Wednesday, August 22, 2012

DIY Survival Gear - Building a Survival Kit - Part Seven - First Aid


In Building a Survival Kit - Part Six, a mini-tool and a small knife were added to our survival kit. This gave us some basic tools to complete a number of different tasks that could make a difference in our ability to survive during a crisis. These items gave us the ability to accomplish small tasks that may have been impossible to achieve using only our hands. As we move towards our goal of building a quality survival kit, it may need to be modified to match your skill levels and goals.



The next gear item that will be added to our survival kit is a few band-aids. These will be useful for small cuts or scrapes only. More serious injuries will require more drastic measures to insure your survival. Hopefully, a blister from walking will be the worst that happens. Remember, if you do have to use a band-aid, save the paper wrapper. It makes excellent tinder if you need to start a fire. This gear item and the next one add $ 1.00 to the cost and add no additional weight to our survival kit.




The other gear item for first aid that will be added to our survival kit is a couple of alcohol wipes. The risk of infection can be minimized if a wound is properly cleaned. Remember, that even a small injury can cause serious and life-threatening problems if it becomes infected. Here too, you will want to save your used alcohol wipes. They also make excellent tinder for starting a fire. Both items were put in a small zip-lock bag and placed in the bottom of our survival kit.

In a survival situation, you will need to remember that a small survival kit isn’t designed to replace a good first aid kit. The survival kit’s purpose is to help you survive the little things that can make your life miserable while you are waiting for help, rescue or are in the process of finding your way back. Each situation will be different and having a few basic items may mean the difference in your survival.

Here is a current summary of the contents of our survival kit:

Gear Item                                    Cost                            Weight

Container                                      $5.00                           5 oz.

Mirror                                            $3.00                           1 oz.

Whistle                                          $2.00                          1 oz.

LED Flashlight                              $1.00                           1 oz.

Sewing Kit                                     $1.00                          1 oz.

Cordage                                        $1.00                          1 oz.
                                                  
Mini Bic Lighter                             $ .50                           1 oz.

Magnesium Firestarter                  $4.50                          2 oz.

Dust Mask                                     $1.50                          0 oz.                                                         

Mini-Tool                                      $5.50                           2 oz 

Knife                                            $12.00                         1 oz

First Aid Items                             $1.00                           0 oz
                                                    _____                       ______

Totals                                           $38.00                      17 oz.


Don’t forget to leave a comment. Thanks.


Got DIY Survival Kit ?


Staying above the water line!


Riverwalker


17 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'd add a pair of good tweezers if you live in part of country where spined plants are - that is a very common occurance and a pair of fine tip tweezers helps remove them in field before they break off and have to 'fester off'. 8^)

If you have debris in cut, a sandwich bag filled with water and corner of bag punctured can irrigate the would. Better to have a big syringe of boiled, sterilized water if its really serious.

For the most part, injuries in the outdoors are scrapes, cuts (thorny forest here) and burns (cooking over fires). If its just a fingertip burn, rubbing your ear to get wax coating and seal from air is a quick fix. Some Neosporin / triple anti-biotic might be useful.

Another kind of burn - SUNBURN! I know of no small sunburn kit sized container of sunblock though. Not sure if this fits 1st aid - more of a preventative.

Keep 'em coming Riverwalker, this is a great series.

riverwalker said...

To: anonymous 12:16

The small mini-tool actually has a pair of tweezers included on the tool.

The band-aids and alcohol wipes were placed in a small plastic bag.

I think a small packet of antibiotic cream (single use) might also fit in the kit.

Best cure for sunburn is shade.lol

Thanks anon.

RW

riverwalker said...

To; Jack

As I stated earlier, great list.

Thanks jack.

RW

Larry P said...

In the full kit picture, what's the item near the top left corner where the fire starter and cordage meet? It's kind of round looking with something dark colored under it.
I'm thinking about putting some of these together and give as Christmas gifts.
Thanks for all you do.

Anonymous said...

Perhaps some over the counter pain medication and benedral.
You might want to include some mole skin and several wound closure strips.
mdknighthawk
Richard

Unknown said...

Riverwalker,
This is starting to look alot like my little hikeing/day trip kit ;)
I always carry a small bottle of 2%iodine,for water purification and scraches.Also would change out the sandwich bag for a heavy duty freeze bag,they make a great way to carry water.All my kits have at least 2 days suppy of imodium,you can die from diarrhea alot faster than most people know.

Jenna Bird said...

For those interested in the idea of adding some sunblock, you can sometimes find "travel sized" containers of it ranging from 1-3oz. Obviously a 1oz. container would be ideal when considering size/weight. These typically run $1.50-2.00 per ounce.

riverwalker said...

To: Larry P

The item is a small ceramic turtle.

I was wondering if anyone was paying attention to the pics and obviously you were.

Congratulations on your powers of observation.

RW

riverwalker said...

To: mdnighthawk

Richard...

it's starting to sound more like a first aid kit.

RW

riverwalker said...

To: The Ferret

The big freezer bag is a good idea...folds up mice and flat and doesn't weigh much.

Thanks.

RW

riverwalker said...

To: Jenna Bird

Might be easier just put on the sunblock before you start out...

RW

Addie said...

You can make small portion sizes of sun block or ointment using a straw and a hot knife to melt the ends. Kinda like mini honey sticks of what you need. :)

riverwalker said...

To: Addie

Thanks for the tip.

RW

Jamee said...

I appreciate the comments left after your blogs! I enjoy hearing everyone's thoughts...helps me solidify my own.

ARC said...

This seems like a great general purpose kit...

Anonymous said...

Really enjoying your blog...amazing. I have some compact tampons in my survival kit and not just because I am a girl. I know guys get squeamish thinking about such things, but they are extremely effective in controlling severe bleeding and you can also use them to filter water in a pinch. The stings can be used in many other ways as well. They really are an ideal survival tool.

MacTx53 said...

I just saw a small packable tube of sunblock 50 at...wally world check out I think. Thought the size was right for a small kit, but didn't grab it at that time. Just ready to get out of there!

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