Outdoor Life Prepare for Anything Survival Manual (65 page)
Read Outdoor Life Prepare for Anything Survival Manual Online
Authors: Survival/Camping
STEP 7
Wrap the metal handle in leather, wire, or paracord, or attach shaped wood pieces for a grip. Sharpen the blade’s edge with a file, whetstone, and even a leather strop for a very fine edge.
Heat with the Sun
If the grid is down in chilly weather, an emergency can leave the modern home or apartment dangerously cold. Death from hypothermia is a very real threat to your safety, especially in subfreezing temperatures coupled with a utility outage. Managing the sun coming into your dwelling is an easy and safe way to gain heat in a cold-climate catastrophe. Yes, a home heating solar array on your roof would be a good idea for frosty locales, but you can still get a warming effect with smart use of the assets that you already have. Take advantage of passive solar heat during daylight hours by staying in a room with south-facing windows. Lay out dark-colored blankets and rugs on the floor and furniture to help absorb the heat from the sunlight. Thick drapes or improvised insulation can block the chill coming off the windows after sunset.
Warm Up Safely
Don’t replace one danger with another by swapping hypothermia for a house fire. Rely on these safety tips to keep a bad situation from getting worse.
FOCUS ON ONE ROOM
Pick one area, preferably a smaller room with a low ceiling, to be your main living area during the emergency. Don’t even try to heat every room in the house—it’s a waste of time and resources.
VENTILATE
You’re just begging for carbon monoxide poisoning if you use a propane heater, a grill, or a gas stove for a heat source indoors. Even a kerosene heater needs to have some fresh air. Don’t use combustion without ventilation.
TAKE CARE WITH CANDLES
Candles are a problematic heat source, commonly causing home fires in already troubling emergency situations. Limit their use—if you have enough candles to create warmth in a room, you also have a serious fire hazard. Always make sure you have a working smoke alarm with a carbon monoxide detector.
Use Bricks and Stones to Heat Your Home
While you can’t heat a room with hand-warmer packs, you can certainly heat yourself up by keeping a few of them in your pockets. Building on the concept of portable radiant heat, you can also turn rocks and bricks into small, heavy space heaters.
STEP 1
Safety first! You’ll need to set up a heatproof platform in the room you intend to heat. A 2-foot (0.6-m) square of bricks on the floor will work fine. Then get some rocks or a few bricks from a dry location.
STEP 2
Fire up the grill or build a fire outside, and throw the rocks or bricks in the fire to heat them up. Heat for about 45 minutes and then scoop them out with a shovel. Get all the coals and sparks off of the bricks or rocks before continuing.
STEP 3
Drop the bricks into a stainless-steel cooking pot. Other types of pots can be damaged by the heat, and galvanized buckets can release toxic vapors with heat exposure. Stick with the steel pot.
STEP 4
Carefully bring the hot rocks or bricks inside and set the pot on your fireproof, heatproof platform. Repeat as needed every few hours.
Consider These Heaters
If you live in an area prone to cold winters and frequent power outages, you may want to plan ahead with backup heaters like these.
WOOD STOVE
If firewood is abundant in your region, a wood stove could be the perfect solution for winter heating. They can heat a small house and even slow-cook meals on their hot, flat top. If you can cut your own wood, this becomes an inexpensive way to heat a home or building.
KEROSENE HEATER
Stinky but easy to use, kerosene heaters can be burned indoors (if the particular model was designed for indoor use—check the instructions or labels). Just crack a window for a little ventilation and stock up on kerosene before bad weather hits (it’s available at many gas stations).
PROPANE HEATER WITH CATALYTIC CONVERTER
These small heaters offer carbon monoxide–free combustion and can run on small propane cylinders (like the ones for camping stoves) or on larger bottles (like your grill tanks). These devices are safe for use in homes, tents, cars, and other closed spaces, with only a tiny bit of ventilation.
Master 6 Advanced Knots
In the world of knot tying, everybody has his or her favorite. One knot can serve multiple purposes, and the basics will get you through most situations. But for those of you who have already mastered the beginner and intermediate knots that we’ve discussed (see items 65 and 191), consider expanding your skill set to include these more advanced techniques. After all, any good sailor, mountain climber, Boy Scout, or lumberjack already has them on lockdown, and you never know what kind of emergency situation might call for a specialty hitch.
SQUARE LASHING
This lashing has been used to build everything from camp chairs to towers and bridges—but you can also use it to secure two poles or planks together, as shown.
HOW TO TIE
Tie a clove hitch to one of the poles, near the place where the two cross. Wrap your line around the junction, going under the lower pole and over the upper. Wrap outward five or six times, then wrap between the poles, biting onto the previous wraps to tighten them. Use a square knot to tie the free ends.
TRUCKER’S HITCH
This hitch provides a unique mechanical advantage for tightening up a line. It’s great for tying down tarps and shifting loads and, though a little complex, it’s worth it.
HOW TO TIE
Start off this knot by tying a figure 8 knot with a loop of the line. Then pass the free end of the line around the object to be secured and pass the line through the loop. Next, pull the free end tight, and secure the free end with two half hitches just below the loop.
TRIPOD LASHING
This lashing is commonly used for shelters.
HOW TO TIE
Start with your three poles lying on the ground side by side. Tie a clove hitch to one of the end poles, then wrap around all of the poles five or six times. Wrap the line between the poles—twice between each one—working back toward the original clove hitch. Finish by tying the free end of the line to the free end from the clove hitch that started this whole thing. Spread the legs for a handy tripod.
SHEEPSHANK
This may seem like half magic trick, half knot, but it shortens a line without cutting it, keeping our long ropes in one piece.
HOW TO TIE
Fold the rope to the new length you need. Create a half hitch in one end of the continuing rope, and drop it over the nearby loop. Make a half hitch in the other standing end, drop it over its adjacent loop, and then tighten the whole thing slowly.
IMPROVED CLINCH KNOT
You can use rope, or, better yet, slippery monofilament fishing line, when tying this knot.
HOW TO TIE
Pass the free end of the line through or around the object to be secured, like the eye of a fishhook. Then wrap the free end of the line around the other side of the line five or six times. Pass the free end of the line through the triangular opening next to the object and then through the large loop you just created by going through the small triangle. Tighten the knot, trim off any extra line, and enjoy your day fishing.
BARREL HITCH
This hitch has been used in sailing and construction work for centuries. It allows you to secure a barrel or other cylindrical object and lift it in a balanced position.
HOW TO TIE
Place your barrel or other object to be lifted on top of your rope. Then tie an overhand knot across the top of the barrel. Open up the overhand knot until it wraps around the top sides of the barrel. Tie the ends of the rope together with a square knot and then lift. This knot makes a fine bucket handle when the wire handle finally breaks off.
SAFETY WARNING: For safety and stability while hoisting barrels, the rope around the barrel needs to be high above the center of gravity on the barrel but pose no danger of slipping off the top of the barrel. FYI, beer has an excellent center of gravity.
