Packing with No Wrinkles???

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Originally Posted by Craig720

He suggested using a duffle bag.

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The problem with duffle bags (unless they are clear) is that you can forget what you have. I use a small duffle for the cans of emergency food I carry, but in my experience, if you can't see what is in the box, you tend to forget it is there. The other reason for using a banker's box is it is much tougher than a standard cardboard box and it has handles. I duct-tape the edges to protect against abrasions. Instead of an air compressor, I am thinking seriously of using a PowerTank. I always carry extra jackets and getting-under-the-car-in-the-mud type of clothes.

Mark

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Originally Posted by Editor

The problem with duffle bags (unless they are clear) is that you can forget what you have. I use a small duffle for the cans of emergency food I carry, but in my experience, if you can't see what is in the box, you tend to forget it is there. The other reason for using a banker's box is it is much tougher than a standard cardboard box and it has handles. I duct-tape the edges to protect against abrasions. Instead of an air compressor, I am thinking seriously of using a PowerTank. I always carry extra jackets and getting-under-the-car-in-the-mud type of clothes.

Mark

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Quite true. Hadn't thought of that. You've piqued my curiosity. What kind of canned emergency food do you have? That's something I've never stowed in the car. I assumed the interior heat of the vehicle would do bad things to canned food. And where would one get banker's boxes? I've heard of them but I've never seen any. I've always used the boxes that hold reams of copier paper. The PowerTank looks cool. That bears further investigation.

-- Craig

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Originally Posted by Craig720

Quite true. Hadn't thought of that. You've piqued my curiosity. What kind of canned emergency food do you have?

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I can tell you have never been stuck in an ice storm! I always carry the following cans of food: 1-2 Spam, 1-2 corned beef hash, 3-4 fruit cocktail, 1 box of crackers. Plus I keep "fresh" food on every trip -- for some really great suggestions, click here.

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I assumed the interior heat of the vehicle would do bad things to canned food.

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C-Rations are still good 30+ years -- but we make a point to rotate cans every 12-16 months.

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And where would one get banker's boxes? I've heard of them but I've never seen any.

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Any office good store stocks them (Office Depot, Office Max, etc.) I llike the ones sold under the Office Depot brand -- they have a very clever unfolding design!

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The PowerTank looks cool. That bears further investigation.

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Yeah, I am going to get a couple and test them out.

Mark

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Originally Posted by Judy

It's interesting how this has switched from wrinkles to planning your packing.
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My husband gives me a bad time for carrying so much but I love it. I feel like I'm ready for anything.
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I was thinking your location was perhaps Arizona, because you are WAY more prepared than I am. Arizona can make you think you're the last person on earth.

Your location, however, appears to be Washington state. Are there large portions of that state that seem deserted, or are you simply extraordinarily well-prepared for life's little inconveniences?

-- Craig

Good question. I live in tsunami country. Every 300-600 years going back several thousand years, my area has experienced devestating tsunamis on the order of the one in the Indian Ocean last year. If the Cascadia Plate releases pressure, we would have about 10 minutes (if you are on the coast itself) or 20 minutes (in the town I live in on a harbor) to get to high ground or be wiped out.

Since the last event happened around the year 1700, we are due for the next catastrophic event.

I have re-figured how I carry these items since I wrote that post due to the fact that there will likely be no roads to drive on if this event occurs. The earthquake will happen about 10 miles off the coast (about 20 miles from my house) and is expected to be on the magnitude of a 9.0+. To give you an idea of what this means:

Richter TNT for Seismic Example
Magnitude Energy Yield (approximate)

-1.5 6 ounces Breaking a rock on a lab table
1.0 30 pounds Large Blast at a Construction Site
1.5 320 pounds
2.0 1 ton Large Quarry or Mine Blast
2.5 4.6 tons
3.0 29 tons
3.5 73 tons
4.0 1,000 tons Small Nuclear Weapon
4.5 5,100 tons Average Tornado (total energy)
5.0 32,000 tons
5.5 80,000 tons Little Skull Mtn., NV Quake, 1992
6.0 1 million tons Double Spring Flat, NV Quake, 1994
6.5 5 million tons Northridge, CA Quake, 1994
7.0 32 million tons Hyogo-Ken Nanbu, Japan Quake, 1995; Largest Thermonuclear Weapon
7.5 160 million tons Landers, CA Quake, 1992
8.0 1 billion tons San Francisco, CA Quake, 1906
8.5 5 billion tons Anchorage, AK Quake, 1964
9.0 32 billion tons Chilean Quake, 1960
10.0 1 trillion tons (San-Andreas type fault circling Earth)
12.0 160 trillion tons (Fault Earth in half through center,
OR Earth's daily receipt of solar energy)

The chart is hard to read. Basically the only known earthquake to be a 9.0 magnitude was the 1960 Chilean earthwuake. The 1989 San Francisco quake would have been equal to about 5 Million tons of TNT. The 1906 SF quake would be about 1 BILLION tons, and a 9.0 earthquake would be even 32 times stronger at about 32 BILLION tons of TNT!!!!! Scary stuff, eh?

If I survive the quake, I will need to run like heck through a destroyed world to get to high ground. I don't trust being able to get to emergency supplies at my home since my home will likely resemble a pancake and, since I'm rarely home all that much anyway, I carry the supplies in my car. I have moved the most critically-needed gear into a fanny-pack that I can grab and that will be light enough to carry while running like heck. My car carries other stuff that I likely couldn't carry and run with but if I'm lucky enough to be able to get my car to higher ground, it's there.

The Cascadia fault runs from northern California to Alaska. The quake is expected to devestate cities farther in-land like Seattle, Portland, Vancouver BC, etc. I figure it will be at least a week, maybe longer, before lower population areas like where I live will get emergency assistance. Gosh, after what we all saw happen with Katrina, it could be 2 weeks or more before someone comes to rescue us. The way I figure it, if I survive the quake (somewhat unlikely), I will need to depend upon myself for at least 1-2 weeks.

My entire family have these emergency packs in our cars.

I also drive a few stretches of road fairly regularly where, if you are stranded, there is no cell service and the nearest home can be several miles away, and the nearest gas station or other business can be even farther. I figure if I'm unable to drive for some reason, especially if it's night, I want to be able to make myself comfortable. I also do some hiking and will go up logging roads. Since few people are on these roads on the weekends, I could find myself in a situation where I need to make myself comfortable for a couple of days until the logging crews return to work. Cellphone service is very spotty on those areas.

So, yeah, with all of these possibilities, I think it's smart to be prepared. I guess I'm a "hope for the best/prepare for the worst" type of person.

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Originally Posted by Judy

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My entire family have these emergency packs in our cars.
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So, yeah, with all of these possibilities, I think it's smart to be prepared. I guess I'm a "hope for the best/prepare for the worst" type of person.

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Thanks for the reply. You've given this tons of thought. I am in awe.

-- Craig

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Originally Posted by Craig720

Thanks for the reply. You've given this tons of thought. I am in awe.

-- Craig

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Thanks, but I'm not alone in this. The communities along the coast have had a lot of public meetings about this issue and local authorities are working hard to get people to take this issue seriously.

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Originally Posted by Craig720

If anyone has enjoyed success in "gearing up" their Forester, Honda CR-V, Toyota RAV4, or other carlike SUV, I would appreciate knowing how you did it. I'm a bit at loose ends here.

-- Craig

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Congrats on your new car. You can ask around on www.offroadsubarus.com, they have some good ideas on how to handle stuff like that. www.subaruforester.org is another good site, but it was completely rebuilt recently, so a lot of the previous info is not up yet. Also, look around on some jeep sites like www.rockcrawler.com or www.jeepsunlimited.com, they're the gurus when packing a small vehicle with loads of stuff. Personally, I carry my stuff in old backpacks that I no longer use. They're much tougher than regular dufflebags, a lot easier to handle than boxes, and can be carried if you need to leave the car for any reason. Plus they conform to the space in the back of the car easier. I used to use the small rubbermaid containers or "action packers", but they're then you have to strap them down, you can't really toss them around when rearranging stuff, and there was a lot of wasted space in the nooks and crannies of my car. I still carry one when camping, just because it makes a good bench or table.

One idea I've done is getting a rear strut brace (a bar that connects the two shock towers) and put elastic netting across there. That gives you a small space right behind the rear seats to store items. The netting prevents it from shifting, and can fit small bags or other stuff without protruding into the cargo area too much

For the air compressor, I recommend getting a decent 12V compressor that conects straight to the battery, NOT one of the ones that plug into the cigarette lighter. Those aren't strong enough for automobile tires. Usually, the good ones run in the $250 range and are meant for offroaders. This one has gotten a lot of good reviews, and is about $60 on sale.

http://gearinstalls.com/pepboys.htm

I just got one, and it works better than any other portable compressor I've ever owned. The powertank is really nice, but requires refilling if you use it often. Air is free, and if you hook up a small 2 gallon tank to the compressor, you have an unlimited source of compressed air. Also, since i always have a portable jumpstarter in my car, I can have a portable compressor.

As for food, I carry dry food like granola bars and individual bags of trailmix, because it's cheap, has a long shelf life, and isn't as damageable (<----is that even a word?). Even when crushed, you just eat the crumbs like cereal. Most of my gear is very similar to my backpacking and camping gear, because it's basically the same stuff. Canned food is good, but just like when camping, the weight and size get to be a concern, especially in a smaller car.

Another great source for info is www.equipped.org. It's a survival preparedness site, not a suvivalist site. There's a big difference between the two. There are many, many threads dealing with this.


Edit: I just realized this post was about packing with no wrinkles. Well, the emergency gear that I pack doesn't wrinkle, so I guess it applies. :D

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Originally Posted by LA Native

Another great source for info is www.equipped.org. It's a survival preparedness site, not a suvivalist site. There's a big difference between the two. There are many, many threads dealing with this.

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Thanks for the reply. Rest assured I will be checking out the sites you suggested. All but one, that is. I'm already a member of Equipped.org. Have been for years. I was the first "Craig" to register there, so that's my Equipped handle. Great site. I was one of the first in line for Doug Ritter's Personal Survival Pak (PAK). I have two. One is autographed. One is in my shoulder bag.

-- Craig

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Originally Posted by Judy

Thanks, but I'm not alone in this. The communities along the coast have had a lot of public meetings about this issue and local authorities are working hard to get people to take this issue seriously.

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I try to get people here, in southeastern PA, to take things more seriously, and I get called "Eeyore." Siblings tell me that whatever happens, happens. Sigh.

whew! this topic could go on forever...

I keep a blue recycle bin in my car trunk with all the usual vehicle necessities (that you never need 'cause you HAVE them with you - You always end up loaning your jerry can or booster cables to someone ELSE!! Murphy's Law).

This last trip to Europe was the first and only time I haven't thoroughly planned to the minutest detail everything I needed to pack. We had been overly busy at work and plans to get away early or at least half-decently somewhere near 5 p.m. any day in the couple weeks prior, just was impossible.
Ends up I dashed home with 45 minutes to spare until I was supposed to be on the way. I was throwing things out of the closest into a bag in the last half hour with folks standing in my living-room waiting to take me to the airport.
Surprisingly... I found once I arrived in Munich that I had not forgotten anything, and amazingly enough my clothes were the least wrinkled of many well planned packings.

:-)

Full Circle - Very Nice!

AZBuck

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Originally Posted by Syv

...amazingly enough my clothes were the least wrinkled of many well planned packings.

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And the world keeps on turning...

Mark

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Originally Posted by Craig720

I try to get people here, in southeastern PA, to take things more seriously, and I get called "Eeyore." Siblings tell me that whatever happens, happens. Sigh.

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Yeah, I've been told I'm being a negative person for wanting to be prepared. It's silly, isn't it? It's not like I go around scared all the time or thinking everyday about how I'm gonna get wiped out. It took little time to put the bags together. They sit in the trunk. When we turn the clocks ahead and back for daylight savings time, it's my cue to rotate the food/drink items out and replace with fresh ones. That's really about the only time I even think about the whole deal....except, of course, when conversations like this come up.

Take care!

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Originally Posted by Judy

They sit in the trunk. When we turn the clocks ahead and back for daylight savings time, it's my cue to rotate the food/drink items out and replace with fresh ones.

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That is a great idea as a memory cue. I will have to adopt that one. About the only problems I have with my trunk gear are:

I tend to forget what I have in there and when I pick up someone at the airport, there is no (or very little) room in the trunk (or the boot) for their bags. I guess I just need a larger trunk!

Mark

You just need to tell 'em to take the bus! LOL

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Originally Posted by Syv

I keep a blue recycle bin in my car trunk with all the usual vehicle necessities (that you never need 'cause you HAVE them with you)

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That is exactly why I carry tire chains 365 days a year. I hate putting them on and I know that if I always carry them, the appropriate weather gods will conspire to ensure that I never need them. I also always carry 2-3 extra jackets -- friends never seem to remember them and I hate to see folks shivering...

Mark

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Originally Posted by Craig720

The PowerTank looks cool. That bears further investigation.

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Craig, I had Del Albright, the RTA off-highway expert, report on his experiences with the PowerTank. His article is online here.

Mark

Digging up this old thread, pulled from a link from the Blitz Drive thread. Wow, I'm totally showing my n00bness here. I moderate/administer a few other Off-Road and Truck/SUV based forums, and it always drives me crazy when some new guy comes along and digs up a thread that has been lying dormant for ages. LOL. Anyways....

In RE to the PowerTank, I've got several friends who have the PowerTank brand and they love it. I have a similar concept, but it is not the PowerTank Brand. I made my own CO2 system using a CO2 welding tank (can be purchased for less than $80) and regulator (I got mine on eBay for $30), and an inexpensive Air Fitting kit from Home Depot ($25), and a 50 foot, coiled air hose ($10), and a mounting bracket for a 10lb CO2 tank from PowerTank. The PowerTank hard-mounting brackets will secure any 10lb (5lb, 15lb, or 20lb) CO2 tank, since they are a universal, standard size. I bought a used bracket on eBay for $5, a little bit of spray paint, and it was as good as new and ready to mount in the back of my truck.

Here's a picture of my CO2 setup. This was before I bought the correct bracket. A buddy of mine had that one and gave it to me to use until the right one arrived, because I was going out 4-wheeling that weekend, and needed to mount the CO2. Oh well.

I also have a hard-mounted, 12V air compressor in the spare tire well underneath my truck. I have a 5-gallon air tank that stores air at 125PSI regulated by a pressure switch mounted under the truck as well. The air tank goes into a manifold and has three outputs. Two are regulated down to 90PSI to run ARB Air Lockers in my front and rear differentials (don't have the front one yet, but the air is there for it when I get it!), and to a quick disconnect as a backup air source to the CO2. The CO2 is much faster than the Compressed air. My Air Compressor is a Viair 450H, with 100% duty cycle at 100PSI and 4CFM of output. I can also use the third output to run air tools if I need it.

I'm currently living in Phoenix, AZ (seems like there are a lot of us here!), and I do a lot of desert 4-wheeling. I need to be prepared for anything. Here's my overall, worst-case, back-country preparedness list....careful, it's long.

- On Board CO2 air source
- On Board Compressed Air Source
- 2 Full Size Spare Tires
- Hi-Lift Jack with front, rear and side jacking points thanks to receiver hitches and Rock Sliders.
- 2 5-gallon NATO gas cans
- 3 Fire Extinguishers (One on the passenger's A-Pillar, one mounted by the liftgate, and a mini-extinguisher under the hood). I check/refill/replace every Solstice.
- EMT Bag with small oxygen tank for assisted breathing in poor air situations (i.e. forest fire)
- Full set of metric and SAE hand tools
- Assortment of air tools
- CB Radio with NOAA Weather Radio and Weather Alert
- 5m HAM Radio
- 2 FRS Radios
- 2 GMRS Radios
- Pre-paid cell phone with backup charger (in case regular cell phone doesn't have service, I have a backup on a different network)
- Power Inverter
- GPS
- Regular Cell phone
- 7" Buck Knife
- 4" folding knife
- Other means of protection from unsavories or wildlife
- Firestarters
- Windproof/waterproof lighter
- windproof/waterproof matches
- at least 6 road flares
- citronella candles (mosquitos LOVE me)
- Emergency candles
- Emergency cash
- Large Ziplock bag with dry clothes
- JetBoil compact cooking stove w/ extra cans of fuel(heat and food)
- 1 Gallon Jug of filtered drinking water
- assortment of non-perishable food
- assortment of spare truck parts (belts, hoses, alternator, water pump, thermostat, etc)

Then of course there is the rest of the spare truck parts that could break while I'm off-road, and all the camping stuff on top of the fresh food and clothing and what not.

Here's a link to a picture of my truck on the Kane Creek trail in Moab, UT. :)

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Originally Posted by findapath

In RE to the PowerTank, I've got several friends who have the PowerTank brand and they love it.

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I use mine pretty often as well. Nice pricing on the self-made version!

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I also have a hard-mounted, 12V air compressor in the spare tire well underneath my truck. I have a 5-gallon air tank that stores air at 125PSI regulated by a pressure switch mounted under the truck as well. The air tank goes into a manifold and has three outputs. Two are regulated down to 90PSI to run ARB Air Lockers in my front and rear differentials (don't have the front one yet, but the air is there for it when I get it!), and to a quick disconnect as a backup air source to the CO2. The CO2 is much faster than the Compressed air. My Air Compressor is a Viair 450H, with 100% duty cycle at 100PSI and 4CFM of output. I can also use the third output to run air tools if I need it

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.That does sound like the hot set-up. I have a back-up air compressor too, but I only use it when I want a good excuse to sit around and look at the sky for a hour or so....

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I'm currently living in Phoenix, AZ (seems like there are a lot of us here!), and I do a lot of desert 4-wheeling. I need to be prepared for anything.

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That is a good list one I may "borrow" from.

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3 Fire Extinguishers (One on the passenger's A-Pillar, one mounted by the liftgate, and a mini-extinguisher under the hood). I check/refill/replace every Solstice.

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That refil date on the Solitice is really good. I hate to think when I last refilled those extingushers....

Thanks again for the ideas!

I re-wrote and organized the material in the original Blitz post here.

Mark

I'm glade that I've found this forum. Here I've found some interesting information.I'm preparing to try some Arizona tours and I didn't know how much I have to do to be very well prepared. Thanks for all this information they are very useful.

What a useful thread! I don't think I've come across it before and have only skimmed it but learnt a lot already. Going back to read it properly now :)

Ah, I remember this thread! Back when I was working for the Auto Club. So long ago it seems.

It's an excellent read. I have to go home this evening and REPACK my trunk, and get rid of a few things I no longer need.

Lots of great info on this thread. On the topic of avoiding wrinkles: I always pack a spray bottle. Any clothes with wrinkles, I spray down and let dry, or just wear out (body heat helps "iron," lol.) It works better with some clothes than others, but I know my clothes before I pack 'em. If something is really wrinkled, I hose it down under the shower and let drip dry if there's time. To avoid wrinkles in the first place, I pack clothes in a roll of sorts -- the stuff I don't care about in the middle (like sweatpants), then sort of drape the "good" clothes over them, so they're not as wrinkled. This is all done to avoid ironing, which I hate. I iron only when needed for professional clothes.