Protecting Your Family And Home In 5 Simple Steps

So you've just bought a new house? Should this be the time to rejoice and relax? I'm afraid it isn't. Buying a home for you and your family is only half of the battle. Now you must protect it from criminals who may be eyeing your possessions. But how do you protect your family and home from these people? Can you pull it off without wrecking your savings account or wallet? Fortunately, the answer is Yes. And I am about to show you how to do it in five simple steps.

Assess Your House and Corresponding Needs

Step one is to know your house inside out. Check how many doors and windows you have that could be used as an entry point by criminals. Doors located in the basement, garage and balcony should also be considered. Know which areas of the house should be put as the highest priority. Find out which floors or walls have weak points that could be easily smashed open and used to access by criminals. Also, assess how much money you can shell out for home security as you will be needing money to pay for good door locks, alarm systems, etc.

Install a Home Security System

A home security system is the simplest yet most effective measure you can implement when working on your home's security. A home security is both a product and service due to the fact that the device is linked to a home security company that monitors signals made by the device during detection of a threat. Through this system, you get immediate help from the police when a suspected break-in occurs. Aside from alarms, fire and gas detection devices can also be installed if possible. This will safeguard you against fires, floods and gas leaks that could be as dangerous as theft.

Have a Plan

Always have a plan. At our house, I taught my family where to go during a fire, what measures should be carried out and so on. These safety drills have somewhat become our precious bonding time. By having a plan, you improve the security of your home plus survival of your family during the most dangerous of circumstances. Know your way out or what tools to fight with if necessary.
Improve Privacy

By closing the drapes at all times, you not only get privacy but also a way to deter criminals from knowing if you are inside the house, where your valued items are, and how to get inside the house. Criminals won't be stupid enough to break into a house if they don't know what is going on inside.

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Increase Your Chances Of Survival By Learning How To Filter Water In The Wilderness

 Increase Your Chances Of Survival By Learning How To Filter Water In The Wilderness

New Orleans, 1907: Advertisement for water filters by Crescent Filter and Specialty Co. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Outdoor survival skills are extremely important if you should become lost or stranded out in the wilderness. Finding water is a valuable skill but so too is knowing how to make that water safe for you to drink. It is important to learn how to filter water. It is also important to know that filtering water is not the same as purifying water making it safe for drinking, but in an emergency, this outdoor survival skill can be extremely useful.
 If all you can find is muddy water you will need to create a filter which will clean it of all the sediment and debris. Filtering the water simply means removing all visible dirt and debris which will help make it safer for drinking. Harmful bacteria and microbes will still exist in the water but the filtering process will make it taste a little better. To begin filtering water you will need to have container to keep it in. A bottle will work well. By cutting the bottom of the bottle off you will be able to use the top as a makeshift funnel. For the best results using this method stuff some cloth material into the funnel to trap debris. Using a can will work, too. For the water to be able to run through you will need to punch a few holes into the bottom of the can with your pocket knife. Then it's just a matter of letting the water fall through the holes trapping anything else inside the can.

Filtering water in the wilderness can be achieved several different ways. Without a bottle or a can you can consider this method in an emergency. You can place an item of clothing or cloth material directly over the container as a filter. You should be able to get rid of some particles with this method. Use what nature provides. Rocks and sand in alternating layers will make an excellent filter. Using more layers will create a better filter. Bark made into the shape of a cone can be used in place of bottles and cans. Layer the rocks and sand inside the cone. To hold it all together use a piece of string at the bottom of the cone. By thinking ahead and putting small rocks at the bottom you will be able to stop it from all falling apart. Use both fine and coarse layers in the filter, alternating between the two. Sand pouring out of the bottom of the cone needs to be avoided. This isn't as hard as you might think. Use a non-poisonous grass, small pebbles or some cotton material. When your filter is finished start pouring your collected water into it. Catch the water in a container after it has gone through the filter. Check the filtered water. If it's not clear you will need to filter it again.

Keep doing this until you have some clear water. Even though you now have clear water there are still little nastiness in there that need to be gotten rid of. The water still needs to be purified. The filtered water will still probably contain bacteria that could make you sick. Purifying water is simple. Boil it over a fire for five minutes or use a water purification tablet.

 Learning how to filter water in the wilderness is an essential outdoor survival skill. You can keep yourself alive by knowing how to make your water fit for drinking. This will keep you hydrated while you wait for the rescue party. Make sure you can filter water by practicing when you don't need it. It's a simple skill that is literally a life saver. As an avid camper I choose to acquire the skills I might require to keep my family and myself alive if things go wrong.

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Don't forget to prepare your vehicle

ready.....draw! (Photo credit: Gandroid)

A lot of survivalism focuses on preparing your home and self for a disaster or SHTF situation, but some attention needs to be given to your vehicle. I'm not saying you need to go buy a badass off-roading truck to escape into the hills (unless you have the extra money...), but consider some of the following things to carry in your car/truck just in case you could need them. The most obvious would be the necessities for your vehicle. It couldn't hurt to have extra parts or tools on hand for when something breaks or wears out. These could include a spare tire (everyone should have that), spare headlight bulb, jumper cables (for if you forget that dome light), portable jack, small tool kit, and even a small gas can. I also like to keep roadside emergency supplies like flares,  a flashlight, a CB radio, quarters for a pay phone, and a charged cell phone. My vehicle emergency kit also has all the essentials to survive for 72 hours.

It may not be a bad idea to keep a weapon in your vehicle, but unfortunately for me and some others out there, it is against the law in our state to have a firearm or deadly weapon (wide open to interpretation) in your vehicle while on certain properties. It just so happens that I work at a medical clinic where it is there policy to have no firearms on campus. This does not stop me from having a few non-lethal weapons in my truck and I still carry my multi-tool as it is not usually viewed as a deadly weapon if

Female Gun Fighter (Photo credit: Gr8tFate.com - Andrew Perreault)

people see it. DO NOT try to take a multi-tool into a court house or jail though. Don't forget to keep up on your vehicle maintenance so that your vehicle will run as smoothly as possible for as long as possible if you do need to get away for an extended period of time. For the people that do off-road out there, I would suggest looking into a shovel, winch, GPS, and a satellite phone. The shovel can really save your ass if you're out in snow and need to dig down for traction. GPS is optional for most people, but you can always carry a road atlas under your seat to figure out where you're at. Basically try to be as prepared in your vehicle as you could be at home, because for at least 8-10 hours of the day I'm not at home.
If you own a website and submit to a web directory you're gonna have a good time.

Building a quick structure: Using scavenging methods to build shelter

road work ahead (Photo credit: theinvisiblewombat)

I'd like to talk about a material that can be used to build a simple structure and that is easy to scavenge. We've all seen the roadwork ahead signs or the signs that suggests there's construction work being done. These signs are typically square and can be used to fashion together makeshift huts or small and sealed buildings.  Let me explain a little bit. When I was about 11 years old growing up in the city I always had a very hard time finding a good place to building Fort. The more I looked or searched the harder it was to locate large amounts  of wood and/or building supplies. It was by chance I happened on an idea that led to some of the best forts I've ever built (I have no idea if I am the only one who ever thought of this, I doubt it, but I was 11 at the time). 

Walking home from school I noticed several signs along the way that would inform me that there was roadwork being done up ahead. The signs were square and for the most part easy to carry, now as 11 years old I found I could only carry one of  them at a time, but with enough trips I was able to get a few dozen of these. Now the only thing I had to figure out was where do I build my structure so I grabbed my nails and hammer along with my brother and we set out to find the perfect fort building location. We ended up settling inside of a Briar patch, just so happened that it was right in berry season so we would get to enjoy a snack as we built our Fort. With a simple machete we were able to hollow out inside one of these patches I can't remember the exact size of the of the patch, but we were able to make a tunnel that led into four rooms. Once inside you can actually set up several sleeping quarters for general places to get out of rain, because the brush set over the top of the structure it was actually quite possible to remain dry for a period of time. So if you're a city dweller, and you find yourself in need of a structure and you have no preplanned location perhaps take a look around you.

There are literally thousands of pre-built signs just lying around it wouldn't take long for you to find a location to set up your hut. Here's a few things I learned as a child. When clearing out a blackberry bush don't clear out too much too fast try to bring some of your boards inside and see if you can use the brush as a natural seal. What I mean by this is to save yourself the need for nails or any adhesive, you simply use a tight space to force the boards together. Always put the colored side down. Always. As you will notice if you leave the colored side up that any holes with inside the blackberry patch will show outside. This will allow people to see your structures if you try to use the colored side. The inside typically is Brown or darker color and it will blend in with the surroundings much easier. Don't worry about walking. If you have to make a journey of a mile or more that's not a big deal don't be tempted to make your structure right next to the location where there are hundreds of signs. If there is a better location farther away be willing to use that. Well I hope this helped you a little bit, as with any scavenging method: always be prepared ,  ready and expect setbacks.

 Building a quick structure: Using scavenging methods to build shelter
This childhood adventure was brought to you by the letter S and D as in SecWh Directory

The land use to be dry and barren with no hopes of survival

The Colorado River from Laughlin (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Environmental Issues: Colorado River

The area that the Colorado River runs through is the driest in the nation. These deserts are drier than some of those found in North Africa. Thanks to major agricultural changes in this area, now tens of millions of people can now reside on this land. Utilizing the Colorado River, which gets a significant amount of water from the Rocky Mountains when the snow melts, can now permit this dry desert to be a thriving community, compared to the “inhospitable land” that it once was (Sierra Club).

The land use to be dry and barren with no hopes of survival for any creature that required water to thrive or even live. The land was so dry that it was essentially a waste of valuable acreage. Now that the Colorado River is able to have water diverted into this area, it is an area that can be utilized for agriculture, communities, and thriving families and companies. Essentially, the “Colorado River has become a plumbing system” (Sierra Club). As a result of this plumbing system, crops such as cotton, alfalfa, fruits, and vegetables can be grown here. However, these changes come at a price.

The changing of the natural flow of the Colorado River has had detrimental effects on the river and the area around the Colorado River Basin. This basin provides water around the entire southwest US. Not only are most of the endangered native fish now endangered, but all major bird migration stopping points have severely devastated by the changes in the functions of the river. The largest human impact of the changes in the Colorado River is the result of over allocated water supplies. Since there are now so many people reliant on this water source, it is no longer a viable, long term solution to the drought that is naturally common in this area.

The California 4.4 plan is a plan that is currently being developed. The point of this plan is for California to reduce its usage of the water from the Colorado River to only the 4.4 million acre-feet allotment. The only way that this plan will work is if the state of California prohibits any additional additions to this water source in order to sustain the amount of water available to this particular area. This is a very concrete, cut and dry plan. It seems a little unfeasible because many people are wishing to move and/or build in this area and having a stringent rule like the California 4.4 plan makes it difficult for people to maintain. The plan is viable if the California state government implements strict guidelines that regulate the plan that is mean to assist in sustaining the Colorado River basin for a length time.

References:

Sierra Club. “Colorado River Report.” Feb. 2001. Accessed: 8/8/10. Internet:

<http://www.sierraclub.org/rcc/southwest/coreport/index.asp>.

Withgott, Jay & Scott Brennan. Essential Environment: 3^rd Ed. Pearson Custom

Publishing: San Francisco, 2009.