Winter 2022 what are you doing to get ready

How are you preparing
British Red
Posts: 428
Joined: Sun Feb 06, 2022 11:45 pm

Re: Winter 2022 what are you doing to get ready

Post by British Red »

jansman wrote: Wed Jun 29, 2022 5:08 pm I replaced the blade on my bench saw. This is critical to my Winter preps: I am processing firewood like a squirrel on speed! I have an arrangement with a woodworking neighbour to take his oak/ beech waste,and it is very high volume! I make sure he gets a couple of decent steaks on a regular basis. :D :D

Also: without starting another thread, I need some new rechargeable AA and AAA batteries. Can anyone recommend brands?
Eneloops are vastly superior to all other brands in my experience. We use a LOT of rechargeables and nothing we've tried comes close for the time they hold charge or the amount of charge they hold.

Worth getting a decent USB charger too - I find Nitecore UM4 is the best value for a quality charger
Frnc
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Joined: Sat Mar 12, 2022 1:54 pm

Re: Winter 2022 what are you doing to get ready

Post by Frnc »

British Red wrote: Thu Jun 30, 2022 1:16 am
jansman wrote: Wed Jun 29, 2022 5:08 pm I replaced the blade on my bench saw. This is critical to my Winter preps: I am processing firewood like a squirrel on speed! I have an arrangement with a woodworking neighbour to take his oak/ beech waste,and it is very high volume! I make sure he gets a couple of decent steaks on a regular basis. :D :D

Also: without starting another thread, I need some new rechargeable AA and AAA batteries. Can anyone recommend brands?
Eneloops are vastly superior to all other brands in my experience. We use a LOT of rechargeables and nothing we've tried comes close for the time they hold charge or the amount of charge they hold.

Worth getting a decent USB charger too - I find Nitecore UM4 is the best value for a quality charger
I have a pretty decent charger. It tells you if a battery is no good, and when they are charged. Is made by EBL, cost £8. You can charge odd numbers of batteries, one or three as well as the usual two and four. Is very light weight, so I keep a spare one in my long term bugout bag.
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diamond lil
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Location: Scotland.

Re: Winter 2022 what are you doing to get ready

Post by diamond lil »

I'm still knitting :mrgreen: Icelandic Lettlopi wool.
British Red
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Joined: Sun Feb 06, 2022 11:45 pm

Re: Winter 2022 what are you doing to get ready

Post by British Red »

Frnc wrote: Thu Jun 30, 2022 6:45 am I have a pretty decent charger. It tells you if a battery is no good, and when they are charged. Is made by EBL, cost £8. You can charge odd numbers of batteries, one or three as well as the usual two and four. Is very light weight, so I keep a spare one in my long term bugout bag.
That's a great price if it has battery health monitoring and a mode to restore over discharged IMR batteries ! I found the restoration mode of the Nitecore UM4 funded the purchase in a couple of months by rescuing apparently "dead" eneloops (that my previous cheap chargers couldn't do anything with)
Frnc
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Joined: Sat Mar 12, 2022 1:54 pm

Re: Winter 2022 what are you doing to get ready

Post by Frnc »

British Red wrote: Thu Jun 30, 2022 12:21 pm
Frnc wrote: Thu Jun 30, 2022 6:45 am I have a pretty decent charger. It tells you if a battery is no good, and when they are charged. Is made by EBL, cost £8. You can charge odd numbers of batteries, one or three as well as the usual two and four. Is very light weight, so I keep a spare one in my long term bugout bag.
That's a great price if it has battery health monitoring and a mode to restore over discharged IMR batteries ! I found the restoration mode of the Nitecore UM4 funded the purchase in a couple of months by rescuing apparently "dead" eneloops (that my previous cheap chargers couldn't do anything with)
I don't know what "restore over discharged IMR batteries" means. All I know it it shows red for a faulty battery that needs chucking, flashing green for charging, and solid green for charged. 1 light per battery.
jansman
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Re: Winter 2022 what are you doing to get ready

Post by jansman »

I picked up 2x 4 litres of paraffin today. That’s a price now! I use it for frost protection in our outside loo. I have more ,and this will add to the store.
In three words I can sum up everything I have learned about life: It goes on.

Robert Frost.

Covid 19: After that level of weirdness ,any situation is certainly possible.

Me.
British Red
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Joined: Sun Feb 06, 2022 11:45 pm

Re: Winter 2022 what are you doing to get ready

Post by British Red »

Frnc wrote: Thu Jun 30, 2022 2:33 pm
I don't know what "restore over discharged IMR batteries" means. All I know it it shows red for a faulty battery that needs chucking, flashing green for charging, and solid green for charged. 1 light per battery.
Okay, leaving aside the technicalities

Eneloops are Lithium Ion Manganese batteries - as are most of the quality rechargeables. These are IMR batteries. If you fully discharge these ( run them flat) most battery chargers cannot recharge them - they will show a fault like the red light on yours.

The better chargers like Nitecore have a mode that will bring those batteries back. Cheaper chargers don't so you have to throw the batteries away. A Nitecore or similar with those capabilities costs around £22 - the same as 8 eneloops. Mine has paid for itself several times over by bringing back over discharged eneloops.
Frnc
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Joined: Sat Mar 12, 2022 1:54 pm

Re: Winter 2022 what are you doing to get ready

Post by Frnc »

British Red wrote: Thu Jun 30, 2022 5:31 pm
Frnc wrote: Thu Jun 30, 2022 2:33 pm
I don't know what "restore over discharged IMR batteries" means. All I know it it shows red for a faulty battery that needs chucking, flashing green for charging, and solid green for charged. 1 light per battery.
Okay, leaving aside the technicalities

Eneloops are Lithium Ion Manganese batteries - as are most of the quality rechargeables. These are IMR batteries. If you fully discharge these ( run them flat) most battery chargers cannot recharge them - they will show a fault like the red light on yours.

The better chargers like Nitecore have a mode that will bring those batteries back. Cheaper chargers don't so you have to throw the batteries away. A Nitecore or similar with those capabilities costs around £22 - the same as 8 eneloops. Mine has paid for itself several times over by bringing back over discharged eneloops.
Useful info, cheers. Saved in it's very own Apple Note.
British Red
Posts: 428
Joined: Sun Feb 06, 2022 11:45 pm

Re: Winter 2022 what are you doing to get ready

Post by British Red »

I didn't know either until a friendly "Jamie" explained it to me. I had thrown away at least a dozen eneloops as "faulty" before that. I've not thrown one away since!
Yorkshire Andy
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Re: Winter 2022 what are you doing to get ready

Post by Yorkshire Andy »

jansman wrote: Thu Jun 30, 2022 4:22 pm I picked up 2x 4 litres of paraffin today. That’s a price now! I use it for frost protection in our outside loo. I have more ,and this will add to the store.

Have you got power near the privvie?

If so mount one of these under the cistern

https://www.toolstation.com/dimplex-the ... lsrc=aw.ds

Got a thermostat so will only knock on when it's cold enough cost of parafin electric will probably work out cheaper even at it's silly price

Remember my grandad without fail in winter would put a big heat lamp
Screenshot_20220703-101033.png
So he could sit in comfort and read the paper in the peace and quiet :lol:
If your roughing it, Your doing it wrong ;)

Lack of planning on your part doesn't make it an emergency on mine