid out straight.  Any part of a soaker hose that is curved or looped increases the water output at that curve since you’re stretching the  holes open on the outside of the curve.  This reduces pressure on the rest of the line.  Soaker hoses also do not withstand sunshine and heat very well and love to spring leaks usually after the first year of use.  You can cut soaker hose to the length you want and install a new end on it, although it’s kind of laborious and you end up with lots of little lengths of hose that aren’t much good for anything.

Using drip irrigation parts solves most of those problems.  The drip rate is even throughout the line whether it is running straight or curved.  The lines are sold in rolls and the lines are super easy to cut to length, add valves or tees or elbows, and splice together.  The parts stand up to use for many years.  Our garden bed lines and corn t-tape  have been in use for about three years now with no problems.

Want to take a tour of my garden system?  Check out the video below.  Try not to get motion sickness–I guess I could have walked a little slower.  If the video doesn’t load for you, you can get it here.  If you want pictures of most of the parts and junctions, I have them in this post from when we put the main parts of the system together.

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Here’s where Creek Stewart’s new book, The Unofficial Hunger Games Wilderness Survival Guide, comes in.  This book teaches real life survival skills that are just like the ones Katniss, Peeta, Gale and their friends would have used in Panem.  Creek is an engaging writer, and there are also plenty of pictures throughout the book to illustrate the skills being taught.  By tying The Hunger Games in to this survival guide, Creek is able to bring practical survival skills to an audience that may have never had an interest in survival before.

And does the book give the information they will need?  Yep.  It starts with the Survivor Mentality which is so important in any survival situation.  The book also covers shelters, hydration, fire, tools, hunting and gathering, first aid, navigation and signaling, and building a survival kit.  A whole range of skills from demonstrating the difference between a signal fire and a cooking fire, to using wild plants for food, tools, and medicine, to gathering and purifying water.  And you don’t need to be out in the wilderness to try these skills.  Creek also gives ideas for specific at-home preparedness exercises to try, most of which can be done in your back yard.  In fact, this is the book that inspired the eating of dandelion roots at our house.

While this book has a special appeal to fans of the Hunger Games trilogy, it has great information for anyone interested in survival.  An excellent book.  And just to see how some of the younger Hunger Games fans liked it, I also had my kids give it a review.

My daughter (11) said: “It’s awesome.  Because it shows you how you can camouflage yourself like Peeta and make a shelter out of leaves and sticks.  And I like the pictures.”

My son (13) liked the book as well.  He agreed to talk about it for me, but only after insisting that if he were going to be on my video I needed to do something about the “lame introduction” I have on all my other videos.  So now we have music.  Yep, I’m getting more technologically advanced every day thanks to my kids.  Check out his review in the video below with new and improved introduction and end credit music:

If the video doesn’t load, you can access it here.

Creek was also my guest on this week’s podcast, so be sure to check out that interview.

I know you want a copy of this book, either for yourself or someone you know.  Well, I have something even better than a copy of the book.  Creek sent me two autographed copies to give to a couple of my lucky readers, and each one comes with a handy orange backpack, a Willow Haven Outdoor cotton bandana, and a survival whistle.  I keep this exact type of pack in my vehicle kit in case I need to load some supplies up out of the kit and walk somewhere.  To enter the giveaway, just use the form below.  This giveaway will run one week, ending the night of May 29th.  Enter now–you don’t want to forget about it over Memorial Day weekend! Good luck, and “May the odds be ever in your favor.” :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Many of the recipes do assume that you’ll have some way to either bake or boil, so you might need to get creative in a real grid-down type of scenario, but they’re great for rotating your food storage into your every day eating.  Some of the recipes have non-shelf-stable ingredients like eggs, vegetables, or meats.  Most of these recipes can be made food storage friendly by substituting ingredients using the chart that is included in the book.

The book isn’t just a recipe book.  She also includes information on preserving food including canning and dehydrating, ideas for substitute ingredients and stretching meals, and instructions and lists for creating your own food storage pantry.  This is really a well rounded food storage recipe book, especially if you are just getting started or if you’ve got some basics stored and are looking for some new ways to mix them up.

The Prepper’s Cookbook is a little over 200 pages and available on Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

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photo by tsheets

Storm and tornado season is in full swing, and each year, the United States gets an average of 5.9 hurricanes, 1,000 tornadoes and 10,000 severe thunderstorms. Storms can be as scary as they are unpredictable and cause immense damage. But, rather than fear the unknown, it is best to put worries aside and be prepared. The following are some important steps for ensuring you have the tools to brave potential storms.

Before the storm
1. Listen to the news and local forecasts to give yourself as much notice as possible
2. Secure a back-up generator, such as a Generac portable generator, and place it off the floor in case you experience flooding
3. Make sure your generator is in working order by checking the oil and adding fresh fuel with a bottle of STA-BIL Ethanol Treatment to keep the fuel fresh and combat damage from ethanol in today’s gasoline
4. Run the generator for a few minutes. If the generator does not start, add a bottle of Start Your Engines! Fuel Revitalizer to clean the fuel injectors, carburetor and intake valves and get the engine up and running quickly
5. Create a storm kit of must-have items, such as a battery operated radio, flashlights, batteries, candles, matches, bottled water, blankets, non-perishable food, can opener, first aid kit, list of phone numbers, prescription medications and games to pass the time

When a storm is on its way
1. Listen to the news to keep updated on the storm’s status
2. Obey evacuation directions in dire situations
3. Make sure your cell phone is charged and keep a charger with you
4. Set your refrigerator and freezer controls to the coldest settings to keep food longer should the power go out
5. Fill your car’s gas tank just in case you need to drive to safety
6. Take out a reasonable amount of cash in case ATMs are out of order
7. Tie down any large objects outdoors that may get thrown during a storm (e.g. patio furniture, toys) and place valuables inside in a safe place off the floor
8. Ensure a supply of water for sanitary purposes by filling your bathtub, sinks and other large containers with water

When a storm is in progress
1. Stay indoors and away from windows or glass doors
2. Take refuge in a small interior room or closet or below ground if possible
3. Listen to the news for updates and directions on how to proceed

About STA-BIL
STA-BIL® is America’s #1 selling fuel stabilizer. Stored fuel can go bad in as little as 30 days causing gum, varnish and corrosion to build up in the fuel lines and engine. STA-BIL brand products help keep fuel fresh and protect engines from corrosion, while cleaning fuel injectors, carburetors and intake valves to ensure your equipment from generators to chainsaws, leaf blowers and more are in working order when you need them most. Visit Sta-Bil.com.

About Start Your Engines!
Start Your Engines!® is the easiest way to get hard-starting engines back up and running fast. It works by dissolving gas that has gone bad during storage and then moves through the fuel system to the engine where it ignites to get your equipment started quickly. Simply pour this advanced synthetic formula into the unit’s fuel tank to cure hard starting, rough idling and stalling. Visit StartYourEnginesUS.com.

The makers of STA-BIL and Start Your Engines are sponsoring a giveaway for one of my lucky readers!  The Storm Prep Giveaway is a $90 value and includes:
•       American Red Cross Self-Powered AM/FM/NOAA Weather Radio and Flashlight
•       61-Piece First Aid Kit
•       Potable Water Treatment Tablets
•       Emergency Whistle
•       STA-BIL Ethanol Treatment
•       Start Your Engines! Fuel System Revitalizer

To enter, use the form below!  This giveaway will run for one week and end at midnight Thursday May 23, 2013.  Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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1. Gather dandelions.  Be sure you are gathering from a source that has not been sprayed with herbicide.  Younger dandelions are best as the older roots can become woody.  The dandelion usually has one long tap root, so you may need to dig down a bit to get as much of the root out as possible.

2.  Wash and trim.  Trim off the plant tops and any small side roots.

3.  Peel the roots.  You can peel them with a sharp knife, or peel them like beets using the boiling water method.  Put the roots in boiling water for about 2 minutes, then remove them and put them in cold water.  Then the peels slip off easily.

Peeling with a knife

Slipping peels off after boiling/cooling

Peels separated from roots using boiling method

4.  Cut them into pieces if desired.  You can slice them into button sized pieces or leave them long, whatever is more appetizing to you.  If the roots are woody, I would suggest leaving them long and then you can strip the tender part of the root off the outside of the woody core as you eat them.

5.  Boil the roots 7-10 minutes until they are soft.

6.  Season and serve warm.  I put salt, pepper, and butter on mine.

Enjoy!

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This stove does not have a very large burning chamber so you are limited in the size of sticks you can use.  The design is such that the sticks actually need to be fairly short to fit in, although they can be somewhat thick in diameter.  You can feed sticks in while your pot is on top of the stove, which is nice because it needed refueled frequently.  On another test, using my best stick feeding skills, I got water to boil in just over 5 minutes at approximately 6000 ft. elevation.  I like this stove.  It is pretty compact and sturdy enough that you could put a larger pan on it, although that would make it more difficult to feed the fuel in.

Check out my video review below to see the Solo Stove in action:

If the video doesn’t load for you, you can access it here.

The Solo Stove can also hold a small alcohol stove which gives your alcohol stove a pot rest and a wind break and makes it so you can cook with the Solo Stove without hunting for sticks.

This is another great stove for an emergency kit.  I really can’t tell you how much I like the idea of not running out of fuel, so I’m kind of partial to biomass stoves anyway, and this one is a nice size for packing and burned nice and hot.

The post Solo Stove Biomass Stove Review appeared first on Food Storage and Survival.

In the book, Mr. Forsythe covers some common myths about firearms (like guns are not death rays), situational awareness, and the three roles you could play if you are involved in one of these shootings.  Will you be a victim, a guardian, or a hero?  Of course, we all want to say hero, but the other roles can be just as important and which you end up being could be determined by your situation, location, and mindset.  Mr. Forsythe details how to do fill each role the best way, so no matter which role you end up filling you have the best chance of survival and helping others.

So if you’re looking for a quick read full of useful, common sense information on surviving a mass shooting, check out Fight, Flight, or Hide.

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As you probably already know, purifying water for drinking is extremely important, because your life literally depends on your ability to produce water that is free from pathogens and impurities.

First, you need to have a list of the source(s) of water around you (here’s a list of 19 sources of water).

I thought I’d brainstorm a convenient numbered list of purification options for you, so you’d have a handy reference as you make your emergency preparedness plans.

So, here’s my list:

1. Boiling.  Assuming you have something clean and fireproof, like a pot or mess kit, you can boil water. Be sure and filter out large/particulate impurities first; this can be done with anything that’s mesh-like–even a clean sock.  You can boil the water over a stove, campfire or even in a solar oven.  Just make sure it boils for at least one full minute; you could go longer, if you’re somewhat germaphobic (like me), although the longer it boils uncovered, the more water you’ll be losing by evaporation.

2. Commercially fabricated filtration units.  There are smaller, portable units like Katadyn or Berkey bottles or Life Straws, and there are also larger, less-portable countertop units.  The larger units will give you more capacity, so plan ahead for your anticipated situation–whether you’ll be on the move, or staying in place.  Either way, make sure you invest in a filtration unit that will filter out pathogens, cysts and parasites.

3. Improvised purification.  You can use charcoal, sand and one or more grades of gravel and fabricate a multi-staged “filter” using a wide range of materials, from cloths and sticks, to buckets and drums.  Let me re-emphasize that, technically, this is a crude filter, rather than a purifier; water should be boiled after passing through a setup like this.  You can’t be too careful!  Read more in this post over on Lisa’s site, and be sure to read through the comments.

4. Purification tablets or other chemicals.  Simple chemicals like iodine, potassium permanganate, and chlorine compound tablets can individually be used temporarily to treat water, but DO NOT mix chemicals!  Angela has covered this thoroughly in this blog post.   I personally consider chemical treatment to be at the extreme end of emergency water purification, and have made multiple chemical-free plans for long-term survival.

5. Distilling.  This is especially useful if you’re using salt water as your source.  This can be done with items as simple as a stick tripod, a pot, and a few clean cloths.  Drape the cloth over the pot, and as water condenses on, and saturates the cloth, remove it (using a stick or something to avoid being scalded), and replace it with a dry cloth; when each cloth cools, wring it out into a clean container.

As you plan out your survival strategy, make sure you actually practice each technique you’re going to implement BEFORE an emergency happens.  That way, you will have trained yourself, and will have more competence–and confidence–if, and when disaster strikes.

Thanks for reading!  Leave a comment with any thoughts you have!

–Josh “Mad Thrad” Campbell

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