The beautiful Mrs. Ray and I don’t tolerate the heat very well. July and August in Minnesota can see 100 degrees + with humidity that would make someone from the tropics feel right at home. I wrote last year about how our AC went out and how we dealt with it. Well, we’re in the same situation this year, albeit better prepared. We’re also blessed that we’re not in the hottest time of the year.

I thought I would share some tips for staying cool that I have found over the years. If you have followed the blog for some time, you might have seen some of these. There will be at least one new one that is pure genius and makes me wish I had come up with it.
 

Clothing

Wear loose fitting, light colored clothing.

It might sound counterintuitive, but wear long sleeve shirts and a hat. The sun directly on your skin will heat you even more.

Wear clothes made of cotton as it wicks heat away from your body. This is the reason the phrase “Cotton Kill” exists. When the phrase is used, it’s usually in cold climates.

If you wear a hat, get it wet and put it back on. A bandana can work for this as well.
 

Liquids

In hot weather, you need to increase your liquid intake. Don’t wait until you’re thirsty. When you’re active, you should be drinking 16-32 ounces of water an hour.

If your urine is anything but clear, you are dehydrated and need to rehydrate ASAP.
Avoid beverages containing caffeine as it promotes dehydration.

Water is a great source to stay hydrated, but many people don’t like water. There are additives such as powdered Gatorade that can flavor water and add electrolytes at the same time.

Put a water bottle in the freezer. When you go outside, take it with you. As the ice melts, you’ll have cold water to drink.
 

Food

Avoid using the stove, as it will just add more heat.

Eat cold foods; fruits and vegetables are a good idea.

Eat smaller meals but eat more often. The larger the meal the more metabolic heat your body produces to digest it. The same applies to drinking very cold water; it can actually heat you up because your body quickly reacts to warm the water to core temperature.

Eat copious amounts of ice cream. (Sorry about that, the little kid in me took over for a second.)
 

The Body

The body radiates heat from the head, hands and feet. Getting these areas wet will aid in cooling.

When I was in the Navy, on a cruise to the Gulf, they told us to eat more salt on our food, to help the body retain water. It’s true that we lose salt and minerals when we sweat. These salts and minerals need to be replaced. A sports drink will often work. Check with your doctor before going this route.

If outdoor work must be done, do it in the morning or evening. Avoid being out in the sun in the hottest part of the day.

Put a bottle of lotion in the fridge. Squirt some on and rub it into hands and feet. (I have never tried this, but it sounds like a decent idea.)

By placing a cool water bottle between your upper thighs or in your armpits, you will cool the blood. Don’t use ice cold as this could be a shock to your heart.

A similar principle is to get a bandana wet with cool water and wrap it around your neck, head or wrists.

Take frequent cool showers or baths.
 

Don’t Forget Your Pets

Keep plenty of cool water available.
Make sure they have shade available to lie in.
Some of our dogs love chewing on ice cubes.
 

The Home

If you have a basement, the temperature there is often 10-15 degrees cooler. My home is a four level split. I would say each level is at least 5 degrees cooler than the one above it.

Keep your curtains or blinds drawn. If possible, have the outside of the blinds or curtains be light in color. This will reflect heat back outside. Dark colors will increase the temperature. This would be a good idea in the colder times of the year.

I have not done this but have heard that it works; hang a damp sheet in place of your drapes. To go with the drapes suggestion from above, use a light colored sheet.

Another thing that I have heard of but haven’t tried is spraying your roof with water. The heat evaporates the water, leaving the roof cooler. Here are several other passive cooling techniques.

This idea would only work if you have power but no AC. There are indoor AC units that give cool air inside, venting the exhaust to a panel you cut to fit into your window. This wasn’t an inexpensive solution but cooling the bedroom so we could sleep is worth it. Yes, I realize that if the grid fails, it will be worthless. But the grid is still up right now and we’ve had to use this when the AC has stopped in the last two years.

The following is an idea that I think is brilliant! For those who can’t watch the video yet, the premise is to place a frozen milk jug into an insulated 5 gallon bucket, drill 3-4 holes on the sides of the bucket and place a small fan on top of the bucket, blowing air towards the ice, forcing cool air out the holes in the bucket.

 
I realize not all of these suggestions will work in all climates. Please add any others you might have.
 
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One of the most important tasks in a survival situation is prioritization. In a dire situation, doing the wrong thing first can literally mean the difference between life and death. Unfortunately, there are so many potential situations that prioritization of an emergency is not a one-size-fits-all methodology. With that being the case, I have some general guidelines that I think could be helpful.
 

Knowing What is Important

I have written a few times on the five basic human needs. These needs exist every second of every day, but ensuring that you have potable water to drink, food to eat, shelter from inclement weather, energy for heat and cooking as well as security from those who might mean you harm should be your priority in a survival situation.
 

Knowing When it is Important

There is a general survival rule called “the rule of three’s,” which states that the average human can last:

3 minutes without oxygen
3 hours without shelter in severe weather
3 days without water
3 weeks without food
 

Putting the What, with the When

This might seem over simplistic but using those two in conjunction should help prioritization in any survival situation. Take a look at both and apply them to your situation. Meeting the 5 basic needs is the goal, now start to apply the rule of 3’s to your situation.

Do you have clean oxygen to breathe? If not, this is a dire emergency! Getting out of the smoky area, breaking the choke hold or getting to the surface of the water is your priority.

Do you have shelter from the weather? For the majority of situations, our homes will be our shelters. If your home has taken damage from a storm, is it safe to stay in? If not, taking temporary shelter somewhere else might be needed. If you’re lost in the woods without shelter, making shelter is a priority. I believe another aspect of shelter is security, but I’ll cover this later.

Do you have enough potable water, or access to water, to last your group three days? I think saying the average person can go three days with no water is a bit misleading. Sure, one might not die for three days without water, but you’re going to be feeling pretty rough after even half a day, especially if you’re exerting more energy. This isn’t to say that you must have 3 days’ worth of water stored for each person in your group. If you have access to water and a means to filter and purify it, then the danger is lessened.

I think food is one of the needs that people think about first and probably most. The truth is that food should often be lower on the priority list. In a survival situation, there is a good chance we’ll be exerting ourselves more than normal and we eventually need to be replacing those calories, but missing a few meals is something most of us can handle.

Out of the five basic needs, the rule of 3’s covered shelter, water and food. Energy and security remain. This makes sense because energy and security don’t have strict guidelines.

Everyone will need to use some type of energy to cook, boil water or possibly for heat, but the amounts and types of energy will vary greatly. Fuel is kind of the oddball of the five needs in that the importance of having enough fuel completely depends on your situation and circumstances. If you’re stranded in the bush, gathering fuel (wood suitable for burning for example) is much more important than for someone who is at home on the third day of an extended blackout, who might need to ensure enough propane for the camp stove.

When it comes to security, the chances are low that one will need to use violence to defend themselves. But, if/when the need to use force presents itself, it is absolutely the most important need. This is not to say that security can just wait until all of the other needs are fully met. I mentioned above that I believe that an aspect of shelter has to do with security. As long as humans have been building shelters to live in, it has been in part to make us more secure from wild animals and those who would do us harm.

The Discovery channel hosted a show called The Colony for two seasons, both of which are available on Netflix and I recommend them. The premise of the show was a group of people thrown into a mock situation. For example, one season was a TEOTWAWKI pandemic event. The group had to come together to meet their five basic needs.

***Spoiler Alert***

If memory serves, they put off security until “bandits” raided their compound during both seasons. In the beginning, they were gung ho about finding shelter, clean water and enough food and later found ways of generating energy. If they would have told one person a day to work on securing the shelter, and making some improvised weapons, they would have been so much better off.

So when is security a priority? When in the midst of an attack, it is the number one priority. Otherwise I think it should be woven amongst the other needs until your shelter is secure and your means of defense are seen to.

For the record, I don’t think The Colony was something to follow as an example. There aren’t that many TV shows that thrust people into actual survival situations. You can learn from what the members of the Colony did wrong and decide what you would’ve done differently.

 
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If you are a frequent reader of this or other preparedness/survival related blogs, you most likely have preparations stored for various “stuff-hitting-the-fan” scenarios. For short term, minor/moderate events, the chances are good that what you have stocked could see you through to the other side. However, in a prolonged, far-reaching, severe scenario, the chances increase that you might run out of some of your supplies.

If faced with dwindling supplies, or if your supplies are destroyed or stolen, you could be faced with scavenging or salvaging to resupply. I have given this subject some thought and have developed some guidelines. If forced by a survival situation to scavenge or salvage, I believe these guidelines will help one to do so safely, effectively and morally.

 
Morally

One of the rules in every society is “No stealing”. God believes in this so much that He made it one of His Ten Commandments. But is scavenging stealing?

I used the words “salvaging” and “scavenging” above intentionally. I believe they have different meanings and are not the same as stealing or looting. Language is important, so here are some brief definitions, all from Dictionary.com;

Scavenging:
to take or gather (something usable) from discarded material.
to search, especially for food.

Salvage:
the act of saving a ship or its cargo from perils of the seas.
the act of saving anything from fire, danger, etc.

Steal:
to take (the property of another or others) without permission or right, especially secretly or by force:

Looting:
spoils or plunder taken by pillaging, as in war.
anything taken by dishonesty, force, stealth, etc.

There are some who see this issue in black and white and say that taking anything that you did not purchase is stealing and, therefore, sin. In Scripture, we’re told of Jesus plucking grain on the Sabbath, also of Him going to the fig tree to eat figs and cursing it when it had none. Later, He tells the disciples to go ahead of Him and take a colt to bring to Him.

It is clear that Jesus did not own the field of grain, the fig tree or the colt. If we look at this issue in black and white, Jesus committed petty theft for taking the grain, attempted theft for the figs and the equivalent of grand theft auto for taking the colt. Did Jesus sin? Of course not. My point is that there can be extenuating circumstances where someone could take things that they did not pay for without stealing and thus, is not sinning.
 
How can one scavenge morally?

Do not take anything that is actively owned. An example; if during hurricane Katrina someone came upon a home with boarded windows and a light visible on the inside, obviously the home and its contents are being actively owned. However, if you stumble upon a home that is damaged by the storm and is not fit to live in, if you called out and no one answered, one might make a judgment call to see if there were any life sustaining supplies inside or signs of recent usage. If, after the survival situation has passed, the people who owned the home or business returned, I would gladly reimburse them somehow for the supplies I used.

A survival situation is not the time to score free TV’s, stereos, liquor or any other item that is not needed for survival. If it cannot increase your five basic human needs; water, food, shelter, energy and security, it could be looting.

Only take what you need. If you have an abundance of water and a water purifier at home and you come across a case of water bottles, leave them for someone without.

On a side note, if you ever have someone accuse you of hoarding because you prep tell them this: buying now when there is plenty of supply and stocking up is prudent. Running out and buying or taking in an emergency when there is a limited supply is hoarding.

 
Scavenging Safely and Efficiently

Like most of the population, I have never had to scavenge or salvage to survive. I have developed the following ideas from watching TV/movies related to survival as well as from Prepper fiction and from video games. In the last year or so, there have been several games with varying types of events; some zombie outbreaks, some pandemics, some stranded on an island and on and on. Many of these games are multiplayer. In some of these games, if you are killed, you must start over with nothing but the clothes on your back, so people are very cautious when dealing with others.

While the event may be fictional, I have learned a lot about scavenging/salvaging and about how people react in SHTF events. Some might say that people act tougher or ruder because it is over the internet in a game. I tend to believe that the internet just magnifies a person’s true self. If someone is opinionated in person, they’re even more so online. If someone is a bully, they are even more so online. If someone is compassionate in person, they are more so online.

Here are some tips if you ever find yourself in a situation where you must scavenge to survive.

One of the things I learned by playing video games is that it can be very easy to forget where you’ve scavenged and where you haven’t searched yet. One thing I started to do in games is to place an item by the front door of houses when I was done, so I could tell I didn’t need to go back in during return trips to that neighborhood. In real life I would probably make a discreet mark with spray-paint or marker.

Another thing I learned was to always carry a good backpack! In several of these games, there is a lot of junk laying around. Some of it might have a purpose, but the lesson I learned is that while a sturdy backpack is important, it fills up quickly and gets heavy even faster.

Take what is needed and make plans to come back for things you want or can’t carry during the first trip. One could place a discrete mark of another color to signify you want to get something from inside.

The grid or internet could be down, so keep a phone book around. If you discover a specific need, you’ll have a means to look for the address of a place to go trade or salvage what you need.

Work in pairs. It is easy to get focused on the task and not be as alert as you should be; use the buddy system!

In a few of these games, there are “safe zones,” where combat is not possible. Other players were often willing to trade inside this zone. However, one of the most dangerous places was the area nearby. Other players who play as bandits know that people coming or going often have gear from trading. I think this would be the same in real life. If you go to a known area to trade, don’t go alone. Again, use the buddy system.

Think outside of the box. Everyone is going to think of Costco, Sam’s Club and Wal-Mart. They might not think of the office complex or the industrial area of town.

 
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Here are some of my favorite articles with kids in mind written by (a couple were entries written by other people) the The Survival Mom and reposted here with her permission.

INSTANT SURVIVAL TIP: Everyday Carry for Kids

Many of us have long lists of EDC items that never leave our sides, but what about our kids? Would they be ready for an emergency at school or even a friend’s house?

INSTANT SURVIVAL TIP: 7 Things Your Child Should Have in His Bedside Table

It’s important that your kids are familiar with the basic concepts of survival and emergency preparedness. For any emergency situation, whether it’s a middle of the night asthma attack or an unexpected evacuation, your child should have these five things in his bedside table (or another easy to access location) and should know how to use them.

Are your kids equipped to handle these 7 scary scenarios?

Our kids are already aware of many of the scary things that happen in the world around them. They hear about them from kids at school, on the evening news, and in conversations they overhear, so it’s not a matter of scaring them but equipping them.

32 Survival Skills Your Child Should Know and Be Able to Do ASAP!

Knowledge is something that takes time to develop, so we need to start teaching the next generation now. In case God forbid, our children are left to fend for themselves or we are injured or even just to make your family more apt to survive, every child must learn these survival skills so they can pull their own weight and contribute as much as they can. If your family learns now to be a well oiled machine, you will be more likely to survive any type of collapse.

5 Things to stock up on that will help keep your kids feeling secure

As a “Survival Mom” I think of my children first. Keeping them safe and fed in a terrible situation is most important. However, the following are 5 things in my prepping supplies to help my kids feel a little more secure if the SHTF. Physical comfort, traditions, and routines will always serve to make kids feel more secure.

INSTANT SURVIVAL TIP: Do your kids know where they are?

When I was a little girl, I had my very own chauffeur. My driver toted me around town to the mall, the movie theater, to church, while I sat in the back seat and relaxed. There was no need for me to pay attention to street signs, and I usually had no idea where I was. My driver was in charge, and I was taking it easy

 
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Before I post todays article I have two announcements.

One of my sponsors, Ready Made Resources is having a huge sale on Mountain House foods now until May 14th. 25-60% off, with free shipping when you order 6 or more cans.
 
 
Life is so very busy lately that I don’t have much time to write. Because of this I have gotten permission from some great bloggers to repost some of their articles and will be posting them a couple times a week until I have more time to write.

Today is the first day I’ll be posting one of their articles. It was written by the Apartment Prepper and originally posted here, and is being reposted with his permission.
 
 

Living in an apartment, you frequently have strangers coming to your space: the “once a year” inspection, fire and smoke alarm inspection, pest control and let’s not forget the maintenance guy coming in to change vent filters and what not. Apartment dwellers are not the only ones who have visitors, anyone can have pizza delivery, cable installer, plumber and other repair technicians may enter your house.

Emergency supplies are your own business, and you don’t need anyone else checking them out and wondering what’s all that stuff. People will form conclusions about you such as:

– You’re a nut.

– You’re loaded and have lots of “goodies” all over

I’m not saying anyone is out to get you, but all it takes is a word or two said to someone else in a friendly conversation and before you know it, word has spread. At the very least, you’ll want to avoid any questions like “What’s all this?”

What do you do if you have an apartment inspection or other strangers coming to your house?

◾Know your rights. When you are informed of an apartment inspection, reread the terms of your lease, your rights as well as what the manager can do and cannot do.

◾If you object to an inspection be very nice about it and you just may get what you want.

◾If possible, try to be at home during the inspection. Follow the inspector around so you know what he or she is looking at. We once had a guy looking in one of our closets. I was right behind him so I asked him, “What are you looking for?” He said “The smoke alarm.” But I knew there never was any smoke alarm in the closet.

◾Hide your supplies in places that are not obvious: under the dining table covered by a long table cloth, under the bed, in an unused closet, in a laundry hamper etc.

◾Spread out your stash, so it does not look noticeable.

◾Use your closet wisely: store some long dresses in front of your five gallon buckets, collect empty shoe boxes and use them for smaller supplies such as flashlights and batteries, first aid kits, etc.

◾If you know you’ll be having a lot of foot traffic in your home, say you are selling your home and have an open house planned, consider moving some of your gear to a trusted friend or relative’s home, or storage facility. I know of a couple who had lost valuable items during an open house, as thieves were able to roam freely among the lookie-loos.

◾If you were to consider a storage facility to keep your supplies, make sure it has 24 hour on site management, is climate controlled, and most of all, easily accessible to you. Preps won’t do any good if you can’t get to them when the need arises.

Finally, if your supplies are noticed and commented upon, be matter of fact about them and just say you were cleaning out a closet or going through your hurricane (or other risks in your area) emergency supplies. No need to elaborate nor give additional details.

If I asked you if you had a plan for pandemic, an EMP strike, extended civil unrest or a complete economic collapse, I bet you would say you did for some, if not all of those listed. Now let me ask you this; have you ever said “oh it’s just a thunder storm”?

The number of people that die each year due to pandemic, EMP, extended civil unrest and complete economic collapse is a big fat zero! However, hundreds of people in America every year are killed and billions of dollars in damages are caused by severe weather. Here are some quick facts:
 
Lightning
Causes an average of 55-60 fatalities and 400 injuries each year
Occurs with all thunderstorms
Costs more than $1 billion in insured losses each year
Lightning can strike up to 20 miles away from the parent storm.
Based on the speed of sound, if you can heat the thunder clap, you are within 20 miles.
 
Tornadoes
Cause an average of 60-65 fatalities and 1,500 injuries each year
Can produce wind speeds in excess of 200 mph
Can be 1 mile wide and stay on the ground over 50 miles
 
Straight-line Winds
Can exceed 125 mph
Can cause destruction equal to a tornado
Are extremely dangerous to aviation
 
Flash Floods and Floods
Are the #1 cause of deaths associated with thunderstorms, more than 90 fatalities each year.
 
Hail
Can be larger than a softball (5 inches in diameter)
Causes more than $1 billion in crop and property damage each year.
 

Stay informed
There are a few different ways we can stay informed, one is to alert us of the weather (if we’re not outside in it), the second is more detailed information when we are aware of it. A couple of great ways to get alerted to severe weather are weather alert radios and having a text sent to your phone.

We have a couple different types of weather alert radios, each serving different purposes. I would recommend either. The first is a Reecom R-1630 and works great as a stationary base.

You can program it for single or multiple counties and it has different sounds for watch vs. warning. It has a screen that will tell you the type of alert and the time it expires.

The second weather alert radio we have is a Midland HH50.

It has fewer features but is great for times when you’re out and about. It can be set to alert you if either a watch or warning is declared but also has a radio feature so that once the alert has sounded you can find out what is going on.

Another way to get informed about oncoming severe weather is to have a text message sent to your cell phone. I don’t use this service but I wanted to find an example in case this would be of interest to you. The Weather Channel provides this service but it tends to be buggy because it is new. I am sure there are others.
 

Shelter from the Storm

There are millions of people who live in areas that are subject to severe weather, who don’t have the option of having a basement. Know where your closest community shelter is. If there is not one or you don’t have time to get to it, a room with no windows is the safest place to be. Ideally this would be the bathroom, as you can get in the tub and use a mattress or couch cushions to cover you. A closet is also an option. If there is no room in the closet, overturn the couch, push it against a wall and crawl into the void.
 

Taking the Storm Seriously

Granted, there are times in life when we’re thrown into a situation completely out of our control. But I have to wonder how many people die each year needlessly because they weren’t being prudent. How many people felt inconvenienced by the storm and drove through it? How many people were attracted to the awesome, dangerous beauty of the storm? How many people attempted to drive though a “little water on the road”? How many of them said “Oh it’s just a thunderstorm”?
 
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