Tote-able Toilet Giveaway

Sanitation and hygiene are often overlooked in many emergency preparedness plans. During an emergency, it is important to your survival to keep yourself healthy. One of the best ways to maintain health is to keep yourself and your living area clean and sanitary. Poor hygiene and unsanitary conditions can cause sickness.

One very important item to include in your sanitation supplies is a portable toilet. Portable toilets are not only important to have in an emergency, but are great to have when boating, camping, or even traveling. It sure is convenient to have one on such occasions.

Our new Tote-able Toilet Seat and Lid gives you the ability to turn an ordinary bucket into a portable toilet almost anywhere. They are rugged, durable, and lightweight. The lid has a rubber seal that does an excellent job of impeding odors. Save 50% off the regular price when you buy 12 lids or more (only $6.00 each) during the month of July. This is one of our July Group Specials - click here to find out more about our Group Program. When purchasing less than 12, they are on sale for only $7.99, a savings of 33% off the regular price!

The prize for our latest giveaway will be a Tote-able Toilet with 2 Enzyme Packets. It includes a 5-gallon bucket, our new snap-on tote-able toilet seat and lid, and 2 enzyme packets valued at $19.99. If you purchase a Tote-able Toilet during the giveaway and win, we will issue you a refund or send you the product - whichever you prefer.

How to Enter

Send us an email at blog@BePrepared.com with 'Tote-able Toilet Giveaway' in the subject line with your answer to the following question: "What is one way you can prevent illness during an emergency?"

Hint: Click here to go to our Insight Article entitled "Sanitation and Hygiene During an Emergency" to find the answer.

That's it! All emails received through Wednesday, July 7th will be entered into the drawing. The winner will be chosen at random and posted on the blog no later than Thursday, July 15th.

Please note: We welcome emails and entries from everyone; however, free shipping of the Tote-able Toilet with Enzyme Packets is included to the 48 contiguous United States only. For any locations outside this area, the winner is responsible for arranging and paying their own shipping costs.

Emergency Preparedness Guide - Why Buy Dry?

Want affordable food storage that is easy to use? Try dehydrated foods!

When food is dehydrated, the water is slowly cooked out of the food without actually cooking it. You can dry food at home by yourself with a food dehydrator, or choose from of myriad of dried foods available on the market. The most popular forms are packaged for long term storage in #10 cans with an oxygen absorber.

Click here to read the rest of the article >>

Cooking Oil vs. Money?

Do you have a preparedness or food storage experience, tip, recipe, product review, etc.? Become a guest blogger on Preparedness Pantry and earn a $20 Emergency Essentials gift card! Click here for details.

Here is a post submitted by Amy from Utah about the importance of cooking oil/lard/fat in your food storage:

"One of my dearest neighbors is a sweet little lady who was a young girl in Germany during WWII. One of the things she shared with me was that oil/lard/fat was one of the rarest commodities during the war. People wanted something to cook their food with - for flavor and consistency. I've always remembered her advice and make sure that I keep a lot on hand in my food storage. It tends to spoil quickly, so you have to use and rotate it. I don't ever want to be caught without it during an emergency. My dear friend told me that oils were as valuable as money during that terrible time!"

To learn more about the importance of food storage rotation, click here to read our Insight Article entitled "Rotating Your Food Storage."

Spelt Salad

Did you see the Spelt Blueberry Muffins we made a few weeks ago? They were a big hit with everyone. Here is another healthy spelt recipe that we know you will enjoy:

Spelt Salad

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups spelt
  
• 6 cups water
  
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/3 cup balsamic vinaigrette dressing (or more to taste)
• 1 cup freeze-dried tomato chunks (reconstituted)
• 1 Tbsp freeze-dried onions (or a small sweet onion if preferred)
• salt and pepper to taste
• Optional add-ins could be cucumbers, olives, lettuce, etc.

Directions

Put water and spelt in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about 40 minutes. Add 2 tsp salt and simmer for another 10 minutes. Spelt should be tender and chewy at this point. Drain and let cool.

After spelt has cooled to room temperature, add dressing, tomato chunks, onions and mix carefully. Salt and pepper to taste. Let sit for about 10-15 minutes and enjoy!

MRE 3-Day Food Supply Winner

David S. from Utah is the winner of our latest giveaway. Congratulations David!

We would like to thank everyone for entering our latest giveaway. Come back soon to find out about our next exciting giveaway.

The MRE 3-Day Food Supply is on sale through the end of June for only $27.99! Click on the image below for more information:

Emergency Preparedness Guide - M-R-Easy!

Well, there’s another easy preparedness food that you’re sure to enjoy. M.R.E.s or “Meals Ready to Eat” were originally created for the U.S. government in the 1970’s for the Space Program, Military, Forest Service, and FEMA.

Don’t pass up storing some of the tastiest, easiest food storage meals available!

Click here to read the rest of the article >>

Tip for Preventing Rust on #10 Cans

Do you have a preparedness or food storage experience, tip, recipe, product review, etc.? Become a guest blogger on Preparedness Pantry and earn a $20 Emergency Essentials gift card! Click here for details.

Preventing Rust on #10 Cans

"Put the plastic lid on the bottom instead of the top of your #10 cans in storage (until you open the can) to prevent the bottoms from rusting and/or leaving rust stains on your shelves."

Erin, North Dakota

Note: Our #10 cans are double-enameled to help prevent rust from forming. 

MRE 3-Day Food Supply Giveaway

MRE's (Meals Ready-to-Eat) are great to have in your food storage or emergency kits. They can be eaten without any preparation and have excellent shelf lives. We recently opened and taste tested a 23 year-old Beef Stew MRE. It actually tasted pretty good even after all that time! Click here to watch the video on our YouTube channel.

Click to watch MRE video!

Our MRE 3-Day Food Supply is on sale this month for only $27.99. This is 31% off the individually priced items! If you purchase an MRE 3-Day Food Supply during the giveaway and win, we will issue you a refund or send you the supply - whichever you prefer.

MRE 3-Day Food Supply

How to Enter:

To enter this giveaway, simply send an email (with "MRE 3-Day Food Supply" in the subject line) to blog@BePrepared.com with your contact information in case you are the winner.

That's it! We hope you take advantage of this sale and add some MRE 3-Day Food Supplies to your food storage and/or emergency kits. All emails received through Wednesday, June 23rd will be entered into the drawing. The winner will be chosen at random and posted on the blog no later than Thursday, July 1st.

Please note: We welcome emails and entries from everyone; however, free shipping of the MRE 3-Day Food Supply is included for the winner to the 48 contiguous United States only. For any locations outside this area, the winner is responsible for arranging and paying their own shipping costs.

Emergency Preparedness Guide - You Can Eat Them Here...

Want to store something that can be eaten in a boat, on a train, in the heat or pouring rain? No, not green eggs and ham! We’re talking Calorie Food Bars!

Click here to read the rest of the article >>

The All-in-One Pancake

Do you have a preparedness or food storage experience, tip, recipe, product review, etc.? Become a guest blogger on Preparedness Pantry and earn a $20 Emergency Essentials gift card! Click here for details.

All-in-One Pancake (perfect for camping)

Ingredients:

1/4 cup dehydrated whole eggs
1/4 cup buttermilk powder
1/4 cup butter powder
1/2 cup dehydrated refried beans
2 tbsp freeze-dried spinach
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 cup freeze-dried corn
2 cups self-rising flour
salt to taste

Directions:

Mix this with water to form a batter (pancake batter consistency). Let it sit for a minute and you have a savory pancake that is a complete meal. Other fun add-ins: freeze-dried cheese or sausage crumbles.

Submitted by Mindy from Alabama

Kaito Voyager Giveaway Winner

Congratulations to Jill from Kansas who is the winner of our Kaito Voyager Giveaway!

Kaito Voyager model KA500

Remember that it is important to have some kind of a battery-powered or hand crank radio in your emergency supplies to help in monitoring the status of emergencies and disasters. The Kaito Voyager is a great choice.

We would like to thank everyone who entered this giveaway. Don't forget to come back soon to find out about our next giveaway.

Washing Laundry By Hand Just Got Easier!

Do you have a preparedness or food storage experience, tip, recipe, product review, etc.? Become a guest blogger on Preparedness Pantry and earn a $20 Emergency Essentials gift card! Click here for details.

Washing Laundry By Hand Just Got Easier

Submitted by Kathleen from New York

Laundry Day

One of the biggest challenges for me living off-the-grid has been doing the laundry. Not having a large enough solar system has made running a washing machine impossible for the present time. At least the machines that are not energy efficient are impossible. I have a brand new super efficient one waiting to be used but that is a whole other story. So for the most part I have been washing by hand for eleven years now. Many times I take it to the Laundromat but not all of it, mostly just towels and my husband's jeans.

For most of those eleven years I have been washing with a plunger to agitate the clothes in the buckets. I scrub the garment with soap if it is badly soiled. Then let them soak a few hours in the soapy water. After that I rinse them in the rinse water. I do not wring them out. I have found that to cause wrinkles. Instead I let them drain on the side of the bucket as you see in one of these photos. Then hang them on the line.

My plunger did an okay job. Then one day I left it outside on a night that had freezing temperatures. It cracked. I managed to use it very gently for the past couple of months but knew I had to replace it. I found the Mobile Washer at Emergency Essentials. It looks like a plunger but is completely different. It only costs $14.95 and is a bargain in my opinion.

The normal way people hand wash is by rubbing the garments together, using a washboard. Of course we are all familiar with that method. My husband was in the Philippines and they washed the laundry by rubbing them against rocks. Friction is good for removing dirt but it also ruins the clothes. Here is the Mobile Washer instructions that came with it: "This washer uses a technique of pushing and pulling water through the clothes which reduces much of the wear and tear that would come from the friction method."

Washing laundry with the Mobile Washer

Because of this agitation method, less soap is needed to do an effective cleaning job. Minimal water is needed too..........that is a plus when you are pumping the water from a pitcher pump! The directions say to use only four inches of water and a teaspoon of detergent in a five gallon bucket or pail. But wash fewer garments at a time. Works great. Makes my job seem much easier. And the clothes I took out yesterday seemed so much brighter too.

A view of the Mobile Washer from the bottom

You can see it is made special for creating the vacuum. I found it very easy to use and am quite happy with this!

---Kathleen, New York

Emergency Preparedness Guide - Sugar, Spice, and Some Fat Would be Nice!

Your food storage pantry will not be complete without sugar, salt, and fats!

We have a few more items to discuss on our journey through the basics of food storage. We have already learned about grains, legumes, garden seeds, and milk. The last three of the 7 basics are sugar, salt, and fat. Without these three vital ingredients, many of our food storage recipes would suffer from a serious lack of flavor and texture

Click here to read the rest of the article >>

Turkey Salad Sandwich

This is our version of the classic "Chicken Salad Sandwich" made with turkey instead of chicken. You can eat it on just about anything including bread, rolls, biscuits, pita bread, crackers, etc. You can also cater it to your taste buds by adding grapes, walnuts, almonds, olives, etc. I like to make the plain version for the kids and another with lots of add-ons for the adults. You'll love it!

Turkey Salad Sandwich

Ingredients

3 cups freeze-dried cooked white turkey
1/2 cup freeze-dried diced celery
1 cup freeze-dried apple dices
1/2 cup mayonnaise
salt and pepper to taste

Optional add-ons:

Grapes, walnuts, almonds, pineapple, olives, hard boiled eggs, tomatoes, avocados, etc.

Directions

Reconstitute turkey, celery and apple dices. Hint: add 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp chicken bullion to water with turkey for enhanced flavor. Drain well. Add turkey, celery, apple dices and mayonnaise to mixing bowl and mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cover and chill for a few hours before eating. Enjoy!

Turkey Salad on Pita Bread

Emergency Preparedness Guide - A Milk Mustache...

Are you skeptical about dried milk? Do you worry about the flavor, the storage, and quite frankly, how to use the stuff? Well, I’m here to calm your fears! Don’t be intimidated by instant milk any longer, grab a can and let’s get the most from milk!

Click here to read the rest of the article >>

Kaito Voyager Giveaway

Do you have a radio in your emergency supplies? A good battery-powered or hand crank radio is an important item to have in case of a natural disaster or other emergency. The prize for this giveaway is a green Kaito® Voyager™ Radio that sells for only $49.95. If you purchase a Voyager during the giveaway and win, we will issue you a refund or send you the Voyager - whichever you prefer.

Kaito® Voyager™

The Kaito® Voyager™ (model KA500) receives on AM/FM, shortwave and weather bands - 11 bands total. It features three light modes - an LED flashlight, a 5-LED reading lamp, and an LED flashing SOS emergency light. It also functions as a charging station for some cell phones and MP3 players using a USB charge-out jack.

• Four ways to power
• 30 seconds cranking for about 15 min. radio play
• Includes 6 cell phone tips to charge popular models
• Built-in speaker and headphone jack (includes headphones)
• One Year Limited Warranty from Kaito®
• Available in Green, Red and Black

How To Enter the Giveaway

You can earn up to 3 different entries in this giveaway by doing one or more of the following and sending us an email so we can verify your entry (see below for email instructions):

1. Become a follower of our blog by clicking on the 'Follow' button found on the top of the right column. If you are already a follower, just let us know according to the email instructions below.

2. 'Like' our Facebook page (this is the new way of becoming a fan) by selecting the 'Like' button on the top of our page. If you already 'Like' our Facebook page, just let us know according to the email instructions below. Click here to visit our Facebook page.

3. Sign up to receive our email newsletters on our website - BePrepared.com. Enter your email address in the 'Get Special Offers from Emergency Essentials' box at the top of our homepage. If you already receive our email newsletters, just let us know according to the email instructions below. Click here to visit our homepage.

Email Entry Instructions

For each entry (up to 3 per household), send us an email at blog@BePrepared.com with 'Kaito Voyager Giveaway' in the subject line and tell us which of the 3 things you did. A separate email must be sent for each entry.

That's it! All emails received through Wednesday, June 9th will be entered into the drawing. The winner will be chosen at random and posted on the blog no later than Thursday, June 17th.

Please note: We welcome emails and entries from everyone; however, free shipping of the Kaito Voyager is included to the 48 contiguous United States only. For any locations outside this area, the winner is responsible for arranging and paying their own shipping costs.

Another Tomato Powder Tip

"The more I use this tomato powder, the less I care about typical canned tomato products. It has a wonderful ripe sweet flavor and is so versatile. I appreciate the long shelf life as well. Mix with 2 parts water, some olive oil, herbs and sugar for the best instant pizza sauce ever."

--Jeannie, GEORGIA