Urgent- need to charge M12 and M18 w/car

[Frederick Skelly]

Hmmm,,,,,,

Marcolm's problem has me thinking that having a brace with a set of bits, and a yankee screwdriver, around might not be a bad idea. No batteries required.

That's good thinking Mike.

[Keith Outten]

I suggest that everyone get at least one of the small solar panels you can put on your dashboard and plug into a cigarette lighter to charge your vehicle battery. They are slow but slow can be a wonderful thing if that's all you have. They don't require a controller so there is just a small panel and a wire with either the lighter plug or a set of clamps for your battery terminals. I have two of these that I normally use to trickle charge batteries in the Winter.

I also have two 70 watt panels that are still in the box plus a controller and three lithium ion 80 watt batteries. I have two converters, one is one thousand watts the other is 400 watts. The 400 watt converter I keep in my work van most of the time just in case I need to charge a small battery or run something that doesn't have a charger.

My main concern is having a means to start my generator if the battery is dead. I will always have an option to charge batteries and run a couple lights until I have the generator online. FWIW my generator isn't a whole house system. I purchased a Miller Bobcat welder/generator that can provide 11,000 watts and its a very nice welder. The welder gives me an opportunity to use the machine in other than power outages and increases the resale value to a much larger group.

[Rick Potter]

Dave's thoughts are good, but I would think that solar panels on the house (or ground) would be the first casualties of Hurricane, or Tornado winds. Keiths's thought of keeping a few small panels in a safe place, to be plugged in after the storm is also a great suggestion.

Here at home, we have been discussing getting a water drum, for drinking water, as well as keeping all the cars fuel tanks full. Our danger cause in my area is earthquakes, with no warning at all.

[Malcolm McLeod]

Malcolm,
Look for a neighbor with a Toyota FJ Cruiser; many have an inverter with 120VAC outlet in the way-back.

Stay safe.

[Harold Balzonia]

Malcolm,
Look for a neighbor with a Toyota FJ Cruiser; many have an inverter with 120VAC outlet in the way-back.

Stay safe.

Great thinking... same feature is on the newer chevy tahoes

[Jim Becker]

No doubt. I would have one of the small Honda inverter style 2000 watt gensets if in were in a disaster prone area. They are almost silent and produce very clean power that will satisfy most electronics.

Those are nice...but Malcolm indicated that fuel was running out, making generators useless, regardless of type.

-----
Malcolm, if you see this, some vehicles have built-in inverters. My Grand Cherokee does. Some may be enough to power a charger, but check the amperage rating to be sure if you discover a vehicle locally with this feature.

[daryl moses]

Great thinking... same feature is on the newer chevy tahoes

As does my Toyota Tacoma, mine is a 2011 model, not sure about the newer ones. I've charged the battery on my old Yanmar tractor several times with it.

[Leo Graywacz]

Ya, modified square wave inverters aren't that good for charging batteries. Sometimes they'll even destroy the battery. But charging a battery doesn't take that much power and a lower wattage sinewave inverter would do the job. I've had an inverter in my truck for quite some time now. I had a 3kw modified sq wave with a 100AH battery for a while and after about 8 yrs it died. Then I found out how much I missed it. From having to find outlets and a cord to plug a saw in for a couple of simple cuts, to not having a compressor when my son and wife needed air for their spare tires. Having to fill up 2 compressors and an air caddy to rescue my wife was the last straw. I got another 3Kw Pure Sinewave inverter and a 125AH battery. I'm very happy with it. Big difference in the operation of tools with a motor.

Something as simple as this
https://www.amazon.com/150W-Power-In...+wave+inverter

[Malcolm Schweizer]

It sure does. But the fact that we are even able to communicate with him is an amazing accomplishment of the 21st century.

I know this will sound critical but the process of hunkering down for a hit like this should include collecting anything and everything from trucks, RV's, boats, planes, whatever that can help in the aftermath.

Batteries, Batteries, Batteries! Given our insanely fabulous satellite connective ability today, this should be a major focus.

And to the point of Malcolm's plea, the ability to re-charge cordless tools, is essential. The power grid will be down for who knows how long- it literally could be months. An army of 18v cordless tools, recharged via solar powered local panels, is the quickest path toward clean up and then reconstruction.

There are lessons to be learned here. The next time this happens, the day after the storm passes, solar collectors connected to batteries need to start popping up EVERYWHERE. It will allow the people to get back into the streets, clearing paths for the government (military) to come in quickly and do their thing.

We have the technology already.

Please come here and ride out 200 mph gusts with me in a 180 year old home before you tell me what I should have done. My kahunas are no longer brass. They are forged steel. Wanna compare? As for stuff we should have stocked up on- I am hosting people in my house who survived in a bathtub while their home was destroyed. Please tell me where they were supposed to put these supplies? It's not that they did not prepare- it's that they lost everything. Also where are all these RV's you mention on my 12 mile long Island? Solar panels need sunlight. We need to use tools and phones by day and charge at night. Keith Outten's idea is better/ charge the car w/solar- charge the batteries with the car. Fuel is low. Generators were destroyed. Nobody could have prepared 100% but here I am- almost zero damage to my house, fixing other people's houses and plumbing soup kitchens with my supplies.

As for bit braces and other hand drivers- you guys know I am a Neander and have tons of those. Have not touched them. I have, however, repaired countless shutters and cleared roads with a Diston D7 hand saw while everyone else waited for the guy with the chain saw. Hammer and nails- yes. Manual screwdrivers- no. We had two days to repair before at the time another Cat 5 hit us with similar path. Screw guns are fast and easier on the elbows. I drove plenty of nails as well- trust me. Screws are easier to remove after the storm. Also easier to salvage and reuse. Not just shutters, but whole window frames blew out on some homes. Piles of debris so ladders can't get you up there. You climb up the debris pile holding plywood in one hand, screw gun in the other. Sometimes you had to work from inside the house and make a handle to hold shutter on the outside and screw it from the inside.

I'm one of few with water because I keep a veritable plumbing supply store in my shop. Also I fixed the generator at the makeshift hospital because I keep link belts on hand. We were able to set up a soup kitchen because I keep stockpiles of water filters. I did actually have an inverter- just had to find where I put it ages ago. (Ding me for that) Finally found it. The batteries almost seemed to charge faster with it than when I had power. I have TONS of batteries and bought more before the storm. No car chargers for M18 or M12 here or in Puerto Rico that I could find.

Most roofs I saw with solar panels were destroyed. Solar panels= windage. Our solar field built two years ago that was supposed to be the way of the future- 90% destroyed. Our airport was on solar power. Totally destroyed. The military flew in generators. Got power late today. I wanted solar so bad before this storm. Not sure I do now. I am still a huge fan of it, but rethinking getting it here. I would say get enough to power your fridge. Take them down during the storm. That's my future plan.

My biggest recommendation- keep your shop organized. When it's pitch black, the shutters are literally cracking under wind load, and you need to quickly find a hammer, nails, wood, saw, putty knife (to drive shrink wrap into shutters to plug leaks), it helps to be so organized that you can do all that in the dark. I win on that one!

No hate, Happy to be alive.

[Dave Zellers]

Well I was correct, it sounded critical.

Nothing I said was directed at you Malcolm, I was speaking about learning from the situation to improve the aftermath of the next one. Of course I wasn't thinking that rooftop solar would be availble after a hurricane, I was talking about small mobile units that can be brought out after it passes. I do have some experience dealing with the aftermath of a hurricane but nothing that even compares to this. All I can do from here is donate and send positive thoughts.
Sorry to have interrupted all the good you are doing.

[Malcolm Schweizer]

Dave We are good- words read different than intended sometimes and I am running on adrenaline.

Our military from EVERY branch is amazing. Every 15 min an Osprey, C130, or military helicopter flys over w/supplies. Very proud of the response so far. Got to conserve my battery. I kinda came here to remind me of the normalcy I had before this, though I do not regret being here. It changed my life in a great way. After tripping over all my stuff trying to stay alive, I no longer care about stuff. Everyone should be required to be put in a box with all their stuff and have it subjected to a cat 5 direct hit. Afterwards you will hate your fancy stuff and love your relationships. Everyone here keeps saying they are happy this brought us together and commenting how it has made our community stronger.

[Larry Edgerton]

Malcolm, my thoughts are with you. Have no advise, you know as much as I do, wish I could afford to come and help you for a while.

Larry

[Dave Zellers]

Dave We are good- words read different than intended sometimes and I am running on adrenaline.

It's also good to just let your emotions out. Peace.

[Jim Koepke]

Godspeed Malcolm, you get my vote for the True Grit Award.

Keep on hanging on.

You and your island are in my prayers.

jtk

[James Waldron]

Thanks for your mini-rant, Malcolm. It tells us all a lot more than we know about conditions in the islands from the media. More that we need to know. There, the only current news is found in lurid headlines about looting with machetes and hand guns in Charlotte Amalie and very little about anything else. Sadly, once Irma turned north, you (and all the islands) were old news; lurid speculation about the FL Keys and Noah's flood on the west coast of FL drowned (pardon the expression) any word of St. Johns, St. Thomas, et al. Even before that there was scant hard news about the aftermath anywhere in the islands. Those of us who were thinking of you and others knew you were hit hard, but had little idea just how hard. Your post goes a long way to opening our eyes.

FL too has had a tough time in a lot of areas, with widespread flooding being the worst offender. A lot of people have had their lives turned inside-out. But we don't have the path of total destruction you describe.

My family and I were very fortunate: the path turned farther west and we escaped the worst. Power out, gen set running; internet and tv cable out, bcst tv sucks, internet and tv just restored so I got to see the second half of the Minnesota-New Orleans game; dock under water, boat still moored with maybe a bit of dock rash; lots of branches down, some substantial ones, a hard afternoon with chain saws, rakes, brooms and that's almost done. We were very fortunate. And very thankful.

I don't know of any way to be of help to you down there, but if you can think of anything, let me know here or by PM as you prefer. If I can help, I certainly will.

Damned good rant. Best one around here in quite some time.