TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

I have one of these - dates to the civil defense era. Should work fine unless batteries were left in it and corroded. It’s gasketed and waterproof (so it can be decontaminated), a movable “Window” over the tube (for different types of radiation/particles) and a low level radioactive source on the side to check operation. I keep it, batteries and iodine pills in my emergency cabinet.

No, I’m not a survivalist, just picked this up at a hamfest, but I do live 20 miles from a nuclear plant which has one of the largest stockpiles of spent fuel rods in the eastern U.S., stored above ground.

sippyjug104 Loc: Missouri

I was in high school back then and we had Civil Defense classes where we learned how to care for ourselves and others in the event of a nuclear attack. It included things like medical self-help, how to prepare a shelter and supplies, and of course, the use of a Geiger Counter.

KillroyII Loc: Middle Georgia

Saw them often during the “Cold War” stationed in Europe. We had simulations/exercises to evaluate our performance in a simulated nuclear attack. I had some essential functions that took me outside the shelter to perform. Twice I died (in the simulated/calculated scenarios)… makes you think hard about this when they pronounce you dead… and my wife and child were 2 miles away.

They had emergency evacuation procedures for families; however, if you are part of the 1st/surprise attack… they ain’t gonna live either.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Ah, yes. The Lab Coat. If anything would attract attention in a supermarket it's the Lab Coat.

neillaubenthal

Actually…the pictured one counts millrem per hour…it says so right on the meter but they also come that measure counts per minute, roentgens per hour, or sieverts per hour. We used rem and milligram on Uncle Sam’s Canoe Club on the submarine back from 76 to at least the late 90s and while sieverts are a decimal conversion from rem the latter stands for roentgen-equivalent-man as it takes into account the relative harm to tissue. Then there’s the ‘what does it measure’ idea…alpha or beta particles, gamma rays or neutrons…different ways to measure, count, and display all of those. My total lifetime dose from the reactors on the ship was about 300 millirems…but one gets about 200 per year just from being alive…cosmic rays, radon in the ground, and even a bit from the people around you. SR-71 pilots in particular and airplane pilots in general get more than regular civilians get…and more on a time adjusted basis than submarine people as they get a lot more cosmic rays (gamma radiation) due to no shielding by the atmosphere.

n3eg Loc: West coast USA

I have one of the cheap ones. It's reasonably accurate. I marked the spot that the detector tube faces for better readings on objects such as Super Takumar lenses, orange neon pilot light bulbs, and smoke detectors.

Stephan G

And the echoing ticking can be heard.

Stephan G

Don't forget having an ambulance parked outside.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Better yet, go in wearing a full hazmat suit. Well worth the minor expense.

https://www.amazon.com/DuPont-QC127S-Disposable-Chemical-Resistant/dp/B07RFSWNCQ/ref=sr_1_7?crid=3VQ5T6Q7AE5Q3&keywords=hazmat+suit&qid=1669665114&sprefix=hazmat+suit%2Caps%2C91&sr=8-7

KillroyII Loc: Middle Georgia

Not (better) with the kind of rubber suits the military used to have for us. Even the biggest one was tight on me... had to have someone help me get it on, then after sweating in if for a while (working on airplanes) it took 3 people to peal that thing off of me. Like I previously said, I had previously been declared dead anyway (twice)... I guess if I was really dead they would have just buried me in it.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

One size fits none?