• Handkerchief (if you get stuck out in cold weather your nose will run like a faucet!)
• General purpose rag
• Hand Towel
• Emergency toilet paper
• Neck or Face scarf
• Tourniquet
• Bandage/Ace Bandage
• Patching material for torn clothing or backpacks
• Strainer for silty water
• Protection while grabbing hot pot handles
• Dish rag
• Bandana (who'd a thought?!!)
  
  

Rub Candle Wax on your Machetes and Axe heads for a durable, water resistant coating

In the photo below: Water beaded up on the surface of a Cold Steel 13" Kukri Machete (left) and a Wetterlings Forester's Fine Axe (right) that have been coated with wax from a paraffin candle. 

For a durable, water repellant finish on your machetes and axe heads, try rubbing a common paraffin-wax candle on them. The wax stays on longer than traditional protectants like gun oil, mineral oil, or petroleum jelly, plus, it won't rub off inside your pack or sheath as easily as traditional oils do.

TIP: It isn't necessary to coat all of the metal with the wax to do this. Just cover most of the surface and rub it in with your fingers. The wax rubs on easily, and once on, provides superior wet weather protection.

The process of weeding out the “fluff” to get down to the meat and bones of a good product you can bet your life on (and your family’s lives) can be annoying at best and detrimental to your survival at worst. In an effort to show you some basic solutions to the challenge of selecting such important components of preparedness kits, Category Five has developed these helpful guidelines.

Length, Width, Height: Start With The Basics

Making sure you have room for items in your home, vehicle or bug-out bag will save you both time and money. You would be surprised how many of your “favorite” bug-out tools won’t actually fit into your bug-out bag. You may spend a lot of time making sure you’ve considered every other guideline (below), but if it doesn’t fit, it doesn’t ship.

Capacity: How Much Can It Hold?

Make sure it can contain what you want to put into it (or carry on it) as well as ensuring that the capacity measures up to your specific needs.

Adults need more water than kids do; men need more food than women do. Not carrying enough of something is almost as useless as not carrying it at all.

Weight: A Much-Underestimated Category

This can make or break every step of a journey. Make sure an item is necessary. If not, leave it behind.

Construction: Because They Truly Do Not Make Things Like They Used To

Take your time to research the quality of what you’re purchasing. Customer reviews of just about any product can be found online. Pay attention to what customers are saying, but be aware of false reviews and fake review sites that are nothing but marketing engines for the product manufacturers.

Price: A Deterrent For Many People To Preparing In The First Place

Hand in hand with quality construction, you often get what you pay for.

There may be some amazing deals where there is a world of difference between two products of the same price, yet don’t fool yourself into thinking you can build a great kit for $20. Spend twice as much up front for something that will last, or buy four of the same thing over and over because they keep breaking. In the end, spending more can save you money.

Shelf Life: Father Time Is Not Always On Your Side

A cousin to quality construction, shelf life is specifically reserved for perishable items (i.e., food, medicine, chemicals). The bottom line: Make sure it will be around when you need it. Have a plan that accounts for rotation. If possible, spend more for a better product like freeze-dried versus dehydrated foods.

Value: What Is Included?

With so many preparedness retailers available, you can often get a great package deal. However, don’t neglect the other guidelines and allow yourself to get sold a package of junk. Are you getting the best bang for your buck or double the trouble?

Utility: Does It Multitask For You?

As Alton Brown from the Food Network would say: “No unitaskers!” Always purchase something that can be used for things other than what you bought it for. Multitasking helps with system redundancy as well as weight reduction.

Check out www.CategoryFive.org for some great videos and ideas, or simply surf the Internet to help get your creative juices flowing.

Having these basic questions answered at checkout will help ensure you do not have buyer’s remorse and will give you peace of mind that you have a quality product you can depend on when you need it most.

In the case of an emergency there are countless scenarios wherein you will need documents to prove that you are who you say you are and your claims are true and accurate. This is especially true when children are involved. If you can’t prove that you are their parent, today’s State and Federal security laws prohibit schools from releasing them to you, and medical facilities will not treat them. With that said, the following is a list of suggested documents to copy and keep together in one place for access upon a moment’s notice.

Personal identification copies for each individual’s packet

• Driver’s license (original if possible)
• Birth certificate (certified copy)
• Passport (original if possible)
• Social Security card (certified copy or original)
• Other Government Issue ID Card (Federal employees, professional ID)

Family identification copies for all family members’ packets

• Photo ID for all family members (driver’s license, school ID, Kidsafe ID)
• Individual photo of each family member (up to date)
• Family photo (clear enough to identify each member)
• Pet identification (registration, photo with family member, vet records)

Important documents for adult family member’s packets

• Health records for all family members (blood type, allergies, general medical history, doctor’s notes, special needs, closest family member contact info, donor/consent forms, etc.)
• Insurance documents (home, car, health, life, etc.) showing account Info
• Bank account statement (showing routing/account numbers)
• Certified title copies (home, car, boat, etc.)
• Credit/debit card copies
• Personal bank checks
• Retirement/Investment account statements (showing account numbers)
• Other financial details (certified copy of will, parent’s will, taxes, etc.)
• Marriage certificate, divorce decrees or legal guardian proof

Important documents for each individual’s packet

• Individual health records (see list above)
• Hard copy of important contacts (parents, siblings, friends, school, etc.)
• Cash (small Bills for making change, amount varies per person, at least $40)
• Pre-paid phone card (at least $10)

Give document copies to external family

One last tip: If you plan to place one set of documents in your bug-out bag, make sure it is in a waterproof container and don’t lose them.

All of these scenarios are simply a result of one of the 8 major mindsets regarding how one should address the need for preparation. If you can properly identify your own mindset and the mindsets of those around you, you can then make a concerted effort towards improving your mindset and strategizing around the personalities and approaches of those in your sphere of influence. While none of this information is rocket science or special insight, it is helpful to take a look at the bigger picture of the community you are preparing in so that you can accurately make your plans.

Here are the 8 mindsets I’m talking about, and what you can do about them.

1.    Ignore It – Everyone knows someone with this mindset. You try to talk to your friends and family and they don’t want to hear it. They seemingly recognize the signs of the times, but for whatever reason they have decided to stick their head in the sand and ignore it. For these people there doesn’t seem to be any immediate solution to “wake them up” beyond time and circumstances. As disasters continue to unfold in the world around them they may eventually hit that same “ah-ha moment” that you did at one point. Outside of the hope that time may change things, the best thing you can do for them is continue to draw their attention to what’s coming without pushing a preparedness agenda. As the saying goes, “You catch more flies with honey.”

2.    Deny It – This type of individual is getting harder and harder to find, yet there are people out there who don’t see any storm brewing. If you have been trying to convince someone like this that they need to prepare, we would encourage you to simply move on with your personal preparedness while keeping in mind that these same people will look to you for help when an emergency strikes. This is one of the major reasons for the necessity of community, and the existence of organizations like Category Five and Personal Liberty. There will be many ill-equipped families in your life that could use your leadership someday, and perhaps what you learn here will be the very thing that ends up saving their lives.

3.    Moochers and Thieves – While the intent of these types of individuals may be different, their motivation is the same. These are those that you meet who laugh it off and then joke about “just coming to your house” or “just gotta be the first one to the grocery store” if something goes wrong, Unfortunately, this is a large segment of the world’s population today as we have a society conditioned to live on “handouts” and “entitlements”. It seems that every time a disaster strikes somewhere, a large number of people begin looting, stealing, and rioting. Preparing for this type of scenario is an entirely separate subject, but for now just recognize that this dangerous mindset is out there, especially in urban locations. If you have people in your life that fit this mindset, stop telling them about your preparedness, and prepare for the fact that they will show up at your door when the time comes.

4.    Bottle Rockets – These are those you know who were convinced in one short conversation that the world is ending, and immediately went out and bought gold, bullets, and a case of bottled water. However, after the first 12 hours of “freaking out”, they then moved on to the next exciting thing and never bought a gun for their bullets, much less prepared for a long lasting crisis. If you know this type of person you can help them by equipping them with quality preparedness guidance (i.e. Category Five Preparedness Guide) as well as using this as a prime opportunity for you to begin leading others as you prepare yourself. These tend to be sanguine (bubbly) individuals who, from a personality standpoint, you will want to keep things up beat and exciting. If you can learn how to have fun in your preparedness, others will be more apt to listen.

5.    Turtles – Slow and steady wins the race… This may actually be you, and if it is, congratulations you on beginning your preparedness journey. Nonetheless, while this mindset is viable, it is not the BEST approach to preparedness as a whole as it can lead to being only half prepared when a crisis hits while time and money were spent elsewhere. Additionally, you may be only half prepared because much of your food has expired by the time you rotate it. Whatever the result, if the “slow and steady wins the race” approach is taken, just make sure it’s not TOO slow or TOO steady.

6.    Stockpilers – Without mentioning names, there are organizations out there right now using fear and panic to sell their goods, and in doing so they are encouraging people to hoard as much as they can before it’s too late. While stockpiling is part of the preparedness lifestyle, it cannot be the primary solution. For one, the primary difference between hoarding and preparing is WHEN you are doing your stockpiling. In my opinion, if you are building your storage ahead of a crisis then you are not “hoarding”. Hoarding is only applicable to those who stockpile in the MIDST of a crisis. This is a significant difference in the motivation and operation of stockpiling.

Addressing the healthy side of stockpiling, the limitations of this mindset really come down to the length of time that you find yourself in “crisis-mode”. Unless you have extensive financial and storage capabilities, stockpiling can only provide enough food and water for a few months at best. For this reason it is necessary to start considering longer term solutions for your preparedness plan while stocking up on particular items that provide a foundational basis from which to work from.

7.    Lone Wolves – In many ways, another name for this mindset is known as the “Survivalist” mindset. Lone Wolves are those who enjoy the wilderness and survival lifestyle and have convinced themselves that they can make it on their own if necessary. While this mindset is great for those who live in (or bug out to) extremely remote areas or those who might go down in a plane crash in Siberia, this mindset ultimately falls short of accounting for the reality that other people will be present. Whether better Security is needed because of others, or friends and family will need help; the Lone Wolf mindset is a good place to start, but is not the type of mindset that is practical in 99% of real life emergencies.

8.    Preppers – This mindset may not be suited for everyone, but I believe this is the ultimate goal of anyone who truly wants to be prepared for an inevitable crisis. This mindset goes beyond buying a bunch of stuff and learning how to grow a garden. Granted, in order to become a prepper both of these are necessary, but changes in your lifestyle will need to be made in order to bring preparedness to the forefront of your decision making paradigm. Rotating food, storing grey water, and building emergency kits are just a few of the changes that make this mindset necessary to live the preparedness lifestyle. Not just getting prepared for “someday”, but preparing on a continual basis. Once you have this mindset you will find yourself free from the fear of disaster, and more importantly you will be able to lead others in their time of need.

Understanding the different preparedness mindsets will help you to focus your efforts on the type of preparedness plan that is right for you; given that possible disasters and crisis situations range anywhere from residential power outages, to hurricanes, to disease epidemics, to a global economic meltdown, and even another world war. Those who primarily consider the potential for a regional crisis (i.e. Katrina, Japan Earthquake, Forest Fires) are more likely to have a bottle rocket, turtle, or stockpile mindset. On the other hand, those who see the possibility of a long lasting global crisis (i.e. Great Depression, World Wars, an Epidemic) are more apt to have a lone wolf or prepper mindset.

Regardless of your mindset or your opinion as to what might actually happen in the future, I have always found it helpful to understand the bigger picture as other people see it. Once I have an idea as to where they stand I can make my plans accordingly. (Not to mention having a better idea about where I myself stand.) Now the only thing left to do is educate yourself about the hundreds of other things you need to do that match your plans.

Austin Fletcher

Executive Director of Category Five

Becoming prepared for worst-case-scenario events may seem like a daunting task when you consider the amount of time, effort and cost that would go into stockpiling enough nonperishable food and water to last weeks or months. But taking small steps toward being prepared in your spare time can yield surprising results in just a matter of weeks.

You can start small by organizing a basic three-day food supply. Including things like:

• Ready-to-eat canned meats, fruits and vegetables.
• Canned juices, milk, soup (if powdered, store extra water).
• Staples: sugar, salt, pepper.
• High-energy foods: peanut butter, jelly, crackers, granola bars, trail mix.
• Vitamins.
• Foods for infants, elderly persons or persons with special dietary needs.
• Comfort foods: Cookies, hard candy, sweetened cereals, lollipops, instant coffee, tea bags.
• One gallon of water for each person in your household for each day.

Once you get a small store in place, you will likely notice that your efforts to prepare for the worst snowball into a lifestyle that will leave you and your family safe and ready for almost anything.

For more great info from Personal Liberty click HERE.

Wilderness First Aid Tip: Use the powdery coating on Aspen trees as an emergency sunscreen

If you're out in the high country and need an emergency sunscreen, try wiping the powdery coating from the bark of Aspen trees on your skin. It has an SPF of 5 and could prevent you from getting a severe sunburn.

For more great info from Rocky Mountain Bushcraft click HERE.

Hang rain gutters and plant salad greens in them.

 

Are you interested in gardening, but you have limited space? Don’t despair; get creative. With imagination and determination, you can find ways to grow vegetables even in the smallest of spaces.

How To Grow Lettuce In A Rain Gutter

Plant salad greens in rain gutters. Rain gutters provide an ideal space for growing salad greens since lettuce, spinach and other greens have shallow root systems. Fall is the perfect time to plant because lettuce, spinach and salad greens love the cooler weather.

You can mount rain gutters the same way you would along the eves, on the side of your house, shed or any other building, on the side of a fence, along a deck railing or under a windowsill as a small planter. All you have to do is cut the rain gutter to size, cap the ends and drill holes for drainage. You can purchase the supplies to hang them at the same place you buy the rain gutters.

Supplies needed

• Rain gutter, any length you desire
• Rain gutter caps (2 per length)
• Rain gutter hangers (3-5 per length) mount every 3 feet
• Drill and 1/8 inch drill bit

Instructions

1. Place the length of rain gutter that you desire on a work surface. Clip one rain gutter cap on each end and lock them into place.
2. Turn the rain gutter upside down on a workbench. Drill 1/8-inch-diameter holes through the rain gutter every 6 inches along the entire length. The holes will allow the rain gutters to drain.
3. Position the rain gutter hangers along the surface where you want to hang the gutter every 3 to 4 feet. Drive the included screws through the mounting holes in the hangers into the surface with a screw gun to fasten them in place. Slide the gutter into the hangers to lock it into place.
4. Add potting soil to the gutter and fill it up so that it is level with the top edges of the rain gutter.
5. Water the soil with a watering can filled with water. With your finger make a furrow in the center of the soil down the length of the gutter. Plant the lettuce seeds into the furrow, planting approximately 20 seeds per foot. Cover over the seeds with potting soil and gently pack it down with your fingertips.
6. Water the lettuce often as it grows, keeping the soil moist at all times.

Cinderblock Herb Garden

If you live in a place that has limited space for a garden and you want to try your green thumb, this cinderblock herb garden might be the answer for you. It doesn’t take up much space and can be a creative project along the side of a building or home.

Full Article 

Design the cinderblocks in a way that you will get the maximum amount of growing space. Fill each hole with potting soil and plant your favorite herbs in each open block of soil.

Cinderblocks come in many decorative styles can be purchased at places such as Lowe’s, Home Depot or any outdoor garden store where they sell brick and block. You can get started now and have a fall crop.

Pallet Gardening

Pallets can be recycled and used in a whole new way. Simply find a place to put a pallet and fill it with potting soil. Use the wood openings to plant in. You can grow your salad greens in a small amount of space, and it is a good way to recycle old pallets.

Window Herb Garden

A fresh herb garden can be grown outside a window in any home or apartment. Anytime you want fresh herbs, just open the window and cut them. This type of herb garden can be easily watered and maintained. Each year, it can be taken down and replanted, or it can be moved to the inside of the house in the colder months. It is very nice to have fresh herbs year-round.

Starting Seedlings In 2-Liter Soda Bottles

Save your 2-liter bottles and cut them so the top half fits down into the bottom half. Drill a hole through the center of the lid of the bottle. Put string or wick through the hole and tie it so it will absorb the water from the bottom of the soda bottle. Fill the bottom of the bottle with water. Invert the top of the bottle and fill it with potting soil. Plant your seeds in the bottles and watch them grow. Keep enough water in the bottom of the soda bottle so it will water itself.

Old-Window Hot Houses

These easy-to-make old-window hot houses can be made from recycled materials. Collect old windows, place hinges at the top so when you are finished with the windows you can fold them up, and save them for the next spring. Secure them inside a raised bed in the shape of a tepee. These windows warm the soil and keep the plants from freezing on cold mornings. It gives vegetables a head start in the springtime.

Make Your Own Handy Potting Soil Scoop

A handy potting soil scoop can be made from a half-gallon milk jug. Just trace the design you want and cut it out with scissors or a utility knife.

(Full Article)

Use Tires And Culverts As Composting Bins

The tires can be used as a compost bin by simply cutting the sidewall completely out of the tire.  This is done with a very sharp utility knife or a chainsaw.

Turn the soil under the first tire before you place it on the ground. Once placed, fill it with kitchen waste and other organic compost materials. When the first tire is full, add another tire on top of it and proceed to fill it up. And keep doing this until you have four or five tires full of composting material stacked on top of each other.

To rotate the composting material, simply take the first tire off and place it on the ground. Dig out the organic compost material and put it back in the tire. One by one, turn over the composting material and fill the tires back up, stacking them on top of each other until the bottom tire is now on the top of the pile. When you want to use the compost, take the tires apart and use the organic material to mix with other soil. When the compost is all used up, start the process over again.

This same process can be used with the culvert plastic water pipe. Each piece must be cut with a heavy-duty saw or a chain saw to make them the right height (about 2.5 to 3 feet tall).

ION (Stabilized Oxygen) Can Be Used For Soaking Vegetables

ION is such a versatile product. I like to use 20 drops of ION mixed with 1 gallon of water for soaking my vegetables. ION will kill any harmful bacteria that might be on the vegetables. Just mix it up in a large bowl and soak the vegetables for about 20 minutes, then rinse them well.

I also use ION to water my plants. I mix 20 drops of ION with 1 gallon of water. It kills anaerobic bacteria, fungus and some viruses that might be causing the plants to deteriorate and not be as healthy as they should be. ION will help build the friendly flora, and it oxygenates the plants. Vegetables will grow so much better with stabilized oxygen in the water.

Full Article

There are several chapters on alternative gardening methods in my book Emergency Food Storage and Survival Handbook. Check it out here.

–Peggy Layton

For more great information from Personal Liberty click HERE.

Let’s face the facts: When you pack your bug-out bag, you don’t want to be bogged down with multiple items when one will do the trick.

One of the most valuable and variable tools that you can use in the wild is the survival knife.

Some people call it a hunting knife; but when you are in the wild or in a crisis situation, it takes on the much greater role of helping you survive. It would also be inappropriate to call it a hunting knife, as its uses are considerably more diverse than just hunting.

There are seven major ways to use a knife. Some of them may seem obvious to you; but, surprisingly, not many people know everyuse for a knife. Even in writing this, my eyes were opened to how important having a knife can be.

Hunting

Hunting is the most rudimentary reason for owning a knife. It is so easy for us in the modern world to take firearms for granted. There are many scenarios wherein eventually we may not have guns and we will need to survive. In that case, hunting may be accomplished with a knife.

You can use a knife to snare a trap as well as stab your prey. This would take some time to learn how to do, but it works. A knife can also be used to skin the animals that you have killed.

Self-Defense

If you need to defend yourself or family against an oncoming attacker, it’s better to have a weapon than not. Knives are one of the lightest and easiest weapons to use against any attacker, whether it be man or beast.

Cutting Wood

Knives are great for whittling and cutting wood. Most survival knives are strong enough to cut through moderately sized logs. You can actually saw fairly well with them. You can also use the knives to shave off pieces of wood that would be good for kindling, which leads us to No. 4.

Starting Fires

Knives are great to start fires with. Making kindling with a knife is just a start. Striking a knife on flint or similar rock creates sparks that can start a fire.

Making Other Weapons

In every war movie or film about fighting in the thick of things when you are “out of options,” the hero almost always makes weapons out of the materials around him using a knife. This would be no different for you in the wild. One of the first things that you can do is make spears, arrows and other simple and sharp weapons using a knife and nature.

Think about hunting in this environment. You are going to want to avoid having to get close to animals; that is an extremely difficult to do. It’s only smart to make other weapons that are more long-range, like spears and arrows. You could also fashion a bow to shoot the arrows with by using your knife.

Slicing Softer Materials

Knives are great for cutting rope, bandages and other materials that you will need to bind things with. It’s easier to have a knife on you than a pair of scissors and a knife.

Knives are also great if you need to cut your own skin to remove something from it. We hope that type of situation doesn’t ever happen, but you never know.

Cutting A Path

You just never know where you’re going to end up when you are in the wild. You may be in the woods or in the thick of things and need to get through in a hurry. Again, it sounds like something from movies like “Rambo,” but knives really can be used for this. After all, you want to see where you’re going and not have to drag through the unknown.

Knives are a must-have for any preparing that you are doing. As you can see from this list, there are many uses for the small, lightweight piece of metal that you can carry with you.

Be safe, be prepared and, as always, be smarter than they think you are.

–Tim Young
Managing Editor, Absolute Rights

For more great information and tips from Pioneer Living click HERE.

How To Make Char Cloth

When considering the most basic forms of survival then the choices are clear. You have to priorities shelter, food, fire, water and defense. Your shelter is not going to win prizes for luxury home design, and your food won’t win awards for fine cuisine. But one thing that is always the same, and always essential, is fire. One way you can make sure you’re not going to be caught unawares with fire making is to make sure that you have some good supplies of firelighter and tinder ready and waiting for when you need them. Whilst there are always the options of using pine resin and Silver Birch bark as fire starting aids, don’t overlook an ancient, easy and reliable method of fire lighting using your own char cloth.

Home Made Char Cloth

Char Cloth tinder is great to have on standby, as it is one of the few firelighters which work even more effectively in windy conditions. It has been used over centuries to get fires started, but making it is a skill seldom passed on to the younger generation. This is a pity, since the process of making char cloth is simple, and the benefits enormous. Why not consider getting the family to help you make a store of char cloth squares to add to your survival supplies, just in case you should need them.

How it works

Char cloth is effective as a firelighter due to a chemical process known as pyrolysis. Without wishing to give a science lesson, pyrolysis is the thermochemical decomposition of organic material – in this case cotton cloth – at a high temperature, without the aid of oxygen. When you see a wood fire the flames are due to the gases which are being released by the process of pyrolysis. When you look at a charcoal fire, and see flame less glowing embers, you are witnessing the burning of the residue of pyrolysis. As you will see, the process of making char cloth is basically the same as making charcoal, only a lot more quickly.

Method

To make good char cloth you need organic material

• The cloth you use should be pure cotton or linen. Cut it up into small squares, about 2 x 2 inches, and pile them up into a stack.
• Find a tin to hold your stack of cloth scraps. You can use a tobacco tin, a paint tin (carefully cleaned), a coffee tin, a biscuit tin – anything, in fact, as long as it has a tight-fitting lid
• Make a small hole in the lid of the tin to allow smoke to escape
• Place the tin on barbeque embers or an open fire when you have one alight
• Wait and watch for smoke to begin escaping from the hole you made in the tin
• When the smoking stops, turn the tin over in the embers and watch for smoke again.
• When all smoking has stopped, remove the tin from the embers

Using Char Cloth as a Fire Lighter

You will now have made char cloth. Open the tin carefully, or wait until it has cooled. Your squares of fabric will be black and charcoal-like in appearance. Experiment with using it as a fire lighter. Onespark alone will light char cloth, which is another great reason to have it in your survival supplies. Even in the wettest conditions, if you can make one spark you can make a fire with char cloth at your disposal. Try lighting it with flint and steel or a magnesium rod. When the spark hits the cloth it should begin to smoulder at a very, very low level. You can then add the smouldering cloth to a bundle of dry tinder, and blow on it to create fire. Be patient and get the whole family to master the art of fire lighting with the smouldering scraps of cloth. You will soon find that it is easy to light a fire. Collecting quantities of dry tinder and sealing in a waterproof container will make survival fire lighting easy, and with char cloth and dry tinder you will never be short of a means to keep warm.

For a really clear guide to making your own char cloth, check out this link. It is simple enough to show children the processes needed.

For more great information and tips visit www.PioneerLiving.net

When, in the course of "human events" it becomes evident that the "junk" has hit the fan, selecting items for your medical, bug-out, vehicle and home kits demands that they need to work well and last through whatever life may thow at you.

The process of weeding out the "fluff" to get down to the meat and bones of a good product you can bet your life on (and your family's lives), can be annoying at best and detrimental to your survival at worst. In an effort to show you some basic solutions to the challenge of selecting such important components to you and your loved ones' preparedness, Category Five has developed these helpful guidlines.

1. Length, Width, Height - Start with the basics.

Making sure you have room for it in your home, vehicle, or bag will save you both time and money. You would be surprised how many of your "favorite" Bug Out tools won't actually fit into your BOB. You may spend a lot of time making sure you've considered every other guideline (below), but if it doesn't fit, it doesn't ship.

2. Capacity - How much can it hold?

Make sure it can contain what you're wanting to put into it (or carry on it) as well as ensuring that the capacity measures up to your specific needs. Adults need more water than kids, men need more food than women, and not carrying enough of something is almost as useless as not carrying it at all.

3. Weight - A much underestimated category!

This can make or break every step of a journey. Make sure it's necesary to carry or leave it behind.

4. Construction - Because they truly DO NOT make things like they used to.

Take your time to research the quality of what you're purchasing. Customer reviews of just about any product can be found online. Pay attention to what customers are saying, but be aware of false reviews and fake review sites that are nothing but marketing engines for the product manufacturers.

5. Price - A deterrent for many people to preparing in the first place.

Hand in hand with quality Construction, you often get what you pay for. There may be some amazing deals where there is a world of difference between two products of the same price, yet don't fool yourself into thinking you can build a great kit for $20. Spend twice as much up front for something that will last, or buy 4 of the same thing over and over because they keep breaking. In the end, spending more can save you money. 

6. Shelf Life - Father time is not always on your side.

A cousin to quality Construction, Shelf Life is specifically reserved for perishable items (i.e. food, medicine, chemicals). The bottom line... Make sure it will be around when you need it. Have a plan that accounts for rotation. If possible, spend more for a better product like freeze dried verses dehydrated foods.

7. Value - What is Included?

With so many preparedness retailers available you can often get a great package deal, however, don't neglect the other guidelines and allow yourself to get sold a package of junk. Are you getting the best bang for your buck or double the trouble?

8. Utility - Does it multi-task for you?

As Alton Brown from the Food Network would say... NO UNI-TASKERS!!! ALWAYS purchase something that can be used for things other than what you bought it for. Multi-tasking helps with system redundancy as well as weight reduction. Check out www.CategoryFive.org for some great videos and ideas, or simply surf the internet to help get your creative juices flowing. 

Having these basic questions answered at check-out will help ensure you do NOT have buyer's remorse, and will give you peace of mind that you have a quality product you can depend on when you need it most.

Use honey to treat mild burns and wounds

When building your BOB, make sure you have particular items in multiple pockets/pouches, as well as retaining multiple versions of the same functionality. For example, instead of having 1 lighter in your front pocket and that’s it, make sure you also carry some waterproof matches in your medical kit, a ferrocerium rod and steel striker in your waterproof clothing bag, and a road flare in the side pocket of your bag. This way if anything happens to any piece of equipment you have (i.e. submerged in water, stolen, dropped along the way) you will have diversified your reliance on any single part of your bag.

Obviously you can’t create redundancy with every item in your BOB, but you will certainly want to make this a priority with the most important tools for your survival. Namely, the top 5 C’s of survival:

1. Containers – primarily for water (preferably something you can bring to a boil)
2. Cordage – shelter, medical, trapping, fishing, and more
3. Cutting Implement – too many uses to count
4. Combustion – fire (food and warmth), light, and security
5. Covering – should be waterproof

Creating system redundancy in these 5 main areas of survival will give you a much better chance of thriving in a true bug out situation.

In the event you ever really HAVE to bug out, don’t forget to duplicate each of these items on your person as well. Developing your bug out outfit to include a survival belt made of para-cord, a boot knife, a Zippo lighter, a stainless steel water bottle (not double walled), and a waterproof jacket will ensure that you will never be without these items, even if you completely lose your BOB. You don’t have to wear these items every day (although some are recommended), but try to at least set them aside with your BOB in the event you need to get dressed and go.

The Mandala Garden
If you have a fairly sizable growing area, you may want to consider creating a mandala garden. This unique setup utilizes moveable chicken "tractors" that can be rotated around for the purpose of naturally fertilizing and tilling soil, and creating an environment in which fruits and vegetables grow easily with minimal labor.

You can learn more about the mandala garden concept by visiting:
http://www.small-farm-permaculture-and-sustainable-living.com
 

Vertical, Indoor Farming
A surprising number of herbs, greens, nuts, and even grains can be grown indoors with a little creative thinking and conscious placement of growing containers around windows that get lots of natural sunlight. And even if sunlight is limited, special growing lights can also be used to grow food indoors in otherwise dark areas. When stacked and tiered around these light sources, vertical, indoor farms can thrive. Check out this VertiCrop design for an idea of how this might work for you on a smaller scale at home: http://www.verticrop.com/about.html

You can also learn more about indoor farming at:
http://www.veganorganic.net
 

Hydroponics
If land and suitable soil area is in limited supply, hydroponics is another self-sustaining growing option that relies on water and nutrients to grow food. Hydroponic systems work well in urban settings where physical space, and even natural sunlight, is in short supply. Hydroponic systems can be stacked in small spaces, which allows for maximized growing capacity in a small amount of space.

You can learn more about hydroponics by visiting:
http://www.aces.uiuc.edu/vista/html_pubs/hydro/hydroponic.html
 

Aquaponics
Just like hydroponics, aquaponics is a method of growing food at home using water. But instead of just fruits and vegetables, aquaponics systems incorporate fish and other sea creatures into the mix as well. A hybrid of the two systems, aquaponics provides some city dwellers with adequate space the ability to produce their own fish for meat, and even sell it to generate revenue.

You can learn more about aquaponics by visiting:
http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/
http://www.urbanaquaponics.com/

Sources for this article include:
http://permacultureideas.blogspot.com/
http://www.veganorganic.net

If you have a clear plastic water bottle and sunshine, you have safe drinking water.

I originally learned this trick a few years ago while going through Red Cross training, but it's a technique that's still not widely known. If you have a clear PET plastic bottle and fill it with germ and virus filled water and leave it out in the sun for at least 8 hours in hot weather (up to 48 hours in cold weather), the sun's UV radiation will render it safe to drink. This process is known as Solar Water Disinfection. Check out this video from CNN where they show people in undeveloped areas of Kenya purifying their water this way:

It's a great survival skill to know if you are close to a source of water of questionable quality and have run out of potable water. As always, be extra cautious and when in doubt, leave the water bottle in the sun for several hours longer than recommended if possible.

New Blog Affiliate Program

In efforts to generate quality content for our customers as well as get the word out about our organization, we have been hard a work developing Affiliate Relationships with some of our favorite blogs on the internet. As such, we have opened a new Recommended Blogs collection within our site, as well as adding a Blog of the Day space on our front page (bottom right). 

Over the coming months we will be reaching out to even more bloggers to develop a "small army" of affiliates that we can turn to for the BEST content available. Our goal is to have 20 or 30 defined partnerships that will allow us to cherry pick our favorite articles, product reviews, and tips on a daily basis; essentially becoming a clearing house of the best blogs out there. As we continue to solidify these relationships you will see them under our Recommended Blogs section and possibly playing even greater roles in the mission of Category Five as a whole. 

Prepper Town Hall Initiative

Although it is still in the early stages of development, we are now planning the launch of our latest and greatest work, the new CAT5 Prepper Town Hall initiative. We are currently working on:

1. A new preppertownhall.com website (not live yet).
2. Vendor and fundraising strategies 
3. Meeting agendas 
4. Community involvement
5. Leadership training
6. Overall logistics

Use the Corkscrew on Your Swiss Army Knife to Undo Stubborn Knots 

Ok, so you're convinced the corkscrew has worth, but you'd still like to have a phillips head screwdriver on your Swiss Army knife (which the corkscrew replaces). No problem, just use the Swiss Army can opener for phillips screws:

You'll now have the best of both worlds and can even enjoy an occasional bottle of wine during your wilderness excursions! 

Click Here to Read More From Rocky Mountain Bushcraft

This update has slowed down our content "growth" a bit, so bear with us as we tackle the many improvements that we strive to bring to you.

Specifics

If you have ideas, questions, concerns, or anything that you want to see happen just email us at info@categoryfive.org and we will take a look at it together. This is meant to be a network of ideas and helpfulness, and we want you to feel right at home with us.