Tag: shtf

  • Why HF Radio Matters Most When the Grid Goes Down

    Why HF radio is critical when the grid goes down: NVIS keeps you connected to your region, and HF DX lets you poll other states and continents for news.

  • How to Use AI to Program Your Ham Radio (With a Free CHIRP File)

    I gave an AI assistant one plain-English prompt and got back a CHIRP-ready CSV with my local repeaters, calling frequencies, weather channels, and more. Here is the prompt, the file, and what you have to verify.

  • Building an EmComm Go-Kit Inventory You’ll Actually Update

    Part of our Emergency Communications and Preparedness guide. Every go-kit inventory starts out accurate the day you build it and slowly drifts out of date as batteries get swapped, gear gets borrowed, and expiration dates quietly pass. The fix is not a better one-time inventory. It is a system low-friction enough that you actually keep…

  • The FT-857D as a Shack in a Box: Why It’s One of My Favorite SHTF Radios

    Part of our The Yaesu FT-857D: The Complete Guide. One Box, Every Band You’d Actually Need When I think through what a grab-and-go radio needs to do in an actual SHTF scenario, the list is short: reach the local repeater network, monitor and work HF for anything past line of sight, and do it all…

  • Your Comms Plan for Every Disaster Scenario

    Part of our Emergency Communications and Preparedness pillar I have written about a lot of individual disaster scenarios on this site, and I kept hearing the same thing: people wanted one place to find all of it instead of hunting through a dozen separate posts. So here it is. Every scenario-specific comms plan I have…

  • MAGNET: A Nationwide HF Network for Mutual Assistance Groups

    MAGNET connects Mutual Assistance Groups across the US over HF, using digital modes for grid-down comms. Here’s what they do, who runs it, and how to reach them.

  • The Frequencies Every Ham Radio Should Have Programmed for SHTF

    The exact frequencies I keep programmed into every radio I own, from NOAA weather to GMRS, MURS, CB, and ham simplex calling channels, so I’m never scrambling to find them when it matters.

  • What Is AMRRON? The American Redoubt Radio Operators Network Explained

    AMRRON is a volunteer network of licensed and unlicensed operators built to keep information moving when normal communications fail. Here’s what it actually is and how it works.

  • Backup Power for the Shack: Generators, Solar, and Batteries for Extended Outages

    Part of our Emergency Communications and Preparedness guide. I’ve written plenty about LiFePO4 batteries and solar charging for field kits, but there’s a bigger question I haven’t tackled directly: what actually keeps the shack itself running when the grid is down for days instead of hours. Batteries alone won’t carry a base station forever, so…

  • MURS vs GMRS vs FRS: Which One (or Combination) Actually Fits Your Family

    I write a lot about GMRS and FRS on this site, but MURS almost never comes up, and that’s a gap. It’s the license-free service most people have never heard of, and for certain family and neighborhood comms setups it’s worth understanding alongside the two everyone already knows. The Quick Version FRS is license-free, low…

  • What Is GhostNet? S2 Underground’s Off-Grid HF Comms Plan Explained

    GhostNet is S2 Underground’s free, off-grid HF communications plan: weekly check-in nets, regional data bridges, and ALE. Here’s how it works and where to find it.

  • Building a PACE Communications Plan for Grid-Down Scenarios

    How to build a PACE (Primary, Alternate, Contingency, Emergency) radio communications plan combining GMRS, ham radio, and non-radio backups.

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