Welcome!
Welcome to week #8 in the “72 Hour Kit Ideas: A week by week approach” series.
This series is all about making it simple and do-able to get a 72 hour kit put together for you and your family.
Creating such a kit can be overwhelming and financially difficult to do all at once. But through this series, I’ve broken it down for you into 26 small steps! You can see all the steps here. Just take one small baby step each week and in 6 months you will have a well stocked, personalized kit!
You can even go through the series a few times over a year or two adding just the most basic supplies the first six months and then a few more “extra” supplies each time you cycle through it again.
Want even more help?
This series is also available as an e-book. Purchasing the e-book gives you a few additional benefits over just reading the free series:
- Additional details and tips
- The ability to print the entire book!
- Pictures of my own kit showing just how I pack each week.
Download “Your Own 72 Hour Kit Plan” E-Book Now!
Week #8: Shelter
You will need a way to protect your family from the “elements” following a disaster. It may be extremely hot or cold. It may be raining or snowing.
Personally, I think this is one area you can skimp on a bit until you have more funds. While it is possible that you would have to evacuate completely on foot with nowhere to go, it is far more likely that you’d be traveling to some sort of shelter. Many churches provide shelter during an emergency and the Red Cross usually has something available as well. The chances of not being able to find any shelter are slim.
However, it is possible you will need to walk to that shelter and you may need to protect your family as you go. You may also prefer to sleep outside of a provided shelter to keep your family separate from others.
This week, add something to protect your family from the elements.
Suggestions:
Tents are ideal, but can get pricey and heavy! There are ways to protect your family 
from the elements on a smaller budget. As such, I’ve separated my suggestions into three categories. If you have small children, make sure you choose something they will actually use / wear. You should show it to them and have them practice wearing it (poncho) or getting in it (tent).
Small Budget:
- Try a poncho (you can even use a large garbage bag instead).
- A couple of drop cloths can work as well: hang one above you on trees or a rope and lay one out under you if needed.
Medium Budget:
- A couple of tarps (used similarly to the drop cloths mentioned above with a rope).
- A more durable poncho.
- A tube tent or two.
Larger Budget:
- A popup or dome tent.
What we have done in our family:
We have six ponchos total and one dome tent and a drop cloth (to go under the tent) in each adult kit. We would each sleep with two kiddos in a tent with us. We used to have tube tents instead and just recently switched to the dome tents. They are a bit bulkier / heavier, but I like them better because they have a door! (-:
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How About You?
Leave me a comment and tell me what type of shelter you will be adding to your kit. Why? What will you be doing this week?
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| Week #7: Clothes | Week #9: Staying Warm | Week #1: Packaging Your Kit | Series Into: Survival Kit Series, A Week by Week Approach |
Becky is a wildlife enthusiast and pet and livestock care expert with a diploma in canine nutrition. With over a decade of experience in animal welfare, Becky lends her expertise to Simple Family Preparedness through insightful info about pets, livestock, bee keeping, and the practicalities of homesteading.
I keep our camp trailer well-stocked with blankets, propane and food in case of emergencies. We are often without power so it is used frequently besides the actual camping trips. We also keep 5 gal jugs of filtered water with a hand pump for drinking.
SOunds smart Judy!
And sorry this reply took so long, I’ve had some issues with the comments on my site the last few days.
We have two emergency blankets, and I will be adding two extra microfiber blankets from our home to them for now, although I would like to order a fleece sleeping bag. Considering where I live, I am much more concerned about keeping cool than keeping warm.
A few people have mentioned keeping cool Aimee. Since I’ve never lived anywhere particularly hot, I’ve never really put a lot of thought into it. I’m planing to do some research and post about it soon. If there are things you are doing in particular that I could share with everyone, I’d love to hear about them!
Most of the suggestions I’ve found online are already part of the topics you have, Misty, but there are a few new ones in this list:
1. Store extra water, or carry the ability to purify more. My water purification tablet containers are about the same size as 2-3 sticks of string cheese.
2. Use a spray bottle to mist your face. (This might also help ration water used for personal hygiene.)
3. Soak a bandanna/strip of cloth in water and tie it around your neck.
4. Eat light, unheated meals.
5. Stay on the first floor or in the basement of your home. Close blinds and curtains, or place cardboard covered in aluminum foil in your windows to reflect the sun.
6. Wear light-colored, lightweight, loose-fitting clothing that covers your skin. For example, I have an old pair of moisture-wicking yoga pants and a shirt that would work well for this. Upside: They can double as a base layer in cold weather. Downside: I don’t think they would hold up well if I had to do any work, like clearing debris.
7. Wear wide-brimmed hats and/or carry umbrellas.
8. When evacuating, try to travel during the coolest parts of the day.
9. Solar powered fans? Most I’m finding are large ones for house or auto use, but there are surely some personal ones for sale somewhere.
10. Have information on heat-related illnesses in your first aid kit.
Does anyone else have ideas?
So far, we have the water, bandannas, food, blinds/curtains, umbrellas, and spray bottle on-hand. I have lightweight clothes, and he has a proper hat, but I’m not sure about the reverse.
Aimee, you have some great ideas for keeping cool. Where I am at it is normal to be above 90 and some days above 100 in the summer, but in the winter we are far enough north that it can be very cold! We have a battery powered fan that is good to use in a tent and you can get a portable solar panel with a charging station to recharge the batteries. 🙂
LOVE these ideas Aimee! Thank you so much for posting such a great list. I will be adding it to the post soon. Just fabulous! I have the BEST readers! (-:
And sorry this reply took so long, I’ve had some issues with the comments on my site the last few days.
I really appreciate you breaking the survival kit into smaller steps, it seems so overwhelming at first, that you make it achievable. Thanks, for our family we have a sleeping bag for each of us and a couple extra sleeping bags for our car in winter. Here in Colorado in the mountains, weather can be a little unpredictable, there’s a running joke, if you don’t like the weather, wait 5 minutes, not really true, but it teaches us to be more prepared. Thanks again for your help and your blog. I hope you know how much your work and effort is appreciated!!
Thank you Kelly! Comments like this make my day! I enjoy what I do, but it is so encouraging to know that it is appreciated! You sound very prepared in this area!
This is an area that I have been doing some research into. We currently don’t have sleeping bags in our to go area. We each have an emergency blanket, but nothing for cold nights. We live in the Pacific Northwest were temperatures can get well below freezing. With 8 of us to think about, it gets to be very expensive and heavy.
Yes, I can see how that would get quite pricey! Just get one or two at a time. That will always be better than nothing. If you’ve got young kids, you could even share…would actually keep you warmer that way. And lots of good old fashioned blankets you already own work fine too. Even if they don’t fit in your pack, just keep them close to it!
I LIKE THOSE NEW BLANKETS FROM SHELF RELIANCE SO I THINK I WILL PURCHASE TWO. AND I WILL STOCK UP ON THE CHEAP EMERGENCY BLANKETS.
I’ve got lots and lots of those emergency blankets…so easy to store!
We now have two of the Featherlight Bags (we won them when we were following you the first round of prepping. Thanks!) and I have to say that they are FANTASTIC! They take up so much less space than my old 40 degree plus bags and since we live in an area that can easily drop below zero, they are necessary. We haven’t tossed the old bags however. You lose so much heat when trying to sleep on the ground, so we keep them as padding underneath us. I also keep a emergency bag in the car that has an old quilted blanket, just in case.
I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed them! Yay!
One thing to remember about the big fluffy sleeping bags. Don’t store them in stuff sacks. They lose their loft. I use the big mesh bags with drawstrings that are used for laundry. When needed for emergencies, put them in the stuff sack.
Also a bivy sack on the outside of the sleeping bag adds about 10 degrees to the sleeping bag and keeps it cleaner. Then using a fleece liner will also add about 10 degrees to the bag. If you wear a stocking cap it will make you warmer and also keep the bag cleaner.
Thanks for the great tips. We store our sleeping bags similarly, but I’d never thought of a bivy sack. Thank you!
I think I will be going with the emergency thermal sleeping bag – it’s the easiest on the pocket book right now – but I really like the look of the “Blizzard” bag. I think I will upgrade to that when we can manage it. (Or maybe that’s what I’ll request for this year’s anniversary present!)
I think emergency supplies make great gifts Mary (but of course I do, right?)
I think a suggestion would be to get those big supersized Ziplock bags and throw the rolled up sleeping bags in, maybe a dryer sheet or two. That way you make sure little critters dont make it into your stuff.
Thanks for the tip Heather! I will be sure to add it next time I come around to this week! (-:
@ Marcia: Take your time. Get what you really want! And what a sad, sad story! Motivates me to go re-stock our car kit!
@ Karlie
Oh my! That type of experience would certainly convince me of the need for preparing. So glad you were okay. And how awesome that you are able to have a fully stocked 5th wheel on your property!
We have 2 children AND a huge 5th wheel which we keep on our property – all stocked. When I was pregnant with my youngest, there was an earthquake in our area. Two women were killed when a building collapsed – I was about a 1/2 mile away. Scared me to death. As a resultI appreciate the need for preparing for a disaster. Anyway, love your site!
A couple of years ago, a couple with 2 small children were stuck in the snow by driving on an un-plowed road in Northern California. After a couple days, the husband walked out to get help. The wife was found with her children doing fairly well. However the husband was found deceased. I have often thought that they all would be safe if only they had with them a 72 hour kit. So sad.
Hi Misty. Thrilled that I won this week but still have trouble deciding what I want/need. My car is pretty well stocked. Now I am focusing on what I would do if I couldn't get to my trailer and my house was damaged. I have a shed out back that would suit my needs – plus those of my 3 little dogs and I cat (minus the spiders).
@ Julie: Good for you!
@ Sabrina: That works for now!
@ hartlandmama: WOW! Impressive. Where do you even find down booties?
The whole family (right down to the 4 yo) is outfitted with low degree mummy bags, thermarest sleeping pads, and down booties! We have a 4 season 3 person tent, but will have to consider something larger.
We both have sleeping bags just from camping. They aren't anything special but they are warm. I do eventually want to get the fleece sleeping bag and a couple of thermal blankets.
Each one of our children, besides babies, and ourselves have warm sleeping bags in our BOBs : )
@ Kelly H: Thanks! I'm glad you are finding it helpful.
@Betty: Yes, you can use the credit toward a consultant kit. However, all the free product I get is at retail price. The consultant kit costs $320 retail, so even with the credit you would be paying $250. The regular $199 sale price through me is a better deal.
@ Stormy: Glad you remembered the baby!
This has got me rolling on what I need for my family thanks for great ideas hope I win to get going on being prepared
We have two sleeping bags we will be adding, as well as a small fleece blanket for the baby in case she were to need extra warmth.
Misty- If I win can I use my credit towards a consulatnt kit
I have been enjoying and learning alot from your blog. It's been giving me ideals on preparing.
This has been such a wonderful series. I have started to collect things and am looking for some great sales on sleeping bags this holiday season.
No Linda, not normal, but I have had it happen to me once or twice. I haven't been able to figure out what is causing it here on blogger, but when I move to wordpress next month it will be resolved. Commenting will be much, much simpler.
Misty,
Just wanted you to know it took me about 3 tries selecting the Post Comment button for it to actually post. Is this normal?
My husband are currently looking into getting backpack sleeping bags for us and our 4 year old son…with liners inside. It doesn't get extremely cold where we live but we never know where we'll live when we may have to be outside with all our gear…so the debate is: what temperature range sleeping bag do we get but at least we're trying to figure that out…We have settled on multiday hiking back packs from REI that are on sale for $124.99! Great deal for the size and type of back pack!