Be Prepared Channel

Welcome back to another episode of the Be Prepared Channel. Sorry I didn't get to post yesterday. I was distracted with some other projects related to this blog. Hopefully we will have some cool stuff to show you and share in the coming weeks.

Today we are going to try to wrap up shelter by talking about security. There really so much you can say about any one of these rules of 3 that we are really just trying to introduce the topics to you to get you thinking and we share some of our own experiences so far.

Securing your shelter - Security:

Let's start this section by highlighting some areas that may need attention when it comes to securing your shelter.

1. Perimenter/property barriers
2. Lighting
3. Motion sensors/alarms
4. Locks
5. Animals
6. Neighbors
7. Firearms/pepper spray/tasers

There are many threats that shelter is affected by such as natural disasters, fires, theft, vandalism, and even a breakdown in society's rule of law. So many different things can affect your shelter and the things you would need to secure it. So let's start of with the basics.

Perimeter barrier ideas include fencing, natural plantings that are difficult to penetrate, natural land contour. I know at my current home in the city we have a fenced backyard, but not really a good security fence. There is no front yard fencing. Since we are planning on trying to sell this house I my plans to plant a barrier of bushes that are difficult to penetrate such as raspberries, blackberries, and roses will have to wait until we can get our housing settled. But plants that are naturally thorny, and difficult to get through will make a good barrier and something I plan on using to my own benefit. You get a dual benefit of security and also a source of food/medicine, and beauty at the same time. There are several options like this to consider and I would encourage you to give it some thought.

Lighting can deter those intent on theft, vandalism or worse from trying to hit on your shelter. Motion lights, exterior lighting, and lighting around exterior buildings can be a big help. Today you can do some of this without a huge electric bill with solar exterior lights to help you shine some light on your property. I personally have installed a motion sensor light for the front door, but if the power goes out then there is no light. I am considering getting several of these solar powered security lights to address exterior lighting.

For motion sensors I have been looking around and I think the Voice Alert System looks pretty good. I found it on Amazon and I am linking it here and including a picture. This is on my shopping list at this time.

Locks: I have dead bolts on the front and rear doors. Of course not everything has to be high tech. Even just a simple bell, chime, or even some pie pans on a string hung on doors can be effective at letting you know when someone comes through a door.

Animals can be very effective at making a lot of noise if someone is on your property or in your house. I have 3 little dogs and they make quite a racket. The certainly are effective if someone is at the house to hear them. However my dogs like so many peoples dogs are harmless and they can be dispatched to another room quickly while thieves do their work. So do not rely on your dog to actually attack or stop an intruder unless your dog has been specifically trained for that purpose.

Neighbors can be effective at helping you keep an eye on your place when your gone. However I don't know if I could rely on mine to be much help. They seem friendly enough, but we don't exactly hang out and have a beer if you know what I mean. So get to know your neighbors, offer to help when you can and maybe you can build a relationship that can become the kind of trust that you can rely on each other to watch out for the neighborhood. When times get hard you may be relying on each other more than you know!

Last category is firearms or some means of resistance. This typically is your last line of defense. By the time the police are called for some sort of problem the crime or whatever happened will be long since over and done with. So moral of the story is don't wait around like a sheep to the slaughter for the police to show up. You will need some way to defend you and your family. Now, I strongly urge you to go to a local gun range and find out about gun training classes before you buy a gun. My wife didn't want guns in the house when I first approached the idea. I made a deal with her. I asked her to go take a handgun course with me at the local shooting range. If after taking the course and having an opportunity to see, handle, and shoot a gun that if she still didn't want one in the house then I would not get one. She sort of begrudgingly agreed to the proposal and went to the handgun safety course with me. She got all her questions answered, understood more about the guns, and by the end of the course where we are allowed to shoot a variety of guns she clearly shoots better than I do! She loved it! And immediately wanted to know when I was going to buy her one! So please take the time to go to a shooting class, learn about firearms and how to handle them before taking any action on getting firearms.

Now that said we have purchased many firearms since those days of the gun course. Rifles, shotguns, pistols. We have recently taken an Appleseed course and absolutely loved it! It is a great experience for kids and adults alike and it is dirt cheap training to boot. I highly recommend everyone check to see if an Appleseed event is happening near you!

Be familiar with how you will use your gun to protect your shelter. The various scenarios, and always always always know exactly what your aiming at. Clearly ID the possible threat. The last thing you want to go is do something stupid or have a possibly deadly incident when you have a teenager who is sneaking in after curfew, or some other crazy thing. So be careful out there, but clearly a firearm is your last line of defense. So use your head.

Along the lines of security I also recommend you get a safe for your valuables. If you get firearms you should consider a safe for weapons storage also. However keep in mind that not all safes are created equal, and anyone who is determined to get into one, or cart yours off will do it. Someone recommended the below video to me. It isn't the first time I have heard or seen this happen. I read last year of a fellow prepper who came home to find his house had been robbed and the only thing that kept his firearms and valuables safe was that he had taken the time to bolt his gun safe to the wall and floor. Apparently this was just enough resistance to thwart the theft of the entire safe. The sheriff's department told him that there had been six robberies like his and in each case they literally carted off the entire gun safe so there was evidentally a team of people doing this. So just something to be aware of.