Off-Grid Living

emergency kitchen

Prepper to Prepper: How to Set Up An Emergency Kitchen

May 27, 2022 / 3 Comments

With all of the disasters that have happened lately, many families have been without electricity and experiencing the joys of cooking and serving meals to their families in spite of the challenges. Others have electricity but not a full kitchen to work in. Their homes may be safe enough to live in, but without electricity, they can’t use some of the appliances in the kitchen. I asked my Facebook readers to share their experiences and advice about setting up an …

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Getting Started With Solar Cooking

June 30, 2022 / 17 Comments

How long can you go without craving a hot, homemade meal, if you have been eating only cold rations and snacks?  If you’ve ever been without power for more than just a couple of days, eating cold ravioli or tuna out of the can gets really old, really fast. Most survival minded people realize, better than most, that it doesn’t take much to disrupt the flow of electricity we depend on for cooking. A natural disaster or freak weather event …

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diy fresnel lens

Survival Mom DIY: Build Your Own Fresnel Lens

May 28, 2020 / 6 Comments

The story of my DIY Fresnel lens began three years ago when I lost my house and all its contents in a fire. It started around 4:00 a.m. when my daughter got up and fluffed her job uniform in the dryer. We had no idea the dryer would short out and burn through a gas line. Later that same morning, I woke up and smelled smoke. It looked a bit hazy in the house, and it smelled acrid to me, so I woke …

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primitive camping

Learn Primitive Camping Skills

June 15, 2022 / 11 Comments

I know what you’re thinking. “There’s no way I’m going to camp out in the wilderness in a tent!” “I’m too old to pee in the woods. I need a comfy and sanitary bathroom!” “Primitive camping is living out of our RV.” Well, those are valid points and I understand the need for creature comforts and toilet seats! However,  hear me out. Learning and practicing camping skills is an important part of being prepared. It’s doesn’t have to cost a …

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52 Weeks Savings: June Brings Sunshine and Summer Deals

November 30, 2020 / Leave a Comment

In June, we celebrate summer, Father’s, graduations, weddings and Flag Day. It marks the halfway point of the year and on the 25th, it will only be six months until Christmas! Maybe this is the month to start making a holiday gift list and begin looking for bargain-priced gifts, well before the shopping rush begins. There are loads of great June sales and bargains. Here’s what we’ve tracked down for you. Food sales June is National Dairy Month, which means there …

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3 Powerless cookers you can make using scraps!

May 28, 2020 / 25 Comments

You may have enough food stored away to get you through a disaster, but do you have a way to cook it? I was feeling pretty confident about my supply of food, until the power went out for 2 weeks! I quickly realized it’s pointless having food if you don’t have a way to cook it (unless you enjoy eating dried pasta and beans). To truly be a Survival Mom you need to take the next step and figure out a way …

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The Global Sun Oven review

November 30, 2020 / 529 Comments

When asked which solar cooker oven I recommend, I always mention the Global Sun Oven. It was the very first solar oven I owned and it shows plenty of wear and tear. It’s more expensive than other versions, but its designers came up with creative solutions to common issues that made solar cooking more challenging than it needed to be. Now, this oven has been re-designed with a few more bells and whistles and the interior can now easily handle …

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DIY Solar Cookers

May 28, 2020 / 8 Comments

This is a guide to different kinds of solar cookers. I’ve worked with these fun little devices myself, on models used by NGO’s (Non-Governmental Organizations) to help feed the poor in Africa. Solar cookers are cheap to make and need only sunlight to cook food or purify water. With all the direct sunlight Africa receives, this is a good fit. They also reduce deforestation, and the hazards that come from having wood stoves in densely populated areas. But solar cookers …

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Power when there’s no power: Buying tips for your first generator

January 18, 2022 / 22 Comments

We all have had times when our power has gone out due to some natural or manmade disaster.  If you have any sort of frozen food stored, you definitely want to prolong its freshness in addition to carrying on your life as normal as possible. So what do you do? Getting a generator is one of many options. Lots of people have them and they are great for short-term disturbances in the power grid such as storms, fires, etc. Additionally, …

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The BioLite CampStove Review

May 28, 2020 / 13 Comments

Millions of Americans remember well the power outages that occurred in the summer of 2012. They quickly found out how difficult life can be without lights, refrigeration, or a way to cook food. For years, I’ve been stressing the need to have at least 2 methods of cooking food and heating water in case of a power outage. These alternatives should be: 1.  Fuel efficient. If your power is out and you’re looking for fuel for your camp stove or …

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