Survival Gadgets

Emergency, power outage, camping, and hiking products.

You never know what might happen in the future, so it helps to be prepared. Some products below are useful around the house and others are useful just about anywhere. Whether you go camping and get lost, your car breaks down in the middle of nowhere, or your boat or plane crashes, a few of these products might be nice to have in your emergency kit, backpack, or pocket. Some of these products might also be useful if your power goes out because of an ice storm, strong winds, a large asteroid hitting the earth, government oppression, civil war, earth changes, nuclear war and so on.

Fire Piston

Ever see someone make fire using a bow? It can take hours of hard work to make an ember that way and there's no guarantee that the ember made from all of the dark wood dust will be good enough to start a fire. Well, a fire piston can make that ember in minutes, maybe even seconds. You just ram the piston into the cylinder to heat up the tinder you added and you should have a glowing ember. Quickly transfer the ember to your kindling and once you blow 'life' into it, you can add the wood that you already collected and you have a fire. It could take a few tries before you get a fire started, but that's better than wasting energy and hours of daylight rubbing pieces of wood together.

There are other fire making tools that are easier than rubbing sticks together, but you have to replace them after a certain number of uses. It seems as long as you have a good quality fire piston that will not break, you can pretty much use it forever.

Visit wildersol.com

Wikipedia: Fire Piston

How to Start a Fire With Sticks

Carry Fire in Your Pocket

Genuine Issue Magnesium Survival Fire Starter

Having a genuine government issue aviation magnesium fire starter in your pocket will quickly help you to make fire in an emergency survival situation, even using wet materials. A fire piston is better overall, but try making fire with it if your materials are wet.

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Battery-Free Flashlight

The NightStar Flashlight is the original patented, rechargeable LED flashlight powered by the Faraday Principle! In other words, it's a ShakeLight! Just 20 to 30 seconds of gentle shaking produces 10 to 12 minutes of light! NEVER buy another flashlight battery — it's magnet-powered. The bright LEDs are rated for 100,000 hours of operation which means that they should last for more than a decade.

It's one of the best flashlights to have during an emergency because you never have to worry if you have fresh batteries. You're always ready with this flashlight.

Visit notanumberinc.com

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Emergency Blankets

SPACE® Brand ALL WEATHER BLANKET is a by-product of the super insulating materials originally developed by MPI for NASA. This blanket will reflect and help retain over 80% of radiated body heat, providing warmth and protection, even in sub zero temperatures. Manufactured by MPI since 1964, this is a premier accessory product for all outdoor activities.

The multi-ply laminated construction along with the reflective metal surface make this the "ideal outdoor safety blanket", for personal protection, shelters, ground covers, boating, hiking, sight visibility and it is a radar reflector. The ALL WEATHER BLANKET is a four ply laminate of clear polyethylene film, a precise vacuum deposition of pure aluminum, a special reinforcing fabric and a layer of colored polyethylene film. This new ASTROLAR® reinforcing fabric provides up to 50% more tear and puncture resistance than our previous product. The special four layer construction techniques of the ALL WEATHER BLANKET and its unique physical properties help to make it a perfect accessory item for all outdoor activities.

SPACE® Brand EMERGENCY BLANKET is about the size of a package of cigarettes, but opens to a 56" by 84" tough and durable blanket. Manufactured by MPI since 1964 of the finest polyester material and purest vacuum deposited aluminum for the reflective surface, this product has helped to save countless lives, by providing protection from the elements. Used worldwide in disaster relief, rescue, and by militaries, this product is a 2 ounce life insurance policy. Will help prevent hypothermia by reflecting and retaining body heat, it is also very effective in preventing trauma shock, using the same reflective qualities. Available in silver/silver for regular use and Orange/Silver for greater visibility against a snow or water background. Registered FDA Medical Device No. 1220702. This is the"ORIGINAL SPACE® BLANKET" made exclusively in America, since 1964. Do not be fooled by imitations without a reputation, or of suspect origin. When it's your life you want the "proven best".

Visit www.mpioutdoors.com

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6 Hours of Heat

I walked through one of those huge stores where the shelves go up to the ceiling and I found chafing fuel that people use to keep food warm at parties. Since the stuff is supposedly safe, it seems like a great thing to have around in case of emergency. Warm up food or even cook some types of food in an affordable chafing dish or one of those emergency stove kits.

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Solar/Crank Radio and Light

The Sun Tap Combo is an AM/FM 10-channel weather band radio with flashlight, lantern, siren, and red LED flashers that can be powered in 5 different ways! The solar panel on the top of the handle is always charging (even with indoor room lights). You can also plug it into an outlet, hook it up to your cigarette lighter, crank it a few times, or pop in a couple of batteries (as a last resort).

The Combo stores power in an internal non-memory energy cell for immediate or later use. This non-memory energy cell is unlike regular or rechargeable Ni-Cad batteries, which have a memory. This cell doesn't have to be fully discharged before it is recharged, giving it a much longer life. So The Sun Tap Combo is always recharging—even indoors.

What does The Combo do with all that power? It operates a flashlight which can be turned into a room-light-flooding lantern (just pull out the outer rim around the lamp), as well as an AM/FM radio with a 10-channel Weather Band. It even has a siren and red LED flashers for emergencies. All of which makes The Sun Tap Combo an incredibly dependable tool for camping, fishing, hunting, any indoor or outdoor sports, emergencies or blackouts. It's also environmentally friendly—it helps reduce the piles of dead batteries in our nation's landfills.

Visit safetycentral.com

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Folding Shovel

The Coleman Folding Shovel is something everyone should keep in the car for emergencies or when going camping or hiking. You never know when it will be needed and since it doesn't take up much room, it's not a huge pain to find a place for it.

Visit coleman.com

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Non-Electric Water Purifier

The Waterwise 1600 Non-Electric Distiller looks like a great thing to have while traveling, camping, boating or in emergency situations. High output and fast production of up to 16 gallons of pure, clean drinking water a day using the single most effective method for water purification...Steam Distillation! It's great to know that we can have distilled water even when there is no electricity.

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Credit Card Tool Kit

The Tool Logic Ice Companion is as small as a credit card but contains a 2 inch serrated blade, can/bottle opener, flat screwdriver, awl, compass, 8x power lens, tweezer, toothpick, and a lanyard hole. Since it's clear, you can see everything you have. What a great thing to have with you at all times in case of emergency. Imagine if were lost in the woods or you're ship wrecked and you were stuck on an uninhabited island and you had this great little tool kit with you.

Visit toollogic.com

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If the Water Sucks, Use a Straw

Pack a LifeStraw whenever you go on a trip or go hiking and if there is an emergency, you'll be able to drink just about any water you find.

Visit lifestraw.com