[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

I’m jumping in to this discussion quite late, but wanted to toss my 2 cents in…

I looked at Pods, but they didn’t service both ends of my move, so they were out.

I thought about a rental truck, but they are quite expensive, and I’d still have to tow another vehicle to drive when I got there. With the rental expense, including per-mile charges, and the cost of fuel, along with the fact that I’d have to drive it, this did not appear to be a good option for me.

I looked at ABF freight, and seriously considered it. I could load all or part of a 28 foot semi-trailer, then have them transport it and deliver it to my destination. I would basically have two or three days to load on one end and two or three days to unload on the other end. The cost, I believe, was similar to a rental truck, but I would have more space, and wouldn’t have to drive it. This meant that I’d have to have everything ready to load when it arrived, and I’d need a crew at each end for loading and unloading. I could drive my car from one place to the other and meet the trailer at the destination, but it would have to coincide with the trucking company’s schedule. This was my second choice option, but I opted for another option.

My final option, and the one that won out, was to purchase a large (8.5′ x 20′) cargo trailer and tow it with the truck I already had (3/4 ton diesel pickup). I could load and unload the trailer at my leisure, because I had a place to park it at each end. I could transport a car (or even a tractor) in it if I need to (which I will eventually need to do). I can make multiple trips with it as necessary. I could use it at the new house to move furniture, appliances, and other things I bought for the new house. I could use it to haul cattle panels or 16′ gates that would not fit in the bed of the truck…

I’ve already made two (it might even be three) trips with it from the old place to the new one, and I am getting ready to do that again soon. This was certainly the best option for me, but I’m moving 30 years worth of stuff from one place to the other. Much of what I am moving is stuff I acquired with the intent of having it for retirement. Some of it is preparedness supplies, some is hobby stuff, some tools, some books, etc.

[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

While enabling wi-fi calling can be useful, basically, you’re just enabling your android or iOS device to function as a VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) device. This is useful when you have internet, but not cell service, but it won’t work when both cell service and the internet are down.

Copper-wire landline service will still work in those cases, but that service is being phased out by phone companies, as they are also moving to VOIP services.

Another option is to employ some sort of two-way radio system to reach those close to you, but there are too many variables involved to get into those options here. Some of the radio options to consider are CB, Ham (amateur), FRS, and GMRS.

[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

I worked in the electric utility industry for 35 years, primarily on the maintenance side of things. I was schooled in the electrical trade, but also had a lot of on-the-job training in mechanical skills as well as numerous other related skills.

For several years I worked in the division safety office and worked with multiple trades, learning bits and pieces of each trade. I am familiar with many maintenance and construction trades, but am not an expert in any of them (except electrical).

I have also dabbled in computers since I was a teenager in the 1980s, and am experienced in building PCs, having built many of my own, plus numerous others for other people. I have installed the OS on each of my builds, although most of my builds get Linux installed rather than windows.

I did a little bit of coding back when we called it “programming,” although most of that was in the now-obsolete “Basic” computer language. I am relatively comfortable installing programs (that’s what they were called before the term “apps” came into common usage), although troubleshooting them when they misbehave is often a bit more difficult for me.

I am also a licensed General class amateur (ham) radio operator, and a licensed GMRS radio operator. I am relatively familiar with the various radio services available to the general public, including CB, FRS, GMRS, MURS, and Amateur. There is a lot more to radio than just getting a hand-held ham radio and talking to other people…

In my never-ending quest for more knowledge, I have learned a lot about homesteading and the various aspects of it (farming, animal husbandry, canning/preserving, etc.). Although I don’t consider myself an expert in any of these areas, I am constantly learning, and I’m willing to share whatever knowledge I can.

[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

Tonight’s live stream is on the back-up channel. The main channel should be back up tomorrow (Feb 8, 2023).

[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

Howdy Y’all! I’m a recent (and currently part-time) transplant to East Tennessee (Claiborne County), after retiring at the beginning of August from a 35-year career in California. I like to say that I am from the “other” California, meaning the area where I lived was very different from the coastal/leftist parts of the state that most people are familiar with. Most of the inland areas are conservative and liberty minded, but unfortunately do not have enough influence to affect state government.

Although I was born and (mostly) raised there, the state changed drastically for the worst through the years, unfortunately. I tried my best to fight it, but I was greatly outnumbered there. We still have our house there as a place to stay when we visit family or need to be there for some other reason.

My wife and I purchased our homestead property in the early part of this year (2022), and are in the process of learning, watching, and evaluating. I have had a small hobby garden for years, but plan to increase the size of the garden to provide as much of our own produce as possible in the next few years. Because I’m new to this property, I need to determine the best location(s) for my garden(s), food forest, pastures, and such.

I also want to raise livestock, but have a bit of a learning curve before I do so. I think I’ll be ready for chickens by early next year. After that, I am considering cattle because I have a neighbor I am working with so I can learn what I need to know from him. I allowed him to put a few of his cows on my (overgrown & weed covered) pasture in exchange for the education. I’m also planning to keep bees and am considering goats, sheep, and possibly pigs.

I kind of want to jump in and “do it all” right away, but I know that’s not realistic. We have some immediate things to take care of, before jumping into the many other things I want to do. Right now we are getting our house in shape for the long haul, and I’ve been investing in some of the tools and materials I need to take care of things around the homestead.

There is a lot to do, and much more than my wife and I can handle on our own, so we are going to employ the help of our son and possibly other family members as well. I’m looking forward to the future successes, and recognize that there will be many challenges along the way.

My goal for this site is to learn what I can from others here and to share what I can with others along the way. Hopefully I’ll have enough knowledge and experience within a year or two that I can contribute something meaningful to this site. In the meantime, I’ve been learning a lot from Billy, Michelle, and William (PermaPastures Farm), Nicole, Danny & Wanda (Deep South Homestead), and so many others…

[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

There are some pretty good videos on YT showing how to use the various Hoss Tools wheel hoes and the various attachments. Here is a link to their “All about wheel hoes” video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0i1FNQcj5w4

After watching a few of them, I have decided to purchase a high arch wheel hoe, and possibly the dual wheel model, too, as well as several attachments.

The dual wheel model can be converted to a single wheel for those applications that require that format.

[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

As with my last post, this one is months afterward…

If you haven’t yet found an external hard drive, I’d suggest looking at Costco (if you’re a member).

I saw an 8TB drive there not too long ago for about $130 or so. I believe it was a Seagate brand, but it might have been something else. It’s hard to beat Costco’s pricing on these devices.

If you’re not a Costco member, you might want to check out NewEgg. That’s where I go for most of my online electronics purchases, especially things computer related.

[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

I know your post about Linux was from the beginning of the year, but if your “old” windows computer is on its way out, why not install Linux on it? Linux works well on old hardware as long as you’re not using it for hardware intensive applications. General usage such as web browsing, checking & composing email, word processing, and spreadsheet work generally aren’t too demanding, and will work well on older hardware running Linux.

The first thing you’ll want to do is to download an ISO image of the Linux distribution of your choice, and write it to the bootable media that your computer uses. For older computers, that means writing the ISO image to a DVD ROM disc. For more recent computers, that usually means writing the image to a bootable USB thumb drive. I recommend Linux Mint for new users as the desktop works much the same way as windows.

The second thing you’ll want to do is to back up all essential files on the windows computer so you can wipe the old hard drive, or simply swap out the old hard drive for a new one. I prefer to do the hard drive swap so I can later retrieve any data from the old one if necessary, plus I can generally get a new (and usually larger) hard drive inexpensively. I keep the old hard drive as an offline backup for the old computer. Just be sure to label the old hard drive so you know where it came from in case you need to use it again in the future.

Once you have a hard drive you are willing to write to (any data on it will be overwritten) installed in the computer, you’ll want to point the computer’s BIOS to boot to the media created in the first step. Boot into the new image you created in the first step, and when it starts, you should end up with a “live” desktop running off the boot drive. You can play around on the new live desktop to get a feel for it. Once you are ready to commit to the installation, you can install Linux to your hard drive by double clicking the “Install” icon that should be on the desktop.

When you open the installation script from the desktop, it should walk you through the installation process. If you’re familiar with the installation of windows, Linux should not be too hard to figure out. If you’re not familiar with the installation of windows, you may find the Linux installer is intuitive enough that you can figure it out. If not, perhaps there is someone you know nearby that is familiar with the installation process and can walk you through it.

Over the past nearly two decades that I’ve used Linux, the installation process has become increasingly easy, and is now to the point that it can be done with a minimum of input from the user. What I suspect would be the biggest hurdle to installation is not being familiar with the terminology used in the installation process. This is where it helps to have someone around that is familiar with the process.

Hopefully this helps a little bit at least. I apologize if I used terminology that you’re not familiar with. Hopefully you understood what I’ve shared and it helps you get started with Linux.

[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

Some phones can be turned on remotely by either your carrier, or by Apple or Google, depending on the phone.

[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

Are you running Linux on your laptop? If not, you’re subject to snooping by Microsoft and/or Apple by default by using one of their operating systems.

In addition, depending on how your system is configured and the applications you use, you could be inviting snooping from other big tech companies like Google and Facebook. Many Linux applications are free and open source, and do not suffer from the same tracking that Windows and Mac applications do.

I understand your desire to unplug, and from a personal privacy standpoint, that is the most effective way to protect yourself. If the things you do with your computer don’t require you to be online, then unplugging it could be a good option.

If the things you do with your computer require you to be online, then there are some additional things you can do to protect your privacy. One is to use a VPN. Another is to use a VPN service. Yet another option is to use a privacy focused browser like TOR, brave, or Librewolf.

• This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by  Farm-Ranch-Homestead. Reason: Added info

[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

Ham radio may be a good option, but remember, per the rules, all users need to be licensed. Depending on your license, ham radio offers many different bands on which to operate, some with global reach.

Another option for local communications is GMRS. It operates on frequencies close to those of the 70cm ham band, and has similar performance to that band. In fact, GMRS can use the same frequencies as FRS (so-called “bubble pack”) radios. GMRS has the advantage that one license covers the licensee’s entire family to a large extent (as I recall, it doesn’t cover cousins of the licensee). GMRS also allows the use of repeaters for extended coverage. A well placed repeater can often have a usable range of 20 miles or more, generally within approximate line-of-sight.

Location tracking is possible with radio, however, it is much less invasive than it is with cell phones. Location tracking of radios basically needs to be done within the range of the radio, so they generally can’t be tracked remotely. Some radios have GPS built in, and can transmit location data via the APRS protocol, allowing you to provide your location to others. Most radios, however, do not have GPS built in, so the only way to track location is by signal triangulation, in which case, if your radio isn’t transmitting, it can’t be tracked.

Conversations on radio are not private. Other people are able to hear your conversations. Even if using “private channels” as some brands like to call them, they are not private. All the “private channels” do is exclude other radios from being heard unless they select the same private channel. Encryption of radio traffic is not permitted by FCC regulations.

I recommend that most people get a GMRS license for their family, and several radios for use around their home. Handheld radios can be found in the $30 to $40 price range. Mobile radios and repeaters can add a bit more cost, but they aren’t necessary for beginning users.

The biggest advantage (in my opinion) to handheld radios, other than the tracking protection they offer, is that they provide a back-up means of communicating when phones don’t work.

[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

I want to add a word of caution regarding manure. Be sure of your source(s) before you do so. Avoid manure from animals that graze where chemical treatments have been used, especially herbicides like Roundup or Grazon. If they’re in the manure, they’ll end up in your soil, and will likely have some influence on what you can or can’t grow there.

[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

I was thinking the same thing, more or less. I think that would be a good place for such a discussion.

[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

There is an Australia sub-group (and some others) in the International community group.

[Farm-Ranch-Homestead]

Ham radio is good, but how about a broader category for communications that includes ham radio, GMRS, FRS, CB, private messaging and email apps, and so on? I think each of these has a place, especially after an SHTF or TEOTWAWKI event.