Cleaning after the SHTF...

As a Kid one of my monthly chores was to help my Great -GrandMother make soap. A total pain in the butt and time consuming. Anybody that wears clothes knows they have to be washed. How to do this when the SHTF and ya can't get to Harvey's?

So I was searching internet the other day and came across a thread on making your own laundry detergent, so I figured I would try it. It worked great for me, its cheap and easy to make, you can make much more than 1 batch, and the items are multi-purpose; all of which are a BIG plus.

The Recipe: Liquid Laundry Soap Makes Enough for About 180 Loads 1 each, Bar - Fels Naptha soap (or Ivory) 1 cup - Washing soda 1/2 cup - Borax 1 - 5 gal. HDPE plastic utility bucket with lid. Grate the Fels Naptha soap into small pieces. You can chop it with a knife, cheese grater, or food processor (the finer, the better).
Heat four quarts of water in a large, heavy saucepan on top of stove and add soap, stirring constantly till melted. This will take a while depending on the size of your grated pieces.

Meanwhile, fill the five gallon bucket half full with warm water. Add the 1 cup of washing soda and the 1/2 cup of Borax and stir well. When soap is melted pour into bucket, then continue to fill bucket with warm water until full. Stir well and let sit overnight until cool. This "concentrate" will thicken as it sits. Stir before using.

Now, I use this concentrate straight out of the bucket and use 1/3 cup per large load. The original instructions said to save an old laundry detergent container, fill half full with concentrate then add water to top. Shake and use 5/8ths cup per large load. Repeat till your concentrate is gone. This will give you 10 gallons of laundry detergent. That just seemed more trouble than necessary. So I use the concentrate as-is.
No need to have to make room for another container. You will have enough leftover soda and Borax to make approximately five more buckets of detergent.

My results:I was extremely impressed in how EASY this was to make. I made a 5 gallon bucket in under 30 minutes, and thats with grating the soap. Now I could not find the Fels Naptha soap at several grocery stores and Walmart, so I used 1 bar of Ivory soap. Check your local Ace hardware store, they may have Fels there. And as the instructions say, after you are done mixing, let cool overnight, it will kinda gel up that is Normal, just stir it and get the amount you need.
I have washed several loads of laundry so far and I was (and my wife) pretty impressed (and the wife was skeptical, especially when it calls for 1/3 of cup per large load). The clothes come out clean and have a gentle smell to them. If you want your clothes to smell more, add some liquid fabric softner to the load or a dryer sheet. This will cost under $15.00 to make.

If you're not set up with alternative energy, the washing machine ain't gonna work. Get a large metal tub. Heat water on a fire and add to clothes. Make a strong stir stick. After the wash, let the water cool, pour out and add clean water for rinseing. Squeeze out and hang up to dry. If you want to get wrinkles out. Go to a flea market or antique store, buy a metal iron. Heat and Iron. This is also a pain in the butt but...

Good Morning Patriots. I am posting this link so that if there are any interested People who feel that they want to join a group or form a group in their area, try this link:

http://www.americanresistancemovement.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=616&p=5618&sid=545358ec8c1d8944359472810d85f1bd#p5618

I also am re-posting a post I received from another group I am a member of. I am currently involved in too many groups to keep up with. I suffered burn out for awhile due to over-load. There are so many things going on at once that it's hard to keep up. I am culling these groups to what "fits my needs". This site, A.R.M., Alarm & Muster, and Tea Party Patriots are my limit for the new year. We must be ready when the ball drops. Phone calls, emails and faxes aren't working on this government. At some point America's Patriots are going to be to the test, Are WE up to the task? I think so. I also think its going to be long, hard fight but WE will prevail.

http://neithercorp.us/npress/?p=159
Please read this link. It explains what it means to be a survivalist today. I am sure some of you have family that think if you prep, you're a little crazy/paranoid. Mine does but as soon as the SHTF they'll be asking for shelter. This link will help/give ideas on how to respond.
Let me wish all a MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Missing in action

As I explained earlier in a post, I have been very active with TEA PARTY PATRIOTS and ALARM AND MUSTER. I don't feel its enough to tell you how to prep, I put my butt out on the front lines also. Trips to Washington, Savannah and Atlanta keeps me moving. More should do this, not just to show solidarity but to also make contacts with like minded People who You will need when the SHTF.

When I tried to log in to do a post early November, it was a bit8h to log in and/or get back to this site. I have just now managed this. The first thing I saw was a warning concerning copy righted material. I had nothing to do with this. I apologise if this caused any problems. Maybe I can keep it from happing again.

Meanwhile, continue to put up extra food. What I do is, one week I spend extra for things that will help stretch meals, the next I buy ammo. I am set pretty well as it is. I would like to extend a hand out to some that may not be as fortunate. I have room for 10 People (prefer couples) kids are a plus and I don't count them - even though they eat also. They can work gardens, gather eggs etc. We have women that are teachers, child care providers and cooks. We will all find our niche in time. Must be dedicated to self-defense and the betterment of the Group.

More than anything, I want to wish everyone a MERRY CHRISTMAS this year. WE will see what next year brings....

Survival in a Backpack?

Backpack Survival - by Duncan Long, 1989

Many of us who are preppers know a person or two who plans to just "bug out" at the first sign of anything bad - let's look at this in more detail and see what it would actually take for someone to survive with just what they could carry on their back.

Excerpt:

There's a lot of confusion about what survival means. To some, it's getting through the aftermath of an airplane wreck in a desolate area. It can mean knowing when to avoid walking in radioactive wastes. Or, it can mean knowing how to barter with troops in the aftermath of riots, war, and looting. To others, survival has to do with avoiding danger and knowing how to deal with it when it breaks into your home in the dead of night.

Survival ideas abound and there are as many definitions and strategies as there are survivalists. Some have good ideas for survival and some have unsound tactics. Bad ideas can mean extra work or trouble in everyday life; bad ideas during a survival situation get you killed. On-the-job training doesn't work when you're dealing with poison and gunfights. Or survival.

One of the most dangerous ideas--as far as I'm concerned--is that of "backpack survival."

A "back-pack survivalist" is a survivalist that plans on leaving his home ahead of a disaster and taking to the woods with only what he can carry out with him. He plans to survive through a strategy that is a sort of cross between the Boy-Scout-in-the-woods and Robinson Crusoe. The backpack survivalist plans on outrunning danger with a four-wheel drive or a motorcycle and hopes to travel light with a survival kit of everything he might need to cope with the unexpected. He hasn't cached anything in the area he's headed for because, chances are, he doesn't know where he's headed. Somehow, he hopes to overcome all odds with a minimum of supplies and a maximum of smarts. Certainly it is a noble cause; but it seems like one destined to failure. And that's not survival. . . . .more here

originally posted on TN Preppers Network by Prepared In TN

Great First Aid Kits

Here's another great article from Popular Mechanics that I thought I'd share with you all:

The 7 Best First Aid Kits For Any Situation

Happy Thanksgiving

What is Hardship?

Guest post from Ohio Preppers Network.

Hardship drill

Fire drills. Hurricane/tornado evacuation drills. Home intruder drills. Bug-out drills. All essential activities to engage in as part of your and your families preps. However, these address preparing for more or less single isolated events-- although you should also prepare for the aftermath. But what about preparing for hardships like job loss? Sure, you have a cache of food stores, hopefully of cash on hand, etc. What more can you do?

I'd like to suggest the "Hardship Drill." A Hardship Drill is a longer-term prepping activity designed to help you and your family learn how to deal with deprivation. Here's what I have in mind, but each family could tailor this to their own situation and habits.

I'm suggesting that each family member give up something for a week. That something should now be a regular item in the family's budget, and preferably one that ain't cheap. It could be a service like home internet, cable TV (hey Dad, can you live for a week without NFL ticket?), or cell phone service (or maybe just the texting feature). Whatever it is, it should be something you are now spending money on that might find itself on the chopping block if you are forced to cut expenses. Alternatively, the entire family could give up the same thing and go through withdrawl together!

I know some of you are living a real Hardship Drill that's lasting longer than a week. What do you think? Is it worth preparing for the psychological effects of "downsizing" a household?