Prepper power! Part 1

By Jeffrey Yago, P.E., CEM Issue #136 • July/August, 2012 The interesting thing about being a "prepper" is most preppers don't want anybody to know they are one! No doubt many fear they will be ostracized...

Food security 101, part 3: Why I love my vacuum sealer (and more)

By Rowena Aldridge Issue #140 • March/April, 2013 In parts one and two (Issues #138 and #139), we covered basics and homemade convenience foods. Now that you've become so proficient at making delicious, nutritious, and economical...

Disaster preparation!

By Gary F. Arnet, D.D.S. Issue #74 • March/April, 2002 Are you prepared for a disaster that could affect the daily function of your life or the lives of your family members? Or do you even...

Battery-Powered Tools are Changing

By Jeffrey Yago, P.E., C.E.M. April/May/June, 2019 Battery-powered tool technology is now undergoing some rapid changes in both the power of the tool motors and the batteries supplying the added power. For many years most battery-powered...

Hypothermia — A real winter danger

By Tom and Joanne O’Toole Issue #84 • November/December, 2003 Hypothermia is a deadly enemy. It steals body heat and kills more outdoor enthusiasts every year than anything else. Hypothermia is the rapid and drastic chilling of...

Solar-powered water purifiers

By Jeffrey Yago, P.E., CEM Issue #146 • March/April, 2014 Most of us can stay alive up to a month without any food if stranded, but we could not live longer than three days without water...

No dentist? Oh, no!

By Gary F. Arnet, D.D.S. Issue #75 • May/June, 2002 Enjoying lunch while looking out over the gorgeous view from your backcountry home, you bite down hard on a nut, hear a loud crack, and immediately...

Bugging out in place

By Jackie Clay-Atkinson Issue #163 • January/February, 2017 Some emergency situations require quick evacuation. You barely have time to grab your bug-out bag, gather the family, and run out the door. Most of us are ready...

Food security 101: part 2

<!-- Food security 101: part 2 --> By Rowena Aldridge Issue #139 • January/February, 2013 Last issue we talked about some things you can do to stretch your food budget and make great use of every bit of food...

Avoiding heat illness

<!-- Avoiding heat illness By Gary F. Arnet, D.D.S. --> By Dr. Gary F. Arnet Drink early and often to avoid dehydration. The body normally needs two to three quarts of water per day, but this can increase to...

Wildfires: Before, During, After

By Charles Sanders There are many things rural homeowners can do to mitigate the danger of wildfires. The first is to create a defensive zone around your homesite which will become a buffer area around...

Food security 101

By Rowena Aldridge Issue #138 • November/December, 2012 These days a lot of people are concerned, and rightly so, about their family's economic stability and security. Recently I've become aware of the ways in which I,...

Emergency planning beyond the bug-out bag

By Jackie Clay-Atkinson Issue #157 • January/February, 2016 In many emergency situations, simply staying home can be your most sensible choice. After all, most of us have stocked up on a good supply of food in...

Medical kits for self-reliant families

By Jackie Clay Issue #60 • November/December, 1999 There may be a time, as close as tomorrow, when your loved ones need medication or medical treatment and there is no drug store open or doctor available....

Gee-Whiz: From Paper to Canning

By John Silveira (aka O.E. MacDougal) May/June 2017 Backwoods Home The greatest inventions in history are the ones we now take for granted. Fire and the wheel-axle combination are among them. If we weren’t taught in...

Why you need to addsolar to your emergencypower backup plans

By Jeffrey Yago, P.E., CEM Issue #149 • September/October, 2014 Click Here to listen to an interview with Jeff about this article. Most of the electric substations, transmission lines, and electrical switchgear for any given utility are...