Communications and Batteries

You may wish to skip getting two-way communications gear as it is of limited use unless you have a large acreage and you have children. If you do get radios get good quality. Motorola makes extremely good radios with secure transmissions for very little. Get units that will accept AA or AAA batteries. You may also wish to get a base unit. Be certain to get a 12V system, marine radio units are an excellent choice here, that can be used on the same frequency as the hand held units.

Of a greater importance is a good AM/FM/short-wave radio receiver. There are now radios on the market that are excellent quality, and that really are the stuff of science fiction. Get a solar powered or hand cranked radio with short-wave, AM, and FM reception. You will need to be able to get broadcasts in the event of a civil emergency. An excellent choice is pictured below. The Baygen radio never needs batteries and will pick up AM/FM and short-wave. There is a unit that has solar power in addition to the crank.

If you have a gate and don’t want to have to trundle down to it to find out who is ringing the bell whenever anyone shows up, consider getting a solar or voice powered intercom system. This can be used with a closed circuit TV system to let you see who is at your gate.

You will find that batteries are very much appreciated, not only for powering necessities, but also to keep small children entertained. It is suggested that you get one or two solar powered battery chargers and a store of rechargeable batteries. One of the author’s favorites is a solar powered flashlight. A side panel allows the rechargeable batteries to charge when the flashlight is left on a window sill, and thus it is fully charged when it is needed. A good rule of thumb here is to find all of your battery powered appliances and get a good count of the number of batteries needed to power them all at once. Then buy twice as many batteries as you have counted. This will guarantee a good supply on hand and will allow you to use your stuff while one set is charging. It is not a bad idea to have a supply of regular alkalines on hand as well for personal use and for barter. These can be purchased in bulk.

In addition to the solar powered flashlight, get several small LED type flashlights and one or two full sized Mag-Lites. The small LED flashlights are quite bright and draw little power. The Mag-Lites are pretty much indestructible and will last forever. They are also difficult to lose.

If you wish to solve two problems at once you may wish to get a pair or two pairs of walkie talkies with GPS units built in. This will allow you to find the other party’s position in a hurry if necessary.

As an extra, get one or two spiral cell car batteries. They can be used for cars, obviously, but if you purchase some 12V DC light bulbs, you can have reading light at night from a regular lamp if you wire it to the battery.

On the subject of lights, it is a good idea to have some oil lamps and spare wicks handy. It cannot be stressed how dangerous open flame is if there is no fire department. If you are going to use oil lamps, make certain you invest in some ABC fire extinguishers.

It is suggested that you get a lamp that uses Ball canning jars as an oil reservoir. If you break the glass, it is then easily replaced, which is not the case if you have those pretty proprietary glass reservoir lamps.

Remember that kerosene can be used in place of the paraffin oil, but it is smoky.

Communications and Batteries

Previous Section – Main Menu – Next Section