Product Selection Guidelines For Preppers

When, in the course of “human events,” it becomes evident that the “junk” has hit the fan, your medical, bug-out, vehicle and home kits need to work well and last through whatever life may throw at you.

The process of weeding out the “fluff” to get down to the meat and bones of a good product you can bet your life on (and your family’s lives) can be annoying at best and detrimental to your survival at worst. In an effort to show you some basic solutions to the challenge of selecting such important components of preparedness kits, Category Five has developed these helpful guidelines.

Prepare To Bug Out

While many people romanticize the idea of social unrest or martial law as motivations for “bugging out,” the more likely event is that something like Hurricane Katrina or a forest fire will be your stimulus for actually leaving your home behind and hitting the road with your bug out bag (BOB). If you classify yourself as a “prepper,” then you may already have your BOB packed. However, you may not know that system redundancy is just as important in building your bag as it is in every other aspect of prepping.

When building your BOB, make sure you have particular items in multiple pockets and pouches, as well as retaining multiple versions of the same functionality. For example, instead of having one lighter in your front pocket and that’s it, make sure you also carry some waterproof matches in your medical kit, a ferrocerium rod and steel striker in your waterproof clothing bag, and a road flare in the side pocket of your bag. That way, if anything happens to any piece of equipment you have (i.e., submerged in water, stolen, dropped along the way), you will have diversified your reliance on any single part of your bag.

Barter Items

One of the advantages of having a preparedness plan is the opportunity to stockpile items that can be used in a barter economy. I have written many times that, at least for a while following an economic collapse, a barter economy will develop.

That is why I recommend having a large quantity of pre-1964 silver coins. They will be recognized as “money” because they look like the coins we are familiar with, but will also retain value because of their silver content.

Establish A Family Meeting Place

Your family may be scattered to the four winds when an emergency strikes, and there’s a good possibility cellphones won’t work. It’s prudent to plan a meeting location to prepare for disaster. Of course, the first and most logical choice for a meeting place is the home. But, depending on the nature of the disaster, it might not be feasible to meet there.

Shoes For A Pinch; Hopefully They Won't Pinch Your Feet

Telling you what shoe to buy for your particular situation makes as much sense as telling you what car you should buy. There are too many variables — budget, environment, terrain, foot shape, etc. — to consider. But there are a few truths you should remember when choosing footwear for the survival scenario.

Shoes are vitally important because your feet may become your only mode of transportation if the grid or supply chain is taken down. If it happens, you’re going to spend a lot of time either working outdoors or hiking out of your area, and this is going to put a big strain on your shoes or boots.

Seeing The Light When The Grid Goes Down

Filipinos have found a new (and practically free) way to use an old source of light, and it’s something you can put into your survival playbook to provide light to a shelter if the electrical grid ever goes down. You can also use the method to provide light to an outbuilding that doesn’t have an electrical connection.

The Folly Of Preparedness

I sometimes close a column with a reminder to store water, food, guns, ammo and gold. Inevitably, that remark will spark a rejoinder pointing out the folly of preparedness.

Some people just don’t get it, and apparently no amount of “preaching” to them on the subject will get through. Boy Scouts, apparently, they aren’t. For them, normalcy bias (the belief that things will always be just like they are) is just too tough to overcome.

Living Off The Land

To prepare for a long-term situation in which your emergency stores are going to run out, you need to know how to hunt, gather and forage in your area.

For hunting you should have a .22-caliber rifle for shooting small game, a shotgun and a large caliber rifle like a .308 or a .30-06.

Dealing With Serious Medical Problems In Survival Situations

Dehydration is one of the greatest dangers to people in survival situations, especially in the summer in warmer climates. While working to overcome a new hardship, it’s easy for someone to overexert and become overheated. And in survival situations, people can easily be exposed to contaminated water or improperly prepared or spoiled food, which could cause diarrhea or vomiting.

Livin’ For The Apocalypse

Our own preparedness expert Peggy Layton and her family are featured on a new one-hour TLC special, “Livin’ for the Apocalypse,” that premieres Sunday night at 10 p.m. EDT. The show covers four families and the things they are doing to prepare for hard times and protect themselves against the collapse of the economy or […]