What we think we know so far

[montalk]

This went surprisingly well, I had an order in for a LifeSaver water bottle and bits for ~3 years worth of decontamination.

You can extend the life of these systems by pre-filtering with something cheaper like a Sawyer Squeeze water filter, which are very affordable ($20-$30 USD) and last up to 100,000 gallons. But since they only filter out bacteria and cysts not small viruses or chemicals, that's where LifeSaver and Berkey come in. The Sawyer filters are great for barter (will be worth immeasurably more than silver and gold) and can serve as a backup to scatter around in go kits, car kits, and buried caches due to their low cost and small size.

Good idea on the Raspberry Pis. With proper setup they can turn a USB external drive into a WiFi networked drive to serve up bulletins and a library of multimedia files to family/neighbors, especially those who only have phones to use (which take less power than laptops obviously).

With PiSDR and a $25 SDR dongle you can tune into FM, Airband, GMRS, FRS, Weather, some HAM, and other radio transmissions via the Pi. HAM is my main concern since they'll be the last ones transmitting, as AM/FM stations get taken out or taken over. For that, better to go with a dedicated shortwave radio with single sideband (SSB) capability like the Tecsun PL-660. SSB is necessary to listen to HAMs. Depending on the radio band, time of day, antenna length, local electrical noise, and solar conditions, you can pick up signals from hundreds to thousands of km away.

This coming economic crisis looks cataclysmic. Stock market crash, debt/bond market collapse (that's the big one), simultaneous deflationary collapse (bankruptcies, liquidation, and unemployment) and inflationary collapse (money losing its value and savings getting wiped out) leading to a chain-reaction of currency collapses around the world. Mix the Great Depression with Weimar Germany and multiply by 100x. I think the powers that be know the system is so screwed they're going to demolish it and "build back better."

[pontificator]

The Berkey unit is so shiny I guarantee it'll turn Medusa to stone a full 360 degrees around the vessel; it appears space-ready. While the metal is reasonably thick, I would recommend buying a heavy-duty case for it, perhaps a Pelican case? You never know what bounces it'll be exposed to, and I suspect the skull of a Grey would win.


Packed, it is roughly 50% of its assembled height and divides into two main chambers. The packed assembly contains the spigot kit, two black filters and various bits. The assembled top chamber contains the filtration system, and the lower chamber is where clean water is deposited for access via the plastic spigot (I would suggest investigating if you can get other more durable spigots, and metal fitments, perhaps coated with silver. With rings and washers, I also suggest making sure you have spares). The packing bags for the unit should be kept, as they are light-weight non-scratching material, and ensuring this is carefully packed during transport is pretty important. I recommend having a non-toxic wax candle, or many, available if you need to drip-wax-seal problem/leaking areas; you never know. A reusable fire-lighter is highly advisable, such as a flint and steel fire-striker.


Looking through the instructions, the main takeaway is ensuring everything is kept clean, so I would recommend getting a durable bottle of white vinegar for cleaning in the future.
Having some iodine available, also in a durable container, would be recommended. There is also mention of pre-cleaning contaminated water sources, so purification tablets will help there also (this is mainly to ensure the source is as dead as possible before use.) I note salt water is a no-no; it'd corrode the unit, so use the two glass bottles trick and a candle, the evaporating steam from one bottle will drip into the other as salt-free water. You could also use a crystal ball to focus the Suns rays onto a piece of metal, which could boil a source.


I picked up a pair of the Fluoride and Arsenic Reduction elements, simply because they were available, and who knows what evil things they might stop as well. These are used in-line with the black filters.


As Montalk mentioned, the Sawyer Squeeze water filter would indeed be a good idea for prefiltering water before it encounters the Berkey unit; you might also be able to use a sand-bag as a bulk buffer filter, creating a grey-water source free of most suspended crud. Given the longevity of the Sawyer filter, I think it should be the goto for prefiltering most grey water sources in general. I note it is also quite cleanable, which will be important as time goes on.


After some checking, seems Sawyer filters are still available in NZ, so I'll get a couple.


For some reason, given the current situation and overall context, I am reminded heavily of this:


As a total aside, the Human body does not process the glowing liquid from light-sticks. Given the liquid is non-toxic, it can be consumed, and the resulting stream of urine glows in the dark. Under the right conditions, and if you have chosen the blue liquid, you could make it appear as though you have been exposed to fatal levels of Tritium. This may be useful in a pinch.

[Fore]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4MOdJyCBIo

Residents of several cities in the American states of Oregon and Washington on March 26 witnessed a mysterious "fireworks" show that illuminated the sky over a vast area of ​​the Pacific Northwest.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bd7aM7SRUwM

The Tampa Bay National Weather Service said its geostationary lightning mapper captured a bright meteor that surprised Florida residents on Tuesday night when it fell and burned off the coast.
A meteorite fell between Florida and the Bahamas.