Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: ITS Tactical (lots of pictures in the article below)

“There’s always sign.”

Sign is the physical evidence of any disturbance of the environment left behind by animals, humans or objects. The detection of this sign is called sign cutting. A person (or animal) cannot traverse ground without leaving some sort of telltale sign. This sign is what we’re trying to find and track.

When most people think of tracking, they usually think of following footprints. But a trained tracker looks for more. He looks for kicked-over rocks, soil depressions, clothing fibers, changes in vegetation, changes in the environment, ambient noise or lack thereof, etc. Basically, the tracker looks for the disturbance — the sign — left behind by the person or persons being tracked.

Origin

Sign cutting and tracking has been around for millennia. It is a natural extension of hunting, both animals and people. On our continent, Native Americans perfected the art of sign cutting tracking both men and animals. To this day, there are special units of Native American law enforcement trackers protecting this nation....

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: Stealth Survival

Here’s a great little DIY project if you have chickens.  This is a simple, no-frills … but no-hassle way of building some nesting boxes for those birds.

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: Southern Plains Consulting <- more information here.

The Spring Preparedness Expo will be held Saturday, March 31st, 2012 at the American Legion Hall in Del City, Oklahoma.  It is located at 5000 SE 24th St.  This is the same location as the Fall Expo for those that were able to join us. The show will be from 9 a.m. through 5 p.m. and parking is free.  The cost for entry will be $5 a person or $8 per couple, and well worth it!

Workshop topics will include How to Prepare on a Budget, Building a First Aid Kit, Preparedness Pet Care, and much more.  See below for the complete workshop listing, map, vendor list, and the new brochure!

Hayden’s Note:

I’m excited to be a part of this again, and there will be lots of new vendors and tables, including the producers and directors of the new documentary, A Noble Lie, along with one of my main sponsors, Homespun Environmental (ceramic water filters), Patriot Seed Store, Organics OKC, and many more!  I’ll be there handing out bumper stickers and conducting interviews, so stop by and say hello!

...

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: Tiny House Blog by Paul Mittig

I built my 10 x 20 house in 2005 for about $10,000 in materials, including all furnishings. It is built on six poles, set two feet into the ground, that support the floor and roof. There is no framing in the walls except at the door and the large window. The walls are rigid foam insulation, R21, covered with ½ inch sheetrock and all glued together. The ceiling has R38 fiberglass insulation, and the floor has R19 fiberglass insulation. I spend about $100 a year on propane for heating, cooking, and water heating.

The house is located in the hills of Northern California. I live in it full time. The house is set up for one person, but you could easily put a double bed by the door where the tall bookcase stands. If you did this, you might want to move the window.

I have a three-way RV under-counter refrigerator that I run on electricity. For hot water, I have a ‘heat before use’ RV water heater.  I turn it on for 15 – 20 minutes then off, and it generates enough hot water for a shower and runs on propane....

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Alcohol Can Be a Gas – David Blume

I interviewed David Blume years ago when Truth is Treason was a small, internet radio show on Oracle Broadcasting. He has some extremely fascinating ideas concerning ethanol and fuel, and from an emergency preparedness view, alcohol is invaluable!

Fuel, first-aid, bartering, ability to create or boost a small economy, farming, animal feed, reduction of waste, tangible goods, etc.

I don’t know about you, but I can’t make gasoline for my vehicle, especially in a grid-down scenario. However, I can make ethanol.

For the naysayers who have been sold on the whole, “Ethanol is bad for cars!” campaign, realize this comes from Big Oil. Cars originally ran on ethanol, and with a few simple, minor changes, can easily run on ethanol again. While you might experience a 10% drop in MPG, you gain horsepower (race cars use pure ethanol!), sustainability, and can be made in your backyard for as little as one dollar per gallon. I’m no math whiz, but that’s much better than relying on Big Oil.

Pick up the amazing book, “Alcohol Can Be a Gas” here at Amazon.com, and help TruthisTreason.net gain a small commission (at no extra charge to you!)....

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: Food Matters - If you haven’t seen Food Matters (documentary), I highly suggest you go find it! One of the best films on the subject currently.

Add these 4 simple detox tips to your day and you’ll be sure to feel great in no time.

1. Drink More Water

Too often we misinterpret thirst for hunger. Our signal for thirst may cause us to eat as we mistake it for hunger pains. Reach for water first and make sure you are well hydrated before eating any meal throughout the day. Breakfast, lunch and dinner included.

Where possible make sure to drink your water at least 30 minutes before eating as this will allow time for the water to properly penetrate the cells of your body and hydrate your stomach lining in preparation for proper digestion. I like to add lemon juice and apple cider vinegar to my water or green it up with barley grass powder, wheatgrass powder, spirulina or chlorella. Yum!

2. Add A Green Juice To Your Day

Green juices are an amazing way to add life giving and detoxifying plant chlorophyll to your bloodstream....

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: Food Matters.tv by Melissa Breyer

How many ways can you use salt? According to the Salt Institute, about 14,000! I can’t think of another more versatile mineral. The use of salt to preserve food was one of the early cornerstones of civilization (preservation lessened the dependence on seasonal food, and provided sustenance for traveling over long distances). However, salt was very difficult to obtain. With modern production methods, nowadays salt is the most common and readily available, nonmetallic mineral in the world; in fact, the supply of salt is inexhaustible.

Since at least medieval times, salt (sodium chloride) has been used for cleaning–and ensuing generations have continued to rely on it for all kinds of nifty tricks around the house (these were the days before toxic chemicals promised the convenience of an easy fix!).  So with its non-toxic friendliness and top-dog status as an endlessly abundant resource, let’s jump on the granny bandwagon and swap out some non-toxic solutions for ample, innocuous, and inexpensive salt.

But first, let my inner science geek pipe in for just a second (although if I eat dinner with you, I promise not to ask you to please pass the sodium chloride)....

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: Homespun Environmental – Russ Michaud

Everyone agrees that water is a must have essential at the top of the list for survival preparations. Consequently, there are a lot of products on the market for cleaning up contaminated water to make it fit for human consumption. This paper takes a quick look at the advantages of ceramic cartridges versus other filter types and discusses a few key issues.

Hayden’s Note:

I’m excited to announce that Russ is offering Truth is Treason readers nearly 10% off the cost of his Emergency Water Kit!  I use these awesome filters in my Berkey system, and love the low price! For $23, I have piece of mind, back-ups, and a complete emergency replacement kit, as shown below! 

Use coupon code – Truth – in order to receive your discount, but hurry!

What is a ceramic water filter?

The ceramic filter consists of a porous ceramic shell and usually is sold as a sealed cartridge that contains some additional water purification media. A picture of a dome shaped filter is shown below but they can be manufactured in various shapes and sizes....

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

This cozy, little 150 square foot home away from home is the perfect weekend cabin.  Built for a Finnish family that live nearby, it offers an escape from the norm.  With ample seating that converts to a large bed, you could sleep up to 4 people, if needed.  And while the ceilings are not that tall, it does offer quite a bit of storage in large, deep drawers, along with overhead shelves and lofted nooks.

The kitchen is truly the focal point in this design, with large windows that allow a cascade of sunshine to fill the little space.  With only the truly required necessities, such as a 2-burner gas stove, small sink, and pantry, this kitchen can provide ample space for food prep, work projects, or a spot for your laptop.

A small wood burning stove completes the basics and provides for a warm and intimate night.  Or simply use it to take the chill off after you return from outside.  As you’ll notice, there is no bathroom or shower inside.

(Outdoor showers can be a thing of luxury, as well....

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: Doom and Bloom, by Dr. Bones & Nurse Amy

I recently added a vegetable grow bed to my existing fish and water lily pond.  Good, healthy bacteria grow within a balanced fish pond in order to help break down fish waste.  This bacteria is important to the entire aquaponics system.

If you are starting a new pond or system, add “pond starter” to help boost the bacteria population. It is a good idea to add more bacteria every few weeks as there are no downsides to recharging the bacterial environment. 

Hayden’s Note:

This is for new ponds.  Established ponds should have a healthy balance and cycle already in place, or means for natural bacterial regrowth.  Also, I would recommend “larger-than-fish tank type” diameter pebbles or rocks to be used in your aquaponic beds.  The more surface area that bacteria can attach to, the better!  About 1/2″ or even 3/4″ should work well!  Also, be sure to check out the related aquaponics articles at the end.

The grow bed I used is a simple “under the bed” storage container, and I placed it on the edge of the pond....

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: Preparedness Pro, by Kellene Bishop, as seen on Doomsday Preppers

Preserving eggs in the refrigerator for 9 months is unfathomable to most people, let alone safely preserving eggs that long without refrigeration. But today I’ll make crystal clear how you can preserve eggs worry-free without compromising your health and taste standards and perhaps I’ll even shed some light on how you came to believe that eggs can only be preserved in a refrigerator.

I assure you that Kellene Bishop has not lost her mind; I’m not some maniacal bad guy accompanied by the theme music from Jaws as I write this. Just read further and you’ll understand that this Preparedness Pro is no fraud but some other trusted entities may have been feeding you a fish story for the past several decades.

Bottom line, if you look at how nature preserves eggs you can learn an awful lot about preserving your own regardless of whether your purchased them at your local superstore or you collected them yourself from your personal brood of hens.

When a chicken lays an egg, it has a natural coating on it known as the bloom....

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: ITS TACTICAL

How to Escape From Zip Ties – with videos and pictures

In our, ‘How To Escape and Evade in an Urban Environment’ article, we briefly discussed escaping from zip ties.  There are quite a few hasty methods of illegal restraint, and zip ties are a method that’s available to any would-be kidnapper and are the “new” handcuffs for law enforcement.

There are two things you’ll need in any escape situation, and without these two things, nothing we show you will work.

Those two things are time and opportunity. You’ll first need time to put one of these escape methods into action and then the opportunity to do so.

Your captors are most likely not going to have the resources or the patience to keep eyes on you constantly, and when they don’t, it’s time to make your move.

How Zip Ties Work

The best way to defeat any type of restraint is to first analyze how it works.

Zip ties consist of a sturdy Nylon tape that contains small teeth running lengthwise down one side, and a ratchet with small teeth housed in a small open case....

Kevin Hayden – Truth is Treason.net

With all of the DIY projects and self-improvement I bring to you here at Truth is Treason, I realized I was leaving a vital topic out.  We’ve covered DIY tech gadgets and projects, various recipes, outdoor and garden projects, and much more – but we’ve not covered firearms very much.

Hayden’s Note:

This is an older article of mine, but I thought it might be a good time to republish for those new readers.  Originally posted March 28th, 2010.

I was a police officer for over 5 years and maintained the award of Pistol Master every year.  I have taught individual classes and group lessons in a variety of conditions and environments, but one thing that I find intriguing is the difference between training males and females.

Females have a natural ability to become very proficient with handguns and will listen to the instructor.  Men, on the other hand, approach firearms training like anything else; “I already know everything there is to know – and if I don’t, I certainly won’t ask for help.  I’ll just act like I know what I’m doing so as not to embarrass myself or allow the other guys to think I’m inferior.”

It’s the Alpha-dog complex.  And I understand that, being a guy.  But when it comes to handgun proficiency – or firearms in general, for that matter – an unassuming, “leave your ego at the door” type of approach is required.  If you’re familiar with the movie, ‘The Matrix’, you’ll recall when the little boy told Neo, “…there is no spoon.”  If you have limited experience in shooting or gun handling, that is the best advice I can give you....

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

A new reader sent me some really great links regarding health, liberty, and survival that I wanted to share, specifically an amazing book entitled, Health and Survival in the 21st Century, which can be downloaded free at the link.  The main site, ChestofBooks.com, is an amazing resource of e-books and reference material across the spectrum.

from reader Ken -

“Without health, there is no happiness. An attention to health, then, should take the place of every other object.” -Thomas Jefferson, 1787

Many of our brothers and sisters now have no health insurance and need to learn how important it is to protect their health. It’s hard to manipulate and enslave a physically fit, free-thinking person with robust health. The elite that run this world know that, hence their need to keep us sick and stupid. Perform a revolutionary act: eat well, exercise, read, and turn off that piece of garbage called television.

...

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: Vigilant Citizen - video at end

“Alone in the Wilderness” is the story of Dick Proenneke, living in the Alaska wilderness in 1968. He filmed his adventures and day-to-day life using an 8mm camera and tripod. The footage, along with the contents of his journals, were put together in a fascinating documentary.

I watched the entire thing and I couldn’t help but think, “This guy has the solution.” Although it is nearly impossible for most of us to replicate what he did, his lifestyle is certainly an ideal we should all tend to. Free from the bonds of materialism, debts, and mass media indoctrination, watching this tough old man appreciating nature and just doing what he has to do to stay alive is a vivid reminder that all of the rest is just a mere illusion.

Hayden’s Note:

It is with this spirit that I am building the Elysian Fields Project! 

After experiencing the societal collapse during and after Hurricane Katrina, I have a distinct fondness and appreciation for living life as it was intended, and to a degree, simply surviving....

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: Kimberly Snyder

Drinking green smoothies is a great way to incorporate tremendous amounts of greens into your diet – far more than just eating your veggies.

Greens have more valuable nutrients than any other food group on the planet. You might be surprised to learn that greens even have high-quality, easily-assimilated proteins – enough to build the muscle mass of the mighty, greens-eating gorilla, which pound-for-pound is the strongest animal on earth!

Blending helps make greens’ full spectrum of nutrition readily available to the body. Nutrients are encased inside plant cells and getting their benefits requires these cells’ walls to be ruptured. Greens need to be worked down to a creamy consistency, but most people simply don’t chew that much! Blending addresses this problem, helping your body absorb the maximum amount of nutrition from your greens.

So, this is it . . . the star of the whole program. This is the drink that I drink every day, and have all my clients drink to feel and look their best. I hope that it will become part of your daily life as well....

Kevin Hayden - TruthisTreason.net

Source: Wakeup World (See part 2 here)

Will Allen, the co-founder of this amazing initiative, called Growing Power, believes, “If people can grow safe, healthy, affordable food… if they have access to land and clean water, this is transformative on every level in a community.  I believe we cannot have healthy communities without a healthy food system.”

Their goal is a simple one: to grow food, to grow minds, and to grow community.

So how do they do it?

• By producing 10,000 fish,
• Using 300 to 500 yards of worm compost,
• By utilizing vertical space,
• Having 3 acres of land in green houses,
• Using 1 simple aquaponic pump,
• Food is grown all year by using heat from the compost piles,
• A packed greenhouse produces a crop value of $5 Square Foot! ($200,000/acre).
• Total food supply approximately 1,000,000 pounds per year!

Can you imagine if places like this started popping up all over the world? It would be one giant step towards self-reliance. Food self-sufficiency is a major step towards being sovereign.

The urban farm currently includes:

• six traditional greenhouses growing over 15,000 pots of herbs, salad mix, beet greens, arugula, mustards, seedlings, sunflower and radish sprouts.  These greenhouses also host production of six hydroponic systems growing Tilapia, Perch, and a variety of herb and salad greens, and over 50 bins of red wriggler worms;
• two aquaponics hoop houses with two independent fish runs and growing beds for additional salad mix and seedlings;
• seven hoop houses growing a mixture of salad greens and mushrooms;
• a worm depository hoop house;
• an apiary with 14 beehives;
• three poultry hoop houses with laying hens and ducks;
• outdoor pens for livestock including goats and turkeys;
• a large plot of land on which the first stage of the organization’s sophisticated composting operation is located including 30 pallet compost systems;
• an anaerobic digester to produce energy from the farm’s food waste;
• a rain water catchment system; and
• a retail store to sell produce, meat, worm castings, and compost to the community.
...

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: Backyard Aquaponics

Here’s a great DIY project for backyard aquaponics!  With this system, you can begin growing amazing vegetables and harvesting massive amounts of fish, such as tilapia, in a permaculture environment.  The system replenishes itself and provides nutrient dense food year round!

This video shows how to build a really simple system using IBC crates and minimal tools.

Step by step instructions, parts lists, and pictures of many different IBC aquaponic systems can be found here > Download the 180 page .pdf file HERE.

This particular video series doesn’t address fish farming in the aquaponic system, but as you can plainly see, the bottom portion can be filled with lots of fish, who provide fertilizer for the vegetables in the top section, in a continuous cycle.  If you were to place this system in a simple greenhouse and add some compost piles for warmth retention, you can harvest year round!

Stay tuned for more articles on aquaponics, DIY projects for urban farmers, and more!...

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: ElysianFieldsProject.com - My shipping container homesteading blog!

We are on a roll! Homesteading with a Shipping Container, Part 8! In the last segment, I answered some questions that I’ve received via email and the comments section, along with showing you a few of the other projects that are happening out here at the Elysian Fields. The biggest endeavor currently underway was the camping trailer carport and I’m proud to say that it is finished thanks to the help of some great friends!

The weekend’s forecast looked great and we were not disappointed. I met the motley crew at the Project Saturday morning and got right to work. Ralph, from PatriotSeedStore.com, and who has lots of construction experience, helped me set the 6th and final post for the carport while Mark, of SouthernPlainsConsulting.com, and Emery, my girlfriend, began general clean-up of the property and other materials.

It was a massive undertaking because I have been hauling various building materials and cool finds out to the property and it was starting to pile up! In fact, it started looking like a miniature scrapyard!...

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: Homespun Environmental – Truth Sponsor

Homespun Environmental is pleased to present an unpowered water filtration device that can generate over a hundred gallons of potable water per day from just about any fresh water source (pond, lake, stream, or river) using a single 5 gallon bucket and ceramic water filter cartridges.  The amount of water produced works well for multi-family, church group, or commercial/barter applications. 

Hayden’s Note:

If you’ve got a Big Berkey sitting around your house, you’re well aware of the high cost associated with it.  I own one, and I love it.  However, I don’t love the $60 price tag on the Berkey filters.  I have two sets of black ceramic filters that came with my Berk, but I have 3 kits on my shelf from Homespun Environmental as replacements and bartering items.  The cost of Homespun’s ceramic filters are only about $17, with the entire kit costing about $24.  You do the math.  I enjoy the convenience of using my Berkey as the standing unit that holds water, but I love the fact I can purchase 3 kits from Russ at Homespun for the cost of ONE set elsewhere.  Had I met Russ before I purchased my Berkey, I would have simply ordered the entire kit from him and made my own counter-top water filter.  He now stocks FLUORIDE and ARSENIC filters, plus a new, mini-filter for camping and hiking!...

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

I posted a similar article a few weeks ago, but it was merely YouTube videos of various recipes.  I’ve been working on making this at home and here is what I’ve come up with so far!

I’ve compiled several different recipes for both liquid and powdered laundry detergent.

While I prefer liquid soap, and it is cheaper, the powdered version seems to work a bit better and take up less storage space.  Your results may vary.  You can make yours more natural or less, depending on your preferences.  The soaps and ingredients used in the following recipes are for a natural soap.  While some of the ingredients listed on the particular products may sound synthetic or highly processed, they are not.  For instance, Fels-Naptha bar soap has a lot of ingredients that sound like chemicals; however, they are merely derivatives of products such as coconut oil, palm oil, salts, ash, etc.

We’ll start with my powdered recipe first:

2 cups of Borax (20 Mule Team) ~$5.00, 76 oz box.

2 cups of Washing Soda (Arm & Hammer) ~$5.00, 55 oz box....

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Borrowed in part from Popular Mechanics. Originally published at TruthisTreason on Nov. 8th, 2010

Automotive

1. Handle a blowout
2. Drive in snow
3. Basic vehicle troubleshooting
4. Replace fan belt
5. Wire in a new light
6. Conquer an off-road obstacle
7. Use a stick welder
8. Hitch up a trailer
9. Jump start a car

Handling Emergencies

10. Perform the Heimlich
11. Reverse hypothermia
12. Perform CPR
13. Escape a sinking car

Home

14. Carve a turkey
15. Use a sewing machine
16. Put out a fire
17. Home brew beer
18. Remove bloodstains from fabric
19. Move heavy stuff
20. Grow food
21. Read an electric meter
22. Use a shovel properly
23. Solder wire
24. Tape drywall
25. Split firewood
26. Replace a faucet washer
27. Mix concrete
28. Paint a straight line
29. Use a French knife
30. Prune bushes and small trees
31. Iron a shirt
32. Fix a toilet tank flapper
33. Change a single-pole switch
34. Fell a tree
35. Replace a broken windowpane
36. Set up a ladder, safely
37....

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: Homespun Environmental – Russ Michaud, Truth Supporter

This short paper discusses adding a siphon to a gravity fed water filter and how to set it up properly.  The paper discusses the siphon applications to a 4×4 ceramic water filter cartridge but the general principal applies to other water filter technologies as well.

What is a siphon?  A siphon is simply a length of hose that is added to the output of the filter where the water normally drips out.  The dimensions of the tube are critical.  The inside diameter needs to be small enough that the tube can completely fill with water. The outside diameter of the tube needs to form a good seal with the filter.  The length of the tube should be at least a foot long but can be much longer if needed.  Ideally it should rest on the bottom of the container.

How does a siphon work?    A siphon forms a vacuum that pulls water through the filters much like a syringe.  This vacuum force is in addition to the normal force of gravity but is much stronger.   This is proven by the fact that a siphon can counteract gravity and pull water uphill (as long as the eventual outlet is lower than the water inlet).   In a gravity drip bucket system, the addition of a siphon can more than double the water flow rate over simple gravity alone.   It has also been proven to improve the flow rate of low pressure systems....

Kevin Hayden – ElysianFieldsProject.com + TruthisTreason.net

Welcome to Part 7!  I’m glad you’ve stuck with me and my hectic adventure with a shipping container!  Over the last few weeks, I’ve received countless emails, comments and tweets regarding the project.  Perhaps I can address some of the more common questions in this installment while I have a bit of downtime as I start new projects!

I’m right in the middle of some major construction and haven’t quite formatted the pictures or taken enough to really show anything off, but I DO have a couple, which I’ll get to towards the end.  I know that when I visit other shipping container house websites and projects, I want pictures!  And lots of them!  So I’m right there with ya, readers!

As for some of the questions, I’ll just summarize the general ones and do my best to answer them -

• “I’m wanting to build a shipping container home but don’t know where to start, can’t finance land or can’t acquire financing for the actual project.”

This answer will vary as to how you plan on going about your building project....

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

As a big fan of DIY projects, saving money, and using organic items, I decided to scour YouTube for some of the better DIY projects.   This week’s collection will focus on DIY Laundry Soap and Detergent.

Some are organic and some are just dirt cheap ways to make liquid laundry soap.  Whatever floats your boat, I hope you find this post useful!

Do you have any DIY project videos that you’d like to see featured here?  Have an idea or tip? Be sure and leave a comment and share!

DIY Laundry Soap for 20 Cents a Gallon!

by TheUrbanFarmingGuys 

This is a really great channel and I highly recommend you check out what they are doing.  In a very dense, urban ghetto of Kansas City, this group of guys and gals are building everything!  Gardens, methane gas producer, an amazing fish farm in their backyard and a whole lot more!  Definitely a ‘must-subscribe’ channel for enthusiasts of urban gardening and sustainable farming!

How To Make Laundry Detergent in 3 Minutes – Bex’s Life

by BexLife 

Food processor?...

Kevin Hayden – TruthisTreason.net

Source: Survival Topics

Using wood ashes as a cleaning agent makes alot of sense: it is readily available, free and relatively safe for the environment when compared to many types of soap.

Hayden’s Note:

I would recommend saving this one or printing it off in order to add it to your camping and survival gear. Better yet, practice it a few times in order to become proficient!  Many thanks to SurvivalTopics.com for the information!

When it comes to wilderness survival, large scale disaster simply camping outdoors, we often try to do things in the same manner as we are accustomed to doing them at home. However what works well in civilization does not necessarily translate smoothly to a wilderness or disaster scenario where familiar supplies of every sort are limited or non-existent.

Solutions are available to most outdoor and survival problems, if only we have the knowledge and inventiveness to use them. But because we usually spend most of our time in civilized society, where specialized tools and products are readily available, we lose some of the edge in our abilities to utilize the common items we find around us in the wilderness....

TruthisTreason.net – Kevin Hayden

Source: Root Simple

I love alternate views of our normal notions of domesticity and home economics. On a recent trip to the book section of a large surplus store, I noticed our first book The Urban Homestead right alongside books on burying weapons caches, wiring solar panels, acting as your own dentist and assembling SKS rifles. We certainly have exciting company on this journey.

One book in particular caught my eye, The Construction of Secret Hiding Places by Charles Robinson. You can download a .pdf of this book for free here. Of course, the fact that this info exists in book and interweb form means that the secrets aren’t, well, secrets anymore.  Nevertheless, I’ll never view a stairwell, baseboard or that useless space under the dishwasher in quite the same way again.

Do you have a favorite secret hiding place? Anonymous comments are welcome . . ....

TruthisTreason.net – Kevin Hayden

Source: DIY Network

TruthisTreason.net – Kevin Hayden

Source: Alpha Rubicon (Public Side)

Water, water everywhere, but not a drop to drink. More precisely, water in the newly drilled well – but none to mix mortar with.  The well drilling company hadn’t put the pump, pipe or electrical cable down the hole yet, so I decided to make a well bucket out of PVC pipe and an old inner tube so I could get some water. This well bucket will work with any drilled well at least 4” in diameter. The capacity of the bucket depends on how long you make the main pipe.  I made this one a little over 3’ in length, which gives me about 1.5 gallons every time I raise it out of the well.

Hayden’s Note:

I did not write this article, obviously.  But I find myself in a similar situation with my “Homesteading with a Shipping Container” project over at ElysianFieldsProject.com.  I have an 8″ well casing, 140 feet deep, and will be placing a manual well pump on it.  I debated a standard 3/4 HP electric pump, tied into a generator and cistern tank, but ultimately, I wanted self-sufficiency in a grid-down situation.  Thus, a manual pump (potentially a solar-powered attachment at a later date, but will be able to maintain the manual ability).  However, those pumps cost approximately $1,650 and I find myself with far too many other projects – including living day to day in the corporate rat race while working on the project 50 miles away. 

So, in the meantime, a PVC well bucket is the perfect fix when I need a few gallons of water to mix concrete with, filter a bit of drinking water or flush a toilet (until I get my waterlines finished, anyway).  And yet another side note: Paracord could work well for this, depending on how large you make the PVC bucket....

TruthisTreason.net – Kevin Hayden

Source: Low-Impact.net

I’ve been playing around with making paper bricks as a substitute for firewood. One small issue is that I don’t actually have a fireplace at my current house, but I’m not going to let a trivial thing like that hold me back!

So what’s the concept? Its pretty simple. You soak some newspaper in water, put it in brick mold, squish out the water and leave it to dry. The brick maker I’m using and a sample brick are pictured. You end up with a compressed brick of newspaper that you can throw in your slow-combustion fireplace.

Getting the brick maker can be a little tricky – there was a time when you could pick them up from any hardware store. The reason why they’re a little hard to find nowadays (in my humble opinion) is that the paper bricks are not as good as real firewood.

There. I said it. I admitted the green, DIY alternative isn’t as good. Wow – what a release!

But all is not lost. The truth is that, in my experience in other houses where I’ve had wood-fire heating, paper bricks do not burn as long as a good hardwood log, or as hot....