February 2017 | Page 5 of 13

19 Feb 2017

Lightning

Take the threat of lightning seriously; if you can hear thunder, the storm is close enough to threaten you with lightning.

If you feel your skin tingle or your hair stand on end, you are like a jet fighter that’s being painted by radar.
Make yourself as small a target as possible without lying flat: drop to your knees, bend forward and out your hands on your knees.

Professionally-installed lightning rods make your home much safer in a storm.
If you are indoors when thunder or the media alert sounds, stay indoors.
Stay away from metal objects such as plumbing fixtures and appliances; do not use electrical equipment like telephones.
Water is a great conductor, so do not use faucets or showers.
Check the weather forecast before leaving for outside activities.
If you are trapped outside in a thunderstorm, go to a low area and crouch (but do not lie flat). Avoid high areas like hilltops; if in a crowd, spread out. If the only building you can find is metal, don’t go inside.
If you’re in a boat, get ashore and out of the craft immediately; if you’re in a car, stay in it.
Safety under a tree is a myth; if you’re in woods or forest, find a spot under low, thick trees.

19 Feb 2017

Food Storage: Oven Canning

You will never find this Oven Canning technique in a USDA or National Center for Home Preservation website; there are just too many variables to say that the process works 100% every time with every food type.

However, if you reread the section on food safety and see that for botulism to grow it needs moisture as well as anaerobic conditions.

That means that the only items you should oven can should be dried. This makes it really good for items like pancake mix or flour.

This process should not be used with wheat berries or anything you plan on sprouting as the temperatures will most likely kill them. Luckily the process will kill any meal worms or other insects that tend to infest (and have allowable levels by FDA standards) wheat or flour process.

What happens is, the heat kills any live infestations, and as the air expands with the heat it is pushed out of the jar, so as it cools, the lids will seal creating a good vacuum seal – which prevents any moisture or bacteria from entering.

Equipment:

Canning jars
Canning lids and screw bands
Wide mouth funnel
Dried goods
- White rice, oats, and other grains
- Beans and lentils
- Flour
- Baking mixes
- Spices, salt, baking soda, etc.
Oven
Potholders and towels

Procedure:

Preheat oven to 200⁰ Fahrenheit
Fill your sterile canning jars with dried goods, leaving 1/2″ head space. Do not put lids on yet
Place in oven and heat for one hour
Use pot holders or towel to remove jars from oven
Quickly wipe rim of jar with damp (but not dripping) towel
Place metal canning lid on jar and screw metal band on tightly
Return jars to oven and set timer for 30 minutes
Remove jars from oven and allow to cool
Check lids for tight seal

Yield:

Variable

Notes:

Do not use plastic canning lids

Oven canning is not a safe method of preserving anything other than dried goods. Do NOT use this method for canning wet foods such as fruits, vegetables, or meats unless they have been thoroughly dehydrated. Be sure to label your jars with the contents, date canned, and how to prepare.

Once your jars of dried goods have cooled, and you checked the seal to ensure it “popped” store them in a cool, dark, and dry location. The seal will prevent moisture from getting into the jars, but moist air will rust metal canning lids and bands.

Whole grains store better than grains that have been ground into meal or flour.

If you are canning baking mixes. Ensure they do not contain shortening (it will melt), oil (will turn rancid), brown sugar (has moisture).

19 Feb 2017

8 Tips on How to Survive a House Fire

House fires are devastating, they kill and destroy all that you hold dear.

Today’s post shows some simple tips to learn and do to help prevent and react to fires.

Things to Know:

Where to find, and how to activate, the fire alarm
Learn at least two routes out of every room
Where to find
How to use a fire extinguisher
Where you will meet and count heads after you get out
Where the nearest phone (other than your own) is

Things to Do:

Prevent: do not overload electrical outlets; test the fire extinguisher; test smoke detectors monthly and change the batteries yearly (memory jogger: change when setting clocks to Standard time); make sure windows will open (you’d be surprised how many are painted, swollen or even nailed shut); check and repair defective electrical wiring and leaky gas connections; keep chimneys clean.
React: call the emergency fire department number (usually 911), warn others and get out.
If the fire is small enough, try to put it out. Use a fire extinguisher if you have one and have practiced its proper use. Otherwise, use water unless it’s an oil or grease fire; in that event, try to smother it with baking soda or the lid of a pan.
Feel any interior door with your hand before opening it. If it is hot to the touch, use another route – such as the lowest window in the room. If there is no other route available, be as low as and as far from the door as you can when you open it.
Stay as low as possible and be ready to crawl if necessary. Since both smoke and heat rise, your best chance to live is by staying under both.
If your clothes catch fire, remember what you learned in grade school fire drills: stop, drop and roll.
Never use an elevator in a burning structure, even if you think the fire is well away from the elevator. First, you can’t be sure. Second, while stairs take more time and effort, they can’t become stuck between floors because the fire knocked out power.
Once outside, go to your pre-arranged meeting place and count heads.

Never go back inside a burning structure. You’ve already beaten the odds, don’t tempt fate!

19 Feb 2017

How to Install an SD Card in a ESI HN03 Bullet Camera

ESI HN03 Bullet Camera SD Card Install — Buy at Amazon

In this video I show how to install an SD card in a ESI HN03 Bullet Camera. It is a poor design in which you must take a camera apart and add a mini SD card to make it record.

You would think that a security camera would come ready to work. I had to learn how to add the SD Card so I could finish my review of the ESI Bullet Camera

At least it was not hard.

All you need is a small Philips screwdriver, a flat tip screwdriver, and a mini SD card.

First remove the two screws holding the clear lens cover.

Next, remove the lens cover and pry out the rubber ring surrounding the lens.

Then, pry out the IR illumination ring and then take out the four small screws holding the camera board in place.

Additionally, to get to the circuit card holding the SD mount, you need to remove a small sponge that wedges the card in place.

Next pull out the circuit card and install the SD card in the metal mount.

In the video I had a lot of lag, but when I reduced the camera image from Maximum quality to high quality it greatly improved speed. We set it to medium quality at the land and got a good enough picture to identify intruders and read license plates and it was responsive enough to catch them without any camera lag time.

Now that the SD card is installed I set the camera to record 24/7 and now I can record locally to the computer as well a any phones setup for the camera. Additionally you can take still images.

Since it records to the computer and the phone I don’t understand why the camera needed an SD card, but it did to activate the recording functions.

19 Feb 2017

WT gets a Badge

So WT is learning about community helpers in school, and because of this he can dress as his favorite Community Helper on Friday. He has a set of Fireman turnout gear with his name on the back, and a policeman uniform. He can’t decide if he wants to be a policeman or a fireman when he grows up but his mom and I are betting he goes to school as a policeman.

Because of this I had to get him some new handcuffs for his uniform. While at the store I also saw a wallet badge and thought he would like it.

Since I just reviewed a wireless doorbell that had a police siren on it I thought I would try to incorporate the two and surprise WT with it while giving him his police gear.

As expected he was more excited about the siren than he was about the badge and cuffs. But WT did enjoy his handcuffs and his wallet. He made me play restaurant where I give him the toy money and he makes me food “for pretend”

While I would be proud of my boy if he became a cop or a fireman, I think I would be just as happy if WT became a restaurant owner or as he sometimes wants to be a backhoe loader driver.

Monthly Archives: February 2017