Water Filtration
LifeStraw Personal Water Filter Review: Two Years in My Truck Bag
Real-world notes on the LifeStraw Personal after two years of creek stops, storm kits and truck-bag duty. What works, what clogs, and who should skip it.
A retired lineman tells the story of the ice storm that cut water service and the small filter that kept his family drinking safely.
Real-world notes on the LifeStraw Personal after two years of creek stops, storm kits and truck-bag duty. What works, what clogs, and who should skip it.
A straight comparison of the LifeStraw straw and the Sawyer Squeeze on flow, weight, upkeep and price, from a guy who has used both on the Tennessee trails.
Ten plain reasons a straw-style filter earns its spot in every bag, and the honest limits you should know before you rely on one.
A retired lineman tells the story of the ice storm that cut water service and the small filter that kept his family drinking safely.
A plain-spoken, step-by-step walkthrough of turning creek water into drinking water with a LifeStraw, from picking the right source to drying the filter so it lasts.
An even-handed look at the LifeStraw Personal, including the limits of a straw filter, the flow rate, and what to pair it with.
A full storm season, two real outages, and a year of weekly crank tests with the FosPower A1, told straight by a retired lineman who keeps one in his kit.
I tested the FosPower A1 and a Midland ER310 through the same drills a real outage would. Here is which one earns a spot in your kit.
Ten reasons a NOAA weather radio still earns its place when cell towers are jammed, batteries are low and the storm is already here.
Nine days without power taught this retired lineman what a weather radio is really for.
Setup, charging, NOAA channel selection and alert tips so your radio is ready before the next storm warning.
I ran the FosPower A1 through a nine-day outage simulation, a week of daily cranking, and a real overnight in the Smokies. Here is what held up, what did not, and who should buy it anyway.
I kept the Ready America 70280 backpack by my back door for a full year, opened it twice for drills, and swapped out the parts that did not earn their space. Here is what is really inside.
I packed the Ready America 2-person kit and an Everlit bag side by side, checked every item, and spent a night in the Smokies with each. Here is what I would buy.
A boxed 72 hour kit gets most households prepared faster than a shopping list. Ten honest reasons why, plus where DIY still wins.
A retired lineman describes a fast evacuation and why a pre-packed backpack by the door took one worry off the list.
How to turn a pre-packed kit into a go bag that actually fits your family, your climate, and your medications.
A frank look at the 70280 kit after a year of real use, including which items are solid, which are filler, and the upgrades worth making.
I ate from the ReadyWise bucket for two weeks. Taste, prep, portion sizes and cost per meal, with no sugar coating.
A straight comparison of two emergency food brands, tested the way a normal family would actually eat them.
Ten practical reasons to keep a long shelf life food supply on hand, from outages to job loss to simple peace of mind.
A retired lineman recounts a week when roads closed and store shelves went bare, and the food bucket that kept dinner simple.
Where to put it, what to avoid, how to rotate and how to prep meals, using a ReadyWise bucket as the example.
I ate ReadyWise for a week straight so you know what the 120 serving bucket is really like: flavor, sodium, calories per day, and who should buy something else.
What a Swedish fixed blade knife does well after two winters of camp chores, kindling and truck duty, and what it will not do.
Two fixed blade knives, two jobs. I carried both for three seasons to see where the extra money goes and which one belongs in your kit.
A plain-spoken look at why a fixed blade earns its place in your kit, from a guy who tests gear in the Smoky Mountain foothills.
A retired lineman tells how an inexpensive Morakniv ended up as the knife he reaches for first at camp.
Step by step, how I turn split logs into stove-ready kindling with one fixed blade, safely and without swinging a hatchet in the dark.
A fair look at the Companion's strengths, its thin spine and plastic sheath, and who should step up to something heavier.
Real-world notes on the LifeStraw Personal after two years of creek stops, storm kits and truck-bag duty. What works, what clogs, and who should skip it.
An even-handed look at the LifeStraw Personal, including the limits of a straw filter, the flow rate, and what to pair it with.
A full storm season, two real outages, and a year of weekly crank tests with the FosPower A1, told straight by a retired lineman who keeps one in his kit.
I ran the FosPower A1 through a nine-day outage simulation, a week of daily cranking, and a real overnight in the Smokies. Here is what held up, what did not, and who should buy it anyway.
I kept the Ready America 70280 backpack by my back door for a full year, opened it twice for drills, and swapped out the parts that did not earn their space. Here is what is really inside.
A frank look at the 70280 kit after a year of real use, including which items are solid, which are filler, and the upgrades worth making.
I ate from the ReadyWise bucket for two weeks. Taste, prep, portion sizes and cost per meal, with no sugar coating.
I ate ReadyWise for a week straight so you know what the 120 serving bucket is really like: flavor, sodium, calories per day, and who should buy something else.
What a Swedish fixed blade knife does well after two winters of camp chores, kindling and truck duty, and what it will not do.
A fair look at the Companion's strengths, its thin spine and plastic sheath, and who should step up to something heavier.