Knowledge Weighs Nothing

No AA Batteries? Adapt AAA Batteries To Power AA Devices

Use AAA batteries in AA devices

Update: Due to localised panic buying because of the coronavirus pandemic, many local stores have sold out of AA batteries. AAs are more popular than the smaller AAAs. If you can get AAA batteries, these can be used to power most AA battery devices in a pinch.

If you run out of AA batteries but have some AAA batteries lying around,  you can convert the AAA battery into a AA battery with some tin foil. It got my remote (above) working a  treat!

All you need to do is fold up a small piece of tin foil to fit (make up the size difference) at the negative (flat end of the battery with the –) end of the battery. You want enough tin foil to create a firm fit on the battery to ensure both the positive and negative terminals on the device are touching on the positive/negative ends of the battery.

This tip works great at a pinch, but it shouldn’t be considered a permanent solution as the AAA batteries will run down much faster than the larger AA batteries.

Video Tour Of My Prepper Pantry

Prepper's Pantry

If you are storing/stockpiling food in case the SHTF, or you are considering getting started, the video below is going to be essential viewing. You will either learn something or be fascinated and entertained. Either way, it’s a must-watch, full of excellent, practical, and common-sense advice.

The video tour is by David Armstrong. David is a prepper and homesteader. His YouTube channel is full of interesting and useful prepping and homesteading videos. I recommend subscribing to his channel. David’s prepper pantry video tour below covers all aspects of his emergency food storage plan and prepper’s pantry. David is one very organised and prepared dude…

The tour starts off in David’s kitchen, showing how things are set up there for day-to-day use. It then goes into the longer-term food storage prepper’s pantry which is very impressive. David briefly explains how the pantry itself was constructed, before going on to discuss the various foods stored and reasons for doing so etc. Finally, the tour ends in what David calls his ‘endless pantry’ – his equally impressive and well thought out garden.

There is so much food for thought here. David demonstrates how important it is to think through and plan your SHTF food strategy for the short and the long-term with both his pantry and garden working in tandem to provide enough food for his family.

Emergency Car Kit: 17 Items To Have In Your Car This Winter

Emergency car kit for the winter

There’s not a single person who foresees themselves needing a car emergency kit; however, should the unfortunate occur, these kits can mean the difference between surviving harsh winter nights or succumbing to the icy touch of Father Winter. While there are many items you should have in your emergency car kit, the following 15 items are essential when traversing the roadways during winter months.

Item #1 ­ Flannel or Fleece Blanket

Should you become stranded in your vehicle, a fleece or flannel blanket is essential to keep your body temperature in the acceptable range. While any type of blanket will do, flannel or fleece blankets are designed to trap heat better than cotton or polyester blankets.

Item #2 ­ Water

Make sure you have at least four litres of water stored in your vehicle, ideally it should be in several smaller bottles, so if one leaks, you haven’t lost all your water in one go. Water is a vital item for your emergency car kit, whatever the time of year.

Item #3 ­ Hand Warmers

Hand warmers are essential as they not only keep your hands warm, but you may place them inside your clothing to maintain ideal body core temperatures.

Item #4 ­ Matches and a Butane Lighter

Should you be trapped for an extended period of time, it may be necessary to manufacture heat outside of blankets and hand warmers. Matches and wind ­resistant butane lighters provide instant access to starting a heat­ generating fire.

Item #5 ­ Fire Starters

If you’re stuck in snow or wet conditions, finding acceptable wood or other fire starters can be difficult, if not impossible. Gather at least 10 old newspapers or several fire starting logs to help start a fire when stranded.

Item #6 ­ Portable, High ­Protein Food Source

Every vehicle emergency kit should contain at least 10 protein bars to keep energy levels high should you need to vacate your vehicle and traverse to shelter.

Item #7 ­ Foghorn

While every kit should contain a whistle, foghorns provide a much louder noise capable of being heard miles away. This item could mean the difference between being heard, and subsequently rescued, or being left among the frozen vegetation.

Item #8 ­ Neon Orange Flags

Should your vehicle slide off into a ditch where other travellers are unable to see, neon orange flags provide the ideal contrast to the white snow. The most important element when stranded is becoming as visible as possible by both land and air rescuers.

Item #9 ­ Pepper Spray or Taser

Unfortunately, we live in a dangerous world. Whether another human wishes to take advantage of your vulnerable state or a wild animal desires to investigate the warm creatures in the metal box, defence items, such as pepper spray or a Taser, could mean the difference between staying safe or being placed in harm’s way.

Item #10 ­ LED Lantern and Flashlights

While a flashlight is a necessity for any emergency kit, an LED lantern provides far more illumination, which may be required when walking around at night or investigating the condition of your car in low ­light situations.

Item #11 ­ Waterproof Jacket & Footwear

Should you need to vacate the vehicle to seek assistance or other shelter, waterproof clothing and  footwear are essential to keep you warm and dry whilst outside.

Item #12 ­ Bag of Sand

A bag of sand is necessary to create traction to help navigate a vehicle out of an ice and snow covered ditch. Moreover, if you must walk down steep slopes, throwing sand in front of your path reduces the likelihood of slips and falls.

Item #13 ­ Portable Shovel

Shovels are essential for any winter vehicle emergency kit as it assists in digging your car out of snow or creating pathways should you need to navigate through deep snow.

Item #14 ­ Extra Clothing

Prepare for the worst by keeping three pairs of thick socks, several scarves and a few pairs of pants in your emergency kit. Should your clothing become wet, it’s essential to
replace with dry clothes to prevent hypothermia, or worse.

Item #15 ­ A Good Book

While an emergency kit is designed to keep your body safe, a book can help preoccupy your mind should you be stranded for long durations. Avoid digital book readers as they’re only useful when powered.

Item #16 ­ A Small First Aid Kit

For obvious reasons!

Item #17 ­ A Good Quality Multi-Tool

A good quality multi-tool such as a Leatherman Sidekick is worth it’s weight in gold. It is useful for a whole range of things from repairing your vehicle, first aid, rescue and survival. Everyone should have one in their car.

Your Phone’s Camera Might Be Revealing Your Location(s) & Routines

Android & iPhone cameras revealing photo locations in EXIF metadata stored in photos

The cameras on our iPhones and Android smartphones are amazing. I use mine for everything from snapping quick photos whilst out and about, to precious family moments, through to snapping business cards, flyers, and device instructions etc.

In short, the cameras on our smartphones makes life easier and better. That said, there is a fairly major issue that not many smartphone users are aware of when they are happily snapping away and sharing photos here, there and everywhere.

Your iPhone Or Android Camera Could Be Violating Your Privacy & Security

Did you know that every Android and IOS phone geo-tags and shares location, and time/date information for each and every photo? This location information is stored in each photo’s EXIF metadata, stored within the photo itself.

This feature is TURNED ON BY DEFAULT. If you have never specifically turned it off, it is on.

I see this as a huge issue as most people are unaware that the location and time and date of their photos is included in the EXIF metadata on each and every photo they take.

Not only is this information stored in the EXIF data within the photo, but it is also incredibly easy to view.

  • On a desktop, simply ‘right click’ and view the photo’s ‘properties’ on a desktop.
  • On Android, you simply view the photo and click on the ‘menu’ and choose ‘Info’.
  • On the iPhone, you simply view the photo and click on the ‘Details’ button.

Surely, this location sharing feature should be OFF by default? AT least then, if you turn it on, you know it’s on.

I See Two Reasons This Is Problematic

Sharing Photos On Social Media

Firstly, when you share photos online, on social media or online photo albums, every photo shared is providing the date it was taken together with the specific location it was taken from.

Sure… You might think your Facebook and Instagram security settings are dialled in (are they though?), but what about when friends, families and followers share your photos. Who else is seeing them?

For Example

Example of an android camera giving away location of photo in EXIF metadata
Just chilling at home with Barney!

You’ve just posted a cute photo of your dog sleeping. You add some text -‘ just chilling at home with Barney’. Boom! You’ve potentially just given away your location AND mentioned it’s your home as well. Now friends of friends or followers (or who knows who) can see where you live.

Similar scenarios can be imagined for other locations such as your parent’s home, your place of work, your favourite family leisure/vacation places or even some secret spots, that you didn’t realise you were giving away the location of.

Not only do these photos potentially show people where you are, or where you have been; they can also tell people where you are not… If you share photos when you are away from home, people can check the EXIF data on the photo and they can see where you are specifically, and then know, for example, you are not at home at present…

With all these photos including the time/date and location, a quick scroll through your social media someone can begin to uncover your routines. Criminals must be using social media and utilizing the EXIF time/date and location data from photos to determine where people live/work and when they are not at home.

The Apps That Have Access To Your Phone’s Camera

Secondly, lots of phone apps require and are granted access to use your phone’s camera. Did you really read their terms & conditions? Do you know what they might be doing with this data, or who they might be sharing it with?

To highlight this issue, programmer, Felix Krause, created a simple ‘proof of concept’ app to demonstrate the access and information these apps are given by your Android or iPhone camera. It can literally be years worth of time, dates and locations where you have taken photos.

The Good News Is – You Can STOP this in about 20 Seconds

Turn Geotagging off on Android phones

Depending on the age and model Android phone, try these options:

Open the Camera app. Tap – the Menu button and choose – Settings. Disable the – Save location option here.

Alternatively, open the Camera app. Tap – the Menu button and scroll down until you see the setting call Geo Tag or Tag Locations (or similar) and disable it.

Some Android phones might be slightly different, but if you dig around you should find the setting.

Turn Locations Services off on iPhones

On an iPhone, go to Settings > Privacy > Location Services. Choose Camera and now choose – Never, to turn off location tagging.

If you want to make sure you have disabled geo-tagging/location sharing, take a new photo and then check the EXIF data.

To do this:

On a desktop – simply ‘right click’ and viewing the photos ‘properties’ on a desktop.

On Android – you simply view the photo and click on the ‘menu’ and choose ‘Info’.

On an iPhone – you simply view the photo and click on the ‘Details’ button.

Sorted! Your phone camera will now continue to document the highlights of your life without revealing where and when they happened.

How To Build A DIY Generator From A Lawnmower (UPDATED)

DIY lawn mower generator

So you know getting a backup generator is a great idea, but you just can’t afford to purchase one? Well, could you afford $50 give or take, for a small backup generator?

If you search around at yard sales or your local junkyard or landfill you should be able to pick up most of the bits required to build this DIY lawnmower generator.   There are a few extras you’ll likely need to purchase, but you could bring this in for around $50.

I have listed several different tutorials below that show how simple and affordable it is to build a basic generator out of an old lawnmower engine.

Below is a great video showing how to build a lawnmower generator.

This is a really interesting and entertaining video tutorial. I think a lot of the build is overkill, but it does give you an idea of what can easily be accomplished with some cheap/free scrap parts and a little DIY skill. I particularly like the fact the generator was built onto the frame of the lawnmower, rather than removing the lawnmower engine and mounting it on another base.

Here is a different, written tutorial for DIY generator built from a lawnmower. As with all these lawnmower generators, it isn’t going to power your whole house, it won’t run your AC, heating or large kitchen appliances; it will, however, keep the lights on and power smaller electronics etc.

Additionally, here are links to two further written tutorials for building lawnmower generators for you to check out lawnmower generator tutorial from doityourself.com & and lawnmower generator tutorial from theepiccenter.com

 (Image used from Oliver Motorized)

This Charger CAN Recharge Disposable Batteries. Learn More. Save Money

Recharge Disposable Batteries

From an early age, I knew it was kind of possible to reuse disposable, single-use batteries; as a kid, we used to leave dead alkaline batteries out in the sunshine for a few hours, and this seemed to recharge them a little bit, so we could get a bit more use out of them… What I didn’t realize is that you can now actually purchase specific battery chargers which are designed to recharge dead single-use alkaline batteries. Now maybe everyone else knew this already, but I certainly didn’t… Either way, I am sure Duracell and Energiser don’t want you to know this.

This means that once you have purchased one of these specific battery chargers, such as the: Maximal Alkaline FC999 Universal Rapid Charger, you then effectively have free batteries for life. Follow the tips below, and you don’t even need to purchase the disposable batteries, to begin with…

FREE Batteries For Life? How?

Our local authority recycles dead batteries, they pick them up with the garbage once a month. If I went out into the neighbourhood that day, I could literally collect 1000s of free alkaline batteries which could then be recharged and reused. Even if your local authority doesn’t provide this service, you could still get all the free batteries you need, by asking friends and family to save their batteries for you. You could also ask local stores and commercial premises if they could save their batteries for you.

Now I am sure there is a lifespan for recharging disposable batteries, so one set isn’t going to last forever. With this in mind, you’ll need to replace the free dead batteries you collect, from time to time. This shouldn’t be an issue, as simply ask friends etc to save all their used, dead batteries for you, and you should effortlessly have a constant supply of used, dead batteries to recharge.

Just to note – the Maximal Alkaline FC999 Universal Rapid Charger doesn’t just charge alkaline batteries, it also charges RAM, Ni-MH, Ni-CD, AA, AAA, C, D, N, and 9V batteries, so it’s got you covered for everything. Additionally, you might also want to purchase a cheap battery tester, to check batteries are dead and check how well they have recharged.

Anyway, as said, this might not be news to some of you, but hopefully, it is useful information and saves some money for people that didn’t know. All our flashlights, remotes and radios etc take batteries; not to mention, if you have young kids, you get through a huge amount of batteries with all their toys and games. If nothing else, it is for more eco-friendly to reuse old batteries, rather than just throwing them in the trash…

NOTE: Obviously exercise caution and use common sense when choosing spent disposable batteries to recharge. Do not attempt to recharge old looking, damaged or leaking batteries.

DIY Quick Fix For Garden (SHTF, Camping) Solar Lights

Fix garden solar lights

Solar lights like the picture above are in 90% of American gardens and yards, they make gardens look awesome, plus these little solar lights actually double up as emergency lighting if the power goes out. In fact, there is a whole load emergency preparedness, SHTF and homesteading uses for these solar lights. These solar lights are cheap, but often don’t work so well, and when they do, they normally only last a few months. A lot of people throw them away and just buy new ones… What a waste!

What many people don’t realize is that these solar lights usually come with very, very cheap/poor quality standard sized rechargeable batteries.  These batteries are usually rubbish, to begin with, but they deteriorate and lose their ability to hold their charge, very quickly. It is basically the batteries that fail within the lights that stops them working. The good news is – you can easily replace these batteries!

If you actually replace the batteries with some good quality rechargeable batteries, you’ll likely be blown away at home much brighter the lights are, and how much longer they burn brightly throughout the night. They will literally be better than when they were new! The crazy this is – decent solar light rechargeable batteries don’t cost much anyway, so it’s a no-brainer given how useful these lights can be.

If you follow the simple steps below I will explain how to change the batteries in your solar lights.

These lights are usually really easy to open. Usually, you’ll just need a screwdriver to take out one or two screws and you are done. Once open, check which sized batteries are used in your particular lights (usually AA or AAA) and then replace them with some better quality, but still very cheap solar rechargeable batteries.

Do this and you will have much brighter solar lights that hold their charge for way longer than before, and they will last for years before needing replacing.

Free Firewood: Heat Your Home 100% For Free! (UPDATED)

How to get free firewood

With the cost of living skyrocketing in areas all throughout the country, many consumers are seeking out cheap, or preferably free, ways to curve their utility bills. When it comes to heating your home throughout the winter months, a wood-burning stove effectively warms your living spaces without burning through your bank account. To further deepen your monthly energy costs, stop buying your firewood and turn to these completely free, and completely legal, ways of gathering perfectly good free firewood.

Ask Tree Surgeons/Arborists For Free Firewood

Update: We use this method every year now. It is the only method here that we need to use, to get all the firewood we need (for FREE). We simply get the green, unprocessed wood delivered in the spring and early summer. I then saw, chop it, and store it for use the following winter. 

Most tree surgeons (Arborists) are clever enough to realize that logging, seasoning and selling their hardwood waste is a no-brainer. However, there’s only really any value in hardwood logs, as this is what most people want to burn. This leaves a lot of fresh softwood being wasted or chipped for biomass (that usually just gets taken off their hands in bulk for little or no money). If you are willing to burn softwood (and if it is free then you should be willing!), it’s not too difficult to find a local tree surgeon/arborist who will be happy to dump loads of cords/tree rings on your driveway for free. This literally is an untapped resource for free firewood! All you need to do is cut it up and season it. Contact some of your local companies and ask. Some will ignore you or say no. Some may offer to deliver loads for $20 etc, but some will also be happy to help you out for free, as it helps them out.

We do this and get all the firewood to heat our home for free. As we have built relationships with a few local companies, they also sometimes deliver hardwood loads as well. If they are cutting several trees close to us, it is easier for them to quickly dump loads with us, rather than travel further to their depot each time during the day.

At the beginning of this year, we had several large loads of tree rings and branches delivered. None of it was perfect firewood, there was some very wet (but not rotten) oak that had been laying on the ground for sometime and some green sycamore and pine. This was all sawn, chopped and stored to season throughout the summer. We now have more than enough free firewood to get us through the winter, without spending a penny on heating. If you want free firewood, get in touch with local arborists!

A note on burning softwood: providing it is well dried and seasoned (which takes half the time of hardwoods!), and you get your chimney/flue cleaned once or twice a year, there is absolutely no problem with burning pines and other softwoods. Sure softwood burns through a bit quicker, but it is not an issue when it is free!

Free Firewood From Construction Tree Debris

As construction crews clear the land for new developments etc, there may be a significant amount of heavy brush or tree branches left in their wake. While some construction companies sell wood to firewood merchants or lumber yards, smaller branches and brush are often available free of charge as long as you receive permission from the construction manager. It is always worth asking when you see new developments in your area.

Find Free Firewood On eBay, Gumtree & FreeCycle

Every day, there are people in your area giving away waste wood (pallets etc) and wood from trees and bushes they have cut down on their properties. People without wood-burning stoves and fireplaces are only too happy to give their wood away for free, rather than having to dispose of it themselves. All you have to do is go around and pick up the wood. Check eBay, Gumtree and Freecycle and other similar websites, and search in your areas for free firewood and logs etc. Some people will charge a small amount, but most are only too happy to have someone to come over and take it away for them.

Gather Dead Tree Branches

Often times, dead tree branches are found scattered throughout residential or commercial properties. If you notice dead or even dying, trees lining a property, ask the owner if you can gather some of these branches. In many cases, property owners don’t have the need for the wood, or the financial resources to have the trees removed. Therefore, by gathering these potentially hazardous tree branches you’re not only stockpiling your free firewood supply but also helping out a neighbor.

Post Storm Tree Debris

After a major thunderstorm, tree branches tend to accumulate along the side of the road or in yards of commercial and residential properties. While most property owners simply throw away storm debris, ask the property owner if you can help collect and remove the debris with the premise of keeping some, or all, of the wood. If you live in an area that frequently sees windstorms, this could be the sole source of your free firewood supply.

Wooden Pallets Make Excellent Free Kindling

Commercial retail stores and warehouses use wooden pallets for a myriad of reasons. While many businesses reuse pallets, once damaged, or once their stock of pallets becomes too large, many are open to donating to local residents for firewood purposes. The size, shape, and portability of wooden pallets make them a perfect source for firewood, especially kindling. Just be sure to check they are pressure treated, rather than chemically treated. Most are these days, but it is better to check. A quick Google of the stamps on the pallets will tell you.

Ask Sawmills For Free Waste/Off Cuts

Many sawmills actively search for ways to reduce their overhead, which includes disposal costs associated with end cut removal. Contact your local saw mill and ask about pick up times for scrap lumber. While you’re there, don’t forget to pick up a bag or two of sawdust, which may be used as kindling. The sawmill got rid of some waste and you got some free firewood!

BONUS Section: How To MAKE Free And Virtually Unlimited Fuel To Heat Your Home

FREE fuel and unlimited fuel to heat your home – that’s quite a promise! It doesn’t actually promise to be a solution to provide ALL of the fuel to heat your home, but depending on the size of your home it probably could do just that… If you have a small house or cabin heated by a wood stove you could probably heat your house using just this method. For larger homes with a wood fire or stove, this would be an excellent addition to firewood which could possibly save you 50%, maybe more on your fuel costs.

You are obviously not going to be able to generate enough junk mail, cardboard and magazines etc to save a fortune (although still worth doing!), but if you ask friends, neighbors and family to save all their paper waste you’ll start to generate a significant amount of fuel material. You could also ask around local businesses for their waste paper too!

(Image from Tiny House Listings)
(Image from: Wikipedia)

How To Stop Bleeding QUICKLY With Black Pepper

Stop Bleeding With Black Pepper

When it comes to survival and wilderness first aid, I highly recommend you carry a blood-clotting agent with you in your first aid kit, personally, I believe that CELOX produces the best consumer-available blood clotting agent, as unlike many other brands, CELOX is also effective for people on blood thinners such as heparin and warfarin etc. You can purchase CELOX here from Amazon. It is quite expensive, but simply put – it could save your life one day…

If you do not have a clotting agent such as CELOX, you can in fact use simple ground black pepper to stop bleeding quickly for small to medium-sized cuts/wounds.  Black pepper is naturally antibacterial and it also makes blood coagulate quickly and stop bleeding. Black pepper was commonly used by soldiers in the Second World War, and even today it is often used in professional kitchens (probably due to its availability) to stop cuts from bleeding.

It couldn’t be simpler to use black pepper to stop bleeding – simply pour a generous amount of ground black pepper onto the wound and apply pressure (and bandage if necessary) and it should quickly stop bleeding (please use common sense though as serious cuts may still require the attention of a physician).

Note: Finely ground black pepper works best, and no, black pepper does not sting when put on a cut!

Personally, I keep some CELOX in our first aid kits for emergencies, but for day-to-day and around the home, black pepper is a useful alternative for smaller wounds.

Disclaimer – I am not a medical expert, this information is based on my own experience and research. Please do your own research and exercise common sense before trying this. If you have an existing medical condition or allergy, please check that this won’t interfere with your condition or medication.

4 Things You Need To Know If The Police Try To Search Your Phone

Phone rights

You Can Keep Your Phone Locked And Refuse To Unlock It

It is your right to keep your phone locked and for you to refuse to unlock it. Doing this means they will not be able to look through your phone without your permission, should you be handcuffed or the phone is taken away from you etc.

If You Are Not Arrested, You Do Not Have To Consent To A Phone Search

It is illegal for the police to search your phone if they do not have a warrant and you are not under arrest. Although see the ‘Depending On The Scenario’ point below

If The Police Officer Proceeds Anyway, Do Not Get Physical

This is the last thing you should do as things could quickly escalate. Instead, repeat the words – “I do not consent to this phone search”. If there are others around say it loudly so everyone hears, so there is no ambiguity. Additionally, nothing found on an illegal phone search can be used in evidence.

Depending On The Scenario, Consider Giving Consent

This might surprise some people, but there are many scenarios when it might be easier or better to give consent for a police officer to use or search your phone. For example, you may have inadvertently captured something important in a photo or video. Additionally, a police officer may need the use of your phone to ring something through in an emergency.

Another important point to make is that it is lawful for a police officer to search your phone without a warrant, if a child has been abducted or if they believe someone is in imminent harm, or they believe there is the possibility of evidence on the phone being destroyed. They should clearly state the phone search is related to these issues though.

This is obviously a very basic guide, for a full breakdown of the law and your rights, see this EFF guide and this ACLU guide