Hurricane Michael. NOAA image.
With Hurricane Michael bearing down on the Gulf coast, here are links to earlier posts on hurricane preparedness:
Seventy five years ago this month, the September 1938 issue of Popular Mechanics carried this Eveready ad with another harrowing tale with a happy ending, thanks to a flashlight with fresh batteries.
The ad recounts the tale of Mr. & Mrs. James Sponston of Cheshire, England. Night after night, the couple would hear the German bombers headed toward Liverpool. But one night, as they were preparing to retire for the evening, the elderly couple heard the sirens begin to shriek.
Mr. Spronston grabbed his flashlight, and they hurried downstairs to black out the windows. Then one explosion, and then another, shook the house. The house was half demolished, and the stunned occupants were thrown to the floor. Fortunately, Mr. Spronston remembered the faithful flashlight in his hand and began waving it. Two passing air wardens saw it and quickly directed the rescue.
Since the story was from England, there was no claim that Eveready batteries were involved. But still, American readers were encouraged to make sure their flashlights were loaded with fresh Eveready batteries. The ad cautioned, however, that you shouldn’t blame your dealer if you can’t get genuine Eveready batteries. The Army, Navy, and Lend-Lease had priority, and only a few were left for civilians. To conserve critical war materials, readers were cautioned to use the flashlight normally as little as possible. In particular, it advised making a habit of flashing it intermittently rather than continuously.
Each year during hurricane season, our web page on making coffee without electricity gets lots of traffic. And there’s another electric appliance that people take for granted: The toaster.
The lack of electric power doesn’t mean that you have to give up making toast, since there’s an extremely inexpensive camping toaster available. I assumed that everybody knew about these, but the existence of this product often comes as a surprise. So whether it’s for camping trips or emergency preparedness, you might consider investing just a few dollars for one of these devices.
This toaster is nothing more than a metal plate that sits on any source of heat. You can use it on the stove at home or a camp stove. You can also use it on a charcoal grill or campfire. As long as you have a source of heat, you can make toast. Four wires fold into a frame, and you lean up to four slices of bread against the wire.
This kind of toaster only does one side of the bread at a time, so you will have to flip the bread halfway through the toasting process. But other than that minor inconvenience, the result is toast identical to what comes out of your normal electric toaster.
In addition to making toast, this toaster will cook anything that goes in your electric toaster. So it’s also good for things like Pop-Tarts, bagels, and English muffins. Other foods such as Toaster Strudels and Toaster Scrambles don’t need to remain frozen, and can be stored in a cooler for a few days. Therefore, with a camp toaster, these can be used for a very convenient hot breakfast.
Here are some of the available camp toasters on Amazon:
First, a Facebook comment to our original post alerted us to the Lufo lamp, shown here. This is a kerosene lantern, apparently developed as part of a UN project to provide radio receivers for Africa. The heat from the lamp operates a Peltier effect device which powers the built-in AM FM radio.
These don’t appear to be manufactured currently, but they are reportedly available in Europe if you look hard enough.
There is, however, one device on the market currently, and it doesn’t even require kerosene! At Amazon, you can purchase a wood-powered USB charger that uses the same principle. You can then charge your phone using sticks gathered from your yard.
The USB charger appears to be a bit of an afterthought, but also appears to be fully functional. It appears that the Peltier device power supply is intended mostly to power an internal fan that increases the efficiency of the stove. But it also provides usable power, which is available from the USB socket.
The stove also includes an internal 2600 mAh lithium-ion battery to store the charge. According to the Amazon reviews, the stove itself works extremely well. According to one review, the stove will boil a pint of water in about four minutes, which is quite good for a stove burning nothing but small twigs. The stove is useful for charging a phone or other device. The fan speed appears to be a trade-off. With the fan on high speed, the stove runs most efficiently, but it also uses most of the current that is produced. It appears that the best compromise for generating electricity is to run the fan on low speed.
For the do it yourselfer, it seems that producing a similar device should be relatively easy and inexpensive. The Peltier elements are readily available on Amazon. You can also order direct from China with free shipping at this link. They’re normally intended for use in applications such as 12-volt coolers, where an electric current is run through the device, where it produces a difference in temperature between the hot side of the device and the cold side. But this is a case where the physics works the same with a minus sign in front of the equation: If you generate a difference in temperature, this will cause electric current to flow.
You’ll probably need more than one, and you’ll probably have to experiment with wiring them in series (to increase voltage) and parallel (to increase current) to get sufficient power. You’ll also need some kind of heat sink mounted on the cold side. The device will have maximum output when the temperature difference between the two sides is greatest. So you need to get one side as hot as possible while keeping the other side of the thin device as cool as possible.
Once you have sufficient voltage and current, you can hook the output to a 12 volt USB charger. Even if you don’t have a full 12 volts, most such chargers are little more than a voltage regulator, so as long as your output is more than 5 volts, you should have a fully functional USB power connection.
Of course, most of our readers will want to listen to shortwave, and will probably opt for this inexpensive USB-powered receiver which tunes AM, FM, and 4.75-21.85 MHz shortwave.
In addition to being useful for camping or emergencies, such a project would be excellent for a science fair project.
If you have a shortwave receiver (or even if you don’t), here are some frequencies you can keep in mind for tuning in to information about Hurricane Florence. Modern news media do an admirable job of getting the information out, but there’s something to be said for being able to tune in first-hand reports directly.
The best option is the Hurricane Watch Net (HWN), a group of amateur radio operators who will be on the air more or less continuously during the storm, taking reports from stations in the affected areas. Since most hams are able to get on the air without commercial power, this is often the first source of reports from damaged areas.
HWN formed informally during Hurricane Betsy in 1965, and now becomes active any time a hurricane approaches populated areas.
You can tune in to HWN on 14.325 MHz Upper Sideband (USB). An alternate frequency, which will be more active during the evening hours, is 7.268 MHz, Lower Sideband (LSB). Conditions on 20 Meters (14 MHz) have been poor in recent days, so it’s likely that there will be more reliance on the 7.268 MHz frequency.
Health and welfare messages from those affected by the hurricane will be heard on the Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network (SATERN), which will meet on 14.265 MHz USB.
If you have a shortwave receiver, you’ll want to tune to these frequencies for live updates. Even if you don’t own a receiver, there are many connected to the web, and you can listen online. Simply go WebSDR.org, find a receiver in North America, and tune to these frequencies.
For updated information about amateur radio involvement in the hurricane response, please check the ARRL news page.
Storm forecast as of Monday afternoon. NOAA image.
Yesterday, we posted some products that may make your life easier if your area is hit by Hurricane Florence, which is approaching the Mid-Atlantic states. We provided Amazon links to purchase some of the items, since in most cases, there was still time to order online and have your purchases delivered well before dangerous conditions hit your area. If it’s not already, it will soon be too late to order online and wait for items to be delivered.
But if past experience is a guide, local stores don’t get mobbed until the last minute. There are probably already crowds, but they are still manageable.
Update: In some inland areas, it might still be possible to take advantage of the advice given on this page for online ordering. But as early as Tuesday, some Walmart stores in the Carolinas, particularly in the Charleston area, already closed. Before ordering, check the status of your store at this link. Even if online ordering is no longer available, this page will give you some ideas of hurricane supplies you might have forgotten.
And to remove much of the stress, you can still order items online at Walmart, and then pick them up at your local store a few hours later. You’ll probably still have some gaps where you’ll need to go to the store and find an item or two. But if you go to Walmart.com and select items with “free pickup today,” you’ll be able to save yourself a lot of time.
In some areas, you can use this service for all grocery items. But almost all Walmart stores offer this service for most items, including the non-perishable items you’ll need to weather the storm. To make things easier for you, we have the following shopping list of the most common items you might need. Simply click on the link, and if it’s what you need, you can place it in your cart. If you need to look for additional items, or if one particular brand name is out of stock, you can search for it on the Walmart site.
When you’re finished, simply check out as usual, but make sure you select pickup today, and pick the most convenient store. Within a few hours, you’ll get an e-mail or text telling you that your items are ready. You just go to the store with photo ID and pick up your items from the online counter, which is usually at the front of the store.
Your individual preferences will vary, but here’s a selection of many of the items you might need to weather the storm. If the link says that the item is already out of stock, you should still be able to search for different brands of the same product.
Note: This page contains affiliate links, meaning that if you order after clicking on the links, this site will receive a small commission.
Hurricane forecast as of 5:00 PM Sunday. NOAA image.
With Hurricane Florence bearing down on the Eastern Seaboard, it’s a good time to think about whether you need to top off your hurricane supplies. Even if you’re in a possibly affected area, as of this writing (Sunday evening), there’s probably still time to make a leisurely trip to the store to find everything you need conveniently on the shelf. There’s probably still even time to order on Amazon and have the things you might need delivered. If you wait until the warnings for your area go into effect, the stores will probably be mobbed with anxious last-minute shoppers, and the shelves will be bare of the supplies you need.
So if you live near the Atlantic Coast, you should think about this today. And even if you live elsewhere, it’s a good reminder to make sure you’re ready for unexpected disasters.
Here are links to some previous posts of reminders of things you’ve forgotten. A comprehensive list of supplies is available at other sites, such as the National Hurricane Center.
Water
You’ll probably want to use some of that water to make a cup of coffee. You probably already own everything you need, but you might want to invest in a gadget that will make the process easier. You can read all about it at my How To Make Coffee Without Electricity page.
Communications
And speaking of battery operated devices, don’t forget to get some flashlights and batteries. You don’t need anything fancy. Just get a few inexpensive flashlights like this one along with plenty of extra batteries.
For information on running 120 volt appliances with the 12 volts from your car (and the limitations of this approach), please visit my power inverter page.
Food and Cooking
Shopping Hints
If you’ve waited too long and it’s too late to order online, you still might consider taking advantage of Walmart‘s option to purchase online and pick up at a local store. You’ll save time hunting down the things you need, you’ll know before you go to the store that the items are in stock, and you won’t need to wait in the checkout line. You simply place your order online, select the option to pick it up today at a local store, and then go to the online counter to pick up your order. If people are fighting over the last bottle of water, you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing that yours is behind the counter waiting for you with your name on it.
If you take my advice, you’ll have everything you need well before the storm hits your area. But in case you didn’t, and you need batteries at the last minute, you can find them at a toy store. Supermarkets will be crowded, department stores will be crowded, and they’ll all be out of batteries. But nobody buys toys before a hurricane, and they have plenty of batteries. So if that’s the item you need at the last minute, you’ll avoid the crowds by going to the closest toy store.
Hurricane History
Once you have your preparations in place, you might like to read about other hurricanes of the past. Here are some links to other posts on this site:
Note: This page contains affiliate links, meaning that if you order after clicking on the links, this site will receive a small commission.
Sixty years ago, the September 1968 issue of Electronics Illustrated carried a review of this interesting product, an emergency battery.
Batteries have a finite shelf life, so to extend it, this dry cell was sold dry. In its dormant state, it had a guaranteed shelf life of five years. When needed, you added the electrolyte, which could be any water-based liquid. In the test, the magazine used window washer fluid, but almost any liquid could be used, such as soda, or what the magazine euphemistically called “second hand beer.” After activation, the battery was good for 72 hours.
The battery was available for $5.95 from the Globe Battery Division of Globe-Union, Inc., Milwaukee. A matching lantern was available for $10.95.
Another option for emergency charging is s standard 12 volt USB charger. Even if the car battery is unavailable, in most cases, these chargers consist of little more than a voltage regulator, so if they’re hooked to any source of more than five volts, they can be used in an emergency. So if you desperately need to charge your phone, you can use one of these adapters, along with four flashlight batteries or a 9-volt battery, as demonstrated in this video:
For another emergency battery that can be made using household goods, see our earlier post.
Shown here are some eerie images of how the Soviet Union envisioned the Battle for the Fulda Gap would take place. In the event of war between NATO and the Warsaw Pact, it’s likely that Soviet tanks would rumble through the gap on their way to Frankfurt. And it’s just as likely that they would have been met by the use of atomic weapons to delay their advance. As can be seen here, the Soviet tanks were expecting the atomic blasts, and planned to dig in to continue the tank battle.
The images here are taken from a 1960 book entitled Поражающее
действие ядерного взрыва (The damaging effect of a nuclear explosion) by A.I. Vanov and G.I. Rybkin, one in the series Popular scientific library of the military publishing house published by the Soviet Defense Ministry.
Despite the word “popular” in the series title, the book appears to be a quite scholarly look at the effects of nuclear weapons. In fact, the book contains numerous footnotes, including frequent citations of the definitive U.S. Government treatise on the subject, the Effects of Nuclear Weapons, as shown here in the bibliography:
Sixty years ago this month, the June 1958 issue of Radio Electronics carried the plans for this transistorized radio compass.
The circuit was nothing more than a superheterodyne receiver covering the standard broadcast band and, if desired, the longwave band. It was specifically designed for use as a radio compass. Any portable AM radio with a loopstick antenna can be used for the same purpose, although the magnetic compass mounted directly on the case made use of this one quite convenient.
The article specified that it was a worthwhile investiment for “people interested in outdoor activities such as motorboating, sailing, hunting, trapping, berry picking, camping, hiking or other activity where there is a possibility of getting lost.”
Even with this modest receiver, or even the most inexpensive AM transistor radio, the method of locating yourself is actually extremely accurate. All you need is an AM radio and a good map marked with the locations of local broadcast stations. The ferrite core antenna coil is mounted parallel to one of the sides of the case of the radio. Fortunately, the vast majority of inexpensive radios were also built this way. The antenna is very directional, and produces a sharp null when the length of the antenna is pointed directly at the station.
To use as a direction finder, the radio is placed on the map, and with the compass, the map is oriented to the map. The radio is turned until the signal fades out. At that point, the side of the radio is used as a straightedge, and a line is drawn through the radio station.
This process is repeated with a second station. The point on the map where the two lines intersect is your location.
I’ve tried this method using an inexpensive transistor radio, and the accuracy is astonishingly good. In an urban area, I can generally find my location within a few hundred yards. At night, using distant signal clear channel stations, I can determine my location within about twenty miles.
The exact location of a radio station’s transmitter (which might be different from its city of license or studio location) can be looked up at the FCC website. Once stations are found, their latitudes and longitudes can be plotted on a map, or even on graph paper. With a bit of practice, you will be able to very accurately determine your location with very minimal equipment.
I’ve found that a few of the local broadcast stations seem to give an inaccurate bearing. It’s possible that some of them moved their transmitter site without telling the FCC, or possibly that station’s signal is being reflected by some nearby object. To get a precise location, I plot several bearings on the map, and ignore the one that seems not to intersect the others. The other lines are generally very close together, and I estimate my position based upon where those other lines converge.
More information about this method of direction finding can be found at this post.
