If you’re like me you always seem to have more sharp tools around the house than proper fitting protective covers for them. A large number of the bargain knives I routinely find at yard sales and flea markets are purchased without sheathes, and other common cutting tools like scissors and chisels rarely wear point or edge protectors, anyway. Even so, I always feel better when my sharp tools have their blades or bits protected one way or another, so I usually end up fashioning something suitable for this purpose.
Homesteading
Homestead Report From The Nova Scotia Coast
I’d like to give everyone an update on the big move from the wilderness of Saskatchewan to the Nova Scotia coast. Although we had a few breakdowns along the way, I was able to drive the big truck across with all our worldly possessions and we arrived safe and sound on April 13th. Then we had a decision to make. Where were we going to call home? We owned a couple pieces of land, each with their positive and negative points. One property was boat access only. Well, we had just come from float plane access only and we wanted to make life just a little easier so we ruled out the boat access property. We looked at our other property and ultimately decided to make our homestead on this piece.
What did you do to prep this week?
It’s been a rainy but also hot and humid week here on the Tennessee Cumberland Plateau aka The Prepper Redoubt Of The East and no I don’t have hidden motives nor am I trying to sell you any prepper property here, just letting you know that there are other alternatives for “safe areas” besides moving to the northwest, but I digress.
Many of you have asked for a homestead update so instead of the usual preps for the week, I’m going to use this segment to give you all an update on what I’ve done in the past ten months that I’ve been here at the new homestead/retreat.
Homestead Frugality
This month I thought I would touch on a couple of money saving tips and a few money making tips, living on a fixed income does have its depressing moments. But with a bit of thought and some possible foresight and planning, those bumps or potholes can be smoothed over.
Just the other day I was in a group conversation about mowing and all of the various plants that grow in my yard. Among those are dandelion, bitter lettuce, and yarrow. In the span of 20 minutes, I had people who wanted to buy or trade for these “weeds” this is fine with me. I can harvest from the yard before I mow let them dry in the carport they mail the plants to the folks that want them. Granted it’s not a lot of cash, but to let it build up as a sort of emergency fund it’s surprising how much money can accumulate in a short time.
How To Raise Chicks: How To Get Hens To Adopt Mail Order or Feed Store Chicks
If you have ever raised day old chicks from the feed store or by mail order you know that it is a hassle. You have to monitor them all the time, check the temperature of the brooder and in general be their mommy until they are old enough to go in with the adult birds. Not to mention heat lamps are notorious for starting fires!
In contrast, a mother hen does all that and more! She keeps the chicks at a perfect temperature all the time, babysits them to perfection, teaches them how to find food and what to eat, and defends them aggressively against any threat, including other chickens!
How to Build a Chicken Coop (Easy Step By Step Plans)
We have used many things for chicken coops over the years. A garage, dog crates, pet carriers, pens constructed from insulation panels, scrap wood, and mismatched cuts of wire fencing, plastic, and whatever else could keep chickens contained. It was a shantytown for poultry but it did the job.
With a change of residency came the opportunity to actually construct a coop that would be something I could stand in, walk through, and not worry about it falling over. Being a thrifty type, using an old travel camper that was on our property seemed like the only natural choice.
The 1970s-era camper was fairly gutted but still had some remnants that needed to go. We took out the remaining lights, shelving and extras, and then The Man of the Place built a frame on each side to create a ledge. We put leftover roofing steel on the front of each, to cover that underneath. These ledges were for roosting or feed or whatever. We used the top of the air conditioner box to hold a roosting rail, fastening it across to the other side of the wall. We had to put a bracing wood underneath, bolting that in. For the seating, that was pretty much it.
Emergency Power Alternatives Made Simple Part II
Battery Bank / Power Inverter (READ PART ONE HERE –EMERGENCY POWER ALTERNATIVES MADE SIMPLE Part I Solar Panels and Charge Controller) By Robert B – http://keepingupwiththepreppers.blogspot.com/ The battery bank is the most important component of your system. Once the sun goes down, the battery bank will provide electricity throughout the night if built correctly. The […]
Our Off The Grid Solar System
This is a follow up to a reader’s question I received from a previous post. As a reminder, my wife and I are the couple living alone 100 miles in the Canadian bush. Back around 1980, when I first started on my off-grid journey, both money and experience were in short supply. One might say I was young and clueless. Nonetheless, I set out to homestead in northern Maine and I outfitted my cabin with an off grid setup which was so small it bordered on the absurd. I had one small solar panel, small charge controller and a car battery. I planned to power a car radio and tiny TV.
