When we had the power bump during dinner, the kids went and grabbed their flashlights without asking. The boss was ready with lighting candles. The stove (natural gas) was fired up with warm water and we were ready. Heck, I even got to test a few flashlight apps on my droid. I would recommend that you get the droid app flashlight as it uses the camera flash.

We checked the food for the eve and made sure we had water ready – face facts, in the flatlands, if the city water system goes down, we could be screwed.

I am not worried about flooding as the level of the house against the neighbourhood would require that all of my town would be under a few feet of water!

I also made sure that the truck (diesel) was fuelled up and ready in case of problems. Tools are all ready and the Bug Out bags are ready – though since I live in a bunker (insulated Concrete form house – 6 inches of reinforced concrete with 5.5 inches of styro and surface treatment, double pained windows and enough plywood and nails to deal with anything, I believe we are ready for a crappy eve. Heck I even charged up the backup flash light radio that I bought since I gave away the other one (that would be the Eton FR150!) Go ahead and check it out – You will not go wrong with this flashlight. And the good folks at Eton are very responsive to email questions!

Well, in my travels, while surfing the next, I came across an “easy” way to make an earthen oven (Emergency Oven). Check it out the Cob Oven built in Australia at:

Cob Oven

And what better way to do with the stuff than to give it away? Since it is Christmas, you do not even need to pay for postage, I will cover it!  How can you sign up for the give away? Simple – you see the newsletter sign up over to the right? —>     Well just sign up.  You will be added to the give away.  Pretty Simple, eh? Hey, while you are at it, check out the folks in the Adsense column under the sign-up for, go ahead and click on them – I dare ya!  You just may find something you want to get for your stash!

If you are receiving this via an RSS feed or other method, click on this link UrbanSurvivalSecrets and you can sign up for the contest.

Rules of the contest

1.  Only 1 entry per email address.

2. Gifts must be able to be sent via 2 day priority mail or DHL 3 day mail (for you non-US Citizens.)

3.  All items will be shipped – no pick-ups at the compound

4. All results are final – no whining, I hear enough of it from my liberal friends when discussing health care and the Republicans lack of interest since it is a tax increase!
So, what is in the give away?

• An Eton FR300 Emergency Radio
• An Eton FR150 Emergency Radio
• A Leatherman Micro
• A Mini-Maglite with the LED conversion.
• maybe more if I can get a few vendor types to kick in!

The last day for entry is December 15, 2009. I will notify the winners via email that I will send them the items.  I will request a valid physical address to send the goodies to!

Thanks much and keep your sanity!

With Christmas coming up, this is a great time for all to think about little tools and things to add to the gift list.  For instance, I told my kids I want a new Leatherman (preferably a Skeletool) for Christmas.  I have quite  few flashlights, but never can find them for some reason (each kid has their own flashlight, but they are getting a new one this season!)

Speaking of which – Earlier this year I discussed the Husky Flashlight from Home Depot.  It is an aluminum housed critter with LED’s.  Well, I now have two non functional lights due to the wires breaking when the kids disassembled them to see whats under the LED’s!  A quick way to avoid this – slightly unscrew the LED side (do not completely remove!) and put some clear nail polish on the threads and rescrew the cap!  This will act like locktite and reduce the potential for the removal of the LED side.  The issue here is that the wires are sooooo short that removing the LED side will basically snap the solder joint for the wire!  a real bummer.  I still like the lights, but now have a repair job on hand for 2 of the 3 lights.

More to come later!

Technorati Tags: Urban survival, flashlight, Christmas, Husky, Home Depot, LED

Having an emergency generator is a great idea, as long as you are taking the proper precautions. For instance, do not run it inside your house – you’ll kill yourself by carbon monoxide poisoning. Put it outside away from any fresh air intakes for your house!

Make sure if you are going to plug it into your house, you have a three way main circuit breakers placed properly. What will happen is that if someone is working on the power lines, you will be back feeding electricity into the electrical distribution system. The best thing to do is to have an electrician put the circuit breaker in.

Make sure that the generator is properly sized for what you want it to do. Just because you got a great deal on a small generator does not mean it will run the whole house – you may get a light, a radio and fridge/freezer on the circuit only – and that may be overloaded. You also need to take into account the peak current requirements, not just the operating current. As an example, I rented a generator while building my house to run some equipment. I only looked at the operating current and did not look at the Peak current of the equipment (that is when you start it up!) Long story short, I was popping the circuit breaker on the generator and ended up having to return the generator and renting a larger one!

Lastly, having enough fuel is one thing, but fueling is another. Be sure to shut the generator down for a bit to cool prior to fueling. After fueling it up, wait a bit if you spilled any fuel and then start it up. When in doubt, follow the directions.

For those who are looking to purchase a generator for winter, let me know – I am working with a few companies to get a good deal on a quality unit.
Technorati Tags: emergency, urban survival, generator, winter, urban environment, electricit

The procedure is pretty simple – locate the sensor on the front underside of the engine (yup there is was behind a pulley.) Remove the pigtail an with a 10 mm socket remove the bolt.  So, I could not get the pigtail out – sorry, not a contortionist.  After flailing with this, I grabbed my Leatherman Kick and proceeded to remove the pigtail – I was in the high cotton!  Remove the sensor – need a screwdriver to pry the sensor out – Used the kick again!  Break the bolt free and replace sensor. 

Reattaching the bolt was a pain.  Once again, I used my Kick to align the screw hole after several failed attempts to do this by sight.  I also used the Kick to hold the bolt while trying to thread the thing with a socket wrench since I could not thread the bolt in the hole by hand since my angle was wrong.

If you are thinking I am way too enthusiastic about my Leatherman, sorry, you are not even close.  I have had many Multi-tools in the past.  Ones from the local Home Center, Chinese crappy ones that were from a BSA camp, freebies from vendors, etc.  I can tell you without hesitation, that I will always stick with my Leatherman becasue of one word – Quality.  Without a doubt, Leatherman tools are built to last (sorry Ford!)

I have owned many Leatherman’s over the past 20 years – my first one I got as a gift was confiscated by the TSA when checking in about 2 years ago – that was a sad day for me and a happy day for the TSA gate guard!  The only reason I keep any of the cheapies around is when I do concrete work so if I were to drop it in the mud, I am not out anything (as if they will last more than a week anyhow.)

Where does this leave us?  I am going to be reviewing various Leathermans over the next few months.  I am sure that this may give you an idea on Holiday Gifts or Birthday Presents.  I am hoping that you will follow my earlier advise and invest the money up front for a quality tool instead of a cheap piece of junk which could create more problems than what it is worth!  Put one in your Survival Kit!!!

As an example, I was using a cheapie on a job site to open a bottle of soda (Coca Cola from Mexico – real sugar, Yum!)  The cheapies bottle opener twisted and broke off!  What this did for me was crack open the top and make me unhappy.  To take this a little further, if this was the can opener attachment and I was opening food, I might have gone hungry!  Not a good thing!

I am planning to provide a review on the differnet Leatherman Tools that are in my posession over the next couple of months – Just in time for the Holiday Season.  I still need to put together my review plan, but I am wanting to get the Leatherman reviews done by November!  As always, please feel free to leave me any comments you might have – I do review and moderate the comments to clean up language, etc.

Carpe Diem

The Husky LED flashlight is a compact unit made of Aluminum and is thicker than a comparable Mag Light. Mags like to keep the tube a little larger than the batteries. This one is thick with the battery caddie holding the three AAA cells in parallel. Makes for easy holding, though you would be pressed if you needed to hold it in your mouth to keep your hands free. Overall the light is well made and is gasketed for moisture resistance. When I got the lights at Home Depot, it was for christmas stocking stuffers and the lights came in a 3 pack for like $10 or near there. Each of the kids have a mag light for their kits, these were for bedside use if the power went out.

I had to re-solder the little wires that connect the battery compartment to the light housing – cheap design. The mags have contacts where soldered wires are not needed. The wires are 18 gauge multi strand and get wound up as the bezel is spun onto the houseing. Each wire is approx 2 inches long – right on the ragged edge of breaking to being tensioned. I realize that adding another inch would have increased the cost per light about 1 cent, oh well. The LED lights are bright and have a slight bluish tint. Lastly, the batteries in all units are still original. Got to watch for leaking by checking monthly. They all are good Duracells!

Overall, the lights are worth the $. On a scale of 1 to 10, I give it a 7 because of the soldered wires. It has nice mass and is comfortable, but to obsess on the wire issues, it bothers me.

Back to the Altoids boxes. My boys are looking on the instructbles website constantly for things to do – better than video games constantly. My Middle Boy, taught himself Sweet Home Alabama the other day on the guitar. Mind you, he has never taken lessens and is borrowing the guitar from his brother.

Anyhow, how this all works together is that he decided to disassemble the flashlight (above) and use it for an Altoids unit. After stopping this, I referred him to a Popular Mechanics article from last year on making an LED candle light with a 9 volt source. So, he is drawing up the plans and I will be helping him assemble (if asked) in the next couple of days.

I also will be puttting together an Altoids Box personal emergency kit as well in the next week or so as time allows. I figure that these little boxes are tight sealing, metal and durable. Not bad for a free leftover. I will post some pics on what I have in it when I have a chance, along with the LED light and other things my family comes up with. In the mean time, Please feel free to leave comments and suggestions on what you might have in a compact kit!

Carpe Diem

Solar-Powered, Self-Powered AM/FM/Weatherband Portable Radio with Flashlight and Cell Phone Charger

The Microlink brings together some of the most popular features of our Voicelink, in a more compact design. This ultra-portable device is ideal to have on hand when you’re roughing it. It also makes a great addition to any emergency-preparedness kit. No plugs or wires are required. Instead, turn the hand crank to power the Microlink, or capture the sun’s energy and run it on solar power. You’ll always know what’s going on, thanks to the AM, FM and weather bands. You can also tune in to the FCC and EAS public alert systems. Add the flashlight, the cell phone charger and you’ve got one versatile little device.

• AM (520-1710 KHz)
• FM (87-108MHz)
• NOAA weather – all 7 channels
• Built-in hand crank power generator recharges the internal rechargeable Ni-MH battery and cell phone batteries
• Built-in 3 white LED light source
• Can be powered from three different sources:
  • From solar power
  • From the built-in rechargeable Ni-MH battery that takes charge from the dynamo crank
  • From the USB port (USB cord not included)
• Built-in cell-phone charger
• Earphone jack – 3.5 mm socket

Chris’ Discussion

As with every small radio, the sound qulaity is not of that in my truck with Bose Speakers! Getting that out of the way, the speaker was not too tinny and sounds pretty good. The radio can be powered by hand crank, solar or with an optional charger (not includes. I wish that they would include it so as that I do not have to purchase another charger for the unit!!) When cranking it up, a 45 second winding kept the radio and light going for a while – 30 plus minutes, but I was not using a stop watch.

Charging using the solar cells all day did a great job as well. I had several hours of usage from the radio as well as about 30 minutes of the light that night with little power loss. One night, after cranking the unit for 30 seconds, I left the LED light on because my son requested it – we were telling scarry stories around the campfire and he was a little spooked! Well we fell asleep around 10:30. I awoke at 3 due to some noisy coyotes and my blackberry buzzing like mad and found the light still on and working well enough that I could go outside and water a tree!

The radio tuning wheel is somewhat stiff, but will ensure that you will not lose a set radio station. As for the weather channels, there is a slide selector. I tested the slide in both the camp and 4 hours away in the Phoenix Metro area. The White mountains was channel 6 while Phoenix is Channel 7. In both locations, the recorded NOAA voice was clear and recognizable. The small antenna was really not needed for these stations, though when switching over to FM, it is recommended.

I only had one glitch during my testing – that was with the hand crank. I was turning it one night when the thing came off the attachment point. I was able to place it back on, but turning it became very troublesome. After inspection, it looks like there is some little spring like clip that holds the handle to the radio and it popped off. If this was an emergency, this could be troubling. However, my plan is to use some JB weld and permanently affix the handle. Nice thing abouth the handle is that it is plastic and does not have a shapr edge which can remove skin from your knuckles during cranking, thus causing the user to donate blood.

If I was to give a rating to this radio, I would give it an 8.5 out of 10. It is durable, reliable and multiple ways to power it up (right now I am using my USP port on my computer!) It is comfortable to use and cranks easily. It is light but rugged with the rubberized light bezel.  Below is a link to purchase this light. Cool thing is that Eton makes a donation for every light purchased.  Do yourself a favor, click on the link and buy one for your house – It is a great investment and you wont go wrong!.  I am buying another for my office!  Also, it comes in Black, Red and White.

For me, I keep a Maglite in my vehicles – this is the one that I have: Maglight

Lets face facts that Mag-lights are the quality units that are totally affordable! For $20, you get a machined aluminum light that puts out a light stream that will light up your neighbors back yard. Couple this with changing the bulb for LED’s Click Here and you have a unit that not only lasts till the cows come home, but you can use it for beating a potential car hijacker!

You can also have a mini-maglite in your personal kit as well is a great idea. This is the light that I have in my kit, and in my bathroom as well. Click HERE to see the one I have. I love my mag lights as they are made well, are waterproof and can handle a lot of abuse. My mini-mag is 4 years old and is still in great shape! My big Maglite was purchased in 2001 prior to September 11th!

One of the things that I have done is purchased spare batteries and keep them in my glovebox and in my personal survival kit. I leave them wrapped up in plastic so that in the event they start leaking, they will leak into the plastic. A better option is to not have the batteries in the light, but can cause problems if you need the light to work immediately.

Leaking batteries are a real issue. I have lost one maglite due to a leaking battery. Leaving the batteries out of the light is one solution. Another is to check the batteries frequently (weekly?) Does anyone have another good idea?

Please be sure to sign up for my infrequent newsletter. I will send to you a goodie that will help you get prepared for a disaster at home (are you interested yet?)

1. Water and Food

Lets face facts. The body can last only 3 days without water and several weeks without food. But when dehydration kicks in, you make mistakes due to confusion. Having plenty of clean water is crucial. A case of bottled water will do. Add some high energy bars for 3 days worth of eating, you can keep the mind fueled right and hopefully not making mistakes due to hunger/thirst.

2. A Multi-tool.

A multi tool is crucial since you never know what situation you will come across where a pair of pliers or a knife is needed. When you are tired and the food bars wrappers are hard to open, guess what – a multi tool comes in handy. Plus you never know when a screwdriver or other attachment is needed!

3. A Space Blanket.

At night, keeping warm is important. A space blanket is light weight and waterproof. Wrapping yourself in the blanket at night will ward off hypothermia which is dangerous in cold climates. If you have a couple of them, you can use one as a cover and a second as a blanket.

4. A flashlight:

Traveling at night if hazardous without a light. Tripping over debris can be hazardous to you! Be sure to have additional batteries is also recommended. If you want to have a multi purpose light, get a combo light and radio (make sure it can get NOAA weather stations!)

5. A First Aide Kit

Having a proper first aide kit with supplies can be a life saver. Ensuring it is properly stocked with supplies which are not EXPIRED is also very important. The best way to ensure the kit is up to date is to have an annual kit check date where you dump the old/expired stuff and replace it.

5 1/2. An Inventory List

Having a method to check what should be in the kit and when it was last replaced is all too important. What good are expired supplies or spoiled food in your kit at a time of disaster? The easiest way to store your list is to type it up and place it in a zip lock style badge. Make sure you have a date written on the list as well for a quick view for the last time you checked your kit.