Nuclear War Won’t Be Like Hollywood Portrays It- Part 2, by 3ADscout

If you believe the Hollywood hype, you are probably like many people (prepper or not) who don’t even bother to prepare for nuclear attack and hope that you go quick if it happens. Yet, with some basic knowledge and pre-planning, you can survive. We are taking a look at what is required to do this. In part 1, radiation basics and principles of protection were discussed as well as the importance of location. Let’s continue to discuss what can be done to prepare for survival. Home Construction Your home should also have been built after 1946. This is because home …




Nuclear War Won’t Be Like Hollywood Portrays It- Part 1, by 3ADscout

If we believe the Hollywood screen writers, no one can survive a nuclear attack and anyone that beats the odds will turn into some type of mutant radioactive zombie. Furthermore, if you believe the Hollywood hype, you are probably like many people (prepper or not) who don’t even bother to prepare for nuclear attack and hope that you go quick if it happens. Yet, with some basic knowledge and pre-planning, you can survive. My Knowledge My knowledge comes from decades of being a prepper, including a collegiate debate concerning “nuclear winter” in which I debated the fallacy of nuclear winter …




Family Preparations for Nuclear War

Today, I’m addressing a subject that I suppose should have had more emphasis earlier in SurvivalBlog: The risk of nuclear war, and how families can plan and prepare to survive it. The Risk The risk of nuclear war is now actually greater than during the bad old Cold War. Back then, there were just a handful of nuclear powers that were divided into two or three camps. But today, there are umpteen factions and even terrorist groups with potential access to nukes. Face the facts: We live in a dangerous world. Someday, one or more of hose nukes is going …




EMP And The Modern Computer-Controlled Car, by Oldgeezer

There seem to be a million different opinions on what will happen to computer-controlled cars, trucks, and vehicles of all kinds after an EMP attack. Maybe my experience will help expand your knowledge base. My First-Hand Knowledge I have spent many an hour reading about EMP, watching numerous videos about its effect on civilization, and had some real doubts about some of the claims. While none of us have experienced a true EMP attack, I now have first-hand knowledge of what we may experience when/if an attack occurs. In 2015, a highway patrol car in our state was struck by …




Letter: Neutron Shielding for Fallout Shelters

Hugh and Jim, I was recently reading a book on nuclear reactors. I learned that iron can be used in concrete to provide neutron shielding. The iron slows the fast neutrons down to thermal levels that can be easily absorbed in the concrete. I also mine my own gold. As a byproduct of my mining, I have buckets of magnetite and hematite iron ore sand. The magnetite ore I sell to a local blacksmith for making steel. The hematite I’ve found no use for until now. I can use this black sand in place of silica sand in the concrete …




Preparing for Infectious Diseases, by Maple

While there are many good articles out there on preparing for pandemics, there is little information that really breaks down infectious diseases and how to alter your actions depending on the disease. There are also conflicting reports on exactly what actions to take and if/when to take antibiotics and in what dosages. I hope this article will provide you with the tools you will need to decide what actions to take. This article will cover some basic infectious disease terms and patterns and then two resources you can use to decide what actions to take and when. Infectious Diseases When …




Letter Re: EMP Computer Question

Guys, What laptop would you recommend for storing in an EMP proof environment, to be used after an event to retrieve electronic files such as Survivalblog/Mother Earth News archives? There are so many options, and choosing the wrong one could be frustrating to say the least. I have hard copies of some essential books, but there are just too many helpful things in electronic format to ignore if it would be possible to retrieve. Thanks for all you do! – P.H. HJL Replies: If the device is to be stored in an EMP resistant container, there are no special considerations …




Letter: EMP Proofing a 1988 F250 Diesel

JWR, In the book “How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It” a device for $20 is mentioned. Where can I get it? – H.P. JWR’s Comment: Go to your local Ford dealership’s parts department. Ask them for a spare “glow plug controller” for your truck (model and year.). If they have one on hand, ask them to see it. If they ask an exorbitant price, then look for the same part at you local car and truck wrecking yard.




Top Six Common Questions Concerning An EMP, by Old Bobbert

Maybe you, like many, have questions about an EMP. As a friendly, and hopefully a pleasing feature, this article is being edited as it is being typed so as to be read as though it were a friendly two-person, social conversation. The Sit-Rep Situation That Initiated Research The sit-rep situation would necessarily be two good friends talking about a recent article concerned about a potential EMP situation caused by a strong ego-driven leader of a small Asian nation with an attitude and an ego to match. We will call our two friends Bob and Ray. Actually Bob (Old Bobbert ), …




Radiation Issues In Nuclear Blasts- Part 2, by Dr. Bones of doomandbloom.net

This is the second part of this article on radiation issues in nuclear blasts. We’ve defined radiation and various types of bombs as well as radiation’s effects on living things. Today, we’ll look at what we can do to prepare for radiation exposure, treat its effects, and more. Radiation Sickness The medical effects of exposure are collectively known as “radiation sickness” or “Acute Radiation Syndrome”. A certain amount of radiation exposure is tolerable over time, but your goal should be to shelter your group as much as possible. Terms For Measuring Quantities of Radiation To accomplish this goal, we should …




Radiation Issues In Nuclear Blasts- Part 1, by Dr. Bones of doomandbloom.net

Although many don’t view a nuclear event as a likely disaster scenario, it’s important to learn about all the possible issues that may impact your family in uncertain times. Given the instability in the Korean Peninsula and elsewhere, the issue of nuclear blasts and the radiation they emit is a timely subject. Understanding the Definition of Radiation The quick definition of radiation is energy given off by unstable matter in the form of rays or high-speed particles. The following is some basic chemistry paraphrased from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (US NRC): All matter, including you, is composed of atoms. …




Letter Re: Metal Building as a Faraday Cage

HJL or JWR I will be building a small building to house electronic equipment (batteries for off-grid) and want to protect it from any EMP type of conditions. If we use metal roofing and clad the outside in corrugated metal would that be satisfactory protection? There will have to be ventilation for it too. The equipment will have to be well grounded. HJL’s Comment: If the panels are bonded together well (meaning more than just the 1 screw every 4 feet) and you have some form of conductive flooring also bonded to the building, then yes, it would work. Most …




Letter: EMP Foil Wrap

Good morning, Hugh and James, I’ve posed questions before RE: EMP protection, and now I have one or two more. Survival blog had a recent series of posts about how to EMP-proof steel ammo cans; I found them enlightening. but they sparked some questions. A Faraday Cage The purpose of a Faraday cage is to completely enclose the item one wishes to protect with a conductive material. This will not permit passage of electromagnetic energy of certain wavelengths. The usual approach to Faraday cages is to exclude all wavelengths of electromagnetic energy. Different electronic components may also be susceptible to …




Protecting Electronics in Metal Military Surplus Ammunition Cans- Part 3, by J.T.

I am sharing a better solution for protecting sensitive electronics stored in metal military surplus ammunition cans made into a Faraday cage. In the Part 1, I talked about the ammunition cans that can be used and began the instructions for building ammunition can gaskets by listing the materials and tools required. Part 2 of this series consisted of the bulk of the instructions of how to make and assemble the RF and EMP shielding gasket, and we are continuing with these today, in Part 3. The following instructions are for a 20mm M548 ammunition can. 16. If you want …




Protecting Electronics in Metal Military Surplus Ammunition Cans- Part 2, by J.T.

I am sharing a better solution for protecting sensitive electronics stored in metal military surplus ammunition cans made into a Faraday cage. In the Part 1, I talked about the ammunition cans that can be used. We then began the instructions for building ammunition can gaskets by listing the materials and tools required. Now, let’s move on. Making and Assembling the RF and EMP Shielding Gasket The following instructions are for a 20mm M548 ammunition can, which is my preferred can size. If using another ammunition can, you will need to make adjustments in measurements within these directions to adjust …