Category: Storage Spaces

Letter Re: A Suburban Bug-In Problem (Or Maybe a Resource)

Since the 1950s many homes have had them. Since the 1970s many building codes have required them. What? A sump pump. Yeah, that thing in the hole in the corner of the basement that kind of hums every once in a while. You don’t think about it much do you? But it keeps your basement floor dry. If the electric goes out, for any reason, for very long, you may have a big problem. I have seen over a foot of water in a 30×25 foot basement after just a mild spring rain. They make “battery back up” auxiliary pumps, …


Two Letters Re: The Disappearing Suburban Basement

Jim, Everyone who reads your blog should own and read Nuclear War Survival Skills, by Cresson H. Kearny. [It is available for free download in PDF, but be sure to also get an EMP-proof hard copy!] Chapter 6 deals with ventilation, lets the air out of assumptions about the subject (couldn’t help myself) and explains how to do it without electricity for when the Schumer really Hits The Fan. – R.J.W. Sir: For those planning to use the basement for a retreat, do not forget to test for Radon Gas, a carcinogenic found in many basements throughout the county. Here …


Three Letters Re: The Disappearing Suburban Basement

Jim: One question comes to mind, does his basement have a restroom, or is he relying on a honey bucket? Also, how does he intend to deal with cooking odors [both good and bad?] Might be a huge tip off in a SHTF situation. Thanks, – Greg L. Sir: Most of us have furnaces, A/C and hot water heaters in our basements, and they require seasonal maintenance by outside contractors. The description from Jeff W. sounds like he may have restricted access to these devices (180 degree turn at the bottom of the steps), or they’re not in the basement… …


The Disappearing Suburban Basement–Part 1, by Jeff W.

Two years ago, as I began preparing for TEOTWAWKI, the first thing I did was take a real, accurate assessment of what I had and what I was going to be able to do for my preparations. One of the first issues I needed to face was the fact I would never have a true “survival retreat” located out west, far away from any major population centers, and tucked away in some forgotten corner of the country. As much as I would love to have something like this in place, the balancing act between having a family, financial commitments and …


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. …


Letter Re: A Simple But Effective Firearms Caching Technique from Afghanistan

CPT Rawles: While there are many potential methods to emplacing a cache of supplies, I wanted to provide some insight into a very simple but very effective cache method that I have saw during a recent deployment to Afghanistan. Most Afghans rely on the karez system for getting water for survival and watering plants. For an aerial view of what the karez system looks like, look at Michael Yon’s photo essay on water in Afghanistan. The lines of holes dug in the ground are the karez system. Some of these tunnels are very deep in order to get to the …


Use the Ground You Live on for More Than Walking, by John Z.

I’ve learned that the best way to obtain much needed resources is to look on the ground. Food We grow a large garden at two sites for my family. We can and preserve what we will use later and eat the stuff from the grocery now while it’s cheap. The fruits and veggies we consume come from the ground. We box in one area, add proper compost, manure, sand and dirt and then till until we get the proper texture for the different plants we grow. All the while the ground is the entire reason for this. Everything we use …


Letter Re: Self-Storage Spaces as Caches

Sir, Regarding Lynn in Washington’s pointer to the YouTube video (as representative of a “secure” lock?), I know of, and have known of, for quite some time, two ‘other’ locks which fit, much better, the criteria of “round” and “disk”. The first “round” lock is manufactured by the American Lock Company. (Yes, that is its real name). Many truck-delivery companies (in New York City, and surrounding vicinity) use this lock on the back doors of their vehicles, and anyone who, honestly, believes they can open this lock with a bolt-cutter is being dishonest with themselves. Picking is also rather difficult. …


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 …


Two Letters Re: Self-Storage Spaces as Caches

Two Letters Re: Self-Storage Spaces as Caches Mr. Rawles: I have written before about Self Storage Facilities back in October, 2009. I am still a resident manager of a small self storage facility. I agree with Ryan in British Columbia about using self storage caches for your preps. Recommendation on locks: the round lock or disc lock is about the best defense you can purchase for your self storage unit. They cannot be cut with the more common bolt cutters and usually take an electric disc grinder to cut them off. A hint as to the keys for this type …


Self-Storage Spaces as Caches, by Ryan in British Columbia

Many self-storage caching ideas have been put forward by readers of SurvivalBlog. Generally, most people in the preparedness community do not approve of using a self-storage unit as a cache, but I think it has some great advantages. As with anything, you must properly plan and weigh your options. There are many considerations you must make, but if you find a self-storage place under the right conditions, it can be very helpful.  A main concern is that it should be walking distance from your home. Also make sure the place has rodent and insect control. Some pros and cons are …


Letter Re: The EMP Threat and Electronic Gun Vault Locks

James: In looking at your blog on survival it revealed to me a major problem with safes with digital combo locks. If there is an EMP, those locks would most likely be fried and one could not get to guns, funds, et cetera! Do you know of a process or method of guarding against this? Is there some shielding that can be put around the combo unit that will protect the electronics? Thanks. – R.C. JWR Replies: This blog topic seems to pop up just as regularly as dandelions. I’ve mentioned the following several times in SurvivalBlog, but it is …


Letter Re: Constructing a Permanent Underground Cache

James Wesley: I appreciate your survival ideas over the years. Here, in the Caribbean, we use cisterns for water recovery quite a bit. I’ve had occasion to make a cache lately from one of the smaller plastic cisterns, such as this one. The tanks that come here (Cayman Islands) are black and configured somewhat differently, but same basic idea. They employ a screw-top opening, which can be weatherproofed against all but profound water pressure. I set mine — a 750 gallon tank — in the sandy loam and made sure that the bottom third was all clean fill, especially under …


Two Letters Re: Preparedness Digital Archives

Hi Jim, On Friday, Angus suggested downloading the different sections (Body Armor, Sanitation, etc) of SurvivalBlog for keeping on a USB drive. May I suggest that people download by the month instead of [by the topical] section. This way, when JWR has archived a months’ worth of articles, you can easily update your archives on your USB by downloading the most recent month, rather than updating every different section. I love the Blog! – Ryan in BC, Canada   James, When I make a backup of SurvivalBlog, I use the following command: wget –recursive –no-clobber –page-requisites –html-extension –convert-links –restrict-file-names=windows –domains …


Letter Re: Preparedness Digital Archives

Sir, Digital Archives and Your One and Only Mortal Life articletoday. Unable to sleep last night, I took my new 4 Gig USB [“memory stick”] drive and downloaded your entire site. It was nice to read how wise I’d been the day after! It is far easier to permanently protect a USB drive than all computers. Figure that if any of my computers are fried, there will be one available somewhere that isn’t! I still print out the more salient pieces on your site for nighttime reading, though… I already have a monumental JWR library! I’ve been a “prepper” since …