Archive for February, 2010
Emergency Lighting
In cases of emergencies, it is best to expect the worst and be prepared. You never know when a natural disaster or a man-made one will disrupt our everyday routine.We may think disasters can never happen, but history has shown that disasters do happen, and they come when you least expect them.
When disaster strikes, power is usually disrupted, which necessitates an emergency flashlight. The three main choices are: a rechargeable flashlight, a battery-operated one, or a crank flashlight. Among the three choices, the crank flashlight is perhaps the most ingenuous. A crank flashlight can actually be a bit old-fashioned but it delivers when it needs to. The flashlight can recharge itself by churning the crank. Continuous churning of the crank can guarantee light for hours.
Home Made Bread
Home made bread is one of those Emergency Supplies that once you start using a bread machine and find out how easy it is to make with your own ingredients, you will wonder why you ever ate store bought bread.
With this type of bread cooker you can now make pizza dough, squash bread and any type of bread that you like by just adding your ingredients to the the loaf pan and fill the house with the baking of bread.
For those of you who are on a special diet then these bread makers are one way to make sure your bread is healthier. When buying one of these Bread makers you may not think about these other uses, like making the dough for your biscuits, french bread to cook in the oven or any other dough that you need by letting this machine do the mixing and the first rising of the dough. The making of your own bread will help keep you out of the store and stop some of your impulse buying.
Have a great day
Grampy
Generators
When we discuss emergency Solar Energy Systems we should remember that for constant power like for pumps, heating devices, motors, an other large power consuming devices a generator may work best for you.
The best way to determine what size of generator you will need is by checking the amount of wattage on the equipment power plates and add up the total wattage they consume. At the same time check the voltage that the equipment uses which is also on the power plates. When you have this information the next step is to use this formula:
wattage found total X 1.(2x your elevation in 1000ft)x1.2 safety margin for generator=size of generator needed.
example: wattage found=2500watts and your at 5500ft elevation
2500watts x 1.(2×5.5)x1.2=
2500wattsx1.11×1.2=3300watt generator
This formula will tell you the smallest generator that you will need to operate your equipment. You will also need to make sure your generator will supply the correct voltage 110ac volts and or 220ac volts. For a solar system you don’t need the elevation correction.
Have a great day
Grampy
Lighted Vest
When I was on the interstate highway the other day I had a flat tire. This reminded me how dangerous it is to be close to traffic. The first thing that a person should remind himself in time of stress, like a flat tire, you should think about safety first and get as far off the highway as a safety factor. If it is at night, for work or an Emergency, you should consider a Vest that will light up.
This Vest for day or night with a LED lamp and some sort of auto emergency kit will give the safety and tools to get through your emergency. The one thing that I learned while I was helping to build a bridge over a Rail Road was that as much noise as a train makes its speed will let it slip up on you with out notice. So if your next to a road be extremely safe and visible the next driver may be distracted.
Have a great Day
Grampy
Food Shortage
For those of you that think that the United States will have all the food you want at a reasonable price, maybe you should look at the unemployment rate in the United States of over 10% with the Mexicans going back to Mexico and a lot of people not looking for work the real unemployment is much higher than reported. There are some reports putting the unemployed and under employed closer to 20%. With Social Security and the Federal Retirement systems being in jeopardy, and a lot of states going broke with no money to pay for services and welfare . Where is your EmergencyFood Supply? The Above food supplies are just a few of the items that you may need to keep your family fed and warm. Don’t make the mistake that your Collective governments will bail you out. They all are going broke.
Make Sure that you are well informed about what is happing in the world around you through books and the internet don’t just watch the news on tv.
Have a great day
Grampy
Solar Systems
When you design your Solar Energy Systems You will need a solar system with panels, regulator and battery storage. This simple system will allow you to have a DC out put and be able to operate 12 vdc or 24 vdc equipment. You will need to have an inverter if you want to have 120vac house voltage.
To design a system that you need it is best to have knowlege from someone who knows what type of power you need. One way is to read from a book like this one.
You will also need a Battery system, what I found is that two 6v batteries will have more power and last longer than two 12v batteries. When buying deep cycle batteries talk to more than one company sales man to find the best batteries for your system.
Have a great Day
Grampy
Camp Stove Use
Most of the time a camp stove sits in an out of the way place and forgotten. When their is a power outage, like the ones this year in the South Eastern and Western United States, which left a lot of people with out power. They probably would like a gas or propane cook stove.
The one on the left is a Propane stove which is clean and easy to use. The one on the right is a Colman gas stove which you pour Coleman gas into, which may spill, but also in time of emergency you can use unleaded gas found in your car to make work. Having a stove like one of these in your Outdoor Survival Kitswill enable you to purify water an cook meals, when the power in your area is out.
Have a great day
Grampy
Prepare, Prepare
Prior to going out into the great outdoors, one of the best things you can do is make sure that you have all the necessary equipment when leaving the safe haven of the city or suburb. For many people, simply packing a tent, sleeping bag, energy bars and a lantern is enough, but personally, I think that more can be done, particularly if you’re spending an extended amount of time out in the wilderness.
If you look around online, you can find comprehensive camping gear checklists that go into detail on what you’ll need beyond tents, emergency supplies, flashlights and basic foodstuffs. Another great resource to prepare are the guides provided by the municipal parks and recreation department in your county. There are tools that should be utilized to have best – and safest – camping experience possible.
Fire Friend Or Fo
The last Post I wrote had feedback that meals ready to eat were expensive and a camp stove was a better solution. For people who like to cook and know how to safely start your camp stove outside then bring it into the home, you now created a friend that will give you heat, purify water and cook you a meal.
By just adding water to Bear Creek meals using your Emergency food and supplies you can have a hot meal that your frend the fire will cook in a short order to feed your family and friends.
Have a Great Day
Grampy
With Out Power What Do You Eat
When I went to the Navajo Indian Reversation they had wood stoves to cook on where a lot of the people back East have no Emergency heat or Cooking source. With some planning ahead they could have an alternate cooking stove or Emergency Food Supplies containing Self-Heating Meals.
Self Heating meals like the one above can be of a great benefit for those of you who don’t want to go out during a storm they will provide you with a hot taste meal in a time of stress. I suggest that in the winter or storm seasons that we all look ahead for a disaster at any time.
Have a great day
Grampy