For those interested in protecting their TEOTWAWKI electronics from EMP, here is more info at:

http://www.infowar.com/mil_c4i/mil_c4i8.html-ssi

Reader beware: I found this at "Sightings":

http://www.sightings.com/politics2/ebomb.htm

The "Sightings" site speaks about a higher-frequency kind of EMP that is more of a problem than nuclear-style EMP.

...my last post on this...

-- Anonymous99 (Anonymous99@Anonymous99.xxx), March 31, 1999

Answers

Thanks for this post and the previous one, Anonymous99, appreciate the info and viewpoints.

The Sightings story addresses an EMP weapon that's effect is a bit different from an NEMP event - this device supposedly generates a pulse at a much higher frequency, making it more effective against shielding. The higher the frequency, the easier it is for the surge to enter through a chink in the EMP-armor.

Probably the best way to protect against this is to have spares of all important electronic equipment, and keep them in a seamless metal box or cabinet (an ammo box is fine, just use thin copper flashing over the gasket before closing). Normal NEMP suppression techniques might not be enough to protect against this type of weapon, but before you get worried, understand that the effective kill zone of this type of device is about a quarter of a mile in diameter. Also, a shielded room should be made of solid, not perforated, metal panels to be effective. While coax and power feedthroughs would be weak points, there are still ways to tip the odds in your favor by paying close attention to details in the selection and installation of fast, very-low-voltage-turnon gas-discharge tubes and MOV-type devices.

BTW, with things at their current pitch, if I were you I'd keep any equipment not in use disconnected from antennae and power supplies, at least for the foreseeable future.

-- sparks (wireless@home.com), March 31, 1999.

Has this weapon been deployed yet???

-- k Stevens (Chaim@zipload.com), March 31, 1999.

Oh yeah, it's been deplloyed alright, I got one sitting right here next to the .357 and the 12ga. NOT!

got steel wool?

-- hunchback (quasimodo@belltower.com), April 01, 1999.

Help! Bought new Sunfrost refrig freezer. When I disconnect my 8 year old refrigerator would it be helpful to store my shortwave radios in the old one? Would they be protected from emp in there?

Farmer, no techy.

-- Betty Alice (Barn266@aol.com), April 01, 1999.

Dear Betty, No. It won't help. Neither will a nice new ammo can. The reason for this is that high frequencies travel on the OUTSIDE of conductors, therefore a refrig or an ammo can will conduct the EMP on the outside of the metal over and around the lip of metal where the insulating gasket is and into the inside of the box.

A metal can&lid can be used if you scrape away all of the paint, zinc, coatings, whatever and get down to bare metal. Since the resulting surface probably ain't otically flat, get some folded over copper foil ( I supoose aluminum MIGHT work if crumpled enough so that when closing you knock off enough aluminum oxide to make it conduct) and run that along where the gasket used to be.

-- Ken Seger (kenseger@earthlink.net), April 06, 1999.

Hey! Forgot to mention root cellars. A nice berm of dirt will block EMP nicely, assuming you don't have lots of wires going into the root cellar, I'm assuming you have modified the entrance with a nice 90 degree blocking wall so the root cellar can be used as a fallout/blast shelter.

Puting sensitive stuff in a container and burying it works too. This is assuming the earth is moist enough to act as a conductor. Burying something in a nice dry mountain of sand won't help all that much.

-- Ken Seger (kenseger@earthlink.net), April 06, 1999.