A Faraday cage is a container that protects it’s contents from an Electro-Magnetic Pulse (EMP). An EMP can easily damage or destroy electrical and electronic equipment. Protecting important electronics in a Faraday cage will keep them safe.
We made our Faraday cage EMP protection container from a large metal bin, with a metal lid. The bin on its own provides some protection from an EMP, but the small gaps still allow some of the EMP energy inside.
Items Required For Faraday Cage EMP Protection Container
Metal Bin With Lid
The basis of our Faraday cage EMP protection container is a large metal bin with a metal lid. It is important that it is metal; plastic will not block the EMP. You can use any size of metal container. We like to use this bin so that we can store several electrical items inside, protected from an EMP.
Blanket or Cardboard
In order to prevent the items inside from touching the metal, we need something to provide electrical insulation. A blanket or some cardboard works well for this. You can cut up old cardboard boxes into the shapes needed.
Foil Tape
We used foil tape to seal any gaps in the bin. Also used for sealing around the lid.
How To Make A Faraday Cage EMP Protection Container
Firstly, check the interior of the bin to identify any small gaps. You might find small gaps where the base is attached to the sides, where the handles are attached, or along the seam where the bin sides are joined. Line any places where there might be gaps with foil tape on the inside. Repeat for the lid, making sure that any small gaps are covered.
Next, line the interior of the metal bin with cardboard or a blanket. This ensures that the contents won’t be touching the metal of the bin, providing extra EMP protection. You can use glue or tape to stick the cardboard or blanket to the inside of the bin. If you plan to pile items inside high enough to touch the lid, line the inside of the lid too. Do not line the edge of the lid. It is important that the metal of the lid touches the metal of the bin.
Place your items inside and put the lid on. Your Faraday cage EMP protection container is now finished, but you may want to seal the lid for extra protection.
Sealing The Lid Of The Faraday Cage Container
The only small gaps in the Faraday cage are now along the join between the lid and the bin. You can seal the lid by sticking a strip of foil tape around the edge to join the lid to the bin. This is fine if you if you are using the container to store items long term. If you want to access it regularly though, it’s annoying having to peel and replace the tape each time.
Instead of sealing the lid to the bin, stick foil tape around the outside of the top of the bin in the area that the lid overlaps. This makes a thicker edge around the top of the bin, and will make a better seal when the lid is placed on the bin. How much tape is needed to make the lid fit tightly depends on your bin. Try one layer at first and build it up until your lid fits tightly, but can still be removed easily.
The ukprepper.life family are UK preppers who love to be prepared for everything, from the minor day to day emergencies, all the way to major disasters and more. Between us we have many years of experience prepping, and we’d love to share our experiences with you.
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