General Preparedness | Prepared Christian

Paracord; The King of Cordage

October 1, 2012 by Chris Ray

Make sure you see the end of this article to see how one of Prepared Christians sponsors, Camping Survival, is spreading some Paracord love with a discount and some free paracord for me to give away.

Paracord or parachute cord, or 550-cord is rope that is as useful as duct tape and something that I think belongs in every home, if not every kit.

What exactly is it and what makes it the king of cordage? Paracord is a nylon rope that first saw use in parachutes in World War II. It is made from seven two-ply threads shielded in an outer nylon jacket. Paracord has a tensile strength of 550 lbs., hence the name 550-cord. If needed, you can put two sections together, doubling the weight limit. Its diameter is only 1/8”. Paracord is also mildew and rot resistant, aiding to its versatility.

Now that you know what it is, what is it good for?

Bracelets

Either worn to make a fashion statement or as a means to always have some paracord close by. Many people braid their own bracelets, but you can buy them online as well.

Belts

This is another option to make sure you always have some cordage nearby. I also think that this is a perfectly acceptable reason to gain some weight. You see, if you gain enough you’ll need new bigger pants, which will mean more paracord to keep them up!

Lanyards

This is a great way to have a small section with you. I carry one attached to my keychain. Sure it’s not a very long piece, but enough to tie someone’s hands together if needed or to make a bow drill.

Start a fire

Paracord is perfect for using as part of a bow drill.

Dog Collars and Leashes

Can’t find a leash the right length or the right color? Paracord is your solution!

Fishing and Trapping

You can pull out the strands and use one as fishing line. You can also use paracord to make snares for small game.

Handle Coverings

I have seen some people wrap paracord around the handle of straight edge knives. I have also seen it wrapped around the handle of walking sticks.

In the Field

There are so many things it could be used for on a hike or while camping that I wouldn’t be able to list them all. Here are a few: Busted shoelace, broken backpack strap, a splint for a broken limb, temporary shelters (would work great with tarps), emergency stretcher, guide rope, babysitter (haha) and hoisting a cooler to keep it away from bears.

Camping Survival

Camping Survival is one of the leading paracord vendors in the market. In fact, I purchased a 1000’ spool from them years before I started this site. Their selection is almost unmatched. They have a wide variety of lengths and colors available. They also have some premade paracord bracelets and other items as well.

Special Pricing!

Camping Survival is currently having a sale on all ROTHCO brand paracord for 15% off, but they have offered a 5% discount on all other paracord to the readers of Prepared Christian. For the 5% discount, just use the code preparedchristian at checkout.

Free Paracord!

To help celebrate the goodness that is paracord, Camping Survival has given me three 100’ sections to give away. To enter, either send an email to Chris (at) preparedchristian (dot) net, with the subject line of “paracord contest” or fill out the form below. Only one entry per person please, (I’ll just delete multiple entries). Winners will have to provide your mailing address, which I will delete after I send the paracord.

Update! I initially forgot to mention that I will select 3 random winners on Monday October 8th.

Final thoughts

Cordage is one thing that is difficult to make do without when you need it. Sure, it’s possible to make from other things such as yucca plant for example, but it is just not as good as even a regular rope. Paracord is so lightweight, strong, versatile and durable that I just can’t see a good reason not to have some in your kits. And with the discounted prices, their availability and variety, I can’t see any reason not purchase it from Camping Survival. I want to thank them for supporting Prepared Christian and you the readers with this give away as well as the discounted price.

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Filed Under: General Preparedness Tagged With: gear

Building a Preparedness Based Community

September 17, 2012 by Chris Ray

I’d like your input on today’s topic. If you have any thoughts, please post them or email them to me at chrisATpreparedchristian.net.

I was recently having a conversation with a friend and fellow Prepper. He mentioned that he has had thoughts of four or so Prepper families moving to adjacent land and building a small community. He said he looks around the neighborhood he lives in now and everyone has a riding lawnmower, a snow blower and miscellaneous other expensive items that could easily be shared amongst a community that was closer knit. He then went on to say that if someone had an area they were gifted in, they could share that gift with the entire group. For example, if someone was good with gardening, they could manage either a community garden, or one for each family. They could also teach the other members. The same could be said for home repair or any other gifted area.

This wouldn’t be a socialist community, where all wealth is communal or anything like that. I wrote about Mutual Aid Groups in the article “What is a MAG?”. A MAG is essentially a group of people who agree to band together to aid one another, sharing workload and resources if needed. This preparedness community would the MAG a step or two further. In most MAG’s, households don’t live adjacent to one another. They have an agreement on where to meet when things go sideways.

In “What is a MAG?” I mentioned that a unique twist on the MAG would be having it built entirely of Christians, following the book of Acts as a model. In Acts, everyone shared their wealth and donated it to the movement, which then met all of their physical needs. As I mentioned, I don’t think that would need to be a part of the preparedness community.

This preparedness community could work with any group that agreed on some ground rules, but one of the advantages of having the group of Christians would be the bond of Christ. Conflicts could be resolved much faster going vertical when strife arose, bringing the problem before God and getting out of the horizontal. Being angry and frustrated with the other party would be greatly lessened. As I mention in “What is a MAG?”, we’re given a model to use for conflict in the church Mathew 18:15-17. This could be adapted to the group.

“”If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over.

But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.

If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector.”

For this to work I think it would need to be a handpicked (preferably by the Lord) group of people. I think it would be necessary to enjoy one another beforehand and be willing to put the community before oneself at times. For example, I have a neighbor who has a recording studio in his home. He frequently has his music up so loud I can hear it as if he was playing in my kitchen. The neighbor on the other side has a doggy door for their little dog. The dog goes in and out freely. The problem here is that when they go to work, he spends several hours outside barking nonstop. I work from home and actually had to get a white noise machine to drown him out. There are reasons that I won’t go into for not having made a complaint. My point is that there would need to be bonds within the group. If I know my neighbor is enduring a hardship, the formed community could surround them and help them with whatever is necessary. Growing old and retiring surrounded by a group like this sounds perfect to me! Forget those retirement homes!

There would need to be some ground rules. Here are a few that have come to mind:

Everyone must own their own land. I think one person buying the land and letting the others put up a house on it is just asking for trouble. If everyone pools their resources and purchases a large acreage, it could be subdivided.
What you do on your land is your business, unless it is a danger to the community.
No doggy doors or recording studios!
If there are shared items, such as a riding lawn mower, boat, snow blower or anything else, all expenses need to be shared. A schedule for use might also need to be established.
I think a basic level of preparedness should be required. It shouldn’t be cumbersome, but knowing that everyone can provide for their family for three months or more would give the entire group peace of mind.

I have given this a lot of thought and see many upsides, with everyone agreeing that there would either be permaculture encompassing the entirety of all properties or different things grown on each property and shared amongst the group. Each household could have a CB to maintain communication. This could be very useful for security as well. If there was a need to defend the community, there are three other families to help. If there is any livestock, neighbors could be counted on to take care of them while the owners are away. The bond that could be built surrounding this community could be awesome. Let’s say one of the families can’t move completely but want to buy the land and treat it as their BOL (Bug Out Location). There would be other people to watch over their property.

There are also some downsides. How do you handle it if one family decides they want to move? Finding a piece of land that everyone agrees on could be difficult. I’m sure there are more, but I think if this is approached with much prayer, asking for the right people to be shown, and all of the ground rules accepted ahead of time, many potential obstacles can be avoided.

I mentioned earlier that I would like your input, so here are a couple questions for you:

Is this something you would consider? For me the answer is possibly, unless I knew the Lord was prompting me. If that were the case, there would be no question.
Would you be willing to relocate to another state? For myself, if it was the right piece of property at the right price, it’s not out of the question.
What are some of the ways you could meet others with whom you might be interested in taking part in this community? I know one couple from church that I wouldn’t even question and a couple others that might be potentials. One of the things I plan on doing for the site is starting a forum. I just need to set it up. This could be a great way for you to connect with one another.
What are some other upsides, potential downsides and ground rules you think should be in place?

If you have thoughts on this subject and are willing to post them in the comments, please do. If you would rather send an e-mail, that’s fine as well.

Filed Under: General Preparedness Tagged With: community

Introducing the Prepared Christian Link Library

August 27, 2012 by Chris Ray

One of the projects I mentioned I have been working on is making a Link Library of sorts. These are mostly PDF files that I have come across while researching preparedness. There is a wide variety of subjects, so to make is somewhat comprehensible the main page will be called Link Library and, as you can see, is visible from the top tool bar. From there, you will have a multitude of preparedness related topics. Inside those topics, will either be a sub list, or just a list of PDF files.

I chose to go with PDF files so that you could download and save them as well as print them if you like. I have (for the most part) avoided adding webpages so far, as I wanted to target specific topics. There are some instances where there is a webpage dedicated to gardening and the entire website is worthwhile. In those times I have linked the site.

The reason I created this Link Library is so that if someone decided to research how to plant a garden in a small area, or learn to use a chainsaw, or how to build an impromptu shelter, they can come here and might just find what they are looking for. You can also look through the Link Library and find a subject you had not considered before.

I would love for all of you to help build this list, but there are some things we have to be careful of; mainly copyright infringement. There are some preparedness sites out there hosting a wide variety of files, some very helpful, but not all of their content is within the law. If the author wanted to, those site owners would have a very expensive journey ahead of them. There are actually lawyers looking for sites like this, then contacting the author and trying to get a job.

I always try to link directly to the original PDF, instead of downloading it to my site. There were some cases where I had to download it to my site as there wasn’t a good source for the information. In these cases it was usually a government FEMA type document that wasn’t under the same type of copyright as some of the other material.

So.,if you have a PDF, or a topic that you would like to add to the Link Library, please post it in the comment section of the page you think it should belong. Please post the title and the URL, if the link is acceptable I will add it to the Link Library. If I don’t add it you can inquire why, but I will be deleting comments once the link is decided upon, to keep the comment area manageable.

If you have a topic but don’t know how to find a PDF for it, you can go to Google. For this example, I want to research generators. In the search tab I would type “generators filetype:pdf” without the quotation marks.

All of the links worked at the time of this posting. If you find a broken one, please let me know and I will find a new one.

I hope you all find some of this information as valuable and interesting as I have. Enjoy!

Filed Under: General Preparedness

Money and the future of the American Economy

August 20, 2012 by Chris Ray

I’ve said before that I’m a novice when it comes to economics, but even a novice can see that our economy is and has been in trouble. So what do we do? I don’t mean “we” as a country, I mean “we” as Prepper’s, what do we do?

I don’t claim to have all the answer’s but here are some things that I think are a good idea.

Get out of Debt

Kill it, throw every extra cent you have at it, make it go away as fast as possible. It is stealing from your future. If you’re in debt and serious about getting out of it, there are many different methods of doing so. One I have found, that is actually offered as a ministry at my church is Crown Financial Ministries. They take a Biblical approach, giving to God what is His, showing you how to be good stewards with the rest.

Precious Metals

If you’re new to precious metals, I wrote a two part series called Primer for Precious Metals (Part One and Part Two. I really think people should be investing in precious metals. I think silver has much more of an up-side right now. So far, I have stuck to one ounce silver eagles, but am really looking at “junk” pre-1965 coins. Just be sure to stick to under $500 so it’s not reportable to the IRS. As the dollar continues to slide, I think people will turn to gold and silver for barter. In fact, while at a gun show last weekend, I noticed a booth selling AR-15’s and accessories with a sign that said they would take gold as payment.

Invest in Lead, Specifically Copper Jacketed Lead
I think prices are going to rise and availability is going to be more scarce than it was after the President was elected, especially if he gets re-elected.

Buy Second Hand

Make use of garage sales, Craig’s List or FreeCycle, The Salvation Army or any other place that sells used goods. Do a search for “barter networks” and you’ll find all kinds of ways to barter and trade your goods or services for others.

Prepare Now

I don’t think we’ll see an economic collapse that happens overnight where the banks are just closed. I think we’re already in the midst of a slow decline. Our dollar still holds value and will continue to, only less and less as time goes on. If you have any purchases that you have been putting off, I say “if you can afford it, now might be the time to get it, without going into debt”.

Shop Farmers Markets

If you have a farmer’s market near you, it’s a great way to get fresh produce as well as enough to preserve for future use. Some of these people might be willing to barter labor for food.

Closing Thoughts

The pain is coming and it’s unavoidable. The only questions are “when?” and “how much?”. The good thing about all of the items I mention, is that whether it’s six months or six years, you’re taking steps to increase your financial preparedness.

Filed Under: Finance, General Preparedness

Knowledge Skills and Gear – The Preparedness Hierarchy

August 8, 2012 by Chris Ray

Knowledge Skills and Gear – The Preparedness Hierarchy and how they build off of each other

When someone begins their preparedness journey, there is a tendency to want to acquire supplies and gear quickly. I think it gives us that sense of security like a blanket does a child; something tangible we can put our hands on.

But I believe there is a hierarchy that exists. It looks like this; knowledge, then skills and then gear. Knowledge includes mind set as well as actual learning, in my opinion. If you use a different hierarchy, you could still have success but I don’t think you’ll have as much success or attain it as quickly.

For an example; having become aware of the fact that the crime rate around me is rising and I have no real way to protect my family, the first thing that engaged was my mind. I changed my mindset on home defense. When I became a prepper I was a firearm novice. I took a First Shots class and a hunter safety class with the kids.

Now it was time to make a purchase. I wanted something I could conceal and carry, as well as for home defense use. While a handgun isn’t the optimal gun for home defense, for the reasons listed above it’s what I bought first. I researched caliber and brand and then I went to a few different stores and pawn shops that sold firearms. I wanted to put my hands on them, find something I liked the feel of. I found a few that I wanted to shoot and went to a range that rents guns to fire each one.

You might have noticed that I went right from knowledge to gear, but this is one of those occasions when you have to have the gear to build the skill. It is still the skill that is more important than the gear. Without the skill and training to use the firearm correctly, sure I could fire it but not fire it effectively.

I eventually decided on a Glock 19 as did my wife. We took a training course and learned proper stance, grip, trigger control and many other things. We became members at a local range after our training and practiced quite a bit. Neither of us are crack shots, but both are fully capable of hitting center mass of a man sized target at self-defense range.

Knowledge produces skill, which makes gear effective.

A recent project:

One of the traits of Asperger’s Syndrome is the ability to become fixated on something; learning as much as you possibly can about the subject, to the point where some might think you’re a little odd (or a lot odd depending on the subject). For me, that subject is preparedness. Over the last six or seven years I have amassed a large collection of bookmarks on various subjects related to preparedness. I am in the process of going through and making sure the links are still good, with the eventual goal of posting a link library. I want most of them to be in PDF form. That way if you want to save the file on your local PC or print the document you can. However there will be some sites that are listed because the information on the entire site is so good.

Once I post it, I would also like you to help fill in this library with links to PDF’s and sites that you find very helpful. I’d like to ask you to post these links in the comments section. Because knowledge is so important and there is so much to learn about preparedness, the end goal is that if there is an area in preparedness you want to learn about, you can come to this link library to find sites that have been vetted by fellow readers. I hope to have this library ready next week, but there are a lot of links left to check, so don’t hold me to it.

There are some criteria for posting links, they cannot be copyrighted, or if they are, they must be available to the public domain. There are some really great articles on some sites that I know are just a section from another document, I am not going to post those as I cannot prove copyright. I’ll post more when I actually get the Link Library up.

Filed Under: General Preparedness, Mind Set, Preparedness Tips

Options for Emergency Radio Communication

August 6, 2012 by Chris Ray

In any type of emergency or survival situation, information is one of the most essential commodities. Whether you want to make contact with a loved one to ensure their safety, or just get news from an outside source to find out what is going on, in an emergency, information can be worth more than gold. But in some scenarios, such as the blackout we saw recently on the east coast, most modern means of communication are not available. In a wide spread blackout, grid down scenario, the Internet and TV might both be offline, especially local stations. While they may have a generator to provide some backup power, will they have enough to run 24/7 for days?

There is one medium that has been used for decades to provide entertainment and information; the radio.

There are many different types of radio, so today I want to cover some general information about radio communication and cover some of the different types of radios.

Range

Range varies greatly between different types of radios but one limitation that all types of radios have is range. Some types of radios will be impacted by man-made structures such as buildings and houses, but can also be impacted your terrain. Other radios will just be limited by range and the curvature of the earth. Range can be increased on some radios by adding an antennae or a repeater; the bigger the antennae the further you can “reach out and touch someone.” MURS-Radio has an article on range, that goes much deeper in explaining range and its limitations.

Types of Radios

Short Range

Family Radio Service (FRS)

From the FCC:

“The Family Radio Service (FRS) is in the 462 – 467 MHz spectrum range. The most common use for FRS spectrum is short-distance, two-way communications using small, portable hand-held devices that function similar to walkie-talkies.”

This is the type of radio is the one I have the most experience with. I own and reviewed Motorola T5320. You will often see this type of radio advertised as having a range of 30 miles. In my experience you will see nothing even remotely close to this. In a suburban setting you might be able to maintain clear communication for a few blocks. In a wide open flat area, you could probably have clear communication for a mile or possibly two. There is no license required to operate an FRS radio.

General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS)

From the FCC:

“The General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS) is in the 462 – 467 MHz spectrum range. The most common use of GMRS spectrum is short-distance, two-way communications using small, portable hand-held devices that function similar to walkie-talkies.”

Very similar to the FRS with one exception that, for now, a license is required to operate a GMRS radio. The license is good for five years and covers every family member or employee if purchased for business use. There are eight exclusive GMRS channels and seven shared with FRS. A reason one might want to use a GMRS over an FRS is that, according to the FCC:

“A GMRS system consists of station operators, a mobile station (often comprised of several mobile units) and sometimes one or more land stations. A small base station is one that has an antenna no more than 20 feet above the ground or above the tree on which it is mounted and transmits with no more than 5 watts ERP.
None of the GMRS channels are assigned for the exclusive use of any system. You must cooperate in the selection and use of the channels in order to make the most effective use of them and to reduce the possibility of interference.
You can expect a communications range of five to twenty-five miles. You cannot make a telephone call with a GMRS device.”

What I am taking away from the above statements is that if you have a small base station with an antenna, you could achieve a range of 5-25 miles.

GMRS/FRS Hybrid

There have been numerous hybrids developed. These hybrids have a total of 22 channels instead of the 15 on a GMRS. It is up to the purchaser to know and understand how to use the hybrid, as a license would still be required for transmitting on the GMRS bands.

MURS-Radio.com

Similar to the FRS and GMRS in use, the MURS does not require a license to operate. I know from the The Survival Podcast, that Jack Spirko uses a MURS and has said that you can have a base station and set up motion detection that will alert on the base station that there was movement in that sector. MURS-Radio.com is a great source of information on MURS and other types of radios.

Citizens Band (CB)

CB’s function much like the other types of radios, though no license is required to operate them. The range of a CB is roughly five miles. This can be increased with a larger antenna. According to the FCC:

• “There are no height restrictions for antennas mounted on vehicles or for hand-held devices.

• For structures, the highest point of your antenna must not be more than 20 feet above the highest point of the building or tree on which it is mounted, or 60 feet above the ground.

• You may use an on-the-air pseudonym (“handle”) of your choosing.”

I just got a little nostalgic, thinking of all the handles from the 80’s TV shows I used to watch.

Long Range

To this point all of the radios have been fairly short range. Some could be extended with repeaters or antenna, but are still fairly short range. Now I’ll cover some long range radios that can reach globally.

Shortwave Radio

Shortwave radio makes use of the higher end of the AM radio range. It has the ability to bounce its signal off of the ionosphere, which allows the transmission to go great distances around the world. A license is generally required but there are many “pirate stations”, such as the one from the movie “Pump Up the Volume” from 1990. Shortwave radio is often used by Evangelists to spread the Word to far reaching areas of the world. There is no license required to listen to shortwave.

HAM (Amateur Radio)

From the FCC
“The FCC established amateur radio as a voluntary, non-commercial, radio communications service. It allows licensed operators to improve their communications and technical skills, while providing the nation with a pool of trained radio operators and technicians who can provide essential communications during emergencies.”

As mentioned, HAM Radio is often used in emergency situations to broadcast information quickly over long distances. My wife and I are trained storm spotters (not chasers) and when we went through the training they were looking for HAM operators.

There is often some confusion when it comes to HAM radio. A license is required to broadcast but not to listen. Often a HAM setup will contain a desk full of equipment and a large antenna, but there are also portable HAM radios that have only the ability to receive as well as some that can transmit.
There are various levels of HAM licensing. The ARRL (American Radio Relay League) is a fantastic resource for information on all things related to HAM radio. They even have some online classes you can purchase to help you prepare for your HAM exam. You can find some free sample exams/questions online at other sites as well. The site the FCC set up for Amateur Radio Services also has some good information.

Cell Phone

Did you know that your cell Phone is essentially a radio? One good thing to know is that when the cell towers are overloaded, which happens in emergency situations, a text, which requires much less bandwidth, can still be transmitted. I also know someone who goes to very remote places to hunt. While he can’t get cell service to make a call, he can send a text most of the time.

Final Thoughts

If your main concern is staying in touch with your family close to home, then find the short range option that suites your needs and fits your budget. I personally don’t care for FRS and if we upgrade it will probably be to MURS.

However, if you have concerns about being able to communicate over a long distance of 25+ miles or more, you will want to look into getting your HAM license. If you have concerns about getting information when other mediums have stopped working, were shut down, or the information that is dispersed is “being handled”, you might want to look at a shortwave radio or a HAM that can at least receive. If you want to transmit, of course you’ll need a radio capable of transmitting and a license. My thinking with this is; it has been proven by other countries that the Internet can be shut down. Television and local radio can be easily shut down as well. Cell service is also quite easy to stop.

HAM radio is not encrypted. Anything that is said can be heard by anyone listening. As a part of keeping with the FCC guidelines, you must give your call sign every so often. There are databases on-line that you can search for call signs to find the location of where that person lives.

If all you want is to get information that isn’t “being handled”, then you only need to listen. HAM and shortwave cannot be easily stopped. That is part of why they are so popular and are often used by Evangelists to spread the Word in countries that are not pro-Christian.

For some of you that are more rural, setting everyone up with a CB or other type of radio might be a good idea. This would allow communication independent of phone lines.

While I don’t have my HAM license, it is something I would eventually like to have. What are your plans for emergency communication?

Filed Under: General Preparedness Tagged With: gear

Introducing the eBook Why Should I Prepare and is it Biblical?

July 30, 2012 by Chris Ray

I’m excited about releasing my first eBook today, called “Why Should I Prepare and is it Biblical?”. It’s a free gift to anyone who signs up for updates via email. Those of you who are already subscribers, thank you so much for subscribing previously. You should have received an email containing the link to the download page. If you subscribe to the RSS feed and would like a copy, send an email via the contact page, letting me know you would like the link and I’ll send it to you.

This eBook explores some of the rational reasons I believe we should prepare, from the economy to natural disasters. The second half of the eBook explores some of the questions my wife and I had when we began to explore preparedness, such as “Is it a sin?” and “Does it show a lack of faith?” I also cover the verses I have found where God clearly tells us it is prudent and our duty to be prepared to care for our loved ones.

This eBook is free. Please feel free to share it with anyone you feel may be blessed by it and/or benefit from it. I simply ask that you not modify it in any way. If you send it to someone new or to someone who is on the fence about preparedness, I also link to the Getting Started to give them some first steps.

I have become a better (or possibly just lengthier) writer since I first posted “Is Preparedness A Sin?” and ”Scripture Related To Preparedness”. I have updated those articles with the text from the eBook.

To those of you who sign up for updates, thank you. I hope you enjoy the eBook as much as I enjoyed writing it.

May God bless you all,

Chris

Filed Under: Christian World View, General Preparedness, Getting Started

Expiration Dates; Fact or Fiction?

July 11, 2012 by Chris Ray

We are a consumer based society that has been trained to believe the “expiration”, “best used by” or the “you’ll die if you use after this date” are firm dates that mean the product is no longer usable. Marketers have figured out that one great way to get continuous repeat business is to train us to pay a lot of attention to those dates and throw the product out after that date has passed. Am I saying that all expiration dates can just be ignored? Of course not, but I have literally seen expiration dates on paper and plastic goods.

It’s impossible for me to cover all types of products, so I am just going to touch on a few that I think might be popular or important. There are some pretty standard storage rules that will increase the life of just about everything. Keep your items in a cool, dark and dry area.

Staples

Wheat, sugar, honey, salt and so on. I have a pretty extensive list of staples., and here is a link showing you how to store them long term. Many of these items will last 25+ years. Some, such as honey, will store indefinitely, when stored correctly.

Canned Food

From Food Reference.com “Canned food has a shelf life of at least two years from the date of processing. Canned food retains its safety and nutritional value well beyond two years, but it may have some variation in quality, such as a change of color and texture. Canning is a high-heat process that renders the food commercially sterile. Food safety is not an issue in products kept on the shelf or in the pantry for long periods of time. In fact, canned food has an almost indefinite shelf life at moderate temperatures (75° F and below). Canned food as old as 100 years has been found in sunken ships and it is still microbiologically safe! We don’t recommend keeping canned food for 100 years, but if the can is intact, not dented or bulging, it is edible.”

For home canned food, the Ball Jar company used to have the following in the FAQ on their site. They have since revamped their site and I can’t find it again. But what they said was:

“How long can home canned food be stored?
Food that has been properly canned, using an up-to-date, tested recipe and that has a vacuum seal will keep indefinitely; however, over an extended period of time changes do occur. These changes may affect the flavor, color, texture and nutritional value of the product. For the highest quality, use home canned food within one year.

How do I know if a jar of home canned food is spoiled?
When up-to-date guidelines, such as those outlined on this site, are followed exactly, there should be little concern about the quality and safety of your home canned foods. As with commercial packaged foods, it is always wise to examine any food before using it. When you take it from the shelf, check each jar to see that it has retained a vacuum seal and that no visible changes have taken place during storage”

Pop, soda, coke, whatever you call it, where ever you live

This one is a bit tricky. I can’t find any firm numbers, but the research that I have done shows that regular, NON diet, pop will last for a long time, some places say years. As long as the can remains sealed, it will remain carbonated. The corn syrup lasts much longer than artificial sweeteners.

Diet pop goes bad not long after the expiration date. This has to do with the artificial sweeteners.

Chocolate

Chocolate by itself, according to Hershey’s Product FAQ

Q. How should I store chocolate?

A. Solid chocolate products will maintain their quality if well wrapped and stored in a cool, dry place (55-60°F). While refrigerated chocolate is certainly safe to use, we don’t recommend it. Chocolate kept in the refrigerator may “sweat” when brought to room temperature and may not melt properly. Cocoa is considered a non-perishable item which should maintain quality if stored at room temperature in a tightly sealed container.

Chocolate may turn white. This is called “blooming”. The chocolate is still perfectly edible. Here is what Hershey’s has to say in the Hershey’s Product FAQ

Q. My chocolate sometimes turns tan or white. What causes this?

A. Chocolate contains cocoa butter, a vegetable fat that is sensitive to heat and humidity. Temperatures above 75°F will cause chocolate to melt. The cocoa butter can rise to the surface and form a discoloration called “cocoa butter bloom.” Condensation on milk or semi-sweet chocolate may cause the sugar to dissolve and rise to the surface as “sugar bloom.” Chocolate that has “bloomed” is certainly safe to use, but flavor loss and texture changes may be noticed.

Bottled Water

The water itself won’t go bad but the chemicals from the plastic can leech into the water over time. If you use water bottles regularly and rotate through your supply, this shouldn’t be a concern. If you are storing water bottles for pure water storage, rotate every 6-12 months.

Medication

I am not a Doctor, nor have I ever played one on TV, but I have done plenty of research on the subject of medicine. From the below links I’ll show you how I had come to believe that in large part, big-pharma has sold us a bill of goods.

Drugs Frequently Potent Past Expiration details how in the mid 1980’s the military was faced with spending billions to replace medications that were reaching the end of their expiration date and requested the FDA to test whether medications were still effective after their expirations dates. Read the article for full details, but some of the high points:

The testing, conducted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, ultimately covered more than 100 drugs, prescription and over-the-counter. The results, never before reported, show that about 90% of them were safe and effective far past their original expiration date, at least one for 15 years past it.

In light of these results, a former director of the testing program, Francis Flaherty, says he has concluded that expiration dates put on by manufacturers typically have no bearing on whether a drug is usable for longer. Mr. Flaherty notes that a drug maker is required to prove only that a drug is still good on whatever expiration date the company chooses to set. The expiration date doesn’t mean, or even suggest, that the drug will stop being effective after that, nor that it will become harmful.”

“Joel Davis, a former FDA expiration-date compliance chief, says that with a handful of exceptions – notably nitroglycerin, insulin and some liquid antibiotics – most drugs are probably as durable as those the agency has tested for the military. “Most drugs degrade very slowly,” he says. “In all likelihood, you can take a product you have at home and keep it for many years, especially if it’s in the refrigerator.””

Here are more articles dealing with the expiration dates of medicines from MD’s that are themselves prepper’s.

From SurvivalBlog.com

Antibiotics and Antiviral Medications; by Cynthia J. Koelker, MD
Part One, Part Two, Part Three.
A Doctor’s Thoughts on Antibiotics, Expiration Dates, and TEOTWAWKI, by Dr. Bones

The Survival Podcast
Episode-685 with Dr. Eric Wilke on Survival Medicine

Doom and Bloom
The Truth About Expiration Dates by Dr Bones

There was only one medicine that I could find that was in fact harmful when used after it had expired. That was Tetracycline and it only effected one person in the 1960’s I believe. It was suggested that it could have been something else that caused the reaction, but it was blamed on Tetracycline.

From the research I have done it looks like medicines that are in pill form only, not liquid or gel, will last much longer than the expiration date suggests. I have and will continue to store and use medicines that were prescribed and not fully used that have exceeded their expiration dates.

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Filed Under: Food, General Preparedness, Preparedness Tips

A Short Prepper Civics Lesson

July 4, 2012 by Chris Ray

The Declaration of Independence

The Founding Fathers, Constitution, the Bill of Rights and the Declaration of IndependenceI mentioned in my Memorial Day Prayer that I had some concerns about our country, but that was not the time to discuss them. This week, celebrating the birth of our nation, seems fitting, though I could be wrong. I will post a series of three articles on my concerns about America, and what might lie in our future.

These articles will not be the usual article on preparedness, but I hope you still read them as they point out reasons to prepare. I’ll touch on two things I generally stay away from; politics and prophecy. There might even be a little civics lesson but I promise not to bore you.

Some time ago I started studying some of the founding fathers and the creation of our nation. What I found was that many of our founding fathers were men of God who wanted separation from a king (government) that was over reaching into almost every aspect of their lives. Our nation was, in fact, based on Judeo-Christian values, though many today would say that is untrue.

When you look at what the vision of the Founding Fathers was and when you read the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, you begin to see how far we are from the Democratic Republic they set out to build. Please don’t misunderstand, I think our form of government is still the best in the world, but I do see where we have gone astray.

Also to be clear, over the next three days, you might get the feeling that I am anti-government. This is not true. I am just very pro citizen and for small government.

The Founding Fathers

The Founders knew that government was not the answer, the governed were. We are to be a government of the people, by the people, for the people.

The way that our electoral system is supposed to run, someone would leave their normal job to run for office, win the majority of votes or Electoral College votes and then stay in office for a term or two. I believe it was their intent that the elected would leave office and return to their normal job after their service, not stay in office their entire lives.

They did not want the federal government to be the immense size it is today. They wanted the state to regulate its people and when the state over reached, the federal government would step in.

They went to great lengths to make sure the President could not be set up to be another king. He was granted only so much power, with two other branches of government to keep him in check.

There was much conversation and debate to craft a document that would limit the scope of government while defining the rights of the people.

The Constitution

The Constitution defines the rights and roles of the three branches of government, giving powers and setting limitations. Many other countries have modeled their constitution after the United States of America’s.

Is it perfect? Of course not. It was written by men. If it were perfect is wouldn’t have counted a slave as 1/5 of a man. Yes, I know that counting as 1/5 was a step in the right direction and no, I am not condoning slavery.

The constitution defines how a bill shall become law, gives the power to collect taxes, coin money, keep an Army and Navy and even defines how to make an amendment to correct, add or remove something in the future, such as the Thirteenth Amendment that abolished slavery.

The Bill of Rights

The Bill of Rights puts limits on government and empowers and protects citizens. It gives us the right to free speech and to bear arms. It gives us protection from unlawful search and seizure, the right to “plead the fifth” and to not incriminate oneself. This is also where amendments are made, such as ending slavery as well as starting and stopping prohibition.

The Declaration of Independence

This document, in my opinion, took great courage to write. Aside from the bible, it is one of the most important documents in existence, largely due to the following sentence:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

The reason that one sentence is so important is because it states that the rights mentioned above in the Bill of Rights and the right of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are granted by God, and what God grants, man cannot take away.

This article is from a series of three, they are:

A Short Prepper Civics Lesson
The Future of America
God’s Law vs Man’s Law

Filed Under: General Preparedness, Mind Set

Preparing for the Inevitable

June 28, 2012 by Chris Ray

As Prepper’s, we prepare for all sorts of things that MIGHT happen, but how many of you have planned for something that WILL happen? I’m talking about dying and going home to meet the Lord. I know what I want my wishes to be, but unless they’re documented, someone else could make those decisions for me.

I don’t think it’s fair to my wife or anyone else to have to endure the burden of what to do if I am in vegetative state with no chance of coming out of it. Do you want to be kept alive in any state? How about organ donation? Do you want or be buried or cremated? Where do you want to be buried?

My wife and I just recently completed our living wills at Legal Zoom.com. It was painless, quick and fairly inexpensive, around $40 per will, including shipping.

They have some questions with multiple answers for you to choose from. You select your choice and move on. Some of the questions are hard ones, like “Do you want to be kept on a feeding tube if in a vegetative state?” These are questions you can spare your loved ones from having to answer.

Once completed, they mail you the will and you must initial in a few spots in front of two witnesses. There are probably other steps for other services. We had ours notarized as well.

Legal Zoom.com offers a wide variety of services, from living will and last will and testament to creating an LLC and copywriting. I only mention these things because I was a bit skeptical about how easy they claimed things would be.

I’m not an affiliate of Legal Zoom.com nor will I be reimbursed in anyway if you click the link. If you would rather use some other service to do this, fine, but please take the time to get it done now.