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SURVIVAL ITEMS TO KEEP AT HOME OR TAKE WITH YOUDoomsday can mean different things to different people. For some it means the end of the world and for others such as those in New Orleans it can just feel like the end of the world. There are many scenarios that could occur in other parts of the United States that resemble Katrina. An explosion of Mt Rainer, large scale power outage, earthquake or chemical bomb could cause major urban areas to be disaster zones. There are some steps that you can take to help prepare for a variety of disasters without having to become a survivalist nut with a cache of weapons buried in the back yard.Assuming that you will be forced to stay put in your home for a long period of time until services and law and order are restored you should have the basics of survival. Fire, light, water, food, and a weapon. WEAPON: A good all around weapon is a shotgun. Shotguns are cheap and are not subject to the strict laws that handguns are. You can use it for both protection and to kill game to eat if necessary. Keep one in a locked gun cabinet for the day that you might need it. If you’re a hunter, you probably already posses some firearms, so make sure you have plenty of ammo, as this will become increasingly difficult to obtain later on.WATER: It is a good idea to keep on hand a few weeks supply of water. Plastic jugs tend to degrade and contaminate the water after a couple of years. A better way to store water is in the old fashioned glass water-cooler jugs. These can be found in wine making supply stores and hold six gallons. You should try to have at least a half gallon per person per day for at least a month and try to catch water off the roof as well.FOOD: A good supply of food is critical. You will need food that does not take a great amount of energy to cook such as instant rice, canned beans and spices to make it palpable. Beans and rice together can form a complete protein. Some spices to make them taste better are good to have.Keep vitamins on hand. Protein powder, instant milk, noodles, ramen, canned and dried fruits and vegetables, and if you can afford MRE's, or meals ready to eat, as supplied to the military, they would also be good, and will last for a long time.FIRE: For "fire" make sure you have any one of the flint fire starter kits, unless you have a large supply of matches or lighters. Also good seasoned firewood is a plus. If you plan on cooking, you will need to have on hand enough propane in an outdoor storage tank or a number of propane cylinders such as for a barbecue pit. An outdoor barbecue pit with a burner, can be used to cook on, and can serve as your outdoor kitchen. POWER: With the hurricanes of recent years many homeowners are realizing just how fragile our power grid is and that they need to have a backup source of power. That’s where a good generator comes in. What size should your backup generator be?First, let’s look at the different kinds of emergency backup generators for your home. PORTABLE GENERATORS: What Size Portable Generator Do You Need?The most economical way to provide backup power to your home is to buy a medium sized portable generator of at least 4000 watts or more and use heavy gauge extension cords and splitters to power your refrigerator, TV and a few portable lights. While this is the cheapest way it does have some drawbacks, mainly having to set up cords and run them through windows and doors. The next way, which costs a couple hundred dollars plus electricians fees, is to have an electrician install a transfer switch and plug. A transfer switch allows you to plug your portable generator (sized properly) into your home electrical system and isolate your home system from the electric grid so that no power company workers are shocked. All you have to do is wheel your generator to a place with adequate ventilation, roll out the cord and attach it to the plug below the transfer switch and power it up.You will want to turn off any high load circuits such as pool heaters and central air conditioners depending on your generator's wattage. A 5000 watt?portable generator with 6000 watt surge capacity will power a fridge, TV and your home's lights but not much more. Those in the 8,000 and up range will power almost your whole house except your central heat or multiple window units. PERMANENT GENERATORS: What Size Permanent Generator Do You Need?For generators large enough to power the entire home consider permanently installed models. These are always ready to go and start automatically after the power has been off a few seconds. The best way to power them is to hook them up permanently to propane or natural gas. Permanent units start at $6000 and up.To determine the wattage needed for your home you should contact an electrician who can help you determine the amount of all the loads on your breaker box.Summary of What Size Should Your Backup Generator BeBasically, for a simple home emergency generator system you can spend well under a thousand dollars for one big enough to run most of your home's needs. For less than $1000 you can have a good generator plus a transfer switch. If you go this route I recommend that you buy the wheel kit for your generator and depending on your physical condition, one with electric start. Briggs and Stratton make some good generators in the 6000 watt range for less than $700. The Briggs and Stratton models are cheap and reliable provided that you keep clean fuel in them. Always allow them to run out of gas so there is none left in the carburetor to gum up when you store them, and be sure to check the oil when running them for multiple days and to change the oil when you are done. If you service them, including cleaning the air filter they will last several years.PTO GENERATOR: For those with a tractor you have the option of a PTO or "Power Take Off" mounted generator. These save you the expense of paying for a motor and allow you to use your tractor, with a larger diesel tank, to power the unit. These are typically higher in wattage and very reliable.Noise and California rated generators: Many of the cheaper portable backup emergency generators are not legal in California because of emissions and noise requirements, so check before buying one. For a model legal in California you will have to spend as much as 40% more. Keep in mind that the cheaper portable generators are noisier, in some cases twice as noisy. However you can alleviate some of this noise by facing the exhaust away from your home, and your neighbors. WARNING: Do not place generators in the garage, since deadly carbon monoxide fumes will enter the home, and your family will die, defeating the purpose of buying the generator, to begin with.Finally, don't think that you can just buy a 1000 watt camping generator and use it to run your home. You will go crazy unplugging the fridge to watch TV, etc. You need at minimum 4000 watts. A 6000 watt generator will handle most emergency situations with power to spare. Small camping generators were never meant to run for days on end.If you sense that your water supply is going to fail fill your tubs and any containers you can find. Later you can set up catchments such as cleaned trash cans under your gutters for toilet flushing and washing water.You will need some light to cook and live by if you don't have a generator with a large fuel supply. Keep a good supply of batteries and wind up flashlights as well as many candles.Have a good first aid kit and keep a few weeks supply of medicines that you may need for chronic conditions such as thyroid pills or heart pills. You can order extra from an overseas pharmacy. One of the keys to surviving a breakdown of order in an urban area is to form alliances with your neighbors and start a neighborhood watch. In the event that something drastic does happen you will have those contacts already in place. You can use GMRS radios, which transmit up to ten miles or more, to keep in touch with like minded people. Keep a shortwave - AM - FM radio for news. Consider a free to air satellite system which picks up free satellite broadcasts.DISASTER GEAR FOR YOUR CAR: Think of keeping some of the things mentioned above in your car so you can be prepared for anything. Keep a “Bug Out” backpack in your trunk, with enough food for several days, some cash in case the networks are down and credit cards are useless. Keep your gas tank full at all times. Keep blankets and a small tent in the trunk along with a good spare tire, jumper cables, and several gallons of water in a tough water jug. Consider a long range SSB CB radio, or VHF, for emergency communication.The Basic Elements of a "Bug Out" backpack, or Survival Backpack: A bug out bag should contain the things you need to survive for at least three days after a disaster. It should contain food, clothing, light, some kind of shelter, water, tools, first aid and medicine and communications gear.To make a survival backpack you need to tailor the contents for your own specific needs. Those with health issues need to include all medications they might require for at least two weeks. Don't forget extra pairs of glasses, contact lenses, hearing aids, etc.For basic comfort include tennis shoes, extra socks and underwear and a couple pair of loose fitting pants and a belt, plus a couple of tee shirts and a rainproof jacket. Include a couple high tech reflective blankets for warmth. In your survival backpack, add a good LED flashlight, some waterproof matches or a lighter and a couple candles for when your battery runs out. Add a hand cranked radio and flashlight combination to keep abreast of the news. Also keep a good sharp knife handy, as well.A good survival backpack should be made for each person in your family that can carry one, though if you cannot afford this, do the best you can with one large pack. You might want to add a couple of lightweight sleeping bags. These can be expensive but search for used camping gear on Craigslist. You can use a "stuff sack" or compression bag to compress these lightweight sleeping bags down to the size of a cantaloupe.Add a couple bottles of water to your survival backpack: Choose water bottles free of harmful chemicals that will be safe to store water in for a long period. You can get sealed water pouches at stores like REI. Your survival backpack or “bug out” backpack should include some kind of small tent or tarp big enough to shelter your family. You can find two person tents for as low as $20 in discount MUNICATIONS GEAR: for you’re “Bug Out” backpack: If you are traveling in a group consider a pair of GMRS walkie-talkies plus a solar charger and some rechargeable batteries. Cell phone towers are often down or out of service during disasters and a couple of two way radios can help you keep in touch over a five mile radius if you are separated. Choose radios with GMRS channels (you should fill out the FCC license form) and which have privacy codes so you don't hear every other user on that channel. Choose a GRMS radio that accepts both rechargeable and disposable batteries. You can now get solar panels that affix to the back of your backpack and charge up you cell phone, radios, etc. Try to use LED flashlights, radios, etc, that all use the same kind of battery such as AA batteries and carry an ample supply. A GMRS two way radio that also receives NOAA weather and emergency-broadcasts is preferred. LAPTOP COMPUTER: These days our lives literally revolve around the computer. In the event of a disaster you may be relocated to almost anywhere and having the ability to check on the news, send e-mail, conduct business, etc, can be done much more effectively with a small notebook or net book computer, than with a smart phone. Consider buying a high power long range WiFi adapter, which attaches to your notebook's USB port. These will enable you to pick up free internet connection as you travel, assuming our country is not completely off line.Other Survival Items: Keep a map of the United States and your state in the survival backpack to figure alternative routes. You will want some things to survive on in your survival backpack should it prove difficult to find food. Add things like Power-bars that keep for a long time and contain both protein and carbohydrates.Don't Forget Money: Hide some cash in your survival backpack. After a major storm or disaster, ATM and credit card machines often do not work. Also, you might want to read "A Family Guide To Disaster Survival" and "When All Hell Breaks Loose", and include a copy of Field Guide To Wilderness Medicine in your survival backpack for reference. Last But Not Least: If you feel there is even a chance your home will be destroyed, looted, etc, take the most important photos you have. Most who have lost their homes regret losing family photos more than anything else. Also, back up as much data as you can from your computers on a high capacity USB drive or CD.While this list is not complete by any means, you can get an idea of some things you will want to add when building a survival backpack. Hopefully you will never need it. It might help you sleep a little better just knowing that is there in your closet and car trunk.Hopefully you won’t need any of this stuff, but if hard times are ahead, you’ll be glad you prepared early.Good luck. Regards, Phil. ................
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