FARADAY CAGES DO YOU HAVE ONE?

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Gazrok,

Most things within electromagnetics is 'odd'. decibels are logarithmic, it eliminates lots of 0's. We used to struggle to get a few dB reduction. As I said, 40 dB is really hard to believe (but then, how many people have the test equipment to check this!).

One more note, note the bags are only rated starting at 1 GHz. Last I did this work, Europe didn't even have any requirements above 1 GHz. Most of your energy is sub-GHz in the normal world. The lower the frequency, the greater the skin depth penetration... as I said it's a very odd world.
 
an EMP will fry most of the infrastructure so saving a few personal bits in a faraday cage isn't going to accomplish much if your car electronics are fried, the power grid is shot and pumps in the filling station are kaput.
better to learn to live a more basic lifestyle and adapt to the new normal.
 
One thing I've said before is that if there is an EMP, running vehicles will be of minimal value. Yes, I've got a few EMP-proof vehicles. But reality is that roads will not be driveable, scum will have blockages to kill anyone driving, and there just won't be many places to go IF you could drive.
 
All good points. (on the vehicles).

Still though, one item in my prep plan includes a large home gas tank, and gravity fed hoses and nozzles (one for regular, one for diesel).

If nothing else, it may be useful if there's another gas hike in my lifetime, which is likely a certainty.

Of course, if the SHTF, we always have the horses..... ;)
 
Debbie Maddox said:
If you do how did you make yours? With the threats of emps by solar storms or other being so prominent, when do you use yours ? All day every day? Certain times a day?or only one part of the day? When would they come about? day, night? Why? And what do you feel are the important things to have in a Faraday cage? Phones?, tablets, laptops, batteries?,radios? Would that include one of those wind up solar radios?those of you with ham equipment are you using a cage for that? Are satelite phones important to have? Suggestions of type?
Click to expand...

Supposedly, a Faraday cage can be made with an old microwave oven (unplugged).

Also, a metal garbage pail with rubber insulation inside should work as a Faraday cage.

The way to understand EMP is to think of the situation where an idiot puts aluminum foil in a microwave oven and turns it on. The sparks in the aluminum foil are cause by radio waves getting converted into electricity.

If you have an electronic device, the theory is that intense radio waves with interract with the metal components and cause a high voltage electrical current to flow through computer chips and burn them out.

Such microwave and radio wave transmissions can be caused by a high-altitude nuclear weapon. Project Starfish was a high-altitude nuke that was detonated by us over the Pacific ocean in the 1960s. Hawai'i got their streetlights (and many other electronic devices) fried.
This nuke also damaged several satellites when their electronics got fried.

This EMP can occur naturally from events on the Sun.

In the 1800s, the Carrington Event was such an occurance. There were no computer chips to fry back then, but telegraph operators were able to send messages without electricity, and others received electrical shocks (some were life-threatening) just from touching their equipment.

The Carrington Event caused northern lights that were visible as far south as Jamaica (maybe not a bad thing because the ganja probably helped them appreciate it more).

Computer components are fundamental to our food, power grid, medical devices (like pacemakers), cars, airplanes, and so on.

An EMP can, therefore, be a disastrous thing.

I've personally decided not to worry about it because I've stocked devices and supplies that don't rely on computer chips...but this may not be realistic.
 
Maybe someone with some expertise can chime in on this...but doesn't a Faraday cage need to be made of some kind of highly conductive metal? I wouldn't think galvanized steel is all that conductive. I'm thinking more along the lines of copper wire mesh.
 
DrHenley said:
Maybe someone with some expertise can chime in on this...but doesn't a Faraday cage need to be made of some kind of highly conductive metal? I wouldn't think galvanized steel is all that conductive. I'm thinking more along the lines of copper wire mesh.
Click to expand...

Copper mesh would work well, but galvanized steel is fine. The container needs to be grounded, and the contents insulated.

Even deep water protects from EMP. A sealed container of electronics dumped into a lake would likely survive an EMP.
 
whats the point if said electronics at some point have to be attached to a power point or recharged using the main power grid if the EMP has fried the mains power? surely it'll all be so much scrap metal.
 
bigpaul said:
whats the point if said electronics at some point have to be attached to a power point or recharged using the main power grid if the EMP has fried the mains power? surely it'll all be so much scrap metal.
Click to expand...
Not neccesarily. People have generators. I have portable solar battery chargers. Even if the internet is fried, hundreds of books can be kept on a thumb drive. DVD instructional videos can be kept up and running.
 
i don't have a generator due to the limitations with fuel availability and storage.
not technically minded enough for solar panels.
I guess i'm just an old fashioned peasant at heart!!:rolleyes:
 
Debbie Maddox said:
If you do how did you make yours? With the threats of emps by solar storms or other being so prominent, when do you use yours ? All day every day? Certain times a day?or only one part of the day? When would they come about? day, night? Why? And what do you feel are the important things to have in a Faraday cage? Phones?, tablets, laptops, batteries?,radios? Would that include one of those wind up solar radios?those of you with ham equipment are you using a cage for that? Are satelite phones important to have? Suggestions of type?
Click to expand...
We have a small metal cabinet in the basement. I wrapped several items (radio, ipad, etc.) in three layer of aluminum foil alternated with cardboard and put them into the cage. Hopefully, that will be protection enough.
 
Max Nix said:
We have a small metal cabinet in the basement. I wrapped several items (radio, ipad, etc.) in three layer of aluminum foil alternated with cardboard and put them into the cage. Hopefully, that will be protection enough.
Click to expand...

Just make sure the cabinet door closes full metal to metal, doesn't have a wooden floor or any vents, and the stuff inside is electrically insulated from the body of the cabinet.
 
I have a 600 by 700 by 200 MDG kitchen cabinet spare, I'm lining in with .5 roofing lead in the inside and maybe enough left to clad the outside, if I ever get round to it.
 
Kevin L said:
Supposedly, a Faraday cage can be made with an old microwave oven (unplugged).

Also, a metal garbage pail with rubber insulation inside should work as a Faraday cage.

The way to understand EMP is to think of the situation where an idiot puts aluminum foil in a microwave oven and turns it on. The sparks in the aluminum foil are cause by radio waves getting converted into electricity.

If you have an electronic device, the theory is that intense radio waves with interract with the metal components and cause a high voltage electrical current to flow through computer chips and burn them out.

Such microwave and radio wave transmissions can be caused by a high-altitude nuclear weapon. Project Starfish was a high-altitude nuke that was detonated by us over the Pacific ocean in the 1960s. Hawai'i got their streetlights (and many other electronic devices) fried.
This nuke also damaged several satellites when their electronics got fried.

This EMP can occur naturally from events on the Sun.

In the 1800s, the Carrington Event was such an occurance. There were no computer chips to fry back then, but telegraph operators were able to send messages without electricity, and others received electrical shocks (some were life-threatening) just from touching their equipment.

The Carrington Event caused northern lights that were visible as far south as Jamaica (maybe not a bad thing because the ganja probably helped them appreciate it more).

Computer components are fundamental to our food, power grid, medical devices (like pacemakers), cars, airplanes, and so on.

An EMP can, therefore, be a disastrous thing.

I've personally decided not to worry about it because I've stocked devices and supplies that don't rely on computer chips...but this may not be realistic.
Click to expand...

Keep in mind microwave ovens run at 2.4 gigahertz and only protect at that frequency. EMP/CME cover a far broader spectrum than 2.4ghz
 
whats the point if said electronics at some point have to be attached to a power point or recharged using the main power grid if the EMP has fried the mains power? surely it'll all be so much scrap metal.
Click to expand...

Yes, but not solar powered electronics, or battery powered, (and if you have a solar battery charger)...

Doesn't need to be grounded (but it does help when you go to open it up, if the outside is still charged).....
 
solar power is dependent on sun shine I assume.
batteries will be fried by an emp.
like I said, i'm an old fashioned simple sort of guy:D I intend to make life post SHTF as basic as possible.
K.I.S.S. and all that.
 
TexasFreedom said:
One thing I've said before is that if there is an EMP, running vehicles will be of minimal value. Yes, I've got a few EMP-proof vehicles. But reality is that roads will not be driveable, scum will have blockages to kill anyone driving, and there just won't be many places to go IF you could drive.
Click to expand...
If you have a running vehicle use it immediately to get to the store and grab everything you can. We will have several in our family, if it is an emp I will know but maybe lots of other people won't. Siphon gas from stranded vehicles asap and transport to home.
 
brandx said:
I finally got into an old safe that belonged to my grandparents. I was thinking about putting batteries in it, maybe my walkie talkies, should I put my crank radio in too? Then seal with metal tape?? What else?
Click to expand...
And old safe should work fine, but you may be under the impression that the thicker metal will provide better protection because it's heavier...and this isn't the case.

Also, batteries don't have chips in them, so you should be fine storing them anywhere.

Metal screen like you have for a screen window can protect from EMP.

Also, if you can get an old, antique radio that uses vacuum tubes (a rarity...and such a radio uses a lot of electrical power and takes up an inordinate amount of space), it will be immune from EMP.
 
Anyone ever see and use an antique record player? (the crank kind). Man, these things are fantastic!

We spotted a couple during some antique hunting a while back, and really want to get one, and some of our favorite albums on vinyl. Would be pretty cool to have no power required music. Just amazing devices.

That, and an old school foot pedal sewing machine are high on our functional antiques list.
 
Gazrok said:
Seems like a lot of effort, when you could just wrap an existing radio in cardboard and then aluminum foil, and pretty much keep it safe. ;)
Click to expand...
Yes, I agree.

Although I think wrapping it in multiple layers of plastic bubble wrap and then foil would work better.

This outer layer of foil does need to be grounded, though.
 
Kevin L said:
And old safe should work fine, but you may be under the impression that the thicker metal will provide better protection because it's heavier...and this isn't the case.

Also, batteries don't have chips in them, so you should be fine storing them anywhere.

Metal screen like you have for a screen window can protect from EMP.

Also, if you can get an old, antique radio that uses vacuum tubes (a rarity...and such a radio uses a lot of electrical power and takes up an inordinate amount of space), it will be immune from EMP.
Click to expand...
OK, that's food for thought.
 
Gazrok said:
Anyone ever see and use an antique record player? (the crank kind). Man, these things are fantastic!

We spotted a couple during some antique hunting a while back, and really want to get one, and some of our favorite albums on vinyl. Would be pretty cool to have no power required music. Just amazing devices.

That, and an old school foot pedal sewing machine are high on our functional antiques list.
Click to expand...
The records used for most hand crank players are very heavy and deeply grooved and suitable for the solid metal needles for that player.
Even when using the old records and needles, the needle must be replace every 1-2 plays or it ruins the record( why you need tons of them). This is why you hear so much scratching when the old ones are played. New/old Victrola type needles can be ordered. but I doubt you can play the vinyl of today on these old machines. I don't know if they make a phonograph that plays new vinyl LP's. I guess I could check it out easily enough online.
 
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