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  1. #1
    Crotch Rocket


    mitunnelrat's Avatar
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    What have you done to prep this week?

    This could be an item you've bought, or an action you've taken. It doesn't have to be anything you've completed. Just something you've made advances in.

    For instance. So far this week I've been reconfiguring my MOLLE gear, I've made steps forward in convincing my future wife to relocate. I replaced an emergency poncho in my GHB with my USGI type (due to reading an evac story where the former shredded quickly under high winds and heavy rain), and I ordered a countycomm EOD Breacher Bar. Finally, I'm looking into guerrilla gardening techniques for growing a few things at work.
    Consilio et animis

    Essayons!

  2. #2
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    bought a small back packer stove for the bag. 20 bucks at sportsman warehouse

  3. #3
    I'll most likely shit myself



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    This week has all been gardening related. Repurchased tomato, pepper, cabbage plants to replace the damaged stuff. Hope to replant this weekend.
    Hoe'd and dusted what's left of the taters and harvested some onion's.
    Picked up 2 cases of 1/2 gallon mason jars. A 15 gallon metal washtub, and a 12 gallon metal bucket with lid for chicken feed.
    Gonna build a bigger box to keep the chicks in until they go into the chicken tractor.

  4. #4
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    I added a second deep cycle (well, Advance Auto Parts marine) battery to my backup power supply. This power supply will run some lights, the computer, my radio equipment and a fan and CPAP.
    I have them hooked to a quality marine battery charger that runs of the 120V grid ... I want to replace this charger with solar. I considered a windmill but I'm surrounded by big oaks. I'm not able to get the unit up high enough to assure a daily charge.
    I would like to see other peoples ideas for emergency back up power. Right now I have the two batteries wired to office run my ham gear and an inverter to power the desktop computer and printers or to conserve power use the laptop. I also run a DC line to the bedroom and another inverter to to run a light, fan and CPAP. I wired most of this when I rebuilt that part of the house. I wish I had understood wire size requirements of DC circuits before I put in the drywall. I used 12 ga and the voltage drop when I keyed up the radio was unacceptable. So I had to move the batteries from the garage to a battery box I built on the outside wall of my office and run 8ga wire from the from the battery box. The 12ga was ok to the bedroom.
    Last edited by alpmco; 05-06-2011 at 03:03 PM.
    War is ugly, but to be dominated by aliens is even uglier!

  5. #5
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    RE Voltage drop

    This is why buildings are wired with AC at higher voltages. We are use to Ohms law but forget Watts law, a derivative of Ohms law. In essence it means the higher the voltage, the less the current that is requred to accoplish the same amount of work. wattage is figured as voltage times current. So if the load draw 100 watts you need so supply 100volts time 1amp, or 10 volts times ten amps. When we say we have a voltage drop on a length of wire ( for the other readers who do not know), it means that there is a current loss through the wire. The hevier the wire is the less loss there will be.
    Now the example of 100 volts vs 10 volts that I gave isnt quite that simple as the equipment you are using must be able to use they voltage source you have. In the instance of our House wiring being AC at lower current levels, all the equipment we use is designed around that source. But when wiring a house for DC the fact is there is no real safe wire size, due to heating dependent on the load. Realistically 0ga is about the only safe minimum diameter to minimize fire hazard. AC however does not have this issue as long as the wire is not coiled up. Not going into the math or long explanations the average voltage of a 120 volt AC line in the wall is zero volts (sine wave crosses zero voltage remember?) so this limits heating under load, but DC under load just continues to generate heat, even on good conductors when under load unless the conductor is massive.

    OK all the background is in place, you have the right idea but implementation needs modification. Dual batteries outside, raised off the ground. with binding post connectors on insulated plates mounted on a junction box in the room with a gennie type twist lock plug junction box outside with mated plug and cable to the parallel wired batteries. To this add a solar panel and controller (check out harbor freight under 200 bucks) and this should do what you need. Also avoid the myth of the Golf cart batteries they are made to be recharged and discharged a lot but do not have the deep cycle capacity, and if drained down til dead and recharged too often they will be destroyed. they are not made for deep cycle use. I hope I didnt go overboard on explanation on the whys, not knowing expertice levels here yet, the background info helps make the rest of the info useable in other endeavors

  6. #6
    Does NOT use a snake bit sucker kit on snake bits

    Evolver's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by bacpacker View Post
    This week has all been gardening related. Repurchased tomato, pepper, cabbage plants to replace the damaged stuff. Hope to replant this weekend.
    Hoe'd and dusted what's left of the taters and harvested some onion's.
    Picked up 2 cases of 1/2 gallon mason jars. A 15 gallon metal washtub, and a 12 gallon metal bucket with lid for chicken feed.
    Gonna build a bigger box to keep the chicks in until they go into the chicken tractor.
    1/2 gallon Jars??? You got my attention!!! Why 1/2 Gallon?
    You don't need to be the strongest
    or the most intelligent to survive
    but by having the right tools and
    the adaptability of change
    is where you will prevail.

  7. #7
    Walking on Sunshine

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    Spaghetti, lasagna noodles fit in the jars so you could store them without having to break the noodles up or having to use the sealer bags and having the bags get holes in them. I put my dry beans in them and used the "sucky" machine to seal them with the canning lids

  8. #8
    Stalkercat...destroyer of donkeys, rider of horse


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    Ordered an FN FNP 45 Tactical
    Tried to replant most of my garden.
    Started saving and filtering bacon grease.
    WARNING: This post may contain material offensive to those who lack wit, humor, common sense and/or supporting factual or anecdotal evidence. All statements and assertions contained herein may be subject to but not limited to: irony, metaphor, allusion and dripping sarcasm.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by izzyscout21 View Post
    Started saving and filtering bacon grease.
    I always save bacon grease. I have to have it to cook properly! Being in the Boy Scouts has a great advantage ... the scouts always cook bacon on camp outs. I can almost fill a mayonaise jar if all the patrols cook bacon. I rarely get any grease from the adult patrol. We just divide the grease up and use it with our eggs and hash browns. When camping watching cholesterol is not as important as staying regular!
    War is ugly, but to be dominated by aliens is even uglier!

  10. #10
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    I added a load of equipment to my bug out bag and I bought a jigsaw and made things that pop tires when cars run over them (but I'm only going to use them in a shtf situation)

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