72 Hour Kit Warning

Thank you for the pop up heads up. Our family group is reviewing and updating our kits so this is very timely info.

May I suggest to recycle your 72 hr. food kits every 6 months. Break them open and eat them during General Conference. The kids look forward to it and it keeps your kits recycled without waste, but make sure you have a new one first for your kit.

Most kits need to be checked on at least once a year. Some items such as water pouches and food bars have a shelf life up to 5 years but it is always safer to check and eat or drink it before it expires.

These are great comments, thank you for sharing them. I usually put a note 6 months later in my calendar to remind myself to cycle the food.
-Rachel

I found that Jolly Rancher candy melts and gets all over everything. We had our 72 hour kits in the garage in a #10 can and I went to check on how well they were holding up, well my J/R melted all over everything and it was just a big sticky mess.

Thanks Michelle for sharing this with us! I added your comment to the original post so hopefully more people will see your warning.

I had a friend several years ago suggest that you update your 72 hour kits every six months and do it at conference time. So I started doing that and it works wonderfully. Every April and every October I check for leaks and expiration dates. If it will expire before the next conference then I take it out and use it right away and replace it with something fresh. I replace items that don’t have a date in October like instant oatmeal and hot cocoa mixes. Makes it very easy!

I found out that the packaged crackers and jerky also do not last long. We think if you take it out of the original package and put it in shrink wrap it might last longer.

One good idea I received by email is to “consider investing money into emergency food bars, MRE’s, and mountain freeze dried foods… they are specifically designed to hold up to outdoor temperatures and have a shelf life of up to 5 years.”

I do NOT recommend beef jerky in a kit that you are sealing in a #10 can. My MIL gave us kits as gifts (LOL). Later, I opened them to recycle what I could, eat what we could, etc… EVERYTHING smelled & tasted like teriyaki beef jerky – even the Jolly Ranchers absorbed the taste (as well as the granola bars, hot chocolate…). LOL – Live & learn!

I’ve noticed some 72-hour kits have sticks of mint gum in them,but it causes EVERYTHING in the #10 cans to taste like the gum. Might not sound like a big deal, but believe me you will have trouble eating beef flavored top ramen if it smells like peppermint!!

Also, I noticed a lot of people complaining about spoiled food?? Are you people rotating your kits?? They are not meant to last for more than 6 months. If even that long. Always remember to rotate!! And only put foods that you will eat, so that when it comes to rotating them you will enjoy them and not just toss them out!

Here is another suggestion: Don’t buy a soap like Irish Spring or other strong smelling soap because some of your food stuffs could take on that taste….I speak from experience….lol.

I think a space bag that you can suck the air out of with a vacuum would work great in making your 72 hour kit clothing take up less room, I haven’t tried yet but it’s on my to do list!

I live in NC which is always hurricane-prone. I suggest using a separate container for soaps, toothpaste etc. from your food container. I put sugar/creamer/salt/pepper/soups etc, things like that in ziplock bags (each separate); I use ziplock bags for anything that might leak; keep candy, crackers, etc. in ziplocks. I also put toothpaste, mouthwash, soaps, etc. in them also.

As for using the storage bags you suck air out – I’ve found that they all manage to leak – air gets back in!!!!!

I also check everything every 6 months and rotate the canned goods anyway. That way I know for sure, if it’s needed, everything is fresh and ready.

God Bless!

These are great ideas, thanks for sharing them!

Another rule in rotation is to remember the food service FIFO/ First In First Out when storing anything. You can use a permanent marker to put the date of purchase on each item, that way you will be sure you use it before it goes bad.
As for rotating things I like the every 6 month idea. Although I’m not LDS I like the October/April time span because my birthday is in October so it will be easy to remember. Or you can use the month you started and count forward 6 months and mark it on your calendar.
I agree also about storing non food items separately from food items. Remember too if you have strong smelling bath soap it will make your clothes smell too!
I’ll be preparing for 2 adults and 3 small children age 6 and under.
Since I’m in south central TX where the summers are hot, humid, and several months long, my emergency food storage will be beneath the bunk bed I sleep on where there is air conditioning. Oh yes, don’t put any kind of chocolate candy away as it will melt even quicker than the hard candy.

Thank you so much for all the wonderful information. I am making each of my 6 children a 72-Hour kit, as well as one for my husband and one for me, for Christmas. Things are getting a little troublesome and this year all we are doing for Christmas is emergency supplies and school needs. That is it.
Thanks again for the great tips as some of the items metioned above I was going to pack…i will rethink my supplies.

We just made it through IKE. (14 days without power). Things that work for us; I had all of the food supplies for our kits in one area of our food storage. It contained only food, water and milk we liked and use. I replace items when they are use or move them to items use daily when I buy item to replace food storage. i.e when I buy tuna, I take it from the 72 hour kit and move it to regular storage and put the new in the 72 hour kit. Remember some people (men) eat more that a small can of tuna on crackers. To keep supplies fresh you can also send some of the item in school lunches. All non food items are in backpacks with a list of food that should be place in it if asked to leave. Also don’t forget you pet water and food. It was wonderful not to have to wait in line for hours for food and water. We also had a small generator that we switched the freezer and friege. Food storage was great after the 72 hours. The stores didn’t have any items that had to be cold and bread was gone quickly. The stores near us didn’t have any fresh produce. Having a gas grill in the back yard help with the cooking (you can bake rolls on them).
Hope you only need your kits for General Conf. Judy

Also some good information on the boxes given out during Ike. I didn’t have to go to a POD for food or water but help take food and water to senior who needed help. A one day supply in a box contain the follow items:
Breakfast cereal bowl, fruit cup, pop tart(2), granola bar or nutri grain bar or raisin or sunflower seeds 1 box of milk, Lunch can entree of tuna or chicken or ham salad or bar b que beef 7.5 oz. hamburger bun or 4 crackers or 6 bread sticks, 1 fruit cup, 1 pudding cup or cookies, pringle chips (or other chips) or cheese crackers or peanut butter crackers. Dinner 15 0z. or two 7.5 oz. entree which could be Breans & Franks, Ravioli, Lasagna, Beef-A-Roni, Chili Mac, Sjpaghetti, Beef Stew, Chicken & pasta, 5 oz. Vienna Sausage, or Red Beans & Rice. 1 fruit cup, 1 cookie or pudding cup other item in the kit were 1 mint, 2 moistened towellete, 3 cutlery kits. Kits were in a small box and should be stored at room temperature.

Wow Judy, thanks for sharing some of your experience/expertise with us. What a great resource your food storage and 72 hour kits must have been for you and your family while you were without power and going through this!

Were you able to stay home the entire time or did you have to evacuate at all?

I’ve added a fun poll: Could You Survive without Power for 14 Days?

I have a tip that I stole from Nalgene. While looking a Nalgene’s website for some new BPA-free water bottles. I found want I was looking for and also noticed they sold first aid kits and other misc kits inside Nalgene bottles. Great idea! Now I know what to do with all of my old polycarbonate waterproof bottles. Use them in my 72-hour kit to seal and protect the essentials and goodies. I am planning to put copies of all my docs in one for example.

We did a test for an Enrichment night activity. We had 3 families in our ward live on their food storage for 2 weeks and then report back. I was one of the lucky ones who got to do it and report. It was a great lesson on the things I needed more of (like pet food). I encourage everyone to try it out before you need it!

I want to say thank you ladies for sharing this knowledge. I am a young mom of 3 children and I really dont have any experience in food storage. I am now trying to start a food storage and a 72 hour kits. I am excited and nervous all bunched together. I know that this is what has to be done. Thanks for giving me great ideas.

Great comment thread. We have been revamping some of our emergency prep stuff(72 hour kit, camping survival kits, food storage, etc) this weekend. Came across this website while looking to see what was new in the area. We have 7 children from ages 16 years down to 1 month. I have been thinking about doing the test mentioned above to see how well we would d0. I was thinking doing a 2 week and then a 4 week test… both would be no power and no trips to the store. My only limitation would be potential gas for my work vehicle for the 4 week run, but if it were a real emergency, that would not be a factor.

Shane

One great way to store the 72 hr kit is in a large vacuum sealed bag (seal a meal etc) Our kits were done up that way and when it was time to rotate, I gave them to the guys going back packing with the Scout Troop. It fit easily in the backpacks and kept the food dry when the canoes tipped.

The best thing I found for 72 hr kits, is just to buy a small one in a back pack or bucket. Mine are all good for 5 years. They contain water, food bar and other neccessities. It prevents needing a can opener, icky sticky messes and it get the job done, cheap and easy. I found mine at http://www.marlenesmagic.com

cr

These are great ideas. We put small boxes of raisins in ours and they got all yucky and leaked all over everything.

We have 6 people in our family, and have 7 backpacks that we use as our 72 hour/emergency evacuation kits. Each family member has their own backpack filled with what they need to survive for 3 days – the extra backpack has all the first aid, and the extras that are not needed in each backpack. That way you seperate the food from the first aid – good idea. Also, we have ziplock bags separating most things. The kids had fun – and we rotate and USE the 72 hour kits at conference – the whole weekend is “72 hour kit food only” – that has really helped us figure out what works and what doesn’t. Remember also, that you should also plan for emergency evacuation – that is why backpacks are a great idea. We also have a family rubbermaid bin that we can live off of for 1 week that can be thrown in the back of the van if needed.

We recommend using ziplock bags for some items, like Jerkey, I have dbl bagged so it does not flavor other items, and also chewing gum, i chew mint so I do not want it flavoring stuff.

I love the idea of the Rubbermaid bin.

I like the 1 week supply in the rubbermaid tote. I would love to know what they put in it

can we get the contents listed for the 7 day rubbermaid bin that #30 Becky mentions… that is a great idea. Now days we really need to be ready for ANYTHING. thanks

I emailed Becky to see if she would send me a list of the food/supplies she has in her Rubbermaid bin. If so I will post them on the site!

We lived through Ike too and found a lot of shortcomings in our supplies. Our Dove soap bar made everything smell and taste like it’s scent even though we double bagged it. Any recommendations on a soap that is less scented that we can store in our bin?

I teach Community Disaster Education for the American Red Cross, the Medical Reserve Corps and Community Teamwork Inc. I found your comments and suggestions regarding what does and doesn’t work in the 72 hour kits very helpful and plan to add them to my workshops. Thank you for being prepared. I wish more people would realize it COULD happen to them.

Try to take foods that do not take water to prepare, I see so many 72 hour
kits with things like, instant oatmeal, hot chocolate & soups. The water should be for
drinking & take vitamins & protein bars. I also take a bottle of fiber, not only is
fiber needed but it also swells for a full feeling. I came across what is called
Lifecaps. They are a capsule that has everything needed to survive without food with
the exception of water. It is full of vitamins & minerals plus Iodine. Anyway, you take
three of them a day & drink water. I can actually take enough food in one backpack to
las 6 months because of these little Lifecaps, protein bars, fiber & water. I will run
out of water in a week so I do carry a small filter & a couple of those straw water
filters that filter the water as you suck.
You do not always have the ability or time to heat water to make soup or oatmeal. Anyway,
after I bought 25 bottles I found a coupon code & bought 75 bottles more. The coupon code
is… healthcap It will get you 33% off. There are also sites that have those filter straws
that are cheaper than any of the stores around here. (SLC) I think they are a really good
idea along with some purification pills. I cannot remember the sites off the top of my head
but you can Google for aquamira filter straw. Aquamira is the manufacture but do not buy
off there site because I have found them for almost 1/2 what they want on their own site
on other sites. Good luck, Gods speed & get serious about your bug out bag!
Todd in SLC

Thank you for this post. I’ve gotten a lot of helpful advice. Since the previous poster didn’t respond, I’m posting a link to my 7-day emergency menu. It’s packed in 2 Rubbermaid totes with a third devoted to eating and cooking utensils, the stove, hygiene products, etc.

I hope it’s helpful.

Since I have received so many emails, I am thinking of putting together an extensive list
of items that should be in your 72 hour kit & Bug out Bag.The most important thing you need
is water & since you cannot carry much water, you will need a small water filter. I carry
a small pump water filter that will filter out 99.999% of micro-organisms. I also carry a
straw type filters that filter as you suck through the straw. Just in case I also carry a
bottle of purification pills. Second you need nutrients & the best source of nutrients is
life caps, not only are they pure, real food, easy digestable & you can live on life caps &
water alone, they are light & easy to carry. Great for children & adults, they have all the
vitamins & minerals including iodine to sustain life. When a tragedy or emergency hits,
people do not realize the importance of water, vitamins & minerals during stressful situations.
Fatigue & illness occurs because of lack of nutrients & water. Most of the time the hunger
is not there because of the stress. YOU NEED TO REMEMBER TO TAKE GOOD VITAMINS & DRINK WATER
IN AN EMERGENCY TO STAY HEALTHY & HELP YOURSELF & OTHERS. What is the first thing you do in
an emergency situation on a plane, you put the oxygen mask on yourself then take care of others
around you. First thing in an emergency, you should take life caps & drink water before you do
anything else. You cannot do yourself or anyone else any good if you fall due to stress.
Many elders & children die before people realize they need more than double the vitamins & water
during a stressful situation than during a normal day. Elders & children die because of lowered
immune systems during emergencies.
Please find good water filters, purification pills & get some life caps at lifecaps.net. Type in
“Heathcaps” as your coupon code to save 33%. I did a Google search to find the straw type filters.
The straw filters are made by Aquamira, but do not buy off there site, I found them for 1/2 the price on
other sites.

I looked up the life caps out of curiosity, seems like a good product, but certainly shouldn’t be the forefront of your disaster survival kits. One could survive on nothing but life caps and water for theoretically a great period of time, but with out intake of calories, you risk starvation. Not to be mistaken with malnutrition, they are two different afflictions. Starvation occurs when the body isn’t getting enough calories, and starts to canibalize body tissue, specifically fats and proteins. Calories are your energy and are required for normal function, with is absolutely crucial in a survival situation.

While it would certainly be a good idea to add the life caps to your 72 hour kits, survival kits and/or storage, it should really only be a last resort in dire situations where proper food isn’t available.

Adding a bottle of multivitamins to supplies is favorable to relying on life caps. If food, even food with low nutritional value, but high caloric content, you can take the multivitamins, and have them be effective in preventing malnutrition. Vitamin C is particularly important for preventing scurvy, which can be deadly and rather gruesome. You can go down to your local walmart and pick of a bottle of centrum complete or its generic counterpart for about $12 and $6 respectively, the large bottles come with 300 one a day pills, so they can last a good while.

As a side note, MREs, while they can be rather expensive are very good for these situations, as they require no water, and can be stored for quite a while. If necessary they can also be broken down and you can separate some of the not so necessary items and then vacuum pack them to conserve space.

Also watch your protein and granola bars, many contain palm kernel oil, the only saturated fat that stays a liquid at room temperature. While it extends shelf life, bad fats can be detrimental in a survival situation, notably if these bars take up a great deal of ones diet in these situations.

We keep our 72 hour kits in backpacks in the house so they are never exposed to extreme temperature shifts… we also pull them out and eat them every April and October during General Conference. You guessed it, the next night at FHE we buy replacements and add another “big” item from our wish list– crank radio, purification kit, etc. Each fall we update the kids photos on an index card of emergency information. This has worked really well for us and the kids LOVE to snack on munchies all during conference and I love not being pestered for snack food while trying to listen!

i’ve seen lots of great comments here. In response to #35, I use a scent free liquid soap for my BoB. I’ve found that “scent killer body wash” by the wildlife research center is the best. This is a multi purpose soap (bath, shampoo, hand washing, and disinfecting small wounds) that will not cause everything to smell like soap. simply dip the top of the bottle in melted wax and you greatly reduce the chance of a leak.
you might also look into waterless cleansing towels.
hope this helps.

Im an not of the LDS faith but… I love all your ideas. Im in the process of doing our 72 hr kits, I have all food items packed into milk jugs (idea found on an internet site and cant remember which one) & anyhing that might melt or smell could be vac sealed into mason jars, of course you would need to be careful of glass breakage.

Kudos to Food Storage!! Moved to texas and finally used it for Rita and the worst of all Ike! I had plenty of food and water. I am getting ready to teach a 72 hour kit lesson and Thank you all for your comments! But what about adding a deck of cards or?? did you get bord? I sure did during Hurricane Rita! During Ike we had more than our share to do. Any ideas for entertainment?

ive read about 72 hours kit.im so lucky to have new idea of what the best things to do,i will try it for my family.thank you so much

“If you put regular cans in your 72 hour kit make sure to pack a can opener!”

–Make sure its not an electric can opener either.

these comments are really helpful! Thanks!! But man oh man.. these kits can get expensive! I am trying to pace myself by buying a few things at a time every pay-check.

Excellent ideas. Something that I have just recently done with my 72 hour kits was to put them directly into my trunk. I have made enough for the amount of people in my vehicle and the same with all other vehicles in my family. When it comes to the time when they are needed you might not be at home or you might have to run out of home so fast that often times things get forgotten. dont take the chance of not having them there.

Foodsaver vacuum bags can help keep items longer (not all short term food is sealed well) Also great for keeping important items dry and bug proof, i.e. toothpaste…or even baby wipes (the refill) because they do tend to dry out under normal circumstances…even bottled items to prevent leaking all over…

Great ideas. You might want to make several kits and keep one in the car, one at work, and one inside your house. Check with your children’s schools to see what preparation they have made. Diasters don’t always come when we’re at home. Also, regarding comments 39 and 40, if you regularly eat nutritously, going 3 days without vitamin C or iodine won’t be a problem. Do think about it for your year’s supply, though. Also, be sure to pack fun things to eat and do. My sister had to evacuate for the big fires in San Diego and said she was glad for fun snacks and games/books as the shelters get boring.

You people are retarded. You can’t go 72 hours without your Genealogy Records?!? Or shampoo?!? I thought this site would be helpfull. Turns out thats not true.

As a retired Marine, Medical Doctor and former Boy Scout, I try to always be prepared.
I use a food vacuum-sealer for all the items I store which may leak or melt (sweets, foiled bagged foods, a stack of six tuna cans, etc.). I picked mine up for $40, with two rolls for making any size bag I need, at a discount clearing store near my home. Use these and your stores will not be contaminated by a bad can or melted goo. I make a point to vacuum-bag ALL of the items in my medical kits. I can’t afford to not have those items damaged when there is no hospital availablee in a crisis.

Wow Bill! Slow up. We aren’t all as GREAT as you, apparently. So why don’t you let us know what you have in your 72 hour kit? Maybe we could all be enlightened by you and what you have to say. But this time try it with a bit more kindness and understanding.

Some of you are using zip-lock bags, but be forwarned that plastic does not seal like acrylic vacuum sealing bags do. Believe it or not, plastic does breath. Not much but enough to eventually lose it’s ‘zipped’ quality. Hence the circulation of odours, loss of freshness. As far as I know, bags made with a layer of acrylic, specially for vacuum sealing are the only ones that stay sealed. (I used to sell vacuum sealers-can you tell?)