So something that my kit is sorely lacking right now (and I feel a bit irresponsible for it) is some kind of first aid element. My question is, is it cheaper/more efficient to make your own first aid kit or just pick up one of those red cross packs? Which kit is recommended or, for the DIYers, what are the essential items that you include in your kits?
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First aid supplies
- Thread starter BearChow
- Start date
- Joined
- Jun 13, 2010
- Messages
- 72
I have not yet found a kit i was happy with. I probably put about 60 or 70 bucks into my kit. I scavenged parts from a couple kits, and other pieces from walmart, or online stores. Most came from adventure medical kits, and I got a discount code for refills, which got a lot more stuff, and filled in weaknesses in my kit. The AMK sportsman kit and refills made up around 3/4 of my kit, and I still have lots of extras. Also got a small REI kit and used the case from that and some of the stuff from that.
My contents:
1 quicklot 50 gram
3 to 4 5x9" combine pads
several sterile gauze dressing pads
2 gauze rolls, a large and small
wound closure strips and compound benzoin tincture
tweezers
coban wrap
triangular bandage
various band aids
moleskin
medications (inhaler for my personal use, pain relievers, anti diarrheals, antibiotic wipes, antiseptic wipes, antihistamine, aspirin, antacid)
bandage scissors
small knife
a small guide to first aid
irrigation syringe
safety pins for securing dressings
cloth tape
sterile nitrile gloves
I cant think of anything else at the moment, but thats nearly all of it. I consider pretty much all of it to be important for any 1 to 3 day hike. It sounds like alot, but it all fits in a pretty small kit. But, im still looking for things to stick in it.
My contents:
1 quicklot 50 gram
3 to 4 5x9" combine pads
several sterile gauze dressing pads
2 gauze rolls, a large and small
wound closure strips and compound benzoin tincture
tweezers
coban wrap
triangular bandage
various band aids
moleskin
medications (inhaler for my personal use, pain relievers, anti diarrheals, antibiotic wipes, antiseptic wipes, antihistamine, aspirin, antacid)
bandage scissors
small knife
a small guide to first aid
irrigation syringe
safety pins for securing dressings
cloth tape
sterile nitrile gloves
I cant think of anything else at the moment, but thats nearly all of it. I consider pretty much all of it to be important for any 1 to 3 day hike. It sounds like alot, but it all fits in a pretty small kit. But, im still looking for things to stick in it.
Skrapmetal
Gold Member
- Joined
- Jul 13, 2009
- Messages
- 2,015
If I need to build a new kit, I typically start off with an AMK of one kind or another and swap things out as needed. Most of it is decent quality, but too much of some things (like blister treatments... I'm not very prone to blisters), and not enough of others (like serious wound management).
- Joined
- Jul 6, 2010
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- 807
to CSRevenant's kit... might add a roll of Kerlix, superglue, burn pad, temp dental filling, compresson bandage like an Israeli bandage
- Joined
- Feb 28, 2006
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- 4,012
I think my FAK is very out of step with what is common here. The last time I looked through a thread on this topic there were accounts of Space blankets and carrying two shell dressings one of which would never be lent less the owner copped a 7.62 round and found he'd dished out his last one, all that kind of stuff. I don't do any of that.
Mine does change depending on what I'm doing and who I'm doing it with. It makes sense to carry flares, a strobe, Salamol, better bandage, sun lotion and so on for some events, but in the main nah.
My FAK is a misnomer really. It's better described as a bucket for mending stuff that doesn't fit elsewhere. For example little forceps live with the fishing bits so they aren't in the bucket. Similarly, I've got duct tape wrapped round all sorts of things, even the tubes I carry coffee in, so I don't duplicate it there. The same with DEET and a whistle. I know there's a bit of a fetish for duplication and for some items that makes sense [eg compass]. However the buzz word redundancy usually means to me -
a : the quality or state of being redundant : superfluity
b: superfluous repetition
c: an act or instance of needless repetition
Sure I'm aware of the military 2 is 1 and 1 is none motto, but that usually means I'll get pissed off with all of it and not carry any, so aside from a few bits I prefer 1 is 1, so pick a good one and use it wisely.
Anyway, the pic below is the bucket I've been carrying recently. It's just a few simple items to solve problems I'm likely to or will encounter.
1] Transpore tape. This is what I use to close wounds. If I cant cobble it together with makeshift butterfly stitches from this its time to go home.
2] Mircropore type tape
3] Inadine dressing [Povidone Iodine]
4]Mepitel dressing [Soft silicone wound contact stuff]
5] Gauze
6] Cotton wool
7] Tampon
8] Pills
Asprin
Tramadol [Pain]
Loperamide [stops you shitting]
Bisacodyl [makes you shit]
Ranitidine [indigestion]
Cetirizine [antihistamine]
9] Orajel [It's got Benzocaine in it so it feels a bit like putting coke on a toothache. And as I've mentioned before here if you've got your woman with you be imaginative with it.]
10] Vaseline
11] Eye bath
12] Bit of bandage
13] Magnifying glass
14] Tweezers
15] Mirror [It's a heliograph but hey, a mirror].
16] KMnO4
17] Two types of water treatment tabs.
As you can see far from extensive. Stuff like antiseptic lives elsewhere with the DEET and the bite and sting cream. Woolly wire and more cotton wool lives elsewhere with a couple of night-light candles. Safety pins live in a little box with some needles, thread, spare buttons, and a bit of bees wax. [That's actually what is immediately left of the heliograph]. So this isn't all but it should give you the flavour of where I'm at.
Mine does change depending on what I'm doing and who I'm doing it with. It makes sense to carry flares, a strobe, Salamol, better bandage, sun lotion and so on for some events, but in the main nah.
My FAK is a misnomer really. It's better described as a bucket for mending stuff that doesn't fit elsewhere. For example little forceps live with the fishing bits so they aren't in the bucket. Similarly, I've got duct tape wrapped round all sorts of things, even the tubes I carry coffee in, so I don't duplicate it there. The same with DEET and a whistle. I know there's a bit of a fetish for duplication and for some items that makes sense [eg compass]. However the buzz word redundancy usually means to me -
a : the quality or state of being redundant : superfluity
b: superfluous repetition
c: an act or instance of needless repetition
Sure I'm aware of the military 2 is 1 and 1 is none motto, but that usually means I'll get pissed off with all of it and not carry any, so aside from a few bits I prefer 1 is 1, so pick a good one and use it wisely.
Anyway, the pic below is the bucket I've been carrying recently. It's just a few simple items to solve problems I'm likely to or will encounter.
1] Transpore tape. This is what I use to close wounds. If I cant cobble it together with makeshift butterfly stitches from this its time to go home.
2] Mircropore type tape
3] Inadine dressing [Povidone Iodine]
4]Mepitel dressing [Soft silicone wound contact stuff]
5] Gauze
6] Cotton wool
7] Tampon
8] Pills
Asprin
Tramadol [Pain]
Loperamide [stops you shitting]
Bisacodyl [makes you shit]
Ranitidine [indigestion]
Cetirizine [antihistamine]
9] Orajel [It's got Benzocaine in it so it feels a bit like putting coke on a toothache. And as I've mentioned before here if you've got your woman with you be imaginative with it.]
10] Vaseline
11] Eye bath
12] Bit of bandage
13] Magnifying glass
14] Tweezers
15] Mirror [It's a heliograph but hey, a mirror].
16] KMnO4
17] Two types of water treatment tabs.
As you can see far from extensive. Stuff like antiseptic lives elsewhere with the DEET and the bite and sting cream. Woolly wire and more cotton wool lives elsewhere with a couple of night-light candles. Safety pins live in a little box with some needles, thread, spare buttons, and a bit of bees wax. [That's actually what is immediately left of the heliograph]. So this isn't all but it should give you the flavour of where I'm at.
- Joined
- May 7, 2011
- Messages
- 3,426
In my personal experience, the "red cross packs" aren't really worth buying, except for the fact that they do contain some of the things u should carry, and that the box/package may be handy for ur self-made kit...speaking of which, I don't have a "fixed" one, I make up one each time depending on where I will be carrying it.
I have my fixed kit in the trunk of my car but of course that's another story (I am an emergency professional so I drive around with plenty of "advanced" things even for a CPR).
But when I go outdoors, I do like to customize my kit before I go. I usually decide what to bring depending on where I am going, with whom, for how long, and in what season.
Speaking of drugs, I do not require "routine" medications myself, and if I'm going out for a one day hike I don't bring anything but loperamide (cause diarrhoea can be a hassle if u have to walk four hours to get back to ur car), corticosteroids (betametasone normally) and some analgesic, and that's it. If I will be out for the night, or for more days, things change, and I might consider antihistaminic, antibiotics, and so on.
As for the rest, I do like to keep it simple too. Basically, the only thing that I am likely to face is some kind of wound: if it's a small thing, I have to be able to fix the problem somehow, and if it's a more serious thing, I still need to fix it temporarily before I reach a safer place.
So I usually bring nitrile gloves, enough sterile gauze, a good tape, a surgical suture or strips, bandages, a small plastic bottle of saline solution, and an antiseptic (H2O2 works great if u need to clean a wound, maybe its antiseptic power is less than Iodine but again, I have to face the truth, being "clean" is all I can wish for, since being "sterile" is impossible in the outdoors).
And if I'm going really out of the beaten path, a good cellphone and a gps in case of real emergencies.
I have my fixed kit in the trunk of my car but of course that's another story (I am an emergency professional so I drive around with plenty of "advanced" things even for a CPR).
But when I go outdoors, I do like to customize my kit before I go. I usually decide what to bring depending on where I am going, with whom, for how long, and in what season.
Speaking of drugs, I do not require "routine" medications myself, and if I'm going out for a one day hike I don't bring anything but loperamide (cause diarrhoea can be a hassle if u have to walk four hours to get back to ur car), corticosteroids (betametasone normally) and some analgesic, and that's it. If I will be out for the night, or for more days, things change, and I might consider antihistaminic, antibiotics, and so on.
As for the rest, I do like to keep it simple too. Basically, the only thing that I am likely to face is some kind of wound: if it's a small thing, I have to be able to fix the problem somehow, and if it's a more serious thing, I still need to fix it temporarily before I reach a safer place.
So I usually bring nitrile gloves, enough sterile gauze, a good tape, a surgical suture or strips, bandages, a small plastic bottle of saline solution, and an antiseptic (H2O2 works great if u need to clean a wound, maybe its antiseptic power is less than Iodine but again, I have to face the truth, being "clean" is all I can wish for, since being "sterile" is impossible in the outdoors).
And if I'm going really out of the beaten path, a good cellphone and a gps in case of real emergencies.
- Joined
- Jun 13, 2010
- Messages
- 72
I've not heard of kerlix, ill take a look at it. The benzoin kind of fills the role of superglue, it makes bandages stick really good. Good ideas, thanks.
EDIT:
Im buying some PriMed kerlix now. What does a Israeli Compression Bandage do? And how many should I get? Also, does anyone pack a tourniquet? If so, what kind?
Last edited:
Skrapmetal
Gold Member
- Joined
- Jul 13, 2009
- Messages
- 2,015
I've always been told that tourniquets are very dangerous if you aren't properly trained in their use. I do not carry one as I do not know what precautions need to be taken to safely use one.
Israeli bandage is basically a one piece dressing/wrap that provides compression on the wound as you cover it up. It can be put on one-handed, apparently. The design sounds appealing, but if you have wound dressing covered in your kit already it's just a matter of whether or not you like the design better and want to spend more money.
Israeli bandage is basically a one piece dressing/wrap that provides compression on the wound as you cover it up. It can be put on one-handed, apparently. The design sounds appealing, but if you have wound dressing covered in your kit already it's just a matter of whether or not you like the design better and want to spend more money.
I have found all of the pre-packaged medical kits to be not only way overpriced, but also to contain a lot of stuff I have no need of.
So I purchase supplies online, and keep them either in a strong ziplock bag or Maxpedition Individual First-Aid Pouch.
The kits include sliver-gripper tweezers, LM Micra, hemostatic gauze pads, waterproof tape, bandaid-type elastic strips, a few tabs of advil, triple antibiotic ointment, rolled gauze bandages, sterile gauze pads, betadine, moleskin, and antibacterial wipes.
These serve me very well for hiking and kayaking, and I keep one in each of our two automobiles.
I also carry some of these supplies in a Maxpedition EDC pouch when going about town.
So I purchase supplies online, and keep them either in a strong ziplock bag or Maxpedition Individual First-Aid Pouch.
The kits include sliver-gripper tweezers, LM Micra, hemostatic gauze pads, waterproof tape, bandaid-type elastic strips, a few tabs of advil, triple antibiotic ointment, rolled gauze bandages, sterile gauze pads, betadine, moleskin, and antibacterial wipes.
These serve me very well for hiking and kayaking, and I keep one in each of our two automobiles.
I also carry some of these supplies in a Maxpedition EDC pouch when going about town.
- Joined
- Jul 6, 2010
- Messages
- 807
I am a competitive shooter so carry a little more in a blow out kit... as Skrapmetal commented the compression bandages have usually a long tail of wrap that loops back thru a plastic lever (like a chain tie down strap) to apply more pressure on the wound...I have two in case of a through and through.... there is an Israeli bandage with a slider to accomplish the same thing... I have an SF tourniquet along with QuickClot sponge in addition to the Kerlix wrap and bandage... you can only bleed out once...