Are your Flashlights EMP-protected?

[Blueskies123]

Why do you say using an old unplugged microwave oven or a refrigerator does not make a good Faraday cage?

The walls of the microwave are made of conductive metal, with the viewing hole similar to a mesh wall in a Faraday cage, making a microwave a hybrid Faraday cage. I measured the holes on my microwave and they come out to 1 milimeter; small enough to theoretically block a pulse with a frequency of up to 300 GHz. An electromagnetic pulse would give off energy with a variety of frequencies, but your microwave should block the bulk of them.
You can test your microwave by placing a radio or cell phone inside of a microwave (don't turn it on!) and checking for signal. Can you call the phone in the microwave? How is your radio reception once inside? You are more than likely unable to make a call or get a signal. The type of electromagnetic energy used in a cell tower or radio transmission will be stronger, but your microwave might make for a good barrier against it. If you want to go even further, toss some electronic items you would need in a disaster in an old microwave and cover it in reflective metal tape to secure your microwave oven-turned-Faraday cage even more.
In the event of an EMP, the cord of your microwave (if plugged in) could also act as a ground, further helping discharge any energy. I would probably clip the cord or leave it unplugged so I didn't actually microwave my cell phone in the middle of the night. You could also buy a broken microwave and seal it with additional metal tape on the edges to quickly make a Faraday cage for long-term use.

 

[TEEJ]

You don't want a ground cord on a Faraday cage...the cage is to direct the field around the cage's contents...adding a cord would add a channel into your cage defeating the purpose.

This is why you cut the cord OFF when using an appliance as a cage.

:D

 

[vicv]

You guys realize an emp from a nuclear weapons will only happen if it's detonated in the upper atmosphere. From there it's too far away to damage led drivers :-) besides all my carry lights are incans....

 

[Kilroytheknifesnob]

Vivc, all nuclear explosions produce an EMP.

 

[Monocrom]

EMP?.... I've got my SureFire M6, SureFire custom Leef-bodied M4, SureFire C2, SureFire 9Z, SureFire 6P with wood sleeve body, Streamlight NightFighter, and Streamlight Scorpion. Along with a few other incandescent lights.

 

[TEEJ]

Vivc, all nuclear explosions produce an EMP.

Its HEMP that you worry about as far as electronics...as the high altitude version is more powerful and wide reaching in effect.

:D

EMP is just a localized effect, HEMP is the system killer, and, WORSE for electronic than an EMP closer to your flashlight....albeit NEITHER is going to hurt your flashlight anyway.


By the way, there are species of crickets that eat the insulation from wires, and, squirrels are famous for that too.

These crickets can form large swarms, and blanket areas, eating up all the insulation they can find.

What are you doing to protect your electronics from swarms of insulation eating crickets? (I'd ask about squirrels, but, that's hopeless....)

 

[braddy]

Here is some EMP testing on an old radio.

http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a266481.pdf

The military takes it seriously. https://www.fas.org/irp/doddir/army/fm24-18.pdf

 

[StarHalo]

Here is some EMP testing on an old radio.

Military radios are pretty hardcore robust, I'm not sure how relevant that is to consumer electronics. Good catch nonetheless..

 

[braddy]

In the mid 1980s my unit carried the PRC-70, it was hardened against EMP and we envied (suspiciously) our foreign counterparts that carried much lighter radios, that weren't protected.

I have no idea the science, but I wasn't convinced that our military was wrong to force that extra weight on us.

 

[electromage]

You should do a little bit of reading on the fundamentals of radio. EMP is essentially a very strong burst of incoherent radio frequency energy, which radiates in a semi-spherical pattern, and loses energy as it expands outward. FM and 2-way radios operate on the same principal but using comparitively low-power waves, which are amplified by a receiver. Low-frequency (long) electromagnetic waves propogate better than high-frequency over long distances, this is why AM radio stations can run lower power and be heard farther away than FM radio stations, and CB has the same benefit over UHF. As the distance from the source increases, the strength of the wave decreases exponentially (inverse-square law), just like two magnets. When these high-power magnetic waves hit a current in a conductor they create electricity, much like the moving magnets inside coils of wire inside a generator. If the waves are too strong, they will overload the wire and burn it out (this will probably happen in a transformer).

As you get far enough away from the blast to be safe from the immense heat and air pressure, the waves that are left will be so low-frequency that they will only affect things like power lines, and very large antennas. This will disrupt transmission, and may damage generators and substation equipment as well as destroy un-protected appliances (good surge protectors should help). I don't think that flashlights, and small electronic devices will be affected at all unless they're close enough to a nuclear blast that they'd probably be destroyed by the blast itself.

Also, a lot of you seem to think that incandescent lights will fare better, why is that? The filament will act as an antenna, and easily cook itself with a little current. A switched-off LED and driver is more susceptible to ESD than EMP.

 

[braddy]

So who had the right radios for European missions, my unit with the EMP protections, or a foreign unit that didn't?

These were for 4 to 6 man teams, so weight was a big issue.

 

[LetThereBeLight!]

So who had the right radios for European missions, my unit with the EMP protections, or a foreign unit that didn't?

These were for 4 to 6 man teams, so weight was a big issue.

1. I'm sorry, you must have missed the part where I referenced a scientific research study stating that almost all modern cars are quite EMP resistant. If you could please cite your source of information, we could have an informed discussion here. Just for extra proof that you're completely wrong: http://www.empcommission.org/ start at page 112.

2. I'm not sure you understand how an EMP actually damages electronics.
3. Yes, Metal enclosures kinda do protect against EMP. It's basic radio wave propagation theory, not voodoo. Again, cite your sources if you believe otherwise.

Here are two current sources of information for you:

1.) www.thecommonsenseshow.com: look at Mr. Hodges' series on the Chinese, part 4;

2.) www.shtfplan.com: look at today's EMP weapons article.

To repeat, I pray and hope we do not suffer an EMP weapon's burst/pulse. But if we do, I trust in what I have researched to protect at least the one thing everybody here is SO crazy about: high-end flashlights.

 

[braddy]

Just a couple of links to nothing particular?

At least one of them looks like goofy conspiracy land. Those links seem off topic.

 

[LetThereBeLight!]

So who had the right radios for European missions, my unit with the EMP protections, or a foreign unit that didn't?

These were for 4 to 6 man teams, so weight was a big issue.

Just a couple of links to nothing particular?

At least one of them looks like goofy conspiracy land. Those links seem off topic.

My oh my how dismissive we are tonight!

I guess you can't handle the truth. Or choose not to.

Those links actually refute the naysayers who choose not to read up on the latest EMP weapons. My ORIGINAL post was about protection for our high-end flashlights. Subsequent posts sadly became filled with disputatious hot air. Yet no one has ever answered why it is so horribly wrong to protect our Light investments, strange indeed.

 

[idleprocess]

My oh my how dismissive we are tonight!

I guess you can't handle the truth. Or choose not to.

Those links actually refute the naysayers who choose not to read up on the latest EMP weapons. My ORIGINAL post was about protection for our high-end flashlights. Subsequent posts sadly became filled with disputatious hot air. Yet no one has ever answered why it is so horribly wrong to protect our Light investments, strange indeed.

Some of us post materials from verifiable sources that have conducted experiments and/or collected hard data, which you dismiss with various hand-waves - too old, can't trust the government, or part of some cover-up. You post from sketchy sources with messianic conviction.

Specifically, your links talk about EMP weapons, but don't go into their actual effects other than the usual alarmist predictions about everything that uses electricity being rendered useless and we'll almost all promptly die. Problem is that actual research conducted on this issue contradicts many of the claims being made.

If you can come up with some reputable sources, perhaps we'll take you seriously; otherwise you're just trolling us.

If you want to keep your lights in a faraday cage, feel free - doesn't affect me. But please stop claiming that protects them from a grid-destroying EMP that they'll scarely notice outside of the cage.

 

[DoubleA]

My oh my how dismissive we are tonight!

I guess you can't handle the truth. Or choose not to.

Those links actually refute the naysayers who choose not to read up on the latest EMP weapons. My ORIGINAL post was about protection for our high-end flashlights. Subsequent posts sadly became filled with disputatious hot air. Yet no one has ever answered why it is so horribly wrong to protect our Light investments, strange indeed.

To the OP:
I only have read through the first page of this thread and it seems no one is taking your views very seriously. Rest assured, I do. You're referring to an EMP threat mainly as one that would come from a nuke being set off high up above the atmosphere, which is something that has been researched and considered by countries around the world to knock out electricity and electronics of an enemy country. Since we have electricity and things that run on it as the life-blood of the nation, we wouldn't live long without it. So of course, it makes sense to protect what we can, especially if it's easy and cheap enough to do.

Of course, people will say that your flashlights being fried would be the least of your problems. First of all, I doubt that. When all electricity and lights are knocked out, it will be dark indeed when night comes! A working flashlight at that time will be GOLD! If a steel trashcan or any other metal enclosure is what it takes to protect some of your backup lights and put you way ahead of the game in such a scenario, then it is a very good idea.

As for what good are lights when they depend on batteries....all you need is to store up some extra batteries. They wouldn't be affected by an EMP. Only LED lights would be. A good idea would be to have lights with long runtimes. Right now, there are lights that can run for 40 hours on low with a single AA battery. If you used it at that level for an hour per night, you could get by for a year on just 10 batteries. Sounds worthwhile to me!

Yes, I do protect many of my lights from EMP as well. I think mostly AA lights should be saved, since AAA batteries can be used in them in a pinch, but it's nice to actually have a few AAA lights too. My EMP setup doesn't involve much. It's a 42oz. oatmeal cannister wrapped in aluminum foil, placed in a coffee can (the metal kind), with another coffee can upside down on top of that. The cannister and coffee cans are separated by cardboard. The cardboard's purpose is to separate the containers so the EMP doesn't jump from one container to the other. Having the lights in contact with the metal container would defeat the purpose since the EMP would hit the metal container and then your lights which would be in contact with it. Keep them apart. I also have a container inside of an office safe, which is made of steel. I have a few lights in that.

If you want an idea of how EMP affects things (if it were to happen), read the book titled, "One Second After". It's an eye-opener. Granted, it's fictional, but still gives the reader an idea of how serious of a threat something like this is. I've heard China is actually trying to modify nukes in a way that would enhance their EMP effect. If they are taking it seriously, then maybe we should be as well.

 

[braddy]

My oh my how dismissive we are tonight!

I guess you can't handle the truth. Or choose not to.

Those links actually refute the naysayers who choose not to read up on the latest EMP weapons. My ORIGINAL post was about protection for our high-end flashlights. Subsequent posts sadly became filled with disputatious hot air. Yet no one has ever answered why it is so horribly wrong to protect our Light investments, strange indeed.

Can't handle the truth? What kind of remark is that, I just can't handle that nutty conspiracy site you linked to.

I know the military takes EMPs seriously, and has for many decades, and spends a lot of money to create EMP weapons, and to harden equipment against EMPs, you even quoted me pointing out the EMP protected radio I used to use.

EMPs are real, but that nutty site isn't.

 

[electromage]

So your other thread is about wireless powered flashlights, you realize that would make them more susceptible to EMPs right?

 

[LanthanumK]

Stores flashlights in grounded foil covered cans; still plugs computer directly into mains electricity. If anything, its the electrical grid that will fry your electronics. Flashlight electronics are far more resilient than a CPU or RAM due to their simplicity.

Static electricity can simulate an induced voltage in a device. Shock your computer's RAM, then shock your flashlight's driver with a Van de Graaff generator. See which one survives longer. I used to shock one of those electronic pushbutton red LED safety flashers with a spark igniter found on grills, stoves, etc. It simply turned on from the spark and began flashing, as if one pressed the on button. Sometimes even a close spark on the outside of the plastic casing would turn it on, apparently from induced voltage. It was not damaged at all.

 

[StarHalo]

shock your flashlight's driver with a Van de Graaff generator.

Well we know our flashlights can survive a Tesla coil..