Category: Reviews

Product, Location, or any other kind of personal experience that we want to share. Opinions are those of the author and commentators.

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Evacuation Preparedness List Review part 1

This is the third installment of the Evacuation Preparedness Kit Series. The first post, on Evac Prep Basics is here, and the second post, which introduces the Evac Prep Master List is here.

In this post we’ll be discussing the items in the different categories on the Master List. If you haven’t seen the list yet, you can access it here.

As we go through these categories, keep in mind that your 72 hour kit will be more like packing for an extended hiking trip whereas your Evacuation Kit will be more like packing for an extended camping trip. Also keep in mind that redundancy and the ability to shed your larger kits and still be able to survive with your smaller kits is critically important. You may find yourself in a scenario where you have bugged out with your Evacuation Kit, but for whatever reason you have to ditch most of it and go on foot. Your G.O.O.D bag had better be able to support you while your on foot. Potentially, you could have to drop supplies all the way down to your EDC and be able to survive off the items in your pockets. Redundancy across your kits is paramount. Continue reading “Evacuation Preparedness List Review part 1”

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Book Review: The Zombie Survival Guide

Since we haven’t had a humor post recently (and boy do I need one), I decided to do a little review of one of my favorite books.zsg-cover The Zombie Survival Guide, by Max Brooks.  Now who among us hasn’t felt some joy in responding to the question, “What are you prepping for” with a glib reply of “For the oncoming Zombie Invasion”?  If you haven’t ever used that response, you should try it sometime, and feel the joy. Continue reading “Book Review: The Zombie Survival Guide”

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Review: Life Caps

Life Caps are a new and fairly recent product on the market in the emergency preparedness category. I’ve heard of them on a few websites, and then I attended an emergency preparedness fair last weekend where several women were recommending them.

The product is promoted as an “emergency preparedness pill”—you take one capsule three times daily, along with drinking plenty of water, in order to provide your body the nutrients it needs throughout the day. The creators claim that these pills satisfy your body’s needs such that you aren’t hungry for food, which is ideal in an emergency scenario if you don’t have access to your normal daily amount of food.

Continue reading “Review: Life Caps”

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Review: Front Sight Four Day Defensive Handgun Course

Gentlemen (and some of you ladies), prepare to drool. I’m still drooling.

Last night I returned from a four day defensive handgun training course at the Front Sight Training Institute near Pahrump, Nevada (read: the boonies of the Nevada desert). I’ve been waiting for this weekend for a few months now, and it was worth every penny (stay tuned for how you can attend a course with fewer pennies than you might think!).

The following is a review of my experience and some of my thoughts on Front Sight’s training in general.

Continue reading “Review: Front Sight Four Day Defensive Handgun Course”

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Review: Tomorrow’s Harvest freeze-dried food

There are several markets that are booming in the current economic climate, and one of those is emergency preparedness and food storage. People are quickly realizing that fiat dollars and credit cards won’t feed the family, and are working quickly to stock up on needed supplies. Many people are flying blind in their pursuit of food storage, and are unsure as to what to store.

Filling this niche and marketing themselves to these customers (and others), several companies offering freeze-dried products have begun to more aggressively promote their products and fill a need in the marketplace. I looked into several companies based in Utah, and ultimately ended up making a small purchase through Tomorrow’s Harvest.

Continue reading “Review: Tomorrow’s Harvest freeze-dried food”

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Review: Shelf Reliance Cansolidator Pantry

By now I’m sure all of our readers have had time to gawk at the wonderful photos in previous posts showing large shelving units with impressive amounts of canned foods with a nice rotation system built in.  These Shelf Reliance products are favorites of the folks around here.  A wonderful local company delivering something we all love.img_3016 But let’s face it.  Not all of us have room for a large shelving unit, or maybe we just cant afford it.  Better yet, maybe you’re like me and you have one, but you also really need a way to rotate a few cans that are in your kitchen too.  And as impressive as the rack is, it just doesn’t quite match the decor of the kitchen.

Enter two other products made by the same company, the Cansolidator ‘Cupboard’, and the ‘Pantry’.  Two smaller sized roller systems designed for use in your kitchen/pantry/closet. Continue reading “Review: Shelf Reliance Cansolidator Pantry”

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Review: Volcano Stove II

Last week I had the opportunity to get in on a group buy for the Volcano II stove. (Sorry, I would have shared the details but I found out about it very last minute and barely made it in myself!) I had heard good things about this stove, and after a brief review of its features and online ratings, I decided to acquire one.

The main reason I wanted to add this to my supplies is its versatility—Volcano stoves can use charcoal, wood, or propane (with the adapter). I found this setup very desirable, since while my fuel may be diversified, this single stove can handle almost everything I throw at it. It’s made to accommodate dutch ovens, or you can lay down the included grill on top and use a normal pan, pot, or cook your things directly on it. And cleanup is as simple as turning the stove over and dumping the remnants out (unless you’re using propane, of course).

Another great feature of the Volcano is its unique heat chamber that channels the heat upwards towards your food, instead of wasting fuel by expelling heat out the sides and bottom. This also means that the area surrounding the stove is cooler than conventional stoves, allowing you to cook with the stove on a variety of surfaces that you normally might not use for putting your stove on.

Below are the pictures of my grand unveiling when I opened and first used the stove.

Continue reading “Review: Volcano Stove II”

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Emergency home heat

My next preparation project was obtaining an emergency heat source. This is a purchase that I have been researching and planning for a quite a while now, wanting to make sure that I had adequately weighed options and made the best choice. There are a lot of factors to consider including the size and shape of the areas you want to heat, altitude, portability, direct versus ambient heat, ease of use, safety, ventilation, and fuel source.

For me, fuel source was one of the most important factors. And, while availability, storage life, and heating power are importing things to consider, my main concern was selecting a universal fuel. Whether I am cooking, lighting, or heating, my preparations will be much more effective if I only have to store one type of fuel. I would also like a solution that I can use regularly in addition to working well in an emergency. Continue reading “Emergency home heat”

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Burning The Midnight Oil

No literally, I’m writing this late at night, and wondering just how many people have really given thought to how they will see at night.  Whether you are preparing for a couple days of power outages due to an event such as an ice-storm, or some longer-term emergency, it’s not feasible to expect that you can run a generator 24/7 in order to still be able to flick the lights.

Ancient Oil Lamp
Ancient Oil Lamp

While our ancestors did keep better time with the sun, there was still a need for light outside of what the sun provided, and we all know you can’t store *enough* batteries for every need.  In this situation, many people will immediately fall back to the use of candles as a primary source of light.  While candles are useful, there is a better answer.  Candles tend to release a lot of smoke which will leave soot over time, they are an open flame, which is dangerous, and are very subject to drafts. The better answer for indoor lighting of course is the lamp, which from ancient time, in many cultures has provided simple, clean, and efficient lighting to humanity. Continue reading “Burning The Midnight Oil”

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Wood burning stoves as a prep.

Here in Utah it is very common to have a basement, often fully finished.  My house is no exception.  Our basement is around 2,000 square feet with only two finished rooms, both bedrooms.  The previous owner of our home had ducting installed to heat the downstairs, but to do so would require another furnace which they apparently decided to set up in the closet of one of the two bedrooms.

In the interest of preparedness and to avoid losing a closet (and therefore a bedroom per building code) I started looking into the option of installing a wood burning stove in the basement.
Continue reading “Wood burning stoves as a prep.”