Category: Retreat Logistics

The Disappearing Suburban Basement–Part 2, by Jeff W.

In part one of this article, I outlined the process I used for the exterior of my home to create a hidden retreat for my family, and maybe a few lucky friends, should we experience some event in the nation which would precipitate the need to “go underground” for a short time. With the exterior of our home finished, and the basement retreat fully camouflaged from possible intruders, looters, or those looking to pillage and do harm, I turned my attention to outfitting our basement retreat into a space converted to provide shelter, defense, and storage. The only true access …


Letter Re: COSTCO Stores as a Source for Storage Food and Survival Gear

Dear Jim, I’m in no way affiliated with COSTCO but have the store to be an outstanding source for survival gear. The other night I saw in the store, for example: Bottled water, rice, beans, canned foods, soup Waterproof (submersible) 25-liter backpack what would make a good Bug Out Bag Twin pack Motorola 35-mile (max/optimal conditions) FRS/GMRS radios with NOAA weather alerts: $50 — I bought a pair Twin pack LED tactical aluminum flashlights with strobe setting: $20 –I bought several Power Generators (two models) Really good prices on batteries of all types (from AAA to marine) Tarps, storage shelves, …


Letter Re: Storage Options–Hidden in Plain Sight

Dear SurvivalBlog Readers: How do you conceal resources so an intruder won’t see them? Try storing things in plain sight. An old soft drink machine, the kind that looks like a large refrigerator and dispenses cans, makes a great weapons locker. Anyone looking through your shop or garage would walk right past a machine like that, if it’s not plugged in and shows no sign of active use. The great thing about these is they are very difficult to break into and when all the can distribution stuff is removed, they can hold a lot of guns, ammo or food. …


I Thought that I Had a Clue, by K. in Florida

So since the balance of power change in the Federal Government I thought I was sitting pretty good for my ability to survive a possible TEOTWAWKI . Man was I so wrong. I have learned in the past three months that I am so far behind that if The Collapse happens in 20 years I will still not be as prepared as I thought I was. Yes I have some basics and am a bit off of the beaten path, but there is still so much more that I am not ready for. Let me explain. I have lived in …


Letter Re: Automated Budgeting Tools for Preppers

Hi James, One of the pages on my web site has to do with budgets. It’s a short page, and takes into consideration that there are four basic pay periods for individuals not working under contract (IRS Form 1099 workers). On it, I’ve included four spreadsheet files that are Excel compatible. These are blanks, with calculations that carry over from month to month, and are not too involved. I wanted them to be useful for people that have basic computer skills, but feel uncomfortable with traditional budget software packages. I also included a link to OpenOffice, which is an open …


Three Letters Re: Four Great Preparedness Myths

JWR: Reading over all the responses to Dan B.’s article, there seems to be a common misunderstanding of the foe we are facing. I have seen several failed states and disasters up close and they are nothing like a “B Movie”. Please don’t expect to face a disorganized mob of lightly armed refugees. The refugees are going congregate in a town nearby. They are not going to storm your cabin, they are going to vote in a town meeting to send professionals to do it. There may be “raiders” in the form of biker gangs or prison escapees (think The …


From Zero to Prepared in Five Years, by Jon the Marine

At the young age of 17 and a half after having completed High School earlier than most of my peers and with parental consent, I joined the United States Marine Corps. The date was June of 1999. The next four years of my life would be interesting, exciting, dangerous, and eye opening. Quickly making me leave the naive boyhood I had then, and realizing what a dark place most of the world really is. At the end of my four year commitment, I returned home from a year deployment in Afghanistan, and chose to discharge honourably once my contract was …


Letter Re: Self-Storage Spaces as Caches

Hello Mr Rawles, I have been reading your blog for about a year and truly have benefited from the valuable information. In regards to the round or disc lock for the self storage units, I have found that these locks can be easily picked by a simple pen as demonstrated on YouTube. Here is the following link: If anyone knows of another device/lock that can not be easily picked I sure would appreciated it. Sincerely, – Lynn in Washington JWR Replies: Even the best padlock should be considered only a delay–not a true barrier. Most padlocks –including disc or “hockey …


Survival Rations and Food Security, by J.I.R.

I think we can all agree that a deep larder is good insurance for bad times. There is some variation on how we approach this topic, but we probably all have a lot in common. I would like to present my approach to food storage to give your readers (perhaps) a new perspective. Some of them may have inadequate plans for feeding their families. First, I have to admit that I am probably not as well prepared as a lot of readers and that my preparations could easily be improved if I were less lazy or worried more. I don’t …


Two Letters Re: Constructing a Permanent Underground Cache

I want to thank JIR for his article and the efforts he went through showing us how to construct and supply underground caches. I just wanted to suggest an alternative to the custom made containers by using a 300 gallon spherical below ground septic tank. They are made of watertight plastic with a o-ring sealed lid and weigh around 110 pounds. (See the Tank Depot web site.) The rough size of the tank is 54″ in diameter and 51 inches tall with a 20 inch manhole cover. You would also only dig 118 cubic feet for a 5 foot diameter …


Constructing a Permanent Underground Cache, by JIR

If you are concerned about hiding a large amount of goods from looters, neighbors or other busybodies, remember that no indoor hiding place is likely to survive a determined search. If your home is the only place you have food and provisions, you may be forced to fight against very long odds to try to keep it. If you are forced to abandon your home in the middle of the night or burned out by looters, you might appreciate having a store of food and other gear in a safe, undetectable location where you can recover it. You might want …


TEOTWAWKI Simplified, by Jim S.

Most people find themselves looking at TEOTWAWKI as some sort of extended outdoorsy jaunt. Some people think of it as hard times. Me, I think it could be both, and then again it could be near mass extinction. But to make any type of sensible decision as to disaster preparation, you have to determine what is truly important. So let me simplify things for those of you all wadded up in bugout vehicles and plans for where to go and what ammo and guns are best to “protect yourself”. First, if you are dead, then you will no longer care. …


Letter Re: You May Not Need to Buy New 12 Volt Batteries

Jim: The 12 volt DC lead-acid batteries employed in most readers’ vehicles, power storage systems and backup supply systems are expensive, have finite life spans and are a critical link in the timely operation of equipment required to respond to short term and long term grid-down situations. Aged batteries become unreliable, but are difficult to keep in a state of readiness and when deemed “spent” their replacement puts a drain on already limited financial resources. Most people have battery chargers and the know-how to use them in an effort to keep older – or infrequently used – batteries in a …


A Practical, Full Spectrum Suburban Survival Plan, by JIR

Survival planning can be overwhelming and a lot of the advice you get is not practical or compatible with our lifestyles. A lot of us choose, or are forced to live in the crowded East Coast far too close to cities to survive TEOTWAWKI. I dare say, a lot of SurvivalBlog readers live in suburbs just outside medium to large population centers. Many of us have jobs that don’t migrate to small towns and would face a substantial loss of income if we moved away from our livelihoods. Some of us like our current lives and feel that hunkering down …


Letter Re: JWR’s List of Lists in an Excel Spreadsheet

Sir, I would like to thank you for your excellent site. I have been steadily working my way through your archives for the past several months now. I have been a prepper for quite a while thanks to my upbringing. However, for me it is more of a serious hobby than anything else. Being in the military and changing duty stations fairly rapidly is not conducive to long term prepping, as has been mentioned before on your site. That does not mean that I cannot plan however. I have attached a “List of Lists” in MS-Excel spreadsheet format. The initial …