emergency d cell flashlight options

ok i'm setting up my emergency kit in case a hurricane or earthquake takes us off the grid for a week or so, and obviously i need a good flashlight setup. i want something that runs off d cells and gets maximum runtime. I'm trying to compare specs but I'm not finding a lot of good specs on emergency stuff. i think a 3d magled runs for 80 hours at about 100 lumens per various sources on the internet. I'm really interested in nite-ize 2-6 cell upgrade that is only 55 lumens, but they don't have spec on that one. has self built or anyone else done an emergency flashlight runtime/brightness comparison? i think this would be really good information for the public and of course the flashaholic community. what do you guys know about any of the specs on these lights? terralux 4-6 or 2-3 cell too?

i would love to see a comparison chart for some of these maglite replacement bulbs

A 3D Maglite is my main light for ext'd power outages etc. 131 lumens. 79 hrs runtime, and either good NIMH or alkalines should do the trick.

The Dorcy led replacement bulb isn't glorious in brightness, but it is great for quiet preparedness in run time.

I've been reading that 100 lumens gives a good enough ceiling bounce for reading and stuff. I was on Youtube earlier to see what a 100 lumen ceiling bounce looks like but I couldn't find anything.

The following has been excerpted from a post I wrote for another thread.

Flashlight reviewer and CPF member Robin Wang has done a good job reviewing Maglite products over the years. To learn the truth about Maglite runtimes, look at the charts Robin posted for the Maglite ML300LX last March. These are based on actual testing with the 2D and 3D models.

Robin24k said:

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CPF member Selfbuilt is another well-known flashlight reviewer. For purposes of measuring runtime, he ignores the ANSI Fl 1 Standard. He feels it does not do a good job representing the data. The FL 1 Standard measures runtime until output falls to 10% of its initial value! Selfbuilt prefers to stop at 50%.

Looking at the chart for the ML300LX 2D flashlight, you can see that it hits 50% after about 2 hours. The 3D hits 50% at approximately 2.75 hours. Those are the runtimes Selfbuilt would assign if he were to review these two Maglites. Selfbuilt would also publish runtime charts like those above. Charts tell the story better than numbers.

The reason Maglite is able to claim a runtime of 117 hours (rather than 2.75) for the ML300LX 3D is because it measures in Eco mode. At the start of the test, Eco mode puts out 58 lumens. The FL 1 standard says to stop when output reaches 10% of that. For the MX300L 3D, that means only 5.8 lumens! You do get your 117 hours, but you are not getting a whole bunch of lumens.

Look at the lumintop sd10. Interesting d cell and multi cell emergency light.

Having lived through too many 1+ week weather-related power outages, I might propose a few things. First of all I should state that I'm not a big fan of D cells as power sources. There are better choices. The second is that you might consider having a way to charge batteries if you are planning to be without power. If you really have to go for over a week with absolutely no access to electricity in any form, count on rationing your batteries and consider getting a few lower power 1 cell CR123 lights. If you want a big honkin emergency light, consider an 8-cell AA light. I've used my TK-45 through many a disaster and it easily lights up a big room as an LED candle for 6+ hours. On high it will light up a whole back yard. With a good charger and good low self-discharge batteries, you can usually top the batteries in 1.5 hours. If you regularly lose power you might want to invest in a generator (even a small one) that can also keep your chest freezer (or fridge) functioning and charge whole sets of batteries quickly. Absent that, there are some reasonably inexpensive solar chargers that will do the trick (obviously assuming sun).

If you are committed to D-Cell format, look into D-Cell NiMH. They are much less common than AA NiMH and will require a charger that can handle their width. Also many of the brands out there (Tenergy etc...) have had reliability problems. The Fenix TK-60 is a pretty good choice in this category for a flashlight.

Good luck.

For the money, go with either the maglite 3 D cell 2nd Gen led or the new ml300lx. I also highly recommend the ml125 rechargeable and can run on C cell. Home depot is selling them for $55 online. They used to sell for over $100.

I like my D battery lanterns and TK70 for blackouts.

While I have more than enough rechargeable batteries of all sizes, from AAA to D, and Li-ion, for a couple of weeks or months of a black out, my intention for recharging if I had to, is to use a Xtar VC4 in my vehicle to charge my Ds and Li-ion batteries, and my $30.00 solar battery charger as my inconvenient deep backup.

I don't understand why people seem resistant to simply charging their flashlight batteries in the car, I keep a Thrunite MCC-2 in the car just for that purpose, in case I have to spend a couple of days/nights working on the car, while traveling.

If this for an emergency there's plenty of 2xAA and 4xAA flashlights that will give you a great 50 lumen runtime.

Here's another one to consider for area lighting: http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...-Folding-Lantern-with-Light-Fusion-Technology

One good thing about D cells is they can be used in some decent battery powered fans. I have one that takes 4xD and the make one that takes 6xD.

KISS. Keep it simple especially when dealing with emergency lights etc. Imagine a SHTF scenarios where you are relying on strangers for batteries or expect a friend ,relative or workers to operate a complicated flashlight that uses exotic batteries. Hurricane sandy was a valuable lesson and my trusty maglites came through for us.

I second the Dorcy led bulb. It's a pathetic 40 lumens, but it will run for a hundred or more hours in a 4D Maglite. So say you use it for 5 hours a night, that's 20 nights straight on one set of cells.

Stay away from Maglite. They're poor lights, inefficient, and (as pointed out by the graphs above) they will not deliver the output or runtime you think.

IMO, I'd stay away from D-cell lights. While D cells pack a lot of energy in them, they're not as common as AA batteries. For an emergency light, you want to have lots of options.

I'd go with a light that has several output levels you can choose from. In an extended outage, you can run the light on low for days or weeks. For a 1xAA light, I like the Zebralight SC5. For a 2xAA light, the Armytek Prime A2. For a 4xAA light, the Sunwayman D40A. All lights have bright modes (500-1000 lumens), as well as low modes for extended run times (several weeks, if needed).

+1 on a simple light that uses readily available AA cells. You can raid almost any battery operated radio, remote control, and more! to feed your light in an extended emergency.

I think that Mags are still the way to go for D cell lights.....the ML300/3 rd gen is a big improvement over the older ones thanks to its much improved heat sink, 3 power levels, programmable function sets and electronic switch. The older 2nd Gen Mag LEDs are good if you only need one mode (about the same as the medium on the 3rd gen).

If you have an old incan C or D cell Mag that takes PR bulbs, the Rayovac LED drop ins work pretty well: 30-40 lumens with super long run times, only cost about $4 at walmart.

Another power option for D cell lights is AA to D adapters; these are great for emergencies, giving you a "dual fuel" capability as well as allowing you to run rechargeable Eneloops and L91 Energizer lithiums (great for a light that is stored in a vehicle).

It seems people are divided on maglights, you either hate them or love them. IMO For the price of a new maglite you can get more advanced lights, not to mention the lack of good rechargeable D-cells, the price, and the probably high emergency demand to fuel all of the D-cell incandescent flashlights that might be the only flashlights many people have. I would estimate that there are less than 1 D-cell for every 10 AA batteries in the united states, and in spite of maglites are mostly going to be obsolete.
I think that for an ideal stationary emergency light for an entire room would have an efficient mode of 5 - 20 lumens. You'd be surprised at how bright that is for FANV (fully adjusted night vision). It would not be enough to read with but it would be plenty to avoid tripping on things, plus it should have really good runtimes. For comparison selfbuilt tested the Thrunite T10 on medium and it ran for 17.5 hours to 50% on a single AA alkaline, That's 20 lumens! more than enough to walk around in rough terrain let alone the house all night. I would recommend a good AA light with a moonlight mode for reading and walking around with no power and using the maglight only if you have to light up a larger area for a long period of time. Really if you are going to be without power for weeks at a time it would be better to just use flashlights when you specifically have to work on something at night and even then just light up with lower light specifically where you need it.

With the pr flange led bulbs, just be sure that they don't over heat. I've had a terralux one turn purple

The time to buy batteries is before you need them, preferably on sale. I just bought an 8 back of Energizer Max D cells on sale at Shoprite for $7, expiration date 2024. I think they're typically $1.50 per battery.

Tre_Asay said:

I think that for an ideal stationary emergency light for an entire room would have an efficient mode of 5 - 20 lumens. You'd be surprised at how bright that is for FANV (fully adjusted night vision).

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That's been the biggest eye opener for me (pun intended) regarding practical lumens. With zero street lights 50 lumens does a whole heck of a lot. With street lights or traffic lights you need 180 lumens to help my eyes "see". Inside a home 20 lumens is insanely useful during an emergency. More is better, of course, for a ceiling bounce.