Step 3: Material Capital

AaronMcKeon September 23, 2021

The guidance provided in this section presumes you have already read the chapter on Material Capital in our book, Prosper!: How to Prepare for the Future and Create a World Worth Inheriting. If you have not, we strongly recommend doing so first.

Material Capital is the tangible “stuff” that we derive utility from. It’s our homesteads, our businesses, and the tools we use.

Encapsulating all of the product recommendations for life is an overwhelming order. Instead, we’re going to provide direction to where to go for those insights, based upon what you’re most interested in.

Energy

As hammer home daily on Peak Prosperity, energy underlies everything. Without it, we live a cold, dark, sparse existence. With it, anything is possible.

So learning how to use what you have as efficiently as possible is absolutely critical.

In close second to that is exploring how to produce a percentage of the energy you use yourself. The difference between producing 5% or 10% of your own energy vs 0% is literally night and day once the sun goes down.

We have an embarrassment of shared wisdom on this site regarding both home energy efficiency and production. Many of our readers are engineers who have applied a staggering number of solutions in this space.

In addition to reading that document (which is a must-read in our opinion), we also have many experts here at Peak you could as. Consider starting here, where you can ask questions to tap the expertise of the Peak Prosperity readership. In it, you can track and discuss the latest developments in the energy space, or ask for specific guidance about home energy projects you’re considering undertaking.

Water

Beyond the emergency water storage guidance provided in Step 0, we advise though with the space and means to consider larger-scale water collection and catchment solutions. Storage tanks and cisterns that store thousands of gallons are worthwhile investments, as are rainwater catchments systems — a good cast study of which can be found here.

For those on well-water, we can’t recommend enough having a manual backup system should your automatic pump break or shut off due to power outage. We are big fans of the Simple Pump. You can install one on your existing well: it’s very durable, has few very few components to break, and can draw water from up to 300 feet. Here’s an example of one in action:

Tools

Having the know-how is just part of the solution. You also need the appropriate tools.

Listing all of the tools recommended by the Peak Prosperity audience would take up to much space to be summarized here. Outside of searching the site directly, we believe the breakdown found here is a great source.

Peruse it as you have time, and be sure to start a list of desired tools you want to buy or borrow for your own personal plans. Since many tools are not everyday use (think chainsaws, wood splitters, etc), consider starting a neighborhood tool coop where you and neighbors share and/or co-purchase tools that everyone has access to.

Home Security

With the time, money and effort you invest in building your Material Capital, you want to make sure it’s going to be there when you need it to count on it. So make sure you invest thought into how to best protect it.

There is a tremendous wealth of information through out Peak. Start your journey in home defense by clicking here.