Advice | Prepper=Survivor

Homemade mosquito traps

Prepper Advice March 27, 2017Homemade, mosquito, traps

Mosquitos exist virtually everywhere in the world. If you have mosquitos in your home or around the outside of your home, you don’t necessarily have to call an exterminator or purchase some expensive mosquito traps from the home improvement store. Instead, you can create your own home mosquito traps using very simple materials that you probably already have in your home.

The most common homemade mosquito trap involves the use of a 2-liter plastic bottle, 1 gram of yeast, ¼ cup of brown sugar, and 1 cup of water. First, take a knife or scissors and cut the plastic bottle completely in half. Take the brown sugar and mix it in a bowl of hot water. Let the mixture cool off for a few minutes. When it becomes cold, place all the mixture into the bottle’s bottom half that you cut off and then add yeast to it. You don’t have to mix the yeast, though. This is just used to attract mosquitos to the trap. Next, take the upper half of the bottle and place the funnel inside of it, then flip the upper half upside down. Tape the funnel to the bottle to secure it better. With the open lid facing down, place the upper half of the bottle into the bottom half. Finally, place black tape around the bottle to further attract mosquitos to it and place the trap in an area where you want to trap them. Once the mosquitoes get inside the trap, they won’t be able to get out. Make sure to use extra masking tape to seal the cracks off and prevent them from escaping.

The plastic bottle method is a very popular homemade mosquito method. Normally, you would just place the bottle on the ground and let the mosquitoes fly into them. However, you can modify the original method and create a hanging mosquito trap as well. This is useful for people who live in upper floor apartment buildings or who have mosquito problems high up from the ground. All you have to do is cut a hole on each side of the bottom half of the plastic bottle. Make sure the holes are closer to the upper edge, preferably underneath the tape. Then place one end of a 3-4-foot cord into the hole and tie it off. Do the same thing with the other end of the cord on the other hole. Now hang the middle of the cord onto a hook or mount that you have. Alternatively, you can tape the cord to the bottle rather than cut holes.

Bug out bag contents list

Prepper Advice, Bug out bag, EDC February 15, 2017March 27, 2017Bug Out Bag, contents, list

A bug out bag is a survival kit that should pack with all the essential items necessary for surviving up to 72-hours on your own. These bags could be used when faced with a natural disaster or when you’re stuck somewhere far away from civilization and modern resources. Some of the contents you place in the bag may be different than what others would put in there.

However, there are some common items that everyone should place in their bug out bag, such as food and water. As human beings, we cannot survive without food and water so you would definitely want to have a 3-day supply of this available. Pack non-perishable foods into the bug out bag, preferably bagged rations because they are lighter weight than canned foods. For water, you should plan on drinking 2 liters per day so pack 6 liters of water in plastic bottles. If you think you’ll need more to drink, take some water purification tablets with you to purify any water that you find in the wild.

The next most important thing to pack in a bug out bag is a medical kit. If you end up getting scraped or cut up, you’ll want to be able to treat the wound and prevent an infection. Remember there are no doctors in a survival situation so you’ll have to treat yourself. Next, you’ll want to have maps, batteries, a flashlight, compass, hand-cranked radio, toothpaste, toothbrush, a poncho, a hat, and a Swiss army knife. These items will take care of most of your personal needs and will assist you in finding your way to safety.

Since survival situations can be quite dangerous, you may want to consider placing a handgun into your bug out bag. It doesn’t matter if you’re stuck in the woods or simply facing the aftermath of a disaster in your neighborhood. You may need a handgun to protect your life or defend your property in the event of a disaster. If your bug out bag is big enough, you could pack a shotgun in there too or at least strap it to the side and then put extra ammo on the inside. But if you’re the type of person who doesn’t like guns, then consider a survival-style knife instead. The Marine Rader Bowie is one knife made in Canada that can cut through almost anything, even something that’s trying to hurt you.

Survival Uses for Cattails

Prepper Advice, Cattails January 10, 2017March 27, 2017Cattails, Survival

Cattails are plants that typically grow in wetlands and have a flowering spike to them. If you’re ever trapped in the wilderness, then you’re definitely going to come across these plants. To someone with no survival skills, cattails may seem like any other plant you’d find in the woods. But the truth is that cattails can actually help you survive if you’re limited on resources.

The most basic benefit of cattails is using them for food. Believe it or not, their stems grow a couple of inches over the soil during the warmer months of the year. These stems are quite tender which means they can be peeled and then eaten. You can eat them raw if you don’t have a means of cooking them. Otherwise, boiling the stems will make them easier to chew and digest. The heads of the cattails can also be eaten the same way too. Now if you’re in the wild during the late summer and early fall, then pollen will build up on the cattails’ heads which can be used to make sauces. Any other time of the year, you can dig up the roots of the cattails and soak them in water. This will cause starch to be released from them which you can use with a little bit of pollen to make bread.

If you need a roof for your shelter, you can cut up the cattails and weave them together to form squares which resemble shingles. Place these squares on the roof of your makeshift shelter and it will protect you from wind, snow, and rain that may occur. If you’re weaving skills are really good, you can create a sleeping mat or baskets with them too. Baskets can be used to carry food and supplies with you as you travel throughout the wilderness looking for sanctuary. And if you need to start a fire to cook food or keep warm, cattails are a fine substitute for wood when starting a fire.

Lastly, cattails can be turned into medicinal treatments for burns, insect bites, bruises, and scrapes. All you must do is cut open the root of the cattail plant and lightly bruise the portion of it that’s exposed. Then place it over the injury and leave it there for a few minutes. It is not a miracle treatment, but it does have antiseptic properties that will prevent your injury from getting infected.

Best Christmas Gifts for Preppers

Prepper Advice December 8, 2016September 1, 2020Best, Christmas, Gifts, Preppers, presents

Emergency Crank Radio for Preppers

Emergency Crank Radio for preppers. As seen in survival movies.

Skills you will need when shit hits the fan

Prepper Advice March 17, 2016March 17, 2016hit hits the fan, Skills

Skills you will need when shit hits the fan

When times get tough you won’t have too many things you can depend on except for your survival skills. These are survival skills that will keep you alive without needing anybody else. The most important survival skill is to be a good planner and organizer. Perhaps there is bad weather or some kind of terrorist invasion and you need to leave your neighborhood right away. Where are you going to go? Make sure you have a plan as to where you are going to go or else you will just be driving around aimlessly going nowhere. You can’t give in to your fear or panic in a tough situation either. You need to be able to have a plan and follow through with it once the shit hits the fan.

Another skill that will come in handy is being able to live meagerly. This means getting used to eating food out of cans and drinking water out of bottles. It means adapting to sleeping in the back seat of your car every night and possibly getting used to being alone or isolated for days or even weeks. If you are the type of person that gets lonely fast and needs three square meals per day then you are going to have a tough time when the shit hits the fan. You need to be able to adapt to these bad situations in order to survive.

Water purification is going to be essential in a shitty situation, especially once your current supply of bottled water has run out. You need to know all of the ways to purify water from another source, such as a lake, river or even rain water. By utilizing this skill, you will be able to supply yourself with unlimited amounts of water. Not only that, but you could possibly barter the water you purify with other people in order to obtain food or other necessities. There are so many ways to make this skill work for you.

Lastly, you will need to have a particular set of skills when it comes to self defense. After all, when the shit hits the fan then it has likely hit the fan for someone else as well. They may be willing to do whatever it takes to sustain their survival, even if it means robbing or trying to kill you in order to obtain your items. So you need to be able to fight these people off whenever they try to attack you. You could do this through martial arts or having a handgun and learning how to shoot it properly.

Low cost steps for preparedness

Prepper Advice, Food March 10, 2016March 10, 2016Low cost, preparedness

Low cost steps for preparedness

When it comes to preparedness for an emergency or bad situation then there are low cost steps that you can take in order to ensure your survival. Firstly, you will need to prepare by stocking up on food and water because you won’t be able to survive any situation without them. Some common low cost foods that you can store for a long time include ramen noodles, macaroni and cheese, canned chili, canned vegetables, and peanut butter. Pretty much anything canned will be cheap and easy to preserve for years. As for water, all you need to purchase are water purification tablets. You could purchase bottled water, but that would actually be a waste of money. Just take a bunch of empty bottles that you already have and fill them up with tap water. Store the water along with your canned foods and water purification tablets. When disaster strikes then put the tablets in the water to clean out the germs and bacteria that may be in there.

Next you should go to your local thrift store, like Goodwill, and stock up on cheap clothes. Since you won’t have a vast supply of water, then you won’t be able to wash your dirty clothes. So you need extra clothes to change into in an emergency situation. You should also look for medical kits, duct tape, hand tools or any other necessities as well. If you can’t find any at the thrift store then try shopping on eBay for some of these necessities. After that, you’ll need to focus on how you’ll generate a source of heat. The easiest way to do this is by purchasing an assortment of lighters at your local dollar store. You can usually purchase eight disposable lighters for just a buck or two. Either that, or purchase a box of matches because they are also cheap and will last you a long time. These lighters could help you start fires to keep warm or even cook food in a survival situation.

Finally, you’ll want to invest in a low cost tent. If your situation puts you outside in the wilderness then a tent will help you sleep better at night. It will keep out the bugs and it will also reduce the impact of wind or rain hitting you while you are trying to sleep. You can find cheap $20 tents on Amazon.com or go to a local garage sale because you are bound to find one there.

Nikwax TX Direct Waterproofing Spray Review

Prepper Advice, Waterproofing January 26, 2016Direct, Nikwax, Review, Spray, TX, Waterproofing

Nikwax TX Direct Waterproofing Review

Condor Summit Soft Shell Tactical Jacket was working very good during snow and rain. When I washed it for just 2 times, it lost it’s waterproofing abilities. I don’t say that I was wet, but top layer was wet and cold. New jacket had water repellency and water drops were simply falling off the jacket.

I decided that I need to try to restore it’s water repellency. I have found the Nikwax after a small search. This looks like the best solution to restore waterproof abilities of your clothes.

Instructions and use are very simple. Just wash your clothes using NIKWAX Tech Wash and then apply Nikwax TX Direct Waterproofing Spray.

Here is the result, my jacket is water repellent again.

Highly recommended! Restores water repellency effectively. The only drawback is the vinegar smell of the jacket 🙂

Items to Barter in Bad Times

Prepper Advice, Barter January 18, 2016Bad Times, Barter, Items

Items to Barter in Bad Times

There are good times and there are bad times. Unfortunately, it is more common these days to experience bad times because of economic uncertainty and rising cost of living. But what can really be bad is enduring an expected event, such as a terrible storm, which prevents resources from the outside world from being made available to the people of your community. In tough situations like these, you may not have enough money to afford necessities, such as food, in order to survive. Either that or you won’t have access to your bank account for one reason or another to get more money. This means you will have to barter items that you already have with other people in exchange for these necessities. So what do you barter?

You have to remember that if you are experiencing a tough situation then the other people and businesses of your community are likely experiencing it as well. Therefore, you need to barter items that they would be interested in having. What you first need to do is take an inventory of all the items you currently have in your possession. Then you need to make a list of all your essential items. In the essential category, you should list items that people could need for survival, like canned food, clothes, water bottles, disposable razors, water purification supplies, sanitary supplies, first aid kits, fuel, hand tools, batteries, generators, coffee, tea, duct tape, bags, knives, flashlights and so on. If you have a spare cell phone or a solar powered cell phone charger that you don’t need for yourself, this could probably score you huge bartering points with someone.

Next see which of these items you have an overwhelming supply of and consider bartering that item for another item which you don’t have a huge supply of. For example, let’s say you have a whole kitchen cabinet full of canned food but you don’t have any water bottles. You might want to consider bartering these canned foods with a neighbor who will barter their water bottles. That way, both parties get what they want without drawing bloodshed over trying to get these necessities by some unlawful means. Now apply this same concept to your other essential items by trying to barter items you have a lot of in exchange for items that you don’t have a lot of. Then you can maximize your list of necessities until the terrible situation you are in comes to an end.

Food:

MRE – Meal Ready to Eat. The same that military use. Long shelf life. Flameless heater and spoon included.

S.O.S. Rations Emergency 3600 Calorie Food Bar – 3 Day / 72 Hour Package with 5 Year Shelf Life

Mountain House Freeze Dried Food.. Perfect for emergency preparedness, 12+ years in pouches and 25+ years in cans.

Water Filtration

LifeStraw Personal Water Filter. Inexpensive, compact, lightweight.

Potable Aqua Water Treatment Tablets.

Containers for preparedness

Prepper Advice, Containers, Preparedness November 19, 2015Container, food, preparedness, Water

Containers for preparedness

When you are preparing for disaster it is important that you have durable containers that can safely store away food and other items. Now this does not mean go out and buy rubber Tupperware or Rubbermaid containers. These are better if you are bringing food to work with you for the day, but they aren’t really sufficient enough to store items for long periods of time. You could store inedible items, like your tools or other products you’ll need for survival, but you don’t want to risk damaging the containers in a dangerous situation. For example, if you have to haul around containers full of survival items then you want to make sure those items are packed away securely with a cover that won’t fall out. You’ll also want to make sure the shell of the container cannot get damaged too easily from being thrown around or dropped on the ground, which are likely things that might happen when you are in a hurry. With rubber containers, they could easily get damaged or spill out its contents onto the ground.

What you need are containers made out of metal, particularly tin. This type of metal is lightweight and can easily be sealed so that air doesn’t get into the container. You will often find medical kits and other prepaid survival kits with tin containers. But for those of you who want to develop your own survival kit then start with a tin container. You can purchase them online or in most hardware stores. They come in all shapes and sizes as well. It may be better to purchase multiple tin boxes instead of one big large container because the tools and items in your kit may get mixed around in a big box. It is better to have smaller boxes that are each labeled for a particular type of item. That way you will know where to look when you want a specific item.

As for storing water or other liquids, you obviously won’t want to use tin boxes. You will want to use barrels, large cans, jugs or any other type of cylindrical shaped container. The type of material of the container could be anything durable, such as polyethylene or high grade plastic. These are the best containers for keeping out contaminants or other germs from getting into the liquid. But just in case, have a purifier ready to use on the water if it has been stored for a long time.

Survival Checklist

Prepper Advice, Survival Gear October 13, 2015

Survival Checklist

When you are in a situation where you cannot get help from anyone because you are stranded somewhere, you need to know how to survive. The best way to handle a survival situation is to prepare ahead of time. This means purchasing all of the necessary items that you will need in case a disaster strikes and you need to survive. This could be a hurricane, tornado, terrorist threat or any other tragedy that limits your ability to get help from the officials in your city or town.

The first item to put on your survival checklist is water. There is no way you will be able to survive anywhere without fresh water to drink. Since water doesn’t expire or spoil, you can just purchase gallon jugs of water or packages of bottled water at your local supermarket. Make sure you get the natural spring water and not the kind that has added minerals to it. The next item on your survival checklist should be food. To get more specific, you will need food that comes in cans because you’ll want to be able to store it away for awhile until disaster strikes. Next you will want to think about the tools you will need in a disaster. Some essential tools include a flashlight, solar powered smartphone charger, smartphone, poncho, knife, lighter, matches and a can opener. The smartphone and solar charger is important because it may be your only link to the outside world if you are stranded somewhere. All of the other tools will help you survive in your current environment until help arrives or until you find your way out of wherever you are.

Some additional items to put on your survival checklist are clothes and a first aid kit. If you are living in the north then you will obviously want to have jackets and sweaters stored away for emergencies. That way you will be able to bare the colder temperatures, especially if it is snowing outside. The first aid kit is also important because it has band aids and disinfectant formulas to help treat scrapes and cuts if you get hurt.

Finally, you should probably include a gun on your checklist. If you are in an isolated environment that requires you to survive on your own, then chances are there will be others in that area in the same situation. This could mean they will try to steal your supplies or possibly kill you for your supplies. By having a gun with ammo clips ready, you will be able to fight off dangerous people or animals that you may come across in a survival situation.

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