Preparedness involves a lot. One of the skills that sets true preppers apart is taking something old and reusing it wisely. Learning a few tricks now, while your computer still turns on, will be a huge plus down the road.
Here are a few environmentally friendly ways to reuse the junk you find.
Newspapers and/or Junk Mail
First, get your newspapers wet and let excess water drip off. (This will allow you to get a tighter roll.) Then roll them very tightly into logs and secure with twine or rope. These make great logs to jump-start your fire and will actually burn longer than you expect.
Plastic Bottles
There’s a lot you can do with plastic two liter bottles.
- You can use them to build an irrigation system for your garden.
- If you have collected numerous bottles with lids, check them for integrity and if they are intact, use them to build a raft (or at least a life jacket) to help you get mobile on the water. Don’t be a fool though – this is not something that can handle rapids.
- If you have a bunch of lids from 2 liter bottles, connect them to make a mat to sit and sleep on.
- Use clear PET bottles to clean questionable water via solar disinfection.
Beer Bottle Lid or Glass Soda Bottle Lid
Nail the lid (or otherwise attach it) to a thick stick and use it to scrape the scales off fish.
Empty Pill Bottles
Use them to safely store your mini bug-out kits or first aid kits. They will keep your matches, medications, band-aids and candles from getting wet.
Aluminum Cans
These make great tea pots, cooking pots and dishes. You can also cut the can in half lengthwise, bend or cut off one of the semi-circles on each half and attach a handle to make 2 small shovels to help you dig for roots if you are bugging out. Also, if you are working on building shelter, aluminum cans can be used to strengthen walls or can be cut and flattened to create aluminum roof shingles. Not to mention, they work wonders in scaring critters away from your garden.
Lint
Yes, save your lint! It is a great tinder, especially when combined with vaseline.
Soda Cans
Soda cans are incredibly useful. You can use them to start a fire, to create an oil lamp and a wind-resistant candle holder. You can even cut them up to make a solar oven.
Stainless Steel Ruler
Hopefully, you have plenty of survival knives. But if you happen to have a stainless steel ruler, you can sharpen it, wrap some rope or paracord on one side and turn it into a survival knife.
Old Tires
If you happen to find old tires, you are in luck. They are great for building garden beds, compost bins and even shelter.
Looking for more prepping wisdom? Join the United Survivalists Association (USA) and discover other ways to make your own survival gear.
To your survival,
Joseph Wilkinson
