Perimeters....and defense measures

Discussion in 'General Survival and Preparedness' started by dragonfly, Oct 20, 2011.


  1. dragonfly

    dragonfly Monkey+++

    I was thinking ( dangerous for me!) about what can easily be done, to be forewarned about any "visitor's" coming into your area.

    1) I had to consider the legality, that alone dispels any use of "boobytraps", as I was trained in 1969-1970. ( darn it!)
    2) The ease of construction and use is very important.
    3) The costs and maintenance of devices.
    Well, we have those crummy el-cheapo devices, touted as "driveway alarms"! ( Chinese types) that cost $15-$20.
    They will work, BUT they also trip many false alarms if the wind is blowing...and they have to have many batteries...3 AA's for the transmitters and 1 9 volt for the receivers.
    Cold and rain is NOT good for them! I threw 2 away already!
    They don't last long and use of more than one can be a REAL problem!
    They use the same frequencies and one alarm, trips 2 or more receivers!

    Now, an easy and cheap way is to use clothespins, some wire and either a buzzer, lights, or any electrical device ( say 9-12 volt dc) when the device is tripped to get your attention.
    I bought 50 clothes pins for $3.00,spray painted them, one side reddish brown to match the color of the ground up north, and the other side is juniper green, IF I choose to put them up in the existing trees.

    For contacts ( VERY good ones!) I soldered wires ( about a foot long) to pennies. Then I epoxied the pennies to the clothes pins, one on the top jaw, the other to the lower, and let them set in contact with each other as the epoxy cured. Once they are cured, they can be mounted in a variety of ways...( drill tiny holes in the ends and use nails or even screws for mounting, or wire to tie them up) To rocks, tree branches, or even wood stakes or even small boards.
    The whole idea is to place them in areas where any foot traffic will trip them. For an electrical separator, I used thin plastic strips cut from empty bleach bottles....I use a paper punch to make small holes in the ends of the strips, which are about 1/2 inch wide and 3/4 inch long. Those are also painted... You simply tie a thin wire ( I prefer 4-6lb. fishing line) into the holes and then tie it across an area where people would walk thru.
    The clothes pin is anchored ( one person had me epoxy his clothes pins to several meduim sized rocks ( native to the immediate area)) Then the trip line is tied off, some may be taut, while others a bit loose, and they can be varied from 1 1/2 inches off the ground to whatever height you decide to use. I like to set some around 24-30 inches! Hard to step over, and IF you are looking down at your feet, odds are you won't even see the clear monofilament! Now dogs and small critters will trip them if you put them too low ( rabbits are a nuisance! But, good eating!!!)
    You simply can power these by a battery ( your choice) and either have a led light ( night use) or some device such as a piezo buizzer to make an alarm. Wirng is as simple as can be. One wire goes to the (+) positive side of either the battery or the alarm device, the other wire is connected to the battery or device at the (- )negative side. All that happens is it's a small switch. The line/tripwire is pulled on, the plastic tab is 'easily' pulled out from between the 2 pennies and the contacts ( pennies) close, completing the circuitry. Simple and VERY effective! Cheap and easy!
    Now you can stack large rocks, cut ditches, build anti-tank traps/ditching or fall trees, such as an Abatis. But this is easy and fast!

    One guy is making a box with a plexiglass cover, spraying it with a special "frost" paint that is used to make bathroom windows opaque. Then wiring the thing to several of these with a switch that allows him to use either red LED's, or a piezo buzzer, and he has made a grid on the plexiglass, that shows different "zone/areas" that each alarm is located in!
    Only limited by your own imagination!

    Other devices ( but very sensitive) are the same type of simple system, using mousetraps and instead of pennies, connect one wire to the mouse trap metal wires, and the other to either a penny, or a brass or copper tack, that the "bar" contacts!
    They are very sensitive, and I would only use them in between trees, and at a height of around 3 to 4 feet. Your "trip wire" is tied to the bait bar on the trap and it's a bear to set up ( I hate getting my fingers snapped!) you have to use very light line and tie it LOOSELY! Wind will trip these if not protected from tree/branch movement.

    Now on to yet another device....
    I like to use these on fences and gates, but they have to be hidden behind signs!
    They are simply made of pvc pipe,a cap and thin copper wire with lead sinkers.
    What some people may know as a "trembler".
    Movement sets these off fast! You have a short 4-6 inch of 1/2 or 3/4 inch diameter pvc pipe, and caps to fit. You line the inside of the pipe with aluminum foil ( glued into place),.. contact cement is good. Then you use a thin wire, with a small ( I mean tiny!) drill bit to drill a hole in the center of one pvc cap. You measure out the length of wire you'll need after wrapping it in good contact with a bass type, casting sinker ( like a bell gong!) You feed it up thru the pipe cap or feed the wire thu the whole assy just before sealing. It's easier to do with the cap off! You hot glue or affix the wire to the cap at the hole (epoxy or?) and then glue the cap to the pipe. making sure that the lead sinker inside acts as a "pendulum", contacting the aluminum foil inside the pipe. ( it must move freely and easily) When that is done you glue the lower cap on and let it dry. When you place this "trembler" on a post, fence or gate, you may have to use an ohmmeter, to enusre the "pendulum" is NOT in contact and perfectly vertical when you set it "permanently" in place. It has 2 wires, one is the pedulum wire and the other is a wire you have glued inside the pvc pipe with the aluminum foil over top of it, ensuring good conductivity.
    Those wires MUST be hidden and if not, they must be epoxied securely to the pipe's exterior and then painted over to camo them. They could be cut otherwise and that would nullify the system.
    The wiring circuitry is the same as the other 2 above.
    These are the same types ( not design) used in bank vaults to alarm IF anyone attempts to drill the safe or vault. They are very very sensitive and you can adjust that, simply by using different wire diameters for the pendulums.
    More later!
     
    Resqdan, Opinionated and Tango3 like this.
  2. GrandpaDave

    GrandpaDave Monkey++

    Not a bad idea.... of course living out in the country my geese are my alarm system... anything that comes into the yard is imedently challanged... why they even run off those Jahova witnesses when they come around....

    another good protection is to plant pyracantha bushes under every window... those nasty thorns will keep any intruder at bay... I know this to be true because growing up the Martiniez sisters... the hottest girls in my school... managed to hang on to thier virginity until their wedding night... because none of us boys could get past the hedge! and trust me, we did try...
     
    dragonfly and Sapper John like this.
  3. beast

    beast backwoodsman

    raspberries, barberry bushes, black locust - all make nice borders
    are totally legal and slow anything on foot down
    youll be hearing them fighting their way thru it
     
    VisuTrac likes this.
  4. Nadja

    Nadja RIP 3-11-2013 Forum Leader

    Doberman's are kinda handy that way also ! Not much bark but a heckofa lot of rippin' going on
     
  5. wrc223

    wrc223 Monkey+

    I have a barbed wire fence to the south of me. Cows within the fence will not be too happy to have strangers pokin around and will start making their displeasure known.
    To the east is the river, then chickens (they make a LOT of noise), then motion lights, then dogs.
    To the west is the main road through town. I live in an old victorian farmhouse so I have large windows to see everything out front. I still have the dogs to let me know when anything approaches (or is walking by).
    To the North is nothing but a small pasture and then woods. It is also our shooting lanes so we have the entire area perfectly zeroed with an array of weaponry that is more than adequate for defending the homefront. Out another way (nearer the road) is the ducks, the pond, the turkeys, and an old blue tick that has has the disposition of joe pesci in the movie Goodfellas. She hates it in the house because thats where the kids are (not that she would harm the kids, she just doesnt like loud noise). If you are in her A.O. at any given time, she will howl and bark and if you come within chain distance and she does not know you, oooff....that will be ugly.
    Now, if TSHTF, all of that will change. For now, that is what I am rollin with.
     
  6. dragonfly

    dragonfly Monkey+++

    I'd love to use Cholla cactus, ( aka:Teddy Bear-Jumping cactus) but it won't grow up there! My land area is horseshoe shaped, with the only easy and viable entrance from the north end coming southwards. I have rolling hills on the east of me, and a formidable mountain to the west. The south end has a canyon over 300 feet wide, and more than that in depth, with steep sides of loose rock! But I have seen all kinds of people on all kinds of vehicles, come over the mountain and right down on top of my land. Only a few places are so heavily wooded as to slow anyone down, not enough to stop them.
    At one time I considered buying and trying what is known as Russian Olive, that has 4 inch needles and grows fast and wide....But then it was put on a "noxious weed" list! Go figure! No cactus taller than a few inches grow up there, so I have to look to other ways to impede people. Cattle are all over the place and it is NOW my understanding that if I have a fence which consists of less than 5 strands of barbed wire, and it gets damaged by the cattle, it's my own problem! If it's 5 or more strands, then the rancher has to repair or replace it ( ever heard of that?) Cattle are NOT my concern, it is the 2 legged varmints that I want to either severly impede or stop.
    Vehicles are easy, as I can use boulders and trees placed strategically around the perimeter, and places where they might attempt to enter.
     
  7. dragonfly

    dragonfly Monkey+++

    I'd love to have a bunch (a gaggle?) of geese, but then so would the locals, not to mention the coyotes!
    I plan on using a 6 strand barbed wire fence for the lands boundary lines, then an internal "ranch wire" fence, and around the garden areas, I'll use not only chicken wire, but electric fencing ( multiple strands) as well. I found a variant of electric fencing that is vastly superior to a single strand, placed along the top of a fence....
    (they do bite I found out! But once it was touched by my forearm I knew where it was and it was nothing to overcome after that)
    If you take a pvc pipe in 3/4" or 1", in schedule 40 ( thick walled) and measure up halfway, then cut the 10 foot piece in two....you'll have 2- 5 foot posts..or make them longer if need be. I use the 5 foot pieces, and I measure 1 foot from the bottom, that will be set in concrete, inside a coffee can, set into the soil.
    I then measure and mark 2 inches up from there and drill 2- 1/16th inch holes, 1 inch apart. Then I mark and continue at 4 inch intervals, up to the end.
    You make these so they can be set about 6 feet apart, to enclose whatever size area you want secured. It's easier to have a couple of people to "sew" the wires thru the pipes, before they are set in place, or you can do it all later on after setting them in the concrete. Either or, whatever works for you!
    You "lace or sew" the wires thru the holes in the pvc pipes and when done, it looks kinda strange, like a wannabe fence! The wires will be staright and in nice lines, for a reason. The first or bottom-most wire is connected to the positive (+) side of the fence charger.The next wire is then connected to the (_) negative side. Now you can run 2 wires that connect all positive and all negative in a series, or you could actually call it parallel circuit. Since there are ONLY 2 wires that are involved and they are kept separated.
    Now here's the deal, with a "normal" hot wire fence, you have one wire that is "HOT". You must have a really really good ground ( rod) that can carry the voltage/shock via the soil to the critter that touches the top wire ONLY. In this case you have a complete barrier. Anthing that tries to nose thru the wires will get quite a shock, literally! The ground and resulting soil/moisture conditions may or may not be at all conducive ( or conductive). That has always been a major problem with electified fencing. Not anymore!
    Now anyhting that tires to pass will get zapped, as they will inevitablly contact both wires at once. If you want to TEST the system, use a green leaf about 4 inches or more in length, and try touching this thing!
    Now the lower wire will have to be kept free of all rubbish and weeds/grasses, or it can short the system out. The same is true for snow ( uh oh!) and rain...NOW what to do? Easy, just run 2 fence chargers! One is powering all of the upper wires, and the other powers only the lowest 2 wires!
    You can do that, or if you want to save time and money, use one charger and have the lower 2 wires on a separate circuit where you can simnply turn them off by a switch! The lowest 2 wires will even effectively stop most 4 legged critters such as mice, rats, and oh yeah, even snakes! Rabbits cannot get into your garden, and you can use the system on the outside of a regular ranch or chicken wire fence. That prevents critters from even getting close in, that could harm you, your children, and your pets! We have tested this in asmall version and here's the fun part...Each of these small solar powered fence chargers will deliver 6-8 Kv up to 5 miles over fencing!
    Now if you consider that you may use less than 1 mile of wire for the whole thing, you'll get some real zapping power on this thing!
    Now as for the wires you use....For the fencing itself, I highly recommend that you use only aluminum wire, I prefer .030" welding wire. It's fairly strong and has nearly 6 times the capacity ( conductivity) of stainless steel or any other wire. Copper would be great but it just corrodes too fast in rain and snow. Even aluminum corrodes, into aluminum oxide, but so far it's been hot for 2+ years now and not showing any means of slowing down. For the main "feed" wiring, I used a set of jumper cables in a heavy gauge that is enclosed in a nice and thick pvc covering. I buried them about 4 inches deep so they cannot be seen. I even made a PVC gate that is easily opened and closed with no fear of getting shocked while it's powered.
    If you have the need for it, you can isolate the lower 2 wires of the fence nearest the ground from the rest of the system, and then run BOTH fence chargers on your fence at one time! BUT, don't run both on the same wires, they will "feedback" into the other one and burn the whole system out.
    You will note that fence chargers "PULSE" as they send out a charge, and they would zap the opposing charger, even if they were wired correctly!
     
  8. WestPointMAG

    WestPointMAG Monkey++

    What about locus trees? They have thorns that large, sharp, tuff and the thorns grow in long clusters I have seen two feet long. You could plant the close to gather train the branches to grow to gather by splicing them. The only problem is that the thorns fall to the ground and will make a tractor tire look like an inside out porcupine.
     
    dragonfly likes this.
  9. dragonfly

    dragonfly Monkey+++

    I wonder if they'd do well in that region?
    Very similar to Denver Colorado...5,300 ft.elevation and all 4 seasons.
     
  10. WestPointMAG

    WestPointMAG Monkey++

    I do not see why not they are very hardy trees and they make the best fire wood you can get. This is the tree that the pins for post and beam construction are made from, the wood is resistant to rot so it makes good post, they make good timbers. So in short they are useful trees but they are a nuisance.
     
  11. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    Nuisance is being generous, as yard and shade they are a royal pain. I have a couple 70 footers that will be burnt eventually. They get structurally weak at around 40 years old, and it doesn't take much to push them over in a wind. Up to the point that they no longer have branches low to the ground, they are a deterrent to trespass, for sure.
     
    ColtCarbine likes this.
  12. sasquatch91

    sasquatch91 Monkey+++

    my husky/pit lets me know when anything is around.
     
  13. dragonfly

    dragonfly Monkey+++

    The biggest drawback with planting most things is the caliche' up there. The plates can vary in thickness from a few inches to several feet. And they are not very deep! I tired to drive in "T" posts and broke several! That stuff is like concrete...IF I auger the holes out for roots to get under it, (requires a Bobcat) then things might have a chance, or the winds just blow things over before they can get a chance!
     
  14. WestPointMAG

    WestPointMAG Monkey++

    You should have cut them for fire wood when the trunks were about 8-10 inches in diameter. When I cut fire wood I save everything for firewood that is one inch in diameter and over.
     
  15. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    These are about that diameter, they are just tall to match the rest of the trees in the area. Crowns are all around 60 or 70 feet. Skinny trunks. At the rate they are getting taken out in the wind we've had, I won't be hurtin' for firewood just yet. Still have three or four down to cut up if I get around to it.
     
    ColtCarbine likes this.
  16. dragonfly

    dragonfly Monkey+++

    A guy up in Prescott suggeste this for an alternative defense system of biological war fare:
    Raise and breed skunks and porcupines!
    Environmentally safe and friendly too!
    Now that's goin' GREEN!
    (just like the stench from those rotten gas bags!)
     
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