More on Emergency Power

Revisiting the training topic from the October net, specifically battery power for handheld radios.

One happy accident of buying newer, inexpensive handheld radios to augment the gear that makes up my kit is related to emergency power. Each of these radios came with a charging base and wall plug adapter to use with commercial power. Small, easy to store and carry, but useless if the electrical grid is down.

My latest handheld addition, however, came with the standard wall plug adapter and a bonus adapter with USB connector compatible with the charging base, or it can connect direct to the battery without the charging base in between. Only one of my radios has a charging port on the battery, but my older model handhelds from this same manufacturer can be charged with the USB adapter connected to the charging base.

It's been a game changer. Now that I have an emergency power source as part of my radio go kit, I no longer need to worry about a clam shell and alkaline batteries as a backup power source for the handheld radios I will take. My 12 volt power box has USB ports built in and the adapter and charging bases are stored in the kit, ready to go at a moments notice.

If you are interested in putting together a radio go kit but a 12 volt battery and mobile radio is a bit much right now, I would recommend a Baofeng handheld radio with USB charging capability, a spare radio battery and a solar portable battery as a means to get started. I've found this brand to be as capable and reliable as any other handheld I've owned, and they certainly are reasonably priced.

As you look at the options for a portable solar battery it's important to take into account the capacity of the battery - as compared to the capacity of your handheld battery - so you know how many charge cycles you can expect, as well as how long it will take to replenish the portable battery with solar power.

I've found a variety of 10,000 mAH or greater capacity solar batteries online at  reasonable prices - even cheaper than the inexpensive handheld radio with USB charger adapter I've mentioned above. A 10,000 mAH capacity battery could recharge any of my handheld radios at least 3 times, allowing me to stay on the air for quite a while if I was shadowing an emergency crew.

Hope you find this helpful.

Recap - ARES Exercise

My radio, AC power supply and backup antenna are portable, but that is only good if a commercial power source is available where I need to relocate. To counter a possible widespread loss of power, over the last month I have gathered up the parts to put together a backup power system and the ARES exercise was a good opportunity for a test - from the wilds of my backyard.

One plus is the radio I bought shortly after getting my ticket all those years ago has a built in TNC. This means I did not need additional hardware to get connected to a computer to send Winlink messages, it was just a matter of using the correct settings. A little more time with the communications section of the manual and I was able to get things working.

This configuration is not compatible with the VARA version of Winlink, which does require additional hardware, but using a laptop connected to my Kenwood TM-D700 pictured below I was able to send the damage assessment report while using emergency power making the exercise a success.

ARES Exercise - October 21, 2021

For any members of the net who are also Cache County ARES members:

Thursday, October 21, 2021 Cache County ARES will activate for an emergency communications exercise. The exercise will test the ability of ARES members to submit a damage assessment to net control via Winlink, preferably using emergency power over a portable setup, as if operating without commercial power. 

If you are an ARES member and did not receive the announcement email from ARES leadership contact Ted, AC7II, or Tyler, N7UWX, to get the information for the exercise.

Emergency Power

There are times when the commercial power grid experiences an interruption and the lights go out - along with all other electrical appliances. Case in point: the recent winter storm causing a loss of power in some Cache Valley communities. 

While the inconvenience was minimal for many households, there were a few situations where the outage continued much longer. To my knowledge our part of the valley was spared the worst, but listening to reports of extended outages from other areas in the valley caused me to consider what I might do to be prepared for the next time the power goes out.

If the cause of the power outage does not require you to leave your home, the estimated length of the outage will likely determine the action to take. A short duration outage can be weathered with minimal concern - using battery powered flashlights as a light source after dark, and minimizing the time the refrigerator door is open will get you through. If electricity is needed for food preparation, a menu change can overcome the problem, or you could always fire up the grill. Of course the time of year could dramatically increase the difficulty of a relatively minor outage - especially with the loss of electric powered heating systems.

If extended power outages are a concern you want to prepare for, emergency power options are many. Battery backup systems with solar recharge capability are the up and coming technology, with a variety of watt hour ratings and discharge configurations available. Fuel powered generators are also tried and true sources for emergency power. Determining what appliances you want to have access to when the power is out, the energy consumption of those devices vs. the capacity of the battery backup system, and the types of discharge ports you want on your generator will help you find the system that fits your needs.

Seeing as we are a group of amateur radio operators, taking a moment to consider emergency power options for your amateur station is appropriate. The easiest mode of communication is always the best, but sometimes landline and cellular systems will be overloaded or fail, so a communication backup for the worst case is a good idea.

If you do not need to leave your home, this could be as easy as grabbing a handheld to monitor the bands. For those who have a base station radio in your home, connect your radio to the emergency power system you chose for your home and you're back on the air with your existing equipment. A higher watt transmitter as a base station would be especially helpful if repeaters are affected by the outage, as a lower watt handheld may not reach distant stations over simplex frequencies. This is why a monthly check-in on a simplex frequency is helpful to understand the capabilities of our equipment.

If circumstances require you to relocate, as long as the amateur repeaters are functioning a charged battery on a handheld radio will allow you to monitor the local emergency nets as they will use the repeaters for much of their communication. If you can recharge batteries, or use alkaline batteries in a clam shell compatible for your radio, you are good to go.

If you anticipate the loss of repeaters, or the need to use simplex frequencies over greater distances, the next step would be to assemble a portable amateur station with a higher watt radio that you could set up anywhere you are. This has been a goal of mine and as I was considering how to proceed Google searches using “Amateur Radio Go Box” and “Amateur Radio Emergency Communications” helped me come up with a plan.

As you work towards your emergency preparedness goals, I would encourage each of you to research the available emergency power systems to see which option might be a good fit for your needs, allowing you to minimize the inconvenience of the next power outage. If you decide that a fuel powered generator meets your needs, remember to keep the exhaust system far enough away that carbon monoxide will not get into your home.