Thanks for another thoughtful post. I imagine the toughest part for many to think about is not suicide but how to handle (can't think of less insensitive phrasing at this time) children if one seems to have arrived at the end.
On a lighter note, are manual pumps for a residential well worthwhile if someone has the strength to operate it?
Yes indeed, manual pumps fir residential (or even agricultural) wells are definitely worth it. There is a limit to how high they can lift water, and I didn't mention them b/c I couldn't remember the specs, but sinc eyou asked I went and looked it up. Looks like it's easy to get one that'll lift from a 300ft deep static water level (the static level is often higher than the depth of the well).
Operating one is a bit like operating a hydraulic jack--not much in the way of stength-per-stroke, but a lot of strokes.
Another possibility for transportation involves retrofitting modern engines with ECUs to use carburetors, and point distributors. This works better though if the transmission is manual, as most modern automatic transmissions are heavily computerized and expect to have some communication with the ECU.
Gasoline engines also can be converted to run 100% ethanol, an excellent option for those living on warmer climates that can grow sugarcane.
A few miscellaneous comments, unrelated to each other:
In an apocalypse, diabetics will die. There won't be any insulin. So if you have diabetes, plan accordingly: you won't survive anyway.
I may be mistaken, but I think that all solar panels will fry in an EMP event. So you can kiss your solar power goodbye.
Vacuum tubes are not harmed by EMP. So save those old ham radios; you might need them.
Restaurants will find their old fryer oil becoming very valuable as people steal it to make into diesel.
Firewood will be hard to come by as soon as you run out of gas for the chain saw. Not to mention the logistics of getting the wood from the forest to your home.
Added a footnote to the main article about medicinally-dependent folks.
Also, there are ways to get firewood dependably without chainsaws, or even without cutting down trees. Check out coppicing and related forest-management practices. We've got a coppice grove here on the ranch that we're gradually switching to from roundwood as I get it into shape--burns hotter and longer than the local conifer population.
Solar panels will spontaneously catch on fire if the event is big enough--how many are wired in serial has a big effect on this. Big arrays, like those on corporate rooftops, will routinely wire dozens in serial. Those are vulnerable to events far smaller than the one we just experienced. Short strings of 2-5 panels require a VERY strong event to overload, and single panels may survive even the worst the sun throws at us.
However, the back end equipment (inverters and charge controllers) will fry, so it's best to have backup units shielded and in an underground location if such is your jam.
Don't do the bug out plan. For the love of God, the last thing we need is a bunch of city people with a backpack full of discount Chinese camping supplies showing up expecting "the rurals" to help them out once their last can of spam is empty.
If you're really concerned about apocalyptic events and you think you have what it takes to survive one, get out of the cities now and get established so you can be useful instead of a burden or a villain. You'll be happier even if there is no apocalypse.
Otherwise your prep is a nice clean way to end yourself before the ferals eat you. You're not wanted, you're not needed, and we can't afford to take care of you. No matter how good your paper pushing and "organizing" skills are.
Connected to solar panel question previously asked, what risk factor do battery powered tools like phones have of ignition in a geomagnetic event? I have a grim suspicion such tools may lead to many deaths by home fire if the event is strong enough. I'd want to factor in if I'd need to sleep near an extinguisher to survive this should it happen in the night. Sorry if this is retarded to ask, I did look up the subject but not many answers assumed more than a brief emp level overload, at least in my brief survey. I just want to be sure I'm not sleeping near an incendiary grenade, and to warn all my family/friends if it is the case, as most people I know do own smartphones.
There are so many factors that it's hard to give a general answer and still stay firmly within knowledge that I'm confident in, but...
Lithium-Ion battery chemistry (which now powers most small electronics) is very volatile and prone to igniting if overcharged. In an EMP, I don't know what will happen to them--could be nothing if they're not plugged into a charge port, or could be something. If they ARE plugged into a charge port, their charging circuitry could get fried, leading either to overload or to shutdown.
Li-Io batteries burn VERY hot and must be extinguished with damping chemicals, not water.
Other chemistries, such as Ni-Cad (old, but still around) and LiFePO4 (newer) are much less volatile and less likely to fail catastrophically--and if they do, the fires are less intense.
Lead Acid batteries (like the one in your car) can explode due to hydrogen off-gassing, but the conditions have to be just right. Otherwise they're pretty safe even in an overloaded state.
Don't know enough about Nickel-Iron batteries (a.k.a. Edison batteries) to have an informed opinion about the risks from them during overload, but they are much less common.
Thanks for another thoughtful post. I imagine the toughest part for many to think about is not suicide but how to handle (can't think of less insensitive phrasing at this time) children if one seems to have arrived at the end.
On a lighter note, are manual pumps for a residential well worthwhile if someone has the strength to operate it?
Yes indeed, manual pumps fir residential (or even agricultural) wells are definitely worth it. There is a limit to how high they can lift water, and I didn't mention them b/c I couldn't remember the specs, but sinc eyou asked I went and looked it up. Looks like it's easy to get one that'll lift from a 300ft deep static water level (the static level is often higher than the depth of the well).
Operating one is a bit like operating a hydraulic jack--not much in the way of stength-per-stroke, but a lot of strokes.
Here's an example:
https://www.bisonpumps.com/products/standard-deep-well-pump-system/
And a competing model:
https://www.simplepump.com/products/deep-well-pump
👍
Another possibility for transportation involves retrofitting modern engines with ECUs to use carburetors, and point distributors. This works better though if the transmission is manual, as most modern automatic transmissions are heavily computerized and expect to have some communication with the ECU.
Gasoline engines also can be converted to run 100% ethanol, an excellent option for those living on warmer climates that can grow sugarcane.
A few miscellaneous comments, unrelated to each other:
In an apocalypse, diabetics will die. There won't be any insulin. So if you have diabetes, plan accordingly: you won't survive anyway.
I may be mistaken, but I think that all solar panels will fry in an EMP event. So you can kiss your solar power goodbye.
Vacuum tubes are not harmed by EMP. So save those old ham radios; you might need them.
Restaurants will find their old fryer oil becoming very valuable as people steal it to make into diesel.
Firewood will be hard to come by as soon as you run out of gas for the chain saw. Not to mention the logistics of getting the wood from the forest to your home.
Added a footnote to the main article about medicinally-dependent folks.
Also, there are ways to get firewood dependably without chainsaws, or even without cutting down trees. Check out coppicing and related forest-management practices. We've got a coppice grove here on the ranch that we're gradually switching to from roundwood as I get it into shape--burns hotter and longer than the local conifer population.
Solar panels will spontaneously catch on fire if the event is big enough--how many are wired in serial has a big effect on this. Big arrays, like those on corporate rooftops, will routinely wire dozens in serial. Those are vulnerable to events far smaller than the one we just experienced. Short strings of 2-5 panels require a VERY strong event to overload, and single panels may survive even the worst the sun throws at us.
However, the back end equipment (inverters and charge controllers) will fry, so it's best to have backup units shielded and in an underground location if such is your jam.
I have to disagree about the vacuum tubes. As with transistors, if not more so, they will fry if that EMF current gets induced into them.
Don't do the bug out plan. For the love of God, the last thing we need is a bunch of city people with a backpack full of discount Chinese camping supplies showing up expecting "the rurals" to help them out once their last can of spam is empty.
If you're really concerned about apocalyptic events and you think you have what it takes to survive one, get out of the cities now and get established so you can be useful instead of a burden or a villain. You'll be happier even if there is no apocalypse.
Otherwise your prep is a nice clean way to end yourself before the ferals eat you. You're not wanted, you're not needed, and we can't afford to take care of you. No matter how good your paper pushing and "organizing" skills are.
Connected to solar panel question previously asked, what risk factor do battery powered tools like phones have of ignition in a geomagnetic event? I have a grim suspicion such tools may lead to many deaths by home fire if the event is strong enough. I'd want to factor in if I'd need to sleep near an extinguisher to survive this should it happen in the night. Sorry if this is retarded to ask, I did look up the subject but not many answers assumed more than a brief emp level overload, at least in my brief survey. I just want to be sure I'm not sleeping near an incendiary grenade, and to warn all my family/friends if it is the case, as most people I know do own smartphones.
There are so many factors that it's hard to give a general answer and still stay firmly within knowledge that I'm confident in, but...
Lithium-Ion battery chemistry (which now powers most small electronics) is very volatile and prone to igniting if overcharged. In an EMP, I don't know what will happen to them--could be nothing if they're not plugged into a charge port, or could be something. If they ARE plugged into a charge port, their charging circuitry could get fried, leading either to overload or to shutdown.
Li-Io batteries burn VERY hot and must be extinguished with damping chemicals, not water.
Other chemistries, such as Ni-Cad (old, but still around) and LiFePO4 (newer) are much less volatile and less likely to fail catastrophically--and if they do, the fires are less intense.
Lead Acid batteries (like the one in your car) can explode due to hydrogen off-gassing, but the conditions have to be just right. Otherwise they're pretty safe even in an overloaded state.
Don't know enough about Nickel-Iron batteries (a.k.a. Edison batteries) to have an informed opinion about the risks from them during overload, but they are much less common.