[Abraham5]

I want to carry a radio receiver in my lightweight bug-out bag to get important information during emergencies. For that purpose I could carry a handcrank radio in my bug-out bag, like government organisations advise.

Or I could carry a lightweight (foldable) solar power panel, combined with a separate GSM telephone with built in FM-radio receiver. What do you think of that alternative option?

That combination will offer much more solar capacity, but it will lack the option of hand cranking.

Maybe a solar panel can also be powered by the light of a candle or an improvised oil light?

 

[charliemeyer007]

I wouldn't count on non direct sunlight to charge much. Transmit pulls a lot of power, receivers can be very efficient. I have a hand crank radio flashlight. I wouldn't want to try reading a book for hours with it. I think the solar makes about enough power to keep the battery charged if you aren't using it at all. It has a usb out but I doubt I could charge a phone beyond a short call. One of those roll up solar units might work nicely for the price and weight.

 

[jfountain2]

During a power outage in the winter I had to use/test some of my preps due to the power being out for 6 days in freezing temps. I will NEVER depend on a hand crank radio again. I literally cranked all day on it one day and only got one or two percent of the battery charged. Fortunately I could go out to my truck and just charge phones while running the engine for a while or use a folding solar panel I have. The solar panel is only 10 watts so it was really taking a while to charge anything but that could also be because the weather was crap and not much sun during the day.

 

[ssdtopgun]

Small folder solar panel can work well, however there are few things to keep in mind.

1. They only work in sunlight. Non functional at night and in bad weather.
2. Not nearly enough to keep a transceiver functional for any period of time.

If you can get an adapter for your radio that allow you to use something like rechargeable AA batteries you would be better off. This would allow you to have fresh batteries in the radio, batteries in a charger getting recharged and maybe a backup set of batteries for when the charger just isn't keeping up enough. Another good suggestion is a rechargable battery pack that can used to recharge things like phones, tablets, etc, to run/recharge the radio. This would allow more options in a smaller package.

Good luck

Stay safe & healthy

 

[WILL]

When you say bug-out are we talking on foot or in some type of vehicle?

If you're on foot, the portable panels I'm seeing are 20 watts and under. Unless you're hiking in the open all day, there's no clouds and you're holding your solar panel pointing directly at the sun, you won't be getting 20 watts an hour out of them. That fact alone makes charging your phone, headlamp, radio, ect, an ambitious undertaking. Also, it's awkward to have your phone or radio charging and accessible for use. Another consideration is that your phone will make a noise and light up every time the solar panel starts or stops charging due to shade. If you're only going to be in the field for a few days, you may want to consider an Anchor battery pack as an alternative. Being power frugal, I can run my phone, headlamp & Garmin for a week off a 10,000MAH Anchor before having to recharge the Anchor and everything. It weighs less and is less bulky than a solar setup.
Amazon.com: Anker PowerCore 10000 Portable Charger, 10000mAh Power Bank, Ultra-Compact Battery Pack, High-Speed Charging Technology Phone Charger for iPhone, Samsung and More. : Cell Phones & Accessories

 

[ssdtopgun]

For what its worth here are examples of what I use and have had good luck with:

Yaesu AA Battery Pack
https://www.amazon.com/Battery-Yaesu-Walkie-Talkie-Radio/dp/B08G8982Z2

Portable Charger Power Bank 25800mAh
https://a.co/d/9lSfFyG

Goal Zero Guide 12 + Nomad 5 Kit
Goal Zero Guide 12 + Nomad 5 Kit | REI Co-op

 

[Clifffalling]

Plenty of good panels out there. Use one or two on your backpack to charge a battery bank.
I have a 50 watt monocrystaline that is less than 2x2 and 1/8" thick.

 

[jfountain2]

The solar panel I have is no longer offered but this is the same company, made in the USA, and 20 watts instead of 10 watts like I have.

20 Watt Foldable Solar Panel (F16-1200)

Buy 20 Watt Foldable Solar Panel (F16-1200) at Amazon. Customer reviews and photos may be available to help you make the right purchase decision!

www.amazon.com

They also have panels that can be rolled up instead

Solar Made: Rollables

PowerFilm Solar - Rollable Solar Panels

www.amazon.com

 

[Shovelshooter]

The battery pack is a good idea. I've got a couple guide zero I think they're called. 4xAA. From there you can charge with a faster rate. The power pack is rechargeable with solar

 

[Abraham5]

If you can get an adapter for your radio that allow you to use something like rechargeable AA batteries you would be better off. This would allow you to have fresh batteries in the radio, batteries in a charger getting recharged and maybe a backup set of batteries for when the charger just isn't keeping up enough.

Another good suggestion is a rechargable battery pack that can used to recharge things like phones, tablets, etc, to run/recharge the radio. This would allow more options in a smaller package.

Thanks. The option to charge a smartphone for internet use can be very important during an evacation.

My lightweight bug-out bag may be used for an evacuation on foot, filled with my sleeping bag, warm clothing, food and survival kit.

I could for example sleep in the snow in a forest or near a refugee camp in my ultralight tent. So I can carry no more than a few batteries.

 

[Abraham5]

When you say bug-out are we talking on foot or in some type of vehicle?

If you're on foot, the portable panels I'm seeing are 20 watts and under. Unless you're hiking in the open all day, there's no clouds and you're holding your solar panel pointing directly at the sun, you won't be getting 20 watts an hour out of them. That fact alone makes charging your phone, headlamp, radio, ect, an ambitious undertaking.

Also, it's awkward to have your phone or radio charging and accessible for use. Another consideration is that your phone will make a noise and light up every time the solar panel starts or stops charging due to shade.

If you're only going to be in the field for a few days, you may want to consider an Anchor battery pack as an alternative. Being power frugal, I can run my phone, headlamp & Garmin for a week off a 10,000MAH Anchor before having to recharge the Anchor and everything. It weighs less and is less bulky than a solar setup.
Amazon.com: Anker PowerCore 10000 Portable Charger, 10000mAh Power Bank, Ultra-Compact Battery Pack, High-Speed Charging Technology Phone Charger for iPhone, Samsung and More. : Cell Phones & Accessories

In a worst case scenario I might have to evacuate on foot to an unknown destination, possibly without electricity supply. That situation might last for weeks or even months. So weight reduction should be a major consideration for me.

 

[puttster]

An issue with battery packs is they will run down waiting for the world to end. If you go that route, open up your BOB every couple months and charge it,

 

[jfountain2]

An issue with battery packs is they will run down waiting for the world to end. If you go that route, open up your BOB every couple months and charge it,

Good advice right there folks.

I got a 10,000 mah battery pack about 6 months ago, charged it up and tossed it in my BOB. Checked it a month later and it was down from 100% to 98%. Checked it again the next month and it was at 97% as of this morning its at 93%
Letting it sit in my BOb without checking the charge for a year would drop the charge down to less than 80%... not too bad but if I had just tossed it in and not checked it for a few years then suddenly needed it...

 

[664698]

Don't reinvent the wheel. Here's a guy who's done all of the hard work for you, and probably details more than you'd ever need to know for purposes of keeping a portable shortwave receiver powered.

Julian (OH8STN) is legit, and probably one of the best guys to listen to about real, off-grid, SHTF comms setups. His results assume you're trying to run a low-power ham radio transceiver, and to keep that type of rig functional in the field you'd be looking at the following:

-- Low-draw (less than 300mah on receive) radio.
-- 5ah battery.
-- 30w solar panel.
-- Solar charge controller.

If all you're trying to do is keep a small shortwave powered, I'd get a shortwave radio that is charged via USB port. Then I'd get a separate USB power bank (Anker or something) and use a 15 or 20 watt solar panel to charge that power bank. Then, use the power bank to charge the shortwave when it needs it .

It's very possible to keep comms charged/working on just solar, but it's not exactly an "Ultralight" ordeal unfortunately. Probably need about 15lbs worth of extra electronics gear on hand.

 

[DKR]

Seems like there is a fork in this thread

AM/FM radio for "news" and ham radio/Short wave listening.

For the Am/FM, get a SONY SRF 59 (1xAA cell) or SRF M37V (1x AAA cell) (this has weather band and is digital)
Both run from a single cell.
A simple solar charger that will charge 2 cells - enough that it will keep you going. The SRF is very sensitive, pick up distant AM stations. Both are ear bud only, so take a spare set.

(See Amazon.com: Solar AA AAA Battery Charger Charging Box 1W 4V Portable Solar Battery Charger for AA and AAA Batteries Black Solar Battery Charger for aa Batteries : Cell Phones & Accessories ) Cost $14 and is small enough to sit outside of your ruck.
or
Amazon.com: C.Crane 11-in-1 Solar Battery Charger : Automotive $24. Made in China. But is a name with some cred.
**

For ham radio - I would first suggest a SW3B - small, 35 mA on rx, covers 5 to 16 MHz. 5 watts (CW) covers 40M, so NVIS is supported. Earbuds only.

or

The (tr)uSDX is a bit of a battery hog, but will TXRX on the USB power port (5VDC) covers 80/60/40 M so NVIS is well covered. So you could support a cell phone and this tiny radio as well. AM/FM/CW/USB/LSB. Earbuds suggested as the internal speaker is a bit of crap. Power out is 0.5 watts on the USB power port. YMMV on how well that would work for you.

I've posted detailed reviews on all of these radios here on the board.

Good luck.

 

[Clifffalling]

For my BoBs i bought a USB hub. All devices with rechargeable batteries, and they are plugged in the hub.
All i have to do is grab the bags and unplug from the hub.
All my devices stay charged and ready to go. Including the battery banks.

 

[Surveyor]

I have a small one in my GHB for flashlights. Just don’t think it’s good for coms. There’s too much power usage on the transmit side.

 

[Abraham5]

I wouldn't count on non direct sunlight to charge much.

Sure but I can charge the battery of a power bank, smartphone and mini radio while the sun is shining and I can use the stored energy sparingly.

Transmit pulls a lot of power, receivers can be very efficient.

Thanks for your advise. Radio reception combined with short phone calls may be more important during an evacuation than internet use and making long phone calls. And I can use printed maps and a compass instead of digital maps with GPS on my smartphone.

How many watts should the solar panel in my bug-out bag have? I want to use that bug-out bag without a car, so it should be lightweight.

I have a hand crank radio flashlight. I wouldn't want to try reading a book for hours with it. I think the solar makes about enough power to keep the battery charged if you aren't using it at all.

It has a usb out but I doubt I could charge a phone beyond a short call. One of those roll up solar units might work nicely for the price and weight.

Then I might skip the idea of a crank radio in my bug-out bag, to save weight for a (foldable) solar panel.

 

[Abraham5]

During a power outage in the winter I had to use/test some of my preps due to the power being out for 6 days in freezing temps. I will NEVER depend on a hand crank radio again. I literally cranked all day on it one day and only got one or two percent of the battery charged.

Fortunately I could go out to my truck and just charge phones while running the engine for a while or use a folding solar panel I have.

The solar panel is only 10 watts so it was really taking a while to charge anything but that could also be because the weather was crap and not much sun during the day.

That is interesting, so I might need a solar panel with a minimum of ten Watts.

 

[Abraham5]

Small folder solar panel can work well, however there are few things to keep in mind.

1. They only work in sunlight. Non functional at night and in bad weather.
2. Not nearly enough to keep a transceiver functional for any period of time.

If you can get an adapter for your radio that allow you to use something like rechargeable AA batteries you would be better off.

"an adapter for your radio that allow you to use something like rechargeable AA batteries" You mean a battery charger or an adapter?

This would allow you to have fresh batteries in the radio, batteries in a charger getting recharged and maybe a backup set of batteries for when the charger just isn't keeping up enough.