A (2:57)

Right. That's his purpose.

B (2:58)

It puts a light protective film on knives, saws, axes, garden tools, whatever you're going to store. If you'll put a light coat of WD40 on there, it helps prevent that rust. But here's one that a lot of.

A (3:13)

People aren't aware of and that is, it's a gunk remover. You know what gunk is? Gunk stuff you want removed. Yeah, exactly. Residue like glue from labels or even pine SAP falling from the tree. Tar sticker glue. It can get on containers and even the vehicle exteriors. A lot of times just hot water or scrubbing isn't going to get that sticker.

B (3:34)

Bumper sticker, try to get a bumper sticker off.

A (3:36)

But you spray some WD40 on that bad boy and it's going to slide right off.

B (3:40)

It will. So that's a good use for that as well. Now here's one. And fire starting.

A (3:48)

Oh, yeah.

B (3:50)

And now this is not something that we want to spray on an open fire.

A (3:53)

No. Because WD40 is very flammable. But that's exactly the reason you're about to tell us that it works.

B (3:59)

Well, yes, for fire starting. You can spray it on your tinder.

A (4:02)

Yeah.

B (4:03)

You can just spritz a little bit down there and it just helps that flame catch to that tender, you know.

A (4:09)

Even if it's damp. That's interesting to know.

B (4:12)

Yes. Now, WD40 was developed as water displacement and as a solvent, not as a long term lubricant.

A (4:19)

That's what the WD stands for.

B (4:21)

Right. Water Displacement Formula 40. So if you use it to free up parts or whatever, but something that needs lubricating, follow it up with a good grease or your preferred lubrication if you want to have that lasting effect on the moving parts.

A (4:40)

Yeah, the WD40 is like a short term quick fix.

B (4:43)

And.

A (4:43)

But I see what you're saying. You've got to follow up with the, with your tools.

B (4:47)

And right now you can use it to keep the rust off your tools. You don't have to grease your tool.

A (4:53)

No, that's true. That's true.

B (4:54)

But if you're using it for moving parts, once you get them all freed up and such, then you want to lubricate those with a good lubricant.

A (5:02)

I remember seeing my dad go after some stuck bolts and nuts and bolts and he'd pop some of that. WD40 has that little red straw, you know, that you can put it in a tight spot.

B (5:14)

It's a penetrating oil.

A (5:15)

Yeah.

B (5:16)

Which is a good reason not to use it as a gun lubricant because it can penetrate around the primers.

A (5:23)

Yeah, that would be a. No, no, no. Good.

B (5:27)

You don't want to hear click when you expect to hear bang.

A (5:30)

Okay, so yeah, proper use of WD40 and do respect it. Like you said, highly flammable. Use it cautiously and very properly. Now let's move on to something else that's a common thing. How about a shower curtain or like a simple tarp? You know, people would use a tarp outside to cover a vehicle or a grill or something like that, or extra shower curtain hanging around. But you know, this ordinary common item could be used as a makeshift shelter.

B (5:56)

Yes, it can. And that's why we have them in our car. Is that. Well, there's several reasons we have them in the car, but one is for making an emergency shelter if we needed to. You can also use it as a rain catcher.

A (6:09)

You sure could.

B (6:10)

You can just fashion that in such a way that it catches the rain and funnels it down to a container.

A (6:16)

Absolutely. Something else that's very, very practical and very common and ordinary is steel wool pads. You know, we use them to scrub our nasty pots and pans in the sink. But you could actually use steel wool as a fire starter. Explain how that happens.

B (6:31)

Just, you need a battery and get that current going through that steel wool. Put it across a 9 volt battery. Just touch it across a 9 volt battery, give it a second and it will flame up.

A (6:42)

Get out of here.

B (6:43)

Yeah, it's good for fire starter.

A (6:45)

That would be fun to travel like with the kids science reality.

B (6:50)

And you can do it with other batteries by putting a wire on there, even a gym clip safety pin or something.

A (6:58)

But you don't have to do that with a 9 volt. You can just touch.

B (7:01)

Well, the 9 volt, the terminals are what, 3/4 of an inch apart? Yeah, you just put it across there.

A (7:08)

Okay, cool.

B (7:09)

You can also use it as rodent control.

A (7:11)

This is something that we've done over the years. Sometimes in your home, like under your sink cabinets or bathroom cabinets, there may be small holes in the wall where piping and plumbing has gone through. And it's just. You think it's so tiny. Nothing can get through. Let me tell you, a mouse can get through there.

B (7:27)

Yes. And they're great for keeping the chipmunks and the squirrels out of the garage.

A (7:33)

Okay.

B (7:34)

Poke it up there in the vent holes and stuff.

A (7:36)

That's important because a lot of folks will put their prepper food storage or gear storage in a basement or a garage or an outbuilding and then they get that rodent problem.

B (7:45)

Right.

A (7:46)

And they'll chew right through a grain bucket.

B (7:48)

Yeah. And I keep it out there in the shop to use it for sanding as well in your final sanding stages on some things.

A (7:55)

Smart.

B (7:56)

And I have taken it and stuffed it into holes in the garage to keep squirrels out.

A (8:01)

Yeah, because I guess they just don't want to be biting through there.

B (8:03)

They don't want to bite through it. They don't want it touching their skin. It's very abrasive. So.

A (8:09)

And it's non toxic.

B (8:10)

It's non toxic. And steel wool is a very good thing to keep on hand for various purposes.

A (8:16)

Something else that I know you carry everywhere you go in your everyday carry is a bandana. And of course, obviously, is like you could wrap it around your neck, soak it in water, keep cool, wrap it around your head. Those are the natural uses for a bandana. But what are some other ways we can use it?

B (8:32)

Well, it makes a good handkerchief. You can blow your nose with it.

A (8:35)

Well, honk, honk. Okay. Keep going.

B (8:37)

It works well as a bandage. You can use it to hold a bandage in place. You can make a sling out of it.

A (8:45)

Okay.

B (8:46)

That was one of the things that boy scouts are taught, even as young as cub scouts, is to use that kerchief that they have around their neck, is to use it as a sling.

A (8:56)

Smart.

B (8:56)

You can use it as a tourniquet.

A (8:58)

You sure could.

B (8:58)

If you have to just wrap it around, tie it and put something. Windlass through there to be able to crank it down until the bleeding stops.

A (9:06)

You can certainly put it on your face as a dust mask. I've seen people that were escaping volcanic activity where that pyroclastic flow and those ash clouds, and they were putting bandanas on their face and their eyes to try to at least filter that out where they could breathe. But you've also mentioned several times when we've talked about purifying water. A bandana is a great pre filter because you can just pour lake water right through it and it'll filter out some of the particles.

B (9:32)

The crunchy stuff.

A (9:33)

The crunchy stuff. The rocks, the sand, the shells. And at least it's a good pre filter before you. Purifying a bandana can really.

B (9:42)

And if you have to, you can just run it through a bandana and then boil it, of course. And so that's a good way to purify the water if you have to.

A (9:50)

Gotcha.

B (9:51)

Here's something that's in every one of your kitchens. Aluminum foil.

A (9:55)

Yes. I mean, obviously aluminum foil. It reflects heat and it's used in cooking. Obviously that's its natural use. But you could actually form cookware with it, you can form pouches. If you were having to cook over a fire or had like a, a pan, a ca. You could put pouches into for long term cooking. A lot of times people do packet cooking even when they're not in an emergency situation. A lot of folks will do packet cooking in the house, which is a great way to cook. And then no pans to wash. You can throw it away.

B (10:26)

Right. And you can build some kind of a little wall on the other side of the fire from your shelter and use the aluminum foil there to reflect some of the heat back into your shelter.

A (10:39)

Oh, that's clever.

B (10:40)

Lots of ideas. In my EDC bag, I carry a 12 inch by 12 inch square, folded and folded and folded and folded many, many times. So it's, it's very, very small that I have in my bag there. Handy to have from time to time. And I have used it for a few things. Yeah, coffee filters.

A (11:00)

Coffee filters. Obviously people that have coffee makers use coffee filters. But again, like the bandana, you can drip some water through there and use it as a pre filter to get the crunchy stuff out.

B (11:13)

Now it is slower than the bandana.

A (11:15)

Well, that's okay.

B (11:15)

But it will filter finer.

A (11:17)

You know, I also filter bacon grease through a coffee filter. I have a little sieve and I'll put a coffee filter in it and I'll balance that little sieve over a large bit like a big cereal bowl. And if I've been cooking bacon in the oven, which is a great way to cook it a lot at one time, I can just pour all of that wonderful golden bacon grease with all the little bitty bits, and it'll go through the filter and just the clean, pure bacon fat will come out. I keep it in the refrigerator. I use it for cooking. So that coffee filter just works with me on an everyday basis. But you can also use it to wrap up things like if you wanted to carry some spices, some salt, pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, oregano, those kinds of things, you can actually place them in a coffee filter and then tie that off maybe with a little bread tie, rubber band or something. Just something lightweight and small to carry your spices.

B (12:14)

We used to make dry packets to go in storage with baking soda. And we would put it in something like a coffee filter and wrap that up and just throw that down in there.

A (12:27)

Well, there you go.

B (12:27)

We would also put it in paper towels and fold it up, tape it.

A (12:32)

Okay.

B (12:32)

And do that.

A (12:33)

I hadn't thought about paper towels, but that's also a common thing that has lots of emergency preparedness use.

B (12:39)

Plastic water bottles is something that we all wind up with a lot of.

A (12:43)

True.

B (12:44)

Because we're all the time grabbing a bottle of water and I'll take one out on the lawn tractor with me when I'm cutting grass. I'll take one with me in the jeep if I'm going someplace and I have something to drink. We keep several in the back floorboard in the jeep just to have water as we travel.

A (13:03)

And they're really useful if you're using a sawyer mini or a lifestraw, if you've got unclean lake water. And you can put the sawyer mini or the lifestraw up on the cap, screws on, and then that way you can drink clean, clear water coming through. But something else a lot of people don't realize. You can keep that plastic water bottle and you can store dry goods.

B (13:24)

Sure.

A (13:25)

Some people will store seeds or nuts or tools, like little bloats or something, or just small little things you don't want loose. But you need a lot of them, for example. And a plastic water bottle is a perfect little idea.

B (13:39)

You can store beans and rice in there if you want to.

A (13:42)

Absolutely.

B (13:43)

Here's something we throw away a lot. Tin cans or metal coffee cans.

A (13:48)

You don't see that many metal coffee cans anymore.

B (13:51)

No, there's a few around.

A (13:53)

I think Aldi sells their coffee in a metal can. I usually do keep those.

B (13:57)

There's a few, and they come in handy in the shop. But with tin cans, you can boil water.

A (14:05)

You can just. It can be a makeshift pot, for example.

B (14:08)

Just clean it out and you can use it for boiling water. You can use it for cooking. I guess if you really wanted to, you could make spaghetti in it.

A (14:17)

I'll find a way.

B (14:19)

She'll find a way.

A (14:19)

I'll take the big coffee can and make a huge amount of spaghetti in there.

B (14:24)

You can also build a rocket stove with a couple of them. One of the number 10, 10 cans and some small soup can. You can build a rocket stove, Right?

A (14:33)

Right.

B (14:34)

You can make a lantern with them. Same way.

A (14:36)

Interesting.

B (14:37)

You can use it as a shovel.

A (14:39)

You're talking about real crafty stuff here.

B (14:41)

You're just talking about making do with what you've got.

A (14:44)

I hadn't thought about the digging aspect. That's really smart.

B (14:47)

Use it to dig a small hole.

A (14:49)

You're a smart boy.

B (14:50)

Well, you use the tin can to dig a small hole.

A (14:53)

Yeah.

B (14:54)

So that you can make a latrine and then use the paper towels in place of toilet tissue.

A (15:00)

Well, You've really thought this out.

B (15:02)

No, I've been stuck. I've been out in the woods.

A (15:06)

The man speaks from experience.

B (15:09)

Heavy duty contractor trash bags.

A (15:11)

Well, the obvious reasons is to store your trash and throw it away. But here's what you could do in an emergency. Let's say you're in one of these deluge, rainfall somewhere and you're having to leave your home or something. You can take those trash bags, cut a couple of holes in them, cut a hole in the middle, and you've got an instant poncho. I mean, it may not keep you absolutely dry, but it may keep some of the rain off of you.

B (15:35)

You can make a pack liner.

A (15:36)

Now, what's a pack liner?

B (15:38)

Put it inside your backpack, put your stuff in it so that it stays dry.

A (15:42)

Oh, okay.

B (15:42)

In case you're having the backpack.

A (15:44)

If you're hiking through the precipitation, if.

B (15:47)

You'Re trying to get home or something in the rain, and you just put all your stuff inside and use it as a liner.

A (15:53)

Oh, here's a great idea. To use it as a ground sheet. You can just like cut it open and lay it out flat and that can go under your sleeping bag, your tent, your shelter, whatever. Just to kind of give you a little protection from the wet ground.

B (16:06)

Yeah. And if you have several of those, you can also make a bivvy with it.

A (16:11)

Neat.

B (16:11)

Just make a little sleeping bag. It beats being out in the open.

A (16:15)

And of course, you can make a water collection device out of a heavy duty trash bag. Maybe use it in some way to funnel, you know, maybe cut off just one corner and then fix it where it's catching water and funnels it down through the little hole. You know, practicality and emergencies generate inventiveness. Necessity is the mother of invention. And that is absolutely true when it comes to emergency preparedness. Because sometimes you have to look at something that's an ordinary common thing and then all of a sudden have a brand new application for it that works when you're in a pickle. So that is a great idea for heavy duty contractor or large lawn sized trash bags.

B (16:57)

Yeah, sometimes you just have to look and say, what do I need to do and what do I have?

A (17:01)

And can this work for me?

B (17:03)

Or how can I make this work for me?

A (17:06)

Here's something that's pretty cool. And as I understand it, and correct me if I'm wrong, listener friends super glue. Was it invented kind of in the 60s, 70s during the Vietnam era for medics to use to close up wounds?

B (17:19)

I'm not sure what the origin of it was.

A (17:21)

I heard that.

B (17:22)

But it does do pretty well for closing wounds.

A (17:25)

It'll stick your skin, that's for sure.

B (17:26)

It'll stick your skin. Yeah. If you got it on one finger, don't touch the other finger with it.

A (17:30)

Now, how can we use super glue in an emergency preparedness situation?

B (17:34)

Well, one, you can use it as a wound closure if you have to.

A (17:38)

Well, okay, we've covered that.

B (17:40)

You can also make gear repairs with it. If you have a split in the tent, you can glue down one side and push the other against it and cover it.

A (17:51)

Okay. Make a little scene.

B (17:53)

You've got two people there. I've seen it used to seal a leak in a boot. So you could do that with it.

A (18:02)

Clever.

B (18:04)

You can seal fraying ropes or webbing.

A (18:07)

You can do that. Yeah, yeah.

B (18:09)

And sometimes if it's nylon now, you can do that with a lighter.

A (18:13)

I've seen that done where that melts it together. If you're noting when to quit the flame.

B (18:17)

If I'm cutting any type of nylon cord, I'll take a lighter and I'll burn the end of it and melt them together.

A (18:24)

Kind of cauterize it.

B (18:25)

Yeah, you just melt some together.

A (18:26)

Cool.

B (18:27)

So there's all kinds of things that you can use super glue for.

A (18:30)

Here's a neat thing, is plastic wrap like Saran Wrap or press seal. These are naturally there for food coverage. But you can also waterproof some things. You can wrap something up and waterproof it. Keep your wound dressings dry by wrapping them in some of that cling film. You can seal some containers with it. So there are times when just regular plastic wrap can actually do double duty in ways you'd never imagine.

B (18:55)

You could even make snowshoes, snow boots out of it if you have to.

A (18:59)

I suppose you could.

B (19:00)

As kids, we used bread wrappers. So we didn't have those cold weather snow boots. Growing up down here in the south, we saw pictures of snow.

A (19:09)

What did we need with snow boots?

B (19:11)

Yeah.

A (19:11)

You know.

B (19:11)

Yeah. But we were going to go play it.

A (19:13)

We're not Canadian.

B (19:15)

We were going to go play out in it. And, you know, north Alabama and central Alabama, where we actually grew up, it just. It might snow a couple of inches a year.

A (19:25)

Yeah. Nothing for us to get terribly excited.

B (19:27)

Mama would put bread wrappers on our shoes so we could go play in the snow.

A (19:32)

Love it.

B (19:34)

Reusable grocery bags. I never knew or never thought a whole lot about reusable grocery bags because I grew up with paper bags and then later plastic bags.

A (19:46)

Well, we found a way to use paper bags because that's what we covered our school books.

B (19:50)

That was our school book covering.

A (19:51)

Exactly.

B (19:52)

My dad and I used them for suitcases. We could pack for a week.

A (19:56)

Paper bag.

B (19:56)

Yeah. We would open that up, put our clean clothes in it and stick them in the, the toolbox of the truck and off we went. But you can use those bags as tote kits. I mean they're great for totes. In fact, on our last trip to see the grandsons, some of the things that we carried there was in a reusable grocery tote and you can use them to hang your food in. If you're on the trail, you don't want to have that food close because the bear can smell it from a long way away. You want to hang it up in the tree and so you can put your food in it, pull it up in a tree some ways away from where you're camping. Then he can just smell it, he can't get to it.

A (20:41)

Well, I don't know about that but I guess if you're going to spend a lot of time out in the trail, you're going to want to get some of those bear proof. Well, like our son in law who hikes kind of professionally, he's got those bear proof food toads and he's had bears try.

B (20:57)

Yeah.

A (20:58)

I mean he's watched it happen.

B (20:59)

But I'm saying if I'm out there and I don't have those.

A (21:03)

Yeah. Worst case scenario, you've got a bag.

B (21:05)

I could pull my food up in the tree in that bag and the bear is not going to get to it.

A (21:09)

Right. Or at least it's not going to be near you.

B (21:12)

Right?

A (21:12)

Yeah.

B (21:12)

Right. You can also make an improvised pillow with it. Stuff it with leaves.

A (21:18)

Yes, stuff with leaves and then cover it with your jacket or something and have a pretty decent pillow.

B (21:22)

And you can do that with the disposable grocery bags, the plastic grocery bags. You can stuff those, make a pillow. You will want to cover it with something so that it doesn't get all hot and sticky against your skin and.

A (21:35)

Melt the ink onto your face. Walmart right across your face.

B (21:42)

All kinds of good uses for those.

A (21:44)

That's true. I mean these we just touched on just a few of the common items. I'm sure there's probably 59 more items that are just simple every day.

B (21:54)

And there's a lot that we called out of here that we'll actually put into the show notes@practicalprepping.info 522 if you'd like to have the full list that we have here of those, we'll put that there for you. We've enjoyed our time with you today, and we thank you for being here. Now you can leave comments or even questions@practicalprepping.info contact and we'll be glad to address those get back with you or address them on the podcast if you'd like. And as Krista always says, come on.

A (22:29)

Guys, you can say it with me. Stuff happens, stay prepared and we'll see you next time.