Weekly Preppers' Thread

2/24/12 | Kartographer

[Kartographer]

As promised this is the weekly preppers' thread for preppers' to share especially good buys, idea's, new equipment, methods etc.

[driftdiver]

“I have several coffee cans full of powdered gas now.”

I keep mine in cans of beans.

[bgill]

Best to keep it in a faraday cage.

[bgill]

I’ve cooked up some tasty dishes with just cardboard, foil and a sunny day. It’s an option that shouldn’t be disregarded out of hand.

[The Duke]

If the power grid went down or Hussein takes over the internet you won't be able to access those files. Better to have them printed out.

You didn't visit my link. It's a solar powered Kindle - you'll be able to access those docs any where, any time.

Also, the Kindle has a very readable screen, according to my research.

[The Duke]

I have a cheap little table with many of these PDF's, so it's possible. I would recommend a mainstream tablet, though (and test it in advance).

Better than a tablet, though, is a good, low-cost mini-laptop. This past year I've bought 9 mini-laptops off eBay for prices ranging between $150 and $250 (perfect for my 3 college boys - and their girlfriends - and I've got one at the office and two here at home). These little mini-laptops have paid for themselves many times over this year.

So, I recommend doing a search for 'lt3101u' on eBay - that's what I've been buying.

[EnglishCon]

Something of general interest as far as charging tablets/kindles goes: http://lifehacker.com/5742681/diy-hand+powered-usb-crank-charger

I have four of these - http://www.bestofferbuy.com/Dynamo-HandCrank-USB-Cell-Phone-Emergency-Charger-Assorted-Color-p-31135.html?currency=GBP&utm_source=gbase&utm_medium=cse&utm_campaign=gbase_uk - the build quality is not great, but at two bucks a pop they are cheap enough to buy multiples. Most of the weakness is in the crank handle, which is a relatively easy repair.

[PA Engineer]

Thanks for all the wood gas info on this thread. I’m hooked.

[patton]

I have never used one othe gassifiers, let alone built one - but the FEMA link above makes it look pretty easy.

Or at least doable.

For a cabin in the woods, it looks pretty darn good.

[JustaDumbBlonde]

I am not familiar with PV shingles, but we did install a 15.5 KwH PV system in December. It is working beautifully and we have no power bill at all.

[PA Engineer]

I found the FEMA link interesting. For cooking and hot water demand boost the gasifier seems like a nice prep to investigate. Solar for electric and most hot water seems a little more practical.

I do have an abundance of hard wood, but that 25lbs per 10KW (i'm sure optimistic) of wood chips seems like a waste. Gasifiers seem like better adjuncts for boosting hot water temps, drying and cooking.

Thanks for the links again. The FEMA design does seem like an easy and expedient build.

[editor-surveyor]

While you’re at it, get yourself a nice aluminum case to keep it in so Obama’s EMP doesn’t erase it! :o)

[editor-surveyor]

How many tablets can you read at once?

[MrB]

Hydrogen Generator Gas for Vehicles and Engines: Volumes 3 and 4”

for THE book on the subject.