Another fire starter method - newspaper

I used to do a lot of couponing but now that I moved I have stopped doing it as much and shift my focus.  I still get a lot of newspapers delivered to my house and can get them from friends.  Newspaper can be shredded, compressed, and air dried into "blocks".  You can even add sawdust if you have it or even leaves.  These blocks can then be stored for some time and then used to start fires or if large enough (logs) they can burn for up to 30 minutes or more depending on the size of the log.  My father has been using shredded newspaper for my entire life to start fires but they take up a lot of storage space.  Compressing them takes up less space which is essential when prepping.  Newspapers and other paper will work but try not to get heavily colored or glossy papers since there are chemicals on them that can be harmful if you breath them in.

I like the 5G buckets from Home Depot that have lids.  I use them for a lot of things.  Place the shredded newspaper in the bucket and add water to be about a 50/50 mixture or paper and water.  Let the paper soak for a few hours.  It should make a paste like consistency.  If it is too dry add more water and if it is too wet either drain off some water or add more paper. 

You can squeeze a handful of the mixture to create a "brick" if you do not have nor want to make a press.  You can do it that way and then even stuff them into toilet paper rolls to hold them easier.  I have a huge pile of empty toilet paper rolls for this reason and others.  I plan on making a press as soon as I can.






I just looked up some youtube videos in case you need them to understand and get some ideas on presses. :)

This is the easiest way without having to use power tools or creating something elaborate.  This is the method I am going to do.  Here is a larger version.


Others:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VY4LUC78YW4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJ_EiY2KJu8&playnext=1&list=PL140F6C5B041ED2BF
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKw-czj1bk0&list=PL140F6C5B041ED2BF&index=10

Meds

Well after having the worst back pain ever today that I have had in the last 2 weeks it hit me that I need to stock up on medicines as well as look into herbs that will help if I cannot get medicines.  I have a separated back that always hurts but this time I have a pain in the middle of my back spreading around my left side on one rib only that hurts when I move or breath.  1000mg of acetaminophen, a muscle relaxer, and a heating pad have helped some so it finally clicked that I need to also include medicines in my plan of what to stock up on.  What is on your list?

On my list to stock up on or find herbs to take their place: (still working on this)
Benadryl
Acetominophen
Ibprofen

My Food Dehydrator Trial - Apples and Bananas

My parents gave my sister and I a food dehydrator over 10 years ago but since it did not come with a recipe book or instructions we never knew how to use it.  Other than drying flowers it was never used.  I somehow ended up with it in my garage.  I have been researching how to dehydrate foods and finally pulled my dehydrator out a few hours ago.  I scrubbed it down and am about to slice the apples to see how it works since the apples are on their way out.

I can get apples super cheap at Aldi ($2/3lbs) right now so I want to try to dehydrate them so we can have apples all the time as they are not an item that is always at Aldi or other stores at a great price.

I will post how it turns out once I am done.  They should take about 8-10 hours from what I have read.  I do not have a fancy new dehydrator that has changeable temperatures or anything else.  I just have an "on/off" switch.  Maybe one day soon I will have a new one if it does not work out with this old one.


Process:
I had a Red Delicious apple that was starting to bruise so I cut it into quarters and cut out the core (I need to get a corer.  I have a corer that slices at the same time so that does not work.)  I then put each quarter into my food processor to be able to get an even thickness.  Would also work in halves but I would not go any smaller than quarters.

I also sliced up half a banana my daughter did not finish to see what happens.  The bananas I have here are mainly brown which means they are the most nutritious but from what I read they are not the best for making banana chips since they are "soggier".


Update: 4 hours later and I took the apple chips off to cool.   My 26 month old took her stool over to them once I walked away and helped herself to them...so I will be making another batch tomorrow so I can take photos.  This was her first time having them and she keeps asking for more.  They are really sweet too.

The bananas look to be about halfway done.  I will check them again in 3-4 hours to see how they are.

I am going to try strawberries tomorrow.  I bought some at Winndixie when they were around 3/$5 and froze one container of them to use when needed.  I live about an hour or so from Plant City where a lot of strawberries come from so next season I will stock up on them to make jams and to dehydrate them.

Water Storage

So I am just going to slightly touch this subject and will write more on it later.  My parents live on a farm and have a well.  That means that when the power goes out they do not get any water at all to the house or anywhere on the farm.  I found this item for them and then realized it is great for prepping too since they can be filled fast and holds up to 100 gallons of water.  Even one of these in a tub when SHTF could be a lifesaver.  You can go without food for a little while but you cannot live without water. 

Also, a few drops of bleach per every gallon of water will make water safe to drink.  Bleach has a shelf life of around 6-9 months when stored out of the heat.

Waterbob
$29.99+s/h





*I did not receive any compensation or products to try for blogging about Waterbob.  I have not tried this product yet but have found it to be an interesting product.

FIFO Storage

FIFO is also known as "First In, First Out".  It is a way of using what is the oldest first when it comes to canned goods.  I know that I hate cleaning out the pantry only to find a lot of old, expired cans at the back.  FIFO eliminates that.


FIFO can be bought at a few different spots or made diy style.  I was going to buy them but at $400/e (unless on sale) for the largest sizes I would spend a fortune to fill my pantry but I will have a few.  I found how to make them using a few different methods.  Make sure you know the size of your cans since some will not fit in prebought ones other than Shelf Reliance.

Check out Shelf Reliance for ready made FIFO systems as well as other dehydrated or freeze dried foods.  I am in LOVE with the big one!!!

You can even use boxes if you just need something small and cheap for your current pantry.  I have included one in the links below.


I cannot take credit for these but these sites are what inspired me:
Instructables.com - Made of plywood
Instructables.com - Cardboard
Premade Cardboard Organizers - (a little $$ but great if you do not want to spend time building some.  Some cans I have heard will not fit in these if they are more than 4.5" long.)






***I get nothing for sharing the Shelf Reliance page.  I am only doing it to help you.  Please let her know that "Prepper Beth" sent you.

Cheap and Easy Fire Starters!

This is something I LOVE!  They are super easy to make and store easily unlike the Vaseline and cotton ball method that has been floating around.  Who wants to carry those sticky things around, eww.

What you need:
make-up remover cotton squares/rounds
tweezers or something else to remove the pads from the wax
candles for the wax (I used old candles since I have a ton of them around the house)

Melt the wax in a pot you do not care about on low heat until you have about 1/8-1/4" of melted wax.  Then dip the cotton squares in the wax until it has absorb as much wax as it can (~2-3 seconds).  Let harden and then store.  I sent mine on wax paper to let them dry.

You can use the squares as a whole or in 1/4s.  Just make sure to tear them a little so that the cotton fibers are exposed.  A full square burns for about 4 minutes and 1/4 of one burns for about 1 minute.  I will be timing them next time I make them.


FYI:
I have found circles at Walgreens for pretty cheap.  They are "Wags Studio 35 circles" and are $4.99 for 240 circles ($.02/e) and they go on sale some times.  I have not checked Walmart as I do not go there often.  Please feel free to post what you have found to use and where you got them from.  It is all about helping each other.

Quick note on how I am getting money for free to buy prepping items on Amazon

So I have been using websites for a while to get amazon gift cards which in turn I buy items that I need.  For a little while it was diapers but now I am stocking up for prepping gear.  I LOVE amazon since they have so many items on there.  I even have a list I am making of items I want for prepping.

One new site I joined like 2 weeks ago after another one of my sites closed is Instagc where you can earn gift cards.  I have gotten 6 gift cards already from that site for not even doing much and I do not have anyone signed up under me like many bloggers who cash out big amounts all the time because they get all their followers to sign up under them.  It is super easy to get points just from doing a few daily items that get you 1 and 7 points each.  I just got 24 points for those daily chores.  I like that since I do not always have the time to do other task to get points daily since I have a child and run my own business.

New Blog

I have used this website before and not really kept up with blogging on it but I am going to give it another chance until I can find something I like better.

I never thought about prepping until my ex and his friends started talking about the Zombie Apocalypse and planning out their "plan" over the last 5 years.  They never went further than just talking about it. No one even thought about getting items and actually doing any prepping until I came along.  I started getting into couponing when funds were tight and in just 2 weeks got really good at it.  I scored enough toothpaste and toothbrushes that I have not bought any for 2 years and am not even halfway through my stash.  I have also started collecting weapons and learning to use them correctly.

Anyone who knows me knows I watch/dvr a lot of shows about Preppers and like them.  "Doomsday Preppers: Bugged Out" just started again on Nov 13 so I am excited.  I am not as extreme as some but I like to get ideas and even have my excel spreadsheet out while watching the shows for any ideas I get (I'll try to post them here too since this is just a way for me to track my thoughts and things).


Just thoughts/ideas I'm putting down as I think of them:
I have started stocking up on food but need a lot more.  I am going to relearn how to can food since I have not done it in many many years.  I am also learning a lot about food storage.  I am so excited about my $4 finds at Goodwill of 2 new-in-box food saver systems so I can store some foods that way.  I need to start storing water.  I've got enough laundry detergent for at least 2 years in a front load washer since that is what we currently use so there will be many years worth if we just need to do small "loads" by hand of certain items.

I am also planning a large storage pantry for food and supply stores.  I'm talking like 20*20+.
I will be buying a house soon to live in while I build my "dream home" (in the planning steps for now) so I will be adding on solar panels to be able to have power when others do not.  I will also install a rain water collection system.  Both are already in the plans for the house I will be building.

The house I will be building has a thick, tall wall surrounding the entire parcel of land.  There will be a garden, storage building, chickens, a few goats, and eventually I will be adding on a few small outbuildings for my friends/family to live in if they so choose.

Once I buy my land I will be on the hunt for a certain vehicle that can be customized to have armored plating as well as take many types of fuels.  I will also start storing different fuels to use for vehicles, fire starters, cooking, and more.

ok, I could go on and on but my 2yr old just fell asleep next to me after a long 15 hour drive home from families houses (prob the last time I make that trip) and I am getting to bed too.