Now on Substack!

I have migrated all of my content over to Stubstack and will no longer be publishing here. Follow me here: https://thepreparedguy.substack.com/

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Reboot - PTR 3.0

As of March 2022 we have started podcasting again.  Prepper Talk Radio (PTR) version 3.0.  Scott Stallings and I did a weekly live broadcast AM radio show from October 2015 until December of 2018.  We recorded 163 episodes which are available on your favorite podcasting service including iTunes, iHeart, Spotify, Google podcasts, etc.   You can find us on most of the social media platforms as well as our website.  We are now up to over 240 podcast eposides.  We broadcast our podcast live every Wednesday at around 6PM on YouTube and Facebook.  You can also watch/listen on Rumble if you prefer.

https://preppertalkradio.com

Paris Cluff is a financial expert and fellow prepper as well as good friend.  He has joined us on the podcast   You can find him at Financial Self Reliance on YouTube.    

https://www.youtube.com/c/FinancialSelfReliance

You can also follow me on Facebook.  https://www.facebook.com/thepreparedguy/  and @preparedguy on Instagram.

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Prepper Talk Radio

I love writing!  I wish I had more time to publish more to this blog.  Full time work and full time family make that difficult.  In addition to this blog I am a co-host, along with the founder of the preparedness and survival expo PrepperCon, Scott Stallings, of a weekly live broadcast radio show. 

I publish most of our weekly live broadcasts as podcasts.  You can listen to our podcasts on many of your favorite apps including spreaker, iTunes, iHeart, Spotify, Podbean, YouTube, etc.  We have published 150+ episodes of our live broadcasts back to when we started in 2015.  We continue to get good feedback from our listeners and sincerely hope that you enjoy our conversations as well. 

You can also listen to our podcasts on our own website  http://preppertalkradio.com/listen/

You can also listen live with the K-Talk Radio app or online at www.ktalkmedia.com  We broadcast live on Fridays at 2PM MST.  That's 1640 AM in Salt Lake City, Utah.   You can listen live on the "Tune In" radio app.

I am on Facebook as "Prepper Talk Radio" and "Prepared Guy".

Thanks for listening.
 

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What is GMAG?

Let me just start out by saying; "It really works!"  I'm not saying I'm surprised that it works but honestly I am a little surprised at how well it works.

The GMAG is a saltwater powered battery charger.  It is a fuel cell that uses magnesium and salt water to create an electrical charge.  This little device not only looks like a typical battery charger and holds up to 6 rechargeable batteries but also about a half a cup of water, two teaspoons of salt, and on the back two magnesium "pucks" clip in.  The reaction between the salt water and magnesium creates an electrical charge enough to charge six 1.2v AA 2000 mAh batteries in about 6 hours.  I don't know exactly how long it took me because I forgot about my experiment and let them charge overnight.     

I discharged the rechargeable batteries that came with my unit down until they would no longer run an led flashlight.  The charge on each of the batteries was between .7 volts and 1 volt when I started charging them.  They came with a charge of about 1.25 volts.  A fully charged AA battery will have a charge of 1.35+ volts.

A battery tester like the one pictured above is a must have to go along with this product.  I actually recommend that you have a digital multi-meter.  First of all they are an essential tool for any prepared person but also you just can't know or see that this simple battery charging device is working without one.     

My first attempt at using the charger did not work properly.  I'm not sure why.  I used a pre-measured salt packet that came with the "Disaster Pack" that I received and followed the instructions filling the unit to the recommended level with tap water.  After a few hours I was only getting 1.05 volts reading on my meter.  This, of course, only charged the batteries up to 1.05 volts, which is still considered fully drained.  So I started over.  I rinsed out the unit and noticed very little "corrosion" on the GMAG magnesium pucks.  This time I added 2 teaspoons of sea salt from my cupboard instead of one of the pre-measured packets.  Within about 15 minutes I measured 1.19 volts, then 1.2v, 1.223v, and up to 1.345 volts about three hours later.   

Then I went to bed and forgot about it.  By about 6:30 AM the next morning in a bit of a panic remembered what I had started the night before.  The batteries all had a charge of around 1.37 volts, which means the charge had reached at least that voltage. 

"Wow!" is what I wrote down on my notes that morning.  Yes, I had left them in for more than twice as long as I should have, but the results were very positive.  The picture below is the result of the excessive time in the charger.  The magnesium pucks had worn down considerably.  On the left are the new pucks and on the right are the used pucks.  

The manufacturer says that I should be able to charge these 2000 mAh batteries about 100 times before the magnesium is gone.  I'm sure I shortened the life of these considerably by letting them charge for two long.  When one set of pucks wears out then just insert another set and charge some more batteries.

Here is what I should have done, and will do the next time.  First of all, I won't start so late in the day or I'll time it right with when I wake up.  After the salt and water is mixed in the unit I'll make sure that the voltage is rising nicely by checking with my meter, then wait the recommended time for the batteries to charge.  It should take about 2 hours for 2 - 2000 mAh batteries to charge, 4 hours for 4 AA, and 6 hours for six AA.  Then I'll use my meter or tester to check the current battery charge.  If they are at 1.35 volts I'll consider them fully charged.  At a minimum the batteries should be checked with a simple battery tester like the one in the photo above to make sure the charge is high in the "Good" range.  

These testers are inexpensive so it's a good idea to have a few of them if you don't have a meter.  I check all of my batteries because when they no longer work in a particular device because their voltage is too low they will still work in other devices.  Also, many times I find that if there are two batteries in a device and one of them is too low to operate the other one still has plenty of charge.  I use the battery tester to match similarly charged used batteries and do not throw them away until they are below the LOW indicator on the tester.  You can save a lot of money on batteries this way. 

After the batteries are fully charged, empty the solution and rinse out the unit.  Let it dry and then you can put it away.  The magnesium pucks have an indefinite storage life so whenever I need to charge batteries I can add salt water, put the pucks in the unit and charge some batteries.  Pretty darn cool if you ask me!  

Some of the most important things we need to be adequately prepared require power.  Flashlights and radios are on the top of my list.  Typical AA batteries have a fairly long shelf life of about 10+ years.  Rotating them can be easy but what happens when you run out and are not able to get any more?  

Yes solar works very well for charging batteries too.  Can you think of a situation when you need to charge batteries but don't have adequate sunlight?  Ya, me too.  Having multiple ways to charge batteries and generate power is always a good idea.  Also, think of the weight savings between carrying 100 batteries or one GMAG battery charger, some salt, and 6 AA rechargeable batteries.

If you value my opinion I say that it's a good idea to add one of these units and an extra set of the GMAG pucks to your preps.  Stick em on the shelf next to your food storage and Survival Medical first aid kits and they'll be ready for you when needed.  

Use discount code UTAH18 for a 12% discount at https://www.greenivative.com/products/

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PTR Ep. 124 Re-evolution

If you use YouTube, like I do, to listen to podcasts you can listen to our show there as well.   Here is one of our recent broadcasts.  You can also listen on iheart radio and  www.preppertalkradio.com

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Prepper Talk Radio now on iHeart

You can now listen to each of our podcasts on either iHeart Radio or on www.preppertalkradio.com

It has been quite a while since I have uploaded one of our broadcasts to my blog but we continue to broadcast live each Friday at 10AM.  You can listen live with the ktalk radio app https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.viastreaming.KTalkRadio  or on

www.ktalkmedia.com 

https://www.iheart.com/podcast/prepper-talk-radio-28286881/

You can also listen to them on our YouTube channel 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQJDX1jE_p9xtGh8jPkh8tQ

www.ktalkmedia.com  - This is where we broadcast live each week.  1640 AM every Friday at 10AM in Salt Lake City, Utah.  All of our broadcasts can also be found on the archive page. 

Our primary show sponsor is Survival Medical.  www.survival-medical.com  First aid kits designed for long term storage. 

Thanks for listening!

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Prepper Talk Radio Episode 84, 03 08,17 Doomsday scenarios with Jake Garn

Our friend, local talk show host of "Stand up commentary", and professional photographer Jake "The Snake" Garn agreed to be our guest this week.

We thought it would be fun to discuss a serious topic with a very not so serious guy.  It was lots of fun!  Listen in.





www.standupcommentary.com - with Jake Garn

www.preppertalkradio.com - We broadcast live each Friday at 10AM MST from the KTalk Media sutdios

www.ktalkmedia.com - 1640 AM KTKK, (Formerly AM 630)

www.preppercon.com - The largest preparedness and survival expo in the country.  And the most fun.

www.survival-medical.com -  First aid kits designed to last of to 20 years.

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