EMC199 Battery Thoughts 2/2 To: Emergency Communications Units - Information Bulletin To: Emergency Management Agencies via Internet and Radio By: Auxiliary Communications Service (ACS) of the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services EMC199 Battery Thoughts 2/2 Release 8/30/99 "There are many possible sources of battery power. A flashlight, tape recorder, or other battery-holding piece of equipment may be modifiable to provide power. This has the added benefit of having equipment that does double duty. Broken equipment may provide the parts for a power supply..... W6WWW modified a broken electric drill handle to provide an ICOM HT with 9.6 volts from a Makita rechargable battery, while I to get power from a modified Maglite. There is also the time honored method of building from scratch. Battery holders comes in different shapes and sizes. An eight cell AA holder makes a very compact 12 volt supply using alkalines, a ten cell AA holder is available for making 12 volts with Nickel based batteries. Consider how to power each item of equipment based upon how you will likely be operating. A Shadow has different needs than a Mobile OR Portable station. Also consider the battery needs for personal pagers, test equipment, hearing aids, etc. Consider the range of power each piece of equipment will tolerate. Some RF power amps shut down at about 10 volts, some will continue at lower total output when input voltage drops as low as 6 volts. An ICOM 706 mobile that I use will distort audio when powered from a car outlet if the engine is off. In an emergency, supplies may consist of what you have 'in-hand'. When caught with limited power resources consider these aspects: 1. Keep the cell phone off and use a radio or pager to alert you when someone wishes to call in to you. Most cell phones will still transmit covertly while in standby. This is the reason they are banned in some RF sensitive environments. 2. When using packet or other forms of digital communications that require a computer having limited operational time, use a packet MAIL indicator, paging, or voice contact, to determine when the computer needs to be activated. 3. Use the minimum amount of RF power that is reasonable, perhaps even relaying through a station that is not strapped for power. 4. Use a HT rather than a mobile to monitor. The mobile can be activated for actual contact if the HT is not strong enough. 5. Be conscious of keeping transmissions short. Rather than saying the message at handwriting speed, use bursts of 3 words then drop carrier while the receiving station is writing it down. This is good practice in any event as it has the added benefit of giving more room for emergency break-in. 6. Audio uses power. Lower the volume and/or use earphones. 7. For low light conditions, LEDs can be used for lighting. A two cell mini MagLite will operate continuously for days if the bulb is replaced with a small high efficiency LED. A new "white" LED (blue tint) is available that makes the high efficiency yellow look dim. 8. Let others know of your needs. There may be a mobile passing through that is carrying more than enough power to share." Paul Christensen, a long standing member of ARES and RACES, can be reached via wa6til@amsat.org. --- To subscribe to bulletins, use the Subscription Services web page at . If you don't have web access, just send an e-mail message to . EOM