Un-guarded

Un-guarded retreat.

I have been looking for out side employment because I just dont have the energy to pursue the self employment  hassles, Contrary to popular belief self employment is very hard work. A job is more dependable and much less work. In a job a person arrives at a given time then dose his desired function and goes home. Then you get payed on a certain day guaranteed. In self employment land you may go months with NO pay some times you may never get payed or there check bounces and your only recourse is to file a law suit, and if your strapped for cash that's not a viable option....Even if you win you still need to collect and that's what you sued for in the first place.

But I haven made any iron clad decisions yet, I would just like to get more money flowing before the sky falls if in fact it does fall. But I was thinking, if the misses were home when SHTF, and if for some reason she had to leave the retreat/house. (remember we live on the retreat) if she needed to evacuate in my absence we should have a place to evacuate to. A predetermined location that she and I agree on. This way if I were to come home and find mutant zombies or other undesirables inhabiting my place, I would have a fall back location to regroup with the misses. Its not a likely problem given that I would only be gone for a day at a time but worth the planing, just-in-case. Otherwise there is no plan and one could loose another, for a life time. On the other hand I could loose here and find one better!!!(kidding)

I am thinking of a location near here on a mountain top, maybe I could stash some provisions there. Nothing fancy just food water blankets and a tent. Just another edge to insure we die with our boots on.

Invest?

Invest?
I was reading on a BLOG several months back, I cant recall the name. But, they were talking about wise investments (most of us dont have money to invest- Ill get to that too) The BLOG author was thinking commercial property would have a positive return. It will not !

We need to stop thinking in those terms, rental property only worked well in an inflating and vibrant economy. We will inflate but the vibrancy isn't there to support a need for commercial property. I have had rentals before and honestly I spent most of the time chasing tenants to get paid. These were low end houses so that was a large part of the problem. A lot of times a tenant would move-in pay for the first month, and then didn't pay for the next month. It would take most of that month to kick them out. Then another month to haul off all the crap that was left behind, and to get a new renter. So each three month cycle I collected one months rent and spent a huge amount of time to go broke. Its not a direct comparison to commercial property, but the risk is huge when your returns are dependent on people as tenants that aren't very reliable. It would be more dependable if I had been more selective...It is a lesson to me, giving people a chance to prove they can be responsible in the future is a loosing deal. I got screwed every-time. Most people wont utilize opportunity, to propel forward. Its the same reason welfare doesn't work.

Here is some figures to mill over, when pondering investments. A house costing 60k will return about 500 a month in rent, this doesn't include costs of maintenance. But lets just give it the benefit and say your tenant is a good one and pays every month, and nothing breaks. So 60k in cold cash will net you 6k a year.

When I got a judgment from child support, the judgment was illegal but trying to prove I wasn't served was imposable. Among the first things they did, was to lien all my property. So the property was completely locked-up with no warning...I was cash pore my money was all in property. With a lien showing on my credit report a loan was imposable, banks cant loan to you without paying all judgments. Not only can your property assets get locked up. But the first thing an attorney will do when filing suit against you is check to see how much property you own. Remember, people have the mind-set that property holdings, equate to wealth. So the county property records are strengthening there resolve to sue you. They think you have money and there coming to get it.

Real estate is not liquid at all. And its a huge target to get sued, by opportunists. Now, here is a better Idea! Cows. 12 cows will costs around 12k sometimes they are bread for this price, the offspring will net you 500 each. that's a return of 6k per year.

So the house rental is 60k to net return 6k and not liquid and lien-able.

The cows are 12k to return 6k and very liquid, and nearly imposable to lien. Also the auction houses don't report payments to the IRS.

Sure you need land for the cows, but range land is cheaper than buildings, and with our curnt melt down any thing agriculture is a very safe bet.

We had our property up for sale a while back and the highest offer was 6 times what we payed 6 yrs before. Its funny today houses prices are still falling but agriculture land is rising. We were looking at walking away with 200K in our pocket after the sale. But the child support Nazi's would have taken half. And we couldn't find anything we liked better. We decided to stay where were at. In fact our plan now is to retain the property as a safety net for our old age.

There are still deals to be had on vacant land, they are going up in price so get yours now, or you will be left in the dust.

More on the infrastructure

More on the infrastructure. I have been getting the power system working better. And I have been redesigning the trailer, so its cheaper to keep warm and improved living convince. A 75 foot long trailer is a pain, its tough to heat a long narrow space with the walls in-between. My heating is with a wood-stove and a propane space heater as back-up when the wood burns-out.

The trailer house is a 2 bd one bath. The kitchen is at the front then a bed room then the bath and the last bed room. With the kitchen and bath at nearly opposite ends frozen pipes during winter is a constant problem. Also a long trailer is annoying, every-time I need something its always at the other end of the house. I've logged many miles walking back and forth.

So to remedy the above problems I am down sizing the house to half the living space. In the end it will be a 16 by 40 one room house (the bath will be a separated room). Eventually I will remove the unused half of the house and build an insulated exterior wall. I have knocked out all the interior walls in the back half of the house. I moved the bath room and plumbing to the very back and the wall is up. The cistern is buried under the back half of the house. So that makes it more practical to limit the living area to the rear. I'm in the process now of moving the water heater to the space under the house. This will make room for the sink and counter in the main space, being the kitchen and bed room.With the kitchen and bath near plumbing lines will be shorter and less problems for freezing will occur since the space for accommodation and heating is smaller.

I have a dug-out area under the house large enough to stand in. Yesterday I was cutting the axles from under the house to make a larger area to increase the dug-out. I reached to the floor to toss a rotten board out,and I heard a steady hissing rattle sound. At first I thought I was hearing a gas leak, but the propane was off. I was pinned between the tank and wall with the hissing in the way of me and the exit. It was to dark to see clearly but by this time I had deduced the noise was from a rattle snake. The other way out was behind me through the outside crawl space.I had set the rotten ply wood in that exit, now knowing of the snake I was worried I had uncovered a snakes den and I feared baby snakes my have somehow stayed on the board.

I crawled over the water tank and in-to the house. I reached my trusty 10/22. Then went back down and killed the snake.It seams odd a large rattler would have chosen the dark and muddy conditions to perhaps hibernate, but who knows what goes on in the mind of a snake.

This is the crawl space from the house. I am cutting the axle with a blow torch. I had to cut them in half to lug them out from the top. The sides of the house are burred with 3 feet of dirt.

I ran out of oxygen so the remaining axles will have to remain for now. I have the plumbing to keep me occupied for a while.

Infrastructure

Infrastructure

I have been devoting my days lately to improving infrastructure around the compound. The logic being that by spending the time now to save time later, and making life more comfortable will bring greater productivity in the future.

Power is the focus point of the last few days. Since we have returned from our fruitless stay in California (attempting to negotiate, were not successful with the child support Nazi) ( no oppressive regime ever gave up control voluntarily). Our power inverter has been unable to power the things it had in the past like the fridge and water pump. The batteries had also baked so keeping a charge for long is not happening. During our year long absence we left the lights on for security.

My system is basic, its a 400 watt air-x wind generator two solar panels (I cant remember the size but they are small). And several heavy duty batteries. With a gas generator. The system at its original costs was around 2500.00. to date (not including generator fuel). Batteries replacement and with one inverter replacement over the last 6 years I would estimate 6k has been lost to our power system.

Despite the push for renewable energy it is not a cheap alternative. It works well for us because we are 7 miles from line power. Batteries are the weak link, I keep bulk battery acid to replenish the cells, sometimes they will run dry and then its life is much shorter. In addition to the dry cell problems. Montana is a severe climate area, arctic cold winters and baking hot summers, not Ideal for a long battery life. Also the dry dusty conditions are not good for electronics, like the inverter and wind generator.

Prior to my recent changes the power system was housed in an enclosed back porch. Now I have replaced the batteries and the inverter. I have moved the system to the inside of the house. This I am hoping will extend the life of the power system, by protecting it from the elements. I'm still in the process of wiring things up and I'm running more 12 volt lights. I'll get some pictures and explain my system in more detail.

So far its much nicer having a fridge again and not needing to get the generator started for water pressure.I just remembered to mention the generator problems, Prior to having the solar panels and wind generator, we used the generator to charge the battery bank allowing enough power to run the house on the inverter. Needless to say we wore out several generators. So this was another huge expense that could have been avoided by better planing.

My problem was lack of capital to build an efficient set-up in the beginning. Now with infrastructure improvements and part of the system in place the costs from here should be financially able to bring the system to a more efficient design.

Snake

Snake

I sometimes have trouble with rattle snakes. This year is terrible. I have seen more snakes than I can count. The problem is (other than the normal problem of getting bit) The weather has been much wetter than normal and the snakes rattles haven't hardened. So sometimes the rattle is barely audible (Normal for a very young snake, not for a grown snake). I wear boots ALL the time. The higher the shank the better. I literally stepped on a young snake on the driveway...Never did hear it rattle. Now he is the headless snake, and will probably haunt me come Halloween. The swollen part in the middle, is where I think I stepped on it. I stepped down it felt funny, I looked down, saw the snake under my boot and I jumped.

Here are some tips I will pass on: Walk cautiously and listen carefully. Give the snake a chance to warn you. Never reach down quickly to grab something or to pick something up, from the ground. If possible step on  the area that you are going to reach to (better to get bit on the boot shank, than the hand). Even if you were just there,  a snake can appear in an area it wasn't a moment before. I was fencing and walked fifty feet down the line, I walked back to put on a clip I had forgotten, and there was a rattler waiting at the post. Remember, rattlers are in the open in the mornings and a afternoons, getting sun. In the heat of the day they are under sage or other shrubs and things providing shade.

If you get bit,Use a tourniquet and calmly seek medical attention.


Don't use a snake bite kit. You are likely to cause more harm than good..You may even bleed to death.

If you get bit post-collapse, I dont know what to tell you........But, people rarely die from a prairie rattler.

Budget retreat

 




Budget retreatI just ran across this listing, Possibly a retreat on a budget. Plop down  cash and park an RV. Apparently they own it outright so perhaps a C4D. is possible. 
Just goes to show those deals are out there, You will find yours.



Property Type:  Land - Residential

Last Updated:  11/23/2009 11:08:45 AM EST Property # 27228 Location:  Nunnley, Tennessee USA View Address On Mapquest

Value: Loans: Equity: $3,000 $0 $3,000

Property Description:
This is a vacant wooded Lot .58 acres corner lot Nestled in Hidden Valley Lake Estates surrounded by many lakes good fishing ATV and horses permitted.Residential buildable lot or camping lot





Find listing here

This and that. Ghost-town retreat, Horses,

This and that

I have several disks with loads of pic on them, I have been wanting to post several of the pic, but my current PC is an acer piece of shit, and the disks dont like to run on it. This morning I was able to get some pic of one disk so here are some of them...............All different subjects but I think interesting........

This is a pic of a root cellar, in an old Montana ghost town..........See the door between the trees? Its construction is basic. Its dug in-to the hill side, built of log, and back filled with dirt. The door faces North, A 4 inch pipe vent in the ceiling vents any hot air. This day its 100 deg out side, The door is stuck open, but still the temp inside is very cool, in fact the soil is still damp.

At onother ghoast town near this one the root cellar has a spring runing through it.......An even better deal if you have a hill capable of producing a spring.

This is a stone building that is mostly underground. See the doorway on the left, the path to it is dug-in.

Same town this is the stud corals. You can keep studs together some times, but keep mares away, and down wind.

This is inside the black smith shop........
This Ghost town is very remote, It has fresh water, abundant game......As a last resort one could use a ghost town as a retreat. Most are located on federal land, In a sever collapse who's gona know.

A view of the ghost town, This town has 6 buildings intact, and livable.



HORSES,

This is a a horse Im training to bow. See his foot up and head down. Its not that impressive but a horse learns in steps, just like us. The girl is a helper, she puts miles on the green-broke horses. She is a very good rider.

This is a very nice bow.

Horses can learn to bow, US presidents should not!

This is my stud. He is a Quarter Horse. They index breed horses in-to the QH breed.....Like a Thoroughbred is a breed in-its self. This Handsome guy is kin to some big names: Remember Sea-Biscuit, Man-O-war Those are just a few of his extended pedigree, I think its cool to own offspring of American history.

 MY PLACE,

This is my place, in early spring.

Book Review-The Modern Survival Retreat by, Ragnar Benson

Here is a good book my brother lent me. I just started to read it. I have been mostly skipping from interesting chapters. So far I like it. The Author has a realistic approach to survivalist needs. His mindset seems to deal with problems as a mater of fact need. He is good at outlining examples to clarify why a need is a need and the realistic situations that create such need(s) ; as apposed to an anti government wacko spewing so called extremist drivel. Not that I have any thing against anti government wackos. Its just that I think its a good idea for survivalist to demonstrate by association, we are merely realistic, not crazy. Ragnar Benson certainly seams to be a realistic person of practical ideas.

Here is an excerpt:

You will be demonized
Always, if compromised retreat situations stalemate past few days, public relations experts will be sent in whose only job is to put their own spin on things by demonizing the retreaters. Retreaters will be labeled as bad, even evil people simply because they refuse to submit to "their government".
Whenever it goes that far, every retreat shelter, no matter how simple or humble, will be described as a hardened "bunker" or "compound". Randy Weaver's crude plywood shack was referred to as a bunker over and over again by the Marshal's Service, ATF, and FBI. The Branch Davidian's church and living quarters were collectively known as "the compound" from the very beginning. Unfortunately, journalists usually cooperate by swallowing the fiction whole. They report the official line without doing much independent inquiry, even if it's obviously a breezy slab-side shack out there in front of them.
Other examples of this phenomenon abound. A multimillionaire once started construction on a new home along the shores of Lake Michigan in the state of Michigan. Unlike many of of the social class, he was often seen in public. Dinner guests visited his home regularly. Still, popular envy with which every successful person must contend ran roughshod through his community.
The man collected old, noteworthy, limited-edition Bibles as a hobby. His Bible collection, accumulated over many years, may have been worth millions of dollars. Because the collection was priceless and mostly irreplaceable, he specified that a secure climate-controlled display are be built in to the basement of his new home.
Once turned over to architects, however, this room evolved into a reinforced cement, vault - like structure. Somehow the media latched onto the room as being an intense threat to local, state, and national authority. An immediate assumption was made that, because the fellow liked old Bibles, he must be some kind of antisocial religious nut. For several days hes was actively equated with David Koresh. Local citizens intoned darkly that he was a menace to their community.
Soon, headlines in Chicago and Detroit newspapers screamed about the eccentric rebellious millionaire who threatened local citizens because he was building this formidable structure on Lake Michigan. TV news joined the feeding frenzy, running frequent updates regarding the "bunker." Many of us who saw events unfolding expected to see federal agents riding up on the construction site in armored vehicles with guns blazing. As a precaution, the fellow sent his wife and kids out of the country.
For a time it looked as though federal marshals intended to swoop in and confiscate the man's private property. Eventually, however, the story lost its frenzied energy and the media turned to other sensational issues.
Moral? It's another proof that those of us who decide to retreat, even if it's not really a retreat, are going to be labeled as bad or even evil the wrong people find out what we are doing. We are dealing with people who, having no valid arguments and few hard facts, must resort to branding and demonetization.
It gets worse. Retreated with small children at the retreat may be labeled as hard core child molesters or perverts. They will be accused in most vicious terms of holding their own children as hostages. Officials will also paint the retreat as being a hotbed for all kinds of illegal activity, from gun running to drug dealing. Any past legal indiscretions will be trotted out as examples of the vile character of the occupants. All compromised retreats will be painted as habitual lawbreakers even if the worst item on record is a parking ticket.
Government agents will always scream "illegal drugs" at the first sign they are facing retreats who do not immediately throe up their hands and surrender. By doing so, they throw up their hands and surrender. By doing so, they allow cooperating judges to set aside the Posse Comitatus Act and sanction sending in military troops with their heavy equipment. (That's why there were tanks, armored personnel carriers, and helicopters at Waco.) It does not matter if subsequent inquiry demonstrates that the most potent drugs present were bottles of aspirin.

(retyped so, typos  are most likely mine)

Paladin Press. Boulder Colorado
WWW.paladin-press.com

Retreat-Ranch in progress, part IIII

Here is part 4 of Retreat Ranch, Today I want to tell you about the housing part of the project and how I would do it differently if I could.



The first thing I built on the property was a storage shed for tools and to house the generator it had a lock its not exactly Fort Knox but it will keep the honest folks honest. Its a post frame, also called a pole shed, 8 X 16 feet, with a flat roof. its basically posts and 2x6's for stringers and OSB for siding. A year or so later I panted it for weather resistance and used tar on the roof, its been a handy little shed for a long time. Its original purpose was to keep order of the tools so I don't have to carry everything back and forth. I was still living in town, and working the property on my off-time.This project only took 3 days and it was money and time well spent.



The three choices for ones abode, are listed in order of my preference a small cabin, an RV, the last and definitely the least is a trailer house.



I opted for a trailer house (because it was free). Free in this case was not the cheapest or best choice. Free sometimes is a lure for disaster, and this case is no exception. Trailer houses don't do well in extreme climates its too hot in the summer (perhaps that's because the wife is not dressed or wearing very little). A larger problem is with the cold, Being long and narrow makes heating very difficult, without a forced air furnace. Forced air simply uses to much power to operate when living off grid. I use wood heat, and a pro-comp radiant heater (propane). Both these work but much more resources are spent with heating the trailer house than wood be needed to heat a small cabin or an RV. Water lines freezing were a constant problem. I built solid skirting all the way around the trailer, Lines freezing were still a problem in the arctic climate of Montana. Also with cold air under the house, its harder to heat the living area. I rented a skid steer and buried the skirting by mounding dirt around the trailer, this works, but its been a huge waste of money and time. Also since I needed water I needed to build a water system this costs money as-well with a diaphragm tank low voltage pump and plumbing. An RV would have been set-up with a water system. The water heater was no good so I replaced that. The trailer had a new furnace but a power sucking pig is no use to me so I was able to sell this on Craigslist, That helped but, long story short my expenses were probably in the 5k range. I had also payed the mobile home toter to haul the trailer. My labor was days just to get the trailer road ready for the move. The whole ordeal was certainly not worth the time energy and money. Even after all this all I have to show for my money and labor is an old trailer.

If I could do-it over I would buy an RV, I see them around for 1k all the time now. Perhaps it would have costs more then, but still a better option. I would live in the RV and put the money into a cabin something like a 15x20. both would be much cheaper to heat.

Another problem was the permit to move the trailer house. The toter would not haul it without. This was cheap like in the 50 bucks range. The other problem with the permit is they notified the county where my property is located, that the trailer was moved out there. The trailer on my land increased the tax rate, the increase was slight but still taxes suck.

So, expensive lesson for me, but a free lesson for you. If this saves another some cash and time perhaps, my experience was not in vane.

Retreat-Ranch ,Just some thoughts on land.

I have been thinking, the biggest problem with getting land is the money. That's not exactly a news flash but . I wanted to talk about money and land. If a person doesn't have the money for an out-right purchase of land it doesn't mean they are left in the cold. The best option for a retreat is to own the land.Presumably as long as you pay the tax it is yours (by the way checking the tax rate before your purchase is a good thing to know). But, If you wait till you have the cash you may wait a long time and then it may be too late. Whats that saying 'progress waits for no man'. ? I dont know if that's it, it works well for the context so lets run with it. One of the biggest benefits of of a retreat lifestyle is living a frugal lifestyle, not only are you using less power because yours is homemade and also no power bill. You may have generator fuel Ours currently is only 20 bucks a month. Your consumption is apparent to you everyday. You have to check voltage often and avoid or omit using some electrical appliances. In town you just use whatever you want, and the bill is a surprise. To drain your batteries prematurely is an inconvenience, because you will then need to devote energy to restoring power. So you conserve for convenience. Same with shopping. Its a pain to drive to town to pickup items for dinner. Living in town you might do it daily. Not to mention the fuel. But out of town you shop ahead again for convenience. Your shopping ahead is saving money to buy in bulk or purchase larger amounts because it happens to be on sale. So now groceries are  cheaper  because you want the convenience of having more food on hand. Perhaps even less vehicle fuel than when you lived in town, maybe the occasional trip to town is less than daily trips in town. If you drive to town to work then the point is moot. But there is numerous ways to live cheaper from your retreat than in town. You are independent and in control of all your utilities. Your remote location is a buffer zone between you and the rest.

Lets say you stay in your place in town because you waited till you were in a position to pay cash. Then something big happens, your fellow city dwellers being patient reasonable ones, react to disaster by; riot theft and looting. You awake the morning of the riots, your living room has been struck by a stray Molotov cocktail. Your house is filled with smoke, your wife is streaking naked through the house screaming at the top of her lungs, your barely awake struggling to gather your BOB out of the closest its become entangled in the wire shoe rack fastened to the door. Eventually you have your bag and battle rifle. Both of you escape your house from the bedroom window. You get to the street to find your sport utility (or bug out vehicle) has been another victim of the riots and is now inoperable. You and your wife flee on foot, its still the barely light hours of dawn, as you round the corner of the next block you come face to face with a LEO Riot Team. Your wife in  relief screams out. The Riot Teem seeing a partial nude woman being held at the arm by a man with a rifle carrying a duffel bag reacts quickly, they perceived the encounter as a looter carrying a rifle with hostage, they gun you down.(oops!) Your wife in panic flees, its the last thing you see as you die on the sidewalk.

Now lets say you were set up on your retreat property you still have payments but you live there. You awaken from the rooster crow, You sit up in bed your wife is still sleeping (she always sleeps through the rooster crow) you get up to make the coffee. As your waiting for your percolator to perk you turn on the radio to learn the cities are engulfed in flames riots, and violence have erupted. Then your wife comes out to the kitchen (still naked) you offer her some coffee and sit to discuss the news of the collapse. You grin as you sip your coffee, thinking your glad not to be trapped in the city. Never to learn of your alternate fate of death on the side walk that same morning.

Financing from a bank is usually a problem, if you have the credit its something to look at, Most banks will not finance on vacant land. Some owners will carry a contract, this is the best option. If you find property for sale by owner, you could ask. Or better yet prepare an offer that includes terms. I once traded an old pick-up truck to a guy for a down payment, it was on an old house but the same idea. If you make a real offer they will at least look at it.Remember they want to sell the land, if they sell it to you on terms they make more money. You would have to pay the interest anyway.

Retreat-Ranch in progress, part III

This is the 3rd part in a series of posts of how I got and built my ranch retreat land with a tight budget. If your new to this please see part one and work up to this post. In the comment section yesterday Joseph from Texas (I'm guessing that's where he hales) mentioned in Fannin  Co. TX there are septic permits required but building permits are not required outside of of town and city.(good to note for retreat options)(personally I think TX is a good option for a retreat) I was planning on moving on to the out buildings, but his post reminded me that the septic is perhaps the most important thing to consider when deciding where to put the buildings. Even if your plans are for an out-house it is wise to build in a location that will allow for a septic if you prefer to install one after the buildings. You wouldn't want to  build on the low ground that would require a pump for sewage; It is done in modern building code these days when its the only option. Of course no power will mean no septic. That's no fun. Also some locations will not allow you to install a septic,near ponds,streams and rivers, Perhaps even springs. They may require holding tanks, these do not leach liquids, there for they require pumping often, perhaps several times a year.The county planners office is generally the source for this information. Even if you plan on an outlaw septic, its probably a good idea to be within the legal guide lines. Also, on the subject of locations, Survival blog, has a very comprehensive list regarding retreat locations, covering everything from gun laws to weather. I think if I could choose; I would rather a warmer climate, other than that, I have on complaints.

I don't remember if I mentioned that along the way some mistakes were made, and those mistakes will also be covered in these series of posts. I'm hoping it will prevent others from doing the same; No sense in us both doing something stupid. The county planner will have all the information you need to satisfy requirements, some counties require that a contractor with a septic license be the one to install the septic system. This will also add a significant expense to your retreat, If you have the money, they will make the time; and getter done. If your like me and don't have the money; even if I did have the money, I could think of a million better places to put it, guns, food, building materials, a well, fencing, livestock,tires for the truck and still have money for more guns, or I know; a jet boat!.................... the point is, I have more time than money.

An outlaw septic is, as you might of guessed; a septic with out a permit. In the off chance a person is ever busted with an 'outlaw septic' tell them; that it was here when I bought the property-so I hooked up to-it......... Just let them prove otherwise......... Chances are, in a remote location no one will look twice. A friend of mine got caught before he buried his tank. He was asked to get a permit before proceeding. They only noticed him because he had a huge two story house already framed-up, and it was visible from the Hwy. Remember any information you give to any governmental agency is forwarded to another agency, for other reasons. A permit to transport a mobile home from point A to point B will likely be forwarded to agencies in location of point B. They may stop by to have a look around. By the way you cannot stop county tax and permit people from coming on your property. Ya, I know its BS but for now that's what we have to deal with. If you kick them off, they will return promptly with the law. If you used a gun to escort county man from the property you will go to jail-or die in a stand off. I suppose that's your choice, perhaps one could choose a better battle.

Wow how did I do that, going from sewage to shoot-outs. Anyway, A septic is very easy to make. I had a friend living in a travel trailer he mad a septic by shooting holes in a 55gal. drum then he ran a short piece of PVC pipe from the top opening slightly above grade then buried it. Ran his RV line to the PVC line above ground,,,,, Done.....He lived there for years, and it never filled-up, in this case he would have just dug another, had it filled. With the holes for the liquid to drain underground, it takes a very long time for solids to fill a tank. This is of course, is the same principle of a legal septic except the liquid is leached at the tank, rather than the leach lines.

The only reason, as far as I know, they don't want the tank to leach directly, is it will sit underground in a mud pit. This won't matter except it will settle some as time goes by. Remember that when your placing your line from the top of the tank set it up extra long, extending in side the tank so if it settles the line will remain going inside the tank. In colder climates you will need to have all the lines underground. You would still run your line to the top of the tank, but your tank needs to be deeper, and you would have your line coming out the top of the tank to perhaps 90 Deg. and continue underground to your building. By the way, sewer line from the hardware or building supply place is going to be cheaper than PVC.pipe. Follow the directions on the glue and primer bottles made FOR that type of pipe.( I know this guy,a dumb ass liberal, he installed a bunch of lines underground he thought the glue alone would work ,and he wouldn't need primer; after they separated he had to dig up hundreds of feet of water line, luckily he owned a backhoe, go figure, makes enough to buy a backhoe, but not smart enough to read the instructions on a bottle. Well, he works for the state. nice!)

Ok now for the part where I did the stupid thing, As we all know; the water and sewer lines need to be under ground, in cold climates the colder the deeper, Codes are a good guide to follow even with an outlaw tank. I have had a sewer line freeze, that sucks having to go outside for #2, when its 30 below zero. Its an experience one should do with-out, if possible. The code in my area is a whopping 6ft underground. I have my lines at only 2 ft, with no problems. In most areas 1ft will probably do for an outlaw. The first septic was a disaster. I wanted something larger than an oil drum. I had a plastic water tank that was round, about 6ft across and 3 1/2 ft tall. so I dug a hole by hand, big enough for this tank to sit 2 ft  below grade (there is a new style of septic tank that is plastic. They are capsule shaped, this type would work well its not the type used here). The line ran from the tank to the house perhaps 15 ft long and maybe only a foot deep in some places. That winter the drains started to back up. The lines had frozen.The ground is now frozen so digging is impossible, its harder than concrete. I was screwed. Spring came, the lines started to thaw the drains worked again, a welcome luxury after going without. Then the spring rain came. Well, the wet mud was just too heavy. The damn tank collapsed. A tank for hauling water,was not sturdy enough to bear out-side weight. It seems obvious NOW. But, at the time it seemed like a good idea.

The second septic worked much better, and has been in use for 9 years. I found a large steel tank a friend had it sitting in a scrap pile. It was perhaps, 7 ft tall and 6ft around. I rented a skid steer from town to dig the hole. This time, I dug next to the house, I figured no sense in running a long line from the house, more chance for it to freeze. This time that hole was deep, maybe 13 ft down right next to the house. The sewer line ran under the house then angled down from under the house right into the top of the tank. I had used a blow torch to cut leach holes in the top half of the tank, basically holes all over, in no order. the line from the house, runs at a bout 45 deg, under ground into the tank, and reaches several feet inside the tank. This way if the tank settles the line will remain in side it. I have never had a problem since.

Here are some other things I know on this subject: Outlaw tanks are common, most ranches do this for the other smaller houses. An outhouse is easy to build, and cheap or free if you use scrap lumber. It would have been nice to have an outhouse when the septic failed, besides they add character to a place, if you have outside guests in the warm months it could be handy. If you dig sewer lines and for some reason you can't get them deep enough, Cut scrap pieces of (OSB) strand board in strips, place them over the line then bury-it. Also mounding dirt over the septic tank or line will also help prevent from freezing. I have seen a new type of plastic septic tank, also a cistern, either or. the type I saw was yellow not the white type. In the farm supply store. They were cheap maybe 350 or so. They are made to be buried so there much stronger than a water hauling tank. Traditional septic and cistern tanks are cement, You will need heavy equipment to move them. The plastic ones you can drag by hand. Digging in most areas is easiest in the spring. Hauling water to your site with a pick-up water tank can help digging keep soaking the hole then dig the mud. I would also check the prices of a rental skidsteer, A backhoe is nice but if you haven't  used them it will take most of the day to learn, on a rental time is money.

Happy Trails!

Retreat-Ranch in progress, part II

Ranch Retreat, The Purchase II
This is the second part of a multiple part post describing my Ranch Retreat project from the ground up. Please see part I, if you haven’t already. I included the complete and some times mundane portions to provide a detailed account. Buying land is a huge but necessary step, perhaps even stressful. Of course, owning the vacant land has a sense of security all its own. Building something on your own land has a reward that’s tough to describe, you will know what I mean when you start, if you’ve already done it , you already know.

When we left the last post, I was gathering information on the property, here are some of the things I found. Good news is, its bordered completely by BLM (public land). This is good for me, for several reasons, no chance of ever having neighbors, federal lands are almost never sold. Additional hunting and recreational access to thousands of acres is just over the fence line. For investment aspects it helps to preserve value and is likely to enhance value in the future, since public land will not change from its current condition. From a survivalist aspect you can rule out conflicts from neighbors (since there are none) when a disaster or collapse occurs. Another obvious bonus, natural land is austicitly pleasing. The biggest advantage is NO restrictions and NO covenance. By the way a worth while point to mention; Montana does not require a building permit, out side of a city for a private or residential building. Using the property information from the county, maps and other online sources, I was able to triangulate property boundaries to GPS-coordinates from this; I could walk the property knowing actual boundary lines. Giving me a precise knowledge of what exactily the property entails.


The biggest bonus is No power nearby. I checked with the power company to get an idea of the costs involved to bring in power, the nearest line was 15 miles away……They were talking upwards of 200k to bring in power (price includes sex, If you count them bending me over). So the money to bring power in would still leave 1.5 million for the rest of the project! Just kidding! Getting the 200k for power is as likely as a man from Kenya being elected president……Ahh, well maybe not a good example. The thing Is I don’t have 200k I can not get it. But, still a plus because, neither can most people. I will use this as a bargaining chip, for price negotiation (that’s why it’s a bonus). The fact is even if power were only say, 5k I still wouldn’t do it. Come on, why would I give them a huge chunk of money so I can pay them 200 dollars every month, to use there power, Ill use the wind to make mine, the power company makes enough money already, They don’t need my help, I don’t need theirs. I’ll do my own thing. (power companies are as bad as government, Its nice they will pay a guy 40+bucks an hour to drive around in a pick-up, then retire at 80% pay; for the rest of there life)……No thanks, I’ll keep my money for myself.(they can keep the change).




Now, lets check with the owner and get some price ideas, I gave the owner a call to soften the low ball bid. Not to give him a bid, but to let him know I was still interested….I let him know the huge price tag for line power (If one is polite its easy to give negative information to improve your position. Nobody likes an ass, I try not to be one.). I wanted to let him stew on that a while. Now, I had some cash, I had sold everything I could think of, This purchase would likely take every thing I had. Remember I am not rich far from It. I was railroaded by the state of California, yes they can reach you in Montana, any where in the US for that mater . They had been bleeding me for a while so I was taped but with the sale of my possessions, and the extra cash work, money added up quickly. The seller called me back a couple days later, this was a good, sign he had to know, I was planning on low balling him. He asked me if I had an offer for him. I took the chance and shot him an offer, After a long-long pause he came back with a higher offer, Then I paused for a while. I said well lets split the difference. He said Ok. This was good because that was all the money I had. We maid plans to close the next month. (I will have another post on deeds and closing to cover all the technical details to close with out a closing agent or attorney for now were looking at the big pic.). I didn’t give the dollar amount because the price is not as important, as the idea; there are some bargains out there, if you look hard, and are astute enough to recognize opportunity.

So, the closing went off with-out a hitch. I’ve got the land, now the work starts.

To be continued in part III

THE GOLDEN RETREAT revisited

With gold hitting over 1200.00 an ounce last week, it seemed like a good time to mention a gold mine, retreat again. Even if you have never mined for gold don't worry, its not hard to learn. To mine you only need to work as hard as you want to. For that matter the whole family can pan, or sluice for gold.

Its easy to find a gold mine almost all BLM, Forest Service land is open to "mineral entry". The paperwork to stake a claim is not very hard to complete, and filing fees are 170 bucks. You don't need to "claim" an area to mine it. If its not already claimed and its public land like BLM, FS its ok to mine and or explore for gold. Some exceptions are, improved parks, and park service land.

If you don't want to stake your own claim and you don't want to drift from exploration site to site. You can buy a claim. They can range from usually 100 to 1,500 dollars. Of course you could find prices much higher but you can get a good claim for these prices. Another advantage to purchasing a claim is its an easy way to get you feet wet. If the seller gets you set up with the paperwork,they may also be able to give you a heads up in dealing with there area Law Enforcement Ranger. If they have had any trouble with them or not, some times Rangers are ok, other times they seem to hustle miners. Make it a point to know the mining law then you know when to stand your ground.Of course if the collapse is bad enough to move to your retreat, law enforcement should have better things to do. If they're around at all. The mining retreat, I think, is ideal in a huge depression type scenario. For that matter, if a person is out of work these days, you may have better luck retreating, and mining now.

All you need to get started is a,gold pan, shovel and map. I know you have all the camping gear and survivalist equipment already.

One more thought on maps, for the money I prefer a Delorme backwoods atlas, they're only15 bucks and  cover the whole state. Find them at bookstores, and some Wall Mart stores.

As far as finding gold, to paint with a broad brush, if you live near the Rockies, its good mining. Even better for mining is west of the Rockies. There is a lot of gold out there, you just have to dig for it.

Happy  Trails

OFF- GRID CHALLENGES FAX-MACHINE

If you live off -grid most likely you dont have a phone line (land line). Cell service is the likely option for most.
But what if you need a fax machine? Some places I do business with demand a fax for certain documents.

Years ago this meant a drive to town. Some times the business was urgent, making it hard to consolidate with another trip.

Now ,I think by now, everyone knows of, or has some sort of wireless internet.
There is a service that I have been using for a while and works great. Its an online service that will issue you your own Fax number and transmit an e-mail as a fax.

All I need to do is scan my document attach it to an e-mail. type-in the desired fax number and it comes through on their end as a fax.

To send a fax to me, They dial my fax number on there fax machine. And send their fax as they would normaly, send a fax. It comes through on my end as an e-mail. I just open it, print, fill-out, scan then E-fax it back. Pretty cool.

The service is I think a buck a month. I use a credit card but they may also take debit cards or snail-mail payments. The one I've been using is sendtofax.com. But Im sure there are several to choose from. Just check your prices. I've been happy with the one I mentioned.

Happy Trails!

Retreat Guard Dog

Here something you dont hear about (at least I haven't noticed it mentioned much when lurking around other blogs). A retreat guard dog.

I remembered this dog the other day when some mentioned a Cane Corso Dog. These dogs are kick ass, they are huge this one pictured is 185 lbs. He would have no problem physically to KILL a person, In fact he would relish the opportunity to kill.

This type of dog does not adjust to new people easily. When my Wife then GF met him it took months for him to adjust to her, its not that he diffident like her; he just doesn't like anybody new. You literately need to keep him chained-up if you dont want him to eat people.

This is a picture of the wife bossing him around, after he understood to take her commands. The pic doesentttdo them justice,(she's a tall European sex goddess)

This type of dog will adjust to the cold weather very well. I never had a problem with him leaving the property. He seamed to understand the fence-line as his boundary. This dog costs 1200.00 plus his plane ticket, he came from Ohio. Alot of the breeders are on the East Cost though. Most of the breeders are in Italy. A Cane Corso's organs are of Roman designed. The Cane Corso Federation is the registering group in the US.

THE GOLDEN RETREAT

Here is an idea Ive had bumping around in my head. A retreat with trees, abundant game,privacy,and lots of water. That's fine you say,but its not affordable. Here's the kicker;Its free and at most costs 175.00 to register. No wait it gets even better you get paid in gold to be there. Just think when the world is in mass poverty people sleeping in the streets and standing in line at the soup kitchen. Your in the woods, mining for GOLD!


This is a highbank in action. Can you see my feet on the right.

This is a small back pack dredge. this hole is ten feet deep and has a tunnel under water heading west (right).
States require permits for a dredge and or a highbank sluice. Note: California has outlawed dredging for now,so watch that.

Most states allow gold panning but its slow and more work than some other methods. This small dredge can process one cubic yard per hour its not hard to find locations that contain 1/16 oz of gold per yard. The engine uses less than one gallon of fuel per day.(8hours).

 You will need a strong back for the bolders. I use a hand com along. Use some caution here, some states will not allow you to remove bolders and trees from waterways.                                                                       

Federal law gives a citizens the right to mine on public land. Living there is a tough one. Here is the deal you are allowed to live on a mining clam you are actively mining. BLM and the Forests Service will hassle you.

They will usually say you are camping.You are not camping you are mining. If you plan to challenge these agencies get involved with a mining association they will help with your legal rights.

The law with camping is, on BLM land you are allowed only 14 days per year. On Forest Service land you are allowed 30 days per location.

To avoid problems with the man. It would work to have several mines on Forest Service land and move between them often. Or camp at different locations near the same mine.

I will get into more details with making this happen, but for now its food for thought.