Learning + Tutorials

One of the most important reasons to have an Emergency Survival Kit / Bug Out Bag is to prepare for home fires. Why? Because in only a matter of minutes a small flame can turn into a raging house fire, and you and your family may only have seconds to escape.

You wouldn't have time to grab anything that wasn't already prepared near an exit.

Home fires, more than any other thing we prepare for (other than a tornado) strike the fastest and pose the most significant threat us.

Almost all of us carry instantly updated maps and GPS systems in our pockets these days in our phones, reducing the threat of being lost to almost nil.

But what would happen if you didn't have your phone, or the battery died, or your Tom-Tom took a swim? What if you just don't get any signal where you are?

Lets look at the old fashioned, never-fail navigation tool: the humble compass.

Updated December 2025

Learning never ends. If you've managed to read all the other articles on this site, congratulations! It's a lot of information.

But we've only begun to touch the surface of many of the prepping and survival subjects and topics introduced here.

We think the books below are a great addition to your collection.

Some you should keep print copies of, and all you should have on your emergency Kindle/iPad.