# Bugout Bags - 72 Hour Kits - Emergency Survival Kits - Question



## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

I'm curious what your thoughts are on this topic:

I am working on 72 Hour Kits (or insert your preferred title) for my family. And I have a pretty good idea of what items I think would be appropriate for their kits and have been slowly plugging away at it.

One item that I decided I wanted included in everyone's kits was a sleeping bag (and a bivvy) but even though the sleeping bag is small and used for backpacking, it still takes up a fair amount of space in the pack. So I was thinking of vacuum sealing them to reduce their size.

When discussing this idea with my buddy, he said he wasn't sure if it would mess up the loft / insulation by making it too compact and therefore lose some of its R-value / insulation.

What are your thoughts on me vacuum sealing the sleeping bags? Am I wrong for doing that?

I'm also curious if anyone has some unique items that you might suggest adding to these packs that aren't on the "normal" list that most people publish online.

Two items I added were tampons and menstrual pads. I have heard that they are great for wounds and tampons for plugging puncture wounds. 

Any insights would be appreciated!


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## middlefork (Nov 2, 2008)

The biggest detriment to loft (creates insulation) is compaction. Does not matter what material. IMO you might as well have a wool blanket.


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

Bax* said:


> I'm curious what your thoughts are on this topic:
> 
> I am working on 72 Hour Kits (or insert your preferred title) for my family. And I have a pretty good idea of what items I think would be appropriate for their kits and have been slowly plugging away at it.


 

First step though is deciding just what you are prepping for. Just evacuating the house for a short time due to a Sheriffs order like incomming wildfire / hazmat spill etc etc. Or something like major earthquake rendering your current home unlivable and you need to "on the road" for an extended period of time.

IMO... especially in this state, there are lots of LDS church meeting houses that will be setup to take in people for shelter... even if you need to travel some distance out to reach a "safe area". I dont plan for chaos in the streets type urban survival in preparing, just suriving a major local event like an earthquake where services arent available for some time (power/water/gas/hospitals) etc etc.



> One item that I decided I wanted included in everyone's kits was a sleeping bag (and a bivvy) but even though the sleeping bag is small and used for backpacking, it still takes up a fair amount of space in the pack. So I was thinking of vacuum sealing them to reduce their size.
> 
> When discussing this idea with my buddy, he said he wasn't sure if it would mess up the loft / insulation by making it too compact and therefore lose some of its R-value / insulation.
> 
> What are your thoughts on me vacuum sealing the sleeping bags? Am I wrong for doing that?


IMO, yea it will loose some R value depending on fill type. We just bought a "bed in a box" for my sons bed. We'd previously bought one and it was great, expanded perfectly. This recent one though, not even close to expanding. It was a 10" bed and never expanded past 7". It felt terrible to lay on... we ended up sending it back and getting a refund (that sucked in and of itself... returning a inflated matress? rofl).

You can get some "fluff" back if you run poly fill in a dryer on low heat for a bit... but having access to a dryer in SHTF conditions? Not likely.

[/quote]I'm also curious if anyone has some unique items that you might suggest adding to these packs that aren't on the "normal" list that most people publish online.[/quote]

Fire starter, rain poncho, para-cord, 4x8 blue tarp, hockey tape, SAM splint, iodine, pain reliever, tooth repair kit, scissors, water purifier tablets, water filter, some cash $$$. Possibly some fishing line/lures/hooks etc.



> Two items I added were tampons and menstrual pads. I have heard that they are great for wounds and tampons for plugging puncture wounds.
> 
> Any insights would be appreciated!


I like how you think, but a chest wound requires a way to vent the air out or the lungs wont work properly. Its not a matter of just plugging the hole. You need something like this with a built in 1-way valve made just for lungs:









North American Rescue Hyfin Vent Chest Seal Twin Pack New - Exp 2023 | eBay


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You can also buy those large diaper pad things at the dollar store for training pets and whatnot, cut them up for emergency bandages. One would give alot of bandages.

If you are really prepping for SHTF, you need a good printed survival medical book, to recognize and diagnose different medical conditions and infections.

All comes down to how long do you expect to live out of that bucket.

-DallanC


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## taxidermist (Sep 11, 2007)

I have two different packs that I keep in the truck at all times. One pack is for cold climates , the other for warmer climates. I change the packs out as the climate changes.

Oh ya....I also have plenty of snares and a 1/2 dozen traps in the truck too. As long as I'm within reach of the truck I'm good to go. I have snare wire in each pack just in case an extreme condition occurs and a firearm isn't at hand. Need to get food someway.


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## middlefork (Nov 2, 2008)

You can vent a sucking chest wound with a baggie and duct tape.

Know how to use what you have.


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## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

REALLY good insights!

Dallan, I really enjoyed your insights. Makes me wonder if you were involved with CERT as your input seems really well thought out and feels like you’ve helped others with this topic.

You hit the nail on the head for the type of kit Im putting together. There are lots of different options for various needs for sure. My goal here is mainly for natural disasters that could force us to move in the short term. So that’s a good point I didn’t address in my initial post. 



middlefork said:


> Know how to use what you have.


This is something that scares me. I feel like I would be fine using the items in these packs, but I worry my wife and definitely my kids wouldn’t know what to do with many items. I have work to do….. might want to make notes for them and put them in the packs….


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

middlefork said:


> You can vent a sucking chest wound with a baggie and duct tape.


True but if the lung has already deflated, you need to get that air out of the chest cavity. I dont want to use a empty ball point pen as a straw and suck it out manually... yuck. The bandages with the 1 way valve will pump the air out and reinflate the lung automatically.

-DallanC


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## Ray (May 10, 2018)

Don’t forget a good tourniquet!

What will your firearm setup look like?
I’ll take my custom AR in 5.56 and my Sig legion sao p229.


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## Vanilla (Dec 11, 2009)

I am not great with emergency preparedness, but I can chime in on the sleeping bag. You will certainly lose loft and R value by vacuum packing the sleeping bags. If you read directions from the manufacturer it will tell you to not even store it in its own compression bag because of this. 

Might be worth the trade off anyway if you’re concerned about space, but there will be some consequences over time to vacuum packing the bags.


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## High Desert Elk (Aug 21, 2012)

I would rather have a wool blanket (from an army surplus store) than a conventional sleeping bag. You can vacuum seal those and not lose any insulating value.

As far as 72 hour kits go, the intent is to get through 3 days of whatever until long term arrangements are made/obtained, or things are back to normal. If one isn't careful, you'll look like a Sherpa packing gear up to a staging point to the summit of Everest.

As far as a tourniquet goes, couple it with some QuickClot to control bleeding. A tourniquet shouldn't be used as a stand alone device to stop severe bleeding, but to control it with the help of direct pressure (or QuickClot) to stop the bleeding. With the severing of a femoral artery, unfortunately, you likely wouldn't have time to even use the tourniquet...


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## middlefork (Nov 2, 2008)

DallanC said:


> True but if the lung has already deflated, you need to get that air out of the chest cavity. I dont want to use a empty ball point pen as a straw and suck it out manually... yuck. The bandages with the 1 way valve will pump the air out and reinflate the lung automatically.
> 
> -DallanC


That's why you leave a corner unsealed to allow the air to escape. If you have your fancy bandage great, but if not use what you have at the time. The real trick is to know what the problem is and the best way to deal with it. Without advance care all you are doing is prolonging time until death.


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## High Desert Elk (Aug 21, 2012)

middlefork said:


> That's why you leave a corner unsealed to allow the air to escape. If you have your fancy bandage great, but if not use what you have at the time. The real trick is to know what the problem is and the best way to deal with it. Without advance care all you are doing is prolonging time until death.


But how many people actually have knowledge of field medic care, and how many of the average jane or joe could actually perform this procedure under duress?

Basic First Aid and trauma kit is all anyone really needs. Basic First Aid training and Adult CPR isn't a bad thing to have either.


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## middlefork (Nov 2, 2008)

High Desert Elk said:


> But how many people actually have knowledge of field medic care, and how many of the average jane or joe could actually perform this procedure under duress?
> 
> Basic First Aid and trauma kit is all anyone really needs. Basic First Aid training and Adult CPR isn't a bad thing to have either.


Probably the same amount of people that would know the need for for Dallan's bandage and how to apply it.

A well thought out first aid kit is a great idea if it is available at all times and you know how to use the contents. Otherwise it's better IMO to concentrate on what you are trying to accomplish and use what is available.

Basic first aid training should be the first thing on anybody's list. Without the training any kit is worthless.


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

Oh, another thing to add to your bug-out kit / first aid kit is some form of Burn Gel. I bought some lidocaine spray for a general purpose numbing agent... its used generally for tattoo's. I got the higher percentage stuff out of Russia on ebay before the crack down... I think its 21% lidocaine. Be **** careful with this stuff though... lidocaine builds up in the body over time.










-DallanC


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## High Desert Elk (Aug 21, 2012)

Oh yeah, pemmican. If you can make it or find some to buy. Lightweight and way high in energy.


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## Fowlmouth (Oct 4, 2008)

I'm not sure if the R value will decrease with vacuum sealing. I ordered a couple of sleeping bags for Christmas presents and was surprised how small the box was when I got them. They were vacuum sealed, and they are 5 degree fahrenheit bags.

Another small item to consider putting in a first aid kit is Dentex tooth repair putty.


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## stove up (Apr 9, 2021)

I have seen menstrual pads used in real life situations (chainsaw injury) and they work.


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

Put your small items in 1 gallon ziplocks. It helps organization as well as keep items waterproof... and the benefit of having a bag to hold water for purification or other things.

-DallanC


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## taxidermist (Sep 11, 2007)

Don't forget a handgun. Keep one round available for "personal needs" if it gets that bad.


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## stove up (Apr 9, 2021)

Quik Clot might be a good thing to have.


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## High Desert Elk (Aug 21, 2012)

stove up said:


> Quik Clot might be a good thing to have.


It's in my day pack in my first aid stuff.


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

A 72 hour kit... usually the 5 gal bucket... eventually reaches a point in weight, bulk and items that it really moves beyond its purpose of a quick grab item in an emergency. Do you plan on 1 bucket per family? 1 bucket per person? How much can your youngest child carry?

All of the things mentioned in this thread are great ideas... but again it comes back to what are you planning to use this kit for. 72 hours of survival at home with no services? 72 hours in the wilderness while the city burns to the ground? Or just a throw it in the truck on a camping trip "just in case" something unexpected happens?

Prepping is interesting to me (as people have noted lol), and its overall a GREAT idea... but there's a point of diminishing returns based on the expected usage of some of these kits.

-DallanC


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## High Desert Elk (Aug 21, 2012)

Oh yeah, one important thing as well.

Water...


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## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

High Desert Elk said:


> Oh yeah, pemmican. If you can make it or find some to buy. Lightweight and way high in energy.


This was a rabbit hole I went down a few weeks ago.

I’ve made it a few times but I’m not confident in my long term storage process (yet). But this stuff is pretty epic.

Side note: our ancestors sure knew a thing or two about foods that would keep you going. Hard tac anyone?


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