Tag Archives: homestead

Episode-824- Dan Vamos from Homestead Dividends

Posted on January 18, 2012 by Modern Survival| 26 Comments
Episode-824- Dan Vamos from Homestead Dividends [ 1:08:21 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Dan Vamos is many things.  A father, an English teacher, a homesteader, a DIY enthusiast, a prepper and a patriotic American.  He has also been listening to The Survival Podcast for a very long time, all the way back to the podcasting from the car days.

Along the way he founded a website called, “Homestead Dividends”, designed to help the average person transform their home into a true homestead and get more out of their homes both while living in them and when it comes time to sell them.

Join Dan and I Today as we Discuss…

  • What are some ways to get the most out your house or residence
  • What should you do to make your house start working for you
  • What are some ways to waterproof a basement
  • What are some common mistakes people make when working on their house
  • Why should I start planting permafood right away
  • Why start with small trees and plants
  • How a three-ring binder can help in selling your house
  • How you can have a “pick-up truck? without owning one
  • Why Dan cashed in a retirement accounts to buy a home

Resources for Today’s Show…

Remember to comment, chime in and tell us your thoughts, this podcast is one man’s opinion, not a lecture or sermon. Also please enter our listener appreciation contest and help spread the word about our show. Also remember you can call in your questions and comments to 866-65-THINK and you might hear yourself on the air.

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Episode-311- Things to Consider When Buying Rural Land

Posted on November 5, 2009 by Modern Survival| 7 Comments
Episode-311- Things to Consider When Buying Rural Land [ 45:32 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Well I still have country living on the brain after our recent trip to our BOL and soon to be primary residence in Arkansas.  I have also gotten a tremendous number of requests lately to evaluate property listings as potential BOLs, retreats and homesteads.  It is honestly almost impossible to really know a property from just a listing, they are simply starting points.  So I decided to do this show with some general things to consider when making such a personal decision such as purchasing land or a  home.

Tune is Today as I Discuss…

  • Remote is a relative term
  • Water, got it, don’t got it, what’s it gonna cost
  • The advantages of unimproved and unincorporated land
  • Service from a government comes at a cost, which is more valuable to you freedom or “services”
  • Who is going with you, you can’t be happy if your family is miserable
  • Gates, the simple solution to BS excuses like “I was lost, not trespassing”
  • The value of good neighbors
  • Talk to neighbors BEFORE you buy
  • Pick a community you fit into, don’t try to change one

Resources for today’s show…

Remember to comment, chime in and tell us your thoughts, this podcast is one man’s opinion, not a lecture or sermon. Also please enter our listener appreciation contest and help spread the word about our show

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Episode-287- Advantages of Homesteading Small Land Tracts

Posted on September 30, 2009 by Modern Survival| 5 Comments
Episode-287- Advantages of Homesteading Small Land Tracts [ 48:34 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is the first time I have ever fully covered the topic of homesteading small land tracts (1-2 acres) and many of their inherent advantages.  I think today will be a great show and get you thinking and may be rethinking that “place in the country”.

I also wanted to let you know about a new product from Ready Made Resources called the LIFESAVER® Bottle 4000 which is the only filter that can filter all bacteria and virus from water.  While you are at Ready Made’s site make sure to sign up for their drawing to win a free Columbia River M21-14SF M21 Special Forces- Combo Edge Knife

Tune in today as we discuss…

  • The ease of small land management
  • Improving soil on poor land is much easier on a small scale
  • Smaller tracts have lower tax burdens
  • Small tracts are easy and inexpensive to fully fence or mostly fence in
  • 1 Acre can provide more food then most people can use
  • It is easy to install “impactful surface water”
  • You quickly can learn the “pulse of your land”
  • Small land tracts are easier to defend if necessary
  • In a rural area under some circumstances small may still feel big
  • Consider buying land that borders conservation land, state forest or land that is not suited for development
  • Consider how the land lays out, a narrow strip is not as useful as mostly square plot
  • Consider the direct and indirect community before you buy
  • No HOAs, ever they are the Devil!  I am not kidding
  • Seek land unlikely to be annexed or effected by imminent domain

Resources for today’s show…

Remember to comment, chime in and tell us your thoughts, this podcast is one man’s opinion, not a lecture or sermon. Also please enter our listener appreciation contest and help spread the word about our show.

You also now can call in questions or comments for the host at 866-65-THINK, (866-658-4465) please read the suggestions for calling in before you do for the best chance of getting your comments on the air.

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Episode-270- Action Time For The Fall Garden

Posted on September 4, 2009 by Modern Survival| 6 Comments
Episode-270- Action Time For The Fall Garden [ 41:54 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

A few weeks ago we discussed “getting ready for fall” but now with the fall equinox only 20 days away it is time to take action.  There is a lot to do as we head into fall, many see the fall as the end of the gardening season but with a few steps it can be the very best time of the year for your homestead and garden activities.

Tune in today as we discuss…

  • Now is the time to start harvesting some of your seed stock
  • Consider taking cuttings before the first killing frost and work on cloning over the winter
  • Is it time to build that green house you keep talking about
  • Plant peas and fava beans they are very cold hardy and add variety to the fall/winter mix
  • The heavy hitters of the fall/winter garden – corn salad, lettuce, lambs quarters, spinach, broccoli and more
  • Now is the time to build new beds
  • It is also time to select an end of life time for some plants
  • Start seeds to take the place of plants with only a few weeks left
  • Try digging up some peppers this year

Resources for today’s show…

Remember to comment, chime in and tell us your thoughts, this podcast is one man’s opinion, not a lecture or sermon. Also please enter our listener appreciation contest and help spread the word about our show.

You also now can call in questions or comments for the host at 866-65-THINK, (866-658-4465) please read the suggestions for calling in before you do for the best chance of getting your comments on the air.

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Episode-265- An Interview with Johnny Maxx and The Queen

Posted on August 26, 2009 by Modern Survival| 5 Comments
Episode-265- An Interview with Johnny Maxx and The Queen [ 46:57 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Tune in today for an interview with Johnny Maxx and The Queen, (aka John and Tammy McKissack) who are the host of “The Self Sufficient Homestead” and co hosts of “BrewCrazy“.

Join in today as we discuss a variety fo subjects and projects John and Tammy are working on in at their south Texas homestead such as…

  • What is up with today’s bumper music
  • Hydroponics
  • The perpetual onion
  • Making “lazy mans cider”
  • Keeping bees and making mead
  • Why debt free is the way to be
  • What dealing with multiple hurricanes taught them
  • The cost of running a generator over a few weeks
  • Why savings really matter when the chips are down
  • Price gouging in a SHTF
  • Keeping chickens
  • Alternative energy
  • And of course a little bit about beer

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Episode-229- Do You Have a Home or a Homestead

Posted on June 26, 2009 by Modern Survival| 12 Comments
Episode-229- Do You Have a Home or a Homestead [ 44:17 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Today we cover a bit of everything today with some users questions and comments address, some news going on with Jim Rodgers and dig deep into the concept of turning a home into a homestead today.

Tune in today to hear…

  • Should you buy Rubles or Canadian Dollars, what does Jim Rogers think
  • If you live in London Jim Rogers says “If you’re in London you’re in the wrong place at the wrong time… You gotta move east.”  what does that mean for you and me?
  • China’s government might block the purchase of Hummer, what is up with that?
  • Vote to get me on Freedom Watch (vote here)
  • What was the original homestead creation like
  • Does your grass produce anything for you
  • How many hours a day do you work to cool/heat your home
  • What does the BRIC alliance have to do with your need for a homestead
  • Is there enough room for 2-3 million new small farms?  Yes!
  • How can small farms benefit the whole nation not just the homesteaders
  • My last word on the term sheeple and why I use it and will continue to
  • Does the economy need to always grow, is that even reasonable
  • What does your home provide back to you, how much input is required
  • How do you plant with out digging, simple don’t dig, seriously
  • Who is today’s modern survivalist are people beginning to realize who he/she is
  • Why you have your own answers already, just ask the right questions

Resources for Today’s Show

Remember to comment, chime in and tell us your thoughts, this podcast is one man’s opinion, not a lecture or sermon. Also please enter our listener appreciation contest and help spread the word about our show.

You also now can call in questions or comments for the host at 866-65-THINK, (866-658-4465) please read the suggestions for calling in before you do for the best chance of getting your comments on the air.

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Episode-128- Turning a Home into a Homestead

Posted on January 23, 2009 by Modern Survival| 8 Comments
Episode-128- Turning a Home into a Homestead [ 43:16 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is a topic we discussed in the past and I thought it was time to do it again.  Time to ask yourself a question, “does your home provide for you or do you provide for it”?

Tune in today to hear….

  • Make sure to call in your questions and comments to 866-65-THINK
  • We have more gear for the Listener Appreciation Contest from SOE Tactical Gear
  • What is the main difference between a house that owns you and a home stead
  • What to look for when buying a home today
  • Things you had to buy before leaving back during the hay day of homesteading
  • Thoughts on gardening and permaculture
  • A 48 Hour ‘What If’ project
  • Thoughts on energy efficiency in the home
  • Thoughts on solar and wind energy
  • The real difference we have lost in how we view our homes and the one thing that will NEVER let your home become a homestead

Remember to comment, chime in and tell us your thoughts, this podcast is one man’s opinion, not a lecture or sermon. Also please enter our listener appreciation contest and help spread the word about our show.

You also now can call in questions or comments for the host at 866-65-THINK, please read the suggestions for calling in before you do for the best chance of getting your comments on the air.

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Episode-80 The Perfect Survivalist Homestead Retreat

Posted on October 24, 2008 by Modern Survival| 10 Comments
Episode-80 The Perfect Survivalist Homestead Retreat [ 45:30 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Today we will explore some of the often considered as well as the often over looked characteristics that make up a perfect homestead for the survival minded individual in modern times.

Tune in today to hear…

  • How “perfect” is possible but different for each family or individual
  • The system of checks and balances that applies to all real estate choices
  • The difference between a home with a job attached an just a homestead
  • The importance of water availability on property and thoughts on ponds, wells, etc.
  • Considering potential for both permaculture and argriculture
  • Small Farm, Hobby Farm or Just a Garden -think about it
  • Calculate your total cost of ownership before you buy
  • Evaluation of the potential for annexation and increased taxes
  • Considering insurance costs and requirements
  • Distances from services, support and friends and family
  • Off grid advantages and disadvantages
  • The potential to run or operate a business or work from home
  • Realistic cost reductions and unrealistic ones as well
  • What is your version of my “back yard rifle range” – make sure you can have it
  • Thoughts on being a good neighbor when moving to a new community

Remember to comment, chime in and tell us your thoughts, this podcast is one man’s opinion, not a lecture or sermon. Also please enter our listener appreciation contest and help spread the word about our show.

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Episode-20- From Home to Homestead

Posted on July 22, 2008 by Modern Survival| 2 Comments
Episode-20- From Home to Homestead [ 37:01 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Today in America despite the mortgage meltdown and other economic problems more people then ever own their own homes. The problem though is we have gone from a nation of Homesteaders to a nation of debt laden home owners, ownership is not even the correct term. Mortgage has turned into long term rental for many. In today’s show we discuss…

  • How to turn your home from a consumer to producer
  • How buying regional can lead to more independence
  • Elimination of debt as part of homesteading
  • The best crops to begin gardening with
  • How growing food can lead to freedom
  • How a mortgage was NOT part of the original homesteading process
  • Making your home provide for you vs. you having to provide for your home
  • How solar and green energy can help you be more independent
  • The salmonella scare and genetically altered plants are yet another reason to “grow your own”
  • How the Internet is helping us all reconnect and inspire each other
  • The “smaller home concept” and even how to adapt it to a large home
  • Tossing a bit of politics in, does the media favor Obama? What do you think?

Don’t forget to sign up for our listener appreciation contest and comment, suggest and let me know what you want to hear more about.

Links and Resources for this Podcast

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