Loving the longer format videos again! Thank you for your hard work, even though UA-cam and their infinite genius decides not to push these videos out. 👍
I need to test this. I’m using a galvanized trashcan lined with cardboard sitting on the garage floor (earth ground) I have electronics in boxes placed inside the galvanized trashcan.if it doesn’t work I’ll make boefeng burritos in foil ;)
As pointed out by others, there are some serious disconnects between what's good enough for a low-power radio and what's required to shield from an EMP driven by the energy of a nuclear warhead (or a dying star) -- but, still a very clever and accessible way to tell if you're doing at least some good. Bravo!
Mr. Wranglerstar, what you're attempting to do is make a Farraday Cage out of the ammo box. The reason it isn't working is because the antenna is touching the metal box, effectively just making a bigger antenna. Try electrically insulating the radio with a thick sock, then ground the box. The insulation makes a gap for the signal to have to jump after being collected by the box, and grounding the box takes the EM waves absorbed by the box and redirects them into an Electron Sink (the Earth). Without grounding, it is possible the box will absorb and re-emit the signal, although probably a bit garbled. You can use 1/2" Styrofoam to line the inside (don't forget the lid) of the box to electrically insulate everything in the box.
I do agree especially that I feel there is not enough evidence out there to know what will or will not work but I feel anything made of metal would be nothing but a conductor and amplify not to say he's wrong but who really knows
The big threat is coming through the wall - the danger of an emp is directly proportional to the length of the antenna, and how long are your local power lines? This is why you shouldnt worry so much about what an Emp will do to your gear, vs what it will do to your local power grid (translation: kiss it goodbye).
Check out the EMP Doctor UA-cam channel. He’s a former NASA engineer that breaks down how to properly EMP protect all sorts of things and tests the effectiveness with professional equipment. Highly underrated UA-cam channel.
I have read a lot about sun burst EMPs, also I am a Ham radio operator, we hams track sun spots and sun emissions because those can change how our radio signals travel around the world. We may be able to get our signals farther (or not), using some sun emissions or sun spots. This info is publicly available. The reason I am posting here is because I've been into electronics ,(and prepping), for a lot of my life.. Now 78 years old. I was a radio and electronic countermeasures repairman in the USAF 1967 - 1970. One year in Vietnam top secret electronic air borne recon.. and so on. An EMP shield is also a type of faraday shield. Named after the scientist Faraday. In our shop we had a fully copper faraday cage so we could work on sensitive radio receivers without outside electrical interference. Heavy door made of brass and copper with copper screening for all sides. We didn't need it airtight. So here is the thing everyone must under stand.. While an enclosure will certainly help, and yes foil wrap will stop radio frequency transmissions, and EMP is a force of high magnetism encompassing many frequencies.. the enclosure be it a can or a metal barn should be grounded to the earth around its perimeter. Earth grounding will help bleed off the EMP and or Radio Frequency signals making EMP shields more highly efficient.
If an EMP were to really go off, a running engine would make you the target of everyone close enough to hear it. What would your neighbors be willing to do after 3 days of no food when they hear that engine?
I have mine set up in the back room of my shed with an intake and exhaust vented through the block wall. From outside even standing directly against the shed you can't hear anything more than what sounds like a dryer vent. There are ways to be quiet about it you just have to be resourceful
Yeah, I'd go check it out but probably to see if I could do something to share the resource. For example, my father is on oxygen so without a generator yet we run into issues when the power goes out. Usually my mom just takes him to a hotel, but if I had to, I would commandeer a generator from one of my tenants to create a habitable public space for people. I wouldn't just take it for my dads oxygen, I would use it to power the well house and provide running heated water with the thing one person was using to power a single 30ft trailer. But I would make sure they thought it was fair before commandeering it with the rest of the tenants support. (I manage a trailer park and people would have sucked me off for a shower when a wildfire destroyed our power grid for three months. Or what they oud have done for a washing machine)
Line the inside with cardboard or plastic as a liner, take the paint off the top edge of the can that goes against the seal, put whatever you want that will fit inside not letting it touch the inside of the metal or too close to the lid. Put 5 sheets/layers of foil over the top completely covering the seal area and close/latch the lid, you now have a water sealed emp proof can.
There's a good fiction book series I've read a couple times. One Second After deals with the aftermath of an EMP attack over several years. Very interesting.
If you have alot of time to spare, I highly recommend S2 underground, they have comprehensive guides on avoiding modern surveillance and good indepth communications guides. also, while yes you're blocking radio transmission, this will most likely not stop a true to life EMP. as others have mentioned more shielding is required. take care.
Also worth noting you want to have a grounding material inside the can. if you have a metal exterior you want to make sure the inside is insulated--heavy rubber foam or something like that. I double things up. One inside the other.
Some of the mods I have seen used for this are Remove the rubber gasket from the can. Remove some if the paint, to make a continuous circuit. Ground the box. (Some debate here) Better to utilize a metal trash can. Two layers if Tin Foil? Glad to see it works with the ammo can.
You realize the signal power of that radio is orders of magnitude smaller than the signal power of an EMP. All this video showed is that you can interfere with the radio transmission by wrapping the receiving device with aluminum foil.
I made an EMP container using a steel trash can , tight lid. Lined with a thick foam sheeting . The lid is extremely hard to get off but I also took a roll of metal, advertised EMP tape and sealed the lid to the can at the lids seams .
@@captainheat2314 it was described and labeled as such. It is a dull reflective tape. Heavy textured along the lines of duct tape. Regardless the lid is very tight fitting and the tape as just a layer of extra protection. Manufacturer 3M corporation. So I took it as a quality product.
I’ve been watching you since the beginning. Literally. I have always enjoyed you content. I envy how prepared you are for whatever. I hope you’re friends are as well
Got it, electronics to save wrapped in aluminum foil 2x, placed in ammo cans, inside 25 gallon metal trash can with lid, inside a 50 gallon metal trash can with lid. Sounds like a lot but saving rechargeable battery's, flashlights, phone and radios could all be worth it in the vent of a EMP or solar flare. This was a great little test thank you!
My man ! 👍 I feel the same way as you. Better have more protection than less. If an event like that would happen, imagine how valuable your spared electronics are. Battery charger, rechargeable batteries, a radio, walkie-talkie, flashlight, solar battery charger, cellphones (can be used as mp3 with headphones), and so many more. A tip, don't forget to hide it and be discreet with your electronics in an apocalypse. The common men aren't ready for it and many will have to steal to survive. Take care, God bless !
Meaning metal/foil tape as one option - according to AI. Yeah, I'd rather have devices that I can repeatedly access and then protect easily rather than having to wrap and unwrap foil every time... simply because it's not like we're going to get warning of an impending EMP.
If you have an old microwave, old pressure cooker (with metal touching surfaces), or you can modify the ammo cans to make the seals conductive, or just use loads of foil, it should stop the waves. It's kinda cool how it works too. Apparently it's something like the speed of light (or in this case speed of radio wave) decreases a lot when the wave tries to pass through metal, in this case, the radio wave. This makes a charge which is opposite charge of the wave as it hits metal, in nearly the same place as the incoming electromagnetic wave, and as that incoming tries to go through the metal, the charge and the wave end up eating themselves or reflecting out or some combination of the two, and the effect is different based on frequency. Gamma radiation punches through most anything for instance. Radio waves like to bounce off of things as thin as foil.
I think the power level would be much higher, also much wider frequency bands from an EMP. Not sure how you could safely test whatever solution you come up with. Really if a solution is important it is worth testing so you can rely on it. But, if you ground the can and electronically isolate the layers, you probably have a much better than nothing solution. Keep up the good work.
If you turn it into a proper Faraday cage, you don't really need to test it for all of that, we know it works because science. An insultated object inside an enclosed and grounded conductor will be isolated from any electromagnetic energy. The EMP will run through the conductor to the ground and dissipate while being isolated from what is inside.
Cool video. I love these types of trial and error type videos. Lets everyone actually see what works and what doesn't instead of just taking someone's word for it
Or just check out the EMP Doctor UA-cam channel. He’s a former NASA engineer that breaks down the science on how to properly EMP protect all sorts of things and tests the effectiveness with professional equipment.
Spent some time on the wrong side of the law...when I would travel for 'business' I kept my burner phone sandwiched between miniature meatloaf pans available from any dollar or grocery store. The foil is very thick and you can form the pans to the shape of the phone perfectly. Two on top, two on bottom.
I just checked a source, you should have a suitable container that is well sealed. That is grounded to the earth and the contents are insulated from the container. I put my my mobile in plastic bag inside a covered stainless pot into microwave oven and shut the door. The oven remained plugged in, grounding it. That prevented the mobile from receiving calls, it didn’t ring.
PLAN FOR NUCLEAR WAR, NOT EMP. As the federal government EMP disaster documents state, an EMP strike on the USA would be caused by a nuclear weapon detonating in the upper atmosphere. Planning for an EMP attack should not be a civilian priority, as we would be at nuclear war. That means 20 minutes after the 1st nuke launch by an enemy, the USA would have launched our nukes to complete World War III. So before the 1st EMP ever detonated over the continental USA we would be at nuclear war. Within an hour all major cities and infrastructure are destroyed. So quit wasting time on EMP, unless you already have your preparations made for the aftermath of world wide thermo nuclear war. You need to plan for nuclear flash, blast, fire, radioactive falllout, shelter, decontamination, food, water, and illness likely for many months sheltered indoors.
Well, yes and no. Really depends on the strength of the pulse and your proximity to the pulse. Anything plugged into the wall would probably get fried. But sensitive electronics (ham radio, etc.) not plugged in, has a good chance of being ok using your method. It's kind of a "cheap and dirty" method, but it's better than nothing.
EMP isn't a gas so hermetic seal isn't needed, just enough metal to dissipate the electromagnetic radiation. They make EMI shielding paint that might obviate the need for aluminum foil if painted on the inside of the can. Good points to bring up.
If you want to stop all electromagnetic waves from penetrating there are three steps: 1. Completely seal all the gaps with conductive material. 2. Insulate the electronics from the exterior faraday cage. 3. Ground the exterior of the faraday cage. 4. Have all the batteries removed.
The destruction of an emp is reliant upon length. Long cables are the most susceptible. An emp needs to travel or find something long and conductive. Power lines, barbed wire fence, and train tracks are probably the most vulnerable.
The ideal solution is to get two layers of conductive material separated by a layer of insulating material wrapped around whatever you are trying to protect. Ammo cans make good containers but because of the gaskets and paint, they're kind of lousy at EM protection. Try the same thing but put a non-conductive layer between your foil layers
Ok, thing with protecting electronics is you need to intercept the incoming charge and redirect. So, insulate the interior of the can and ground the exterior. Multiple layers of conductive material/insulation inside the can might help as redundancies.
@T.J. Kong Grounding prevents buildup of charge on the outer shell which could overcome the insulation. So, grounding is an easy way to overcome the amount of insulation you need. Think of this like building a capacitor. You want the outside and inside (electronic) plates to have enough storage to handle a large input of energy. Grounding the outside will allow for charge to be bled off before enough voltage diff exists across the insulation.
@@Vuntermonkey "Grounding prevents buildup of charge on the outer shell " No charge issue as the equipment inside is electricially isolated and will never have a sufficient voltage differential to arc. Faraday cage has a material to electrically isolate the metal box from the devices under protection. Grounding will never be able to disapate the energy fast enough since it 6 ohms or higher. Ground will also be saturated from the EMP for longer period than it takes to damage equipment.
Well, 2 layers and an ammo can, is only enough to block the wattage of a walkie talkie(5 watts?). Very interesting video though, maybe do something like the "Project Farm" channel. With grounding wire, w/o, multiple layers, no rubber gasket. Check how well an old microwave/oven/fridge/similar appliance would work, maybe cut off the Neutral/Live and leave the ground then plug it in too an outlet see if that changes the emp characteristics. Maybe an entire video series of this content.
That is pretty much all a EMP is, we have been using them in the military for many years at different levels. This is how we avoid IEDs being detonated by cellular devices and remotes.
@BMF FAFO isn't wrong. An EMP & radio signal are essentially identical as far as electronics are concerned. Yes. There is the levels of intensity, spectrum spread, etc.....but these are more or less things to account for the amount of shielding needed, not the type of shielding itself.
I'm not very well versed on this, but electronic shielding has to do with the fact that a continuous surface has a net negative charge at its center. The lid of the ammo can and the body of the ammo can would provide that single continuous surface except that the green paint coating the surfaces isolates them from each other. In theory, if you were to grind some of the paint off the inside of the lid and a corresponding spot in body, you could join the two with an electical conductor, like a wire soldered on. Then you can paint back over those two spots. That should be sufficient to create a single electric surface for a faraday cage to work.
I could be wrong but the way you tested with the radio seems like you were just testing wheether the radio will transmit and receive versus whether it would actually block an EMP
Think it makes a huge difference if the can is grounded. If you have a permanent place for things, run a ground to the third prong hole in a receptacle, or have such stuff underground and grounded where a house fire won’t go. Speaking of house fires, perhaps painting your ammunition can blue is a good idea, and be sure you have a few cans of ammunition. You might not be the violent type, but ammunition probably holds more value than paper money, FYI!
The Faraday cage theory requires insulation between the sealed metal containers. Small ammo can.. In a wool blanket.. inside a larger ammo can. The rubber seal on ammo cans probably all leakage of emp energy.
Before watching the video. No with the seal. Removed the seal sand down the paint put in conductive foam. Can remove paint in a ring from around the outside and use metal tape. Don’t let any metal parts of electronics in can touch metal of can.
Isn’t the reason it didn’t work at first is the rubber gasket preventing a complete metal to metal seal from the body and lid, allowing radio waves to pass? I’ve understood shielding needed to be complete. Of course, if you take the gasket off, then the enviro seal from the can is no longer usable, unfortunately.
I was thinking the radio frequency was traveling through the rubber gasket. I was hoping you'd wrap the gasket with foil, or replace it with foil. It seems from other commenters removing the paint where the lid and body touch is important. I also think lining the inside with cardboard or wood is important. I didn't think of using ammo cans for this. Thanks for sharing.
Hate to say it, but you will need more protection than that. Your little Baofeng radio probably puts out only about 5-8 Watts of transmit power (depending on model). The average EMP is going to be closer to an order of magnitude greater. You will need something in the order of 50-60 db of attenuation. It's a good idea to ground your ammo can to it's own ground rod (don't use your house ground or other lightning protection system.) That way any spurious energy will stay outside the ammo can and dissipate to directly to ground.
QUESTION... Would the can ALONE work if the gasket material was removed and provisions added in that area to insure CONTINUOUS electrical contact? Thanks, ...Rich N3JLR
I lined mine with cardboard sanded the lip and use heavy duty aluminum foil to seal it the complete metal seal is important as well as the device not coming into contact with the can
For that ammo can to work as a faraday cage. It Hass to be grounded to earth sitting on top of your roll around snap on toolbox with the rubber wheels, isn’t grounding it. You need a ground wire to the direct source, the ground it to the ground right in the ground or wherever the purpose of the faraday cage is to direct the electronic pulser or electromagnetic pulse around the outside of the cage and down to earth, not to stop it from traveling through it better to pieces of foil, help protect it I guess I don’t know it stops the log the radio from transmitting and receiving transmission. With the ammo box closed but I think without the ground you’re missing the point that the faraday cage is just there to direct the charge away from it and down to the ground I did like your presentation though and just add my two. Cents.
Not true. Check out the EMP Doctor UA-cam channel. He’s a former NASA engineer that breaks down how to properly EMP protect all sorts of things and tests the effectiveness with professional equipment.
This is a great tool! Thanks for the idea. Copper will out perform aluminum and help in constructing a Faraday Cage. There is inexpensive copper fabric that can line anything including an ammo can, vittel vault, etc. Haven't tried it, but I'm told it is was working solution. However, everyone has 2 layers of aluminum foil available right?
The rubber lid gasket is an insulator and the can isn’t grounded, if you took off some of the paint and used some kind of conductive gasket material like spun copper or steel wool to make a continuous conductive seal between the lid and the can and then grounded the can it should improve it
Lead line your cut to size material cardboard wrapped in professional grade aluminum foil, then carefully put a thin layer of melted lead on the aluminum foil making sure it is completely covered, this will be one of your layers in your can.Ammo can is first outside layer, next thin poly foam inside the entire can , followed by a layer of cardboard which is completely wrapped in heavy duty foil. This should float or rest completely isolated from the outside ammo can inside surfaces, next another layer thin of poly foam followed by your lead lined aluminum wrapped cardboard. Important everything you put onto the protected area must be wrapped in a non-static, non-conductive, material. SPECIAL NOTE: IF POSSIBLE USE ONLY MATERIALS With a very high dielectric resistance in other words items that in themselves generates static electricity in certain environments. Remember an EMP pulse Is in effect a super high static electricity charge which is able to bridge semiconductors as well as other sensitive electronic devices thus shorting them out through a principal called static arcing. I’m not going to dig in any deeper onto the use of the word static arcing. I hope this helps
EMPDoctor did a good couple of videos on this years ago, testing metal garbage cans and the best gasket seals around the lid. Even large ammo cans might be too small for the broad array of emergency electronics you might want to protect but you can get and prepare decent sized galvanized steel garbage cans and lids from your big box hardware store, make sure you have a good metal gasket seal around the lids and you've got faraday storage space in spades.
thanks man! i actually keep my radios in the same ammo can. i was wondering the same thing. I definitely need to line line the can with foil and radios when not in use.
Just turn a room into a faraday cage as one layer, then a cupboard, then an ammocan, then wrap with foil, paper, foil, paper, etc. EMPs are insanely more powerful and the more layers the better. Some folks ground them, but there are studies showing it depends on the type of EMP (solar flare, nuken etc) whether the grounding cable works. Still, it might be a good idea to at least attempt to thwart any issues the best you can. Thanks for the video.
The cans often has a gasket, so that will cause some leakage. The other issue is that microwave transmissions and EMPs are not exactly the same. If you grounded that box or a proper Faraday cage that should provide better protection as the charge pulse will essentially dissipate around the contents of the box.
I wrap up the radio or whatever preferably in its box or at least wrapped in plastic then two alternate layers of plastic and aluminum foil, and plastic on between any metal layers, and wrap the seal of ammo can with metal foil tape
The shielding must be earthed. Remember that an emp is a massive amount of power that has to dissipate somewhere. That radio is what 5-10 watts max? Use an old microwave, break off the hot and neutral pins and keep it plugged in.
You would want to test that microwave theory. I’ve heard both stories. Some say they will work, others say they will not. I tried mine and it did not work. But it may depend on the micro wave.
@@stevenmark8156 yes I went to double check after I commented and almost changed it. Seems like the mesh is too big in modern microwaves. A solid metal box that is grounded would be a more reliable solution
Portable Faraday Cages do not need to be grounded. A Faraday cage works by distributing charge/radiation around the exterior. You might consider solidly connecting a ground for safety reasons against electric shock, but a ground doesn't enhance a cages shielding effects.
Your ground wire is just another antenna to pull in the EMP microwave radiation. Think of a faraday cage as a waterproof container sitting in a dry ditch. When there's a flood, you just need to have the water flow around the outside of your container and move on. You don't need to install a drain pipe (a ground wire) to lead it away. But that's as far as that analogy works. The problem is, microwave radiation can seep in through a tiny straight-line edge that breaks the continuity of the radiation's flow, even though the edge is sealed enough to keep out water.
Idk what it is about my grandfathers old house but as soon as you would take a step inside all cell service is lost, and no tv antenna signal would penetrate the three bedrooms. (Slight signal in front room by window)
Old plaster lath walls had wire mesh inside for strength they effectively became faraday cages and blocked most if not all electronic airborne signals.
Did you remove the rubber gasket? If you said you did I missed that in the video. It seems to me that would likely need to be removed and something conductive put in its place. Just a thought. I’m by no means an expert…
I asked AI how to use an ammo box as a faraday cage and it told me to use metal tape over the rubber gasket under the lid and create cardboard walls. It's not like we're going to get a warning about an EMP attack before it happens so I'd prefer to have a box where I can keep valuable devices that I can access quickly and store quickly without the wrapping and unwrapping of foil each time.
Good video, BTW.. Its not Tin-Foil...LOL. If you remove the gasket from the ammo can, remove the paint from the can on both sides, the lid where the gasket nests and the rim of the box where the gasket seals against when closed, exposing metal to metal. then apply conductive copper foil tape, or conductive aluminum tape to the exposed surfaces on the lid and box. Then wrap the gasket in conductive aluminum cloth tape and reinstall the gasket to ensure a tight seal when the lid is closed. 100% conductivity and solid faraday box.
Awesome idea awesome video thank you wranglerstar. Question if you have a gas generator how could you protect that a lot of devices that are out on the market today are too expensive can't afford them thank you once again God bless brother
The better solution would be to emp proof a garage or shed. I’ll give that some thought but I’m thinking of some carbon fiber or metallic fibers embedded in spray foam? Just a start.
You could also try putting a few layers of aluminum over the top of the can before you close it. I would also wrap the gear in foam. So it isn't touching the ammo can metal.
I highly suggest visiting the “EMP Doctor” UA-cam channel. The guy is a former NASA engineer and specializes in EMP protection. He has a bunch of videos testing EMP protecting on all sorts of items and thoroughly explains everything.
It's all about the seams in the foil. I got one layer of regular aluminum foil to completely block signal between my Motorola 2 way radios. You need to neatly and tightly fold over the seams so that no signal leaks through. Attention to detail.
what if you sand down the edges of the can, where the top makes contact with the bottom. So there is an electrical connection between the two halves of the box. Also put an insulating layer between each layer of tinfoil/metal will vastly improve it
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Loving the longer format videos again! Thank you for your hard work, even though UA-cam and their infinite genius decides not to push these videos out. 👍
I need to test this. I’m using a galvanized trashcan lined with cardboard sitting on the garage floor (earth ground)
I have electronics in boxes placed inside the galvanized trashcan.if it doesn’t work I’ll make boefeng burritos in foil ;)
As pointed out by others, there are some serious disconnects between what's good enough for a low-power radio and what's required to shield from an EMP driven by the energy of a nuclear warhead (or a dying star) -- but, still a very clever and accessible way to tell if you're doing at least some good. Bravo!
Merch Merch Merch
Mr. Wranglerstar, what you're attempting to do is make a Farraday Cage out of the ammo box. The reason it isn't working is because the antenna is touching the metal box, effectively just making a bigger antenna. Try electrically insulating the radio with a thick sock, then ground the box. The insulation makes a gap for the signal to have to jump after being collected by the box, and grounding the box takes the EM waves absorbed by the box and redirects them into an Electron Sink (the Earth). Without grounding, it is possible the box will absorb and re-emit the signal, although probably a bit garbled. You can use 1/2" Styrofoam to line the inside (don't forget the lid) of the box to electrically insulate everything in the box.
Stopping 8~watts of radio is not the same as stopping an EMP. Depends on how much of the EMP you get. Distance, Time, AND Shielding all play a factor.
Proof that the US forestry service doesn't know it all.
I do agree especially that I feel there is not enough evidence out there to know what will or will not work but I feel anything made of metal would be nothing but a conductor and amplify not to say he's wrong but who really knows
@@doejon9424 You can build an EMP with parts from a microwave.
The channel Keystone science did it.
More likely the emp comes from space, either the sun or cosmic rays or something in between.
Lookup the Carrington Event
By far the most important thing to do to protect your radios against EMP is to remove the antenna.
EXCELLENT
The big threat is coming through the wall - the danger of an emp is directly proportional to the length of the antenna, and how long are your local power lines?
This is why you shouldnt worry so much about what an Emp will do to your gear, vs what it will do to your local power grid (translation: kiss it goodbye).
Check out the EMP Doctor UA-cam channel. He’s a former NASA engineer that breaks down how to properly EMP protect all sorts of things and tests the effectiveness with professional equipment. Highly underrated UA-cam channel.
@@rkymtn_jt agreed, he has a lot of good stuff backed by hard practical science with testing to confirm.
@@rkymtn_jt I'm familiar I follow him. I'm a former pro myself with electronic countermeasures in the Air Force
I have read a lot about sun burst EMPs, also I am a Ham radio operator, we hams track sun spots and sun emissions because those can change how our radio signals travel around the world. We may be able to get our signals farther (or not), using some sun emissions or sun spots. This info is publicly available. The reason I am posting here is because I've been into electronics ,(and prepping), for a lot of my life.. Now 78 years old. I was a radio and electronic countermeasures repairman in the USAF 1967 - 1970. One year in Vietnam top secret electronic air borne recon.. and so on. An EMP shield is also a type of faraday shield. Named after the scientist Faraday. In our shop we had a fully copper faraday cage so we could work on sensitive radio receivers without outside electrical interference. Heavy door made of brass and copper with copper screening for all sides. We didn't need it airtight. So here is the thing everyone must under stand.. While an enclosure will certainly help, and yes foil wrap will stop radio frequency transmissions, and EMP is a force of high magnetism encompassing many frequencies.. the enclosure be it a can or a metal barn should be grounded to the earth around its perimeter. Earth grounding will help bleed off the EMP and or Radio Frequency signals making EMP shields more highly efficient.
The steel ammo can is such underrated multitool.
Make great shitters. Cook and camp stoves…
I found one in a car wrecking yard full of tools around 10 years ago and I still use it to this day as a tool box.
What ever.
If an EMP were to really go off, a running engine would make you the target of everyone close enough to hear it. What would your neighbors be willing to do after 3 days of no food when they hear that engine?
Thats why u need like minded neighbors.
If they aren’t Olympic cyclists or sprinters I imagine they could eat your dust lol
@@SargentRestoration remember mythbusters is practically ancient now. Cars are way more computerized now
I have mine set up in the back room of my shed with an intake and exhaust vented through the block wall. From outside even standing directly against the shed you can't hear anything more than what sounds like a dryer vent. There are ways to be quiet about it you just have to be resourceful
Yeah, I'd go check it out but probably to see if I could do something to share the resource.
For example, my father is on oxygen so without a generator yet we run into issues when the power goes out.
Usually my mom just takes him to a hotel, but if I had to, I would commandeer a generator from one of my tenants to create a habitable public space for people. I wouldn't just take it for my dads oxygen, I would use it to power the well house and provide running heated water with the thing one person was using to power a single 30ft trailer.
But I would make sure they thought it was fair before commandeering it with the rest of the tenants support.
(I manage a trailer park and people would have sucked me off for a shower when a wildfire destroyed our power grid for three months. Or what they oud have done for a washing machine)
Love that you are making videos again!! Thank you for your effort Cody
A bit short but some is better than none!
@@benduker6839 Short is good if he can get to the point, which he did quite well.
Line the inside with cardboard or plastic as a liner, take the paint off the top edge of the can that goes against the seal, put whatever you want that will fit inside not letting it touch the inside of the metal or too close to the lid. Put 5 sheets/layers of foil over the top completely covering the seal area and close/latch the lid, you now have a water sealed emp proof can.
There's a good fiction book series I've read a couple times.
One Second After deals with the aftermath of an EMP attack over several years. Very interesting.
a book guaranteed to traumatize you lol
If you have alot of time to spare, I highly recommend S2 underground, they have comprehensive guides on avoiding modern surveillance and good indepth communications guides. also, while yes you're blocking radio transmission, this will most likely not stop a true to life EMP. as others have mentioned more shielding is required. take care.
Yes absolutely go watch S2. Good stuff
Also worth noting you want to have a grounding material inside the can.
if you have a metal exterior you want to make sure the inside is insulated--heavy rubber foam or something like that.
I double things up. One inside the other.
Some of the mods I have seen used for this are
Remove the rubber gasket from the can.
Remove some if the paint, to make a continuous circuit.
Ground the box. (Some debate here)
Better to utilize a metal trash can.
Two layers if Tin Foil? Glad to see it works with the ammo can.
May be worth keeping ur night vision in a Faraday Bag when not in use.
You realize the signal power of that radio is orders of magnitude smaller than the signal power of an EMP. All this video showed is that you can interfere with the radio transmission by wrapping the receiving device with aluminum foil.
I made an EMP container using a steel trash can , tight lid. Lined with a thick foam sheeting . The lid is extremely hard to get off but I also took a roll of metal, advertised EMP tape and sealed the lid to the can at the lids seams .
emp tape lol
@Sammy Blaze emp tape or alu foil tape
@@captainheat2314 it was described and labeled as such. It is a dull reflective tape. Heavy textured along the lines of duct tape. Regardless the lid is very tight fitting and the tape as just a layer of extra protection. Manufacturer 3M corporation. So I took it as a quality product.
Question ... do you know if taking a shipping container spray foamed with 3 inches including doors would be similar to the trash can setup?
@@myamigood not sure. Ask those more knowledgeable of the subject.
I’ve been watching you since the beginning. Literally. I have always enjoyed you content. I envy how prepared you are for whatever. I hope you’re friends are as well
Got it, electronics to save wrapped in aluminum foil 2x, placed in ammo cans, inside 25 gallon metal trash can with lid, inside a 50 gallon metal trash can with lid. Sounds like a lot but saving rechargeable battery's, flashlights, phone and radios could all be worth it in the vent of a EMP or solar flare. This was a great little test thank you!
My man ! 👍 I feel the same way as you. Better have more protection than less. If an event like that would happen, imagine how valuable your spared electronics are. Battery charger, rechargeable batteries, a radio, walkie-talkie, flashlight, solar battery charger, cellphones (can be used as mp3 with headphones), and so many more.
A tip, don't forget to hide it and be discreet with your electronics in an apocalypse. The common men aren't ready for it and many will have to steal to survive. Take care, God bless !
This is how USFS protects their firefighters against rogue EMPs in the wilderness
How ? By using 2 layers of Aluminum Foil?.?
More tricks:
1) Replace seals in cans and containers with metal-impregnated materials
2) GROUND the surrounding cage to earth
Meaning metal/foil tape as one option - according to AI. Yeah, I'd rather have devices that I can repeatedly access and then protect easily rather than having to wrap and unwrap foil every time... simply because it's not like we're going to get warning of an impending EMP.
@@Trixie_Django Yes, meanwhile access is important.
If you have an old microwave, old pressure cooker (with metal touching surfaces), or you can modify the ammo cans to make the seals conductive, or just use loads of foil, it should stop the waves.
It's kinda cool how it works too. Apparently it's something like the speed of light (or in this case speed of radio wave) decreases a lot when the wave tries to pass through metal, in this case, the radio wave. This makes a charge which is opposite charge of the wave as it hits metal, in nearly the same place as the incoming electromagnetic wave, and as that incoming tries to go through the metal, the charge and the wave end up eating themselves or reflecting out or some combination of the two, and the effect is different based on frequency. Gamma radiation punches through most anything for instance. Radio waves like to bounce off of things as thin as foil.
This channel is so damned awesome!!
THANK YOU SIR! THESE SHORTS ARE GREAT!!!
Ideally, the layers should be electrically insulated from eachother.
Faraday cages and faraday bags are what you want
I think the power level would be much higher, also much wider frequency bands from an EMP. Not sure how you could safely test whatever solution you come up with. Really if a solution is important it is worth testing so you can rely on it. But, if you ground the can and electronically isolate the layers, you probably have a much better than nothing solution. Keep up the good work.
If you turn it into a proper Faraday cage, you don't really need to test it for all of that, we know it works because science. An insultated object inside an enclosed and grounded conductor will be isolated from any electromagnetic energy. The EMP will run through the conductor to the ground and dissipate while being isolated from what is inside.
Remember to keep some foil back for head protection.
Your content is very valuable. So good. Thank you for the hard work and time.
I appreciate that!
Thumbnails are looking stellar.
That works to block a signal from the radio but what frequency and power would an EMP be?
Cody, ground the can. Once you do, you might not need the extra foil.
Cool video. I love these types of trial and error type videos. Lets everyone actually see what works and what doesn't instead of just taking someone's word for it
Or just check out the EMP Doctor UA-cam channel. He’s a former NASA engineer that breaks down the science on how to properly EMP protect all sorts of things and tests the effectiveness with professional equipment.
love your channel always recommend you to others
Once again you are the fountain of knowledge I drink from today. Thank you.
Spent some time on the wrong side of the law...when I would travel for 'business' I kept my burner phone sandwiched between miniature meatloaf pans available from any dollar or grocery store. The foil is very thick and you can form the pans to the shape of the phone perfectly. Two on top, two on bottom.
I just checked a source, you should have a suitable container that is well sealed. That is grounded to the earth and the contents are insulated from the container.
I put my my mobile in plastic bag inside a covered stainless pot into microwave oven and shut the door. The oven remained plugged in, grounding it. That prevented the mobile from receiving calls, it didn’t ring.
PLAN FOR NUCLEAR WAR, NOT EMP. As the federal government EMP disaster documents state, an EMP strike on the USA would be caused by a nuclear weapon detonating in the upper atmosphere. Planning for an EMP attack should not be a civilian priority, as we would be at nuclear war. That means 20 minutes after the 1st nuke launch by an enemy, the USA would have launched our nukes to complete World War III. So before the 1st EMP ever detonated over the continental USA we would be at nuclear war. Within an hour all major cities and infrastructure are destroyed. So quit wasting time on EMP, unless you already have your preparations made for the aftermath of world wide thermo nuclear war. You need to plan for nuclear flash, blast, fire, radioactive falllout, shelter, decontamination, food, water, and illness likely for many months sheltered indoors.
Well, yes and no. Really depends on the strength of the pulse and your proximity to the pulse. Anything plugged into the wall would probably get fried. But sensitive electronics (ham radio, etc.) not plugged in, has a good chance of being ok using your method. It's kind of a "cheap and dirty" method, but it's better than nothing.
Most everybody HAS a Faraday cage in their house ( even hotel rooms).... It's called a " Microwave Oven".
They absolutely have you on some Government watchlist 😂🤣 Stay blessed brother 🙏🏻
Good info. Keep up the good work.
EMP isn't a gas so hermetic seal isn't needed, just enough metal to dissipate the electromagnetic radiation. They make EMI shielding paint that might obviate the need for aluminum foil if painted on the inside of the can. Good points to bring up.
If you want to stop all electromagnetic waves from penetrating there are three steps:
1. Completely seal all the gaps with conductive material.
2. Insulate the electronics from the exterior faraday cage.
3. Ground the exterior of the faraday cage.
4. Have all the batteries removed.
Will this stop my cell phone from ringing?
Yes! It's a faraday cage
Does it matter if the electronics are off? Does it destroy the electronics by putting a current through the electronics?
That may stop transmission, but how do you know the power of a emp blast and what it would take to defend against?
I don’t think people fully comprehend how powerful a EMP actually is.
Interesting to see you cover this. I've been looking up Farady bags lately to protect my optics.
you are the big brother everyone wishes they had great work Cody
The destruction of an emp is reliant upon length. Long cables are the most susceptible. An emp needs to travel or find something long and conductive. Power lines, barbed wire fence, and train tracks are probably the most vulnerable.
The ideal solution is to get two layers of conductive material separated by a layer of insulating material wrapped around whatever you are trying to protect. Ammo cans make good containers but because of the gaskets and paint, they're kind of lousy at EM protection. Try the same thing but put a non-conductive layer between your foil layers
Ok, thing with protecting electronics is you need to intercept the incoming charge and redirect. So, insulate the interior of the can and ground the exterior. Multiple layers of conductive material/insulation inside the can might help as redundancies.
Check out the “EMP doctor” UA-cam page. Former NASA engineer explains how to do it right 👌
@T.J. Kong Grounding prevents buildup of charge on the outer shell which could overcome the insulation. So, grounding is an easy way to overcome the amount of insulation you need.
Think of this like building a capacitor. You want the outside and inside (electronic) plates to have enough storage to handle a large input of energy. Grounding the outside will allow for charge to be bled off before enough voltage diff exists across the insulation.
@@Vuntermonkey "Grounding prevents buildup of charge on the outer shell "
No charge issue as the equipment inside is electricially isolated and will never have a sufficient voltage differential to arc. Faraday cage has a material to electrically isolate the metal box from the devices under protection.
Grounding will never be able to disapate the energy fast enough since it 6 ohms or higher. Ground will also be saturated from the EMP for longer period than it takes to damage equipment.
Well, 2 layers and an ammo can, is only enough to block the wattage of a walkie talkie(5 watts?). Very interesting video though, maybe do something like the "Project Farm" channel. With grounding wire, w/o, multiple layers, no rubber gasket. Check how well an old microwave/oven/fridge/similar appliance would work, maybe cut off the Neutral/Live and leave the ground then plug it in too an outlet see if that changes the emp characteristics. Maybe an entire video series of this content.
Love this content. I alternate Saran wrap and aluminum foil for a few layers. Also a barrier lining on the inside of the can like cardboard helps.
Try attaching a wire to the ground plug of a wall outlet or a metal rod spiked into the ground.
might improve it.
Asking and answering the real questions now. Good lad.
I highly suggest you insulate the item wrapped in tinfoil from the ammo can. Cardboard works great for this.
This was a very good/informative video
So, if it blocks a simple radio signal, it’ll block an EMP? I have my doubts.
your doubts are correct.
That is pretty much all a EMP is, we have been using them in the military for many years at different levels. This is how we avoid IEDs being detonated by cellular devices and remotes.
That's my question.
@BMF FAFO isn't wrong. An EMP & radio signal are essentially identical as far as electronics are concerned. Yes. There is the levels of intensity, spectrum spread, etc.....but these are more or less things to account for the amount of shielding needed, not the type of shielding itself.
I'm not very well versed on this, but electronic shielding has to do with the fact that a continuous surface has a net negative charge at its center. The lid of the ammo can and the body of the ammo can would provide that single continuous surface except that the green paint coating the surfaces isolates them from each other. In theory, if you were to grind some of the paint off the inside of the lid and a corresponding spot in body, you could join the two with an electical conductor, like a wire soldered on. Then you can paint back over those two spots. That should be sufficient to create a single electric surface for a faraday cage to work.
I could be wrong but the way you tested with the radio seems like you were just testing wheether the radio will transmit and receive versus whether it would actually block an EMP
Science with Wranglerstar 💪🏼💪🏼
Think it makes a huge difference if the can is grounded. If you have a permanent place for things, run a ground to the third prong hole in a receptacle, or have such stuff underground and grounded where a house fire won’t go. Speaking of house fires, perhaps painting your ammunition can blue is a good idea, and be sure you have a few cans of ammunition. You might not be the violent type, but ammunition probably holds more value than paper money, FYI!
The Faraday cage theory requires insulation between the sealed metal containers.
Small ammo can..
In a wool blanket.. inside a larger ammo can. The rubber seal on ammo cans probably all leakage of emp energy.
Before watching the video. No with the seal. Removed the seal sand down the paint put in conductive foam. Can remove paint in a ring from around the outside and use metal tape. Don’t let any metal parts of electronics in can touch metal of can.
Isn’t the reason it didn’t work at first is the rubber gasket preventing a complete metal to metal seal from the body and lid, allowing radio waves to pass? I’ve understood shielding needed to be complete. Of course, if you take the gasket off, then the enviro seal from the can is no longer usable, unfortunately.
I was thinking the radio frequency was traveling through the rubber gasket. I was hoping you'd wrap the gasket with foil, or replace it with foil. It seems from other commenters removing the paint where the lid and body touch is important. I also think lining the inside with cardboard or wood is important. I didn't think of using ammo cans for this. Thanks for sharing.
Hate to say it, but you will need more protection than that. Your little Baofeng radio probably puts out only about 5-8 Watts of transmit power (depending on model). The average EMP is going to be closer to an order of magnitude greater. You will need something in the order of 50-60 db of attenuation. It's a good idea to ground your ammo can to it's own ground rod (don't use your house ground or other lightning protection system.) That way any spurious energy will stay outside the ammo can and dissipate to directly to ground.
Why not use the ground in your house ? Legit question here...
QUESTION... Would the can ALONE work if the gasket material was removed and provisions added in that area to insure CONTINUOUS electrical contact? Thanks, ...Rich N3JLR
I lined mine with cardboard sanded the lip and use heavy duty aluminum foil to seal it the complete metal seal is important as well as the device not coming into contact with the can
For that ammo can to work as a faraday cage. It Hass to be grounded to earth sitting on top of your roll around snap on toolbox with the rubber wheels, isn’t grounding it. You need a ground wire to the direct source, the ground it to the ground right in the ground or wherever the purpose of the faraday cage is to direct the electronic pulser or electromagnetic pulse around the outside of the cage and down to earth, not to stop it from traveling through it better to pieces of foil, help protect it I guess I don’t know it stops the log the radio from transmitting and receiving transmission. With the ammo box closed but I think without the ground you’re missing the point that the faraday cage is just there to direct the charge away from it and down to the ground I did like your presentation though and just add my two. Cents.
Whatever I was going to say. Whole point of stopping EMP is giving the electricity somewhere to go, other then the stuff you don't want it to cook.
Not true. Check out the EMP Doctor UA-cam channel. He’s a former NASA engineer that breaks down how to properly EMP protect all sorts of things and tests the effectiveness with professional equipment.
I'm now curious about 3 layers of foil wrap without the ammo can.
i was thinking the same !
This is a great tool! Thanks for the idea. Copper will out perform aluminum and help in constructing a Faraday Cage. There is inexpensive copper fabric that can line anything including an ammo can, vittel vault, etc. Haven't tried it, but I'm told it is was working solution. However, everyone has 2 layers of aluminum foil available right?
The rubber lid gasket is an insulator and the can isn’t grounded, if you took off some of the paint and used some kind of conductive gasket material like spun copper or steel wool to make a continuous conductive seal between the lid and the can and then grounded the can it should improve it
Lead line your cut to size material cardboard wrapped in professional grade aluminum foil, then carefully put a thin layer of melted lead on the aluminum foil making sure it is completely covered, this will be one of your layers in your can.Ammo can is first outside layer, next thin poly foam inside the entire can , followed by a layer of cardboard which is completely wrapped in heavy duty foil. This should float or rest completely isolated from the outside ammo can inside surfaces, next another layer thin of poly foam followed by your lead lined aluminum wrapped cardboard. Important everything you put onto the protected area must be wrapped in a non-static, non-conductive, material. SPECIAL NOTE: IF POSSIBLE USE ONLY MATERIALS With a very high dielectric resistance in other words items that in themselves generates static electricity in certain environments. Remember an EMP pulse Is in effect a super high static electricity charge which is able to bridge semiconductors as well as other sensitive electronic devices thus shorting them out through a principal called static arcing. I’m not going to dig in any deeper onto the use of the word static arcing. I hope this helps
EMP is broad spectrum, so this test only shows a narrow band of what works.... a feriday cage and or lead are that are truly needed
EMPDoctor did a good couple of videos on this years ago, testing metal garbage cans and the best gasket seals around the lid. Even large ammo cans might be too small for the broad array of emergency electronics you might want to protect but you can get and prepare decent sized galvanized steel garbage cans and lids from your big box hardware store, make sure you have a good metal gasket seal around the lids and you've got faraday storage space in spades.
Don't forget to line the inside with cardboard, bottom and sides
thanks man! i actually keep my radios in the same ammo can. i was wondering the same thing. I definitely need to line line the can with foil and radios when not in use.
To make a Faraday cage, the contents should be insulated from the inside of the can, like wood or cardboard.
Just turn a room into a faraday cage as one layer, then a cupboard, then an ammocan, then wrap with foil, paper, foil, paper, etc. EMPs are insanely more powerful and the more layers the better. Some folks ground them, but there are studies showing it depends on the type of EMP (solar flare, nuken etc) whether the grounding cable works. Still, it might be a good idea to at least attempt to thwart any issues the best you can. Thanks for the video.
The cans often has a gasket, so that will cause some leakage. The other issue is that microwave transmissions and EMPs are not exactly the same. If you grounded that box or a proper Faraday cage that should provide better protection as the charge pulse will essentially dissipate around the contents of the box.
I like your sense of style...
But what if you had the ammo can grounded to say a grounding rod similar to how the power company grounds meter bases.
I wrap up the radio or whatever preferably in its box or at least wrapped in plastic then two alternate layers of plastic and aluminum foil, and plastic on between any metal layers, and wrap the seal of ammo can with metal foil tape
The shielding must be earthed. Remember that an emp is a massive amount of power that has to dissipate somewhere. That radio is what 5-10 watts max? Use an old microwave, break off the hot and neutral pins and keep it plugged in.
You would want to test that microwave theory. I’ve heard both stories. Some say they will work, others say they will not. I tried mine and it did not work. But it may depend on the micro wave.
@@stevenmark8156 yes I went to double check after I commented and almost changed it. Seems like the mesh is too big in modern microwaves. A solid metal box that is grounded would be a more reliable solution
Portable Faraday Cages do not need to be grounded. A Faraday cage works by distributing charge/radiation around the exterior. You might consider solidly connecting a ground for safety reasons against electric shock, but a ground doesn't enhance a cages shielding effects.
Your ground wire is just another antenna to pull in the EMP microwave radiation.
Think of a faraday cage as a waterproof container sitting in a dry ditch. When there's a flood, you just need to have the water flow around the outside of your container and move on. You don't need to install a drain pipe (a ground wire) to lead it away.
But that's as far as that analogy works. The problem is, microwave radiation can seep in through a tiny straight-line edge that breaks the continuity of the radiation's flow, even though the edge is sealed enough to keep out water.
A Faraday cage by definition is grounded. Everyone forgets about grounding/earthing.
Perfect timing, I just bought one for storage purposes, now I'm tempted to go buy some more
Idk what it is about my grandfathers old house but as soon as you would take a step inside all cell service is lost, and no tv antenna signal would penetrate the three bedrooms. (Slight signal in front room by window)
Old plaster lath walls had wire mesh inside for strength they effectively became faraday cages and blocked most if not all electronic airborne signals.
My barn is heavy steel but in the 50’s. I cannot get internet service in the barn. A low level EMP would
Not harm anything inside. I hope.
lead paint
High end restaurants that want to stop cellphone use of customers use copper lath inside a modern drywall to passively jam cell phones .
Did you remove the rubber gasket? If you said you did I missed that in the video. It seems to me that would likely need to be removed and something conductive put in its place. Just a thought. I’m by no means an expert…
I asked AI how to use an ammo box as a faraday cage and it told me to use metal tape over the rubber gasket under the lid and create cardboard walls. It's not like we're going to get a warning about an EMP attack before it happens so I'd prefer to have a box where I can keep valuable devices that I can access quickly and store quickly without the wrapping and unwrapping of foil each time.
Good video, BTW.. Its not Tin-Foil...LOL.
If you remove the gasket from the ammo can, remove the paint from the can on both sides, the lid where the gasket nests and the rim of the box where the gasket seals against when closed, exposing metal to metal. then apply conductive copper foil tape, or conductive aluminum tape to the exposed surfaces on the lid and box. Then wrap the gasket in conductive aluminum cloth tape and reinstall the gasket to ensure a tight seal when the lid is closed. 100% conductivity and solid faraday box.
Awesome idea awesome video thank you wranglerstar. Question if you have a gas generator how could you protect that a lot of devices that are out on the market today are too expensive can't afford them thank you once again God bless brother
How the u.s forest service stores there apocalypse radios
The better solution would be to emp proof a garage or shed. I’ll give that some thought but I’m thinking of some carbon fiber or metallic fibers embedded in spray foam? Just a start.
You could also try putting a few layers of aluminum over the top of the can before you close it. I would also wrap the gear in foam. So it isn't touching the ammo can metal.
I highly suggest visiting the “EMP Doctor” UA-cam channel. The guy is a former NASA engineer and specializes in EMP protection. He has a bunch of videos testing EMP protecting on all sorts of items and thoroughly explains everything.
What about wrapping the can in saran wrap, then foil then saran, then foil? What about grounding the can?
It's all about the seams in the foil. I got one layer of regular aluminum foil to completely block signal between my Motorola 2 way radios. You need to neatly and tightly fold over the seams so that no signal leaks through. Attention to detail.
Hardened EMP buildings have amongst other things a *grounded* steel shell at least 1/2 inch thick ...
The rubber gasket in the can lid is permitting the EM energy to get inside the can.
“This is how the U.S. Forest Service builds EMPs out of a few simple items to test containers on-the-fly.” cannot possibly be too far away.
what if you sand down the edges of the can, where the top makes contact with the bottom. So there is an electrical connection between the two halves of the box.
Also put an insulating layer between each layer of tinfoil/metal will vastly improve it