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Free Energy From Static Electricity – Nikola Tesla Secret Guide

by admin on Jan.20, 2011, under Spark Plug Wires

Free Energy From Static Electricity – Nikola Tesla Secret Guide

Free Energy From Static Electricity – Nikola Tesla Secret Guide

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Home Page > Home Improvement > DIY > Free Energy From Static Electricity – Nikola Tesla Secret Guide

Free Energy From Static Electricity – Nikola Tesla Secret Guide

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Would you like to generate electricity for your home month after month, without paying hefty electricity bills? If so, free energy systems have the perfect answer for you. There are a range of free energy products that can be used to generate electricity for your home from free resources. These devices are based on a wide variety of principles. In fact, there are numerous devices invented by energy enthusiasts around the world. Some of these techniques have been refined and modified for maximum efficiency and consistency.

One of the devices uses static electricity around us to produce usable electricity for your home. Our atmosphere always contains electrostatic charges. With proper equipment, these static charges can be harnessed to produce electric current.

The following is a device that you can construct yourself to illustrate the concept of free energy from static electricity. A long wire acts as the main absorber of electrostatic charges in the atmosphere. This wire must be laid out without touching any other conductor, either vertically, or in an S shape if space is a constraint. You can use nylon thread to insulate ends of the wire to ensure that the wire does not touch any other conducting material. The longer the wire is, the more the charge collected; and similarly, the higher the wire is placed, the more the charge gathered.

Once the wire has been installed correctly, you must use additional components to convert the static electricity into current electricity. The wire is connected to a spark plug, a condenser, an ignition coil, a diode, and a battery, with some of the components grounded. These elements allow the static charges to be stored in the battery, which can be connected to your household circuit to generate electricity for your home. You can improve the efficiency of this device by several tweaks, such as using a rectifier instead of a diode, and so on.

The amount of electricity produced depends a lot on weather conditions, as the amount of electrostatic charges on the atmosphere depends on the weather. A lot of wind increases the efficiency of the devices, but humidity in the atmosphere makes the device less efficient.

The device serves to demonstrate the proof of concept of free energy systems that generate electricity for your home using static electricity as the energy source.

Would you like 100% free electricity to power your home? If yes, then you need to read everything on the next page, and discover how you can do this using the Nikola Tesla Secret Handbook.

Click here: Tesla Secret Review, to discover how you can start generating free electricity today.

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Detailed G60 Engine Guide

by admin on Jan.02, 2011, under Best Spark Plug

Detailed G60 Engine Guide

Detailed G60 Engine Guide

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Detailed G60 Engine Guide

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On the plus side, the engine is pretty much bullet-proof, and produces bucket loads of torque as well as being easily tuneable with some simple bolt on mods yielding some reliable bhp hikes. It is also a relatively simple four cylinder which means that most home mechanics should be able to do most jobs themselves.

Air Filter & Intake

The air filter determines what gets into your charger and what doesn’t. Ideally lots of air gets in and dirt stays out. It is essential that you never run a G60 with any kind of foam air filter. These are fine for normally aspirated engines but they do not filter as well as a paper or cotton gauze filter does. They allow grit into the charger that mixes with the oil in the charger to form a grinding paste that accelerates charger wear. The standard paper filters are fine but if you want a bit more grunt then use a cotton gauze filter (£30) in the standard airbox and remove the front intake trumpet from the airbox as well as drilling it out (see our airbox modding guide). This will allow more air into the charger and give a slightly louder induction roar.

If you want to go one stage further then a cotton gauze cone style induction kit will help but these are a bit more pricey (£150). These replace the airbox with a large cone shaped filter and improve breathing as well as giving a wicked induction roar. Ensure that you get one with a heat-shield to prevent the filter sucking hot air from the engine bay. Some people find the induction kits a bit loud so opt for retaining the stock airbox. You are unlikely to notice any performance difference between the cone filter and an aftermarket filter in a modded airbox.

Carbon canister removal

Underneath the airbox is the activated charcoal filter (or carbon canister). This neutralises petrol vapour from the fuel tank and feeds it into the engine under load. The charcoal is then regenerated by passing fresh air over it. After 100k or so the CC does very little and can be removed. This leaves a nice big hole under the airbox/induction kit and you can then run a bit of cold air ducting up through the hole to feed the intake system. If you retain the std airbox you need to cut a hole out of the bottom of it that matches the hole where the carbon canister used to sit. On the Corrado the cold air ducting can be run down to the off side brake cooling duct. You will find the external air temp sender attached to this brake cooling duct (on a Corrado) and a few people have been known to move this up to the intake area to monitor intake temperature.

Charger Servicing

The G-Charger runs with very tight tolerances and the bearings, oil seals and apex seals only have a finite life.

As a result the chargers need rebuilding on a regular basis depending on the state of tune they are in. As a rough guide the following intervals should be adhered to:

Std pulley every 45,000 miles
68mm pulley every 30,000 miles
65mm pulley every 20,000 miles

In addition to regular rebuilds the small drive belt that links the main shaft to the auxiliary shaft should be changed annually. As std these are 6mm wide but should be replaced with an 11mm one (£8.50) as available from suppliers such as G-Werks.

Check out our G60 rebuild guide to get an idea of what is involved. A standard rebuild is about £400 rising to £500 if you have some mods done at the same time.

Whilst the charger is apart it is worth considering having the upper chambers and exhaust ports flowed and enlarged to help the charger flow more air. You should check your charger on a regular basis to determine how healthy it is. As the unit wears the apex seals start to leak and so the charger produces less boost. The oil seals also start to go and the charger then begins to leak oil both externally and into the intake pipework.

On a regular basis you should remove the intake pipe and check the inside of the charger top chamber for oil as well as the soft rubber boost pipe between the charger and the intercooler. You can also remove the intake air temp sensor from the plastic pipe between the throttle body and intercooler and check this for oil. A fine misting of oil is acceptable but a large quantity of oil indicates that the charger needs attention. The boost levels can also be checked using a boost gauge function on the MFA (Corrado only). Use the following procedure:

Start engineMove the MFA selector to “2″Press and hold the MFA end button (keep holding)Stop engineStart engineRelease the MFA end button.Press the MFA End button one time.

You should now see 550-750 readings fluctuating with idle. Anything higher than 750 is probably not right (a vacuum leak possibly?). Much less than 550 is probably too much timing advance. Run the car to the redline in 3rd and 4th gears noting the highest readings you get

Running a standard 78mm pulley you should see 11psi if the charger is in good nick but a charger with a smaller pulley should make more than 11.6

400 – 17.8600 – 11.9800 – 5.91000 0 (Atmospheric pressure, charger is bypassed?)1200 2.9 psi (You have a major boost leak)1400 5.8 psi (Your charger is in very poor condition)1600 8.7 psi (Your charger would benefit from new apex strips)1800 11.6 psi (Good for stock pulley, needs new apex strips if 68mm pulley)2000 14.5 psi (Good for 68mm pulley on stock charger)2200 17.4 psi (Good for 68mm pulley on heavily ported charger)

Any more than this and you must ensure that the fuelling is seriously up to scratch At this point you are into the realms of different injectors, aftermarket engine management and so forth.

If you suspect a boost leak then examine all the intake pipe work very closely for damage. The soft rubber hoses leading to and from the intercooler are prone to splitting and the join between the two halves of the charger baffle box is also a problem area (silicon sealant or an RSR outlet should sort this out!).

Oil

Oil selection and condition is very important to the G60 engine, particularly to the charger. The G-Lader bearings are lubricated by engine oil fed in along a braided line and fed back to the sump via another line. Due to the tight tolerances within the charger the oil needs to be as thin as possible, for this reason the engine should not be driven hard until the oil is up to temperature and thus at the correct viscosity.

As most G60’s are cracking on for 100k we would not recommend using something as thin as Mobil 1 as this is likely weep out of every single gasket. A good compromise is a 10W40 oil, and ideally a fully synthetic one. Bearing in mind that oil changes are cheap and easy we would recommend an oil and filter change every 6,000miles or 12 months whichever is sooner. Obviously if you have had the engine rebuilt recently then go with fully synthetic 0/5W40 BUT remember that you must NOT run a rebuilt/new engine on thin fully synthetic oil until it has done a good 10k otherwise the oil is thin enough to get forced past the rings thus glazing the bores up (rebuild time!).

Another oil related weak-point of the G60 engine is the oil feed line for the charger. Although braided, the core is just a small diameter rubber pipe which perishes with age and ultimately blocks. This obviously starves the charger of oil and kills it. If you still have the original feed line on your car then it is likely to be tired and should be replaced. G-Werks and Pitstop Developments can sell you a vastly improved line with a Teflon composite core and more durable over-braid as well as high quality ends. These are about £20 but are ‘fit and forget’ items. The oil return line rarely needs attention as it is a larger diameter, but it is still worth checking it for signs of damage.

Superchargers generate a lot of heat and if you own a std Corrado G60 then you are likely to see oil temperatures up to 130 degrees. This increases under-bonnet temperatures which does nothing for the ancillaries as well as increasing charge temperature. For every 10 degrees that you can reduce the charge temp by you will see approx 3% increase in power. It is therefore well worth fitting an aftermarket oil cooler (£120).

These fit very neatly below the charger and could knock as much as 30 degrees off the oil temp. They fit via a thermostatically controlled sandwich plate that sits between the stock water/oil heat exchanger and the oil filter. These heat exchangers are prone to leaks (leading to water in your oil) and so people often remove them when fitting a stand alone cooler. If you do not remove them then you will need to use Mk2 GTi oil filters as opposed to G60 ones in future as the G60 ones have a nut on them that fouls the front cross-member when a sandwich plate is in place. Internally there is no difference between the filters.

General Running

The ECU takes information from a number of sensors in order to apply the fuel and timing settings to the engine. If any of these sensors are not working properly then the ECU will get an incorrect signal and the engine will not run properly. It is possible to check a number of these sensors and connections to help diagnose any running problems you may be experiencing.

ECU relays

The ECU relays on these cars are notorious for failing and although not an expensive failure it is one that will leave you stranded. It is prudent to obtain a brand new replacement relay from VW (approx £10) and to keep it in your glovebox. You want VW part number 165906381 and it lives in position No. 3 on the relay board (assuming No. 1 is top left). It will have a No. 30 or 32 on top of it. If it is black and made in Malaysia or the Philippines then it falls into the unreliable category. VW uprated these and new ones come in a light grey case.

MAP Sensor

The ECU contains a MAP sensor (Manifold Absolute Pressure), which it uses to determine engine load. This is fed by a black vacuum hose running from the manifold to the ECU. It is essential that this hose is in good shape, a lot of G60 running issues are down to this hose. Examine it for wear and if in doubt replace it as it is a cheap part. Be warned however, that it must be exactly 1m long so don’t go trimming the end off and reattaching it to the ECU!

Water Temp Sensor

There are two water temp sensors that sit on top of the casting that joins the rad top hose to the front of the block. The blue one provides a signal to the ECU whilst the black one is the sender for the dashboard gauge. With the engine at operating temperature disconnect the plug to the blue one. You should hear the engine note change, this indicates that the sensor is working. If it does not change, then the sensor needs replacing (about £5 from VW).

Fuel rail

The ECU must detect 12v across the fuel rail for it to operate properly. If the voltage drops below this then the ECU dumps extra fuel at the top of the rev range to prevent the engine from running lean. This will not affect performance in a massive way but won’t do your fuel economy any favours. With the engine running check the voltage using a multimeter. If it is above 12v switch all the electrics on (lights, fan, indicators, demister, stereo) and check again. If the voltage has now dropped below 12v then the alternator may well be getting a bit tired. VW charge about £100 for alternator (exchange), which, is cheaper that we could find them elsewhere, although if you can live without the car for a few days most auto electricians can overhaul them for a lot less.

Knock Sensor

This is basically a microphone that bolts to the block and detects pinking by listening for sounds waves of a specific frequency. When the knock sensor detects pinking the ECU is then able to retard the ignition timing accordingly. The signal is passed from the sensor to the loom via a shielded cable. It is essential that this cable is in excellent condition, if there are any nicks or tears in the cable then the knock sensor should be replaced (£45, VW only part). It is simple to replace and merely plugs into the loom at one end (the plug can be found near the fan and distributor) and bolts onto the block at the other. It must be torqued up to 15ft/lbs, any more or less and it will be under or over sensitive.

Hall Senders

As with most other distributor-based VW ignition systems the Hall senders are prone to failure. It lives in the distributor and uses a magnet to determine the position of the distributor before feeding a signal back to the ECU. Sadly the hall senders are not worth servicing (very fiddly and not that cheap) and so it is a new distributor job. Your dealership is usually the best source for a replacement and they even come with a new arm and cap!

The Hall sender usually announces its imminent failure with some very rough running (random misfires) interspersed with backfires and subsequently (and very soon after) the engine dies. The symptoms are usually worse when the engine is hot. VW used a number of very slightly different distributors on the same car but ultimately you want part number 037905237X which replaced 3 other similar part numbers.

Spark Plugs

The spark plugs are meant to last about 40k but it is worth checking them for condition. They should only be replaced with the appropriate platinum tipped Bosch plugs. For a standard or modestly tuned G60 you want W6DPO plugs and for a highly tuned lump use W5DPO (as fitted to the G40) as they run slightly cooler than the 6s.

Intercooler

As mentioned earlier any reduction in charge temperature leads to an increase in power [due to cooler air being denser and more oxygen rich]. Also, the cooler the charge the less pinking will occur allowing the ECU to run more timing advance. The G60 supercharged engine comes complete with an intercooler (i.e. an air to air heat exchanger) to cool ‘charged’ air but the format of this unit varies from model to model.

The Corrado intercooler is a very small unit which is of limited effectiveness. If you can’t afford to upgrade, it is worth removing it and cleaning it very thoroughly as this will improve its efficiency. It draws air from behind the bumper and lives just in front of the nearside wheel arch. The internals are likely to be coated with a good misting of oil and the outside covered in road kill (bugs and grime). It should be filled with a decent detergent (Persil or de-greaser etc) and allowed to soak before being thoroughly flushed. If you have the patience it is also worth carefully straightening the cooling fins with a flat blade screwdriver as well as removing any gunk from the outside of the unit.

If you can afford it (£500) then the intercooler from a Golf G60 is a direct swap onto the Corrado. It is much bigger and sits in front of the rad. You will need all the golf pipework as well but it will make a massive difference. Stay clear of coolers from Golfs with air con as these sit on top of the engine and draw hot air from around the engine making them even more useless than the standard Corrado unit. Aftermarket companies will also be able to make bespoke coolers and supply all the relevant pipework and these are likely to be a bit cheaper but tend to require some cutting to make them fit to the car.

Chargecooler

An alternative to a larger intercooler is to fit a charge cooler (£400-500). A charge cooler is a water to air heat exchanger and size for size is more efficient than an intercooler. The main part of a chargecooler can sit pretty much anywhere whereas an intercooler must be mounted in the air stream. This makes chargecoolers easier to package in the engine bay and popular for conversions such as Mk1 G60s. The charge cooler then requires a water resevoir and a small radiator to cool the water heated by the charged air as well as plumbing and a pump to link the two.

Although efficient, it is obviously a more complicated solution so if you have the space I would go for an intercooler. The final charge cooling option which can be run in conjunction with an IC or CC is water injection (£250 – £500). This system sprays a fine mist of water into the airstream before is goes into the engine thus cooling it. The spray obviously needs to be fitted before any inlet air temp sensors. Such a system requires a pump and reservoir but can be fitted very discretely. It usually operates from a throttle switch to only activate at full throttle otherwise the reservoir would continually need refilling. Generally such a system is used in conjunction with an IC or CC as is used on highly tuned cars to prevent pinking under full load/boost.

G60 Idle Stabilisation Valve [ISV]

Idle Valve – The G60 uses an electronically controlled idle valve that bypasses the closed throttle to feed a controlled amount of air into the engine and sustain an idle. These often become sticky and work erratically (causing a hunting idle) or cease working at all. In most cases that can be fixed with a quick clean. Remove them from the car and soak in petrol or carb/injector cleaner before rinsing, drying and refitting. Check also the pipes to and from the valve for air leaks as these can also cause idle problems.

The idle valve also acts as a boost limiting system. When boost reaches a certain level the ECU sends a signal to the valve to open a solenoid that bleeds excess boost out of the system and into the boost-return pipework. Some people have fitted check valves to prevent this excess boost being bled off. These should probably be removed as not only does the ECU open the valve to bleed the excess boost off but it stops retarding the timing. If you retain this extra boost the timing will be too far advanced as the check valve makes no adjustment to the timing for the extra boost and thus the engine is likely to pink.

Less specific to the G60 but worth highlighting nonetheless is the cam belt tensioner. These often seize up on older high-mileage cars causing premature wear and thus failure of the belt. They only cost £10 so if it looks tired or squeals then change it. It should always be changed with the cam belt as a matter of course but this does not always get done. Remember that the belt should be tensioned so that you can twist the longest unsupported run of the belt through 90 degrees…..no more….and no less!

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In order to help British Insurance Shoppers to shop at home and buy their favourite products online, we’ve also added some popular Comparison website that offer best deal like Gocompare.com, confused.com, moneysupermarket.com etc. In fact, you can use this site as an online Insurance mall with a variety of online and high street insurance providers.

We have done our best to make this directory the best online insurance source for British shoppers who want to buy cheap and best affordable deals at home or at work. you have any suggestions about how to improve our website, please do not hesitate to contact us. We would be happy to hear from our visitors.

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An Owner?s Guide to Basic Bmw Parts and Simple Maintenance

by admin on Nov.18, 2010, under Best Spark Plug

An Owner?s Guide to Basic Bmw Parts and Simple Maintenance

An Owner’s Guide to Basic Bmw Parts and Simple Maintenance

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Guide For Buying Golf Cart

by admin on Oct.04, 2010, under Best Spark Plug

Guide For Buying Golf Cart

Being a versatile vehicle that can be used for a number of needs other than just helping you to carry your golf equipments all along the course, golf carts are highly preferred these days. If you have a golf cart of your own, you can easily save the money you invest in renting a cart whenever you require. Moreover, you can also accessorize your golf cart with a number of incredible features to suit your specific needs and personality. You can then avoid the need for carrying the heavy bag of golf equipments from one hole to the other the whole day. You can thus play with more energy without being tired. Along with the use in the golf course, you can use them for different needs such as for carrying loads, fertilizers, cemeteries, and also help to transport things for short trips. The small vehicle can perfectly suit your transportation requirements for short trips that do not allow large vehicles on the parking lot.

If you purchase a golf cart of your own, it would be your lifetime investment than renting one every day. A brand new golf cart comes with a full factory warranty protection that will long last for your needs. Maintaining your golf cart properly is also important for the lasting life of your cart. If you purchase your golf cart from any local dealer, you will be provided by some repair warranty for your cart. A golf cart mechanic will help in providing with good repair for the golf cart bought from a local party.

The price tag attached to the golf cart can depend on the quality and type of the cart you are buying and the lists of accessories that you wish to install on your cart. However, a brand new golf cart may go from ,000 to ,000. If you do not want any specific accessories to be installed with your cart, then you can easily get one for around ,000 or below that. So the price range for the cart may fluctuate according to your choice of model and accessories for your golf cart. Changing the air filters and the spark plugs would be the common and constant maintenance that would be needed for a golf cart.

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2012 Survival Guide

by admin on Sep.17, 2010, under Spark Plug Gap

2012 Survival Guide

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2012online.org

This Survival Guide is intended as a basic introduction on how to prepare for and react to events that may take place over the course of the years leading up to December 21, 2012. These skills and techniques are provided for information purposes only and are not intended to take the place of a professional survival or first aid training course. Rather, they are intended to increase your awareness of the lifesaving importance of preparation of the coming events, survival skills and to encourage you to research the events that may transpire.

For beginners interested in understanding the basics of December 21, 2012 and the Earth changing events, there is unlimited information available from many sources, and advances of knowledge and collaboration have led to a growing number of “watchers” and people that are preparing even though they do not believe something is to happen. Even so, at least they will be ready, and you should as well. Even if nothing is to happen then there will be ample number of supplies to last you for the coming years. What if the Earth does change rapidly, and you are not prepared? If you meet the minimal requirements to survive through Pole Shift, Volcanic Eruptions, Extreme Cold, Hurricanes, Tornados, Earthquakes, Land Shifts, Major Floods, Solar and Gamma Radiation then you are one more step in the right direction.

However, there is no substitute for experience in any of these extreme situations, and your reaction in a survival situation depends on your education and training. Always keep in mind that a survival situation mentioned above can happen to you. Be prepared and plan to be a survivor.

For too long, the term “survivalist” has called to mind paranoia, and the person that lives out in the woods. Nevertheless, as we continue on track towards our unknown future, we will not be called “survivalist”, but “survivors” as we will need every ounce of energy, every thought of our brain, and every inch of muscle to continue our existence here on planet Earth. The following pages are for the ones that may or may not believe what has been foretold, and what history has taught us throughout the years.

Read at your own discretion

Table of Contents

Chapter pg

1. The Basics………………………………………………………………………3

Food

Water

Shelter

2. Beyond the Basics….…………………………………………………………..14

Developing a Survival Mindset

Survival Awareness

3. Disasters………………………………………………………………………..18

Floods

Earthquakes

Hurricanes

Tornados

Fire Storms

Volcanic Eruption

Asteroid impact

Radiation

Polar Reversal/Shift

Extreme Cold/Heat

Riot/Civil Disaster

Electricity Shortage

Tsunami

Alien Invasion

4. How To…………………………………………………………………………29

Fire

Shelter

First Aid

5. How can you Afford all this…………………………………………………………………..37

6. Check List……………………………………………………………………..38

Chapter 1: The Basics

If you’ve given any thought to survival, you know that food, water and shelter are the foundation of any long-term survival plan. If you prepare to provide these three items for yourself and family, you will be farther ahead than 90 percent of the public.

Many would say water is the most important of the three, but we’ll address them in the order of: Food, Water and Shelter. Below are some questions to ask yourself to better understand what specifics you will need to prepare for in your area of the world. (or to be safe, prepare for all)

What natural disasters or extreme conditions you likely to face in the next four years?

What other disasters or emergency situations might you face?

What are the ramifications of each?

What do you have now that you can use in any disaster situation?

How much is the minimum for you and your survival situation is an answer you’ll have to come up with after reviewing this survival guide, but don’t worry we will give a generic minimal survival pack.

Food

You may be able to survive a few weeks or even a month without food, but without food, you will become weak, susceptible to illnesses, dizzy and unable to perform survival-related tasks. Water may be more critical to short-term survival, but you will need every ounce of energy to get out of harms way, this is why food is also just as important.

Will a months worth of food be enough? Or do you need a year’s worth? 2012 Online cannot tell you what’s best in your situation, but we suggest that two weeks or more is the minimum for anyone in any of these potential survival situations. Why should you stock up on so much food if the worst you’re planning to prepare for is a just a little out of the ordinary?

Several reasons:

It may take a while for store shelves to be replenished especially as we approach December 21, 2012. Think back to a heavy storm that hit your area, was there enough supplies for everyone? Now imagine a whole country, or even the world needing the same supplies. Now there is a problem.

You may be asked to feed friends or neighbors.

You may or may not be protected from price gouging.

You need to be prepared for a crippling blow to our food supply system.

You will need an existing food supply and a future food supply

Your existing food reserve should not include food in your refrigerator or freezer because you cannot count on those items remaining edible for more than a day (fridge) or three (freezer), at most.

Examination of your existing foods in your cabinets will tell you how much you need to add to ensure you have enough food for a week. A suggestion of food storage is generally canned items (including items in jars) or dried foods. Review our list of commercial food items and their suggested storage times when making up your personal list but keep in mind your family’s eating habits, likes and dislikes. Also, remember that you may not have access to electricity, so pick food items and packaging that can be prepared on a single burner of a camp stove or even over an open fire.

Rotation of Foods

The main difference between the commercially prepared foods you buy in the grocery store and the specially prepared “survival” foods is the shelf storage. You can’t store grocery store items for five to ten years, as you can with specially freeze-dried or sealed foods packed in nitrogen or vacuum sealed. You need to rotate your items, either on an ongoing basis or every two to three months. This will ensure you have fresh food (if you can consider canned and dry food “fresh”) and do not waste your food and money.

As a general rule, traditional canned foods should be consumed within a year. For cans with expiration dates, such as Campbell’s soups, you may find you have 18 months or two years before they expire. Cans without a date, or with a code, mark them with the date purchased and make sure you eat them before a year passes.

Survival Foods

Simple raw materials for baking, such as flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, oil and shortening can be assets in a survival situation. For long-term survival storage, honey stores for years and can replace sugar in recipes. Rather than storing flour or meal, purchase the raw grain and a hand mill. Then you can mill your own flour whenever necessary. Red winter wheat, golden wheat, corn and other grains can be purchased in 45-pound lots packed in nitrogen-packed bags and shipped in large plastic pails.

Long-term storage falls into several categories:

Vacuum-packed dried and freeze-dried foods

Nitrogen packed grains and legumes

Specially prepared and sealed foods such as MRE’s (Meals, Ready-to-Eat) with a five-to-ten year shelf life

All offer one main advantage: long storage life. Some, such as MRE’s and packages sold to backpackers, are complete meals. This is handy and convenient, but they tend to be expensive on a per-meal basis. As the name implies, MRE’s are ideal for a quick, nutritious, easy-to-prepare meal. They are convenient to carry in the car, on a trip or on a hike. They have very long shelf lives (which can be extended by placing a case or two in your spare refrigerator). On the downside, they are very expensive on a per-meal basis and they do not provide as much roughage as you need. (This can lead to digestive problems if you plan to live on them for more than a week or two). Large canned goods, on the other hand, are difficult to transport. But if you’re stocking up your survival retreat or planning to batten down the hatches and stay at home, the large canned goods are easy to store and can keep you well-fed for months.

Remember, however, if you have four people in your family or survival group, purchasing a one-year supply of food will only equate to three months worth for the family. 2012 Online recommends purchasing the largest set of these canned, dried foods your budget can handle. Then supplement the set with items tailored to you and your family or survival group. You may also want to add a few special items, such as hard candy or deserts, to reward yourself or for quick energy.

While on the topic of supplements, don’t forget to add vitamins and mineral supplements. Fruits, green vegetables and other items rich in vitamin C and other nutrients may be scarce, so a good multi-vitamin is well worth the space it takes up in your stash.

Home Made Survival Foods

You can try to dry, vacuum-pack and otherwise prepare food for storage. Vacuum pumps are available commercially or can be constructed in your own home. You can use them to seal dried food in mason jars and other containers.

When packing foods for storage, you want to eliminate oxygen. Bugs, such as weevils, and other organisms that can destroy your food need the oxygen to live. That’s why commercial companies who prepare survival food pack grains, cereals, pasta, beans and other foods in nitrogen-filled containers. You can accomplish a similar packaging yourself by using dried ice.

Simply take the 10 pounds of noodles (or 25 pounds of rice or other dried food) you picked up from the warehouse and put them in an appropriately sized plastic bucket with a lid that can create a good seal. Then add several chunks of dried ice. As it sublimates, your bucket will fill with carbon dioxide, which will displace all or most of the oxygen (since carbon dioxide is heavier, the oxygen should rise to the top and out of the bucket). Place the lid on the bucket, but don’t seal it all the way until you think the dry ice has completely turned to gas. Remember, as soon as you open the bucket the air will come back in.

Hunting and Gathering in the Wild

It’s time to look to nature to help feed you. That’s great if you have acres of tillable land that was not destroyed. But if not, or if it’s too late, you will need to turn to hunting, trapping and gathering.

If you can identify wild plants that can supplement your existing diet, good for you. If not, better go out and buy a few guide books right away. Get ones with pictures, you’ll need them. If you’re a hunter, could you imagine what the local patch of forest would be like if everyone’s dinner depended on hunting? How quickly would we strip this continent of all edible game? Planning on fishing? So is everyone else.

Tip – Always drink while eating, your body looses lots of water while digesting. If you do not have water to drink – DO NOT EAT!

Water

As mentioned previously, water is probably the most necessary element for human life, with the exception of oxygen.

When planning your water resources for survival you need to deal with three areas:

Storing water

Finding or obtaining water

Purifying water

Storing Water

For your in-home cache or survival stash, you should count on two gallons of water per-person per-day. While this is more water than necessary to survive it ensures water is available for hygiene and cooking as well as drinking.

Commercial gallon bottles of filtered/purified spring water often carry expiration dates two years after the bottling date. A good rotation program is necessary to ensure your supply of water remains fresh and drinkable (see the previous chapter on food for information on rotation).

If you prefer to store your own water, don’t use milk cartons; it’s practically impossible to remove the milk residue. If you have a spare refrigerator in the basement or the garage, use water bottles (the kind soda or liters of water come in) to fill any available freezer space. In addition to providing you with fresh, easily transportable drinking water, the ice can be used to cool food in the refrigerator in the event of a power failure. For self-storage of large amounts of water, you’re probably better off with containers of at least 5 gallons. Food-grade plastic storage containers are available commercially in sizes from five gallons to 250 or more. Containers with handles and spouts are usually five to seven gallons, which will weigh between 40 and 56 pounds.

A 15 gallon and 30 gallon container used for food service such as delivery of syrups to soda bottlers and other manufacturers are often available on the surplus market. After proper cleaning, these are ideal for water storage as long as a tight seal can be maintained. 55 gallon drums and larger tanks are also useful for long-term storage, but make sure you have a good pump. Solutions designed to be added to water to prepare it for long-term storage are commercially available. Bleach can also be used as a last resort to treat water from municipal sources. Added at a rate of about 1 teaspoon per 10 gallons, bleach can ensure the water will remain drinkable.

Once you’re in a survival situation where there is a limited amount of water, conservation is an important consideration. While drinking water is critical, water is also necessary for re-hydrating and cooking dried foods. Water from boiling pasta, cooking vegetables and similar sources can and should be retained and drunk, after it has cooled. Canned vegetables also contain liquid that can be consumed. To preserve water, save water from washing your hands, clothes and dishes to flush toilets.

Short Term Storage

People who have electric pumps drawing water from their well have learned the lesson of filling up all available pots and pans when a thunderstorm is brewing. What would you do if you knew your water supply would be disrupted in an hour?

Here are a few options in addition to filling the pots and pans:

The simplest option is to put two or three heavy-duty plastic trash bags (avoid those with post-consumer recycled content) inside each other. Then fill the inner bag with water. You can even use the trash can to give structure to the bag. Fill your bath tub almost to the top. While you probably won’t want to drink this water, it can be used to flush toilets, wash your hands, etc. If you are at home, a fair amount of water will be stored in your water pipes and related system. To gain access to this water, you must first close the valve to the outside as soon as possible. This will prevent the water from running out as pressure to the entire system drops and prevent contaminated water from entering your house. Then open a faucet on the top floor. This will let air into the system so a vacuum doesn’t hold the water in. Next, you can open a faucet in the basement. Gravity should allow the water in your pipes to run out the open faucet. You can repeat this procedure for both hot and cold systems. Your hot water heater will also have plenty of water inside it. You can access this water from the valve on the bottom. Again, you may need to open a faucet somewhere else in the house to ensure a smooth flow of water.

Finding or Obtaining Water

There are certain climates and geographic locations where finding water will either be extremely easy or nearly impossible. You’ll have to take your location into account when you read the following.

Wherever you live, your best bet for finding a source of water is to scout out suitable locations and stock up necessary equipment before an emergency befalls you. With proper preparedness, you should know not only the location of the nearest streams, springs or other water source but specific locations where it would be easy to fill a container and the safest way to get it home. Preparedness also means having at hand an easily installable system for collecting rain water. This can range from large tarps or sheets of plastic to a system for collecting water run off from your roof or gutters. Once

you have identified a source of water, you need to have bottles or other containers ready to transport it or store it.

Purification

Water that is not purified may make you sick, possibly even killing you. In a survival situation, with little or no medical attention available, you need to remain as healthy as possible. Boiling water is the best method for purifying running water you gather from natural sources. It doesn’t require any chemicals, or expensive equipment, all you need is a large pot and a good fire or similar heat source. Boiling for 20 or 30 minutes should kill common bacteria such as Guardia and Cryptosporidium. One should consider that boiling water will not remove foreign contaminants such as radiation or heavy metals.

Commercial purification/filter devices made by companies such as PUR are the best choices. They range in size from small pump filters designed for backpackers to large filters designed for entire camps. Probably the best filtering devices for survival retreats are the model where you pour water into the top and allow it to slowly seep through the media into a reservoir on the bottom. No pumping is required. On the down side, most such filtering devices are expensive and have a limited capacity. Filters are good for anywhere from 200 liters to thousands of gallons, depending on the filter size and mechanism. Some filters used fiberglass and activated charcoal. Others use impregnated resin or even ceramic elements.

Chemical additives are another, often less suitable option. The water purification pills sold to hikers and campers have a limited shelf life, especially once the bottle has been opened.

Pour-though filtering systems can be made in an emergency. Here’s one example that will remove many contaminants:

Take a five or seven gallon pail (a 55-gallon drum can also be used for a larger scale system) and drill or punch a series of small holes on the bottom.

Place several layers of cloth on the bottom of the bucket, this can be anything from denim to an old table cloth.

Add a thick layer of sand (preferred) or loose dirt. This will be the main filtering element, so you should add at least half of the pail’s depth.

Add another few layers of cloth, weighted down with a few larger rocks.

Your home-made filter should be several inches below the top of the bucket.

Place another bucket or other collection device under the holes you punched on the bottom.

Pour collected or gathered water into the top of your new filter system. As gravity works, the water will filter through the media and drip out the bottom, into your collection device. If the water is cloudy or full of sediment, simply let it drop to the bottom and draw the cleaner water off the top of your collection device with a straw or tube.

(If you have a stash of activated charcoal, possibly acquired from an aquarium dealer, you can put a layer inside this filter. Place a layer of cloth above and especially below the charcoal. This will remove other contaminants and reduce any unpleasant smell or taste).

While this system may not be the best purification method, it has been successfully used in the past. For rain water or water gathered from what appear to be relatively clean sources of running water, the system should work fine. If you have no water source but a contaminated puddle, oily highway runoff or similar polluted source, the filter may be better than nothing.

Shelter

Frequently, when we think of shelter, we think of either our home or emergency protection, such as a lean-to constructed out of cut branches.

In many survival situations, shelter may be as near as your home. If you don’t need to evacuate, you may be better off at home, even if the power is off or the storm is threatening. Remember, your bug-out bag has the bare essentials; your survival stash at home should have enough food and water for weeks or even months.

If you are at home or in the vicinity during a natural disaster, your first course of action must be to determine where you will be safest. If you decide not to evacuate, you must then set about making your current residence as safe as possible. In many cases, this will mean moving into the basement or another protected part of the house. In an apartment or condominium, your best bet will probably be an interior room without windows, or even the basement of the apartment complex.

While many will find that there home, friend’s apartment or relative’s house is the easiest and most cost-effective safe house, the ultimate safe house or survival retreat would be a second residence located in a very rural location. During normal times, this survival retreat can double as your vacation home, hunting lodge or weekend getaway destination. But when the flag goes up, you can evacuate to a safe house fully stocked with everything you need for self sufficiency.

Safe Home should be:

Well off the beaten track, ideally reachable by a single dirt road. This seclusion will offer you a good bit of protection. For example, you can cut a large tree down across the road to help eliminate unwanted guests.

Near a spring, well, stream or other natural source of water.

Equipped with at least a fireplace or wood stove for cooking and heat.

Within 10 to 20 miles of a village or small town where you can go (by foot, if necessary) for additional supplies, news and other contact with the outside world, should the emergency stretch into months or longer.

Arable enough land to grow your own vegetables and other crops.

Near a natural, easily harvestable food source (usually wildlife for hunting or fishing).

Provisioned with enough food to keep your family safe for at least three months, preferably a year.

Provisioned with tools necessary for long-term self sufficiency, should it become necessary.

Stocked with enough weapons and ammunition to defend it from small groups of marauding invaders, should it come to that.

If you are worried about caching goods in a unattended house, where they could be stolen, you can cache a supply nearby. While most caches are buried in hidden locations, a simple solution to this dilemma is to rent a commercial storage unit in a town close to your retreat. This has several advantages:

As long as you have access to the facility 24 hours a day (one of those outside storage areas where you use your own lock is best) you can get to your supplies when necessary.

It will be much easier to make a few trips to and from the nearby storage facility and your safe house than carry everything with you from home.

It’s easier to check on the status and add materials to this type of cache than one buried in a secluded location.

In a worst case scenario, you can hoof it to the storage area, spend the night inside and hike back the next day with a full backpack.

Of course, for the ultimate protection, a buried or other hidden cache is hard to beat. The is especially true for the long-term storage of ammunition and weapons that are or may one day be considered illegal.

Chapter 2: Beyond the Basic

Based on the previous section, you should have a good idea of the potential survival situations you might be facing. Now the question is whether to stay and face them or move to another, safer location.

At the first hint of trouble and rising prices, visit the local food warehouse and grocery stores and buy as much as you can afford. Get the 50 pound bags of rice and the 25 pound bags of flour. Use your credit cards and part of your emergency cash stash, if necessary.

Hunker down at home and protect what is yours.

Keep a low profile and avoid contact with others, except fellow members of your survival group. Avoid trouble and confrontations.

Hope that within six months the country will have recovered or at least stabilized. If not, the population will probably be a lot smaller when this is over.

We all have a strong desire to protect what’s ours. Thankfully, there are times when staying at home makes the most sense. If you can wait out the events of December 21, 2012 at your home, batten down the hatches and stay at home, it may be your best bet. There are many advantages to staying home in a survival situation, if you can safely do so:

The food in your refrigerator and pantry can supplement your survival stash (see the previous chapter).

If you loose power, you can quickly cook much of your food and monitor the temperature of your freezer (frozen food will usually keep at least 24 hours).

You’ll have more time to improve your home’s chances of survival (move items to high ground, put plywood over windows, etc.)

It offers shelter against most elements*.

You’ll have access to all your clothing, bedding and other comforts.

You won’t suffer from boredom as much as you might in a shelter.

You can protect your stuff from looters.

Of course, there is a downside as well:

You could be putting yourself in unnecessary, life-threatening danger. (The polar shift, flood, hurricane, riot, asteroid, volcano etc. might be worse than anticipated).

You will be without heat, electricity, hot water and other services.

You may feel cut off and alone.

*will not protect against any radiation

When disaster strikes, home isn’t the only option.

In a large building, you can count on a security force that will probably be smart enough to lock the doors and take some action to prevent access to the building by a crowd. If you think the building is being overrun by rioters, pull the fire alarm. This will result in all the elevators being recalled to the lobby and they won’t run again until they are reset.

On your floor or in your suite, bar the door, check your personal weapon and, if there are enough people present, assign some people to stand guard. If you are alone on the floor, or there are invaders in the building, look for a good hiding place.

Shopping centers, fast food restaurants and other public buildings also may offer some protection when disasters strikes, but they could be targets for looting, so you will want to avoid them. In a severe survival situation, you need to look out for your immediate family. So if you’re trying to get out of the city in an emergency and your car breaks down, who’s going to blame you for breaking into that empty house and seeking shelter? In a life-or-death situation, property crimes will be the least of your worries.

No matter how much you wish to stay at home, there are times when evacuation is the only choice. These include an asteroid, tsunami, nuclear or biological event as well as any impending disaster that is likely to destroy your home. So, if the survival situations you outlined in the previous section show several emergency situations requiring evacuation, you’ll need to put together a plan:

The Evacuation Plan

There are several important elements to your evacuation plan:

Where to go

How to get there

What to bring with you

Sure, you can head to the nearest shelter, but if sitting on cots at the local high school gymnasium or National Guard Armory was your first choice, you probably wouldn’t be reading this.

You need a safe house or survival retreat in a location where the current crisis will not threaten you. The easiest way to set up a safe house is to coordinate with a friend or family member located between 100 and 150 miles away, preferably in a different setting. For example:

If you’re in the inner city, they should be in a rural area or at least a smaller town, preferably not the suburbs of your city

If you’re near the coast, they should be inland

If you’re near a flood plain, the safe house should be on higher ground.

Following these guidelines, you can be relatively sure of several things:

Whatever disaster you are facing should not affect them, and vice versa. This allows you to trade off, so when they are facing a survival situation, your home can be their safe house.

If you plan in advance, you can leave a few changes of old clothes, a toiletries kit, necessary prescription drugs, ammunition, some MRE’s or anything else you might need at the safe house. This will make your evacuation easier.

Chapter 3: Disasters

Floods

The best way to prevent damage from flooding is to move before one occurs. Seriously, don’t live on a flood plain unless you have no choice. If you learned anything in the last decade, it should be floods can and do occur in low-lying areas previously thought safe. Rivers and streams rise to record levels, levy’s break, and there’s just too much concrete for the ground to absorb all that rain.

If you’re stuck in a flood, follow your instincts and move to the highest ground possible. Exercise caution when traveling because it doesn’t take much water to float a car or pick up truck.

Earthquakes

The old advice of standing in a doorway or hiding in the closet or under a table is better than running around panic-stricken, and it may just save your life. If you live in an earth-quake prone area, prepare for it by ensuring your home meets current building standards and you have plenty of food and water stashed away.

If you live through the few minutes of the earthquake, and your house hasn’t collapsed, the greater damage may be yet to come. Broken gas lines can cause fires and your house may be condemned, leaving you homeless. Plan for such contingencies by having a plastic (non-sparking) wrench available to turn off your gas main and including a good three-day pack including a tent.

Hurricanes

Hurricanes are one of the few disasters for which you can anticipate some warning. If your home is near the shore and the rising surf is threatening, or you appear to be in the direct course of the hurricane, you may be better off evacuating to higher ground. Whether or not you choose to evacuate, tremendous structural damage can be caused by objects hurled through windows. Once a window is open, the power of the hurricane can actually blow the roof off the top of the structure!

To protect yourself and your property, windows should be covered with plywood or commercial hurricane shutters. 2012 Online recommends hurricane shutters, made from tough clear polycarbonate and allow light to enter the window, unlike their steel and aluminum counterparts. Garage doors should also be reinforced and the door between the garage and the house itself should be locked and secured.

Hurricanes cause damage in multiple ways: high winds, flooding, downed trees and utility poles and storm surges. The farther in-land your location, the less power the hurricane will have by the time it reaches you, so pick your location carefully.

If you decided to stay in your home, you should pick an interior room with no windows. If you plan far enough in advance, you can reinforce the room with 2×6 boards or otherwise construct a cage to protect you from fallen trees, caved-in walls or other storm damage. Move whatever survival supplies you will need into the room, especially a battery powered light and radio.

Tornadoes

While tornadoes cannot be predicted as early as hurricanes, current weather forecasting technology will often tell us when atmospheric conditions are right for their formation. By sticking around the homestead during a tornado watch, you can help protect yourself from the tremendous damage twisters can cause.

A direct hit from a funnel cloud can turn a wooden home into a pile of chopsticks, toss a minivan around like a tumbleweed and knock trees down faster than Paul Bunyon. So if you live in a tornado-prone area, you might be wise to invest in an underground shelter, ala the Wizard of Oz. (You can use it as a root cellar or nuclear survival shelter as well.)

If you live in an area not known for tornadoes, but suddenly one is baring down on you, your next-best bet is the basement, preferably in the corner closest to the direction of the tornado.

If you are driving around and a tornado is looming, park under an underpass and run up as high as you can under it. If caught out in the open, head for the lowest ground possible, even a drainage ditch is better than nothing.

Fire(s)

If a fire occurs in your home you may have to get out in dark and difficult conditions. Escaping from a fire will be a lot easier if you have already planned your escape route and know where to go. Make sure that your planned escape route remains free of any obstructions and that there are no loose floor coverings that could trip you. Everyone in the house should be made aware of the escape route

It only takes an unguarded or careless moment for a fire to start. A couple of minutes later and your home or land around could be filled with smoke. Smoke and fumes can kill, particularly the highly poisonous smoke from some furnishings. You will only have a short time to get out. Use it wisely and try not to panic.

If you can safely do so, close the door of the room where the fire has started and close all other doors behind you. This will help delay the spread of smoke.

Before opening a closed door, use the back of your hand to touch it. Don’t open it if it feels warm, the fire may be on the other side.

Get everyone out as quickly as possible. Don’t try to pick up valuables or possessions except your what you need for survival.

Make your way out as safely as possible and try not to panic.

It will help if you have planned your escape route rather than waiting until there is a fire.

What to do if you’re cut off by fire

It is not easy, but try and remain calm. Save your energy to help you survive

If you are prevented from getting away because of flames or smoke, close the door nearest to the fire and use towels or sheets to block any gaps. This will help stop smoke spreading into the room.

Go to the window. If the room becomes smoky, go down to floor level – it’s easier to breathe because the smoke will rise upwards.

If you are in immediate danger and your room is not too high from the ground, drop cushions or bedding to the ground below to break your fall from the window.

Get out feet first and lower yourself to the full length of your arms before dropping.

Wilderness Fires

If you are caught in the middle of a dangerous fire storm, your best option is to seek a water source and stay near it. Go under ground if possible, but you need to leave an escape route if the fire changes course. With any fire situation, you always need to know escape routes and have back up plans.

Volcanic Eruption

Keep in mind the center of Earth is molten rock, and a volcanic eruption can occur almost anywhere, but there is not much an individual can do to prepare for a volcanic eruption. Be aware of the hazards that can come with an eruption: the flying debris, hot gases, lava flows, and potential for explosion, mudslides, avalanches, and geothermal areas. Prepare provisions, water, food, blankets, and medical supplies if you live around a volcano before anything happens.

Also be ready to get up and outrun flowing lava.

Use caution when around or near active volcanoes.

Do not venture toward any activity, and consult local experts on the area.

Follow all recommendations, regulations, or requests of officials.

Here are some things to watch out for:

Lava flows – Stay away from lava flows. Not all of them will be red-hot and obvious; some move very slowly and appear as dark and solid, but are liquid beneath the surface. Also, do not try to cross an active flow; you might get trapped by multiple lava streams.

Pyroclastic flow – Do not visit volcanoes that are having or are about to have Pyroclastic explosions. The high temperature around such a volcano can itself be life-threatening.

Volcanic domes – Volcanic domes and plugs in craters may seem harmless, but they can explode without warning. Footing and glassy rocks can also be very dangerous. Some cooled lava of this sort can resemble jagged pieces of glass. Wear good, solid hiking boots on the mountain – never go barefoot. Be sure of your step.

Lahars and floods – Be careful when crossing lahars (debris flows), for they can gush in large and small floods.

Gases – Avoid areas where volcanic gas is released. Carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and hydrogen sulfide can kill quickly and silently. You may not be able to hold your breath long enough. If you see a location around an active volcano with dead vegetation, carcasses, or bones, do not enter it.

Geothermal areas – hot springs, mud pots, and geysers are also very interesting, but don’t go across unexplored areas that contain many of them. Stay on marked trails, because the thin silica crusts over boiling pools can break if stepped upon. If you Fall in, it can potentially cause third-degree burns or even death.

Before an Eruption Occurs:

Discover whether there are volcanic hazards in the area likely to affect you.

If you live in an active volcanic zone, always assume that you may have to deal with the effects of an eruption.

If you live in an area that could experience a lava flow during a volcanic eruption, know a quick route to safe ground.

If Vulcanologists agree that a life-threatening eruption is likely to take place, a Civil Defense Emergency will be declared and the danger area evacuated. Listen to your radio or TV if all is working, for information.

During an Eruption:

Save water in your bath, basin, containers or cylinders at an early stage – supplies may become polluted.

Stay indoors as much as possible.

Wear mask and goggles if you go outside, to keep volcanic ash out of your eyes and lungs.

Take your outdoor clothing off before entering a building, volcanic ash is difficult to get rid of.

Take your Getaway Kit with you if you have to leave. Turn electricity and gas off at the mains. If you turn gas off, have a professional check for leaks in case of damage before turning gas on again.

Keep below ridge lines in hilly terrain, the hills will offer some protection from flying volcanic debris.

A good pre-planned emergency plan should account for this possibility and provide alternative routes.

Near Earth Objects (NEO’s)

A reasonably large asteroid of 200 meters (600 feet) in diameter crashing into the Atlantic Ocean could create a tsunami (a giant tidal wave) that would sink both Britain and the entire East Coast of the United States within minutes. If an asteroid at least 1 kilometer in size hit Earth, it would cause a dust cloud which would block out sunlight for at least a year and lead to a deep worldwide winter, exhausting food supplies.

So this threat is real, but the chances of an NEO over one kilometer (3,000 feet) long hitting the Earth soon are practically 1-100. Even so you do need to have an contingency plan in place if this was to happen. The evidence of impact is all around us. But we will focus on the smaller car size asteroids in this section, because if there was a massive asteroid heading our way we would be given advanced warning (hopefully).

So what do you do

For a land impact, it can be said that an object of roughly 75 meters (225 feet) diameter can probably destroy a city and a 160-meter (480-foot) object can destroy a large urban area. If there is an expecting meteor shower, stay tuned to local government officials and monitor the sky.

Impacts from smaller object are almost impossible to predict the impact zone

If you live near a cave system, you may want to go and set up a temporary shelter there, or if you live in the city, go to the lowest point of the building (in an emergency, but not recommended due to possible building collapse). Other possibilities are:

Nuclear fallout shelters

Steel structures

Subway systems

Do not:

Stay outside during a meteor storm

Stay on the top of buildings

Go to the debris of the Meteor

Always have your survival stash available

Extreme Cold

While people do die in their homes due to bitter winter weather, these deaths are often caused by kerosene heaters or other sources of heat. Fire is a danger with any secondary heat source, including wood stoves, fireplaces, kerosene, propane and electric heaters, but they can be managed to reduce fire hazards. Carbon monoxide poisoning is also a concern which must be considered when using untraditional heat sources, such as gathering around the gas oven and opening the door.

Another danger is freezing to death if the power fails. People often think they will be OK because they have a gas or oil furnace. This is a fallacy, because the gas furnace needs an electric fan to move warm air throughout your house while even the oil furnace probably has an electric starter and/or fuel pump.

A secondary source of heat is important, and wood stoves are probably the most efficient. While fire places send much of the heat up the chimney they share with wood stoves the conveniences of being able to find fuel all around you, from books to furniture. (Let’s face it, most of have too much junk in our houses anyway.) You can also cook over them in a pinch, and when the blizzard is howling around your house, a cup of hot chocolate tastes twice as good and restores the spirits.

Kerosene and propane heaters can also crank out the BTUs in an emergency but probably require ventilation (check the manufacturer’s literature for specifics).

A key to keeping warm with these back-up heat sources is not to try to heat the entire shelter. Gather everything you think you might need into a single space and close it off. Use any blankets you can spare over openings, if necessary to reduce drafts. Gather together under your comforters and share your body heat.

If you find yourself in open terrain, a snow cave will provide good shelter. Find a drift and burrow a tunnel into the side for about 60 cm (24 in) then build your chamber. The entrance of the tunnel should lead to the lowest level of you chamber where the cooking and storage of equipment will be. A minimum of two ventilating holes are necessary, preferably one in the roof and one in the door.

Extreme Heat

Prepare ahead of time for the hottest days that may come. Freeze gallons of water in big blocks of ice if you have a large freezer (like we discussed in the previous chapters). Refilling plastic gallon water bottles with tap water and freezing works well. The larger the blocks of ice you have the longer they will take to melt when you need them so go for gallon size containers if you have the freezer space. These blocks of ice can be used to cool a fragile person by placing on a thick towel in a shallow pan and fanning the air with a hand held fan over the ice and over the persons head and neck area. They can also be used by wrapping them in a pillow case and placing them around the head, in the armpit area, and in the groin area. Be extremely cautious not to allow the ice to contact the skin. Place several layers of material between the skin and ice to prevent frostbite and check every few minutes to make sure you are not freezing the tissue.

Symptoms of dehydration

It is very important to recognize the first dehydration symptoms and act before your state becomes serious. Described below are the most common first symptoms of dehydration:

Fatigue

Dark urine with a very strong odor

Low urine output

Emotional instability

Delayed capillary refill in fingernail beds

Loss of skin elasticity

Trench line down center of tongue

Thirst

Avoid overheating

When you overheat, your body starts to sweat. This may be good because naturally the body is trying to cool itself, but overtime too much sweat wastes your precious water supply. Always adjust your clothing so that you don’t sweat too much. Open your jacket a little bit or remove an inner layer of your clothing.

Wear loose clothes

Do not expose your body directly to the sun

Protect your head

Find time to rest under a shaded area

If you’re wearing your clothes too tight you may restrict blood circulation. It can also decrease the volume of air between the layers, which reduces the cooling value.

Solar Radiation

On Earth, solar radiation is obvious as daylight when the sun is above the horizon. This is during daytime, and also in summer near the poles at night, but not at all in winter near the poles. When the direct radiation is not blocked by clouds, it is experienced as sunshine, combining the perception of bright white light (sunlight in the strict sense) and warming. The warming on the body and surfaces of other objects is distinguished from the increase in air temperature.

Increased solar rays could possibly happen here on Earth, and you need to do what ever necessary to stay out of the Sun during the day. If there is a possible Red/Brown Dwarf the solar ray can be amplified ten fold as the object gets closer to Earth.

So what do you do

Previously mentioned, make sure to stay out of direct sunlight, or if you feel immediate warming to your skin you need to seek cover. This will not protect you fully but lessen the amount of radiation you receive.

Seek your shelter; preferably a cave or underground structure will help with the defense

Put on your PPE if you need to venture out during the day (see the next chapter)

Polar Reversal/Shift

In the next few years, polar reversal will take place on earth. This could possibly mean that the North Pole will be changed into the South Pole and South to North. The science can only be explained by the fact that the earth will start rotating in the opposite direction, together with a huge disaster of unknown proportions. Or the poles could actually shift positions by a few miles which would still cause unwanted disasters.

See previous disasters which would be caused by this shift (minus the asteroids)

Riot/Civil Disaster

After a disaster, you may have to protect your home and belongings from looters. Sure, they’ll probably march out the National Guard, but like the police, they can’t be everywhere all the time. Just as you are assuming responsibility for your survival by reading this guide, you’ll need to assume responsibility for protecting yourself from human predators.

Tsunami

A tsunami is a series of destructive and very dangerous waves that result from earthquake activity or some other type of underwater disturbance (meteorite, landslide, underwater volcanic activity etc.). In order to survive a tsunami, you must be prepared, vigilant, and calm.

Your at risk if:

Your home, school, or workplace is in a coastal region, near the sea

The elevation of your home, school or workplace is at sea level or fairly low and on flat

or only slightly elevated land. If you don’t know the elevation level of your home, school or workplace, find out

There are warning signs indicating that your area is prone to tsunamis

Your home, school, workplace etc. buildings are not tsunami resistant

Prepare in advance. If your research demonstrates that you are at risk, prepare both an evacuation plan and your survival stash.

Natural warnings can help to indicate the imminent arrival of a tsunami. Be aware that in many cases, these may be the only warnings you will get in the coming years. Be self-responsible and keep you and your family, friends and colleagues safe. Natural signs that herald the possibility of a coming tsunami include:

An earthquake: If you live in a coastal zone (by the sea), the occurrence of an earthquake should be immediate cause for alarm and evasive action.

Rumbling under the ground: Even if there is no actual “earthquake” but you can perceive sizable rumbling under the ground, heed this warning.

A rapid rise and fall in coastal waters. If the sea suddenly recedes, leaving bare sand, this is a major warning sign that there is about to be a sudden surge of water inland.

Watch for animals leaving the area or behaving abnormally, such as trying to seek human shelter or grouping together in ways they would not normally do.

Take action

If a tsunami is likely to make landfall on your coastal region, react immediately. Put into place the Evacuation Plan.

Move immediate movement away from the coast, lagoons or other bodies of water next to the coast is essential.

Head inland: This means going up to higher ground and even into hills or mountains.

Climb high: If you cannot head inland because you are trapped, head up. Although not ideal, if this is your only option, choose a high, sturdy and solid building and climb up it. Go as high as you possibly can, even onto the roof or sturdy trees.

React quickly if you are stranded in the water. If you did not manage to evacuate but find yourself caught up in the tsunami, there are things that you can do to try and survive:

Grab onto something that floats

Abandon belongings

Keep away for at least half a day, if not longer. A tsunami comes in waves

Try to get reliable information

A good pre-planned emergency plan should account for this possibility and provide alternative routes. Go into survival mode and be prepared for anything else that could happen, do not let your guard down.

Electricity Shortage

We have lived without it in the past, and we can live without it now.

That is simple to say when we rely so heavily on the use of electricity. It just make our lives that much easier, so in the event of a disaster and after you have made it to a safe haven, it is time now to review the basics.

Generators are a good way to provide energy, but awfully hard to lug around and are dependant upon a natural resource that may or may not be readily available. So you should plan for the worst, break out the matches.

Alien Invasion

At the time this survival guide was written, there is no information on how to maintain your existence if alien invaders showed up to visit. With that said, 2012 Online recommends hiding.

Chapter 4: How To

Fires

The ability to construct and know how to make a fire can make the difference between life and death in a survival situation. Fire making is one of the most vital survival skills. You should practice and learn different methods so you know how to start a fire anywhere, and under any condition.

Several needs:

A fire can fulfill several needs. It can keep you warm and dry. You can use it to cook food, purify water and to sterilize bandages. It can scare away dangerous animals and its smoke can keeps flying insects at bay.

To make a fire you have to understand that there are three components needed: air, heat and fuel. The correct ratio of these components is very important for a fire to burn at its greatest capability

Preparation

You will have to decide what site and arrangement to use. Before building a fire consider:

The area (terrain and climate) in which you are operating

The materials and tools available

Time: how much time you have

Need: why you need a fire

Security: do you want unwanted attention

Look for a dry spot that:

Is protected from the wind

Is suitably placed in relation to your shelter (if any)

Will concentrate the heat in the direction you desire

Has a supply of wood or other fuel available

If you are in a wooded or brush-covered area, clear the brush and scrape the surface soil from the spot you have selected. Clear a circle at least 1 meter in diameter so there is little chance of the fire spreading. If time allows, construct a fire wall using logs or rocks. This wall will help to reflector direct the heat where you want it. It will also reduce flying sparks and cut down on the amount of wind blowing into the fire. However, you will need enough wind to keep the fire burning. In some situations, you may find that an underground fireplace will best meet your needs. It conceals the fire and serves well for cooking food. To make an underground fireplace:

Dig a hole in the ground.

On the upwind side of this hole, poke or dig a large connecting hole for ventilation.

Build your fire in the hole

Battery

Use a battery to generate a spark. Use of this method depends on the type of battery available. Attach a wire to each terminal. Touch the ends of the bare wires together next to the tinder so the sparks will ignite it.

Flint and Steel

The direct spark method is the easiest of the primitive methods to use. The flint and steel method is the most reliable of the direct spark methods. Strike a flint or other hard, sharp-edged rock edge with a piece of carbon steel (stainless steel will not produce a good spark). This method requires a loose-jointed wrist and practice. When a spark has caught in the tinder, blow on it. The spark will spread and burst into flames.

Fire-Plow

The fire-plow is a friction method of ignition. You rub a hardwood shaft against a softer wood base. To use this method, cut a straight groove in the base and plow the blunt tip of the shaft up and down the groove. The plowing action of the shaft pushes out small particles of wood fibers. Then, as you apply more pressure on each stroke, the friction ignites the wood particles.

Shelters

If you find yourself not around any structures or your survival shelter, or if it’s not safe, a temporary shelter may be raised up in the wilderness. A small shelter which is insulated from the bottom, protected from the elements and contains a fire is extremely important in your survival situation. Before building your shelter be sure that the surrounding area provides the materials needed to build a good fire, and a good water source.

Wilderness shelters may include:

1. Natural shelters such as caves and overhanging cliffs. When exploring a possible shelter tie a piece of string to the outer mouth of the cave to ensure you will be able to find your way out. Keep in mind that these caves may already be occupied. If you do use a cave for shelter, build your fire near its mouth to prevent animals from entering.

2. Enlarge the natural pit under a fallen tree and line it with bark or tree boughs

3. Near a rocky coastal area, build a rock shelter in the shape of a U, covering the roof with driftwood and a tarp or even seaweed for protection

First Aid

If an accident occurs in the wilderness it will be your responsibility to deal with the situation. The specific sequence of actions when dealing with this situation is:

Remain calm, providing your patient with quiet, efficient first aid treatment

Keep the person warm and lying down. Do not move this injured person until you have discovered the extent of the injuries

Start mouth-to-mouth resuscitation immediately if the injured person is not breathing

Stop any bleeding

Watch carefully for signs of shock

Check for cuts, fractures, breaks and injuries to the head, neck or spine

Do not allow people to crowd the injured person

Do not remove clothing unless it is imperative

Decide if the person can be moved to a proper medical facility. If this is not possible, prepare a suitable living area in which shelter, heat and food are provided

Shock

Shock is a depression of all of the body processes and may follow any injury regardless of how minor. Factors such as hemorrhage, cold and pain will intensify shock. When experiencing shock the patient will feel weak and may faint. The skin becomes cold and clammy and the pulse, weak and rapid. Shock can be more serious than the injury itself.

Use the following method to prevent and control shock:

1. If there are no head or chest injuries, place the patient on his/her back with the head and chest lower than the legs. This will help the blood circulate to the brain, heart, lungs and other major organs.

2. If severe head and chest injuries are present elevate the upper body. If chest injuries are present, elevate the injured side to assist in the functioning of the uninjured lung.

3. If the injured person becomes unconscious, place him/her in a face down position to prevent choking on blood, vomit or the tongue.

4. Keep your patient warm and under shelter.

Stopped Breathing

If breathing has stopped, begin mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. Place the patient on his/her back and follow these steps:

1. To open the airway lift the person’s neck and tilt the head back

2. Keep the neck elevated; pinch the nostrils to prevent air leakage

3. Place your mouth completely around the person

Windows 7 Guide- Best 5 Tips For Windows 7

by admin on Aug.24, 2010, under Best Spark Plug

Windows 7 Guide- Best 5 Tips For Windows 7

You may believe that Windows 7 is faster and less annoying than Vista. However, there are few things you’ll want to change. This article will discuss a few tips and tweaks for getting up to speed with Windows 7. But first we’ll describe how to install Windows 7 on computers that aren’t sporting a DVD drive, such as Netbooks and laptops.

Installing Windows 7 with a USB Flash Drive

Windows 7 installation is not very hard, all you need is just a DVD-ROM and an installation disc. However, if your DVD-ROM is out of order or you don’t have one then you can install Windows 7 through a USB drive. When you’ll install Windows 7 from USB drive, it takes less time compare to DVD-ROM.

STEP 1. Formatting the USB Flash Drive is an important factor that more or less, lays the foundation of the whole installation process. It enables a computer to read a bootable drive. So connect your flash drive into a system.

STEP 2. Open up Command Prompt which is usually located in Program Files and type a number of commands. Usually the operation starts by entailing the following commands in the order given; Diskpart-List Disk-Clean-Create Partition Primary-Primary 1-Active-Format FS-Assign-Exit.

STEP 3. After the stage is clear and with all the formatting and compatibility options taken care of, now the part for installing the Windows 7 CD comes into play. Quickly insert the CD and browse or simply open your Windows 7 ISO and browse the folders that are located within it.

STEP 4. Now to enable computer to ‘think’ that this is an installation CD, you need to spoof your flash stick arises. Quickly respond and open up the Command Prompt as Administrator and browse to program files and also the accessories. Then simply, right click on CMD and go to “Run as Administrator”. Now if you fail to live up to the last step or if your UAC is enabled, then there is a high chance running into the risk of receiving an error message.

STEP 5. We are finally nearing the end of the installation process. Now the flash drive needs to be filled in with all the contents of the Windows 7 CD or ISO. Once through with this, reboot the computer with the flash drive plugged in and hit the boot key and select the boot device.

STEP 6. For the last time, boot this to your flash drive and it will automatically go to the Windows 7 Setup screen. There, and we are through with installing the Windows 7 from a Flash Drive/USB Stick.

Speed up the Windows 7 boot process with Dual Core or Quad Core Processors.

Follow these easy steps to make your PC boot faster:

STEP 1: Click Start Menu and select the ‘Run’ command.

STEP 2: Type ‘Msconfig’ and press OK to run the System Configuration Utility.

STEP 3: Open up the ‘Boot”’ tab and press the ‘Advanced options’ button.

STEP 4: Under Number of Processors select 2 for a dual core or 4 if you have a quad core processor.

STEP 5: Click ‘OK’ button and then before you close the System Configuration Utility, make sure the check box besides ‘Make all boot settings permanent’ is checked.

STEP 6: Now click OK, reboot your system to bring these changes into effect.

Save space

Another way of optimizing your system is by saving space. In case you have upgraded from Windows Vista to Windows 7, your system will have a huge folder, C:Windows.old, containing the full contents of your old Vista system. Scan the folderfor any files that you intent to save in your new OS, and then delete the entire folder from your drive.

You can increase performance by changing the location of the system’s paging file from the drive involving the C: partition to a separate hard drive, if your PC has multiple hard drives.

Follow these steps to perform this task:

STEP 1. Open Control Panel and choose System.

STEP 2. From there, click Advanced System Settings. Select the Advanced tab, and then click the Settings button under the Performance category. On the new window that pops up, choose the Advanced tab. Finally, click Change.

STEP 3. Uncheck the box labeled Automatically manage paging file size for all drives. Select C: from the Drive box and switch it to the No paging file option.

STEP 4. Next, select a different hard drive and choose System managed size.

STEP 5. Click OK and restart your computer.

Save your resources.

You can save the resources by disabling the unused applications that are started every time during the operating system’s startup process.

Follow these steps to perform this task:

STEP 1. Click on the Windows Start button and type msconfig into the ‘Search programs and files’ field. Then press Enter.

STEP 2. Select the Startup tab in the System Configuration window. Then move your mouse between the headers of the Manufacturer and Command columns. Then shrink the Manufacturer column down.

STEP 3. Click Start, type services.msc into the search field, and press Enter.

STEP 4. Double-click on any service in the Startup type listing. Then switch among the Automatic, Manual, and Disabled modes, depending on the recommendations of Charles Sparks under the alias Black Viper.

Delete temporary files.

User can also speed up your system by removing unused temporary files from the drive frequently. For this purpose, you can use Revo Uninstaller utility, an application that removes programs using their default uninstall routines.

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Spring Equipment Check-Up Guide

by admin on Aug.06, 2010, under Spark Plug Wires

Spring Equipment Check-Up Guide

You’ve put your winter coat away, and the days are getting longer. Welcome to spring! Unfortunately, that’s not all that is getting longer. Your lawn is calling and you need to be ready to answer.

Spring is the start of the lawn care season, and with a little work early in the year your lawn and garden equipment will be ready to perform all season long. This guide will help you move into the yard without a hitch.

Safety First

Remove the power cord, spark plug wire, or battery for cordless equipment prior to performing any service. Also gloves and eye protection are required to safely perform service. Next, check all of the unit’s fasteners, replace any that are missing, and tighten loose fasteners to the manufacturer’s recommended tightness. Loose and missing fasteners are a frequent cause of trips to the repair shop, and can be dangerous.

Sharp Cutters are Key

Evaluate the condition of any blades, cutting attachments or blower impellers. If in poor condition, these items will impair performance and can cause injury. It’s probably best to leave maintenance of these items to a professional unless you are a very skillful mechanic and instructions for removal, replacement and sharpening are readily available.

Electric Equipment

Electric equipment’s external cords and wires should be checked for fraying. Check all extension cords used to power these products. Any frayed cords and wires should be repaired immediately by a certified technician. Replace any bad extension cords. Don’t risk using the unit or extension cord even once as dangerous shocks can result. Ensure that all switches are intact and activate freely. Fully charge the battery, if applicable.

Gas Powered Equipment

Perform the simple maintenance procedures from the owner’s manual. Check the oil before starting any small engine that doesn’t use gas/oil fuel mix. Place the product on level ground to avoid false readings. If the oil is low, fill it to the recommended level with the specified oil. Also, while some oil consumption is normal for small engines, now is a good time to check for oil leaks that need to be addressed by a professional. Check the air filter; carefully clean dirt, oil, and debris off the filter cover and the surrounding area before removing the cover. Examine the filter, and if it is dirty, replace or clean it per manufacturer’s instructions. More experienced DIYers might want to change the oil and filter and check the spark plug. Make sure that your fuel is fresh as stale fuel can damage your engine. Unless you used a fuel stabilizer like Sta-Bil from Gold Eagle Co., any fuel more than 90 days old needs to be properly disposed of.

Cables and Levers

Check to make sure all of these cables and levers operate smoothly. If they don’t, lubricate or replace them.

Start Up

Connect the spark plug wire and fire up engine-powered equipment. Following the operator’s manual instructions, fill up the fuel tank with fresh fuel, making sure there are no fuel leaks, and start the engine. If the engine doesn’t start, it is often because unstabilized fuel was left in the unit during storage. This stale fuel doesn’t like to burn, and leaves varnish in your carburetor’s small passages and the fuel line. But all is not lost. If stale fuel and a dirty fuel system are the causes of hard starting, try a product like Start Your Engines! fuel system revitalizer. These starting fluids/system cleaners can refresh stale fuel and clean muck out of your fuel system just by pouring them into the unit’s fuel tank. It’s an easy and economical way to fix a gunked-up engine. If the engine still will not start after trying a fuel system revitalizer, it’s best to get a professional to evaluate the problem. Spring lawn care season is a great way to get active and enjoy the outdoors. It can be rewarding and easy if your tools are ready from the start. So what are you waiting for? Get going!

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Guide to Buying a Boat

by admin on Jul.28, 2010, under Spark Plug Gap

Guide to Buying a Boat

You have always dreamed of owning a boat. You finally have the money you need to purchase it. Are you sure you are ready? Before you put up the large amount of money necessary to purchase a boat, make sure you are getting a good deal on a boat you can realistically use.

Features to Consider

When you buy a boat, you need to make sure it works well on the type of water you have nearby. If the water you will be boating on is small and fairly sheltered you do not need a lot of deadrise or freeboard on your boat. On the other hand, if the water is going to bring waves your way, you will need these features. If you are boating in a cool climate, look for a boat that will protect you from the elements if it gets cold or starts raining while you are on the water. On the other hand, if you are boating in a warm climate, you may want some shade from the sun, but other than that an open boat is just fine.

Should You Buy New or Used?

Just like car buyers, those who are shopping for a boat must decide whether they want a new or used boat, and the decision is not necessarily easy. New boats are less likely to need to be repaired right away. New boats often come with a warranty. On the other hand, used boats cost less and often have already received the upgrades that you might want. Used boats also do not depreciate as quickly as new boats, because their purchase price already reflects some depreciation.

If you choose to buy a new boat, visit boat shows or shop towards the end of the model year, which occurs in July. These are the best times to find a good deal on a new boat. If you decide to shop for a used boat, use online classifieds to find a variety of boats in your area. You can also shop at dealerships to see boats that they received as trade-ins. These are not as prevalent as they are in the used car world, but you can find them.

If you decide to buy a used boat, you have one important thing to consider. Boats are commonly stolen. Before you buy a used boat that has a great price, make sure that you see the owner’s proof of ownership, such as the title to the boat. If the owner does not have these, he may have stolen the boat. Find a different boat to buy.

Researching a Particular Boat

If you decide to shop for a used boat, which is the most economical option, you will want to do some research before you buy a boat that seems to fit your needs. You can call the U.S. Coast Guard to find out if the boat has had any manufacturer’s recalls. If it has, find out from the seller if the necessary parts have been repaired. If they haven’t, do not buy the boat unless the recall period is still in effect and you can get the problems fixed.

Inspecting the Engine

Never buy a boat unless you have thoroughly inspected the engine. If you do not know much about engines, have a mechanic or technician who is knowledgeable about boats do an inspection for you. Boat engines work much harder than car engines, so you need to look at the engine carefully. Keep in mind that boats that run in salt water are prone to more corrosion than those that run in fresh water.

Check all hoses, gaskets, and plugs for signs of leakage. Inspect hoses and belts for signs of cracking. If they are brittle, they have not been well cared for or are old. Check the bilge for oil, as this can be a sign of an oil leak. Inspect the sacrificial anodes for signs of wear and corrosion. Check the engine and gear case oil. If they are very dirty, the boat has not had the normal maintenance done to it. Boats that were run hot will have a white residue on the engine. You can inspect the spark plugs to see how well the engine has been serviced. Poorly serviced engines will have burnt or poorly gapped spark plugs. Be sure to inspect the propeller, rudder, and drive for signs of damage caused by hitting something that was submerged underwater. While this does not mean the owner was negligent, these are damages that could cost you significantly as the boat’s new owner.

Consider Hiring a Professional

A marine surveyor is someone who can do the necessary inspections on a boat you are considering buying. You will probably find that your insurance provider or your loan officer requires you to have a surveyor inspect the boat. If not, you should hire one to do an inspection before you buy the boat.

Besides inspecting the engine and body for normal problems, a marine surveyor knows all of the laws regarding boat safety and manufacturing. He will know if add-ons that the owner has put on the boat are safe or not. You can find independent marine surveyors using the classifieds or phone book. Be sure that you are present for the surveyors’ inspection, so you can ask questions about his findings.

Take It for a Test Run

Before you buy a boat, ask for a “sea trial.” Take the owner along with you and take the boat for a spin. Ask the owner to keep the engine cold before you arrive, so that you can make sure that the boat starts well with a cold engine. Maneuver the boat through a variety of tests, such as forward and reverse, turning, accelerating and slowing down. Be sure to take some waves at various angles. If the water is still, make some circles with the boat to create waves. These tests will help you know whether or not the boat handles well. If it does and it passed the inspections process, you have found the right boat for you!

Lawn Mower Guide – How to Prepare your Lawn Mower for the Season

by admin on Jul.06, 2010, under Spark Plug Gap

Lawn Mower Guide – How to Prepare your Lawn Mower for the Season

Before we start mowing this spring we have to do a few maintenance checks. This lawn mower guide will help you get your mower in the right condition.

1. Replace the oil and use fresh gasoline. If you neglected to change the oil last season the gasoline has lost some of its energy and will cause starter problems. Consult your owners manual for oil recommendations. If you dont have the owners manual then check with a local shop that sells and repairs lawn mowers.

2. Replace the spark plug. A new spark will save you a lot of future problems and is inexpensive to change. You can find the type and gap information in the owners manual or you can take the spark plug to a service shop or gas station.

3. Replace air filter. If your air filter is dirty it should be replaced immediately. Dirty air filters overwork the engine, which wastes fuel. A clean filter is also better for the environment. As a general rule, air filters need to be replaced after 25 hours of use. Only foam filters should be cleaned with water.

4. Check the blade. Is it dull, broken or bent? A dull blade can be sharpened with a file or power tool but never try to do it on the mower. You can find a grinding tool for sharpening blades that can be attached to your drill or a utility tool, such as a Dremel.

If you are unsure about doing it yourself then take the blade to a local mower maintenance store and, for a few bucks, you can have it done for you. If your blade is broken or bent it needs to be replaced.

5. Check the drive belt. If your lawn mower has a drive belt check it for lack of resistance and wear. A drive belt with correct tension should be able to move side ways about half an inch when pulled with one finger.

6. Check the tires and wheels. Check tires/wheels and loose parts. Check the air pressure in the tires and lubricate the wheels.

7. Clean the mower deck. To prevent the engine from starting, disconnect the spark wire from the spark plug. Then use a soft brush and water to carefully clean the outside of the mower deck around the engine. Next, turn the mower 90 degrees on its side so the carburetor is facing up and clean the inside of the deck, using a wooden stick to remove heavy grass build-up.

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Electrical Cords & Plugs: A Repairing Guide

by admin on Jun.12, 2010, under Spark Plug Wires

Electrical Cords & Plugs: A Repairing Guide

All the appliances we use in our daily life has some type of electrical plugs that connects the appliances to the electrical sources that is sockets to supply electricity. It is the plug that connects the appliance’s wires to the electricity source. But when the electrical plugs or cords are damaged, it can be extremely dangerous. A damaged plug can cause spark or smoke causing fires.

If the plugs or cords are sparking, just unplug the appliance and cut the power to be safe and secure because it can cause fire leading to health and wealth hazards. After unplugging wait for some time and let the plug cool for some time. Then check the plug, cord and outlet to see if they are damaged. If as such then take it to the servicing center or replace with a new one.

Replace the plugs if :

* If an electrical plug is cracked it should be immediately replaced.
* If the plug is discolored it should not be used further.
* If the electrical plug becomes warm when the appliance is on, it means it is not functioning properly and it is the right time to replace it.
* Replace the plug if it has badly bent contacts.

What make the cords and plugs non-functioning?
Heavy usage and age are the two main reasons that take their toll on consumer appliances specially on cords and plugs. Appliances you use most frequently are the common victims, such as irons, blow dryers, toasters, lamps, and refrigerators. Apart from that the vintage model appliances also wear out early.

Choose the right type of plug for appliances
Now if you have planned to buy a new cord for an appliance, it is of utmost importance to get the proper type for the appliance. We will discuss here three basic type of electrical plugs:

Terminal-screw Plugs: In these plugs, the wires attach to screws inside the cord body. These plugs are usually found on older appliances. Often they have a removable insulating disk covering the terminals and wires. Newer plugs have rigid insulating barriers.
Self-connecting Plugs: Small appliances like lamps mainly use self-connecting plugs. The prongs clamp onto the wires of the cord, and an automatic connection is made.
Three-prong Plugs: These plugs come with larger appliances like refrigerators, washers, dryers, and power tools. They have a prong that grounds the appliances.

Replacing 240-volt Plugs
Replacing electrical cords and plugs on a 240-volt appliances such as a dryer or other large appliance needs special attention. You need to purchase a pigtail cord with a plug molded to it. If the appliance or the pigtail cord is not color-coded, in that case first attach the central wire of the pigtail to the center terminal screw on the appliance. Afterwards connect the remaining wires to the other terminal screws.

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Tag: Guide

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Windows 7 Guide- Best 5 Tips For Windows 7

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Guide to Buying a Boat

Lawn Mower Guide – How to Prepare your Lawn Mower for the Season

Electrical Cords & Plugs: A Repairing Guide

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