Why most preppers will fail

So many people that call themselves preppers will simply not do this and as a result, they will fail.

[@RRinTN]

Not dumb at all... In SHTF there won't be any machines to rent... I'm purposely hand tilling my corn and wheat section of my garden. About 10 x 30. It's great exercise and I'm getting a taste of what it really be like. I've also purposely bought a variety of hand tools and garden tools to serve as manual backups. The real learning is in the doing. Keep moving.

[@CityPrepping]

great point!

[@PaulDukich]

You moved to that bigger property and there's still an HOA? Man.. I've had enough experiences with HOA's and there's no way I'm ever buying a house that's part of one.

[@Maedelrosen]

its a virus that has absolutely no business anywhere, let alone in rural areas. they force it in on arbitrary land thats even in the middle of nowhere many times, especially in the northwest

[@CanadianPrepper]

I think one of the biggest fears is wasting time, even though I don't think time is ever really wasted when you attempt something even if you fail and end up wasting 2 weeks. There's always something that was learned along the way and there's always generalizable skills that are gains from any endeavor like the one you did.

[@CityPrepping]

You nailed it on the head. I've had to spend a lot of time on this but learned so much.

[@1100wing]

One of many reasons we picked a very rural piece of property is that it's so far from anything that it will force me to do the things I may have been tempted to hire people to do.

[@LegendaryBattalion]

I’d love to buy some land, gotta pay my car off first though. Don’t forget to save up lint from your dryer, good fire starter.

[@JasonCunningham-ne4ui]

After the lint is saved, make it into tight small balls and dip them in wax to make it waterproof. You would be amazed at how compressed it gets! You can make them small enough to keep a few in a EDC altoids tin, or LOTS in your BOB.

[@LegendaryBattalion]

Jason Cunningham Cover the whole ball of lint in wax? Or leave an opening in the wax?

[@JasonCunningham-ne4ui]

@@LegendaryBattalion after you compress it as small as possible, you want to make sure the whole thing is covered, so no water can get in. When you are ready to use it, you just squeeze it and the wax will crumble off, then refluff up the lint to maximize it for tinder. Try it out a couple times so that you will know how much it will make refluffed, but it really doesn't take much lint to start a fire as long as you have a good base to light, such as shaving dried pine or using dry birch bark, etc. Dry pine shavings produce very little smoke also if you need a small stealth fire, especially if built right next to a tree (making sure the area is clean so as not to catch the woods on fire). The tree branches will dissipate what little smoke there is.

[@JasonCunningham-ne4ui]

Sorry, I forgot to also tell you if you put some Vaseline in a bag and then the lint, move it around in the bag til the lint is saturated, then put it into small balls and dip THOSE in wax, it will make it burn ALOT longer! You only need to make the balls large enough to make them for one fire at a time, or you can keep the Vaseline/lint in a sealed plastic bag too.

[@lillianliber1798]

Great tip, 🙏 thank you!

[@casualpreparedness2347]

I would rather see the "How-to" instructional videos on survival techniques, skills, strategies and experiences of other preparedness minded individuals. Excellent Video. 👍👍😎

[@grannyprepper7788]

Ditto

[@Scottyrock1000]

Me Too!

[@roniniowa1661]

Yup!

[@justinsmith8161]

Kelly Diggs Check out a channel called The Grey Bearded Green Beret, he goes right back to the basics, to the point were you start from scratch.

[@logantidwell7698]

Same

[@hmstriggered1143]

I am a beekeeper and have been for about 4 years. Once you get into it and you enjoy it, you won’t be able to get away from it. It’s the most addictive hobby I’ve ever done.

[@outbackeddie]

I agree with you 100%. Making mistakes is just part of learning. If you are afraid to make mistakes you are afraid to learn.

[@anniebranwen4148]

Very good . I would rather listen to a how to video , I know that this world is a mess , I've started to get rid of all electronic things I don't need , garden is the most important , also cast iron pans , you don't need a microwave etc, I'm almost 70, and remember the time that people lived much simpler life , time to live much more simple life

[@averagejoesmiling456]

Here's an idea for you being able to build a greenhouse. Build a house on your property (or add on to an existing house you may have already built), and plan it so you can have a sun room or deck facing the direction you would have put a greenhouse, and then turn that room or deck into a greenhouse. Technically it would be just a part of your house/home. But you'd still have a greenhouse. Does that make sense? Do you think that would work for you?

[@pathopkins4500]

Add a SUNROOM and add plants inside /-)

[@averagejoesmiling456]

@@pathopkins4500 Yes, that's what I meant.

[@BryanWicks]

Manual labor has its own rewards. But there is so much more to consider. The normalcy bias (things were good yesterday, things are good at the moment, things will likely be okay tomorrow) is a real affliction within most of the prepping community, IMO. So many have no real sense of urgency. Hard work is hard, while procrastination is easy. The reality is that it is far simplier to talk a good game, versus putting in the real effort to make things happen in the arena of self-sufficiency. It is OKAY to take advantage of modern conveniences to get one's preps ready sooner rather than later, but know that when you utilize the additional manual laborers and contractors, you risk violating your personal operational security (OPSEC) as more people outside of your personal circle will know exactly what you have. You will have to weigh the pros and cons accordingly when starting new projects on a homestead or potential bugout location. This past weekend, I had to install a new keyless entry system in my home. To say that I am a decent DIY'er would be the overstatement of the year. That said, I powered through it, and learned a few things along the way. When I do the project again for another entry way, it will go far simplier and faster. If nothing else, I am gaining confidence in doing things for myself, and am willing to put in the hours to learn new stuff. Folks, I am a 55-year-old with a LOT of life left within me. The more fit and healthy I am, the more likely I will be able to deal with whatever may come my way should things go sideways. I am not afraid to safely engage in a little manual labor to get things done. Finally, as a history buff and "what if" junkie, I will admit to liking a lot of the post SHTF & TEOTWAWKI videos, but I am gaining a fast appreciation for the "how to" videos as well. Here's a pro-tip: find an easy-to-follow hardcopy version of the KZbin video content, and keep it in a safe place. If access to the internet is not an option, a real library of practical information will be priceless. Thanks as always for posting this video @City Prepping!

[@cherylperkins7538]

Whether we like it or not, whether we believe it or not, its going to happen. There's a book that has scripted this for a !omg time. People.... Pay attention

[@lesliecastillo3501]

Thank you. These are some of the best words ive heard in a while. It sometimes feels like ive shoveled my way into a maze and i cant tell which direction to go next. Bless you with good fortune and prosperity.

[@professorwho6315]

I came across your channel about a year ago. I started with your How-Tos and loved them. You inspired me to really start my own preps, and was excited. But, like you warned in one of your videos, after the initial "High" I started to stagnate. Now I look at my stores, and sure enough, I need to replenish quite a bit. Luckily, after the recent large fire I was able to bug-out and use my savings on supplies and such that I had not planned to need. But that disaster set us back quite a bit and only now am I able to seriously consider restocking and saving money again. Had I not started when I did, though, I never would have had bug-out bags nor any money put away for this disaster, so I suppose a large THANK YOU is in order. And I highly encourage fellow preppers to watch the How-Tos and even share some of their learning experiences. I thought we had everything we needed when we bugged out, but even though we had food, water, and shelter there were a large number of little things we did not have. Things we did not expect to be an issue. I had underestimated the smoke-cover that engulfed our city for nearly two months and my wife has asthma. We had her inhailer, but we didn't have a humidifier for the baby at night. Nor a heating unit for the place we were staying which didn't have heating. So, definitely share your mistakes, and learn from others.

[@jmtnvalley]

Yeah, got tired of the "look what I did" videos and started watching "how to" videos. We now have a medium raised bed garden and an aquaponics/greenhouse. All of them a continuous "work in progress" project. Thanks!

[@cherylhirschdiyfun4636]

I finally succeeded in watching all of your videos and want to thank you. I had tried several youtubers and just didn't get the information that helped and encouraged. Your channel not only did did both but got me up and going. Now I have a plan and have successfully started on several important areas. I think the biggest take away I have gotten from your videos is what do I need to do for my family. Once that was established your how to videos helped me figure out how to work it out for my situation. Again thanks for doing your channel and know it is helping.

[@drurymassey]

I love how to videos. I am an avid gardener and try to grow enough to consume immediately and to preserve. Even though I've been doing this for many years, I am always learning new things and tweaking my methods. This year I am going to use a small greenhouse for the first time ever. It is going to be very interesting for me to watch what you do in your journey to get your property set up. I'm sure it will teach me many valuable things. Thank you for sharing

[@spockmcoyissmart961]

We've all done things our own way. One of the most valuable things I've learned, is 'don't work stupid'. Meaning your time is very valuable. If there is a tool, or a human who can do it faster/cheaper in the long run, use it. I was laying block after work and before it got dark. I had to carry the block, mix the mortar, layout the runs. Yes, I made progress, but it was very slow. Took weeks to get a portion of the job done. Then I spoke to a block layer and he looked at my job and said, '$250'. I had the block sand/mortar there. He was done in 2 days with the other 3 sides.

[@jeffreyvb1]

Definitely DIY. I've gotten lots of great ideas from you, Urban Prepper, Iridium 442 and The Sensible Prepper that have been hands on practical skills and projects. Keep your emphasis on hands on projects.

[@quintond.7888]

Skills are EVERYTHING, well done sir. I had the good fortune of being born on a farm, but homesteading is a far cry from farming for money. There is no way to learn other than putting your hands in the soil. You have a kindred spirit in mind and practice in Tennessee :)

[@izegrimcreations]

Many preppers will fail because they get caught up in the romanticized version of prepping--what is glorified in movies, and the tacticool aspect over the practical aspect. Stockpiling tens of thousands of rounds of ammo and an arsenal of guns, and God forbid a long term SHTF does happen, find themselves starving waiting for those random bands of marauders to shoot with all of their guns. Don't get me wrong, security is very important. But it shouldn't be the primary focus and/or only focus while you ignore the mundane that will be the most likely and probable skills you need in a SHTF scenario. So yeah, you're spot on. It's not as exciting to learn companion planting (or how to get the best firewood, or to dispose of waste, etc) over the new accessories for your AR, but it's gonna be more important if something happens. Prepping should be risk assessment or enjoyment based, and not fear based. Let's be honest, a lot of preppers out there are entirely fear based and put their confirmation bias over any actual objective facts. They are the ones who will fail.

[@theimmortal4718]

I find it ironic how many gun and Prepper channels have done videos about being victims of burglaries and having guns stolen. They have their eyes set on some massive global event but fail to protect themselves from common crime right NOW. I would imagine many of these preppers really aren't prepared to react to violence at all. The average Prepper seems to be a relatively well off white person in the US (poor people don't have this kind of disposable income), and it's doubtful many of them have been exposed to much of the violent underclass of our society. It seems that those who are the least likely to be victimized are the ones preparing for it the most.

[@corinth1121]

Clean under pants....understated but a crowd pleaser...life saver!🐽🐽🐽

[@theimmortal4718]

@Awakened citizen This is exactly what I'm talking about. Speaking about plans and considerations if the apocalypse happens while you're much more likely to be a victim of an armed robbery, home invasion, or an unprovoked assault with intent to cause you serious bodily harm under today's conditions. I find it much more practical to learn boxing and get competent with a handgun than to worry about growing tomatoes and fighting off "marauders".

[@izegrimcreations]

@Awakened citizen I understand what you're saying, but it's not correct. This is my point. You seem to be basing your opinion on fear mongering rather than actual objective facts. You need food to survive. We die if we don't eat. You DON'T need a gun to survive. Not literally. So you can't really compare. Let's look at two common examples. In WWII, over 4 million Russian civilians died from starvation/disease. No amount of guns would have kept them alive. A very tiny amount comparatively died from bandits/gangs/marauders. They needed food and hygiene. In the year after Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, 3000 people died due to exposure, starvation, and lack of medicine/exposure to disease. In that SHTF scenario, the murder rate increased by an average of 4 people per month compared to pre-disaster rates. So clearly, by objective data, having food/shelter/hygiene is exponentially more important than having guns. The numbers don't lie. What you're doing is what I'm pointing out: how many preppers assign a false equivalency between firearms and food. Having security is important. It MAY save a life. Having food, shelter, and hygiene is much more important because it WILL save a life. And yet, too many preppers put their focus on firearms at the expense of turning energy towards the others. THOSE are the preppers who will fail.

[@theimmortal4718]

@@izegrimcreations There's over 2 million violent crimes in the US every year. Number of people who starved to death= zero

[@SurvivalTheory]

Good points. Thanks for sharing, keep up the good work!

[@CorsairTrainers]

Good video! To many people spend all their time talking about 'what if' and theorizing about what could happen.

[@CityPrepping]

trust me, these types of videos are very enticing to make. they don't require the actual work and they get a lot of views which translates to ad revenue which helps. I'll still do them from time-to-time mostly to draw in new viewers, but I'm going to move toward practically showing how to do things this year.

[@aulii11]

I appreciate your insight more than I can express - I'm probably the most guilty person I know of "analysis paralysis". I spend way too much time analyzing what can go wrong, and rather than just getting started on a project (e.g., installing water storage tanks) I hesitate, expecting to come up with the "perfect plan", that never seems to materialize. Thanks for sharing your experiences!

[@kevinjones2145]

You are right. I'm a little bit tired of all the "Coming Civil War" click-bait videos. From my experience, more often than not, these Civil War videos don't contain any new information. Thank you for this video and keep up the good work.

[@evanwilliams93]

Don’t know if you see comments from older videos but this really hits home and is so true. Being low income I’ve worked with a tight budget but over a few months I’ve gathered and prepared a few weeks to a few months supply of food and things in case SHTF. True I was stressed at first due to certain things in the news that I had to be prepare quickly but thankfully those things didn’t come about. Budgets is tight again so now I focus on skills and improving health just by walking, which is actually a little recon and area surveillance 😉. Thanks for your lessons!

[@smartypants1980]

I was watching a show on Netflux called in defence of food. The first episode wss on Bees. Having your own Bees will be great. But This show taught me that there's challanges to Bees, Them dieing out of nowhere was the scariest one because the Bee keepers only had thoughts and no answers to what happened to the Bees. The strangest thing about Bees was that other Bee keepers will steal Bees from you. I learned that they need flowers with Nector for their own ability to reserve food for them selves. Good luck when you get that going. I look forward to a video on thst.

[@anndennis7163]

Bee colony collapse is because of the sprays that are being used to deter pest insects and are also killing bees some of which manage to get back to the colony and sicken other individuals who are then to weak to continue their job of survival.

[@JamieHitt]

In my humble opinion, ...both types of video are equally valuable. As a matter of fact, "What to expect to prepare for." might very well be a prerequisite to "How to prepare." The key is to defeat both of those learning curves sooner rather than later. And joining a preparedness group is one of the fastest (and perhaps best) ways of accomplishing this. Why learn from just your own mistakes? Sharing multiple skill sets as they develop and grow together is preferrable. Well learned and practiced skills may be the greatest preps you can ever possess. Please let me explain why. From 2005 to 2009, our group conducted extensive research into a variety of personality profiles ...as they might pertain to a variety of potential timelines, ...which could contain a variety of SHTF scenarios. And for a multitude of reasons (based on data and related statistics), ...we determined that regardless of "who you are" there is close to an 85% chance of you being permanently separated from your preps within 18 months from the onset of a large scale, high impact SHTF scenario. One reason is that SHTF events seldom happen in a vacuum. And when examining events as they unfold along a linear timeline, ...you will most often see that the first has weakened the overall fortitude and integrity of all things around you. Setting up the stage for sequential catastrophes to follow. Some smaller in scale. Some even larger than the original. Not to mention, ...that Mother Nature and the Laws of Physics will not take time off just because you have suffered an SHTF event. Two of many forces that you will have less and less influence over as society and civilization continue to diminish in ability with each successive occurrence. Negotiating with this environment and holding your ground at the same time, may not alway be possible. It would appear that preparedness equates to, ...You vs. Murphy's Law in a no-holds-barred game of Chinese Checkers. Armed with this information, we began preparing accordingly. This is where the "learning curves" come into play. You may have heard it said in the pharmaceutical industry, ...The first pill cost $200 Million, ...the second pill cost $0.02. And the same can be said for many aspects of preparedness. Especially in regards to resources such as time and labor. After all, ...the difference between complex and complicated is simply knowing what you are doing. You may need to reproduce the concrete from the abstract several times before it's all over with. You may need to "rebuild" on a regular basis, ...and in different locations each time. We do not marvel at ants and beavers for the hills and dams they build, ...but rather for their ability to build them.

[@LIBERTYVIEWS]

Really good points about renting the specialty tools and/or physical help. We city preppers - esp those with full-time jobs - forget that our time is worth a lot too. And if you calculate a DIY job taking longer, plus wear and tear on your body, vs hiring help, it may well be worth it for many of us to consider hiring help.

[@bcb2585]

Only in CA can you move out to the country and still have an HOA!! That's despicable.

[@michaeldamico4583]

I live in a log cabin, near a state park, in the middle of pennsylvannia where the walmart has a tie up for amish horse and buggies and there is a hoa, starting two houses down from me, that is all log cabins. I bought my house because it was outside the hoa lol. No way am i paying someone else like that so they can tell me when to cut my lawn or whatever lol

[@Maedelrosen]

and washington, literal middle of the forest a random piece of land will have HOA, and all its festering reprehensible beaurocratical laws along with it.

[@garycottreau8442]

I hear you. I work at a desk too. Nice to do physical work for a change. I cut 6 cords firewood and have a small raised bed garden. I really enjoy getting outside and the sun. Cheers.

[@dylanashley4102]

Totally man, people who take it serious DO IT, rather than TALK ABOUT IT

[@bhuffmansr]

Good video! You speak a lot of truth. What you know is precious! I appreciate your sharing not only what you learned but why its important as well. Thank You ..

[@andrew33]

Although it is somewhat entertaining to occasionally see a what may happen post shtf I would rather have how to videos so I know how to prepare myself and my family. You're doing great work, please, keep it up. I remember in one of your videos you stated that you created this channel so that you can get critique and ideas on your prepping. You have given me the idea of creating my own channel soon as a similar idea. I know very minimal when it comes to survivability so I plan to make my channel my slow transition from a noob to a knowledgeable prepper.

[@1100wing]

My wife and I purchased 70 acres of naturally wooded land back in November as a way to force ourselves into preparedness. We'd been doing a few things to become more self-sufficient but living a Suburban lifestyle we didn't feel as though we could be as prepared as we need to be. Now our Suburban home is on the market. We have stepped through the gate to the path of self-sufficiency and closed the gate on our Suburban past. Both of us grew up in the country so we're not afraid of getting our hands dirty. The rewards, and setbacks, of trial-and-error are worth it.

[@soaring16]

My small 3X8 ft raised bed garden is my first attempt at growing anything. With that said, all I had to do was mention it at a local eating place and I got all the help I needed. Garden is coming up amazingly well. You might want to search on you tube for ruth stout gardening. I'm not planting anything right away but getting the hay down will pay off in the future by creating soil. Beyond buying guns, prepping can be pretty boring but then life in general can be boring. I get excited over just accomplishing things that I didn't think i could do.

[@anndennis7163]

Love Ruth Stout have most of her books, she was quite the lady. We like to use her information and have raised 6 kids with supplemented food from our raised bed deep mulched garden. Now comfortably retired.

[@jopiaspieder1184]

The How To videos are my most watched video's. Even if I know how to do it I still watch because I might learn something new. My advice is never stop learning no matter how much you know.

[@mooreloveministrys4945]

I'm doing what I can, I was so deep into the system, it's hard to get out. The financial thing is hard. Yet, I'm taking steps

[@anndennis7163]

Dave Ramsey on youtube

[@tddurrin8902]

We all learn lessons from our mistakes - God knows we've all made them. I've made them time and time again. When I was in the Army for 24 years, we did our Lessons Learned all the time and a lot of senior people made mistakes just like the junior ones. We did learn the biggest lesson - we all make mistakes, but did you learn from them. Great video!

[@melissilem2610]

Had about 300 square feet of garden and chickens, built my garden above ground with blocks like you did, but we have terrible hard caliche (hardened clay) that is nearly impossible to dig through. Hauled in ENDless bags of soil, manure, and feeds for the soil health. Gave it up last year and moving into an RV, at least for a few years. It was honestly just too much work for a single woman who also works full time. I was tired and TIED DOWN to my projects. That said, it was good experience under my belt. Start your compost now (1 year ago, actually) and buy only heirlooms for your area. Buy GOOD quality tools and take care of them, not the big store junk, I also hand tilled and turned my soil. I joined the local organic gardening club and learned loads of info directly related to my planting zone. Start your fruit trees now as it will be a few years until they produce. And my berry bushes always failed but I bet you might be better off in many parts of Cali. I am zone 9B. I used Peaceful Valley Garden Supply which is located in Grass Valley Calif for quality seeds and bare root trees, when a few of my trees failed I got credit to buy more the next year when it was time to plant again. They also have good quality tools if you can get them to fit into your budget. I will likely settle and do it again, but not in the Az desert. Although it was nice that my area had financial reimbursement for water storage and I put in 1800 gallons--it's -never enough! Just too difficult. When I settle again I will make sure even if it's not all season growing there will be more rain. Good luck to you though.

[@Nullsie]

Always enjoy your videos, but “prepping land” with an HOA???? It seems that would limit the amount of prepping you could actually do...

[@Uisci81]

J. Null agreed, would never buy a place with HOA

[@kbanghart]

@@Uisci81 I live in an HOA right now

[@gonefishing3644]

I look forward to seeing how you deal with the challenges of growing a vegetable garden in unimproved rocky soil, relying upon irrigation in drought-prone California, and how you keep the local insects, birds and mammals from treating the plants in your garden as a free buffet. As regards a green house -- you can raise your own seedling plants indoors by using one or more grow carts that hold multiple trays of small pots and have full spectrum fluorescent lights on a timer. I used to have one of these plant growing carts for raising orchid seedlings. Just keep the potting soil moist until vegetable seeds start sprouting and then mist the plants with water a few times a day and keep the soil moist until the plants are large enough to transplant into your garden. You can protect a row of young plants in your garden from chilly night temperatures by deploying a strip of plastic sheeting over metal hoops. Look at a Burpee's seed catalog for all sorts of gardening tools and gear. Two of the easiest, hardiest food plants for newbie gardeners to raise are bush-type zucchini plants and miniature carrots and those food crops can be preserved for long-term storage by using a dehydrator.

[@megparkgv]

Learning how to do with basic tools is super important. Good message.

[@FlyingPigMD]

Those videos with those titles that evoke panic do bring in more views, but that goes to show that most people are still in that “beginning phase” (mentally) of preparedness, in my honest opinion. Once you’ve established in yourself that preparedness is more of a lifestyle, those videos won’t matter as much. I look at them for the entertainment, the thought provoking dialogue, and philosophy. Truly, it is the how to videos that make me realize that I am lacking in an area and that I should go out and rectify the newfound problem. Don’t get me wrong, those videos with the title also could identify an area that needs improvement, but it is the how to videos and those that get the least amount of views. Working in EMS, it’s the things you do before that appears tedious that ensure you are prepared in an emergency, i.e. making sure medications aren’t explored, making sure you have 4x4s on hand, make sure you know where your torniquetes are, etc. Good video. The foundation looks great. Should last decades to come! Thank you for your videos. Stay safe everyone. Just finished the video. Thought is share something. I am currently recovering from some health issues that impair mobility and limit what I can and can’t do. I have had to learn to get around and have even implemented changes to my gear and plans. I did lose my job because of what happened and have had to rely on my family a lot. I’m on my way out of this though. I’m still young and know I will bounce back eventually. So believe me when I say that those racy titled videos don’t really change much. Scenarios are infinite and their consequences are usually uniform. How you’ll go about it is how you survive. Cheers!

[@TheDao101]

Live and learn. Best way to prepare. I have bees, chickens, i have a garden. Ive had these for 7 years. I have taught myself and am still learning how to do these survive. I stated with 1 acre, realised where I was, 'spring mt' QLD that it wasnt the best soil or place due to increased population etc and so moved to my fruitful areas. Currently working on building a vegie patch again. But Im not getting any younger, early 40's and I just spent two weeks recovering from back pain, which has slowed my progress in preparing for winter in the subtropics. Best time for greens.

[@budclapper9429]

Awesome encouragement and great example of taking action, and prioritizing first things first in getting more self sufficient (water storage, improving your property for gardening, etc), and sharing the learning through the process. Good job brother.

[@robbiewillford4601]

Great points here. Skills are dying off. Learning does cost either time or resources. But in the end you have a skill no one can take away. Out sourcing, renting tools may not be an option later on.

[@bootmender]

I have been at this location since 1988, have so many hours out here building things. I grew up on a ranch where we had lots of equipment and never enough hours in a day to get things done. My greatest accomplishment was building a lake of about 100 acres with my antique bulldozer.

[@CityPrepping]

wow, 100 acres lake? that must have been a difficult task.

[@kbanghart]

Unfortunately I'm on the belief that the more land and property you have, if SHTF, all that means is it's more stuff for other people to take.

[@RealitySurvival]

Good stuff brother. There is a lot of truth in here!

[@kimberlyguimond4186]

I planted 8 fruit trees and 30 strawberry plants this weekend in my small backyard in a small town in NorCal. Have been trying to learn to garden year round and grow more perennials as a food source. Living in town though means being dependent on city water. I’m less than a mile away from a water source, but not ideal in an emergency situation. I have some mre’s and freeze dried food put up, but this year I am buying more bulk items like rice and beans which is more affordable then the freeze dried food. What would be most helpful to me at this point is if the rest of my family were more on board. I also have an interest in healing without a doctor for every little cut and bruise. Why most people will fail in an emergency situation is there won’t be time to make those mistakes you were talking about. The more I learn and do the more I realize how unprepared I am.

[@uli_734]

People don't understand that in an emergency situation, home depot is not gonna be the same home depot that is right now, so sometimes we need to buy gear and do stuff by our own! 👍 Thanks for the video, cheers!

[@anothergoogleuser]

I don't think you have to change your channel. Your content brings people to your channel, and your professionalism is what gets us to share it with others. I would also take a moment to say thank you for what you do.

[@CityPrepping]

thank you. it's always nice to hear kind words in the comment section. greatly appreciate the encouragement.

[@logantidwell7698]

If you are going to get bees I suggest the honey flow hive. It's an easy way to collect large amounts of honey, and you could still collect the wax if you REALLY wanted to.

[@GearSkeptic]

Boy, do I feel you, brother. We are tracing amazingly similar arcs. I moved from urban Southern California to 7 acres in Washington (I’m a ferry ride away from being neighbors with The Urban Prepper). To keep it short, I’ve one comment on the issue of doing it the hard way when you could have rented a powered machine: I’ve deliberately been doing things by hand. It’s not that I want it to take longer or be more work, but I’m interested in knowing what I can accomplish by myself with only hand tools. I want to explore my limits and capabilities when there is no store to rent from (which is how it might be after the SHTF). Plus, I figure it is great exercise. But again, I feel your pain regarding beating yourself up! Exploring all my new kinds of injuries has greatly expanded my First Aid Module, as well. 😳 Thanks for the great content.

[@aloramyst]

this year is the year I teach my kids and grandkids how to no till garden... some ppl call it the ruth stout method... I have had alot success with this style of gardening so I am excited to teach it to the kids .... i still save seeds so that is another thing that the kids need to learn.... my challenge this year is to do smaller gardens vs the large ones I am use to ... had some successes with container gardens but prefer in ground ones to be honest ... also learning to can in smaller portion sizes ... I am now back in the city so adjusting to city living ...

[@mcallahan9060]

Man am I tired of the "Why most/all preppers will die.", "Why most/all preppers will fail.", "Why I know more than everyone else." videos... I have one, "Why most prepper channels get unsubscribed."

[@TheDoctor1225]

I was thinking much the same thing. I find it interesting that these videos so many times are put forth as though every person has the same amount of land, the same amount of time, the same amount of money, the same amount of space, to do all of these things that the makers of these videos are doing. A person like myself, who lives is an apartment complex hardly is going to have the luxury of being able to plant my own Gardens and grow my own Vineyards and all of these other extensive preparations that people are doing. I believe there needs to be more tailoring, which there is on the many other channels incidentally, based on the people watching. I think this channel started out that way but has begun to go a bit further afield as his surroundings have changed. I don't see very much "City prepping" in this any longer, unfortunately.

[@CityPrepping]

it was a tough decision moving out of the city as I knew it would upset some subscribers. i definitely hear ya. But I had to make the decision for what was best for myself and my family. It's not easy moving to land, but in my opinion, it's a goal preppers should go after when possible.

[@PabloP169]

Absolutely, the people who just do a lot of looking at the SHTF stuff, will learn little from the time versus the people who actually do and experience the activities.

[@pippysmom207]

The last two weeks, ive been looking for real estate. It wont be in the country, but hopefully a village. Ive been frustrated by budget challenges lately, but homeownership is hopefully one way to overcome.

[@EthicalPreparedness]

I really enjoy your 'how-to' videos. You do an excellent job (and great camera angles) to really show and explain how to complete a prepping skill/task. I also enjoy prepping 'how-to' videos more than I do the theoretical videos. For prepping: this week I've been growing my seedlings that I'll transplant into my garden beds right after Mother's Day. I've also just finished up harvesting maple sap in which I made some really awesome maple syrup from. I also canned up the extra maple syrup that I made. I'm also going to move one of my raised garden beds (along with the ton of dirt that's inside of it) to a more sunny spot in my yard so it'll produce better this growing season. In the end: you make EXCELLENT how-to videos and I hope to see more of them from your channel. :)

[@brendak.44440]

Love to read your video comments. And. I fall into the . watch but Get fairly little done. However. I am disabled. And need to depend on others for the physical labor parts. So I do what I can. I can go to the store. I get help from their. employees to load up my truck. Them when I get home. Im at an dis- advantage to take the things out and set up. I need help. And I do not have a circle of like minded folks to help. Most think it is a waste of time. ( and I am crazy thinking SHTF will ever come to forishion ) I feel defeated at times Im awake. But no one else around me is.

[@alfredagreen7096]

Good job sir, great preservance!!🌿

[@Skinnycami]

I absolutely LOVE diy how-to videos, but my hubby hates them...probably because every one I watch provides him with a new "honey-do" project. Poor guy has so far built a coop and chicken run, cut down all our dead trees and cut and split the wood, built a massive shed for the wood, built me a huge greenhouse, built huge composting bins, built raised beds. Currently he's digging a shallow well by hand with the Seymour digger I surprised him with under the Christmas tree.

[@marklent1348]

Do you have a footer under the cement blocks? Without a footer the blocks will just sink unevenly in the soil.

[@kkprepper950]

Getting in shape. Down 20 lbs Started hiking/Backpacking. Climbing Mt. Whitney in July. Being Physically fit is perhaps the best prep of all.

[@CityPrepping]

good for you! i did half dome in Yosemite last year and realized how out of shape I've become. Always find new ways to push yourself.

[@TheUrbanPrepper]

First off, I'm not sure if I approve of your new attire. :) I think it's cool that you're getting your hands dirty and learning skills through actually doing it. I prefer those kind of informational videos personally, even if they may not be as popular. In music, Cardi B is extremely popular, but I think we can all agree that she is no Mozart in terms of depth, talent, and lasting impact. The same could be said for the various prepping and survival topics. How to deal with hoards of zombies may be more popular, but the how to videos (with trial and error included) will have much more lasting impact to the community, IMO. Be Mozart, my friend. P.S. I'm super jealous that you just knocked out a one take video so effortlessly!

[@CityPrepping]

ha, glad you approve of the outfit. very practical. >> I'm super jealous that you just knocked out a one take video so effortlessly! I thought of you after I uploaded the video and how many times we've struggled to get one-take videos out. I'm slowly getting there. I noticed I'm saying "you know" a lot in the video, so in the next video I'll have to slow down and force myself to stop saying this. yeh, the comparison of musicians is a good one. everyone wants the exciting videos but digging in and doing what really needs to be done is foundational and critical, albeit not sexy. next time you come out to visit, the place should look a lot different.

[@edieboudreau9637]

Yes. How tos are fantastic and teach us what does & doesn't work. Best to learn now.

[@lynnettesanford3735]

I am a single woman who most definitely want yo learn and search out how to videos. Thank you for your help!

[@jonathanpooria7847]

YO CP, I'm watching and listening , you are 1000% right we (ME) have been hiding behind the fear of the unknown and what if, . I have been guilty of gear vs. skills and now after speaking with you I can refocus my nervous energy on skills, I just bought a couple of books ;SAS and solar , and i'm working on food items one week at a time. I have several projects in mind and a new to do list with Cert at the top of the list , Thank you for your Hard work and The motivation we ( I ) need to keep going. Believe it or not we all love to see you accomplish a project it helps with moral and gives us hope that we can do it as well.

[@carolclarkson4859]

This video really hits home. You make some really important points, but there is one big question in my mind. If you are going to garden, what are you going to do with the food after? Will you show more freeze dryer videos and teach about it?

[@CityPrepping]

yup, you're one step ahead of me. will be doing a lot of Freeze Drying videos as I harvest the food.

[@ghettomedic9971]

I saw Canadian Prepper's video, and I agree somewhat. However, there are a broad spectrum of where people are on their preparedness journey. And the popular videos are excellent for everyone. Honestly, I could never watch another bug out bag or fire starting video in my life and be fine, however, that is where I'm at. However (my new favorite word apparently!), videos like the one you did on rain harvesting was awesome for me. Also, I live in south Texas, so cold weather stuff is just for entertainment value. If there was a new ice age tomorrow, Texas would still be hot as balls! I am looking forward to what you are doing with your property, as hot areas with less precipitation information is what I need. Keep up the great work, your channel has been a great source of information and inspiration.

[@TheHappyGardener]

Good job The best way to learn anything is to do-it-yourself. And every skill set that you Acquire helps to build your next new skill set And skill sets are survival tools for more valuable than any kit did you may buy

[@FLCLnaota]

Most of the vids I watch on yt is DIY vids. I have dug a 2'x4' hole 3 feet deep in clay. I learned a ton about digging and tool usage. Sure I could have rented a auger ect. But when the SHTF your not going to be able to drive to home depot and rent a tool. Learn stuff the physical way, that way you'll get into shape, and learn fundamental skills. I worked on that hole a hour or 2 a day, took me 4 days to dig it. I was beat, exhausted, in pain and it felt great! If I had to do it again, I'll still dig it by hand!

[@GTGallop]

1:00 - ABSOLUTELY! People want to talk about the Zombie Apocalypse and 50-Cal Assault Turrets and Bayonets and stuff. That's fun for 5 minutes but sooner or later you have to get into the fundamentals and that is boring for a lot of people. I love the How To videos!

[@AlexnaderSupertramp]

That's the problem with most people. Afraid to make mistakes afraid to fail. If it wasn't for mistakes and failure we wouldn't have half of the Glorious Comforts of life we have today. But that's part of our education system. Teaching kids in school that it's not okay to make mistakes it's not okay to be wrong.

[@pmor5992]

how to vids are the only ones I watch but remember to never become so excited by any given situation that you fail to survive it and some people will not put in the hard work no matter what is said to them , good video keep up the good work my friend ;-)

[@linda-arlenehoxit7646]

My HOA was also deeply offended by tomato seedlings - and other plants. Glad their permanent home isn't here in the condo. Rock on with your new place!

[@Blackwolf5116]

I love watching those types of videos. I love to tinker and learn new things.😀👍

[@barryallen3021]

I like watching how-to videos. I want to be able to survive and prepare for what could happen.

[@roniniowa1661]

The primary point behind preparing, is to learn HOW TO survive. Watching videos is a start, but doing is learning.

[@rhoniwinston9970]

You were infirmed that you could not build a greenhouse. Why? Is there a house on your land? How big is your land? Will you use rain collection to water your garden? Or do you intend to dig a well? Do you have electricity from the municipal or solar panels or wind generator? Or another option?

[@centraltexassurvivorpreppe7750]

My personal job right now is to prepare is to improve my physical fitness. I like "how to" videos but there are so many that deal with the same subject. The post SHTF videos are entertainment only for me! Good video sir and I hate those pseudo gov. agencies such as HOA's etc. You won't have to deal will them during WROL though so save your supplies!

[@deedeemooreco.2304]

Water, propane and gasoline. That’s what I’m having difficulty with. I’ve got the food, tools and medical supplies down. That’s Riverside dirt.

[@CityPrepping]

i haven't stored much gasoline yet. I do have a decent amount of propane and I hope to have about 1 year supply of water shortly.

[@deedeemooreco.2304]

City Prepping Yep, I’m in the IE too. Thanks for your input, we need more preppers here.

[@tiffanibilyou3773]

Water is hard to store in the city. I have little room. I bought a water Bob for the bathtub. But also if there's a blackout I won't have any warning. Storing as much water as possible

[@jebusnightchimpv2484]

Major issue with prepping is space and money. Living in an apartment with wife and kids. Not much room to store and budget is even less. Being aware of how necessary it is to prepare its difficult in certain environments.

[@Nostrildomus]

This is one I come back to occasionally . . . Lol . Thanks

[@BRUtahn]

You and I are setting up our rural compounds at the same time. Last year we built a root cellar set into a hillside and i was going to build a tiny cabin in front of it but we decided to pay down our (non-mortgage) debts this year instead (to make ourselves more resilient in the impending recession) so we'll put that off till next year and do some cheaper infrastructure this year such as raised bed gardens and drip line. I learned your lesson fast and found a local Kubota tractor dealership which rents out a small number of tractors, the smallest of which is only $200/day with trailer, and it's plenty big for digging on the scale of small foundations and earth moving. I found it was well worth it. In order to bury the root cellar under at least 3 feet of dirt (for radiation shield) on all sides, we needed to excavate the hillside behind it and ended up with a large flat area uphill and behind our root cellar. This is where we will install the raised garden beds and the water tank will go on the hill behind that to provide gravity pressure to both garden and tiny cabin. I am going to make the raised beds out of corrugated roofing from Lowe's with 4x4 posts at the corners. I found this was the cheapest way to get decent sized beds. I have lots of dead trees around my property so I'll be putting some logs in bottom of the beds, following the hugelkultur method. Water retention in the soil is important for my semi arid area. I won't be trying to garden in these beds for several years probably but i want them ready in case i need to, so I'll be planting nitrogen-fixing and deer-attracting cover crops and tilling them in every year along with seeding the beds with worms a few years in. This will get the deer in the habit of hanging around my place and give me excellent soil when i need it most. I will also be planting a whole lot of native wildflowers, perhaps some in watered beds, in order to help support the local bee population. These strategies are passive ways to enhance the effectiveness of my land for survival through the good years while i don't live there. One thing i suggest you store is a large amount of thin, reflective film such as that covering they use to make cheap mirrors, or just aluminum foil since, though expensive, it has several other uses. A few of the many potential disasters to befall mankind (nuclear war, asteroid impact, massive volcanism) involve the amount of sunlight reaching the ground being reduced. Having a way to concentrate sunlight on your garden beds may allow you to continue growing food.

[@HomesteadEngineering]

What have I done? Gardens, canning, battery backed solar power, solar water heater, food storage, perimeter security, guns & ammo, etc. What's on the todo list? 1000 gallon propane tank, 2nd wellhead with dual soft start pumps and a simple pump, metal roof, add 3rd, 50 gallon water heater (cheap battery). BTW: I have start to finish videos on solar and gardening that less than 5,000 people have watched. Not that many people have the money to do it right OR actually want to do the work...

[@CityPrepping]

Just took a quick look at your solar setup...very impressive. My biggest fear getting into a setup like that is that there's not a lot of room for error with that amount of electricity. That's a job I would definitely hire someone for to do it correctly. Great info you've got!

[@HomesteadEngineering]

When you break it down into a thousand little steps no one step is all that difficult. That said, your right, you could easily make one little unwitting mistake and end up burning your house down or having 50 leaks in your roof. DIY solar is not for everyone. I don't advertise this but I am a Robotics Engineer. I have watched many of your videos and I bet you could pull this off and just pay an electrician to do a few things and check your work. On the other hand, if you got the cash, not a bad idea to just hire it out and rest assured knowing you will have power when you need it. Thanks!

[@TomsBackyardChats]

Thanks For Sharing This. Yes, Prepping MUST Become A Habit or You will Fail At It

[@LadyTSurvival]

knowledge weighs nothing. and doing it the hard way teaches a person lots of things especially patience which is key to survival. wisdom comes with lots of effort. a person also appreciates it more if they have to work for it. the younger generation doesnt really get that today.

[@TTanner1989]

Great points! Thank you for the kick in the rear!

[@pollywalker2586]

I like the how to videos, we all learn from each other’s mistakes and wins! Thanks 😊

[@evanwilliams93]

I use the “what or how shtf will happen” videos as incentive and reminders to watch the how to deal or prepare for videos (cause yes, one can be a little more... enticing? to watch). Especially if find myself getting complacent.

[@nonegiven2830]

More important to get things done right rather than on schedule tbh

[@Valleyfoodstoragecompany]

Very genuine and helpful! Great video👍🏽

[@Scottyrock1000]

Wait... You bought property with an HOA as a prepper homestead?

[@CityPrepping]

hahaha, yup :( not a lot of choices for land left here in SoCal unless you want to live in an area with meth labs. Had to go with what I could find and afford that was safe to raise my kids...wasn't easy. this property is not my long-term property, but rather an investment opportunity (got it at a very good deal) that we'll leverage for our future property out of this horrible state.

[@Scottyrock1000]

@@CityPrepping Yeah, I had to look long and hard to find a place here in Florida without HOA. Not as much land as I would like to have but it will work. Best of luck to you!

[@thepandaman]

I'd say keeping your body regularly doing manual labour is no bad thing, within reason. Means you know your physical limits and how to pace yourself. Sure, there'll be a tool you can hire, or a guy you can pay to do it, but it's nice knowing you can do it independently. There's no practice better for digging holes by hand than...digging a hole by hand.

[@TrangleC]

I think one problem many people in general, not just preppers, have, is this tendency to... well... how to call it... maybe "to self-placebo". What I mean with that is to do something really easy and give yourself the feeling that you did something, when you just soothed your bad consciousness over not doing a hard thing you actually should have been doing. To give you a concrete example to explain what I mean: When I was still a student, I had to work the night shift, to finance my tuition and to help out my parents, who were in financial trouble at the time. That caused me to not study as much as I should have. So I constantly felt bad about not studying and in order to make myself feel better, I bought smart books, because that gave me the feeling of actually doing something useful for my studies, without actually doing anything. It was the same, last time I tried to lose some weight. I bought a fancy exercise machine and then never used it. Buying the thing, assembling and installing it, gave me the feeling I'm doing something, working towards my goal of losing weight, without actually doing anything. Still, buying that machine made me feel like I'm "half way there already", you know what I mean? I must have inherited this nasty trait from my father. He is the same. He constantly buys tools and machines because he is in a perpetual state of doing some repairs on his house, but he never does more than buying those tools and machines. He is super prepared for anything and never does even something. I think there is a lot of that going on in the prepper community. A lot of unhealthy, fat dudes who spend a lot of money on their "bug out kit", but would drop dead from a heart attack, if they ever had to run for a quarter of a mile with their bug out bag strapped to their back, or couldn't even scale a 5 foot fence or wall to save their life. That is the reason why I'm not really prepping. I know that it would be useless, unless I get fit first. Realistically, there is no point to hoarding survival gear and rations if you don't have a "survival body". Anyone who is serious about it, should do 90% of their prepping in the gym. If you are one of those guys who just buys shit, but neglects their physical fitness, you are just doing what I was doing when I bought those books or that exercise machine. You are just LARPing and fooling yourself.

[@fnorazril]

I don't know, I enjoy watching the process of things being made or built. Hearing what people have to say about mistakes they've made and how to improve on what they've done. From black smithing to apiarist and gardening. To me it's a way to get a basic understanding of the process I'm going to get into.

[@CityPrepping]

i'll be sharing a lot as I learn over the next few years. I've made plenty of mistakes already, but I decided to just jump in feet first and do things.

[@fnorazril]

I look forward to the growth and progress on your endeavors. It's nice to see various views and ideas on subjects. I'm particularly interested in how you handle bees and beekeeping. That's a personal project of mine that I aim to tackle.

[@tshep9000]

Lake Hemet area in the San Bernadino National Forest, what do folks think about that as a bugout area ? There is hunting and fishing not sure about arable land. We will be moving to the Palm Desert area soon and looks like there would be easy access from there to Lake Hemet. Not as far from Los Angeles as I would like but it could work out short time. From there you could move deeper into the wilderness to escape the hungry desparate hordes. Though some preppers say that is an overblown worry. The urban populations probably wouldn't make it that far out of the city without succumbing to some gruesome fate before.

[@ssnidely]

might be because a good portion of the folks who watch prepping vids already know the "how-to" on a lot of skills offered on these channels. for myself, lately i have been watching the "how-to" vids on freeze drying and instapot recipes. when the time comes for gardening on the bug out homestead, ill watch more how to vids on that. till then i like to watch the popular vids on shtf to make sure i have thought of all the possibilities and what i would need to add to preps.

[@fanman8102]

ssnidely - that’s what I was going to say. Maybe I don’t watch because I already know how to do that. I don’t need to know how to go to a box store and rent equipment.

[@FMB12]

You are a man of your word and you're actions. Thanks for sharing.

[@CityPrepping]

something i learned from my dad. i never knew anyone that worked as hard as that guy. once he started something, he always worked incredibly hard until it was done. fortunate I had that modeled for me.

[@sonicy22]

What books do you recommend to learn the “how to’s”? Like for construction and or food production.

[@privateprivate8366]

OK so, as a former city prepper, who has moved out to a rural area (there are HOAs out there?), you’re talking about getting chickens. Personally, although I still do eat meat, I’ve been hoping to move away from it but, because of this Coronavirus situation, I thought it might be best to move that decision to a later date and stock up right now. But, I assume that, for most city people, like myself, the thought of butchering anything is about as remote and nightmarish as one can get. Personally, one time, someone handed me an ear of corn from the local farm and I didn’t know what to do with it, because it didn’t come out of a can. So, the question is, how does one move from more prepared food to butchering their own food? I know this is a no brainer for people who have grown up hunting. But, for people who’ve grown up in cities or suburbs, it is a HUGE transition, even if it’s only during a temporary survival situation. I just don’t think most of us even move from a rotisserie chicken one day to butchering their own stuff the next, without some real psychological acrobatics. I assume some will go hungry for quite some time before they’d actually do it. Your thoughts?

[@aspitofmud6257]

First thing to do is git yeerself some of dem bib overalls. Yep'er. 🤠🤔¿🤣😊☝️😎

[@CityPrepping]

heck ya!