Category: Fuel Storage & Distilling

The Fourth Essential, by Bob B.

As any survivalist quickly learns, the “three basic essentials” to survival are air, water and shelter. However, I learned to realize that there is a fourth basic essential, that being a stove–which provides a way to reliably purify the water, cook the food and make the shelter more comfortable. Of course, there are many types of water filters, solar ovens and warmer clothing for those needs but, somewhere along the line, the ongoing need for a practical, portable, concealable, quick and highly-efficient means of heating will be needed. SHTF heating that can purify your water, cook your food and warm …


Letter Re: Synthetic Fuel Production

James, Your reference to SASOL’s gas-to-liquid synfuel project in Louisiana reminded me of a recent news story about Sinopec’s joint venture in Medicine Bow, Wyoming to produce liquid fuel from coal. They claim to be able to convert 1 ton of coal (Powder River Basin mine-mouth value: $10) into two barrels of petroleum product (value: $200+). A great idea, if it works, but I can’t say I’m excited about inviting the Chinese into our backyard to do this. Best Regards, – Don in Oregon


Common Sense Cooking in a Grid Down World, by Linda in North Carolina

My husband tells it the best: the utility power was out for miles around after the transformers blew. Driving up to our home in a darkened neighborhood after a harrowing commute, our house shined with soft glow outside of solar lights along the driveway and in the windows, candle light flickered inside, food was cooking out back on what appeared to be a stack of blocks, music from a wind up radio played in the background and my wife handed me a steaming mug of hot chocolate as I walked in. No generator in use….no power….yet warmth and reassuring life …


In-Extremis Travel; Red Light, Green Light, Yellow Light, by Will Prep

There has been a lot of debate over whether or not to remain in place or to leave your home and retreat to another location within the prepper community. Both have their advantages and disadvantages but that is not the scope of this article. I simply want to address the moment that all of us may come to, both the bug-in crowd, when they realize their initial plan is untenable, or the bug-out crowd, when they have made their decision to move to “higher ground.” We all remember the game “Red Light, Green Light”, we played as kids and tried …


Letter Re: The Importance of Chainsaw Spare Parts

James, I just wanted to throw this out there for general information. This past Saturday my neighbor was cutting some trees with his chainsaw. Not long after he started he was over to my house asking to borrow one of my chainsaws because he got his hung up in the tree. I grabbed one of my three saw and went over to help him out. I figured he got his hung up I did not wish him to hang up mine also. After we got his cut out, I mentioned to him if he had a spare bar and chain …


Letter Re: Safe Carry of a Gas Can in a Car Trunk

James, Regarding the ability to store a fuel reserve onboard the vehicle;  Before your readers consider an expensive custom military fuel tank (which may not meet DOT standards), they many want to consider an option that is already approved by the DOT and is very affordable.   As a race car and off-road truck enthusiast I’ve participated in many events where cars/trucks must meet Department of Transportation (DOT) certification before the vehicle can compete.  A majority of the “modified” vehicles run gasoline and use aftermarket fuel tanks of various sizes.  Depending on the style of racing many of the tanks …


Letter Re: Safe Carry of a Gas Can in a Car Trunk

JWR: Can you recommend a way to properly store 1-2 gallons of fuel in a trunk for emergencies? I think something like a Kolpin Fuel Pack with some Sta-Bil in it would last in a confined space for an extended (3-6 months) period of time. All The Best, – Travis R. JWR Replies: For regular carry in a car trunk, there are just a few truly safe containers that will prevent your car from becoming a veritable flaming bomb, in the event of a major rear-end collision. One that I can indeed recommend is the Explosafe can. And FWIW, I …


Letter Re: Gas Can Pack Boards and Cargo Shelves

Jim: All the recent news stories showing people in New Jersey on foot queuing up at gas stations with red gas cans in hand, reminded me: gas cans are heavy! Did anyone think to put a old fashioned Pack Board in with the rest of the supplies? You know the kind, the one with the lip at the bottom? It would hold a two full gas cans with much less strain than carrying them in your hands. Or, how about taking a small load of fire wood to your relatives’ house? Just a thought. – Dale K. JWR Replies: That is …


Four Letters Re: Hurricane Sandy After Action Reports

Good day, Mr Rawles… Here in West Virginia, we have experienced a wide variety of weather from Hurricane/Superstorm Sandy.  Last Friday, it began raining well ahead of storm making landfall. Rains continued off and on thru the weekend, gradually increasing in steady rains all day Sunday and well into Monday. Around 7 pm our local time, that rain turned to snow and that’s when things began to get interesting.  I tend to be a light sleeper so it was the ‘sound’ of power going off at 2:34 am on Saturday morning that awakened me for the day.  I got coffee …


Letter Re: Observations on the Price of Milk

Dear Editor: In the 1880s milk sold for $0.56 per quart or $2.24 per gallon which at the time was 0.112 oz of gold per gallon of milk. To put that in perspective today, it would cost $190 for a gallon of milk. So if you had a cow producing 1 gallon per day 10 months out of the year, it would have been the equivalent of having $57,000 / year in revenue today. (You have significant capital and labor costs gathering hay and water for just one cow not to mention the distribution costs and short shelf life). At …


Letter Re: Fuel Stabilizers and Emerging Threats

Good Day, James, First – have greatly enjoyed your blog site and your novels. I particularly appreciate the fact that although the stories are fiction – they provide a wealth of preparedness information. As a principle in Power Research Inc. – a company with extensive international sales to the commercial marine and power generation industries – I have deeply investigated the world economy and our present financial system in an effort to protect my company, my family, and my employees. There is absolutely no question that the present system is unsustainable, and the ramifications of an economic collapse will be …


Letter Re: How I Built My Own Rocket Stoves

James, I recently fabricated my first two rocket stoves using $25 in parts per stove, and gave one to my local volunteer fire department fundraising auction.  It takes just over an hour to make one and it works great.  The fuel/vent stand is key for ensuring air flows under the fuel for maximum combustion.  The pot grill is key for ensuring maximum heat transfer to your cooking pot without choking the fire.   It was pretty nice the other morning making scrambled eggs without having to use propane, electricity, or the fire pit.  The rocket stove is one of the …


Make Your Own Retort Style Charcoal, by Dan in Alabama

I make charcoal to sell at the local farmers market. I’m a farmer and prepper. I use two steel drums, retort method, which produces high quality charcoal. Charcoal has many uses. It used for cooking and heat without flames, water filtration, making pyrotechnics and has some medicinal uses. This is hot, hard work but simple to do. With a little imagination all components can be changed or modified as long as age-old principles are followed. I prefer using red oak. It comes out naturally pitted so there is no need for enhancements for water filtration. Concept: Small pieces of quality hardwood …


Do it Yourself Timber Harvesting, by SMJ

Wood is one of the most readily available materials for homestead construction projects and is also an important fuel source for many of us. I’ve always loved forests and trees, so I drew on my experiences growing up in Alaska and my work in the timber industry in Western Washington to write this post.  If you are lucky enough to own your own forest, I highly recommend the book A Landowner’s Guide to Managing Your Woods by Hansen/Seversen/Waterman.  This book will give you an excellent overview on how to keep your forest healthy and profitable, as well as giving you …


Odds ‘n Sods:

In keeping with our well-entrenched philosophy of redundancy, we now have five ways to cut firewood at the Rawles Ranch: 1.) A reliable (but noisy) Stihl 024 gas engine chainsaw with a 20″ bar, 2.) An assortment of felling axes and mauls, 3.) an early-1900s vintage 1-1/2 man saw, 4.) A Makita electric chainsaw that can be powered by quiet a Yamaha 2.8 KW inverter genset carried in the back of our utility ATV, and 5.) An even smaller Black & Decker 18-Volt cordless electric chainsaw. (The latter lacks the muscle for anything more than cutting saplings or for limb …