Sir:
I enjoy your blog and support you in a small way with the 10 Cent Challenge.  After reading your response to the Battery-Powered House Interior Lighting letter, I want to add some information that I learned at a FAA seminar that I attended.  The FAA is now endorsing blue or green lighting in the cockpit of all aircraft (general aviation and commercial).  The green and/or blue takes less energy output for the eyes to see details.  Also, red lighting can be seen from further away than blue/green (red is used to designate towers and tall buildings at night, where blue is used for taxiway lights because it stands out less at a distance).  I would strongly advise the use of controlled blue or green lights for interior lighting and keep the bulbs/LEDs out of direct line of sight of windows.  - Carl

JWR:
I wanted to add a few tips.

We recently purchased a set of low-voltage,solar-powered LED string lights from a Target chain store.  They are similar to Christmas lights, but the bulbs are of various shapes/designs (we opted for a set that looked like little snow globes or disco balls.)

These lights don't have any sort of connector (12 VDC nor 110 VAC.)  Instead, they only have a small solar panel, that's [directly] attached to a sealed battery pack.

During our first camping/outing with the lights, we read the instructions, which said that they required five hours of full sunlight before they would be ready for use.  (We had arrived at our campsite about an hour before sunset, so we had no hope that they would work...)

Much to our surprise, they worked perfectly.  Initially, their light source seems pretty weak.  But, as the skies grow dark,and your eyes adjust, they actually begin to seem pretty bright.   We strung them above/around the opening of our tent, and they functioned like some sort of "street light" of sorts (making entry/exit of our tent safe & sure.

We attempted to sleep with the lights still on, to see how long they would last.  (A mistake.)   At 2 a.m., they were still so bright, that we were having trouble sleeping.  So, I turned them off.

The next day, we angled the solar panel to face the sun.  (The panel/battery has a clip,which we attached to an external tent pole on our dome-style tent.)  We then departed for the day (which turned out to be a windy day.)

When we returned,the little solar panel had spun on the pole (due to the winds,) and was now face-down in the tent (instead of facing the sunshine.)  We still had an hour of sunlight before sunset, so there was still hope...

After sunset, when we turned the lights on, they (again) worked like champs.  We wondered, though, if they would still hold-up as long as the night prior?...

About an hour later, as we were building our campfire, they died...  (We assumed they just didn't get enough sunlight, and we were regretting that they didn't have a 12-volt plug or alligator clips.)

Later, however, as the fire dimmed, the little lights sprung back to life!!!

Go figure -- they also have a built-in light sensor/switch.  They automatically turn off, when there is sufficient light (to save their battery.)   We had light from them all night (again.)

I have been disappointed by so many "solar yard/path lights" in the past.  I almost didn't buy these.  But, their LED functionality got the best of me -- and I'm so very glad that I bought them!

Granted, they are not "high beams."  These are essentially "super" night lights (or minimalist emergency lighting.)
They are enough light to "get the job done" -- and not much more.  But, they are kind of cute, too!
As outdoor lights, they are also water-resistant.  As low-voltage, they are also safe to the touch (even if/when wet.)

This essentially-free lighting was enough for 90% of our tasks in/around our tent and camp site.  Only a few times did we need to turn on a lantern, or flashlight for specialized tasks (like cutting in our kitchen area.)

On that note, this was also the first time we tried using one of the new LED-style Coleman lanterns.  We still brought our Coleman-fueled lanterns, as well as our propane lanterns along, too.  We are life-long campers,and Coleman-powered lamps just seem to be as natural as S'Mores over a camp fire.  But, the sensitive mantles, and glass lenses, plus the Coleman white-fuel cans, and the propane bottles, and the small funnels, and such add up to a lot of possible "points-of-failure."  I was pleasantly-surprised by the amount of zero effort light that our new battery-powered LED Coleman lanterns provided!

One of them was powered via a pack of four D-cell batteries.   The other had an integrated battery pack, which you could wall-charge (or hand-crank!!!)  I'm somewhat sorry to say, that our old-school lanterns will be moved to the bottom/back shelves of our garage now -- because we now favor the newer, lighter-weight, easier & safer to operate LED lanterns.

We have also purchased a roll-up solar panel to charge any/all of our batteries, too.

Granted, there isn't always a sunny sky.  But, one full charge of these little lights, seems to last for multiple nights.

We also bought a hand-crank handheld LED flashlight, too.  Again, it's not as powerful as our Mag-Lites. (I think someone on the Moon could see our Mag-Lites!)   But, they are much lighter and a quick crank of the handle for 30-60 seconds or so, provides us with hours of lighting.  (Whereas dead batteries in the Mag-Lites provides zero light.)

Peace & Preparedness, - J.H.

James:
Another option that has worked well for me is the use of marine-type [low votage DC lighting in the house.

I have a LED chart light set up as a reading light on the back of the head board that I use day to day for my reading and as a bed side lamp. It is powered off of a deep cycle battery in a battery box under the bed. (Yes batteries make hydrogen gas while charging and anyone who is not a big boy and understands this should probably not do it.)

This combo will run many days without a charge and makes a great bed side light as well. One of these days I am going to run the numbers and see exactly how many hours this thing will run, but the battery is so ridiculously over-sized for this application I have not bothered yet. - S.D. in W.V.

James Wesley:
We have frequent power outages.  We bought a [deep cycle] marine battery from Bass Pro Shops that was intended use with a trolling motor.  We keep this battery continuously trickle-charged.   A small inverter from Radio Shack provides 120 VAC for three strings of white LED Christmas lights attached to the uppermost part of the most important wall.  A charged trolling motor battery will keep these efficient lights on for a very long time.  All we have to do is to plug the lights into the inverter socket. Very safe. - Anonymous

JWR Replies: It would be much more efficient to buy strings of DC LED Christmas lights. This is because going from DC to AC and back to DC is inefficient and adds an unnecessary layer of complexity. (You never know when an inverter will fail.) BTW, if you buy the LED strings in red and/or blue, then they will preserve your night vision when you step outside. (Blue seems to provide the most useful light for kitchen tasks and reading with minimal eye sstrain.) You can also build a fairly efficient dimming switch. As previously mentioned in SurvivalBlog, adding a DC-to-DC charging tray for smaller batteries will prove invaluable.

Looking at today’s troubling times I cannot help but wonder about how to best prepare for them. I am new to this arena and in the last ten years. Yes its taken me that long, I have come to realize that being prepared is not being some Nut Case, but the very real, important, job of every family to ensure survival. Its too bad most of us are not even aware, or willing to acknowledge what is happening. Only in the last two years have I started to react to this and start preparing my family. I regret my “Head in the Sand” outlook. Besides the Beans, Bullets and Band-Aid preparation approach, which we should all know about and practice, there are many other areas that also need to be examined and implemented. It is very interesting reading to see all of the ideas put forth in your blog. The ideas are great and I have learned a phenomenal amount of information from it. Since I have started prepping, its amazing to find out just how many did it, many on tight budgets.

When I moved to my current location, I was naive with regards to relocating and after reading Mr. Rawles' books I would probably have made a different choice. But I am here, fully employed and likely to stay for at least four to six years. I chose a smallish city, or at least that’s what I thought. I moved to the high plains in 2006 from Phoenix to get away from all the issues Phoenix has, from gangs, crime and population congestion. Realizing how bad Phoenix is, and wanting to still stay in a city offering all the amenities, I chose a small High Plains city of about fifty-five thousand. It has a low crime rate, good affordable housing, employment and is generally a pretty nice place. This, of course is what, I am sure, most would say about their cities, that is until The Schumer Hits the Fan. At that point all will change and many, many will seek shelter elsewhere. Leaving me, and many others with choices: Leave, take your chances and go with the multitudes, or stay and hunker down. I keep both options open. flight with truck, flight with truck and trailer and hunker down at home.

Whatever locale you choose, lighting should be considered. We all need some form of it. 

There is so much to do and so little time to do it. However, I must approach this with a budget in mind. I don’t want to be in debt, any more than I have too. Any approach to preparedness must be calculating. I wanted to bring up lighting. I am sure that a lot has been said about it and being new to the forum I hope that I am not being redundant. We all should know that when it (The Schumer) hits, and I believe it will, your home becoming the target of looters, or worse, is a very real possibility. While power is still available, and after even  when it is not, lighting discipline will be critical. I don’t think that I can stress that enough. This could very well mean your life and that of your families.  No light must be allowed to emit from you home/dwelling/retreat/cave….whatever. None! If they can see the light, well can you say “target”?  

HIDE THAT LIGHT: I suggest that you make a real effort to black out your home, or whatever. Not just putting up some extra curtains.  And don’t think tart cut up black trash can liners will do the trick. I suppose that several layers, duct taped to the inside of your windows could work. But do you really want to risk your life and that of your families to trash can liners? Better to spend the extra money and get good quality 4 mil or thicker opaque black plastic sheeting. This can be purchased at home improvement stores, or on the internet for about fifty dollars for a nine foot by one hundred foot roll. And of course the almighty, ever useful Duct Tape. I personally do not believe that you can ever have too much Duct Tape. For that matter doors could be an issue as well, so check them, sheet them and tape them. By the way this all should be practiced before TSHTF. Think of it as a good Saturday dry run and follow it up with a good barbeque meal for the family.

OPTIONS: There are a lot lighting of options out there. If power is still available, then lighting is not a real problem, just hiding that light could be problematic. If power is out, you don’t want to advertise your presence with a noisy generator. But even if you do, once again, hiding the light would be an issue. Please put into practice a strong effort to hide that light. Good light discipline is going to be an essential element to survival. This is especially true on Refugee Line of Drift, such as homes near interstates, or other highways. They will seek out visible light as possible places of shelters or as a means of sustenance. 

Some lighting alternatives are:

• Flashlights are good. But they are very battery-needy. Hopefully you have thought about NiMH re-chargeable batteries and solar chargers. Flashlights are really good for directed light when needed for a specific task/target. They can also have filters attached for even more light discipline. Flashlights with LEDs are very efficient, offering extended battery life. My suggestion is to have plenty of them. I have several different varieties even tough I also have too different batteries as well. I am a functionality nut, every tool has a job and every job has a tool. I prefer rechargeables….always.
  
• Lanterns also offer good lighting options, again, hopefully you’ve have thought about both types of re-chargeable batteries. Lanterns with LED capabilities are very efficient, offering extended battery life. The old battery lanterns were of very limited use. They quickly ran down batteries and offered limited lighting. Today’s models are a different story. Their uses are multi facetted and offer good battery life while providing fairly decent light. They are easily transported and charged. They are effective for a stationary element. Their downfall is that while mobile, they are not space efficient for a bug out situation. . 
• Solar walkway lighting is another good alternative. Think about it. They charge all day long and then provide light for hours at night. Yes, its true it won’t be white, blinding, dazzling brilliant light, but it will suffice. It will provide adequate to find things and move discreetly about the house. The light will be dim enough not to brightly illuminate the world, but adequate for needs of the household. And the are a renewable resource. The sun will re-charge them daily for you. Wal-Mart sells a cost effective variety at $20 for eight lights. I use them as driveway lighting and garden outline lighting. This gives me about 20 solar power lights for use inside. And yes I have tried them and though they are not especially bright, they do give off satisfactory lighting. Which is all I require of them. Best of all…You guessed it, they are sun-charged.
  
  
• Candles are a good choice, [is used with sufficient safety precautions] but a disappearing one. By that I mean that they will slowly be consumed. They also will require an ignition source such as matches or a lighter, of themselves not bad items to have around. Depending on variety they produce by products such as smoke, order etc. Not especially desirable, so choose them wisely. I am not saying you should not use them, just select the best ones. Though when TSHTF, any will be better than none, and I have many of them. The devotional candles that come in glass jars are cheap and effective. [JWR Adds: These have on rare instances been known to shatter, so they should be used with he same fire safety precaution of any other candle:They are best burned in the center of a discarded cookie sheet with a rolled-up lip, placed on a surface that cannot tip over.. Used cookie sheets are available for a pittance from almost any thrift store.]

I try and have several alternative options on hand at all times. I keep spare batteries (rechargeable) in storage. I have a solar charger on hand and I keep about 30 solar garden type lights on hand, including two spot lights.

Whatever you choose to do with regard to lighting don’t forget all the other things that need done. I personally have a decent armory with ten thousand available rounds. I am working on one year food supply for a family of ten. I keep all of my vehicles in good running order. I am also working on fuel storage, both gasoline for my vehicles and propane for heating and cooking. I keep my options open and read, read, read. SurvivalBlog has provided hundreds, if not thousands of very good ideas.

Hopefully this gives someone, maybe a newcomer like myself, some ideas and maybe, just a little thought provoking. I hope so, as I am getting tons of ideas from the blog and it would be great to give back to this community. I do bring some experience to the table. I a former US Marine and have been in law enforcement for 27 years.

Have you seen the latest reality television show, “Doomsday Preppers”, from National Geographic?  I made a mistake a few years ago – after 20 years of successfully resisting the cries and moans of my children, I gave in and allowed cable television to be installed in my house. Should have known better, but as they say, that’s a whole ‘nother subject.  Now, every week, National Geographic brings us “Doomsday Preppers,” Animal Planet serves up “Meet The Preppers,” Discovery beams in another episode of “Doomsday Bunkers” and the new pay-to-view internet network GBTV fires off a round of “American Preppers.”  Can some kind of copycat show from TLC be far behind? I guess maybe the good thing about these shows is that I no longer am tempted to confide in my friends about my efforts to be prepared for fear they might profile me into the same category as the folks they’re watching on television.  Better to keep it under the radar anyway.

I don’t really watch the shows but I’ve seen little bits and pieces of them as I walk through the room when they’re on and seeing the barns and bunkers filled with years’ supplies of food and water can give a guy a real sense of inferiority.  Am I doing enough?  How can I ever be as prepared as the stars of those shows?  Is my family at risk because I’m not taking this all seriously enough?  My total larder isn’t up to the level of what those guys spend in a single episode!  My steel trash cans filled with vacuum packed bags of rice, beans and oatmeal seem like just a thimble-full compared to the warehouses of canned goods kept by the celebrity preppers.  Since I’m not being paid thousands of dollars an episode to parade my efforts in front of a voyeuristic audience, I just don’t have the disposable income to lay up that kind of stash overnight.  Am I going to be a failure at this?  Not a chance.

In spite of the fact that we’re experiencing 8% real inflation and even though I live in a state where the economy is in a deep ditch and I subsequently haven’t had a raise or a bonus in four years, I’ve still been able to squeeze $10 a week out of my budget to engage in the process of laying up the things I might need WTSHTF.  I would dare say most people waste more than $10 a week on things like soda, fast food and movie rentals.  Think about your own expenditures for a moment.  How much could you save just by brown-bagging your lunch?  Plenty - like $5 or more per day!  Or kiss Starbucks goodbye and take your own coffee from home – treat yourself to a really nice travel mug and some quality beans and you’ll still save.  My wife and I do the cash-in-envelopes budget thing so on pay day I go to the bank and take with me our cash for the week.  In that cash is my $10 for prepping.  Lately I’ve been swinging by the nearby discount grocery store and grabbing ten bucks worth of rice, beans, peanut butter or cooking oil, and when I get home after work, into the larder they go.  Or some weeks I’ll stop at a big box department store and grab a couple 2-packs of propane cylinders or a gallon of Coleman fuel.  If I skip a week because the beans and rice are piling up on the kitchen counter waiting for me to vacuum pack them with the FoodSaver, I’ll grab a box of ammo or a couple replacement chimneys and spare wicks for my oil lamps.  While the 15-minutes-of-fame guys on TV might be spending $1,000 a month on supplies, I can’t do that.  But $10 a week is $500 a year and that’s a measurable step in the right direction that almost anyone can afford.  It would be nice to do this all overnight but you’ll be surprised at how your stockpile grows if you just are consistent and disciplined about working your smaller scale plan.

Sometimes, we’ll save up our $10 weekly allowance and splurge for something special or bigger.  We live about an hour from a large settlement of Amish folks and they have a great mercantile in their community filled with items designed for simple living.  My wife and I took a Saturday awhile back and drove there for the day.  We came home with an awesome stoneware crock for making sauerkraut and a pile of re-usable canning lids.  I was drooling over the hand powered grain grinders but we’ll have to save a little longer before I can come home with one of those!  They also sell basic foods in bulk in that community.  We came home with a 25 lb. sack of oatmeal for $11.25 and a big brick of Strike Anywhere matches.  If you’re fortunate enough to live near a store like this you can find almost anything you need for off-the-grid living at very reasonable prices.  If you don’t, just click on one of this blog’s banner ads and send a little business to one of them.
     I’ve also learned that the local big box membership warehouse isn’t necessarily the best place to find things on the cheap.  I assumed that if I bought a big bag or rice there that would be the cheapest way to go.  Wrong.  My wife the Coupon Queen showed me that it’s actually cheaper to buy in three-pound bags at the discount grocery – 30 lbs. for $16.90 versus about $25 at the “club”  store. Shop around and save.

     You might be asking, “Okay, but from a practical standpoint, what can I really lay up for $10 a week?”  Well, here’s what I’ve been doing:

The key is to be consistent and disciplined and make that $10 purchase every week.  A few months into it you will be amazed at what you’re accomplishing.  A year down the road, you’ll be experiencing a lot less dread about facing an uncertain future.  Two years . . . well, you get the picture.  Obviously there is much more to be done before I can call myself “prepared” for a grid down situation or the collapse of civilization as we know it, but I’m not convinced that we never really “arrive” anyway.  I’m finding it’s more of a journey.  I’ll do it this way while the lights are still on and look for new ways if and when they go out. 

Not to digress too far from my main topic of $10 prepping, but we’re also doing additional things on the home front that will help us be further prepared.  We left the city six years ago for four acres of paradise in the country.  Even though I hadn’t yet begun prepping at that time, I thought now that I was a country gentleman I should do something country-gentlemanish so I put up a little chicken pen and bought some chicks at the local tractor store’s “Chick Days.”  We’ve been raising birds and selling pastured eggs at our roadside stand ever since – a child could do this and succeed at it.  And since my favorite food group is bacon, a couple years later my oldest son and I trenched in some “hog panels” and built a shelter out of an old pickup truck camper shell and put in a few feeder pigs.  I now raise premium Berkshire pork for our freezer and for a few friends and family.  Food, water, shade and six months – that’s about all it takes to raise a hog.  Now we’re constructing a cow pen and I’ll be picking up a recently-weaned Angus steer next month.  It’s comforting to know that I can actually raise livestock and the meat is just so much better than the factory farm stuff you get at the store.  By the way, the livestock operation doesn’t fit into the $10-a-week scheme but rather comes out of our grocery budget.  I’ve also started gardening at almost zero expense.  Last year I grew 64 tomato plants and my wife canned over 160 quarts of various tomatoes, juice and sauces.  We also canned copious amounts of sweet corn and green beans.  There’s a real learning curve to gardening, though, so start now. You’ve heard it before – if you wait until the grid goes down you’ll starve to death before you master growing your own food.  Start with a few tomato plants, some beans, a few zucchini and a potato barrel.  Just take it one step at a time and eventually you’ll get somewhere.  Once again, it’s about being consistent and disciplined.

Like the Good Book says, “A Prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.”  (Proverbs 22:3) Prudent or “simple” – what’s it going to be for you?  While $10-a-week prepping won’t get you on TV, if it’s all you can afford (like it is for me) I believe it will earn you the title of Prudent.  While you won’t be a celebrity like the television preppers, you will be at least somewhat supplied in the event of TEOTWAWKI.  And if that day doesn’t come for awhile yet and you’re consistent and disciplined between now and then you’ll be a lot more than just somewhat prepped.  You’ll be ready to face an uncertain future with one less thing to worry about.

JWR:
Thank you for all you do. I recently found SurvivalBlog, and have enjoyed it immensely!
 
I live close to Wiggy's [in Grand Junction, Colorado]so when I read about their Amazing Perpetual Light on SurvivalBlog, I thought I would give it a try. This morning, I purchased three of their 4”x6” mini size. They only weigh 10.84 grams, 10.85 grams, and 12.15 grams each (for comparison, about the same weight as the combined weight of 3 or 4 pre-1982 copper pennies).

I let them charge in the sun (it is actually mostly cloudy, and hailing) for 30 minutes, and took them into a dark closet. After waiting for my eyes to adjust to the dark per the included instructions, the light from just one of them let me read 10 pt font just fine. The light from it is enough for me to see objects three feet away. It has been 1 hour since they were charged, and they are still glowing strong.
 
I will be buying more, and getting some of the bigger sizes. At first I was skeptical, but these really are amazing! (I am not affiliated with Wiggy's, just a happy customer! I bought and like their 0 degree sleeping bag too.) - Brandon L.

James,
The Perpetual Light [marketed by Wiggy's] is in fact a resale of another company's product, also made in the Grand Junction, Colorado area.  The other company is UVPaqlite.com.  I've had their products for close to six months now and I have been using them the entire time.  Some notes on the lights:

1.  The Glow in the Dark Spots (GIDS) are great to mark emergency gear.  I have one on the ends of several flashlights so I can find them if the power goes out.  I also have one on the end of my bed so I don't walk into it in the middle of the night.  They do last all night and I can't say enough good things about the GIDS for marking purposes.  The only other marking spots I've used that are as good are ones which contain tritium.

2. The Paqlite (the flat "bag" of crystals) do last all night long ... by morning they are close to nothing more than a dim glow that you can't navigate or read by but for several hours after dark they do provide a "night light" level of light.  I've got one in each of my map cases for reading them at night without turning on a flashlight.  And they are easy to recharge with even a small key chain flashlight.

3.  The Tooblite is about the size of a chemical light stick ("chemlite") and while it does not last as long as the Paqlite (about half the time) it is basically a clear test-tube shaped and sized container of the crystals embedded in a clear plastic.  Not as usable as a chemlite for navigation or reading.  Durable as all though and my large one is attached to my computer bag all the time -- its been through multiple airline handling experiences and isn't even scratched.

4. The material used has a definite preference for the type of light used to charge them up -- light sources with UV (such as natural sunlight) create a much brighter, longer lasting, and more natural light (a whitish green glow) vs. incandescent lighting (a soft green glow).  So while any light source can be used, the use of lighting with the UV spectrum is better.

5. At this point I have yet to lose my night vision when using one of these lights.  While its not the usual reddish glow we associate with night-vision saving lights, it seems to work the same.

Finally, as with all sorts of lighting, since it is greenish hued you do not get true colors from objects so lines on maps tend to look the same (blue, green, gray) and even blood vessels are hard to distinguish (red for arteries and blue for veins). Regards, - H.D.

Hi Jim: 
I came across a really neat little phosphorescent light source that your readers might like.  It is sold by Wiggy's, a maker of high end American-made sleeping bags [and a long-time SurvivalBlog advertiser.].  They call it a Perpetual Light and you can use sunlight, headlights of cars, et cetera to charge it up.   Its not a flashlight, its more of a general area kind of light and their pretty cheap.   I  bought one for general camp use and I really like it.   Go to wiggys.com to check it out. - SmokecheckTim

Economics and Investing:

So, you think anyone can make candles.  Well, now that I’ve made a hundred and have tried to teach my friends, I’m not so sure!   I decided a month ago that I wasn’t going to wait for a TEOTWAWKI situation to figure out how to make them!  I’m making them now and thought I would share my “lessons learned” with you.  I know that all of us have plenty of flashlights, batteries, oil lamps and kerosene lanterns packed away.  But if the poles shift and batteries don’t work, if you run out of oil and kerosene…. then candles might just be something you need to know how to make.  Or at least stock up on them so you have them when you need them.

Please note that many of the links in this article are to youtube videos that will clearly show you how to do the things I am talking about.

Molds:
You can use sand or fine dirt for a mold.  Empty tin cans.  Hollowed tree limbs.  Milk cartons.  Anything that is hollow.  You can drill a hole in the bottom of it and tie your wick through it, or you can simply tie your wick around a penny or a small stone and drop that to the bottom of the container.  There are numerous commercial molds on the market today.  Stick with simple designs that do not waste space when stacked for storage.

Mold preparation. 
If you want a clean mold, attach a copper-scouring pad over a bottlebrush to get down inside crevices and corners.

If you have a mold with a hole in the bottom such as one of the many pre-formed molds available on the market today, put your wick through the hole and then putty it securely shut.  Once this is done, anchor the other end of the wick with a wood skewer, dowel, or metal rod at the other end.

Wicks
There are three common types of wicks: 
1. Cored wicks.  These are basic braided wicks with a piece of metal wire in the middle providing sturdiness. (I do not recommend metal core wicks.)
2. Flat braided wicks. They look like a standard braided wick, but are flat.
3. Square braided wicks.

You can make your own wicks using three strips of heavy cotton string or yarn.  Soak it in a mix of 1 tablespoon of sale, 2 tablespoons of boric acid and 1 cup of water for 12 hours.    Hang to dry, then braid together.

To prime a cotton wick, dip it in hot wax and allow it to dry.

Wicks can also be twigs, piths (stems of plants).   From an old kitchen cloth mop – use 1 strand from the braid as a wick.  Twist strips of cotton and use as a wick.  For longer burning candles, pre-wax the wick by soaking it in wax and allowing it to hang dry.  (You can do 25 repeat dips to get a simple taper candle). 75 yards of wick at your local craft store will run about $10 with your 40% off coupon.  Pre-waxed wicks are lightweight and can be stored rolled up inside newspaper.

Thick wicks are needed for larger diameter candles so the wax does not pool and burn out the flame.  Thin wicks are used for narrow candles.  Pre-waxed wicks burn longer.

There are over 100 wick sizes on the market.  Most manufacturers have charts.  Just make sure you use the same wick with the same manufacturer’s wax or it might not work.

Wax:
The earliest known candles were made from whale fat in the 3rd century.  And while I doubt I have whale fat in an emergency, I can probably find a beehive, tallow (animal fat) or fish.  Boiling 15 pounds of bayberries will give you one pound of wax.  Not profitable, but not impossible.  If you live in a tropical area, coconut oil can be used as well as palm oil from palm trees.  Olive oil from pressed olives is the most ancient oil used. 

Commercial waxes that you can purchase include paraffin, veggie, bayberry, beeswax and pre-blended candle wax.  Each type of wax has a different melting point.  Beeswax will burn longer and with less odor than other waxes.

Did you know that Paraffin wax could also be used as an electrical insulator?  Might be a handy product to pack in your BOB.

Wax must be heated until it is fluid.  It does not need to boil.  You don’t need a thermometer, but may want one if you use a variety of waxes, as each will have a different melting point.  Do not melt wax in a pan directly over a burner.  Put the pan with the wax inside a larger pan with boiling water.  This will prevent any possibility of a fire. 

Soy wax is new, and can be melted in a microwave.  It’s very soft, so use it in a container, or add candle hardener.

When the wax is fluid, pour it into your mold or dip your wick into it.

Heat the bottom of the candle to make it flat if it wicks up the wick.

Use sandpaper to get a flat bottom.

Refurbishing old candles.
I pick up old candles at thrift stores, often for 50 cents each.  It doesn’t matter if they’ve been burned or not as I will melt them down, use new wicks and pour new candles.  It’s the least expensive method of getting wax.  Some have been sitting on a shelf in someone’s house for years and need to be cleaned up.  The best product on the market is called “Wax Away” and it can be used to clean old candles and make them look brand new.  You can use a heat-it tool or hair dryer to smooth out flaws on the top or the sides of old candles.

Many used candles come with a thin colored film over it, or painted elements.  These can be removed quite easily using a potato peeler.

Practice makes perfect:
My personal experience making candles has been filled with many mistakes in the learning process.  Make sure the hole in the bottom is well plugged.  You do not want a pint or so of hot wax running out the bottom and all over your counter, table and floor.  If this does happen, quickly life the mold over the melting pan.  Or have a stack of folded paper towels that you can use to stop the leak.

Research and study as much as you can before you start!  There are great instructions on the web.  But the key is to study before you start, not after!

If you have a mold with a hole in the bottom such as one of the many pre-formed molds available on the market today, put your wick through the hole and then putty it securely shut.  After you’ve done this, then anchor the other end of the wick by tying it around a cross bar (wood skewers work great for this.)

When you first light a large candle, burn it for an hour so that the wax melts and is absorbed by the wick.  If the wick drowns in the wax, your wick is too small, too narrow, or the wax is too soft and needs to have more hardener added to it.

The opposite is true.  If there is no melt pool, or you get a flickering flame, your wick is too large, or your wax is too hard.

Always cut the wick to ¼” each time you light the candle.  Do not burn in a draft as your candle will burn unevenly. Glass hurricanes work well to protect the candle from wind. If the wick was not well centered, the candle may burn unevenly as well. 

And while candles cannot tell time, they can be used for timekeeping.  Burn it 1” for study, 1” for prayer, 1” for duties, 1” for rest….you can divide up your day into equal periods of time burning a candle.

As you experiment and practice, you will learn the right sized wick for each mold that you have.  I usually pour a candle once and burn it for an hour to see what will happen.  I can easily re-melt the rest of the candle if I’ve made a mistake or need to correct something.

The difference between candles and oil (lamps):
Olive oil, any type of cooling oil, liquid fat or grease will work.  You will need a container to put the oil in and a wick.  The oil is drawn up the wick where it vaporizes and gets burned by the flame.  A few ounces of oil will burn for several hours and in some cases, may be cheaper than candles.  That’s not my case since I recycle old candles from thrift stores.  But I would recommend storing wicks and oil as an alternative.  Lampante oil is olive oil not suitable for eating, but for burning, and it is cheaper than cooking olive oil.  For an oil lamp, you can use a kerosene wick – about 1” wide and flat.  These will put off a great source of light.  You can run a thin wire down the middle if you want the wick to stay in a certain position. 

Finally, something to consider.  If power goes out and something happens to where batteries will not work, and you run out of kerosene (heavy to pack) and oil, at least you will know how to make candles with something as simple as beeswax or tallow, plant piths and sand or fine dirt.  I highly recommend practicing now so you have these skills when needed.

The following is a chronological list of events and occurrences when the lights went out on September 8th, 2011, or what I like to call “The Great Blackout of 2011”.

3:38 p.m. - I live in San Diego, California, and when the lights went out I was at home taking a nap. For some reason after I got home from teaching that day I was exhausted (probably the heat) and needed to rest.  It was a good thing too because I would need my energy in the hours to come.  While I was sleeping I could hear my phone going off with the sound of text messages and calls but I ignored it.  The calls and texts kept coming and so finally I got up to check my phone since I thought it must be important.  It was.

4:00 p.m.- The second I got up I didn’t sit down again until much later that evening.  I was inundated with messages from friends and contacts from all over with messages saying: “The power is out everywhere!”, “the SHTF what are you doing?!”, or my two favorites “I’m bugging out” and “Is this an EMP?”  I texted my friend back that it couldn’t be an EMP because otherwise our cell phones wouldn’t be working.  After more information started coming through I learned that this was a massive power outage that had spread from southern California to as far as Yuma, Arizona.  As soon as I was informed of the potential that this could be a long term power outage I put the phone down and started preparing. It was around 4 p.m. and I wanted to get everything done before nightfall.  First things first, I went into all three of our cars and took out my emergency bags no sense leaving them in there.  I had made bug out bags for every person in the house as well as for every car.  These bags were essential since I basically took the necessary requirements of food and water and tripled it. Since we wouldn’t be mobile anytime soon with traffic backed up everywhere I knew it was best to stay put. I also didn’t want to have to worry about potential looters breaking into the cars and stealing the contents.
 
I decided to prepare for our first night without electricity.  I had to hurry since I knew it would be getting dark soon.  I gathered all of our flashlights and put them on the kitchen table, next I took out all the candles and battery powered lanterns.  I immediately pulled out all the batteries and spare batteries and began checking them.  This took a while.  I know I should have checked my batteries months prior - but hey, “shoulda, coulda, woulda”.

5:00 p.m.- Next up was safety and protection. At this point in time the information was that the power could be out for as long as three days.  The possibility of looters or riots in the days ahead came to mind and I didn’t want to be caught with my pants down.  I gathered all our firearms, checked to make sure they were ready to go and placed them in strategic places throughout the house.  I went around and checked to make sure all the doors were secure, fences were locked and dogs were okay.  I still had no idea how long this outage would last and I knew that I would be relying on them heavily for alerting us to any strangers or possible looters in the days ahead.  Both were large Shepherd mixes, one actually a fourth generation Rhodesian Ridgeback/Shepherd whose bloodline had been in our family for 30+ years.  My hope was that their size would play a huge part in the deterrent factor and if that wasn’t enough I knew that their bark was just as bad as their bite. 

This entire time I had the Ham radio up and running, as a member of the local CERT team I knew they would be giving out information and taking questions.   I was listening to the traffic reports throughout the county.  People were running out of gas and with gas stations unable to open for business the advice was for those who were low on gas to pull over in a shady spot if possible and get off the roads.  I knew my sister was in that traffic and I was worried.  She was seven months pregnant and had been sent home from work because of the blackout.  She had picked up my two year old niece from daycare but was low on gas because of being stuck in traffic for two hours for what was usually a 30 minute drive.

6:00 p.m.- Problems start happening.  I had not heard from my sister yet but I knew she was on her way to my house.  She was very low on gas but was still going to try and make it being that the only open gas stations were in Temecula, a city 20+ miles away.  The same was true for my brother in law who was coming in the opposite direction from work.  He had been stuck in traffic for hours and was low on gas as well.  To make matters worse no one was able to get hold of their son, my nephew.  This was due to the fact that all the cell phone lines were jammed.  We tried to go online to see if he tried to reach us via facebook which was still working for those who had Internet.  No messages.  At this point I started getting worried and annoyed.  I had friends texting me asking me if I had all my survivor gear out, or asking me what I was doing, or what they should do.  Meanwhile I was thinking that they were draining my phone battery (I know I could have charged it in my car but I needed it with me as I was going about the house trying to get everything done) that I might just need for that important call from my sister, or nephew, or brother in law who had still not arrived yet.  I knew some of them thought their messages were funny.  I didn’t have time to entertain or further enlighten them.  There was still so much more work to do.

6:30 p.m.- My sister finally arrived.  Not long afterwards so does my brother in law, then my other sister, her husband, and their two kids.  Everyone’s gas tank is pretty much on empty.  I fill up the car that uses the least gas so that my brother in law can go around looking for my nephew who we still weren’t able to get a hold of.  I give him my cell phone so that he can charge it as he drives around.  We soon find out that for some reason that part of San Diego - Rancho Bernardo to be exact was not able to receive any calls or text messages to cell phones incoming or receiving.  In addition my nephew was not able to access the internet via cell phone unlike others who were able to in different areas.  We were able to confirm this information later when my brother in law left to try and find my nephew.  While he was in that area he tried reaching us and us him to no avail.  He finally found my nephew at their house.  One of his friend’s parents had dropped him off and he was with the neighbors waiting when my brother in law finally arrived.

7:30 p.m.- It was now dark.  Everyone had safely arrived at my house and I was busy making dinner on the front porch.  I had spent a good amount of time digging out the portable propane stove from in the garage and setting up an outdoor makeshift kitchen.  We still didn’t know how long the power outage would last so I was trying to cook as much meat as possible.  Needless to say we ate pretty well that night. 

8:30 p.m.- Dinner time.  We had our dinner inside using several of our lanterns as light.  The kids seemed to be having fun.  We discussed what would happen in the days to come if the electricity still was not back in place.  We did have a location in the mountains about 1 hour away with other extended family.  We had two very large delivery diesel trucks which would be able to hold most of our important belongings the only problem was I knew we didn’t have enough diesel gas for both of them. We decided to wait it out.  At this time information we were receiving on the radio was that electricity would be restored later that night.  I was skeptic but hopeful.  I wondered if “they” were telling the truth or if they just didn’t want to stir a mass panic.

11:30- Bed time. After dinner we had cleaned the kitchen, washed the dishes, and given the kids baths all by lantern light.  I walked around the perimeter of the house again making sure all was well.  I looked around at my family most of them were already fast asleep together in the television room.  I looked at the time and realized how tired I was.  I had basically been working nonstop since I found out the power had gone out.  I climbed in bed.  Having no electricity sure was exhausting and the electricity had only been out for 8 hours!  I couldn’t imagine another day like this, though I knew if this was a possibility I had already done most of the work for things to be easier tomorrow. 

As I lay down to sleep that night a few thoughts went through my head.  Thank God we at least still had [utility-piped] running water.  And Thank God that everyone made it here safe and we were all together.  Thank God things weren’t worse. Other thoughts that occurred to me while the power was out and later the next day:

1. I should have put the insulin in the freezer right away or in at least a colder compartment than the refrigerator (insulin gets ruined if it is too cold as well as too warm).  I practically kicked myself for not doing this first thing!  I was so wrapped up in everything else this completely slipped my mind!
2. I should have bought that portable ice machine at Target.  It was only $130. 
3. I really need to get out of the city.

Here is what I learned:

1. The vast majority of the population is poorly prepared in every sense for any type of emergency.
2. You can never have enough gasoline and even if you think you do get more.  It would have been an excellent selling or bartering item at times like these.
3. Candy is an absolute necessity in preparedness.  Especially when there is no television or computer to send the kids off to to occupy themselves.  When adults need a few moments of quiet time, candy makes everything better, instantly.
4. Having a Ham radio is an essential part of preparing.  The Beans, Bullets, Band-Aids saying needs to add that extra “C” for Communication as well as the “E” for Engineering.  Being informed just makes you feel better and in a strange way gives you hope when you know you can still reach someone on the other “end”.
5. Handheld battery operated lanterns are awesome! You can hang them when cooking outside for a good source of all over light.  They are better than flashlights when walking down the hall or when going to bathroom and taking a shower.  You can just set them on the counter and you have pretty good visibility of the area around you.
6. Survival preparedness isn’t really about you.  It is about protecting your loved ones. 
7. Having properly prepared for an emergency makes you feel like gold.
8. I really need to get out of the city. 

Dear Mr. Rawles: 
In reference to D.B.C. in Minnesota's letter regarding rough service lamps and their availability.  I recently read PUBLIC LAW 110–140—DEC. 19, 2007 which impacts incandescent light bulbs has language which directs the "Secretary" to track the sales of "exempted" bulbs and if their sales grow above historical sales/growth levels, then energy conservation standards will be imposed for exempted lamps, including rough service. Here is a partial excerpt from the bill:

 ‘‘(D) ROUGH SERVICE LAMPS.—
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Effective beginning with the first year that the reported annual sales rate for rough service lamps demonstrates actual unit sales of rough service lamps that achieve levels that are at least 100 percent higher than modeled unit sales for that same year, the Secretary shall—
‘‘(I) not later than 90 days after the end of the previous calendar year, issue a finding that the index has been exceeded; and
‘‘(II) not later than the date that is 1 year after the end of the previous calendar year, complete an accelerated rulemaking to establish an energy conservation standard for rough service lamps.

So this means that over time many of the exempted lamps could eventually be phased out also if people start substituting them for banned lamps.   As D.B.C. points out there are substitutes available such as halogen lamps which have the same fit, form and function of an incandescent (with substantially longer lives) ... the lifetime cost of each bulb type (initial cost + energy usage) can be found on most manufacturers web site for comparison. God bless you all, - D.P.