Category: Home Power

Letter Re: Off-Grid Laptops

Dear Editor: I recently came across the announcement for a new upcoming product. With Intel creating Atom processors with lower and lower power consumption, Samsung was able to design a netbook with integrated solar panels. It immediately occurred to me that this would be an ideal solution for off-grid computing. You can archive thousands of books and references on a single hard drive, have some instructional videos, maps, and more. You may even run lightweight CAD programs that would give any aspiring designer a significant advantage in a recovering economy where no one else has access to any computational power. …


Vacuum Tube Radios for Preppers

I often have SurvivalBlog readers write to ask me about vacuum tube technology and its robustness in EMP and CME events, and which antique multi-band vacuum tube radios to look for. I’m also asked how to determine which models can be run on both AC and DC power. To begin, vacuum tubes are inherently “hard” to EMP and CME but not invulnerable. They are also relatively safe from lightning strikes–but again not invulnerable. Modern integrated circuits are at the opposite end of the scale for vulnerability. In essence, the smaller gates in a microcircuit, the greater its vulnerability. In recent …


Letter Re: Survival Electronics and the Lowly Vacuum Tube

James: This is in response to an earlier letter where a reader asserted that his knowledge as an electronics engineer will be of little use after TEOTWAWKI. He is wrong, we will not abandon all the technology invented over the past 100+ years. Say for example we are hit with the big solar event, several EMPs and most solid state electronics are destroyed. One component that will survive is the vacuum tube. There will still be means to generate electricity here and there that will not be affected, hydroelectric generators will still spin, steam turbines, some of these can be …


Letter Re: EMP Protection for Photovoltaics

Mr Rawles, I have been reading survivalblog.com for about eight months now and have been considering trying to go off the grid so to speak. I have been reading many, many very helpful and interesting articles about “how to” setup and or make your own solar panel system. There is one question that I hope that you can field to your contributors of this subject. How you you protect your solar panels and system from a HEMP should one occur? I have not found info on how to protect against this kind of attack. It does not seem practical if …


Letter Re: Diabetic Preparedness – Storing Insulin in a Grid Down World

Sir: All this debate on the best DIY refrigeration method [for insulin] omitted a key question: What is the real shelf life for insulin, if you keep it properly refrigerated? Thanks, – J.E.C. JWR Replies: Definitive data is available in this diabetes journal article: How Long Should Insulin Be Used Once a Vial Is Started?. The article notes the following from a pharmaceutical manufacturer for refrigerated, unopened bottles: “Lantus was found to meet stability criteria for at least 24 months when stored between 36 and 46°F (2 and 8°C) (Aventis, data on file). Accelerated stability testing at 77°F (25°C) revealed …


Four Letters Re: Diabetic Preparedness – Storing Insulin in a Grid Down World

Dear Editor: Robert M. should also look at a propane refrigerator such as found in campers.  It only takes enough gas to run a pilot light to keep things cold.  A 20 pound propane cylinder will last us several seasons and also do the cooking.  A  200 gallon tank would last for several years if it were only used to cool your medications.  I have seen used propane refrigerators going for next to nothing when people scrap out old campers.  – Bob P. Hi There, Kudos to the author who wrote about off-grid electric refrigerators for storing insulin; other options …


Diabetic Preparedness – Storing Insulin in a Grid Down World, by Robert M.

I have spent time and money on food and water preparation, on preparing my family plan for emergency situations that might last an extended period of time. I have purchased and prepared medical and hygiene supplies, trying to cover as many areas as I could. Even with this much preparation, there was still one other important issue I needed to address. In a true TEOTWAWKI situation, a major concern for me and my family is electrical power. This concern isn’t centered on the ability to watch television, listen to music, or even cook food. Those are what I would consider …


Letter Re: The Disappearing Road Quandary

Mr. Rawles: I own a pretty densely-wooded 40 [acre property] in the Upper Peninsula (U.P.) [of Michigan]. The land on 2.5 sides of ours belongs to a timber company, and the land across the road belongs to the state. We live in a typical “stick built” house. It was built in the 1980s, with lots of big windows and two double-glazed sliding [glass] doors. We are four miles out of a town (about 2,000 population) but our house is only 60 feet from a somewhat heavily traveled county road. So our house is what you would probably call a tactical …


Life Without Electricity in a Semi-Tropical Climate, by Lynn M.

We are preppers. I love reading the prep/survival books. There’s so much information out there and so many people involved in prepping now, there’s just no reason to not do it! We learned from experience that you can never be over prepared. Since 2004 I’ve learned how to store food for the long term, how to filter water (okay, I’ll give credit to my Berkey on that one), I’ve learned about bug out bags and how to build a fire with a flint, but what I learned the most from was living for more than two weeks without electricity after …


Letter Re: Observations on the Recent Tornadoes

Dear James, As most of your readers know, on Wednesday, April 27, 2011, one of the worst tornado outbreaks in history hit the Tennessee River Valley area of northern Alabama, northern Georgia and south central Tennessee as well as parts of north central Alabama such as Birmingham and Tuscaloosa. Over 140 people were killed in northern Alabama alone and the final death toll from these storms will probably exceed 350. Hundreds of people in these areas lost their homes and are suffering greatly as a result. Please pray for these families as they cope with the loss of property and, …


Letter Re: Observations on the Recent Tornadoes

Mr. Rawles, I just finished reading the letter from R.A.  “Observations on the Recent Tornadoes”.  I live in the northern Alabama area also, less than five miles from the path of what has just been reclassified as an EF – 5 tornado. (For your readers in non-tornado prone areas, an EF – 5 is the most powerful category of tornadoes with winds in excess of 200 mph, completely tearing even substantial concrete and brick buildings from their foundations), and I can agree with the author’s points.  A few additional comments: 1)      Have a good radio handy that includes both a …


Letter Re: Corn Burning Stoves

Sir, Just wanted to thank you for your blog and all the good information available through it.  Several times in the section on selecting the midwest for a retreat, you mention the lack of available fuel sources.  Corn burning stoves are fairly common in this part of the country.  They tend to be in the hands of those who don’t pay retail for corn at this time, and certainly given modern means of agriculture the Midwest (Kansas, Iowa, South Dakota, Nebraska) can produce enough corn for its people and corn stoves.  Who knows if this would hold true in a …


Using Your Smart Phone as a Survival Phone, by Kelly H.

When preparing for any large-scale emergency or disaster scenario our initial tendency is to seek out the most basic necessities for survival: food, water, shelter. Those serious about survival expand these necessities to include protection, first-aid, mobility, etc. I believe one of the most important tools to include in any survival plan is a smart phone capable of offline card storage.   In my profession, I am attached to my smart phone. I depend upon it to work as much as my Leatherman while backpacking. I also know that during a large-scale emergency or a TEOTWAWKI scenario, a cell phone …


Three Letters Re: Deep Well Hand Pumps

JWR: In this entry, the idea of having a hand pump for the water well, and wanting to have at least some redundancy regarding the ability to pump water, is mentioned. Since potable water is a primary concern for me, I have been looking into the alternatives to our municipal water supply (which currently depends on the electrical grid to be operational).   Since I sell solar electric equipment, I naturally thought of having a solar powered water pump as a back up. But what if something knocks out my solar array? I ultimately would like to have a manual water pump. At the same time, I …


Letter Re: Deep Well Hand Pumps

Mr. Rawles: Thank you so much for enriching our lives with your knowledge.  My question is: I lost electricity this past week for two days.  I had enough water stored for me and my wife for cooking, drinking and flushing toilets stored and for our dogs, too.  But what would I do in a longer duration power outage? I remember my grandfather having an old hand pump on his well that we used to get a drink from on hot summer days when I was a kid.  My question is, where can I get one of these kinds of hand …