One’s home is meant to be a castle – a realm over which the resident is dominant. But have you considered the benefits of securing your home with simple measures to make life easier. Let’s get started on some basic preps that will make home happier, healthier and safer.
1) The Generator. Men since the dawn of the electric age have bemoaned the loss of power that accompanies severe storms. Away goes the lights, television and conveniences of modern times and we grumble. I recall the horror I felt during my first hurricane when I realized I would not be able to watch my favorite television shows. We were not savages. Why was it that this storm demanded we behave like savages?
And then I heard about the magical marvel known as the personal home generator. The commercials for them were nea constant after the storm passed. I bet the sales of those portable generators tripled for Christmas that year. Husbands decided that they wanted power, no matter what and they would have it. And while the vast majority of those generators idled and did not get used with any consistency in the years that followed, they are the fundamental essential of home based survival preps.
First they keep the refrigerator and freezer going. That keeps food and water safe to eat and drink. Secondly, they keep food prep sanitary. Electric cook tops and microwave and conventional ovens use power. You might have a gas range or even a gas oven, but even they benefit from electricity to regulate temperatures and even spark the pilot. And even then, if your electricity has been disrupted, chances are good your gas lines could soon be compromised as well. Finally, they can contribute to good hygiene by keeping the hot water hot for showers, baths and clothes washing. So getting a generator is a good start to a disaster safe home.
2) Alternate power sources. The generator is the gold standard, but the presence of solar, wind or battery stored power allows the home to have redundant sources of energy. In windy and sunny climates, solar and wind turbine power can be effective accessories for the disaster ready home. Likewise, fuel cells that can be powered off the grid and store juice for when the grid collapses, give you more than just one option when it comes to keeping the lights on.
3) A fuel tank. The best generators run on liquefied petroleum gas (or propane). Some will run on regular gasoline, but like the combustion engines in your car, they need a steady source of fuel and can produce unhealthful emissions, like carbon monoxide. So let’s stick with the generators that run on LPG. And if you are looking to make sure that your gas range will run in an emergency and that your generator will be fully fueled throughout the crisis, you need to spend the money to sink an emergency fuel tank in the ground to provide you with the storage capabilities for a few months worth of fuel.
4) Sew what’s new. Few people think about this, but a major disruption to supply chains could result in clothing shortages. A simple solution is to stockpile patterns and fabric to give you options for clothes when others do not have them. The other essentials you need are a sewing machine and the time to practice your skills. We take clothes for granted because it is so easy to obtain new threads whenever we want them, but emergencies are just that and if we need new attire, we may need to provide our own. As an added bonus, if you are thinking of growing your own food, consider raising sheep for the wool. With some low-tech tools like spinning wheels and looms, you can make your own fabric as well. That’s the ultimate in sustainable attire.
5) The duster. This is the perfect coat for an emergency. First it allows you to carry a lot and distribute the weight all over your body. Second, it provides good concealment of what you are carrying. Remember from chapter one. We are going out armed. Sometimes it’s good to advertise our lethality. But it’s far better to keep things hidden from view so we can move undisturbed through potentially dangerous territory. A duster has the added bonus of providing a basis for shelter. Suspend it tightly above you and you have cover and the ability to capture body heat while still allowing airflow. Under you it can keep you insulated from cold ground. Finally, it can be a blanket. You have all of these in your bug out bag, but it never hurts to have redundancy. That’s what keeps you alive in disaster.