By Claude Davis
Most things you do can help you prep. They can be little things – buying an extra dozen cans of corn because it’s on special offer, and adding them to your food stores, for example. They can be big things, too, like making yard space and access to water top priorities when you’re looking for a new home. Do you replace your old car with a sporty model or a reliable truck you can maintain yourself? If you accept that job offer in California, will you be able to take your guns with you?
What I realized was that every decision I take can have an effect on how prepared I am. Some things would make it more difficult to protect myself and my family if the collapse comes – like moving to California. Others could give me more of an edge. That’s why I decided to start keeping a record of exactly what I’m doing to make myself more prepared.
My goal is to be able to look back at the end of every week and point to something I’ve done to make myself better prepared. It doesn’t have to be something big – just anything that improves my ability to cope with an unexpected crisis. It might be more food laid up, a new tool found or a new skill learned; as long as it’s something that will help out when it’s needed most.
This paragraphs is where I’ll share what I’ve done. Hopefully you’ll find it useful and inspiring. I use activated charcoal for heartburn, indigestion, dental infections and of course most of it goes on my barbecue. As I ran out of charcoal I decided to make old fashioned charcoal and activate it using the method I illustrated (DIY step by step + pictures) in The Lost Ways 2.
What did you do for your preparedness last week?
Please share with us in the comment area and maybe we can all exchange ideas and borrow a good one from a fellow member of our small community here.
I found a great deal at my local dollar store for Vienna Sausages and bought 100 cans.
Geez Claude I was expecting you to SHOW us how to do it not another ad to BUY!
Hey, he has to make a living too
when I tried to order the physical copy, only the digital came up. couldn’t get it to change.
I am sitting here now with the same deal….I do not want a digital product!!!! I don’t appreciate the bait and switch deal!!! Either get your items for sale straight or take them off the internet!! No one likes to be scammed!!! Thank God I saw the switch in time to back out of the sale. I don’t care to pay for something then I also have to pay for printer ink and paper…. such a rip off!!! Please get your site straightened out so people like myself can get what they want and what they are paying for. I got cheated like that last time you had books for sale and you are not doing it to me again!!! Do you even have a printed copy for sale or it is just there to trick people into having to buy one thing and then have to print and cost them even more money!!! Looks like you are scamming innocent people who are just trying to save their families and be prepared. Please don’t dangle one deal in front of us then pull the old bait and switch!!!! Our money was hard to come by and we do not like being ripped off by a con-artist!!
Thank you so much for your interest in my book.
I can assure you there is no bait and switch.
The Lost Ways 2 is available in physical copy. You just have to select the country, fill in the address and that’s it!
I am very sorry for the misunderstanding. This is our payment processor policy and it has nothing to do with me.
God bless,
Claude
He does have hard copies as I am in possession of one of the Lost Ways books. You could also buy the FoxFire books that contain the same things but for a much higher price. There are 10 volumes and can be ordered from your local bookstore. The Lost Ways book is much more organized though.
I have both hard and digital copies of the lost ways from Claude’s site. The hard copies were delivered within days. I have ordered many things from his site and was only disappointed once, with the solar powered battery to run an entire house for two days for under $200.00 dollars. I emailed him directly, not publicly like you have and he had click bank refund my $49.00 immediately. I have nothing but good things to say about Claude Davis and his site. Because of his site and a few others, I and my family can pretty much weather any problem that’s thrown at us. Keep up the good work Claude.
I ordered both books and digital format. I had know trouble receiving them. Good books to add to collection!
I too was disappointed with the digital copy. How will this help me if the electricity goes out? I no longer buy from you because of this.
First, if you are a serious prepper, you have the ability to produce electricity when the grid goes offline. A digital copy should be usable. Second, this is not the forum to complain about your purchases. Claude came up with a great idea to get like minded folks to share ideas and strategies and you numbskulls have hijacked it. Shame on you.
E-Ink to the rescue! They hold thousands of books, the battery lasts a month or more (only draws current when changing pages), and they can be re-charged with a solar cell-phone charger.
I bought ten broken ones (Kindle DX-G, 9″) and ten new displays. Anyone interested in a refurb?
I think your message is very strong. Have you given Claude a chance to correct the problem? Name calling like con man isn’t necessary unless you can share evidence that Claude refused to work with you. I hope this works out for everyone. Many of us like the site and the information shared is great. I had a misunderstanding with the bonus books. I too ordered the actual paperback that came with 3-4 bonus books. When my package arrived I only received The Lost Ways. I was giving it some time for the others to arrive but so far haven’t received them. But I wouldn’t lash out at Claude like you did. I will email him shortly and express my concerns. May God bless us all to reason with each other in a productive manner. Chaplain Tim
I found an inexpensive, light weight bullet protection called carry-on. It fits in a backpack, can be used in front or in back or on the head. Can be used as a shield or even partial cover. It costs $100.00. You can get it on line. I am playing around with using Kevlar paint layers on the outside and inside of galvanized metal garbage can covers for the same purpose–Will have to use them for target practice to see what they can withstand.
Last week, I ran a hose from our backyard water catchment tanks all the way around the house to an elevated 55 gallon barrel that is beside the front yard raised beds. Now, we can water the front yard garden with rainwater just like we have been doing in the back for several years.
I purchased some extra hydrogen peroxide, mousetraps and clothes pins, plus 30 12 ga. slugs, and began work on a list of things I need so I do not forget. I also ordered a wash board. Definitey a busy boy.
I found a great deal on canned tomatoes, canned chicken broth and canned beef broth at our local grocery store, .28¢ a can, all expire 2020, got Qty 40 each.
Also, I finished up a project that we’ve been working on for the last month on weekends – cleaning/organizing our tool shed. We had stuff mixed up in boxes everywhere and couldn’t find anything when we needed it. Now we are organized and ready to go. Found lots of things we forgot that we had. We’re in good shape now.
OkieWatergirl
Keep in mind that can goods truly never expire. Unless improperly canned they do not spoil unless one of 2 things occur. Acids in the can eat through the metal and allow air and bacteria to enter or if the material was not properly canned. Gas production will bulge cans so you will know they are compromised and leaking cans are obvious and create other problems. So if 2020 comes and goes and you still have them they should still be ok to use. Just a thought
I have not found that entirely true. I once ate a couple of black olives that tasted off. I loved black olives, and my mom asked if they tasted funny to me. They did, and she thought they may have gone bad.
We were at my grandmother’s for Thanksgiving, and Mom had gotten the can of olives from the shelf down cellar.
This was before the days when Best By or Use By info was on the cans, and this can looked fine, no bulges, dents, rust, etc.
I was one sick girl for about 18 hours, and from that time on, I live by the “when in doubt, throw it out” rule. Two bad black olives; I couldn’t eat another black olive for years.
My mother had a keen sense of smell, and my experience with those olives taught me to respect it. If she said something didn’t smell right, out in the trash it went.
Have I eaten stuff past the best by? Yes. Past the use by? Yes. Been okay? Yes. But if I have ANY inkling of doubt I throw it out. Cause that bout with food poisoning was bad enough when the electricity was on and there was no other drama. I’d hate to have to experience that in a SHTF situation.
You kind-of have to watch tomato products like soup and tomato paste too. I’ve had both to go off color in cans that looked ok. If it looks bad, or smells bad, don’t risk it.
I completed filling up 275 Gallon water storage containers (5) Put E.D. Goodloe’s Aerobic Stabilized Oxygen in them dated the containers as the water should last 5 Years with the Stabilizers in them. Covered them with Radient Barrier Foil and tarps keep prying eyes away they are on the side of the house behind a fence. I also purchased 3 Propane tanks to add to my collection of 12 my goal is 24 tanks. This week I am going to purchase the special buys at the Grocery store being thanksgiving and stock up.
Hi Texas Frank,
I was not aware that water has a shelf life. I also did not know about water stabilizers. This whole thing has been very interesting and educating. Now, time for me to do some research to find out about 5 year water. Thank you!
I try to rotate bottle water every six months. I have tried keeping bottle water for a year but I think particles in the plastic leach into the water and it just tastes awful. If you bottle water from the tap and store In 2 liter bottles it only takes a few drops of bleach to purify water then date it and if not used in six months then pour it out somewhere useful and repeat process. This has worked well for me.
I found pasta elbows and shells on sale at Walmart.com .33 cents per 8oz bag. At Kroger I got spaghetti noodles ..38 for 16oz. I put them in a 5 gal bucket w oxy absorbers. I put up three more gallons of water.
I started decluttering a room to prepare it for necessary food, water, and etc…
Bought EMP bags of various sizes from US plastics made by same Co. Sold on other sites for 1/2 price. Got 3 months of emergency food with 12 days free for less than meal for 4 at nice restaurant. Finally got my Remington and G-19. More water filtration and knives.
I started a DIY emergency car kit for my parents , who are in their 70’s and drive the Alaska Highway once a month. 6 hour drives. Ugh. It needs more than your basic stuff, you can be w/o cell service, and away from help for hours
TJ I think that is a very good idea, everyone should have an emergency kit in their car.
God bless,
Claude
we are making bug out kits (72 hours) for all our kids for Christmas gifts… items are starting to come in the mail. Also re-doing ours to be up to date.
Rebecca I was running out of Christmas gift ideas!
Thank you.
God bless,
Claude
I built a 12x24x12 greenhouse with 350 gallon tank to try aquaponics. Took a bunch of scrap wood i needed to clean up and made 9 rotational canned storage containers that hold 29 cans each. Built and insulated a barn style roof over my, block, 12×16 well house for other stores. And planted in containers 20 assorted fruit and nut tree saplings.
Making your own aquaponics garden is a lot of work but it’s worth it.
God bless,
Claude
Designated area for collection of medical Supplies.
Added 2 Large 1 qt containers of 91% Alcohol, same size Containers of bentondine, purchase moe sterile bandages, verified all firstaid kits are properly stocked and that all materials are up to date and not expired. Total Cost for all that was purchased – $10.00.
I have designated one closet for my emergency food, and it’s all in there now. I wrote the expiration dates on the tops of the lids in BIG PRINT so if the lights are dim, it’s easier to see when I need to use them.
Over Thanksgiving weekend, I want to list all the items I have on one master list and their expiration dates, so I can know what I have, and how many servings.
I also bought an extra bag of kitty kibble and extra litter for the kitties. I like to have a 3-month supply on hand going into winter, and if I have more, it’s a bonus.
The other item on my list this week besides the master emergency food list is to switch the car bag for winter stuff (includes carrying a pair of snowshoes in the truck in case I’m stranded someplace).
Fed the pigs (one of which I own) at the local co-op farm; bought the materials for a new raised garden bed (we live on rock); got help from friends to figure out why our internet stopped working, and fixed it ourselves instead of paying for the “approved” repairperson; AND got rid of a task I was carrying for someone else because a long time ago I got talked into it, and I don’t have time now. Letting go is as important as acquiring…
Put hundreds of peppers in the smoker. Have you priced chipotle recently? It’s $220 a kilogram!
I installed my underground shelter, 2 20,000gal water tanks connected to my well, added another 2kw solar and another 2kw vawt built another 5kwah diy tesla wall. going to install it today.
attached my gutters to my above ground water tanks, it’s raining. checking all my structures for water tightness today.bought arrows and bolts with hunting and fishing tips extra strings for both crossbows and compound bows. winter garden is in. in the orchard I add 15 trees every year or as many seeds as will germinate. greenhouses setup with extra material incase of future damage.
Claude, thanks for all you do here to help others. I realize you are making money at it too. Good for you!
To answer your question, I did not do a thing this week to add to my collection. I think about it often though. I will keep reading and improving my knowledge and prep stash. Thanks!
Thank you so much for your kind words. I really appreciate it.
I consider reading a great way to prep.
God bless,
Claude
Inventoried and reorganized our medical supplies. Also prepared three emergency bags- first aid, trauma and one for veterinary supplies.
Someone let me have meat rabbits for $5. I bought 10.
I found carrots on sale for 30 cents a pound and canned them. I ended up with 25 pint jars.
Any good suggestions on which meat rabbits I should get?
I don’t know where u are at. But at WinCo they sale a 25# bag of carrots for under $7.00
Had a bunch of extra eggs from our chickens, which we usually give away to our neighbors. Decided it was time to can some more powdered eggs for our supply. Continue to work on our food storage area. Debating whether to re-build our partially torn barn into a new barn to raise some sheep or turn it into a greenhouse. My husband is a diabetic on insulin and I have been educating myself that diabetes is reversible with an all plant based diet, which is going to make the greenhouse a wiser decision in making that lifestyle change in diet and being self sufficient in doing so.
Could you elaborate on how you can your eggs? I have a dehydrator and have been thinking about drying some of my own, but wasn’t sure about how to can them. As a stop gap, I figured I could put them in the freezer for longer storage but would rather be able to store them in ambient temperatures and use that freezer space for something else.
thanks.
I posted an article a while ago exactly on this subject: http://www.askaprepper.com/how-to-make-powdered-eggs/.
It has pictures and explains how to make powdered eggs and how to can them step by step.
Hope this helps.
God bless,
Claude
Thank you so much, Claude!
I missed that article and will go read it now. :0)
I finally made a prep trip to the Home Depot. Got a metal trash can to make a faraday container, a camp axe, large heavy duty plastic sheeting, tape, and two terra pots. Also, I had previously bought sprouting seeds but this week was the first time I tried them out and grew some, and love it! I plan to use sprouting seeds to fulfill my fresh food needs.
I talked to my doctor about what would happen if I ran out of the 3 medications I take. It turns out that one of them should not be stopped in a “cold turkey” manner. In an emergency, I would have to wean myself off of it.
We canned our winter beetroot crop in reusable ball jars.
Built a small wood burner for the patio to cut lpg use down. Planted out 4 new avocado trees and 3 achchas trees. Hatched out 17 chickens with incubator and they are growing well. Got the corn and watermelons growing as well as a pumpkin vine.
I drilled a 2-inch PVC water well using only a garden hose water supply, a small amount of labor and quite a few hours. I’m in East Texas with hard, red clay, iron rock, etc, and it only took me 21 (actual work time) hours to go 37 feet to good, clean water that sits 5-feet in the well. Here’s where to find the instructions.
https://drillyourownwell.com/
It takes very little effort to rotate the “paddle” and let the “bit” do the work. I made my bit out of a cast iron connector instead of PVC – easily made with a hand grinder and cutting blade. A piece of 2X12 board between two step ladders made my “adjustable height” work platform.
And, if you are dumb enough to apply for a permit, you deserve to pay the fee and have the government know about your well.
I bought a hand pump that will pull water up from 50-feet and squirt a 1/2 inch stream of water for 10 feet – fills up a 5 gallon can in less than a minute.
I previously built a 7-foot high stand out of 2″X4″X8′ for a 30-gallon barrel, painted the barrel black, put a valve on it and can use it for hot water or for a shower if water and electricity go off.
I just installed a “Flojack” into my existing well, will have water regardless of what happens…
This piqued our interest. We’ve never heard of such. Since we have a well, we are definitely going to research it!
What exactly is this? I’m having my well drill in December and would love to not be depended on an electric pump
I ORDERED THE LOST WAYS BOOK MONTHS AGO AND TODATE HAVE NOT RECEIVED – RECEIVED DIGITAL INSTEAD – YOU ADVISED TO SEND SHIPPING COSTS HOWEVER NEVER WORKED -WOULDN’T GO THRU YOUR BANK – I WOULD ENJOY BOOK 2 BUT WILL NOT TAKE CHANCE FOR ANOTHER LOSS – IF YOU COULD SHOW ME HOW I CAN RECEIVE BOTH BOOKS WITHOUT DIGITAL COPIES ETC ALSO OTHER OF YOUR BOOKS I WOULD INTERESTED IN REORDERING
Hi Carl,
Please email me at support@askaprepper.com and I am sure we can sort everything out.
I am sorry for any inconvenience this has caused you
God bless,
Claude
I’ve been canning up the multitude of various squashes. Want to put some spagetti squash in the dehydrator.Got some extra horse feed in to offset the hay when the weather gets colder. Got all the gardens to bed and mulched the leaves for spring use.
If it is in a book, it is most likely on the web somewhere all you have to do is search for it. Sometimes you do better if you search for it by misspelling a word a word or two.
https://www.wikihow.com/Make-Charcoal
I went through all of my battery powered equipment and checked or replaced the batteries. I really put this off to long and found two items with leaking batteries. One was beyond repair.
Working on a chicken coop, got some feminine products for the girls in the family, put extra bullets in smaller containers for individual bartering(projectiles not complete rounds of ammo), put one pound lead ingets in small bags for bartering, put stash of gunpowder in smaller one pound containers, couple more rolls of toilet paper, stored back some rope, dust masks, gloves, and that about sums it up.
I reorganized my canned goods, making sure dates were written on top of each, and older ones up front. Also we had our first freeze last night, so I dug up my sweet potatoes, picked the rest of the tabasco peppers and make sauce out of them. Planted cold hardy veggies, and made sure the animals were all well-fed!
What did We do to prep this week?
We made a list of all the traitors that are infesting the government in our area, so that they may be dealt with appropriately when SHTF!
Our group of preppers leaves no stone unturned!
Rotated ammo and dated it. Made a list of things to add to my med bag. Discovered my battery supply has been molested. Gotta talk with the kids about that. It was time to rotate those anyway. Always need to split and rotate firewood as well. Got a ton of other little odds and ends to tie up.
I mulched the garden beds. Began seeding & mulching pastures. Started some brush piles that will be the foundations of new garden beds. Found some more reference books at local thrift store.
Experienced an interesting ’emergency’ at the grocery store this week– Staff said, the computers are down so you can’t use Debit or Credit cards but they would accept cash or checks– Many standing in the produce department looked around like they never heard of cash or checks! Some left carts and went home!
I purchased 20 lbs of bread flour and 1lb of powdered organic whole milk
I recently made cheese from powdered milk. It was quite good.
God bless,
Claude
With everyone listing what they’ve done to further their preps, doesn’t that defeat opsec somewhat?
I reckon I’m always thinkin’ about stocking up. Got wood, got water, got food. Always looking for something I can possibly use.
I don’t think so unless you mention EVERYTHING, which there would not be enough space to list it all.
A quick msg about feminine products. Mini pads can also be used for bandages. We’ve used them on wounds on the horses and ankles. Make great barter products too! Tampax is supposed to aid with bullets holes, but thankfully never had to test that one!
these last three + weeks, i’ve put up a dozen qts of pumpkin, green and orange. 36 qts of carrots, dehydrated the carrots tops and powederized them. picked several qts of beets (but are still raw) and am dehydrating all the greens, which will also be powderized. half a dozen pumpkins still to go, but the ones i canned where frostbit and getting mushy, the others are still firm. still have beets and carrots in the ground to get out/process, as well as kale and other leafy greens still going strong. i may need to buy more jars/lids. my freezers are full which is why i’m drying stuff, but i only have a small, four-tier dryer, so i’m trying to get as much of the greenery done before it snows again, which takes a good 48 hrs ea time, while hoping that the roots will survive another bout of freezing temps. some of my beets didn’t the last time (first snow already this year). and i’ve had a couple jars fail in the canner which i have to use this week. not worth reprocessing two quarts with thanksgiving just a couple days off. also dried pumpkin, tomato, parsnip, green bean, and delicata squash seeds, but the snow killed the one carrot that was flowering before the bees got to it. bees are done for the year now. still have to put in the dozen or so garlic bulbs i’ve put aside. and did i mention that thanksgiving is at my house this year……..
Did laundry. Stayed warm and dry. Fed my family. No electricity, no running water
Going camping
We purchased a hand crank wringer off Amazon, picked up three 25 gram Quik Clot trauma packs, five medium weight reusable ponchos, an 850 yard range finder, two nice scopes for our rifles, a plow attachment for the rototiller, an oral analog thermometer and a windup analog alarm clock (in case of an EMP event), a corded phone (works if power goes out or electronics don’t work), ordered $600 worth of antibiotics, ordered gas masks and extra filters, ordered two wool blankets, ordered a master key lock jimmie, ordered personal water filters and researched Geiger counters. We spent all of our yearly state incentive checks (called the PFD) on prepping. This was an unusual week.
I have heard that Alaska pays for people to live in the state. Is the yearly incentive check you refer to this payment?
Yes. It would have been double this year but our governor found a way to steal our dividend. So he could make an already wasteful government more wasteful. I should know as my husband is a state employee and s always talking about the wanton waste of resources in his department.
That’s a shame alaskangemstone. Unfortunately there are always evil corrupt elements infiltrating anything that is good to try and ruin things. Stay vigilant and alert, fight the evil.
Well, I achieved my dream… I bought a house on 4.5 acres with cash, it has 2 cistern n a cess pool. So I’m putting in a well n December n it’s mandatory to put n a new septic so that will happen sometime next year. One of the cistern is said to be spring feed. We will c on that. It is a work in progress.
To everyone out there, I am so impressed with the posts and the different thing you are doing. I hope one day I will be doing ad much!
Start small and slow but steady. A little here a little there and stay within budget. In a years time you will be surprised how much you have accumulated. Formulate a plan with categories first such as food, water, medical, cooking, etc… Then inside those categories you can list specific items. Have fun with it. Prepping can be stressful but does not have to be.
I tried to email Claude and it said, ‘no results found’. I ordered a physical copy of The Lost Ways and tried to order the books in the following ad, which was switched to the digital version and NO chance to switch to a physical copy. I doubt that I will ever order ANYTHING else
To Charlene: Congrats! I’m jealous. Our 1/2 acre is on a “rocky top” mountain so drilling will be a challenge.
Thank you! I wish I had your veiws!
I looked into used/new shipping containers. The LIKE new ones go for about 3k. two put together to make a easy wind and water proof shelter. Two put together (cut side out of container and weld together) giving you a 18 by 40 foot shelter. I live on a small farm and with them hidden back in the woods,gives me a fairly hidden and safe place to hang for the first few weeks of a SHTF event. After which i can rethink my situation.
I finished filled up my 4th 4-cord wood shed for wood to be burned the winter of 2019-2020. Then put 800lb (hanging weight) of steer in my walk-in cooler.
Wow, aren’t you concerned the wood will be so dry it will burn in no time or possibly down right rotten? Do you live in a low humidity climate? In East Texas two year old wood is worthless.
Where I live, wood burns best when it’s at least two years old. At one year, it can still be a tad green.
5 LBs of bag of sugar for a kick deal 2.50 rip in bag. Good deal. If you look real hard you can prep something any time of the day. Just look around and see what would you need if the SHIF…. One more thing to all the people out there, please take all of your prep that is grain products and store them in sealed containers and one more thing to add. Put a couple BAY leafs in there with what ever it is that you prep. I watch TV and see bag of grain products on the shelf and not stored in air tit containers. Bad Deal, Bug City. Takes a little time, but they will come and get in all your stuff and then you find that the Dinner bell was rung a long time ago Then you did not look at your prep for a long time. Then you will see that you have been found by the bug. I put bay leafs in boxes ETC: Best thing to keep the bugs out. I got some stuff that had for a good long while and no bugs. Did a test on some stuff to see if my Grate Grandma was right. Hell ya she was. Known it even when I was a kid. Learned a hell of a lot from the old ones. My Great Grand Dad lived to 110 and7 months. got to spend over thirty years around him . What a good time and learned a life time of things. Was good times. Miss it… There gone but not what they learned me. I learn other folks as much as they will hear. Some do some don’t. Get it know, O to late… There will be more.
Sure wish you had a search engine on this site to help locate articles on a specific subject
A good prep is just keeping caught up with your current laundry, dishes and regular household chores. If the Crap Hits the Fan suddenly, you do not want to be caught with 6 loads of laundry and a cabinet full of dirty dishes to do.