winny
Flashlight Enthusiast
I have always admired scouts and the idea of being ready for everything so I always carry a raincoat in my backpack, which is very fun because you can stand in the rain and look at everyone who thinks "It's warm inside, it's warm in the bus, I'm not going to be outside today" and therefore don't prepare for anything. The flashlight part I don't have to go into for you guys and gals...
Electric power is used for just about everything so I have one UPS and two 12->230 V inverters with several batteries for blackouts. Now all I needed to do was to wait for a blackout to occur...
and so it happened... Yesterday, at 9.30 PM, power went out and everything became black. Because I'm not such a good flashaholic, I didn't had a flashlight in my hand so I had to lean forward and grab one on my living-room table.
Luckily, my metal-halide roof light was cold at that point, so I ran out to the kitchen and picked up a 12 V SLA battery and an inverter. My hands where shaking when i connected it in the light from my 9AN because I needed to hurry before it ended as blackouts are normally short lived here in Sweden.
Squaaaack... The bulb ignited when I connected it and started to run up but I couldn't stand there waiting for it go become hot. I grabbed all the flashlights I could carry in my pockets and ran outside. Some of my neighbors had already lit candles and others where asking for matches. I asked everyone if anyone needed a flashlight but no one dared to say yes (It's very "unswedish" to ask for things). I continued outside to the street to see if everyone where ok and to finally have some "real" use for my flashlights.
People where trying to illuminate their way forward with cell phones and crappy flashlights or decant ones with old drained batteries. I stood there and watched my metal-halide lighting up the street outside while everything else was black. Quite a sight.
I looked down the street and saw a lot of people wonder what happened. As there where no cars outside, I took the opportunity to test my flashlights. Unfortunately for me, there was a full moon so I couldn't do any fun throw tests. As no one there either needed to borrow a flashlight, I walked back to my appetent and my neighbors. There where now more candles in their windows and some of them had found their flashlights as well. I invited them in to my appetent if anyone found it too dark in theirs and some wanted to see what on earth I had planed for. They found it very amusing that someone spent so much time and money for "emergencies" like a blackout. They thought I was crazy, which they probably where suspecting all along, but now it was confirmed. It probably lowered my chances to score with my new beautiful neighbor to just about zero, but it was worth it.
I changed out some flashlights to try out other ones, lend one to a friend and changed batteries in all non-rechargeable ones I had and went out again to give them a shot as well. Down the street, I talked to some people wonder what on earth I had in my appetent. We talked a bit and compared our flashlights.
After about 20 minutes, power was back again and the fun for me and inconvenience for the others ended.
Lessons learned:
1. Have all your lights run on UPSes, that way the effect will be more noticeable.
2. Make sure to have 10 loaner lights to hand out to friends and neighbors.
3. Make sure to have 10 or more disposable lighters at home to hand out to friends and neighbors.
Electric power is used for just about everything so I have one UPS and two 12->230 V inverters with several batteries for blackouts. Now all I needed to do was to wait for a blackout to occur...
and so it happened... Yesterday, at 9.30 PM, power went out and everything became black. Because I'm not such a good flashaholic, I didn't had a flashlight in my hand so I had to lean forward and grab one on my living-room table.
Luckily, my metal-halide roof light was cold at that point, so I ran out to the kitchen and picked up a 12 V SLA battery and an inverter. My hands where shaking when i connected it in the light from my 9AN because I needed to hurry before it ended as blackouts are normally short lived here in Sweden.
Squaaaack... The bulb ignited when I connected it and started to run up but I couldn't stand there waiting for it go become hot. I grabbed all the flashlights I could carry in my pockets and ran outside. Some of my neighbors had already lit candles and others where asking for matches. I asked everyone if anyone needed a flashlight but no one dared to say yes (It's very "unswedish" to ask for things). I continued outside to the street to see if everyone where ok and to finally have some "real" use for my flashlights.
People where trying to illuminate their way forward with cell phones and crappy flashlights or decant ones with old drained batteries. I stood there and watched my metal-halide lighting up the street outside while everything else was black. Quite a sight.
I looked down the street and saw a lot of people wonder what happened. As there where no cars outside, I took the opportunity to test my flashlights. Unfortunately for me, there was a full moon so I couldn't do any fun throw tests. As no one there either needed to borrow a flashlight, I walked back to my appetent and my neighbors. There where now more candles in their windows and some of them had found their flashlights as well. I invited them in to my appetent if anyone found it too dark in theirs and some wanted to see what on earth I had planed for. They found it very amusing that someone spent so much time and money for "emergencies" like a blackout. They thought I was crazy, which they probably where suspecting all along, but now it was confirmed. It probably lowered my chances to score with my new beautiful neighbor to just about zero, but it was worth it.
I changed out some flashlights to try out other ones, lend one to a friend and changed batteries in all non-rechargeable ones I had and went out again to give them a shot as well. Down the street, I talked to some people wonder what on earth I had in my appetent. We talked a bit and compared our flashlights.
After about 20 minutes, power was back again and the fun for me and inconvenience for the others ended.
Lessons learned:
1. Have all your lights run on UPSes, that way the effect will be more noticeable.
2. Make sure to have 10 loaner lights to hand out to friends and neighbors.
3. Make sure to have 10 or more disposable lighters at home to hand out to friends and neighbors.
Last edited:
, a neighbour cut the main-cable, while doing self-improvement with a dredger 
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