Episode-1211- Listener Calls for 9-20-13
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Join Me Today as I Answer Your Calls
Today on The Survival Podcast I take your calls on energy, back up power, propane, business, urban prepping, livestock, cooking, permaculture, wine making, hunting and more.
Remember to be on a show like this one just pick up your phone and call 866-65-THINK. The best way to improve your chances of being on the air is ask your question or make your point up front, then provide details.
Also please do your best to call from a quiet area with a good connection and speak up so you can be well heard. I can’t put all calls on the air but I do my best to get many of them on.
Join Me Today As I Respond to Your Calls and Discuss…
- Kerry Davis officially joins the expert council
- When does micro hydro make sense
- Thoughts on chop and drop with annuals
- Using propane, how safe is it, how awesome is it
- Thoughts on finding health care coverage when moving to a new state
- How much fat is enough, how much fat is too much in regard to paleo
- How to deal with armadillos with out killing them if typical traps are not working
- How to convince a spouse to plant a useful vs. a useless tree
- Getting started hunting for a complete newbie
- Why haven’t I started raising quail yet, and will I
- Special considerations for urban preppers
- Advice for a first time wine maker on plum wine
- Another look at last weeks question on recharging batteries
- Best options for a temporary grill and why a rocket stove isn’t the way to go
- Is synthetic oil worth the extra cost
- Will Google’s encryption aid with hindering NSA monitoring, um no!
Resources for today’s show…
- The Year 1211
- Join Our Forum
- 13Skills.com
- Join Our Forum
- Walking To Freedom
- Shop for TSP Silver
- TSP Gear
- PermaEthos.com
- The Berkey Guy – (sponsor of the day)
- JM Bullion – (sponsor of the day)
- Weber Kettle Grills
- Episode-495- The Unique Needs of the Urban and Suburban Prepper
- Episode-1130- All About Urban Homesteading
- Battery1234 Everything you need to build battery back up systems like I discussed today.
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 (866-658-4465) and you might hear yourself on the air.
Also remember we have an expert council you can address your calls to. If you do this you should email me right after your call at jack at thesurvivalpodcast.com with expert council call in the subject line. In the body of your email tell me that you just called in a question for the council and what number you called in from. I will then give the call priority when I screen calls.
Our Expert Council is Made Up of…
- Kerry Davis – Dark Angel Medical – Emergency Medicine and Life Saving Care
- Bryan Black – ITS Tactical – All Things Tactical, E&E, Lock Picking, etc.
- Frank Sharp Jr. – Fortress Defense Consultants – Weapons, Tactics and Security
- Darby Simpson – DarbySimpson.com – Livestock and Farm Management/ Homestead Consulting
- Ben Falk – Whole Systems Design – Permaculture (Specializing in North Eastern Climates)
- Paul Wheaton – Permies.com – Permaculture (Specializing in North Western Climates)
- Tim Glance – Old Grouch’s Military Surplus – Bug Out Vehicles, Military Surplus and Communications
- Stephen Harris – Solar1234 – All things Energy
- Chef Keith Snow – Harvest Eating – Cooking
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Everyone thinks Genghis was the great Conqueror, but Kublai Khan was the one that conquered all of Asia and all the way to Afghanistan.
For the caller that wanted to calculate KW’s to BTU’s this website will help with the math, if he’s still interested.
http://www.rapidtables.com/convert/power/kW_to_BTU.htm
On Armadillos, there is a huge misconception that they carry Leprosy, when in fact they are the only animals tested in labs that can contract the disease when given to them by human scientists, they don’t have this disease in the wild!
I have eaten them all my life and they are by far the best eating of any animal in the USA and I have eaten every animal in North America, they are Herbivores and every bit of their meat is WHITE meat, when BBQed they melt off the bone!
If you are trying to trap them put your live traps along the fence line, they can only see directly in front of their line of sight due to their shell, so they will walk right into the live trap, I have caught countless hundreds of them with no bait just from placing them on a fence line, but, the easiest way to kill them is walk up behind them and hit them in the head with a Axe Handle.
Cool! I’m dealing with one right now who has decided he likes my garden worms. He’s become a serious nusiance. So I built a fence around my garden (350 feet in 3 hours.. phew lots of work) and I have two traps along the fence line. So long as he goes away and hangs out in the forest, we don’t have any issues.
There is a show on History Channel called Chasing Tail where 4 dudes from NY go to Connecticut and bow hunt in rich NEIGHBORHOODS to rid them of what the rich people call “pests” and yes they hunt in tree stands in these folks back yard.
It’s pretty entertaining, I haven’t seen too many shows because I don’t watch TV often…but it’s a great idea.
Here’s a small solar system for batteries and phones for under $200, I know there might be better but it is a good ides for a very small system .
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GyxzvoPRyQ
Ohh the Jack, Cody is talking about is his small son.
The man who built this did it for Jack to learn and have fun with.
I have the PowerEx battery charger for the eneloops that Steve recommends, but I found this:
http://www.amazon.com/Powerex-MH-C9000-PowerEx-WizardOne-Charger-Analyzer/dp/B000NLUSLM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1379600517&sr=8-1&keywords=MH-C9000
I wonder if it might work with something like this since it has a 12v accessory that comes with it (so we could charge eneloops off a setup like this too.)
Yeah, I realize the other charger can charge more batteries, but it seems like the C9000 has more features that might be worth it (along with using it with a setup like this WITHOUT going through an inverter.)
If anyone thinks Microsoft, Google or Apple will change their policies to stop the government from spying on you, well your nuts! Apple has patents in place to spy on you and so do all the other big IT companies, the new I phone has finger printing capabilities to HELP YOU..LOL right! Now all the sheeple will give there fingerprints willingly to the Government without even knowing they did it, they don’t need a USA I.D. card…Apple just gave them all your info!
When Bill Gates got sued for billions back 15 years or so ago by Europe, guess what he was against the system but to keep from losing all his money he did what they told him to do and now all your info is owned by the Government and he is a part of the powers that be and they love him and paint him as a great philanthropist!
Ohh, for you Apple purist who believe Apple would never do that, Apple has a new ring and bracelet patented and ready to go that will hold all your vital info, including your credit card, bank info and finger prints so you never have to swipe a card again, just place your ring in front of the pretty light and you don’t need a pin number…I’m willing to bet people will wait in line for 3 days to get it when it comes out!
In reference to Dan on backasswards Long Island.
First thing to do, get into the hunter safety class ASAP, if you can find one open. They fill up fast. I took it a couple years ago and they were full within a day of being posted on the NY state site. You will get a lot of ideas of where to go sand how to meet people if the instructors are any good, and most are great.
In NY they are all volunteers who are certified and teach to help preserve the hunting tradition.
Once you have the basic class you have to take the bow hunting class to get the bow hunting license , another 8 hours. I still haven’t taken it yet.
You may also meet some people in the class you can go with.
You make friends and a lot of people there are getting a lisense to go with their friends and they might ask you along. On Long Island it’s tough since there isn’t a lot of deer and turkey hunting. There is some, but not as much as upstate. There is a lot of duck and goose hunting which is fantastic. Once you get your license and start talking to people you will find people to go out hunting with. I ran into a friend I hadn’t seen in about 20 years in the store about a month ago. He was insisting we go out hunting together. He’s big into duck hunting and he’s even working on starting a guide service. so you never know where opportunity may present itself.
So, get the class and license under you belt and things will progress from there.
Thanks for the tips man! Very much appreciated.
For the guy looking at a temp grill.
Take a look at making a DIY brick grill. Pick up a couple of grill grates and bricks and you are good to go.
I lucked into a few hundred bricks and have made a couple of different designs. Works great and can moved or removed with little effort.
Just started the podcast… MAN… We just got RAIN FINALLY. Woke up around 5am this morning (saturday). Its supposed to rain ALL DAY long. Thank goodness.
YESSS.. It hasn’t rained in at least 3+ weeks here. (You know in wet summer Louisiana)
Jack,
Not to nit-pick (but I guess I’m gonna nit-pick. :D)
When you were talking about fat w/carbohydrate, you said that was the only thing that would trigger a drug-like response (in eating patterns.) If a person is metabolically broken though, that same sort of thing will happen with the consumption of too much protein.
Here’s a f’r instance. When I was eating low-carb but I WASN’T ketogenic (burning fat for fuel instead of glucose), I could EASILY down a 20oz steak at a meal and be hungry within an hour or two. It was the same sort of response I’d have if I ate something sugary and fatty, although it took a little longer with the mass quantities of protein. This happens because protein is converted to glucose, and if you’re far exceeding your protein requirements for the day, you end up with a heck of a lot of glucose (as if you’d eaten fruit or grain or whatever.)
I point this out merely because a lot of folks who’re new to low-carb eating or primal eating or whatever, they think that protein is a free food. It is if you DRENCH it in fat (because the fat is limiting there), but if you have any metabolic derangement at all, that excess protein will convert to glucose, it’ll trigger an insulin response, and there’ll be hunger.
And just to be clear, my experience with eating massive quantities of protein and still being hungry isn’t an isolated thing. And when I found myself in that situation, taking my veggies down a bit and adding a LOT more additional fat (garlic butter on my meat, lard or coconut oil with my eggs, more cream) corrected the protein over-consumption issue (because it got me ketogenic.)
Regarding the whole charging batteries thing.
I’m about two seconds from calling in for a comment (if you would like me to, I’ve got no problems doing it!) Jack you and Steven Harris have hit this one out of the ballpark with your correct answers. Particularly Steve Harris with the “YOU HAVE A GENERATOR RIGHT OUTSIDE YOUR HOUSE”.
We don’t have to hypothesis on how to have energy in a breakdown, we can just look elsewhere and see EXACTLY how people are doing it right now, today. Hell lets look at MAD MAX ROAD WARRIORS WOOOO today. Lets take for example Afghanistan.
Go to the deserts of Afghanistan and EVERYONE has cellphones. They all sorts of gadgets, to include a car (only white early 90s toyoto corollas). In MOST places, they have NO POWER. Zero, zilche, nada. They don’t have power, never had power, and never will have central electricity.
Then how the heck do they have cell phones? Hint hint, toyota corolla. Shit, I couldn’t ever even find a gas station, and yet THEY HAD GAS. Afghans hook up their cellphones and other gadgets to their cars for power. Definitely not making the MOST efficient use of their gasoline/generator, but they sure as hell have power! In the “breakdown” during mad max!
But what they don’t have are expensive over the top solar panels. Solar Panels to me, only look like “two is one one is none”. One major positive is that they don’t require a ton of space for storage (they can take up alot of space, but generally not space you’re using).
Cheers
I’m wondering if anyone else is doing anything with homemade methane? I’m intending to try a small system even in my cold climate but those of you with a warmer climate have ..it seems to me, anyway, a perfect double whammy of getting rid of sewage and waste (green stuff produces even more than animal manures but you need some for nitrogen) and producing an ongoing/renewable supply of gas. The sludge which eventually needs to be removed can be used under trees or whatever, I wouldn’t put it in the veggies garden, although it’s be anaerobically digested so pathogens and such should be gone. This process is being used in thousands of households in India.
Nobody ever seems to talk about this, the only time it’s ever mentioned is in connection with Jean Pain and not everyone has access to material to make a 30 foot diameter 10 foot high compost pile, even if it does supply energy needs for a number of months.
It astonishes me that nobody ever seems to think of doing this. Why is this? It can be dangerous but then so can water heaters and many other things people deal with on a regular basis. It’ll also be a fraction of the price to install than solar panels, and not subject to breakage or weather affecting functionality, once it’s up and running.
The Urban Farm guys on YT have some vids about it
Happy Fall Equinox everyone, yesterday it rained all day here north of Houston but today it’s absolutely beautiful!
Here’s a site I just discovered, it’s like a YouTube for gun lovers!
Lot’s of preppers on YT post vids there as well as tons of other folks
http://younggunstv.com/
I’ve made plum wine. It’s thin and not my favorite but I would probably let it age two years. At two years the flavor should really mellow and clarify. After that it’ll probably keep getting better a couple years.
In general, fruit wines really don’t come into their own without a couple years aging. But let it age, it’s worth the wait.
Jack – +1 for the suggestion on an episode dedicated as a hunting primer. I’m in the same “boat” as the guy from NY – my family growing up was primarily a fishing clan. Maybe a guest speaker that specializes in hunting instruction?
About the Weber Grill go for it I bought that this summer back in June along with the charcoal start since I’m converting our old gas grill over to a forge. It was awesome this summer we literally cooked every night on it from June to the end of August. To avoiding heating up the house and it worked great. Took a while to get the cooking time and the recipes right but the grill was not the issue. Best $100 I’ve ever spent.
BTW please do that hunting episode Jack getting start with out a parent sucks. I’ve done it now twice. Once when I lived in Manitoba and now when I moved back to Ontario and man what a difference from one place to the next.
My Weber kettle story goes about 4 years ago we were rolling down a back road on the way home from town. Someone placed a used Weber on the side of the road as trash. I threw the vehicle in reverse and picked it up. In 4 years I’ve only had to replace the top grate. Prolly the best free thing I’ve ever picked up off the side of the road.
As for the fella looking to get into hunting my suggestion is to frequent online forums for his state or area. Work on establishing the relationships like Jack mentioned. I know the biggest forum here in Michigan has had meet and greats, or rather meet and hunts with other members. That could be a great way to foster the relationships further.
Best way to learn something is hands on. So spend as much time in the woods as you can, after the other things Jack mentioned. For bow hunting I was going to suggest checking out crossbows but looked it up and noticed they are not currently legal for use in the state of NY. Best of luck!
To the person asking about insurance, depending on their beliefs another option may exist. Medical sharing societies (http://personalinsure.about.com/od/health/a/aa051508a.htm) are a “non-insurance”, although this may vary by state law, that will help pay your bills, and they may negotiate lower prices for medications & services. The major ones, the only ones of which I know, are religious and have exclusivity to Christianity, but there may be others if you don’t share those beliefs.
Here are some quick numbers on Propane:
BTU per gallon 91,502
BTU per pound 21,548
In Prince Edward Island, Electricity is 15c per KWH, highest in Canada. Propane, unfortunately is 2.87 a gallon. But I use propane for my hot water, I have a Bosch on demand. I also have a 100 lb that I bought (I have three). I refuse to pay rental fees. I use 67 lbs a year for my hot water. Since winter here is long, I use my wood stove to heat water for dishes and I keep a pot on the stove for my washing machine, I was in cold, and throw in the hot water, and I get a warm wash. I trust propane, love it and wish it was cheaper here. I also have rigged up a bracket so I can run my on demand heater with a 20lb tank in the event I run out in the winter.
“I wash clothes in cold” and add hot water from stove directly into the machine for a warm water wash is what I meant to say
Since Jack will be talking about the Mongols during the history section of the show, I thought some might be interested in a much more detailed podcast. Dan Carlin does an awesome history, Hardcore History, podcast and also a libertarian leaning politics podcast called Common Sense.
http://www.dancarlin.com//disp.php/hharchive/Show-43—Wrath-of-the-Khans-I/Mongols-Genghis-Chingis
I would Love to hear Jack interview Dan by the way.
@modernsurvival
Thanks for taking my call on EcoZoom (and confirming my “fear”).
@canprep & @pchitti
Love the Weber. I’ve been cooking on one for a year while squatting at my parents. I also plan to build a little brick rocket out in the backyard. My boys & I built one at my last house on which we created anti-paleo marshmallows/chocolate/graham goodness.
I flaked on my call in the interest of speed. My three kids keep me busy enough that the Weber only gets used on weekends. Since the EZ is a rocket stove (should’ve been a clue for me 🙂 ) and won’t support grilling, I’m really looking for an option that I can get going quickly so I can grill during the week. Any opinions from Jack or the community on the all-in-one gas/charcoal grill/smokers?
I had a Brinkmann in college and got really good results with everything from beer can chicken over charcoal to smoked ham/turkey over gas/lava rocks/water bath. Since I made the call I’ve been looking at the Masterbuilt M7P (fry/grill/smoke with propane/charcoal) since the grill is about 2 inches larger in diameter (18.5″). All of these options are in the mid $100-$200 range, so I’m trying to determine if the quality in these things is still there. My Brinkmann was built like a tank (though my roommate did rust out the fryer grate by leaving it burning on high with 2 tanks connected in parallel over a weekend). It is a bit smaller (D=16.5″) than the Masterbuilt.
My gut tells me these multi-fuel grills are a pretty good redundancy once I build my outdoor kitchen, but it’s been 15 years since I had one.
In response to,
“Any opinions from Jack or the community on the all-in-one gas/charcoal grill/smokers?”
Answer – don’t do it. Gas grills should be dedicated gas grills. The combo stuff is big, bulky and built cheap.
If I wanted to set up to charcoal grill, smoke and do gas I would do what I have done.
Gas Grill – Charbroil inferred with cast iron grill tops. I have a small one because in Arkansas Dorothy and I almost never cooked for company. I would go with any good top end one, these are investments, don’t be cheap. This is what I own, http://www.charbroil.com/grills/tru-infrared-grills/char-broil-performance-t-22d-model-463270613.html I replaced the grill tops with cast irons and god but that grill is perfection when it comes to cooking. One day I may break down and buy a bigger one, or more likely a second one this size. I did just cook brats and burgers for 9 and it was big enough for the job.
For grilling/smoking get a GOOD and that means heavy side box smoker. Don’t go cheap if you do the paint will burn right off the first time you fire up the fire box. This is what I just bought and I love it, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVxbCz0ukMY
With that I can cook 2 pork shoulders and 2 briskets at one time and could still sneak in some sausage rings. I can smoke low or high temps, the control of the fire box is amazing because it is BIG, you want a big fire box. I can grill on the fire box. The bottom slides out and makes ash removal easy.
I am a grill nut and I have destroyed many grills, that taught me to buy quality. If I wanted to do this on a budget this is my advice.
1. Get a weber kettle grill again only 100-150 depending on options. YOU CAN SMOKE with a webber, keep the fire low, add wet wood and cook on the indirect side of the heat.
2. Get the Charbroil I mention above, see if you can find it with cast grills, if not buy the cast grills. Home Depot, Lowes, etc may be putting a lot of these on clearance soon with winter coming.
3. If you want a dedicated smoker get something like this, http://amzn.to/15m58Ev they are not bullet proof like the webbers or a big side box with heavy metal but they are damn good. The control is very good, you can grill as well but that will reduce life. One reason these can and do last for years is if only used to smoke the temps are kept low except when establishing a bed of coals.
In any event get proper covers or tarp them when not in use. Or keep them under cover like on a porch or something. May be I should do a show on grills and smokers?
i would love a hunting 101 show. i want to start hunting as well but have never had anyone to teach me. the answers to the caller were great, and i think a whole show expanding on a lot of the basics would be really great.
I ran some number quick on the economics of the propane vs electric furnace using his costs. Looking at a new 95% efficient name brand furnace, I came out at $.174/10,000 BTUs for propane. Electric furnaces are basically 100% efficient and came out at $.205/10,000 BTUs at the $.07/KWh. Initial install cost is most likely more for the propane, but he did say it wasn’t a concern for him. Of course, the furnace will still need power to operate. But that could be taken care of with a smaller generator then an electric furnace would require, and he could even hook up his generator to run off of propane.
Jack,
Im a little behind in listening this week, but I am just getting into hunting. I live in NC and have recently taken the hunters safety course. I am looking for tips on hunting public land. Thanks for everything you do.
Public land is difficult to hunt. It depends if you are hunting archery or firearm season. Look for the spots that the other guys overlook. Everyone thinks they have to go deep in the woods to find the deer, but I have often found the deer using natural funnels near the edges of the properties. Often these spots are close to road crossings and fence rows. The most important thing is to get in and out with little to no detection, from the deer. Get in early and let the other guys push the deer to you when the deer is heading the opposite way.
Yea it is different everywhere but you can never go wrong with funnels, that is unless there are 40 yardbirds wearing blaze orange smoking cigarettes and drinking coffee all around you.
This is why I like bow hunting. Bow hunters don’t do this crap.
FWIW I shot my first buck in a funnel. The area was only about 20 yards wide. My uncle and I were on stands, he was south of me by about 1000 yards. My dad came though about 2 hours after first ling from the north to push deer to us. He got to me but no deer.
I stayed on stand and he continued down to my uncle. A deer doubled back on him, from his stand my uncle saw the deer (a spike buck) “lay down like a rabbit” and let my father pass him. He of course headed my way. My uncle said he thought, well buddy you are dead.
So about 10 minutes later he gets to me and I blew his heart literally out with my old mans 760 30-06. By this time my uncle had gotten off stand and he and the old man just stood there waiting for a shot.
This was a proud day not due to the deer but due to what they told me was said at the sound of the shot.
Oldman – “that was the kid”
Uncle – “and the kid don’t miss, lets go pick up dinner”
I was 14 and had taken my first deer with a bow about two months prior, this was the last day of buck season, it was about 7 degrees out and I had hunted to the end every day.
You know it just doesn’t get much better than that at 14.
cool story jack! nothing like getting that first one down, as a child or adult. You are right. If you want to “hunt” learn to bow hunt. It will make you a more skilled all around hunter. I enjoyed your comments about squirrel hunting and trap shooting in the podcast. They refine your skills as well.
How to deal with armadillos with out killing them if typical traps are not working. I have found that they go where the food is. They tend to dig for bugs, mostly grubs. Think about how to get rid of the food they are coming after vs ridding yourself of the armadillo itself. They also like the lawn that has been watered, when everything else is dry. I hope this helps.
100% agree with you about the quail. Just an element in a system that serves multiple functions, but those functions can be better served in other situations by other elements. If I had the option I would run chickens/ducks/geese in a paddock shift.
I was actually graduating a batch while listening to the podcast on Friday. I’m meeting a fellow TSPer this weekend to trade my home grown quail and rabbits for his pork 🙂
Couple of resource links for those interested:
Thread I started.
http://thesurvivalpodcast.com/forum/index.php?topic=42900.0
Presentation I put together about it.
http://prezi.com/kssuytlqgjs4/raising-quail-for-meat-and-eggs/
Other TSPers jumping in.
http://thesurvivalpodcast.com/forum/index.php?topic=41918.0
Not micro-hydro, but relevant I think… the city of Denver has a pair of reservoirs that they use as a sort of giant battery. Especially during the summer when electricity use peaks during the day, they use water from the top one to turn generators as the water descends into the bottom reservoir. Then late at night, when they can buy power really cheap from other states, they reverse the generators, using them as pumps to put the water back in the top reservoir. You might be able to make use of something similar with micro hydro by using a small solar or wind setup to (slowly) pump water into a high “battery” pond, then release the water only when you don’t have good wind or solar to provide power. Obviously, you’d have to have a setup that would facilitate this. If you had a wet-weather creek, you might also conceivably use a ram-pump to fill a high reservoir pond or some combination of all the above.
Just some brainstorming that the show brought out. See I have this pond my property looks out over, which is pretty far up a hill, and might work for something like this (including the wet-weather-only stream). Sadly, it lies on 106 acres priced at $300k+ which simply isn’t in the cards for me. But I can dream. 🙂 If we had TEOTWAWKI I’d be tempted to start experimenting. Just say’n…
Dave (TwoCorOne8b11)
Jack…You mentioned your big generator. What brand and size do you own?
+1 for a “how to get started hunting” show.
I’ve shot for a long time, never hunted, but want to learn.
Also have a 9 yr-old who wants to start someday.
Definitely interested in more info!
DK
(late listening, but hope this helps someone) For a primer on hunting, I recommend Jack Landers’ book “The Locavore’s guide to hunting deer for food”
http://www.amazon.com/Beginners-Guide-Hunting-Deer-Storey/dp/1603427287
I took this as a class from him here in Charlottesville and the book is basically the class. It covers firearms, tracking, hunting, field cleaning, butchering, and cooking. Here’s my photos from the class:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/boboroshi/sets/72157623487876422/
I just took my first deer this year and had the book next to me to go through both field cleaning and butchering.
John (Boboroshi)
John,
Interesting-looking book, thanks!
Appreciate all the photos from your class, too. I wonder if anyone’s doing something like that around here (western WA)… lots of interest in eating local, I’d bet it’d be some good incremental teaching and guide business for someone.
Have a good holiday,
David