Here you’ll learn how to make a fire piston. Watch this video of a guy go through all the details.

A fire piston allows you to quickly compress air causing char cloth (the tinder) to ignite. This gives you an ember that you can transfer and fan to flame.

To make a fire piston work, you don’t need sunlight, matches, friction, chemicals, magnesium or electricy. You simply need your own body weight as this creates the pressure within the piston to compress the air and ignite the tinder.

Just watch the video above to learn how only how to make a fire piston, but also how it works.

Here you can see how to make fire with a magnesium fire starter. You can use standard cotton balls or specially designed fire tabs as tinder.

If you’re out in the wilderness and need to start a fire, a magnesium fire starter would definitely come in handy seeing that its light weight and can easily be dried off if you get it wet. It lasts for as long as you have it. It will run out eventually due to the fact that you scrape off little bits at a time when you use it.

There are different models for magnesium fire starters, so I recommend getting an aurora fire starter because the magnesium is encased in a metal tube for protection and instantly ignites when you scrape it.

To ignite tinder, make sure that it is dry and fibrous. Scrape the magnesium toward the tinder as the magnesium will instantly ignite when you scrape it (if using an aurora fire starter). If you’re not using an aurora fire starter, you may need to ignite the magnesium manually.

In this video, we see that with a small parabolic lens from a household flashlight, you can make fire. Just use natural tinder and blow on it.

I’d recommend using a parabolic lens from a larger flashlight, like the one in the link above. But, a lens from a standard home flashlight works just fine.

Be sure to start out with tiny, dry fibrous materials so you can create an ember. Then, blow on it until you see more smoke and a flicker of flame. Then, transfer it to thicker material and blow to flame.

I actually tried this myself and yes, it does work. You can actually make fire with a parabolic lens from a flashlight!

In the video below, Matt (survivalists2012) shows off his collection of low profile hunting weapons and goes through each one telling why he has them.

He’s got a compound hunting bow with practice arrows that he takes down to his local gun club. He’s also got real arrows with broadhead tips. Obviously, the quietness of his compound hunting bow wont give him away to anybody nearby like a rifle would.

Matt has a hand-held crossbow for hunting small game and fowl. He’s also got a survival knife and one that looks like something from Rambo which can be used as a machete or a saw.

Another low profile hunting weapon Matt has is a CO2 pellet gun which lets you put the air cartridge inside the handle. You can fit 8 pellets in the holder. This weapon would actually be Matt’s last choice in low profile hunting because its pretty loud. Right along with his pellet pistol is a Marksman Repeater BB gun. You can’t kill small game with it, but it can kill birds if you’re a good enough shot.

Obviously, a high power slingshot would be included in anyone’s arsenal. Matt’s has a nice sight on it for betting aiming. Be sure to have extra high power slingshot bands in case your original one breaks. Don’t forget to stock up on stainless steel slingshot ammo to shoot.

These are just a few low profile hunting weapons you could have on-hand for when the SHTF so you can obtain food without being seen or heard.

This medical kit is really for people that don’t have anything already and they want to go out and spend $50 at most and get the best of the basics. It is based on 3 things:

• Upper respiratory infections
• Diarrhea
• General skin and wound care

These 3 things are going to be the number causes of death when the SHTF, and if you’ve got a medical kit that covers all 3, you’ll be much better off.

• 1 box of sterile 4×4 gause pads. Used for absorbancy and wound padding.
• 1 box of Bandaids.
• 1 box of 3×4 non-adherent compression pads.
• 2 bottles of Isopropyl Alcohol. Used for general topical disinfection.
• 2 bottles of Hydrogen Peroxide. Used for general topical disinfection. Also, dilute with water and gargal for tooth abscess because penicillin probably wont be available.
• 1 bottle of Bragg’s Apple Cider Vinegar (32 fl oz). Alleviates the symptoms of Yeast Infection, upset stomach, acid indigestion and much more.
• 1 small bottle of Ibuprofen. Good for pain, reducing fevers and early intervention of swelling. This doesn’t produce some of the side effects that aspirin does in children, nor does it have some of the toxicity issues after expiration.
• 1 small bottle of Tylenol.
• 1 small bottle of Benadryl. Treats nausea and insomnia, and is good for general sedation and relief of seasonal allergies.
• 1 small durable flashlight. Used to check inside throats for swelling and to check neurological status (pupils) for head trauma.
• Surgical tape.
• 1 package of maxipads. Used to stop bleeding of open wounds.
• 1 small bottle of generic mucinex. If you can store nothing else for upper respiratory infections, store this. Buildup of mucus on the bottom of the lungs prohibits oxygen from getting into the blood stream.
• 1 package of generic imodium (anti-diarrhea). Diarrhea dehydrates the body and, if uncontrolled, can kill you.
• 1 big bag of Halls Menthal/Eucalyptal Cough Drops. Fights coughs, soothes sore throat and cools nasal passages.
• 1 tube of Hydrocortisone. Maintains skin integrity when you get a small wound. Alleviates rashes from plants like poison ivy.
• 1 tube of triple antibiotic ointment. Maintains skin integrity when you get a small wound. Helps prevent infection in small cuts, burns and scrapes after you’ve cleaned the area.
• 1 tube of butt paste. Alleviates chafing and irritation due to friction (like when your legs rub together from frequent walking). Helps to maintain skin integrity.
• 1 box of 100 sterile gloves (nitrile). Don’t use latex gloves because people can be allergic to latex and have very bad reactions. These will help prevent infection on you and the person you’re treating.
• Instant cold packs. Used for early treatment of any injury. Slows down bacterial growth and spreadding. Helps facilitates a quick healing time.
• 1 thermometer. Used to monitor temperature. If temperature in small children goes too high, they can have a febrile seizure.
• 3 rolls of ace wraps. Used to wrap joints, sprains, fractures, etc.

My wife and went to the locations ThePatriotNurse suggest to buy all these supplies for the $50 medical kit and we really did spend about that much. Take an hour and go to the store and spend the $50 for your kit so you can treat a very wide range of problems having to do with the 3 top causes of death when the SHTF!

First Aid For Gunshot Wounds

Before I talk about the 3 types of gunshot wounds and how to treat them, you need to know and check the “ABCs” of first aid.

A = Airway
B = Breathing
C = Circulation

These 3 things are what you always need to check before giving first aid for gunshot wounds. If the injured person is having problems with any one these, there is really no value in treating their wound because they’ll die anyway.

If you are the one with the wound and are fine with the ABCs, then proceed to give yourself as much first aid as you can. What you do to yourself can be done to other people, too, if you happen to find them suffering from a gunshot wound.

A good tip to help with giving first aid for gunshot wounds is to use maxipads to stop bleeding. They’re extremely absorbant. Plus, they’re a lot faster and easier to apply than gause. Just apply it with duct tape on the 4 sides (top left, top right, bottom left, bottom right) to seal it off.

Stock up on maxipads now to treat gunshot wounds because they may not be readily available later on when the SHTF.

Anyway, there are 3 types of gunshot wounds that you may have to treat if you get shot when the SHTF. Those in the abdomin, in the chest, and in extremidies (like in the arm).

First Aid For Gunshot Wounds In The Abdomin

The worst gunshot wound to treat is in the abdomin because you’re probably going to have a perferated bowl. As in, your intestines will probably have a hole in them, and that is hard to fix. Not that its impossible, but feces will leak all throughout your body cavity and you’ll most likely die within a weak from sepsis.

Put pressure on it after you apply the maxipad with duct tape on all 4 sides, and keep the pressure because blood circulates a lot around there.

If you experienced a high velocity gunshot wound, chances are that organs or intestines may be hanging out. Don’t try to put them back inside your body because they’ve already been exposed to bacteria and many other things. Put them on your chest and cover them with a wet cloth and just try to keep the area clean.

First Aid For Gunshot Wounds In The Chest

The next type you’ll need to apply first aid to is a chest gunshot wound. You’ll have an entry wound and possibly an exit wound. Clean the exit wound if you can and apply a maxipad with duct tape on all 4 sides to prevent air entering the body cavity.

For the entry wound, you’ll apply the maxipad with duct tape on only 3 sides – Top left, top right and bottom left. This makes it so no air enters the body cavity but it also allows a little flap so any air alreay in the body cavity can escape.

Because of the location of this wound, there might be blood pooling and coagulating by or in the lungs, so prop yourself up if you can to keep your airway open.

First Aid For Gunshot Wounds In Extremities

These areas are the easiest places to apply first aid for gunshot wounds because no organs were hit. But, you do need to worry about broken bones and blood loss.

Arterial bleeding is different than venous bleeding, and you need to know the difference. Arterial bleeding is characterized by bright red blood coming out in spurts. It also has a higher volume of blood loss. Venous bleeding is more bubbly and dark red, and it wont pulse or spurt like arterial bleeding.

Of course, apply direct pressure on the wound. But if you’re losing lots of blood (and you’ll know if you are), your next best option is to apply a tourniquet. You need to realize that once you apply a tourniquet, you’re not going to take it off. If you do take it off for whatever reason, the built-up pressure from the arterie will push the blood clot back into your chest area and may cause death.

Also, removing a tourniquet, you’ll be reinstating blood loss. So, if you apply a tourniquet, don’t take it off.

The way you can tell if the tourniquet is on tight enough is by feeling for a pulse down stream. Feel for it in the normal areas that you would. If you can feel it, your tourniquet isn’t on tight enough and you still have blood flow.

First Aid For Gunshot Wounds – Conclusion

There are many videos on Youtube about first aid for gunshot wounds recorded by EMTs, so you may want to watch them for more practical instructions. The information in this blog post is just a basic overview of applying first aid for gunshot wounds.

Incoming search terms:

• first aid to gunshot wounds
• gunshot wounds treatment
• Wounds first aid

An Earthship Is A Special Gift

If we have to get the plans adjusted so they get approved (if they aren’t approved in the first place) for a local building permit, we’ll do it. But, when all is said and done, our home will be fully paid off within a few short months after building it, if not before (we’ll be using our savings and current income). Then, we wont have a massive monthly mortgage payment to make for the rest of our lives. We see this as a special gift to our future children and hope we can be an example to our other family members of “living free”.

We also want to grow all our own fruits and vegetables. Of course, other things will need to be purchased. But if we can produce it ourselves, we want to be as self-sufficient as possible. The small vegetable garden my father-in-law grew brought in a ton of good, healthy, non-hybrid, non-gmo food that lasted them pretty much all summer. The rest was bottled for later. When my wife and I visited last summer, that’s pretty much all we ate… home-grown food. And man, it tasted great!

Time Is Short To Build An Earthship

We believe that time is short and that I need to be well educated in those types of things, so we aren’t one of the millions in America that are completely devastated when things happen. We don’t believe education and money will cut it. We believe that experience and preparation are much more valuable. By going to the Earthship Academy, I’ll gain education and experience now that will allow me and my family to survive then. I’ll be able to provide for their most basic of needs during that time when millions of Americans wont. And if things don’t happen in the next 10 years, we will be that much more better off and prepared for when it does happen. Not to mention, we’ll have little to no debt.

This is the time to prepare. Not only to have at least a year supply of food (as my family members have heard me say many times), but to have much more than that, such as shelter, water, tools, weapons, medical supplies, electricity, etc.

We don’t want to give our government or a bank that doesn’t care about us the opportunity to take away our home just because we might not have been able to pay a few mortgage payments for some reason. We also don’t want to go through the heartache and stress of getting electricity or water turned off. We know that one way to make sure that doesn’t happen is by bringing in a lot of money. But, another way (the way we’ve chosen) is to own our home and produce our own electricity and running water… to really live within our means. And when the time comes that millions of people in America don’t have these things available to them, we will.

All of this goes right along with our preparations for what is coming. The scriptures and prophecies leave no room for doubt, and are sure. Our Earthship will provide natural heating and cooling because of the way it is built and its materials. It will provide electricity. It will provide water. Our add-on designs will include cool (temperature-wise), underground root-cellars and storage units (my father-in-law has been wanting to build a root-cellar for a long time, and we’ll do it). Our add-on designs will also incorporate additional systems for collecting and storing more water for gardening, and just in case we go without rain for an extended amount of time. Our Earthship will allow us to grow extra food during the winter when normally we wont be able to.

We’ve accepted the fact that we aren’t getting pregnant right now, for whatever reason it is. We will continue to try and whatnot, and work on fixing it, but until things happen in that regard, we’re going to accomplish our current goals as much as we can. Again, building an Earthship for ourselves now is not only us preparing for the future, but it is a gift to our future children. They wont have parents that are enslaved to a mortgage for their entire lives, requiring them to stay enslaved to the system. They will have what they need in life and in their parents.

Earthships Save Money

Of course we’ll need money coming in, in the short and long-run. But, when we have our Earthship built, we wont require the same amount of money as everyone else needs in order just to live. We want the ultra simple life, as comfortable as it can be and as elegant as we can make it, surrounded by our loved ones. We’re excited for the future. As we prepare this way, we wont be nearly as fearful as everyone else will be. And, hopefully God will find us worthy to be spared from the coming tribulations.

After I Build An Earthship

After we build our Earthship, I will qualify to be hired on as leadership in building projects, seeing that the actual laborers are not paid by the company. If that happens, I can facilitate building projects for customers around the world. Will that bring in 30-40K per year? I don’t know. I doubt it. But building one for ourselves is our primary goal right now. Then, me getting hired on will be the next goal. The academy has really only been around for less than a year, so they are still in their infancy.

Adjusting Earthship Plans

We’re really excited to build an Earthship. If we can’t get a building permit for the current Earthship building plans, like I said earlier, we’ll adjust the plans so we can get a permit. If the adjustments require us to stay connected to the grid system, we’ll include the rudiment off-the-grid components for when the system does collapse. I think everyone should do this if they end up in the same situation.

And if we simply can’t get a building permit for whatever reason, my wife and I will collect and store all the Earthship building materials and components for a future date. We’re determined to have an Earthship!

You can approach debt settlement USA companies to help you out with debt settlement programs if you are overwhelmed by massive debts that you have incurred. Debt settlement companies or debt settlement is rather an aggressive way of getting rid of your debt by reducing your outstanding payments by about 40% to 60%.

What is the best way to go about debt settlement?

The process of debt settlement involves negotiating with your creditors to reduce the outstanding payments on your debts by a huge amount. Usually this process is better done by a professional debt settlement company which provides you with a negotiator who knows how to deal with your creditors better than you would have done alone.

Most of the time, the creditors accept the conditions of debt settlement, that is, to accept a balance way less than the original balance, in order to get at least some money. If you file for bankruptcy for protection, your creditors might end up getting nothing. Hence accepting any amount of money would be better than getting no money for them, which encourages them to accept the debt settlement negotiations.

What happens after debt settlement?

After the debt settlement negotiations are complete, the creditors will send official letters informing the three main credit bureaus that the obligations were paid. You should however keep in mind that settling your debts can affect your credit scores negatively. When you settle your debts, it is not paid in full, thus it is not recorded in your credit reports as
“Paid in Full”. This hampers your credit ratings.

Once you are out of debt through a debt settlement plan, you can get the help of experienced debt settlement US consultants to educate you about money matters and personal finances so that the cycle is not repeated. You should also learn good debt management habits once you have gotten out of debt.

Here are two tips that you can use for debt management and avoid getting into debt in future.

1. Think and borrow – You would probably want to start rebuilding your credit once the debt settlement plan has gone into action. This is more important as debt settlement may affect your credit scores negatively. However, rebuilding your credit would require you to take on new debt. Before you take out a new debt maintain some financial basics like a steady source of income, emergency fund and so on.
2. Create a budget – Creating a budget is a critical step of money management. It helps you to stick to your planned expenditure, thereby helping you to avoid debt.

Thus you can see how you can settle your debts and take the necessary precautions not to fall into debts later on.

Contributed by Debt community Member.

People often try to consume high amounts of protein in their diet in order to gain weight and muscle. But the truth is that the average American already consumes enough protein on a daily basis to gain muscle mass, and the extra protein provided from protein drinks is sometimes wasted and unnecessary.

Use a schedule when planning what to eat and when. It’s generally a poor strategy to eat carbohydrates right before bed. Carbohydrates are chock-full of sugar and will immediately convert into energy when they’re digested by your body. When you’re sleeping, you are unable to utilize the energy, and it gets stored as fat instead. By planning out your meals you will be able to avoid critical mistakes like this.

If you are having a difficult time finding an exercise regiment that you can stick to then you should try to find exercise opportunities that you enjoy. If you love having sex, then have more sex. If you miss the freedom of dancing at night clubs, then join a dance class.

It is important to eat reasonable portion sizes when you are eating a meal. Your vegetables should be a larger portion size than the portion size of the carbohydrates. If you choose to put butter on your vegetables, you should only use it in moderation or avoid it all together.

When eating a salad you should avoid all of the unnecessary accouterments. Egg yolks, croutons, fried tortillas and even bacon bits serve no purpose to a salad other than to make it unhealthy. Egg whites, low fat cheese and citrus juices can give a salad an extra kick without making it unhealthy.

How do I calculate the fat content of my food? Most people recommend that no more of 25% of your calories should come from food, but it is very hard to figure out. Rather than focussing on counting fat grams, try to follow certain guidelines. Avoid fried foods, choose low fat versions of dairy products, and eat fresh fruit and veggies whenever possible. Choose poultry or fish over red meat, and cut back on snacks.

To work more green vegetables into your diet, try unique approaches to preparing them. If your family is tired of steamed broccoli, try roasting it with olive oil and sea salt, then serving it with a squeeze of lemon and some grated Parmesan. Leafy, nutritious kale makes a great snack when cooked in the oven, becoming a crispy, addictive alternative to chips.

When eating red meat, always consider how much is really enough. It’s easy to look at that a big and juicy steak and think the “bigger the better” but, red meat is very hard for your body to digest. In fact, in large amounts it can really affect your health. So instead of the twelve ounce steak, substitute it for a three to six ounce cut. Or better yet, substitute in white meat, it’s a healthier choice.

To improve your health, limit your intake of unnatural foods. Cut back on processed foods and foods fried in oil. When you do consume processed foods choose ones made from whole grains. Whole grains are more nutrient dense than the alternatives and since it takes the body longer to break whole grains down, you stay full longer.

If you are interested in nutrition and its effect on the body, there are many interesting books written about supplements and cleanses that can aid digestion and boost the body’s potential. Research online a bit to get a recommendation for a book written by a trusted doctor or natural foods expert.

Separate your plate into portions. By using the plate method to separate the specific parts of your diet you will be more able to identify how many food groups you are including. Split half of your plate into vegetables or salad, a quarter of lean protein and a final quarter of starches. This balance of foods can help you reach your nutritional or dietary goals.

A great nutrition tip for people trying to become more healthy is to include a lot of dark green vegetables in your diet. Vegetables such as spinach, kale and chard are great for you as they provide lots of vitamins and contain antioxidants.Strive to eat at least two servings per day.

Do not discount fiber in your nutrition goals. Fiber comes from sources like, grains, beans, fresh fruits, vegetables, and various other sources. Increasing your fiber during meals will extend your feelings of fullness and help your body in its efforts to remove waste. Getting rid of much of the waste that can be forgotten in your system will allow your body to function more normally.

Watch you red meat for proper nutrition! Staying away from red meat is an essential nutrition tip for any successful diet. Red meat is packed with enough saturated fat to clog anyone’s arteries, and in some studies, has been linked to an increased risk of cancer! Red meat – once in a blue moon – won’t hurt you, but in general, it’s safer to not make it a common part of your diet.

Knowing what you need to do and having tools to get you there can make all of the difference when it comes to nutrition and health. Apply these suggestions as often as you can to make sure you are eating right, eating smart and being as healthy as you can possibly be.

Consider using a chicken tractor to fertilize your future garden area. A chicken tractor is basically a movable chicken coop with an open floor and a sheltered area. This enables the chickens to munch on vegetation and bugs while depositing fertilizer. Once one area is done the chicken tractor can be pulled to over the next area.

Think big when building a path. If you decide to build a path in your garden, think about its width. A path shouldn’t only be 2 feet wide, the perfect garden path should be at least 4 feet across. Ideally, two people should be able to walk side by side comfortably without bumping into each other.

A great tip to consider when gardening is that with your perennials you will want to not wait until it is starting to look hideous before you separate it into separate plants. Do so while it is still healthy and will be able to manage the stress of dividing it.

Save money on your plants by buying healthy plants. That dying flower in the dollar section might look like an inexpensive addition to your garden, but you will spend a lot trying to bring it back to life. Fixing a dying plant requires fertilizer, insecticides, and many hours of valuable time. Pay a little more for the healthy plant to save money in the long run.

If you have a very shady garden, make up for the lack of sunlight by growing shade plants with dramatic, colorful foliage. You can create an amazing display when focusing on color and texture, which in many ways, is much more interesting than flowers!

If you are a beginning gardener, choose plants that are easy to maintain. Some plants require more care than others. To lessen the workload, choose plants that do well with little care. For example, annuals that reseed themselves, flowering plants that bloom continuously without deadheading or pinching, bulbs that naturalize and shrubs that require little or no pruning.

Praying mantises can in fact be beneficial to your gardens. These so called garden pests can be a great organic pest control. Praying mantises are skillful predators that trap and eat harmful insects in your garden such as: caterpillars, aphids and flies without harming your plants. If you have the imagination, you can even believe that in very rare cases praying mantises have been reported to kill small rodents.

It is important to allow cuts to completely heal before you do any gardening or to protect the cut from exposure to dirt or chemicals. It is possible for a cut to become extremely infected if it comes into contact with dirt and grim while gardening. It is possible to get bandages that will now completely seal the cut.

Pick a location in your backyard where your compost pile won’t be an eyesore to your neighbors. People don’t always understand the importance of green recycling, and might take personal offense to having a decaying pile of matter right before their noses. However, if you correctly build your compost pile it shouldn’t have a strong scent.

Growing tomatoes is easy and having fresh tomatoes at your fingertips is a real treat. However, during the growing season, you may see holes in the leaves and sometimes in the fruit which may mean the tomato plant may have hornworms. These pests are easy to see and handpicking them early in the season usually controls them.

Maintain your bulbs after they have flowered. When your bulbs have finished flowering, resist the temptation to cut down the foliage. The foliage is only present for a short time and it manufactures food for storage underground. The bulb needs this food to send up flowers the following year. Ideally, you should allow the foliage to yellow and wilt before removing it.

Plant trees with decorative fall fruit. Although fall color is normally associated with foliage, there are a number of trees that produce decorative fruit. The berries range in shade from yellow to deep red, and can last well into the winter, providing a little color in the garden and food for the birds. Good varieties include holly, crabapple, hawthorn and chokeberry.

Give your garden a boost with instant color. If your garden is looking a little dull, a quick trip to your local nursery will do the trick. There, you will find colorful annuals and perennials in full flower, waiting to be planted into the ground, a window box or a hanging basket. This is especially handy if you are entertaining, and you need to brighten up the yard, or if you are trying to sell your house. Spots of color help to make a home look inviting and cheery.

When applying mulch, lay the mulch thickest between plants, and taper the mulch down to soil level. Avoid piling the mulch against the trunks or against the stems of plants, this will invite pests, disease and dampness to the plant and may encourage mold or rot. Avoid using peat moss as mulch because it will dry out and can blow away.

As was mentioned earlier in the article, gardening can be a truly rewarding hobby. Whether it is the beauty of flowers or the fresh vegetables, the benefits are evident and never ending. By adopting some of the recommendations in this article, you can bring the joy of gardening to another level.