I believe in having all the “big” things, to prepare for the possible breakdown of civil society.   I have a large home outside of a small mid-west town, and expect 12 people to arrive to hunker down, if things do fall apart.  I need to be able to feed and supply of them, perhaps for years.

So I have 1,200 gallons of Kerosene.  This is intended for heating the home for 3 winters, and I have 3 Kerosene heaters to do the job.  The Kerosene is stored in in 3 large 330 gallon plastic totes, half buried in my back yard, hidden by a wood pile, as well as four 55 gallon drums buried under my deck. I have a hand-crank pump to get fuel from either type of container.  I have treated it all with PRI-D, and I expect it to last for decades.  I have stored more PRI-D just in case.

I have 12,000+ pounds of food on site.  Along with lots of canned goods and dried meals, I have barrels of white rice, rye, Triticale, 5,000 pounds of hard red wheat, pinto beans, and 250 pounds of popcorn.  I have another 4,000 pounds of wheat in a barrels in a second location.

I bought the rice, beans and popcorn at Restaurant Depot in 50# bags, and the rest as “seed” from a local grain dealer, for around $14 per 60# bushel.  It's mostly stored in 55 gallon drums, with liners, and dry ice to drive out the oxygen.  Some is also in 6 gallon buckets. 

I have 300 gallons of water.  100 gallons of this is instantly drinkable, in 1/2-liter bottles.  I also have 100 gallons in two water heaters, and 110 gallons in two 55 gallon drums in my basement.  I could filter and/or disinfect this water if I needed to drink it, but it's intended for washing and toilet flushing.  I also have 1,000 coffee filters, and various-sized of commercial filters, to handle drinking water for the foreseeable future.  I have a 165 gallon tank collecting rain water from my downspouts as well, for gardening.  I bought that for $20 off Craig's List.

I have 36,000 rounds of ammo and eight guns.  I try to double up on calibers, so I have two rifles that use .223, two hand guns that use .40 S&W, and a .22 rifle and .22 pistol.  Much of the ammo is stored in sealed 4-gallon buckets with desiccants, but I always keep about 500 rounds in magazines ready to go.

I have bags of silver, mostly in junk pre-1965 coins, as well as gold in 1 oz coins.  I don't know if this will be needed for actual spending during a breakdown, but it should transport a chuck of wealth thru a hyperinflation.  Once there is a new currency, I can exchange the silver a little at a time to buy items I need. 

I also have Canadian dollars, which I think will do better than US currency at holding it's value.  And I have it in a Canadian bank, and I renewed my passport, in case I need to bug out for real.  I'm just a few hours from the border.

But I don't just want to survive if TSHTF.  I want to thrive.  So over the past few years I have gathered lots of other items that I don't want to be without, when there is no store to run to.  Once you have the big things, be sure to look for these “little things”, to make life easier. 

I have way too many of most of these items for our own use, unless things stay broken down forever, but I like them for trade items as well.  Barter may become very important.

I bought small 400 bars of soap.  These are individually wrapped hotel-size bars.  I paid $17 on eBay, or 4 cents each.  I want to be clean post-apocalypse, and these should trade well.  To help conserve water, I also bought a bucket of 500 Clorox disinfecting wipes.  Then I added 40 tooth brushes, at 5 for $1.  Dental hygiene will be important, and they should be trade well too.

I worry about lighting, especially in the winter, so I bought 3 gross (432) votive candles from TheCandleDepot.com, for 30 cents each.  They burn 15 hours.  I also bought sixå of the 120 hour Nu-wick candles on eBay for about $10 each.  They cost more per hour of light than the votive candles, but you can put 3 wicks in them, and cook over them if needed.  So combined, I have about 7,200 hours of candle light.  I think the small 15 hour candles will be good trading items as well.

I bought 200 Fish hooks for $1 at a flea market.  Others will need them.

I bought 12 rolls of Vietnam-era trip wire, 160 feet each, on eBay, and 1,000 feet of 6# fishing line.  I want to have lots of trip wires and booby traps to protect the homestead.  I also bought 50 old-fashioned mouse traps, 25 cents each, to use with the trip wires.  (You can attach the trip wire to the “cheese spot” and rig a shotgun shell primer under the spring arm, and make a nifty trap or alarm. I put aside 100 shotgun shell primers for this too.)

I bought 100 tubes of Super Glue on eBay, for about $20.  Good for trading, good for quick small repairs, and also good for treating minor cuts.  In a pinch you can glue the cut shut.  Nice pocket size item for trading.

I bought 4 gallons of Barricade Fire Blocking Gel for about $250.  You can but buy it on eBay.  That's a lot of money, but my house backs up to a woods.  If that woods starts on fire, I can quickly coat my roof and deck with this stuff, and it simply will not burn down.  Very important if there's no fire department available because TSHTF.

I bought three Water dispensing Fire Extinguishers via eBay, from a guy who salvages old buildings.  Just $15 each.  They hold 2.5 gallons of water, and you pump them up with a bike pump for pressure.  You wouldn't believe how far they throw a powerful stream of water!  They are like water cannons.   I could use them with a mixture of Barricade Gel to coat my roof will standing on the ground, if needed.  Otherwise, I have handy fire extinguishers that I can refill with water again and again.

I bought 1,200 doses of Antibiotics, from various Pet Med places on line, and Amazon.  I'm convinced they are the same as people meds.  I did my research, and settled on 200 doses of Cephalexin, 200 doses of Ciprofloxacin, 100 Metronidazole, 200 Doxycycline, 300 Amoxicillin, and 200 Ampicillin. 

I have them in the refrigerator until TSHTF, where they should stay near full potency for a decade.  After the electricity fails, they should still last for many years, and only slowly loose their punch.  After a decade, I may need to take double the dosage for the same effect, so I have stocked a good supply.  I hope to have a doctor to diagnose any problems, but in an emergency, I have some medical books, and may have to roll the dice in the face of a serious infection.

To help prevent illness, I also bought 100 of the N95 masks, and 200 pairs of rubber gloves.  (Don't ask me why, but I also bought 300 unopened, empty insulin syringes, on Craig's List for $20.)  I also bought four boxes of 100 count butterfly bandages, as well as many boxes of band aids, and 30 rolls of wrapping bandages. A primitive lifestyle can lead to lots of cuts and bumps, and I want to be prepared. 

I have all the standard over-the-counter stuff, purchased as Sam's Club.  This included many bottles of Imodium, Benadryl, Acetaminophen, Ibuprofen, Pepto-Bismol and Robitussin.  I also bought a gallon of Chlorhexidine for washing wounds, and Silver Sulfadiazine and Ichthammol, based on articles I've read on treating injuries.  I also tucked away 4 quarts of Hydrogen Peroxide and 4 quarts of rubbing alcohol.

I've also stocked up on bottles of vitamins.  If TSHTF, nutrition will suffer.  So I have 50 big bottles of Vitamin C, Vitamin D, Acidophilus, and a good multiple vitamin.  This should handle my crew for years, and also allow some trading of bottles.

Having fire will always be important, so I bought 4,600 Strike Anywhere matches, in 32-match boxes.  These individual boxes should make great trading items, so I bought a gross of them.  I also bought more than 50 lighters, and spare fluid.

I am about to have installed a solar panel system and windmill to power the whole retreat, but I did buy 100 NiMH AA and AAA Batteries, and a small solar recharger.  All my little flashlights and tools use these, so I wanted a bunch.  There may even be a business opportunity, where you recharge batteries for people, and swap them charged ones for dead ones, as needed.

I hate bugs, so I bought 200 bottles of Mosquito spray!  Just 17 cents each from a guy who had overstocked.  Not aerosol cans, but the pump kinds, so they'll never go flat.  I did the research, and the active ingredients seem to have a long shelf life.  Farming would be unpleasant without bug spray, as would summer nighttime patrolling, and the bottles should also command a great deal in trade.  And when they finally ban DEET, I'll be all set.

I should get more, but I do have 10 bottles of sunscreen.

I'm obsessed with home security, so I bought 600 feet of razor wire (20 rolls of 30 ft each) and 10,000 feet of barbed wire.  (Remember to get the special gloves for handling the razor wire!)  I know wire won't keep people out if it's undefended, but we plan on it slowing the bad guys down long enough to shoot 'em.  Or just discourage them, so they move on to easier targets.  There are some good free PDFs on the net describing how to layout a good Soviet-style tangle foot obstacle.  Print one out and save it.

I may want to fortify defensive posts, and observations posts, so I have 500 sandbags.  Get the clear plastic self-sealing bags, from Home Depot, for about 35 cents each in boxes of 50.   They store/stack well, and self-sealing plastic bags have lots of uses besides home defense. (Such as human waste disposal.)

I expect we'll need to build stuff after TSHTF.  The lumberyard is unlikely to be open if things really fall apart.  So I bought about 10,000 nails and screws.  I bought dozens of trays of them at an area flea market, for about $50.  

The attic above my garage was not floored when I bought my home.  I put in a pull-down stairway, and “floored” the attic with loose 8-foot 2X4s.  I put about 100+ of them up there, not nailed down. [JWR Adds: That approach is not recommended in earthquake country.] So now it's a great place for me to store stuff like my barbed wire spools.  If and when I do need the wood for building, I can slowly un-floor my garage attic and have 100+ 2X4s for construction.  Until then, they make a fine, inexpensive floor.

I have 720 packets of various vegetable seeds.  I found a seed company distributor online, and ordered one of their vegetable variety display racks, at around 10 cent per packet.  These are the packs that sell for 59 cents. 

They are hybrid seeds, so the next-generation seeds collected from their veggies won't always reproduce true.  But I look at it this way – they are bred to produce bountiful first generation crops, unlike heirloom seeds, so my early crops after TSHTF will be reliable and big.  And I have so many packs, I won't need to save more seeds for decades.  Like all seeds, they should store well in my cool, dry basement, and the $70 they cost me wouldn't have bought me all that many heirloom seeds.  I expect the packets will make great trading items too.

I have 50 red laser pointers with white LED lights included.  I buy these on eBay for under $1 each, batteries and shipping included.    I think the little white lights are handy for in your pocket or hanging on a nail.  And we will use the red laser lights, in the hands of some of the women-folk, to make any raiders think we have even more guns aimed at them than we do.  (I also want to rig up a sort of hand-held “laser light gun” with dozens of lasers, which can be used to blind siege folks.  People are very afraid of looking into one of those lasers, and being blinded, so they should be intimidating!)

I worry about a large group rushing the retreat, in greater numbers than we can shoot quickly.  Or at night or as a surprise attack using a distraction.  If a group crashes through multiple doors and windows at once, we could be screwed.  So I bought a 150 ft long heavy fishing net, 12 ft wide, on eBay, for $100.

I cut the big net into various sizes for hanging over all the doors and ground-floor windows.  These individual nets can be hung quickly with the hooks I have, and should secure all the entries long enough for us to defend them.  Even if you shoot my front door of its hinges, it's just going to hang there in place, held up by the heavy netting inside.  Then I'm going to shoot you through it.

I bought 7 pounds of calcium hypochlorite (pool shock) for less than $20 from InyoPools.com.  Each pound will make enough chlorine bleach to disinfect 12,000 gallons of water.  I intend to make bottles of bleach in my 1/2-liter water bottles, and sell them as a business when TSHTF.  Each little bottle will itself disinfect 12 gallons of water for someone.  I'll make some money, and save some lives at the same time.

I have stored 72 gallons of treated gasoline in twelve 6-gallon cans.  I empty one into my car each month, and refill it, to keep the stock of gas fresh.  I use the mid-grade without ethanol, in case I want to use it in small engines. 

I also bought 1 gallon of PRI-G, to rejuvenate 2,000 gallons in the future.  A few years after TSHTF, there will likely be lots of old “worthless” gasoline, that can be completely reconstituted if you have PRI-G set aside.  It costs about $85 a gallon on line, but I think it's worth it--from www.Batterystuff.com.  Five years after a collapse, I still want to have a chainsaw!  (I bought several extra chains for the saw as well.  And 2 back-up chain saws, tucked away.)

Because I worry about bullets flying in through my walls, and I also worry about inflation, I have slowly accumulated 1 million pennies (400 boxes, $25 each).  Each box already has about $40 in copper (pre-1981 pennies make up about 30% of each box), so I'm ahead $15 the day I “buy” them.  I don't sort out the good pennies. 

I have the unopened boxes stacked along the outside walls of the upstairs bedrooms.  I guarantee no rifle bullet is getting through the siding, the wall boards, and the boxes of pennies.  If we never collapse, I have a great inflation hedge in the pre-1981 copper pennies.  If we have deflation, my coins will increase in buying power.  And in a hyperinflation, if we get a new currency, the coins may be accepted as part of the new money, and avoid the inflation entirely.

Since they don't make Sears catalogs any more, I have stocked up 200+ rolls of toilet paper.  I keep adding to the stash.  It takes up some space, but I don't want to think about the end of the world without toilet paper.  Not with 14 people living in my home if things fall apart!  I also bought one of those handy 5-gallon bucket toilet seat tops, just in case.

I don't expect your average thugs to have tear gas, but some left-over police state types may have some.  So I bought 10 Israeli M15 Gas Masks and 20 spare 40mm filters on eBay.  I can also use them if the woods behind my house is on fire, and I'm busy spraying Barricade Gel on my roof while the smoke surrounds me.

I also bought five canisters of Clear Out tear gas from one of your sponsors, KeepShooting.com.  $17 each.  (Remember to use the SurvivalBlog discount code "sb"!)  I figure I can roll a can down the stairs from my second floor if intruders do get in, and our gas masks will protect us from the effects, and allow us to fight while the tear gas gives us the edge.

I also bought a roll of 1,000 feet of 550 paracord for $36, from another of your sponsors CampingSurvival.com.  That stuff is good for so many things.  I added an 4-wheel block & tackle, so with the paracord I can lift some very heavy items.  I've practiced with it, and it's fun to lift 100 pounds with one hand.  Don't forget a few hundred cable ties as well.  Very handy.

Speaking of lifting things by hand, buy gloves when you find them inexpensively.  I also bought the expensive studded gloves for handling razor wire, and some “welding glove” for high heat, and some rubber coated gloves, but mostly you want a box full of more modest gloves.  Simple cloth hand-covers,  for doing regular outdoor tasks, will really save on the wear and tear, as well as precious water for hand-scrubbing.  At flea markets, I often see them for $1 a pair, so I have stocked up.  They should trade well too.  (If you find a couple nicer, leather gloves, stash those away as well.)

I continue to read survival blogs every day, and I am always looking for new items that will be both handy, and good for trading.  I usually buy them on eBay.  I also find the big outdoor flea markets offer a large variety of useful items.  And I watch Craig's List for things I haven't thought of.  I also love the Deal of the Day sites.  Each day, I stop by TodaysDOD.com, for a summary of all the deal site offers, and I often find bargains on stuff I think I can use.

Start a list of things you'd like to have on the shelf.  Add to it every time you read something interesting on the web.  Don't rush out and buy them all at once, but check the items off as you come across them at a bargain price.  In a surprisingly short time, you will find you have stocked a lot of handy items for use, and for trading.  Good luck.

James
One of the most troubling things I see when speaking to people about going off grid is how badly they want to keep all of their electrical appliances and just spend many thousands of dollars on a battery bank more appropriate for a U-boat and solar cells or generators to keep them topped off. Having had a minor role in a micro-satellite system design proposal one thing you learn when confronted by limited power supply is to either economize or do without.

The appliances you own for on grid use are not efficient. They are built to be inexpensive or if you are better off durable, even the fancy electrical appliances out of Europe with the Energy Star are in reality a big waste of power once you are paying by the off grid watt for solar panels and battery banks. There is no reason a normal family shouldn't consider an off grid option for their home. Even in a national emergency and societal breakdown it is very rare for supplies of diesel fuel, gasoline, kerosene, and LP gas to be unavailable for long periods at some price.

Dryer - Enemy number one especially in a large family, a solar clothes dryer is under $5 at nearly every hardware store, ask for a clothesline. Folding indoor drying racks are very popular in Israel. Even in winter indoor drying can be assisted by using a fan, it will also keep the air humidified. After trying the above and finding you just can't make it there are LP gas heated clothes dryers, but these still need mains power for the drum motor.

Oven/Stovetop - There is no reason to use electrical power for cooking. Excellent caterer grade ovens and stoves are available at most appliance stores which run totally on gas. Some may use an electrical ignition or thermostat but nearly all can be retrofitted either with a piezoelectric (no battery needed) spark starter or can just be lit with a match avoiding the danger of the old style pilot light since they now are equipped with a thermal safety. Most people find they actually prefer gas once they are used to it as it is a more even heat. We have had good success using MSR camping kerosene burners when the gas to our home was unavailable for a few weeks.

Hot Water - Nearly any off grid home will benefit from the addition of a solar collector in addition to a well-insulated gas water heater. Think about turning down the thermostat or using a secondary gas instant heating system and low flow shower heads to stretch your hot water supply.

Heating - Most stores and contractors can provide a wide variety of wood, pellet, gas, kerosene, or oil-fueled stoves and furnaces and space heaters. Insulation is key to keeping your alternative heat system from breaking your bank account.

Power Tools - Some older large shop tools can be powered by a PTO shaft or belt system. The possibilities from a gas motor, to steam, to hydro and beyond are limited only by your imagination.

Water pressure - In many areas there is not enough wind for a windmill to keep a water tower full so an electrical or gas pump might work better once all factors are evaluated. If your retreat is located below the summit of the hill it would probably be much easier to install a pool or cistern on the summit to provide pressure for firefighting operations even if your pump is destroyed, for every foot of elevation .433 pounds of water pressure is required for filling your tower or cistern and this pressure is returned when water is used in your home or property. Anyone living in a wilderness area should have in addition to a gravity fed water system of at least 1,500 gallons and a 300 gpm capacity, and at least one portable reservoir. There are portable swimming pools that are the same as US Forest Service uses for firefighting, and a gas powered portable pump for emergency firefighting. Descending water can be run reverse through some pumps generating electricity making it a very effective and inexpensive way to store electrical power once your battery banks are full.

Refrigeration - Most readers if their inventory their refrigerator will find mostly leftovers or things which actually will last until consumption without refrigeration. There are high quality kerosene and LP gas powered absorption refrigerators, some with secondary mains power optional, available from a few suppliers even in the US.

For those with the skills required to build and test a system which can withstand 250 psi anhydrous ammonia, copying the old Crosley Icy-Ball chest refrigerator-freezer is a thrifty option. Since anti-drug manufacturing laws make obtaining anhydrous ammonia difficult, an icy-ball can be built with drains on the absorptive water side to self distill ammonia from cleaning solution. A warning: Ammonia is a dangerous respiratory irritant and any homemade system should be used with caution and kept and recharged outside in case of leakage. One DIY design includes a shutoff valve to keep the ammonia from reabsorbing until the valve is opened allowing it to be stored in a charged condition.

Before refrigeration people would buy eggs and milk fresh in the city or if they could have chickens and a cow or goat would produce their own. A chicken is easily consumed by even a small family once cooked, in less than a day.

A water evaporation cooler cabinet is another very cheap option for keeping food.

Lighting - Gas mantle lighting once found in most urban homes is not difficult to implement using either camping lamps and piped gas or better yet certified indoor lamps. While in college I worked in a gun and camping shop which sold a reverse fitting for refilling disposable Coleman LP gas cartridges from the older non-tip over shutoff bulk tanks making camp lights highly practical for hanging. It must be remembered that gas lighting presents an increased fire hazard so precautions including avoiding clutter and considering the floor and wall surface must be taken into account. Battery powered florescent and LED lights and LED nightlights are also useful for reading and small tinkering. Metal halide lighting is much more power friendly than incandescent if large areas require illumination for security purposes.

Communications - Your radio communications system should have a redundant battery bank and power supply should your services be required in an emergency. It should be remembered the operating rule of just as much power as required and the usage of low power consumption modes like CW. Tube systems are notoriously wasteful of power and tubes have limited life so these should be kept as backup systems in most cases. Only power up satellite Internet systems after you have typed up all the e-mails and set them up to send immediately after going online. There are offline viewers which will call up all the web sites you normally visit and grab them all for later viewing.

Television sets, satellite receivers, and large stereo systems are wasteful of electrical power if left on. A small notebook computer for occasional movies and an MP3 player for music will save many valuable watts. Unplug or employ a disconnect switch [or power strip with switch] on all electronics unless they are in use. This will protect them from power surges in addition to eliminating sleep-state power draw. [Also know as a "phantom load."]

Telephone - If your retreat can obtain telephone service a secondary redundant system connecting you to selected neighbors can be set up in some areas by ordering an old style alarm or bell line to one central home, this is usually cheaper than a line with actual telephone service, and should work in most telephone systems even if the central office with its redundant power goes offline but the wires are still intact. The Telephone company will either splice the wire pairs at the neighborhood box or at the closest central office, officially only for alarm systems, it is possible to set up anything from long run Ethernet or simple voice lines with an old style "everybody rings" party line. This will not save off grid watts but is a good way to add redundancy to your retreat.

Safety - Install at least two combo carbon monoxide sensing smoke alarms in your home in addition to a smoke alarm in every occupied room. In these alarms, install long life lithium batteries and check on the first of the month and every time you change to or from daylight savings. DO NOT use rechargeable batteries for your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms!

Due to the higher fire risk using flame-based alternatives to electricity I even more strongly recommend installation of fire sprinklers in all rooms, flame hoods over all cooking surfaces with automatic sprinklers that have a manual activation, and at least two standpipe and hose cabinets with 100 gpm gravity flow minimum per standpipe, ABC-rated fire extinguisher, gloves, goggles, and Nomex face shroud. Install outdoor standpipes and stocked hose locker for wildfires, a charged mobile phone for 911 (BTW, you need not have an active calling plan to use a cell phone to call 911 in the USA) and if you have to retreat from interior firefighting. Most importantly have an evacuation and rendezvous family accounting plan and volunteer with the local volunteer fire department, learn when the fire is just too big to fight by yourself.

With an engineering eye it is often possible to reduce your home or retreat electrical requirements to an inexpensive few hundred watts once alternatives are considered. Shalom, - David in Israel

I frequently stress the importance of well-balanced preparedness in my writings. All too often, I've seen people that go to extremes, to the point that these extremes actually detract from the ability to survive a disaster situation. These range from the "all the gear that I'll need to survive is in my backpack" mentality to the "a truckload of this or that" fixation. But genuine preparedness lies in comprehensive planning, strict budgeting, and moderation. Blowing your entire preparedness budget on just one category of gear is detrimental to your overall preparedness.

Another common mistake that I see among my consulting clients is an over-emphasis on either very old technologies or on the "latest and greatest" technologies. In the real world, preparedness necessitates having a bit of both. At the Rawles Ranch we have both 19th century technology (like hand-powered tools) and a few of the latest technologies like passive IR intrusion detection (Dakota Alerts), photovoltaics, and electronic night vision. My approach is to pick and choose the most appropriate technologies that I can maintain by myself, but to always have backups in the form of less exotic or earlier, albeit less-efficient technologies. For example, my main shortwave receiver is a Sony ICF-SW7600GR. But in the event of EMP, I also a have a pair of very inexpensive Kaito shortwaves and a trusty old Zenith Trans-Oceanic radio that uses vacuum tubes. Like my other spare electronics, these are all stored in a grounded galvanized steel can when not in use.

Here is my approach to preparedness gear, in a nutshell

• Redundancy, squared. I jokingly call my basement Jim's Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR)
• Buy durable gear. Think of it as investing for your children and grandchildren. And keep in mind that there'll be no more "quick trips to the hardware store" after TSHTF.
• Vigilantly watch Craigslist, Freecycle, classified ads, and eBay for gear at bargain prices.
  
• Strive for balanced preparedness that "covers all bases"--all scenarios.
• Flexibility and Adaptability (Examples: shop to match a 12 VDC standard for most small electronics, truly multi-purpose equipment, multi-ball hitches, NATO slave cable connectors for 24 VDC vehicles, Anderson Power Pole connectors for small electronics--again, 12 VDC)
• Retain the ability to revert to older, more labor-intensive technology.
• Fuel flexibility (For example: Flex fuel vehicles (FFVs), Tri-fuel generators, and biodiesel compatible vehicles)
• Purchase high-quality used (but not abused) gear, preferably when bargains can be found
• If in doubt, then buy mil-spec.
• If in doubt, then buy the larger size and the heavier thickness.
• If in doubt, then buy two. (Our motto: "Two is one and one is none.")
• Buy systematically, and only as your budget allows. (Avoid debt!)
• Invest your sweat equity. Not only will you save money, but you also will learn more valuable skills.
• Train with what you have, and learn from the experts. Tools without training are almost useless.
• Learn to maintain and repair your gear. (Always buy spare parts and full service manuals!)
• Buy guns in common calibers
• Buy with long service life in mind (such as low self-discharge NiMH rechargeable batteries.)
• Store extra for charity and barter
• Grow your own and buy the tooling to make your own--don't just store things.
• Rust is the enemy, and lubrication and spot painting are your allies.
  
• Avoid being an "early adopter" of new technology--or you'll pay more and get lower reliability.
• Select all of your gear with your local climate conditions in mind.
• Recognize that there are no "style" points in survival. Don't worry about appearances--concentrate on practicality and durability.
• As my old friend "Doug Carlton" is fond of saying: "Just cut to size, file to fit,, and paint to match."
• Don't skimp on tools. Buy quality tools (such as Snap-on and Craftsman brands), but buy them used, to save money.
• Skills beat gadgets and practicality beats style.
• Use group standardization for weapons and electronics. Strive for commonality of magazines, accessories and spare parts
• Gear up to raise livestock. It is an investment that breeds.
• Build your fences bull strong and sheep tight.
• Tools without the appropriate safety gear (like safety goggles, helmets, and chainsaw chaps) are just accidents waiting for a place to happen.
• Whenever you have the option, buy things in flat, earth tone colors
• Plan ahead for things breaking or wearing out.
• Always have a Plan B and a Plan C

If you are serious about preparedness, then I recommend that you take a similar approach.

Jim
I've put together a few ideas on retreat security that I haven't seen on your great site. I may have missed them but I think they would bear repeating. I presently live near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but will soon be moving to my 280 acre ranch in central Nevada. What got me to write this was a realization during my semiannual chore of servicing the emergency generator. Changing out the gas (It is also set up to run it on propane) changing the oil, and testing the circuitry, I realized that what I thought was a good setup was actually lacking. I have always made the preparedness of our home priority. If a storm knocks out the power, I go start the generator and switch the control box. My "Ah-ha" moment came with the realization that if the power were ever cut intentionally, all security would be off until after I'd expose myself to go start the generator. Needless to say corrective action projects (remote start, auto control panels, and UPS battery backup for the security system) are now underway.

Education has been mentioned but I realized that I hadn't seen much about basic electronics. Learning how to make small circuit boards is really rather simple, and allows you to make a lot of toys (equipment) for the homestead. A simple IR detection circuit to let you know if someone is coming in under cover of night. A display can show which sensors are being activated. This way you have a choice, whether or not to let someone know you are alert to their presence. Pressure [sensing] pads you can make yourself to show if someone is standing behind that large boulder, by the barn, or shed. [JWR Adds: Commercially-made pressure sensing pads are far more reliable weather-resistant. Used ones are sometimes sold as surplus by alarm companies.] How about a simple circuit that is connected to motion/heat sensors in the house that light an LED array that not only shows someone is in your house but on which floor or in which room. There are electronics parts vendor sites like Jameco and DigiKey and web sites like Instructables.com, Makezine and similar hobby and hacking sites that show all sorts of projects and skills.

When I get my next batch of wire I am setting small speakers to exploit a bit of human nature by creating a brief sound to get intruders to look in a particular direction and then two seconds later turn on concealed 500 Watt floodlights for a blinding effect. These floodlights will be good for general use as well. I mentioned pressure pads for detection earlier. One of the ideas at the ranch was to place large cover objects at strategic points to funnel a potential intruder to a place he could hide and I could remote view the opposition at the same time. Mini cams and mikes and alarm pressure pads will give you a heads up.

Since my ranch a long way from law enforcement protection, a remote defense is also installed. Behind two of the boulders I had moved with the rented dozer, I placed a small outcropping of rock in the ground so as to leave nothing to hide behind but left a cavity in front to set plastic bagged SKS rifles (sans stocks) [in mounting frames with solenoid-actuated triggers and] cameras at the scope (which by the way is a great way to aim around corners) and the aiming is done by remote control units from the hobby shop (or eBay). Solar power and small batteries keep things operational. (I am sure the liabilities and legalities will be questioned, so let's say the property is set up for installation after TSHTF). Safety is important so the units are double switched, one to turn on the power and the other to control and fire. The third unit is similar but I made a small bracket on the tree behind the third cover position, laid in my controls, made a cloth skirt at the base to allow movement and then used the foam insulation in a spray can and made a foam cover to look like a branch and spray painted with a couple of colors . This made it so invisible that a visiting friend couldn't detect it even after I told him where it was. The cost for cameras, microphones, controllers, and sensors is really small--from under $2 for sensors to perhaps $25 for the others. What you pay big bucks for is the labor and knowledge. But you you get that by turning off the television and exercising your brain.

[JWR Adds: Consult your state and local laws on "trap guns" before considering any such installation. Also keep in mind that any semi-auto firearm that is triggered via solenoid might be construed to be a " machinegun" if there is any way whatsoever that more than one cartridge could be fired by a single press of the remote "trigger". Also, keep in mind that in the US, Federal law that restricts not only barrel length but also overall length for a firearm. (Rifles and shotguns must have a minimum overall length of 26 inches.) Multiply-redundant safeties should be designed, as a well as a safe backstop for any bullets fired. In my opinion, installation of a remotely-fired gun should only be considered in absolute "worst case" situations. Their use in any lesser situation might very well land your in court, on trial either criminally and/or civilly, in a very bad light that would doubtless be exploited by hostile attorneys.]

Before I leave this topic I would add that on the previous mentioned web sites and YouTube.com and Google video you can learn how to pick locks, scavenge old camera parts, make and run a forge, start fires, throw flame, make thermite, generate smoke and just about anything else you can think of. Its like having a couple hundred mischievous people in your R&D department.

How about remote cameras? There are gadget sites, military and defense corporations, and especially university sites have many ideas, for free, such as GizMag, DARPA, and MIT. One topic of interest is remote viewing. You can launch a hand held and nearly silent electronic plane and view all points of the ranch in very short amount of time without exposing yourself. It could also be used to find wild game. [This is called "First Person View (FPV) piloting.] Try a web search on "remote FPV flying" and watch a couple of videos. The aforementioned hobby web sites are also a resource on model aircraft information. [JWR Adds: Radio control aircraft servos have numerous uses for folks with creative minds.] Prices range from $300-to-$400 to as much as $1,500 This can be applied to rc cars adding remote microphone and speaker, and rc helicopters as well. It only took a couple of hours to get a real good feel for it,. But I should add that I haven't yet flown it in high wind.

To set up [for security at] the ranch property I mapped out GPS way points and used a range finder for all the prominent features. I would also suggest a picture of the property and the surrounding properties from Google maps . At several strategic spots I planted some damaged concrete sewer pipes on end--I had obtained these free for the asking--and made large lids for them with a plastic base and the aforementioned spray can foam to look like the landscape, with a hollow center so you could look out small holes without moving the lid. Inside is water and there are a couple of ammo cans for food, and a small seat and space blanket, iron oxide hand warmers which are also good for emergency in your car and coat pocket or keeping vigil at a remote hide--[a small heat source] can be the difference between bearable, frostbitten, or dead. I've requested more of the free concrete pipes be saved so that I can bury them between the house and the barn and run a little shuttle between the two buildings. Why not,? The price is right.

For structure fire suppression and prevention, I'll just mention these two products as a one-time fire insurance policy: ThemoGel and Barricade. Perhaps at some point this could also be made a remotely-triggered function. I hope you find some of this useful. - Erik

Last weekend my town was threatened by a pretty big fire. Dozens of homes burned, thousands of citizens were evacuated. My neighborhood was among those ordered to flee the advancing flames. (Drama!)

My family was prepared to leave ahead of time and evacuated safely in large part because of the advice and encouragement I have found at SurvivalBlog. Thank you.

I did learn a few things. Theory flies out the window when panic is in the air. What is organized and prepared ahead of time actually works, what is thrown together at the last minute tends to fall apart. I had my Bug Out Vehicle (B.O.V.) fueled and standing by the night before but many did not and I saw long lines at every gas station as people were struggling to flee. The major exits were all jammed with vehicles and as tensions rose, tempers flared. Several collisions were reported, slowing down the evacuation further. People generally remained orderly, but my spouse reports that as fire trucks and other emergency responders were making their way via siren through the crowded roads, opportunistic tailgaters would follow them. I saw none of it, as I took the less known and less traveled back woods roads out of town.

I hauled all the usual checklist items; important documents, tangible savings, family photo albums, firearms and ammunition, fuel, genset, med kit, food and water supplies, camping gear, etc. With all normal routes into and out of town barricaded we had no idea when we would be allowed back in or what we would find when we got there.

Communications broke down when concerned calls flooded in. The local paper did a bang-up job of keeping us informed using Google Maps, but when the power lines burned it was tough to get on the Internet. Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) phone lines tied to cable service fail when the cable service substation is dependant on local power. We are considering putting in a backup "Plain Old Telephone Service" (POTS) line for emergency communications. Cell systems were overloaded as well, and it seemed the only way I could communicate with my spouse who had left work to head to our pre-arranged Bug Out Location was by relaying through an out of town relative.

I also discovered that trying to organize your assets solo while simultaneously keeping track of a small child and keeping an ear out for updates is much harder than when you have time to think in peace. Finding a way to contain the child safely and keep him entertained became a prerequisite to having my hands and mind free to load up our gear.

I am thankful that the fire was managed and most folk returned home safely. Our prayers and thoughts go out to the firefighters who saved our town and to those neighbors whose homes were lost. - Anonymous

Sir;

I was wondering: How many batteries should I store for all my radios, flashlights, smoke detectors, and so forth? I'm also planning to get night vision goggles, soon. I assume rechargeables, right? If so, what kind [of rechargeables], and who has the best prices? - T.E. in Memphis.

JWR Replies: I recommend buying mainly nickel metal hydride (NiMH) batteries. Stock up plenty of them, including some extras for barter and charity. Unlike the older Nickel Cadmium (NiCd) technology, NiMHs do not have a "memory" effect. (The diminished capacity because of the memory effect has always been one of the greatest drawbacks to NiCds batteries.) The best of the breed are the latest Low Self Discharge (LSD) variants, such as the Sanyo Eneloop.

One discount supplier with a very good selection that I can enthusiastically recommend is All-Battery.com. They also have great prices on "throw away" batteries, such a lithium CR-123s.

Start your retreat stocking effort by first composing a List of Lists, then draft prioritized lists for each subject, on separate sheets of paper. (Or in a spreadsheet if you are a techno-nerd like me. Just be sure to print out a hard copy for use when the power grid goes down!) It is important to tailor your lists to suit your particular geography, climate, and population density as well as your peculiar needs and likes/dislikes. Someone setting up a retreat in a coastal area is likely to have a far different list than someone living in the Rockies.

As I often mention in my lectures and radio interviews, a great way to create truly commonsense preparedness lists is to take a three-day weekend TEOTWAWKI Weekend Experiment” with your family. When you come home from work on Friday evening, turn off your main circuit breaker, turn off your gas main (or propane tank), and shut your main water valve (or turn off your well pump.) Spend that weekend in primitive conditions. Practice using only your storage food, preparing it on a wood stove (or camping stove.)

A “TEOTWAWKI Weekend Experiment” will surprise you. Things that you take for granted will suddenly become labor intensive. False assumptions will be shattered. Your family will grow closer and more confident. Most importantly, some of the most thorough lists that you will ever make will be those written by candlelight.

Your List of Lists should include: (Sorry that this post is in outline form, but it would take a full length book to discus all of the following in great detail)

Water List
Food Storage List
Food Preparation List
Personal List
First Aid /Minor Surgery List
Nuke Defense List
Biological Warfare Defense List
Gardening List
Hygiene List/Sanitation List
Hunting/Fishing/Trapping List
Power/Lighting/Batteries List
Fuels List
Firefighting List
Tactical Living List
Security-General
Security-Firearms
Communications/Monitoring List
Tools List
Sundries List
Survival Bookshelf List
Barter and Charity List

JWR’s Specific Recommendations For Developing Your Lists:

Water List
House downspout conversion sheet metal work and barrels. (BTW, this is another good reason to upgrade your retreat to a fireproof metal roof.)
Drawing water from open sources. Buy extra containers. Don’t buy big barrels, since five gallon food grade buckets are the largest size that most people can handle without back strain.
For transporting water if and when gas is too precious to waste, buy a couple of heavy duty two wheel garden carts--convert the wheels to foam filled "no flats" tires. (BTW, you will find lots of other uses for those carts around your retreat, such as hauling hay, firewood, manure, fertilizer, et cetera.)
Treating water. Buy plain Clorox hypochlorite bleach. A little goes a long way. Buy some extra half-gallon bottles for barter and charity. If you can afford it, buy a “Big Berky” British Berkefeld ceramic water filter. (Available from Ready Made Resources and several other Internet vendors. Even if you have pure spring water at your retreat, you never know where you may end up, and a good filter could be a lifesaver.)

Food Storage List
See my post tomorrow which will be devoted to food storage. Also see the recent letter from David in Israel on this subject.

Food Preparation List
Having more people under your roof will necessitate having an oversize skillet and a huge stew pot. BTW, you will want to buy several huge kettles, because odds are you will have to heat water on your wood stove for bathing, dish washing, and clothes washing. You will also need even more kettles, barrels, and 5 or 6 gallon PVC buckets--for water hauling, rendering, soap making, and dying. They will also make great barter or charity items. (To quote my mentor Dr. Gary North: “Nails: buy a barrel of them. Barrels: Buy a barrel of them!”)
Don’t overlook skinning knives, gut-buckets, gambrels, and meat saws.

Personal List
(Make a separate personal list for each family member and individual expected to arrive at your retreat.)
Spare glasses.
Prescription and nonprescription medications.
Birth control.
Keep dentistry up to date.
Any elective surgery that you've been postponing
Work off that gut.
Stay in shape.
Back strength and health—particularly important, given the heavy manual tasks required for self-sufficiency.
Educate yourself on survival topics, and practice them. For example, even if you don’t presently live at your retreat, you should plant a vegetable garden every year. It is better to learn through experience and make mistakes now, when the loss of crop is an annoyance rather than a crucial event.
“Comfort” items to help get through high stress times. (Books, games, CDs, chocolates, etc.)

First Aid /Minor Surgery List
When tailoring this list, consider your neighborhood going for many months without power, extensive use of open flames, and sentries standing picket shifts exposed in the elements. Then consider axes, chainsaws and tractors being wielded by newbies, and a greater likelihood of gunshot wounds. With all of this, add the possibility of no access to doctors or high tech medical diagnostic equipment. Put a strong emphasis on burn treatment first aid supplies. Don’t overlook do-it-yourself dentistry! (Oil of cloves, temporary filling kit, extraction tools, et cetera.) Buy a full minor surgery outfit (inexpensive Pakistani stainless steel instruments), even if you don’t know how to use them all yet. You may have to learn, or you will have the opportunity to put them in the hands of someone experienced who needs them.) This is going to be a big list!

Chem/Nuke Defense List
Dosimeter and rate meter, and charger, radiac meter (hand held Geiger counter), rolls of sheet plastic (for isolating airflow to air filter inlets and for covering window frames in the event that windows are broken due to blast effects), duct tape, HEPA filters (ands spares) for your shelter. Potassium iodate (KI) tablets to prevent thyroid damage.(See my recent post on that subject.) Outdoor shower rig for just outside your shelter entrance.

Biological Warfare Defense List
Disinfectants
Hand Sanitizer
Sneeze masks
Colloidal silver generator and spare supplies (distilled water and .999 fine silver rod.)
Natural antibiotics (Echinacea, Tea Tree oil, …)

Gardening List
One important item for your gardening list is the construction of a very tall deer-proof and rabbit-proof fence. Under current circumstances, a raid by deer on your garden is probably just an inconvenience. After the balloon goes up, it could mean the difference between eating well, and starvation.
Top Soil/Amendments/Fertilizers.
Tools+ spares for barter/charity
Long-term storage non hybrid (open pollinated) seed. (Non-hybrid “heirloom” seed assortments tailors to different climate zones are available from The Ark Institute
Herbs: Get started with medicinal herbs such as aloe vera (for burns), echinacea (purple cone flower), valerian, et cetera.

Hygiene/Sanitation List
Sacks of powdered lime for the outhouse. Buy plenty!
TP in quantity (Stores well if kept dry and away from vermin and it is lightweight, but it is very bulky. This is a good item to store in the attic. See my novel about stocking up on used phone books for use as TP.
Soap in quantity (hand soap, dish soap, laundry soap, cleansers, etc.)
Bottled lye for soap making.
Ladies’ supplies.
Toothpaste (or powder).
Floss.
Fluoride rinse. (Unless you have health objections to the use of fluoride.)
Sunscreen.
Livestock List:
Hoof rasp, hoof nippers, hoof pick, horse brushes, hand sheep shears, styptic, carding combs, goat milking stand, teat dip, udder wash, Bag Balm, elastrator and bands, SWOT fly repellent, nail clippers (various sizes), Copper-tox, leads, leashes, collars, halters, hay hooks, hay fork, manure shovel, feed buckets, bulk grain and C-O-B sweet feed (store in galvanized trash cans with tight fitting lids to keep the mice out), various tack and saddles, tack repair tools, et cetera. If your region has selenium deficient soil (ask your local Agricultural extension office) then be sure to get selenium-fortified salt blocks rather than plain white salt blocks--at least for those that you are going to set aside strictly for your livestock.

Hunting/Fishing/Trapping List
“Buckshot” Bruce Hemming has produced an excellent series of videos on trapping and making improvised traps. (He also sells traps and scents at very reasonable prices.)
Night vision gear, spares, maintenance, and battery charging
Salt. Post-TEOTWAWKI, don’t “go hunting.” That would be a waste of effort. Have the game come to you. Buy 20 or more salt blocks. They will also make very valuable barter items.
Sell your fly fishing gear (all but perhaps a few flies) and buy practical spin casting equipment.
Extra tackle may be useful for barter, but probably only in a very long term Crunch.
Buy some frog gigs if you have bullfrogs in your area. Buy some crawfish traps if you have crawfish in your area.
Learn how to rig trot lines and make fish traps for non-labor intensive fishing WTSHTF.

Power/Lighting/Batteries List
One proviso: In the event of a “grid down” situation, if you are the only family in the area with power, it could turn your house into a “come loot me” beacon at night. At the same time, your house lighting will ruin the night vision of your LP/OP pickets. Make plans and buy materials in advance for making blackout screens or fully opaque curtains for your windows.
When possible, buy nickel metal hydride batteries. (Unlike the older nickel cadmium technology, these have no adverse charge level “memory” effect.)
If your home has propane appliances, get a “tri-fuel” generator--with a carburetor that is selectable between gasoline, propane, and natural gas. If you heat your home with home heating oil, then get a diesel-burning generator. (And plan on getting at least one diesel burning pickup and/or tractor). In a pinch, you can run your diesel generator and diesel vehicles on home heating oil.
Kerosene lamps; plenty of extra wicks, mantles, and chimneys. (These will also make great barter items.)
Greater detail on do-it-yourself power will be included in my forthcoming blog posts.

Fuels List
Buy the biggest propane, home heating oil, gas, or diesel tanks that your local ordinances permit and that you can afford. Always keep them at least two-thirds full. For privacy concerns, ballistic impact concerns, and fire concerns, underground tanks are best if you local water table allows it. In any case, do not buy an aboveground fuel tank that would visible from any public road or navigable waterway. Buy plenty of extra fuel for barter. Don’t overlook buying plenty of kerosene. (For barter, you will want some in one or two gallon cans.) Stock up on firewood or coal. (See my previous blog posts.) Get the best quality chainsaw you can afford. I prefer Stihls and Husqavarnas. If you can afford it, buy two of the same model. Buy extra chains, critical spare parts, and plenty of two-cycle oil. (Two-cycle oil will be great for barter!) Get a pair of Kevlar chainsaw safety chaps. They are expensive but they might save yourself a trip to the emergency room. Always wear gloves, goggles, and ear-muffs. Wear a logger’s helmet when felling. Have someone who is well experienced teach you how to re-sharpen chains. BTW, don’t cut up your wood into rounds near any rocks or you will destroy a chain in a hurry.

Firefighting List
Now that you have all of those flammables on hand (see the previous list) and the prospect of looters shooting tracer ammo or throwing Molotov cocktails at your house, think in terms of fire fighting from start to finish without the aid of a fire department. Even without looters to consider, you should be ready for uncontrolled brush or residential fires, as well as the greater fire risk associated with greenhorns who have just arrived at your retreat working with wood stoves and kerosene lamps!
Upgrade your retreat with a fireproof metal roof.
2” water line from your gravity-fed storage tank (to provide large water volume for firefighting)
Fire fighting rig with an adjustable stream/mist head.
Smoke and CO detectors.

Tactical Living List
Adjust your wardrobe buying toward sturdy earth-tone clothing. (Frequent your local thrift store and buy extras for retreat newcomers, charity, and barter.)
Dyes. Stock up on some boxes of green and brown cloth dye. Buy some extra for barter. With dye, you can turn most light colored clothes into semi-tactical clothing on short notice.
Two-inch wide burlap strip material in green and brown. This burlap is available in large spools from Gun Parts Corp. Even if you don’t have time now, stock up so that you can make camouflage ghillie suits post-TEOTWAWKI.
Save those wine corks! (Burned cork makes quick and cheap face camouflage.)
Cold weather and foul weather gear—buy plenty, since you will be doing more outdoor chores, hunting, and standing guard duty.
Don’t overlook ponchos and gaiters.
Mosquito repellent.
Synthetic double-bag (modular) sleeping bags for each person at the retreat, plus a couple of spares. The Wiggy’s brand Flexible Temperature Range Sleep System (FTRSS) made by Wiggy's of Grand Junction, Colorado is highly recommended.
Night vision gear + IR floodlights for your retreat house
Subdued flashlights and penlights.
Noise, light, and litter discipline. (More on this in future posts--or perhaps a reader would like to send a brief article on this subject)
Security-General: Locks, intrusion detection/alarm systems, exterior obstacles (fences, gates, 5/8” diameter (or larger) locking road cables, rosebush plantings, “decorative” ponds (moats), ballistic protection (personal and residential), anti-vehicular ditches/berms, anti-vehicular concrete “planter boxes”, razor wire, etc.)
Starlight electronic light amplification scopes are critical tools for retreat security.
A Starlight scope (or goggles, or a monocular) literally amplifies low ambient light by up to 100,000 times, turning nighttime darkness into daylight--albeit a green and fuzzy view. Starlight light amplification technology was first developed during the Vietnam War. Late issue Third Generation (also called or “Third Gen” or “Gen 3”) starlight scopes can cost up to $3,500 each. Rebuilt first gen (early 1970s technology scopes can often be had for as little as $500. Russian-made monoculars (with lousy optics) can be had for under $100. One Russian model that uses a piezoelectric generator instead of batteries is the best of this low-cost breed. These are best used as backups (in case your expensive American made scopes fail. They should not be purchased for use as your primary night vision devices unless you are on a very restrictive budget. (They are better than nothing.) Buy the best starlight scopes, goggles, and monoculars you can afford. They may be life-savers! If you can afford to buy only one, make it a weapon sight such as an AN/PVS-4, with a Gen 2 (or better) tube. Make sure to specify that that the tube is new or “low hours”, has a high “line pair” count, and minimal scintillation. It is important to buy your Starlight gear from a reputable dealer. The market is crowded with rip-off artists and scammers. One dealer that I trust, is Al Glanze (spoken “Glan-zee”) who runs STANO Components, Inc. in Silver City, Nevada. Note: In a subsequent blog posts I will discuss the relationship and implications to IR illuminators and tritium sights.
Range cards and sector sketches.
If you live in the boonies, piece together nine of the USGS 15-minute maps, with your retreat property on the center map. Mount that map on an oversize map board. Draw in the property lines and owner names of all of your surrounding neighbor’s parcels (in pencil) in at least a five mile radius. (Get boundary line and current owner name info from your County Recorder’s office.) Study and memorize both the terrain and the neighbors’ names. Make a phone number/e-mail list that corresponds to all of the names marked on the map, plus city and county office contact numbers for quick reference and tack it up right next to the map board. Cover the whole map sheet with a sheet of heavy-duty acetate, so you can mark it up just like a military commander’s map board. (This may sound a bit “over the top”, but remember, you are planning for the worst case. It will also help you get to know your neighbors: When you are introduced by name to one of them when in town, you will be able to say, “Oh, don’t you live about two miles up the road between the Jones place and the Smith’s ranch?” They will be impressed, and you will seem like an instant “old timer.”

Security-Firearms List
Guns, ammunition, web gear, eye and ear protection, cleaning equipment, carrying cases, scopes, magazines, spare parts, gunsmithing tools, targets and target frames, et cetera. Each rifle and pistol should have at least six top quality (original military contract or original manufacturer) full capacity spare magazines. Note: Considerable detail on firearms and optics selection, training, use, and logistic support are covered in the SurvivalBlog archives and FAQs.

Communications/Monitoring List
When selecting radios buy only models that will run on 12 volt DC power or rechargeable nickel metal hydride battery packs (that can be recharged from your retreat’s 12 VDC power system without having to use an inverter.)
As a secondary purchasing goal, buy spare radios of each type if you can afford them. Keep your spares in sealed metal boxes to protect them from EMP.
If you live in a far inland region, I recommend buying two or more 12 VDC marine band radios. These frequencies will probably not be monitored in your region, leaving you an essentially private band to use. (But never assume that any two-way radio communications are secure!)
Note: More detail on survival communications gear selection, training, use, security/cryptography measures, antennas, EMP protection, and logistical support will be covered in forthcoming blog posts.

Tools List
Gardening tools.
Auto mechanics tools.
Welding.
Bolt cutters--the indispensable “universal key.”
Woodworking tools.
Gunsmithing tools.
Emphasis on hand powered tools.
Hand or treadle powered grinding wheel.
Don’t forget to buy plenty of extra work gloves (in earth tone colors).
Sundries List:
Systematically list the things that you use on a regular basis, or that you might need if the local hardware store were to ever disappear: wire of various gauges, duct tape, reinforced strapping tape, chain, nails, nuts and bolts, weather stripping, abrasives, twine, white glue, cyanoacrylate glue, et cetera.

Book/Reference List
You should probably have nearly every book on my Bookshelf page. For some, you will want to have two or three copies, such as Carla Emery’s "Encyclopedia of Country Living". This is because these books are so valuable and indispensable that you won’t want to risk lending out your only copy.

Barter and Charity List
For your barter list, acquire primarily items that are durable, non-perishable, and either in small packages or that are easily divisible. Concentrate on the items that other people are likely to overlook or have in short supply. Some of my favorites are ammunition. [The late] Jeff Cooper referred to it as “ballistic wampum.” WTSHTF, ammo will be worth nearly its weight in silver. Store all of your ammo in military surplus ammo cans (with seals that are still soft) and it will store for decades. Stick to common calibers, get plenty of .22 LR (most high velocity hollow points) plus at least ten boxes of the local favorite deer hunting cartridge, even if you don’t own a rifle chambered for this cartridge. (Ask your local sporting goods shop about their top selling chamberings). Also buy at least ten boxes of the local police department’s standard pistol cartridge, again even if you don’t own a pistol chambered for this cartridge.
Ladies supplies.
Salt (Buy lots of cattle blocks and 1 pound canisters of iodized table salt.)
(Stores indefinitely if kept dry.)
Two cycle engine oil (for chain saw gas mixing. Gas may still be available after a collapse, but two-cycle oil will probably be like liquid gold!)
Gas stabilizer.
Diesel antibacterial additive.
50-pound sacks of lime (for outhouses).
1 oz. bottles of military rifle bore cleaner and Break Free (or similar) lubricant.
Waterproof dufflebags in earth tone colors (whitewater rafting "dry bags").
Thermal socks.
Semi-waterproof matches (from military rations.)
Military web gear (lots of folks will suddenly need pistol belts, holsters, magazine pouches, et cetera.)
Pre-1965 silver dimes.
1-gallon cans of kerosene.
Rolls of olive drab parachute cord.
Rolls of olive-drab duct tape.
Spools of monofilament fishing line.
Rolls of 10 mil "Visqueen", sheet plastic (for replacing windows, isolating airspaces for nuke scenarios, etc.)
I also respect the opinion of one gentleman with whom I've corresponded, who recommended the following:
Strike anywhere matches. (Dip the heads in paraffin to make them waterproof.)
Playing cards.
Cooking spices. (Do a web search for reasonably priced bulk spices.)
Rope & string.
Sewing supplies.
Candle wax and wicking.
Lastly, any supplies necessary for operating a home-based business. Some that you might consider are: leather crafting, small appliance repair, gun repair, locksmithing, et cetera. Every family should have at least one home-based business (preferably two!) that they can depend on in the event of an economic collapse.
Stock up on additional items to dispense to refugees as charity.
Note: See the Barter Faire chapter in my novel "Patriots" for lengthy lists of potential barter items.

The size AA battery is the ubiquitous form of mobile power that is presently available. There is a large amount of off the shelf devices that use AA cells. They are available everywhere at low cost. They are cost effective and very safe for lighting. The breadth and depth of equipment available in a portable format is unparalleled by any other type of battery. I will cover the known factors on how to care for and use this resource to help end users get the most out of their equipment.

To start, some general information that covers all types of cells. Cells do not like heat. Heat increases the chemical reactions occurring inside the cell, and thus the self-discharge and other chemical reactions in cell. A cell will lose it's charge and lower it's life span. Keep them cool.

Cells shouldn't get wet. Keep them away from moisture. You should avoid circumstances that will result in condensation on the cell.
Do not drop or roughly handle them. Especially in the case of rechargeables, you can break the separator inside the cell and you may end up with complete cell failure. Inside of a device they're a little more durable, your device will provide some impact protection and buffering.

Do not store your batteries inside of your device for long term readiness. There is a good reason they never come this way from the manufacture in the package. It's not good for your battery and you run a much larger risk of cells leaking or venting into your device. On a short term basis in a device that sees regular use, leaving the battery in is fine.

Matched cells perform better. A battery will only perform as well as the weakest cell. Avoid mixing brands, dates, and especially chemistries and you will get the most out of your cells. The more cells a device has, the more matches cells you need to provide. So it's easier to feed devices that use a smaller number of cells.
In general, take care of them and they'll serve you well.

Primary (use once) cells are the most straight forward. They usually have expiration dates printed on the cell or package. It's important to note that this date is an average amount of time for a specified failure rate. "Fail" is defined as having less than ~85% capacity (depends on manufacture), thought it can also mean complete failure with 0% recoverable capacity. The closer a battery is to it's expiration date, the less capacity it will have and the more likely you are to encounter completely failed cells. Even with expired cells though, they often work. I wouldn't choose to use them in really important applications, but they are still useful.

"Heavy duty" cells generally are not worth messing with - they are cheap, light weight, and low capacity. They seem to only be made to sell to the "lowest possible price" consumers. I would never buy or store them.

Alkaline are the best bang for the buck primary cells. You can pick up a pack of 48 cells for around $10 at COSTCO last I checked (Duracell is believed to be the OEM for Kirkland brand cells). The price has gone up approximate 10-15% in the last year, which seems likely to continue. Alkaline's are good performers under "average" conditions. They do not like low temperatures, and they do not like high current draw (cameras, some flashlights, and possibly other devices). Once you place a battery into a device, I recommend you use it up. Do not return [primary] cells into storage once you've started to use them.

Lithium cells provide the widest temperature and current rating of all primary cells, though you pay the most for the best performance. I do recommend having a few for important gear, red dot sights, night vision,and so forth, [reserving them] especially for emergency winter use.

Rechargeable cells are much more economical for the regular user. Unfortunately they require better understanding to maximize their useful life. So I'll go over NiMH extensively and also address NiCd.
In a quick overview of the current tech of AA cells. NiCd is the most durable battery chemistry, it has capacities ranging from 600-1000 [mil-Amp Hours] (mAH) It has the best temperature performance envelope, endures heat and over charge best, will operate with more cycles. NiMH is the most common consumer cell these days, mostly due to the capacity advantage which run in the 1800-2700 mAH range at present. NiMH also has a new variant on the market I will dub low self discharge (LSD) cells. LSD cells are in the range of 2000-2100 mAH as of this writing and have many advantages over traditional NiMH that mostly come from an effort to stabilize it. They are new, so some data points are not borne out over years, but current evidence indicates that they perform as advertised. I recommend LSD cells for most people over all other varieties, I'll go into more detail why below. First, the brands and types currently on the market. The top brand in my opinion is Eneloops (2000 mAH) from Sanyo, it simply does the low-self-discharge thing better than the competition. The rest of the field seems to originate from a single manufacture or the same licensed design, but there are a bunch of competing cells. Rayovac Hybrids, Hybrios, Titanium Enduros, and a bunch of others (2100 mAH). Given equivalent, or near equivalent prices, I'd pick the eneloops.

In both types of chemistry, the higher capacity cells are more fragile than the lower capacity cells. It's an engineering trade off. The 2700 mAH whiz bang top-of-the-line cells are not your best bet for good durable cells, they are actually fairly fragile (chemically and physically) because of this trade off. Around 2000 mAH is not only cheaper (usually) but yields a cell that will see a longer service life, more cycles, and less likely to fail if dropped. Lower than 2000 in NiMH does not appear to hold significant advantage in durability in most respects. LSD cells appear to be at least as durable as their 2000 mAH NiMH counterparts.

Standard NiMH cells have an approximately life span of 3 years. Cheaper brands may have less. NiCd cells have an estimated 5+ year life span. Much beyond these points or even before them (especially with high capacity cells), increased internal resistance, lowered capacities, and higher self discharge are the norm. NiCd doesn't exhibit a large amount of this and usually fails with internal shorts (complete failure) or excessively high resistance. These numbers are very temperature dependant, colder storage conditions will lengthen the time, warmer will lower it. LSD NiMH cells currently have no data in this regard, they're advertised as having better longevity than NiMH cells, and I would tend to believe them due to the engineering trade offs picked. However, they've only been out for about 1.5-2 years now. To date, my oldest cells (1.5 years old), lightly used, perform like new - so far so good.

Self discharge is one of the biggest inconvenient things about rechargeable cell use. NiMH cells discharge by themselves very quickly. They discharge on the order of a couple of months when new and the rate increases significantly with age and use. NiCd cells have about half the self discharge rate and this usually won't vary much up until cell death. LSD cells shine in this regard, the self discharge slows down after a charge to almost a stand still in a little over a months time. LSD cells will retain around 85% (Eneloops) to 80% (rest of the field) charge after a year of storage at around 70 degrees.
Keeping the voltages up during use is important for many devices and one of the principle reasons rechargeables deliver poor performance in some devices. Standard NiMH suffers from voltage sag over time. It will start out at a nice high 1.4 volts fresh off the charger. Soon it finds it's way to 1.3-to-1.2 v open voltage. If left on the shelf it will fall over time. Many devices require a minimum voltage to operate correctly, if this minimum is above what your battery can deliver under load your device will shut down (can be 1.2v per cell, and NiMH will often fail to meet this under less than ideal circumstances!) If you experience significant performance difference between primary cells and rechargeable cells (especially older ones) this is likely the problem, especially combined with self discharge "usable capacity" drops very quickly. NiCd cells can suffer from a form of voltage sag, it is not as pronounced as NiMH but it can also happen in mid-discharge and is related the over marketed term cell "memory". This problem can usually be corrected with a couple exercise cycles and a good top off charge. LSD cells retain their voltage very well on the shelf, like their charge, and also deliver better than average voltages in normal use anyway. You will usually see much better performance from LSD cells in these voltage sensitive devices than NiMH or even NiCd. If you've been frustrated with rechargeables in the past in some of your devices give some LSD cells a try!

The most common method to kill cells is poor charging practices. I can't stress this enough, especially with NiMH cells, buy a good ["smart"] charger. Usually cells are allowed to "cook" on a standard charger for far, far too long. Remember, heat is bad! It's normal for them to get warm at the end of a charge cycle (not burning hot!). If they continue to stay warm (or worse, hot) for several hours later, you have a [traditional "dumb"] charger that is cooking your cells. I recommend a Maha-C9000 as a good high end charger. On a lower budget I recommend a Duracell 15 minute charger. {To be ready for various circumstances,] I prefer to have both chargers available. The C9000 is a slower charger (relatively) but it will not cook your cells, you can leave them in the unit. The unit has options that allow you to easily exercise cells and see if they are improving. You can match cells to obtain the best performance from them and identify poor performing cells quickly. It also charges individual cells rather than pairs, which is better for them - especially a mismatched pair. The Duracell 15 minute charger is a quality unit that also allows "busy you" to not walk away for hours waiting for, and forgetting about, your batteries. You will be less likely to forget about them and allow them to be cooked on the charger. Some good charging technology goes into the 15 minute chargers, so while they are a little rough compared to a good slower charge - they are actually very good at what they do, especially compared to the cheap junk [chargers] on the market. Fast charging is also fairly energy efficient, reducing the power required to get a full charge. Both of these chargers run on 12 volt DC input so they can plug directly into 12 volt systems allowing for use in a car or directly off a battery based [alternative energy] system (PV, wind, etc).

Do not charge cells when they are below freezing (32 F/0 C). You will damage them. If you really need a charged cell, warm it up in your pocket (preferably the charger too) and use the 15 minute charger. The charge cycle should provide enough heat to keep it above freezing until it's done. Avoid chargers that come with your cells, generally they are poor.

When brought out of long term storage, cells will usually need "exercise". NiCds especially need fairly significant exercise before returning to full capacity. 5+ full cycles may be required, rule of thumb is exercise until you stop seeing capacity gains. This is easiest with a charger like the C9000 with capacity readouts. NiCds should be stored discharged. NiMH cells should be stored with a charge. LSD cells require significantly less maintenance and may not need any exercise at all and will likely have a serviceable charge intact after storage, depending on the length of time in storage and at what temperature.
NiMH cells like to be treated gently. When you're done with your device, recharge the cells. The more shallow the cycle the better. Full cycles will wear on them the most. Keep NiMH cells topped off and they'll last the longest. Occasionally you may need to perform a deep cycle to restore some performance if the cell appears to be waning. The more advanced NiMH care systems like on the Toyota Prius reportedly keep cells at 60-80% capacity and only use about 20% depth in discharge cycles, which seems to be the most chemically repeatable and stable region. NiCds stand up to abuse a lot better, in fact a regular full discharge is good for them and will help you avoid issues with the cells. It's not required for every charge, but once a month or so should keep it's performance high.

I suggest avoiding C and D size rechargeable cells. They are expensive, there are no LSD variants at present, your charging options are more limited, they take forever to charge, and there are adapter sleeves readily available to make AA cells fit these sizes. D sized alkaline cells are reasonable for storage and use for the price. C size cells are usually overpriced and are often repackaged AA cells anyway - use the adapters. COSTCO presently sells an excellent Eneloop kit that includes 8 AAs, 4 AAAs, 2 AA->C adapters, 2 AA->D adapters, and a cheap charger for $26.

Earlier generation NiMH cells had a very poor temperature envelope. There are evidences that this has improved and the LSD introduction advertised even better cold temperature performance. Unfortunately, to date, I am unable to find information or a datasheet to quantify this. I've done a bit of my own testing down to 0 F, the limit of my freezer, and have found no appreciable drop in capacity (old NiMH tech struggled below freezing). I can't really quantify if LSD NiMH is inferior or superior to NiCds at present, so suffice it to say they both do reasonably well in the cold (just remember not to charge them when they are below freezing).

In summary, I don't see any reason to buy any non-LSD NiMH cells these days. LSD tech has dramatically improve the performance and user friendliness of the cells, and hopefully longevity, durability, and cycle life too. However, it is new and relatively unproven tech. NiCd is the old known workhorse and there is good reason why power tools and similar equipment still ship with NiCd cells. It's worth having a few NiCds around as a backup because of their track record. For general use, the Sanyo Eneloops are the way to go.

Throughout my life I have been caught unprepared several times and while nothing seriously bad happened, it easily could have.  I have been lost hiking.  My car has broken down in very bad neighborhoods - twice.  I have been close enough to riots that I feared they would spread to my neighborhood, been in earthquakes, been too close to wildfires, been stuck in a blizzard, and have been without power and water for several days after a hurricane.   I managed to get myself out of each situation, I thanked God, and tried to learn from my mistakes.  I could have avoided these situations or made them much less unsafe and worrisome if I had been more aware and prepared.  I have also tried to learn from the mistakes of others so as to not learn everything the hard way.  One group I assisted was a two hour drive into the mountains, out of gas, wearing tee shirts, and had empty water bottles (at least they kept them) (I have made each of those mistakes but not all at the same time).