SHTF Before During and After: Wildfire
I have made a career responding to all manner of disasters and emergencies. This has included earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, wildfires, and search, rescue, & recovery. Over time, I have also been involved in a few events as a victim. I think having seen both sides of these things gives me an interesting take on survival preparedness.
The most common activation I receive is to respond to a wildfire. And while this might be a short term event, over almost before it begins, the results can be devastating to the unprepared. So I would like to discuss how to prepare for a wildfire. Since this is such a large topic, I am going to limit myself to steps you can take to defend your home, or BOL (Bug-Out-Location.)
To many homeowners, the idea of a wildfire is pretty overwhelming. It can be a huge dominating force of nature that seems like there is no way to prepare for or hold out against.
It can seem that a raging forest fire is simply too large, too fierce, and too unpredictable to deal with. But I believe there are ways to reduce the threat, and make your home much safer. You can take decisive action before, during, and after a wildfire to preserve and protect what’s yours.
The first things you should consider are items you can work on before there is a fire event. Many of the things I will mention are detailed on www.firewise.org, which is a very well known and respected program the Federal Forest Service sponsored. I will duplicate some of their advice, but you should still check them out to see what else they have to offer. You might have seen on the news where an entire community is ravaged by a large fire, but certain homes remain untouched. It could seem that this is pure chance, or luck of the draw, but that isn’t completely true. There is a science to making your home more fire resistant. (I hesitate to say fire proof, because unfortunately, in extreme conditions, sometimes your best efforts might still be in vain.)
The first and primary step is to consider something called “defensible space.” How much of a break is there between the forest and undergrowth, and your home? If your home sits with rank vegetation chest high, all the way within 2 feet, then you are in more danger than someone with a manicured lawn out to the recommended 100 feet. Next, examine your home construction. If you have a wooden roof, what we used to call shaker shingles, then you will be much more flammable than a metal, or tile roof. But even a metal roof can be compromised by debris like pine needles, and leaf litter. If you have gutters, clean them out minimally yearly, right at the end of winter, and any time they fill with pine needles and burnable litter. Third, consider what else in the yard might carry fire. When you pick your landscaping, choose trees like Oaks over more flammable trees like Pines, and Palm trees. Even shrubs can make a huge difference. Many people love clumps of Saw Palmetto in their yard, but it is known to be high in volatile oils. Much better to have a similar looking plant like a Cycad, (Namia for example,) which is a lot less flammable. Also look at any vehicles you might be leaving behind, and don’t park them right against the house. If the boat or truck does catch fire, better to lose that one item than to have it impinge the whole home.
So, you have done your best with “before”. You hear that a large fire is growing downwind of your home. The house is prepped, your important papers are copied to a thumb drive. The car is packed. Even though the fire is not technically within sight, just the fact that it exists and is threatening means that your next actions are what I would call “during” the fire event. Now, I do not recommend that anyone ignore an evacuation order to take further preparation steps. But sometimes, you know the fire is coming, and have an hour or two left before you have to leave. Often in the western states, you may know days in advance. You must consider how easy to get away from your home it is. If you live on a narrow mountain road, overgrown with trees, leave early. You might have to move a downed limb, or go around an obstacle.
But if you do have time, use it calmly and wisely. Many times I see folks out spraying their yard or roof with water hoses to wet them down before the fire gets there.
Unfortunately, due to the extreme heat pushed ahead of a large fire, this doesn’t often do any good. The preheating from the fire, caused by hot dry winds, simply evaporates this water, and the fire does what it wants regardless. So what can you do that would have impact on the fire? First, be sure you have closed all the windows. Seal any openings that would let an ember get into your home. Next, look again at the yard. IF YOU HAVE TIME, and if it needs it, mow the yard again. This sounds silly, but consider this: Flame length is usually 2 to 3 times the height of what is burning. Since you have kept the woods themselves 100 feet away, is your grass tall?
Very short lawns may not carry a fire at all, but if they do, then the 1” grass should give up to a 3” flame. Or in unkempt lots, 2 foot grass will probably give a 6 foot flame. Which do you want licking the sides of your home, 3 inch flames or 6 foot flames? Next, continue focusing on the yard. If there is a propane grill, don’t leave it against your home. Move it out to the most bare clearing you can away from any vehicles. Leave the propane tank out of any building. (Firefighters will appreciate being able to see it and identify it as a hazard.) In fact, if you have flagging tape, tie some to the grill.
Finally, go back through the house, use a checklist to make sure you have everything you can not replace, and can transport. Now I listed a bunch of stuff to do, but most important is that you leave in time to get away easily. It might be prudent to send the family on ahead, and take care of those things you have time for, then follow them. Nothing in what I write is intended to tell you to stay when it is unsafe, or will become unsafe before you can get away. Follow any evacuation plans your local fire agency publishes.
Now the fire has gone. You are headed back into your home. What should you be doing? First, understand that wildfires can cause lingering hazards. Trees may fall completely, or just limbs might fall off of otherwise healthy trees. The baked soil might be loose and more likely to give way, so you might see rolling rocks, mudslides, or have banks give way that were safe before. This process can occur weeks and months after the fire has passed through.
As you begin cleaning the yard, be aware of any impacted trees, and go ahead and have them removed. A final consideration, light, flashy fuels can “reburn”. The fire moves very quickly across the surface of the fuel, but leave behind stuff that can still catch fire again later. Especially true of this are pine trees. Scorched needles will fall within a few days, and provide a blanket of burnable fuel on the ground.
So if you live in such an area, rake the needle drop away from your home and structures. And revisit the Firewise website I mentioned above. As you replace your plants, do it in a way that makes your home safer and safer.
Next time, I will speak to strategies if you are away from home, in the woods, and encounter a wildfire.
10 Herbs that Heal
When modern medicine is not available, or if you just choose to live a all natural self sufficient life style it’s important to know and understand what natural remedies out there can do for you. Medicinal Herbs have been in use for thousand of years and are renowned for their effectiveness. This is just the tip of the iceberg, we plan on covering natural healing, herbs, and natural medicine extensively. So stay tuned and visit the site often.
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Forty Knots You Should Know
These Forty Knots brought to you by the Boy Scouts of America. Always good to know how to tie the right knot for the right situation, and this is a great little knot guide! We suggest you bookmark the page, print it out, and or share it on your Facebook or Pinterest, etc.
Clear Canoe or Kayak – See the world below you
We thought these were really cool and had to share it with you guys. How neat would it be to have a clear kayak or clear canoe so that you can see the rocks, logs, fish, turtles, or even sharks below you?
This canoe-kayak hybrid has a transparent polymer hull (the material in jet-fighter cockpit canopies) that offers paddlers an underwater vista unavailable in conventional boats
Length – 11′ 1”
Width – 33.5”
Depth – 11”
Canoe Weight – 40 lbs.
Weight Capacity – 425 lbs. (2 person)
Hull Material – Lexan (Polycarbonate)
Price: Approx $1900 from Hammacher Schlemmer and other retailers
There are also a few other models out there like this Clear bottom Inflatable Kayak
Conquest Dyad
Deflated (Packed up in supplied carry/storage bag with seat) Circumference – 40″ Length – 30″ Inflated Length – 9′ 10″ Width – 34″ Depth – 13″ Kayak Weight – 27 lbs. Weight Capacity – 350 lbs. (1 person) Hull Material – 840 Denier Nylon & 40 Guage PVC Seat – Adjustable seat with back support, multiple bottle holders, fanny pack, gear pouch, & and fastener for a dive flag. $499 Or like this Transparent Kayak Length – 13′ Width – 22” Depth – 11” Kayak Weight – 26 lbs. Weight Capacity – 300 lbs. (1 person) Hull Material – Military grade urethane Frame – Carbon kevlar Seats – Closed cell thermoformed hi density foam Sticker shock Price: $4,124Real or Fake Honey? How to tell the difference
Did you know that more than 75% of the honey sold in U.S. grocery stores may not be real Honey? According to testing done exclusively for Food Safety News.
The results show that the pollen frequently has been filtered out of products labeled “honey.” The removal of the flower pollen would make the nectar flunk the quality standards set by most of the world’s food safety agencies. It’s not considered honey without pollen in it. Furthermore, this is often done so that one can not tell where it came from, even what region. Furthermore it’s heavily cut and diluted with cheap corn syrup and artificial sweeteners. Buy organic real honey from farms or sellers you know. Here’s some tips to figure out if it’s real or not.
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50 Amazing Money Saving tips & tricks
Most people are watching their dollars and working off a budget to make ends meet. Many are also now looking for natural alternatives to live a more wholesome and chemical free life. Following are a few ways in which you can have both of the above. These uses are becoming more prevalent and are easy to do it yourself. So, here are great easy uses for common household items to make your life more chemical free and your wallet a little fatter.
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1) Toothpaste: Buff a CD/DVD
Apply toothpaste to a cotton ball and wipe the disc. Wash with water afterwards and you’ve got a brand new disc!
2) Cornstarch: Untangle Knots
Sprinkling cornstarch into tough knots, such as shoe laces helps loosen them.
3) Walnut: Buff Dings out of Wood Furniture
Get rid of unsightly scratches and dings on wood furniture by rubbing a walnut on the areas. The blemishes will vanish quickly and your furniture and pocket book will be saved.
4) Club Soda: Make Your Breads Fluffier
When baking, where recipes call for water, add club soda instead to make pancakes, waffles and any other breads fluffier.
5) Salt: Keep Windows Frost Free
Pour a cup of salt into a liter of water. Sponge the liquid onto the inside of window to prevent frost from forming during the winter months.
6) Rubbing Alcohol: Remove Permanent Marker
Dab the surface that has the permanent marker on it with a cloth or cotton ball covered in rubbing alcohol to make it disappear quickly.
7) Chap stick: Stops Bleeding When Nicked Shaving
Cut yourself shaving? Just swipe some chap stick over the cut to stop that constant bleeding. No more tissue squares!
8) Apple Juice: Removes Dandruff
Don’t ask how it works, but it does! Instead of buying a special shampoo, just wash your hair in apple juice to rid your scalp of pesky dandruff.
9) Aspirin: Get Rid of Armpit Stains on T-Shirts
Grind up an aspirin tablet or two, then make a paste out of it using water, lemon or vinegar. Spread the paste on the stained area and let sit for an hour before washing.
10) Olive Oil: Make Pets’ Coat Shinier
Add a bit of olive oil to your pet’s food to give them a healthier, shinier coat of fur.
11) Newspapers: Clean Windows and Mirrors
Instead of using a spray and a streaky cloth, use only newspaper to clean off your mirrors and windows for a streak-free finish.
12) Baking Soda: Remove Bugs from Windshield
Mix baking soda with warm water to make a paste. Spread the paste over your windshield for fifteen minutes. Then wipe or spray off with a hose.
13) Bleach: Extend Life of Flowers in Vase
Add a few drops of bleach to vase water to prevent the build-up of the slime caused by bacteria. It works just like chlorine in a swimming pool.
14) Kitchen Dish Soap: Flea-Killing Dog Shampoo
Kitchen dish soap (not dish detergent) can double as dog shampoo for its flea killing abilities.
15) Coke: Remove Blood Stains from Clothing
Soak the stain in coke until the stain is dissolved, then wash the clothing as usual. Wash before the coke dries, though.
16) Honey: Remove Blemish Overnight
Have a blemish you need to get rid of by tomorrow? Put a dab of honey on the blemish and cover it up (it’s best to use a Band-Aid) and the honey’s natural antibacterial properties will clean out the bacteria by the morning.
17) Wax Paper: Clean Can Opener Gears
Run a few small strips of wax paper through the can opener to clean out of the bits and pieces that have built up in the gears throughout the year. The wax will also rub off on the gears to protect for future use as well.
18) WD-40: Remove Crayons from Walls
Use the lubricant and a cloth to remove stubborn crayon marks from the walls just by spraying the wall and wiping with a cloth.
19) Chalk: Keep Ants and Slugs Out of the House
Ants and Slugs Won’t Touch Chalk. So, simply draw a line in front of your doorway where you are having problems with these pesky critters and they won’t cross it, meaning they won’t be able to get into your house.
20) Vinegar: Kills Weeds and Helps Flowers Grow
Vinegar is a magic wonder when it comes to gardening. It not only kills weeds but they help flowers grow as well. Douse vinegar all around your garden to prevent weeds from popping up and to help your flowers to grow healthy and strong.
21) Mayonnaise: Remove Bumper Sticker
Spread mayonnaise on the bumper sticker and let sit for at least thirty minutes. Then, rub the sticker off with a towel, leaving a clean bumper!
22) Tin Foil Ball: Replace Dryer Sheets Permanently
Instead of using a dryer sheet ball up one or a few sheets of tin foil and toss it in the dryer. It removes the static electricity from your clothes and one can last up to a year.
23) Banana Peel: Polish Leather Shoes
Use the inside of a banana peel to give shoes a professional and natural shine that will last for quite some time.
24) Mouthwash: Cure Athlete’s Foot
Pour mouthwash on cotton balls and then swab your feet. The alcohol will disinfect the bacteria completely if you continue this for a week or so.
25) Baking Soda: Clean BBQ Grill
Mix a cup of baking soda with half a cup water to make a paste. Dip your brush into the paste and scrub the grill. The caked on pieces and black residue will come off much quicker and using baking soda is much safer and cheaper than using cleaning chemicals.
26) Coffee Grounds: Fertilizer
Coffee is full of nutrients and vitamins that are very beneficial to soil. That’s why some people include it in compost piles. If you want to get the most out of your coffee, pour the grounds on areas where you want more grass or flowers.
27) Olive Oil: Shaving Cream
The smoothness of the oil can replace the need for shaving cream, and it also provides great moisture.
28) Dryer Sheets: Gets Rid of Static Electricity
Use dryer sheets to remove static electricity from things such as clothing, TV screens or your own hair. Tame fly away strands by running a dryer sheet over them.
29) Freezer: Freeze Candles to Make Them Last Longer
Put candles in the freezer for at least 2 hours before using. Once you burn them, the wax will melt at a much slower pace, making them last much longer!
30) Two glasses of water: Cure Headache
Water is the cure to most common headaches. To make the headache go away quickly, drink two cups of water very quickly.
31) Lemons: Deodorize Garbage Disposal
Toss whole slices of lemon into the garbage disposal then run it. The acidity of the lemon will rid your sink of all odors and leave a fresh scent that usually lasts for a few months.
32) Alka Seltzer: Remove Burnt-On Grease and Food Stains
When letting your pots and pans soak, throw in one or two Alka Seltzer tablets and the caked on residue from cooking will come off easily when you scrub/wash.
33) Apple Cider Vinegar: Relieve Diarrhea
Mix two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar into eight ounces of water to soothe your stomach. The taste may not be the greatest, but the antibacterial properties of the vinegar will end the unpleasantness of the bowel problems.
34) Toothpaste: Remove Scratches from Glass
Apply toothpaste to scratch, then rub with a cloth until the scratch is gone. Make sure the glass is clean beforehand.
35) Cheerios: Relieve Pain from Poison Ivy, Chickenpox and Sunburns
Pound one to four cups of Cheerios into a powder and add to your bath to soothe your skin while you soak. You may not feel relief while in the tub, but you will soon after.
36) Buttons: Sort Earrings
Organize your earrings and prevent them from becoming entangled by using spare buttons as holders for each pair.
37) Corn Oil: Prevent Hairballs for Pets
Add a few drops of corn oil to your pets’ food to prevent hairballs from forming. The thick oil helps the fur pass through the animal’s system much quicker and easily.
38) Whipped Cream: Remove Gum from Hair
There are many remedies for removing gum from hair, but this is a lesser known one. Give it a try rather than peanut butter the next time you’re in need.
39) Coke: Remove Oil Stains from the Driveway
Oil stains are very difficult to remove pavement, but one method guaranteed to work is Coke. The highly acidic drink will eat away at the oil until clean.
40) Brown Sugar: Facial Scrub
A scrub is good to do about once a month to remove dead skin and bacteria built up in pores and remove excess oil from the skin. Brown sugar does just as well as expensive products and will definitely result in a clearer and smoother complexion.
41) Dryer Sheet: Lint Brush
You already know that dryer sheets remove lint in the dryer. Well, it can do the same thing out of the dryer, too. When you’re in a fix, use a dryer sheet. It works just as well as a lint brush, and if you like the scent, it’s an added bonus.
42) Newspaper: Deodorize food containers and Food Drawers in the Refrigerator
For that stinky Tupperware or smelly refrigerator drawer that is too much to deal with, toss in a sheet of newspaper overnight before you deal with it. The paper will absorb the smell greatly reducing it or eliminating it completely.
43) Olive Oil: Unstick a Zipper
The oil will help the zipper slide more easily, fixing the problem!
44) Salt: Cool Something Quickly
You know that feeling when you’re having a BBQ and someone asks for a drink and you realize that no one has put them in the cooler? There’s nothing worse than a warm drink on a hot day. Chill a drink quickly, by adding salt and water to your ice. The drinks will be cold in a matter of minutes; saving your party and making you look smart all at once.
45) Scotch Tape: Prevent Wall from Chipping When Nailing
The wall can leave unsightly chips when hammering in a nail. Prevent this by simply placing a piece of scotch tape over the area you’re going to nail. The wall will be held tighter, preventing chips from occurring.
46) Alka Seltzer: Soothe Insect Bites
Dissolve two tablets into a glass of water. Then use a cloth or cotton ball to apply it to the affected area. The red will go down and most importantly, the itchiness will vanish usually in fifteen minutes.
47) Lemon: Whitens Whites
Add about half a cup of lemon juice to your load of whites to makes them extra white. You can use lemon juice with bleach or detergent, so don’t worry about mixing chemicals with the acidic lemon.
48) Banana Peel: Whiten Teeth
This may sound a little odd, but rub the inside of a banana peel on your teeth twice a day for two weeks and you will receive the same effect from a teeth-whitening kit. Plus, you’ll save yourself money and the hassle of using chemicals.
49) Hair Dryer: Free Photos Stuck on Pages
If you have a photo stuck on a page that you can’t get free, try using a blow dryer on the back of the page. It will loosen the photo from the page and the adhesive holding it there.
50) Banana Peel: Heal Most Skin Problems
Bananas are the magical fruit, because they heal many common problems on the skin. By rubbing the peel on your skin, you can heal bruises and cuts and eliminate rashes, itching and warts. Basically if you have a common skin problem, it can be cured by this fruit.
Stick Fish Traps
This is a great old Native American fish trapping technique. It’s best used in tidal waters rivers or creeks.
The concept is to funnel finish into an area where it’s hard for them to find the way back out, it’s the same concept behind a minnow trap or soda bottle funnel trap
Drive stakes side by side into the bottom in shallow water to create a square or fenced in area of sorts in the water. Make sure the open end of the funnel is on the downstream side where the water is being forced into the opening. Other materials can be used to construct this trap such as rocks, but this is the most effective and allows for building it in slightly deeper water. One trick is to build it starting at one side of the bank and extending out using trhe side of the bank as a barrier and forcing fish towards your trap
It’s a great and simple trap that allows you to catch the fish by hand or spear them once they are in your trap. You’ll be amazed at how effective this survival fish trap really is, even small ones work pretty well.
Horno Oven
A mud-brick oven, or horno, is a great way to bake things while in a primitive living situation. It also offers a nice solution for bringing fire into the shelter. A fire is built withing the oven. The bricks or rocks heat up and retain the heat for hours. A few pies or two pizzas can be made in a properly heated horno (in this hungry camper’s experience). By heating the oven, the shelter may be heated for quite a while without the risk of smoke exposure through the night. Just heat the oven and let it burn out.
First, lay the foundation with scavenged bricks or stone
Leaving space for a door, start building the horno up in beehive shape.
Create the doorway
Build the rocks up
And leave a hole in the top for the fire to breathe and to feed fuel through.
Fit the door onto the opening
Fill in all the spaces with mud and clay. This will seal the oven and prevent heat from escaping
Firing the oven will help the mud and clay dry faster and allow the finding of any holes in the mud layer as smoke will billow out.
Get a roaring fire going for about forty-five minutes to an hour and the oven will be ready to bake a few items at least. Covering the smoke hole with a rock after firing will allow retention of more heat. Be sure to seal up the door when cooking.
Any number of methods are employed to cook with this oven. Some cultures scrape out the coals and cook with the radiating heat, other cultures will cook using both the coals and the radiant heat.