Notices by AI6YR Ben (ai6yr@m.ai6yr.org)

LOL, "daredevil chickens". Okay, fair, it's good news.

https://abcnews.com/video/137351843/

#chickens

My power outage plans

Part I

What went well:

1. Pre-cooling the house before the heatwave (50-60F evenings) worked extremely well, kept the thermal mass of the house below 76F on the lower level.

2. Installation last month of solar powered attic fan helped keep house cool even though no power.

3. Two 1000 watt Jackery units were sufficient to keep freezer + fridge + small fridge cool.

4. Using "SPS" on Sunny Boy inverter was able to both charge up Jackery units and power other things, and kept fridge/freezer cool during daylight. (had to rotate through things that were on to stay under 15A, 1500W)

5. Plenty of rechargeable batteries for lights, headlamps, etc. Did not have to dip into non rechargeables etc.

6. USB powered desk lamps work VERY WELL for light, MUCH better than other options. May have to switch to those for backup lighting... Only use <1 watt, can run them off a small power station with ease.

7. Anker unit running INSTEAD of UPS far superior. Will likely replace all UPS units here as batteries require replacement with a few of those units. (the cost of the unit cheaper than new batteries, which only last 1 to 2 years). (Ecoflow also would work I think)

8. Radio/comms situation perfect, no issues.

(continued)

#poweroutage #AAR #disasters

Or, if you're going with the Fire Service format, this is known as an After Action Review (AAR), which is extremely helpful for EVERYTHING in life. I have found I very much appreciate this from the fire service culture.

NCWG:

This is the AAR format originally developed by the U.S. Army. It is now used worldwide by other military organizations, government agencies, and private industry. The wildland fire support reference for this can be found in the NWCG Incident Response Pocket Guide (IRPG), PMS 461.

1. What was planned? (Spend about 25% of total time on this question and the next)

Review the intent of the mission
Key task assignments.
Desired "End State" (what does "Right" look like).

2. What actually happened?

Establish the facts
Pool multiple perspectives to build a shared picture of what happened.

3. Why did it happen? (Spend about 25% of total time on this question)

Analysis of cause and effect
Focus on WHAT, not WHO.
Provide progressive refinement for drawing out explanations of what occurred.

4. What are we going to do next time? (Spend about 50% of total time on this question)

Correct Weaknesses - Focus on items you can fix, rather than external forces outside of your control.
Sustain/Maintain Strengths - Identify areas where groups are performing well and should sustain. This will help repeat success and create a balanced approach to the AAR.

https://www.nwcg.gov/wfldp/toolbox/aars

#lessons #disasters

Later on after some clean up here, need to outline:

1. What went well
2. What did not
3. Things to improve for next time

✅ Recovery and recharge day.

(some neighborhoods here still without power, despite what So Cal Edison's power outage map says).

#CAwx #PSPS #VenturaCounty

Part 3: things to improve next time.

1. Buy another laptop adapter. Maybe even a 12V laptop adapter, too for this..

2. Need to figure out an easier air conditioning/cooling situation, which doesn't require physically installing spare window AC with plywood *AND* firing up a generator. Possibly, get a mini split installed in "cool room", with externally accessible plug or on a transfer switch, so that it just can be swapped over and then run off generator or larger battery bank. (need to look at number of amps/etc. required). Only need one room's worth. Need to figure out: DIY mini split, or hire someone?

3. Possibly invest in whole house battery system, which would help ease the whole thing instead of making it a full time project. But $$$, and lots of hurdles (permitting, contractor, etc.). Plus, wouldn't want to give money to the right wing saluting billionaire dude.

4. Consider an Ecoflow or similar for the ONT. Not an issue, but would have been easier to have it automatic vs. manually putting in a battery. Even better if I can convert the battery port to 12V instead of requiring AC to a wall wart situation.

5. USB clip lamps worked really, really, well. Need to replace the lighting I have (inefficient, power hungry) with a couple more of those instead in strategic spots.

6. Need to have the DIY swamp cooler prepped and ready next time. Works great, but wasn't out and prepped.

7. Didn't have everything fully fire prepped before going into this event, i.e. lumber here and there, projects, etc. Need to think about this one.

(fin)

#disasters #AAR #PSPS

Part 2: What did not work?

1. Inverter in the solar shed was UNABLE TO CHARGE Jackery units, and unable to power other equipment. Unknown what the issue is, probably surge current. (Jackery units ramp to full 15A for recharge). Need to examine what inverter it is and probably replace it with a better quality unit. Basically, inverter was useless.

2. Short another high capacity/heavy duty power cable. I had plenty of cables, but it would have been nice to have another one.

3. Need a short heavy duty cable between floor level and the back of the fridge. Had to use a 20 footer to connect 3 feet.

4. Really needed air conditioning last night, right before power came back on (into night 2 of power outage). Did not want to go install the window AC and fire up the generator.

5. Laptop power cable failed, had to do a field repair on it... soldering wires on the patio was not ideal in the heat.

6. Had to go buy ice for the rabbits. Which is great when ice is available (ie, PSPS), but not when ice is not. (earthquake)

7. No hot water day 2, minor inconvenience (solved... with camp shower, kinda).

8. Attempted to use Pinecil to solder the above cable, and couldn't get it to work with my USB power units. I need to get the details on WHICH USB power blocks and cable to buy for the Pinecil soldering iron.

(continued)

#disasters #PSPS #AAR

@Dougfir Optical Network Terminal (I believe), it's used to connect a router to fiber-to-the-home (used to be Verizon FIOS, now Frontier).

@Dougfir Ah yes, understood. My dad's place has Internet run through a shoelace and the throughput of a straw. 😬

Wildfire conditions: 3 Red Flag level stations, 41 "lfirting" right now. It's hot, but not windy. But, tons of people without power right now.

Current Public Safety Power Shutoffs
Of SCE’s 5 million customers:
134018 (2.7%)
Kern County
20234 customers
Los Angeles County
57663 customers
Santa Barbara County
360 customers
Tulare County
165 customers
Ventura County
55596 customers

(As of 10/16/26 1643PT)

#LosAngeles #VenturaCounty #KernCounty #RedFlagWarning #wind #wildfires #CAwx

Dug my DIY swamp cooler out of the projects pile. The fan was broken... found another PC fan, some electrical tape, a bag of ice, and I've got A/C again, yay! Nothing like jury rigging stuff during a power outage. 🙄 #disasters #random

LOL too busy here dealing with power outages, but anyway.

@MLE_online "pardon me, ma'am, do you know where they keep the motor oil?"

Snapshots from power outage land. A single solar panel is insufficient for this task. (The other one charging off the 1.5kw of roof panels, will be done soon). Thrift store (NIB) solar shower, lol, bought on a whim for $5. Since no one has lights will have to take a shower out back in the garden later 🤪 #disasters #PSPS #CAwx

@Viss That's the theory, at least. I've got an "emergency mode" on my solar inverter, so as long as the sun is shining we are good. Except no A/C. And I have to run extension cords everywhere.

@Viss yesterday around 11am.. probably not back on until after 9pm tomorrow when the Red Flag Warning expires

See you on the other side, folks, if I disappear it's because SoCal Edison has decided to cut off power AND connectivity loss. I'm currently on warning between 10/15/2026 and 9pm PT and 10/16/2026 9pm PT. But some areas here are possibly shut off at 6am. (I'll have power here locally of course -- backups and solar and all that -- but connectivity will be TBD -- not sure how good Frontier's backup is for long term.. I should set up a Winlink->Fediverse posting bot 🤪 ) We'll also be watching someone else's house, have to plug their fridge/freezer in every so often if power goes out... (need to look up the recommended rotation cycle on that again, speaking of which).

#wildfires #CAwx #disasters

EuroNews: Thousands of supermarket fridges still exposed after cyberattack

"...Reuters reported it found at least 4,500 Danfoss interfaces visible online on Tuesday, and scanning firm Onyphe said outdated versions were "still widely represented among publicly accessible interfaces"...."

https://www.euronews.com/2026/10/14/thousands-of-supermarket-fridges-still-exposed-after-cyberattack

#cybersecurity #fridge

EuroNews: Russia’s internet shutdowns push state firms back to landline phones

"...State procurement of landline telephones tripled in the first eight months of 2026 as mobile internet outages hit nearly 80% of the country. Rostelecom’s chief urged Russians to keep one at home “like a fire extinguisher". ..."

https://www.euronews.com/2026/10/14/russias-internet-shutdowns-push-state-firms-back-to-landline-phones

#telephones #landlines #war

Great #sewing blog post from @evergreensewing ! (I learned this the hard way, lol)

Bad thread leads to bad sewing

https://evergreensewing.com/2026/03/02/bad-thread-leads-to-bad-sewing/

#sewing