We are halfway through summer, and my wife and I are bulking up our dehydrated food supply. One of our recent discussions was whether silica gel would be worth including in our dehydrated fruit packs. Sometimes we can’t get all the moisture out of our produce. (I’m looking at you, blueberries!) We wanted to know if including silica gel packets would harm our food or us.

Silica gel is food safe. Food-grade silica gel desiccants are safe to use to remove moisture from food. Silica gel will not change or permeate the food it’s packed with. It is unregulated in most countries as silica gel is inert and not toxic. In the US, the FDA recognizes that it is safe to use and does not require approval for use with food in amounts of less than 2% when added directly to food.

When I was looking into the safety of silica gel products, I found more than a few blogs claiming that silica gel is harmful. That’s not at all what the science says, and I’m happy to say that we’re confidently using it to keep our dehydrated foods mold-free.

What is silica gel?

Simply put, silica gel is a man-made form of silicon dioxide. Silicon dioxide itself is naturally occurring and can be found everywhere. Many vegetables contain it. It’s the main component of sand, quartz, obsidian, opals, and even seashells. Some speculate that silicon dioxide makes up as much as 12% of the planet’s surface. It’s very stable and is not flammable. It reacts with other chemicals, but those chemicals are rarely used outside of chemical or manufacturing plants.

In commercial forms, silica has many uses. Popular toothpaste brands use hydrated silica gel as an abrasive gel that can scrub plaque and stains off your teeth.

The type of silica gel we use to keep packaged food dry is not quite the same, even though it is the same molecule. It’s a dehydrated version and loves to bond with water, which is why it works so well as a help to control moisture.  In its bead form, it binds water molecules to its surface, sucking the molecules out of the surrounding air. The beads hold the water molecules indefinitely or until the pellets are heated up enough to release the water. They can hold up to about 40% of their weight in water before they need to be dehydrated again.

Dehydrated silica gels in non-bead forms are used in food, makeup, shoe soles, paint, adhesives, and tires.

Are Silica Gel Desiccants Dangerous?

As I said above, silica gel desiccants are not harmful. Other forms of silicon dioxide, specifically ones that contain crystalized versions, can cause a variety of lung problems. Silica gel doesn’t cause the same issues because it doesn’t break down the same way. The amount of dust exposure needed to cause problems is exponentially higher than what you would experience with a lifetime of packing jars and food packs with packets. Even if a high exposure did occur,  your body could purge dust from silica gel, where crystallized silica sticks in your lungs forever.

Does Silica Gel Cause Cancer?

The short answer is likely not.

But to my dismay, I read on multiple blogs that silica gel causes lung damage and is a cancer-causing carcinogenic. Maybe you have seen those sites, too.

Most of these errors were made because silica gel and silica are not the same things, though they are both made of silicon dioxide. It’s an easy mistake to make, but it’s still a mistake.

Silica usually refers to a form of silicon dioxide that occurs in nature, is crystalized and not porous. It can easily break apart and turn into dust.

Silica gel is usually man-made, is not crystallized, and is very porous. It’s the porousness that gives it the water-binding property, or its adsorptivity.  It does not easily break apart into smaller pieces.

Silica in dust form does indeed cause a host of illnesses and conditions usually to do with lungs, including silicosis and lung cancer. Repeatedly breathing in crystallized silicon dioxide is very much a health concern.

Silica gel, which is what we use as a desiccant, has been studied to the point where it’s as conclusive as it can get. The conclusion is that silica gel is harmless, nontoxic, and not at all cancer-causing.

Color-indicating silica gels, however, are a different story. Read the next section to learn why.

Are Color Indicating Silica Gels Toxic?

Some silica gels have chemicals added that will change color when exposed to moisture. The two that I’m aware of are blue and orange. When blue indicating silica gel is exposed to a certain amount of moisture, the bead color changes to pink. Orange indicating silica beads also change color when exposed to moisture, but instead change to green.

In 1998, the European Union outlawed Blue Indicating Silica Gel from being sold in Europe. The reason? The blue coloring comes from cobalt chloride, which is toxic in high doses. Cobalt chloride is also linked to cancer.

Orange indicating silica gel is marketed by some manufacturers as nontoxic and, therefore, food-safe, but my research did not verify that. In fact, a reputable distributor says orange indicating silica gels should not be used with products intended for consumption.

I want to be clear: I am no scientist. I don’t know how much Methyl Violet can be ingested and still considered to be safe. However, I know for sure that white silica gel marked as pharmaceutical-grade is widely available, so I will stick with that.

Is It Safe to Put Silica Gel with Food?

Using desiccant packets alongside food is perfectly safe and even makes your dehydrated, vacuum-sealed food stay a little fresher. I would even argue that silica gel makes your home-packaged foods safer. They ward off mold development and other food spoilage by removing the moisture that your drying couldn’t. By placing a silica gel packet in with some dried and stabilized fruit, any extra moisture released will be bound to the porous surface of the beads.

If you live in a humid climate, throwing a packet into a jar of repacked dried goods isn’t a bad idea, either. Just remember that the more air the gel is exposed to, the more likely it will pick up and bind more water.

But what happens if the silica gel pellets accidentally touch your food directly for an extended period of time? There isn’t any reason to throw out your food, as the food industry uses its powdered form as a food additive.

My understanding is that powered silica gel is similar to the beads we use as a desiccant but on a much smaller scale. As I mentioned earlier, the FDA doesn’t regulate its use in food in amounts of less than 2% of the total ingredients.

Here are two of the most common ways it’s used in food:

1. Anti-Caking Agent – These agents are used to keep powders flowing freely. Those that live in a hot, humid climate know that putting rice in a salt shaker does the same thing. A quick search through my own cupboard revealed that my hot chocolate mix, chili powder, chipotle chili powder, and smoked paprika all contained it. Check out the ingredient label of McCormick’s chili powder here.
2. Defoaming agent – According to Craft Beer & Brewing Magazine, beer makers use silica gel to bind to proteins and peptides that make beer cloudy. But, unlike other uses in food, brewmasters filter it and the unwanted byproducts out.

There is an ongoing discussion in many of the world’s food regulatory agencies over whether nano-particles used in food manufacturing may be harmful. That question has not yet been answered, as far as I can tell. More studies followed by appropriate regulation are always welcome, but the current body of science says it’s okay. Considering how many products use it, there would be a growing body of evidence if it were a health issue.

What would happen if you ate silica gel?

You would live to see another day! Your body, especially your digestive tract, is full of moisture. Theoretically, if you at a bunch, you could trigger constipation, but eating that amount would be difficult and practically impossible to do by accident. It would be more likely to give you a bit of stomach upset. I don’t recommend trying.

The most dangerous part is the packet. There is a concern that kids or pets might choke on the packs, which is why they all are printed with ‘Do Not Eat’ warnings. The Illinois Poison Center says that it’s nontoxic. They recommend that a child or pet that swallows a packet and isn’t choking to drink some water.

Every spring and summer, I find myself at U-pick farms, farmer’s markets, and even my own garden, stocking up on produce to dehydrate and vacuum seal. I’ve been doing this for years because it saves loads of money; the food is locally grown and picked in season, reducing my carbon footprint.

While dehydrating food itself significantly extends its shelf life, vacuum-sealing dehydrated food will keep its nutrition and flavor for 30 years or longer. It will ultimately depend on the type of food, how it is stored, and how much moisture is in your product.

Food dehydrators and vacuum sealers are already valuable tools in the prepper’s arsenal. Combining the two to achieve better results makes a lot of sense. You can even create and store dehydrated meals for hiking, bugging out, or other emergencies.

6 Reasons to Vacuum Seal Your Dried Foods

It sounds like a lot of extra work for a small gain. After all, drying and dehydrating greatly extends the life of food without any additional help. But there are many benefits to vacuum sealing dehydrated food, even if you don’t let it sit for decades on end.

1. Better retention of nutrients. Your foods won’t keep all of their vitamins and minerals, but they won’t lose them at the rate that other preservation methods will. Dehydrating stops the initial loss, but vacuum packing ensures they stay put.
2. Better flavor for longer. The food’s flavor is also locked in. Dehydrated food keeps flavors in check because all you lose is water. Vacuum sealing doesn’t let that flavor out afterward, and foods never taste stale.
3. Lightweight prepackaged snacks are ready to go. I have a stockpile of single-serve trail mix and jerky waiting if I ever need it. Whether I want to take some on a hike or if I need rations while I move the family quickly in an emergency, we won’t starve.
4. Takes up less space and stores better. I’ve seen many other people vacuum pack their dried goods in mason jars, and I get it. It’s handy and easy to organize. The problem is that they take up a lot of room, and once a jar is opened, the freshness clock starts ticking. Instead, think about creating a well-organized bin system full of single-use packages.
5. Keeps foods from going rancid. You know that taste. We all do. Dried foods like nuts and brown rice have healthy fatty acids that can go rancid over time. Vacuum packing these foods stops oxygen from causing rancidity.
6. Use up your random leftovers. I buy fresh herbs like cilantro and parsley but only use about ¼ of the bunch each time. Now I dry the leaves and separate them into ¼ bunch bags for me to throw in with rice, soups, and casseroles. The same works for other veggies and fruits, too.

Food Safety

Keeping your dehydrated food flavorful and nutritious aren’t the only benefits of vacuum sealing. Vacuum sealing food also prevents moisture and air from getting in. If you’re ever caught in a situation where your basement floods or your bugout bag is dunked in the river, properly sealed food will survive.

Food that isn’t exposed to moisture and oxygen makes it resistant to airborne bacteria that cause food to spoil. It’s simple enough to dry your food to the driest levels. Still, if you are concerned about the amount of moisture left in a sealed bag, food-grade desiccant packs can help remove any leftovers.

Botulism is a real threat, and it doesn’t care about oxygen. Even just a taste of food contaminated with the poison can cause paralysis or even death. It is rare, but it’s why proper food handling is so important.

Botulism works with moisture in environments that lack oxygen. The bacteria and its spores can be killed quite easily. The toxins they create are a little more difficult to kill off, and it’s not recommended that you try, according to the CDC and the National Center for Home Food Preservation.  If you see moisture inside a vacuum-sealed food pack, throw it out.

The rule of thumb is that unless you process your food as if you were canning it, you should expect that your food will contain live spores. This is why we generally store fresh food in the fridge or freezer. If it belongs in the fridge or freezer before vacuum packing, it should still go in the fridge or freezer after vacuum sealing it.

Storing Vacuum Sealed Dehydrated Foods

Exposing food to light, air, heat, and moisture will reduce the quality of your stored foods. Any one of these elements alone will slowly destroy all of those precious vitamins and minerals in your food, if not destroy it entirely.  Vacuum sealing will keep out the air and moisture, but what about the other two?

Light and heat are storage placement problems. The colder and darker your storage area, the longer your food will last. Storing your food in a bin or using Mylar bags will keep light and oxygen under control, but packaging cannot control the temperature.

Keeping food at a temperature of 60F(15C) or colder is ideal. A cool basement, a fridge, and even a freezer are excellent. In my opinion, keeping your carefully packed food in a freezer or fridge is overkill and against the point of this whole exercise.

So what can you do if you don’t have a cold storage place?
Just find the coolest place you can. The shelf life of vacuum-packed dried food stored in warmer temperatures might not last 30 years. However, it will still be considerably longer than dehydrating alone.

What Dehydrated Foods Can I Vacuum Seal?

Dehydrating and Vacuum Sealing Meats

We naturally think of jerky when we think of dehydrated meats, but the list doesn’t end there. I’ve learned that dehydrating and vacuum packing meats and fish can work very well if they have a low-fat content or have the fat removed. I’ve had great luck with drying ground beef and canned chicken. Other meats to try are deli meats, ham, sausages, and canned meats.

Fruits, Vegetables, and Nuts

Just about any vegetable or fruit can be dehydrated and vacuum packed. Exceptions are high-fat foods like avocados because they don’t dehydrate at all.

Some fruits and vegetables require a little extra work before they can go through dehydration, like blanching or a citric acid dip, so take care there.

Most nuts shouldn’t be put in a dehydrator as the combination of heat and air can cause rancidity. Skip the dehydrator and head straight to the vacuum sealer.

Vacuum Sealing Pantry Items

This one is a no-brainer to me, just because I already do it, but isn’t the most conventional. I always buy things in bulk that I don’t use often but need to have on hand. Take popcorn as an example. I buy a big bottle of it at Costco, and that bottle lasts me 5 years. But the popcorn itself doesn’t last that long. By the end of the second year after opening, its kernels pop up very small and aren’t as flavorful.

Vacuum packing pantry items into smaller packages means that they will remain fresh forever. Sticking with the popcorn example, I vacuum-pack a half cup per bag because I know that’s how much I make each time. Other items I store a month’s supply in each pack.

Dried goods to consider stockpiling way include flour, cornmeal, rice, baking ingredients, or even pasta.

Making Your Own Dehydrated Vacuum Packed Meals

This is an area I’m looking forward to exploring, mostly because I like to cook and I like to eat, and when that happens, I’ll be posting my findings. So far, I have learned that some foods just don’t dehydrate well enough to work for backpacking, but many definitely do.

There are two methods for this type of cooking with your dehydrator. Some meals work better when you cook them in advance and dehydrate them after, like chilis and stews. Other meals turn out best if all ingredients are dehydrated separately and combined in their final package, like rice dishes and noodles.

Remember that there are many different types of prepackaged boxed meals on grocery store shelves that could be replicated. Adding products like powdered eggs and dehydrated dairy products, a real meal whiz could create and pack their own macaroni and cheese or boxed scalloped potatoes.

Chef Glenn over at BackPackingChef.com has a wealth of recipes, instructions, and insights into dehydrating and creating backpacker meals.

If 2020 taught me anything, it taught me to appreciate a good stockpile of yeast. I was already a seasoned bread baker before the shutdown and had a well-stocked pantry, but I hopped on the sourdough train because it feels like a good skill to have. Through that, I learned that I prefer to have yeast on-hand, and I started questioning how long it could be stored.

The time that commercial yeasts remain viable depends on how it is stored. Depending on humidity and other factors, if left open on a shelf, yeast will last less than a couple of months. Baker’s yeast stored in an airtight container in a cold freezer will keep yeast viable for years. Contrary to popular belief, yeast does not have a definitive expiry date.

While yeast absolutely will lose some of its potency over time, steps can be taken to slow down that process. I explain how you can keep dry yeast fresh farther on.

How to Make Yeast Last Longer

According to the folks over at StillTasty, active dry yeast kept at temperatures below 0°F (-18°C) will keep indefinitely. I know from my own experiences that this is true. I found yeast that had to have been several years old that was still viable. There is a good chance that if it is stored in an airtight container forgotten in the back of your sub-zero freezer, it’ll be fine to use.

Note: If you store your yeast in the door of a freezer or if the freezer has an auto-defrost feature, your yeast may go stale sooner. Yeast doesn’t do well when forced to deal with regular temperature changes.

Vacuum sealing is my favorite way to store extend the life of yeast, especially if you’re buying big packages but only making bread once a week or less. You can vacuum seal much smaller amounts by sealing into a small bag. Put all of your homemade yeast packets in a Ziploc or appropriate container and throw it in your freezer. It’ll be good forever, assuming it was good going in.

This video explains how to create and seal small bags with a vacuum sealer.

How to Stockpile Yeast

The following rules are made with the assumption that you’re buying your active dry yeast in big packages. Buying in bulk is necessary when building a stockpile, though it may not make much sense for a small family or single person.

The First rule of storing active dry yeast: Keep it airtight.

When a new pack is opened, the contents should immediately be transferred to an airtight container fit for freezing. This can be a glass jar or a freezer-safe plastic container.

The Second Rule: Never store more than 4 months’ worth of yeast in a single open container.

When I open a 2lb brick of yeast, I don’t want to store all of that yeast in a single jar. Every time the jar is opened, the yeast is exposed to light, moisture, and heat, all of which will shorten its lifespan.

Instead, invest in some small jars or save any small yeast jars that you might already have on hand. Baby food jars would also work but are a little more fragile.

The Third Rule: Rotate your stock.

As I listed above, unopened bricks of active dry yeast can sit on a shelf for more than two years and still be considered fresh. By the time I open a brick, it’s usually two or three years old. I don’t want it to get any older than that, because I don’t want to be wasting freezer storage space.

Something I learned at my high-school fast-food job was to rotate your stock, and of course, it follows through to prepping. The older product is pushed to the front. The new product goes to the back. Always keep your stock organized so that you don’t waste time searching for which product is the oldest.

How Much Yeast to Stockpile

The first thing to remember that homemade bread is hardier and more filling than your average loaf of Wonder bread. If your family eats typical commercial white bread, count on using about half as many loaves, as homemade bread tends to be hardier.

To figure out how much yeast you would need for your stockpile, count on using roughly a tablespoon of yeast per loaf. Conveniently, there are about 52 tablespoons of yeast in a pound, so just multiply the number of loaves you think you would go through in a week by the number of years you want to stockpile.

Yeast Stockpile Formula

(Loaves of Bread Consumed per Week) x (Years to Stockpile) = lbs of Yeast to Stockpile

I’m going to use my storage and usage to give you an idea as to what you can expect.

As I said earlier, I make my own bread and have for years.

For prepping purposes, I keep about 3-4 years’ worth of yeast on hand. I’ve been rotating through this stockpile for over ten years. My yeast always fully activates even though it’s a few years old by the time I use it.

We go through about two loaves a week, which is roughly two pounds of yeast per year. This means I usually have two or three unopened 2lb pack of yeast in my stockpile and one open and in use. I keep so much on hand because, in an emergency situation, my family’s bread consumption would likely double as we lose access to more convenient foods. And I’d like to hold off turning the great sourdough experiment of 2020 into reality as long as possible.

It’s Okay to Use Expired Yeast

“But it has an expiration date printed right on it,” you might say.

Sure, there is a date printed on your yeast package, but it’s a best-before date, which is entirely different from an expiration date. Think of a best-before date to be like a manufacturer’s freshness guarantee. An expiry date is not the same. It’s a warning not to consume a product because it will likely spoil soon after that date.

Yeast doesn’t spoil to the point of being uneatable because it doesn’t really expire. That’s not a guarantee yeast will still activate the way it should, but it won’t make anyone sick. Yeast is a living organism. If it dies, it’s harmless.

Tip: If you store your yeast in the freezer, make sure to give it time to warm up before use, or give it extra time to proof before deciding it’s not fresh. Yeast makers like Red Star suggest giving your yeast a full hour to warm up before using.

So, when is yeast bad? When it doesn’t look like yeast. Is it grey? Toss it. Is it clumpy? It’s not fit for consumption.

How Long Will My Yeast Stay Fresh?

Is My Yeast Dead?

I’ve been baking bread on and off for over 15 years, and I’ve never had yeast go completely dead. That is anecdotal, but it’s also been a lot of yeast with sometimes long stints in between uses.

The worst I’ve personally seen is the yeast that has risen bread to three-quarters the height fresh yeast would. That has only happened once.  I’d bought the yeast in a small jar quite long before and forgotten about it. Half of the jar was left, and I used what was left to make hamburger buns and dinner rolls to stock up the freezer.

If you think your yeast is dead, proof it before trying a recipe. Proofing yeast that you haven’t used for a while is a good idea, especially if you like recipes that don’t call for proofing beforehand. Most of today’s yeasts don’t require proofing if they’re fresh, so don’t worry about it if you know your yeast is good.

Red Star Yeast has a well-written yeast freshness test you can follow to proof-test your yeast and instructions on how to add your proofed yeast into a recipe that doesn’t call for proofing.

If Your Yeast Is Dead…

If you find yourself in a situation where you don’t have access to yeast, as many did in the spring of 2020, you can try your hand at creating a sourdough starter. Once you learn how to identify a healthy starter, it’s a relatively painless process. Sourdough-focused blog The Clever Carrot has a wealth of information and recipes, including an easy-to-understand beginner sourdough starter method.

Like any other tool or device a prepper might consider, a battery-powered chainsaw deserves a little scrutiny. Due to recent events, I am keen on learning more about drawing as little attention to myself as possible when I start my future homestead. Believe it or not, chainsaws actually fit into this.

Are battery-powered chainsaws any good? With manufacturers taking advantage of new battery technologies, many battery-powered chainsaws perform at the same rate as conventional chainsaws in their class. They have several advantages that everyone from preppers to landscapers will find appealing. They are quieter, require less maintenance, and are often easier to handle.

There’s a big caveat here. If you find yourself in a bugout situation with no transportation, you don’t want to carry a chainsaw out with you. If that’s why you’re here, think about what other survival items you should instead use that weight for.

However, if you have a stash, a bugout vehicle, or already have a homestead or piece of property started, read on to find out how they could benefit you, too.

Why Battery-Powered Chainsaws Are Good For Preppers

Though they do have some drawbacks, I’ve discovered that the type of chainsaw you want entirely depends on your situation. A battery-powered chainsaw would be useless to lumberjacks, I imagine.

But for preppers, there are a lot of reasons why you would turn to them.

They’re Quieter

If you believed half of the internet, you would think that cordless chainsaws were magically silent devices. This isn’t true.

While they do produce less noise than fuel-consuming saws, electric chainsaws still create plenty of noise. They are about as loud as a gas lawnmower, which is much quieter than a gas-powered saw. It is still loud enough that several health agencies recommend using ear protection.

There is another reason why they should be considered quieter.  The only point that the saw actually makes noise is when the trigger switch is pressed. The motor doesn’t need to run if it’s not cutting, so it will immediately stop as soon as you let go of the trigger.

When you have a saw that isn’t as noisy, and it doesn’t make noise unless it has to, it’s better for someone like me. It means that I can create a smaller noise footprint and hopefully draw less attention to myself when I’m in search of firewood.

They Start Every Time

When I’m off-grid, I want something that starts the first time, every time. Pull cords are the bane of my existence, going back to when mowing the lawn was one of my biggest childhood chores. When they’re new, motors started by pull cords might start beautifully, but that fades with time. I don’t have time to sit around and try to figure out how to get something running.

A battery-powered chainsaw starts every time because the motor does not run unless you are actively holding the trigger switch. There isn’t a pull-cord to make you miserable. You aren’t restricted by an extension cord that will only let you go so far.

There are only a power button and a trigger switch, so all you have to do is bring it to where you want to work.

No Fuel = No Pollution

I don’t want to store fuel. Stabilizers must be added to store fuel long term. Then, it needs to be mixed with oil.

Expensive premixes have taken the mystery out of the complicated oil-to-fuel ratios, but they still must be stored.

It’s a messy, stinky situation, and you haven’t even started your saw yet. Inhaling all that exhaust isn’t exactly healthy, either.

These issues don’t exist for chainsaws that run on battery power.

There is no need to stop to refuel with a battery-powered chainsaw while you’re working. It runs until the battery needs charging.

The downside is that you need to charge your battery. Still, if you have other power tools, you may also have a second and third battery ready for use.

Charging the Battery Under Different Circumstances

A battery chainsaw requires electricity. If you are preparing to be in an area or situation without power, there are some simple solutions.

It can be a relatively easy DIY job for those of us that like to do things themselves. Some home-built solutions include a small solar module, an RV battery and case, and a DC battery charger from your chosen tool line to get going. This system won’t power much and isn’t the most stable, but it will charge a few batteries a day.

A quick online search turns up many DIY plans and recommendations. I found this hodgepodge at instructables.com which gives a few different options on how to do this.

Other options for starting out include prebuilt solar/battery systems. However, they tend to have smaller batteries and may be less reliable. For roughly the same price or less, a small gas generator may be a better option.

If you already have a stable power source, such as gridded electrical, your own renewable energy, or a generator, you’re ready to go.

Less Maintenance

There is no real maintenance at all, really—just a few tasks to keep it running in peak condition.

The saw chain needs to be regularly sharpened, tensioned, and protected between uses. Like other styles of chainsaws, battery-powered saws need chain oil, too. Just check the reservoir before each use and top up as required.

As I said earlier, these machines don’t use fuel. Gas-powered saws can have an oil filter, a fuel filter, and an air filter that needs to be checked and replaced regularly. Battery saws have none of these, and therefore no need to maintain or replace them.

Though most manufacturers recommend servicing all tools periodically, there is no need to weatherize a battery saw or measure its spark plugs.

They Can Be Used Indoors

Consider this situation. It’s the first cold snap of the year, and you realize you still have some firewood to cut into logs. You’d prefer to do it someplace warm, like in your garage that’s heated by the woodstove in the corner.

Battery operated chainsaws can work indoors with little or no ventilation. If your chainsaw doesn’t burn fuel, there isn’t any exhaust or strong fumes. And that means you don’t have to worry about carbon monoxide buildup, poisoning, or, uh, dying.

The second reason why they can be used indoors is that they’re quieter than gas versions. I won’t say they’re silent because they’re not, but they don’t have the roar of the gas motors. As I already said, they aren’t really all that quiet, but in a shop or garage, it would be the difference between a little on the loud side and blowing your eardrums out.

Are battery chainsaws as good as gas?

For most people, they will work just as well, if not better than gas.

They let you work smarter, not harder. While a battery-powered chainsaw is going to be about the same weight as a gas saw, the former is more compact, better balanced, and doesn’t vibrate nearly as much. This means that they are more maneuverable than gas and require less arm power from you to get the same job done.

Battery-powered chainsaws tend to be a little cheaper to operate. This is particularly true if you already have invested in batteries for other tools.  Electricity, especially if you generate your own, tends to be cheaper than oil and fuel.

Power is becoming less of an issue with newer high-capacity lithium storage cells. Some cheaper models are not very good for anything beyond trimming trees, but newer models can make short work of cutting up smaller logs for firewood.  Check out this video I found for an example of the Stihl MSA 200. It’s the first of two videos about cutting up about 1/3 of a cord on a single charge.

Are battery-powered chainsaws safer?

There are a few reasons why they might be safer.  They’re balanced very well, which makes them easy to handle. Reaching up to do some limbing isn’t quite as strenuous.

These chainsaws are also safer because if you let go of the trigger for whatever reason, the motor stops automatically. They still have safety mechanisms to brake the chain in certain situations, as all chainsaws do.

Of course, if you don’t have experience with chainsaws, you must learn about chainsaw safety. You need to think about proper protective equipment, including ear, eye, and leg protection, and learn about proper posture and stance for cutting.

This Old House has a great video a lot of great safety tips, and Tractor Supply has an excellent article for beginner chainsaw users.

Conclusion

I originally intended to give a relatively brief and broad overview of whether battery-powered chainsaws were any good. What I found was a style of chainsaw that will meet the day-to-day demands I expect to see in my prepping. I also now know I have a lot more to research and write about.

The only real drawback I found was that battery-powered chainsaws are not as fast as gas and that they weren’t suited for using to cut big logs. But when weighed against the ability to pick up the saw and go, it becomes an almost relaxing experience.