ReadyNutrition Readers, I just wrote an article detailing the importance of having a “closed” security system for your home. The reason for this was to maintain your privacy and not have all your home viewed by law enforcement via CCTV cameras. I also touched on the fact that at any given moment, you may lose such capabilities with an EMP (Electromagnetic Pulse) weapon, a war, a power loss, or all of the above combined. If you have been watching the news between your summer activities, you may be aware that North Korea just successfully tested an ICBM (Intercontinental Ballistic Missile) successfully.

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“Damage control” in the media and government are now reluctantly admitting that North Korea “can hit Alaska,” but of course, happy consumer-taxpayers won’t have to worry about an EMP or a nuke reaching the “inviolate” U.S.! After all, some dogmas survive even the people who parrot them, don’t they? Just be aware of that. What about security then? Well, there are a few “Uncle Caveman” measures that I wish to share with you that can help in this regard.

Firstly, I’m sure many of you wish to see photos and diagrams of exactly how this kind of thing is done. I’m sorry, but I don’t do that kind of thing regarding my own property. I don’t merely “preach” OPSEC: I live it, no offense intended. Here are some options for you to consider for emplacing an early warning system on your property and to help protect it during a “low tech” scenario.

10 Ways to Create an Impenetrable Home Security after an EMP

“Tin Can Alley” with tripwire: Aluminum cans, more accurately. You want to pick up aluminum cans that are dark colored, such as brown root beer cans, or dark green Sprite cans. Whatever your beverage of preference. This is so that no light is reflected off them. Poke a few holes in the bottom to allow for drainage of water. Then throw in about a half dozen ball bearings. Stones can become wet and stick together. Ball bearings, no. String these cans up everywhere: to the entrances to your house, out on the property, and so forth. Run tripwire (nylon or coated steel) at a fixed point, and have the cans either suspended on the horizontal line, or “propped” on a ledge where the tripwire will cause them to fall. You can use nails for this kind of thing, and small eye screws. These are excellent for changing direction on your trip wires and allowing for tension to still be maintained. Trips to “deadfall/shelf” with noisemaker: This means to use the tripwire so when Mr. Bad Guy comes creeping along, he hits it, and it causes a large/medium-sized noisy object to fall when its support is taken out. Good examples are big metal #10 or coffee cans filled with bolts, nuts, and one or two smaller cans. Metal is great for this kind of noise maker. Obstacles: Make it difficult for them! A nice camouflaged “pit” in the direction of travel with all kinds of noisemakers, such as scrap metal, dug to about 3’ deep will work wonders! It will make noise and most likely hurt them badly. Also, show your “smarts” by placing tripwires to the sides of the obstacle. If Mr. Goon sees the trap, it’ll fix his attention so that he trips off a noise-making tripwire. Ball bearing mat: This is one of my favorites. Take a strip of plastic about 3’ wide by 6’ long and place it near the front door mat. The key is to make the plastic be the same color as the front porch, as close as possible. Then spread out the bearings. When they approach the door, they’ll have a great surprise. Trip wires and noisemakers all over the front porch: If your front porch doesn’t have a gate that closes, then get one, or build it. Make it difficult for Mr. Creep to approach your residence. We’re talking a grid-down scenario. Your friendly neighbor isn’t friendly anymore. Especially wearing a ski-mask or nylon stocking in July, stalking outside at midnight. Small-scale battery-powered contact sensors: The kinds that make noise when you separate them. Cheap and easy to set up on windows and areas of access, the EMP will probably not have much of an effect on them, since their circuitry is more primitive. Door Braces and Window Locks: an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Make sure your entranceways are locked and braced for an intruder. Capability to switch floodlights to a battery box: This will really make them “S” their pants when the S hits the fan and they come calling! This will take a little bit of doing, but there are plug panels that can connect to a car battery that you can power a flood light on. Imagine how happy Mr. Creepy will feel when your Night Vision devices (the ones you bought “doubles” of and stuck in a Faraday Cage as JJ asked you to) work, and then you see him…and hit the floods on. Family, there he is! Watch your lanes and empty your mags! Pre-position all points of engagement with firearms: That’s right…when Mr. Bogeyman is creeping around, everyone in the family needs an assigned place to be able to give him the lead when the time is right. Active patrols: What? Did you think you were all going to sleep the entire night? Think again! One of the family needs to actively patrol for an amount during the nighttime divisible by the family members able to patrol. Eight hours of darkness with 4 family members able to pull a patrol? Each has a two-hour shift, plain and simple. If it’s mom and dad and the two kids, well guess what? Four hours for mom and four hours for dad. It is not negotiable: there must be a security element in a fixed location to watch the whole house and/or actively patrolling on foot.

These are the arrangements to follow when the cameras, sensors, and robot bodyguard break down due to the EMP. Always rely on low-tech to begin with, and the punch line is this: these measures should be in place already, even if you have an exisitng alarm system. Also, be sure that every family member living in the home knows where all the obstacles are. Some you will have to forgo until the time comes, as there’s never an end to nosy, friendly, chatty, pain-in-the-backside neighbors staring, sniffing, and treading on your property.

Additional Reading:

Inside the Mind of a Looter

Prepper’s Blueprint: The Step-By-Step Guide to Prepping For the Worst-Case Scenario

Zombie-Proof Your House

What To Do When Your Survival Shelter Has Been Compromised