# Kit Prep and Item Maintenance



## sailaway (Mar 12, 2009)

I have a dilema of storing parts of my BOB. I was looking at my tent, therma rest matress and a sleeping bag over the weekend. The Thermarest is folded, rolled and stored in its carrying bag in my backpack. I unrolled and inflated it this weekend, also unpacked my down sleeping bag and pulled tent out. I keep them cleaned but have noticed that the tent smells quite tenty, the Western Mountaineering took quite a while to puff up and the Threma rest has a crease down the middle of it from being stored in its sack. Recomendations from the factory on all three of these items say to keep them unpacked and stored hanging or flat until they are going to be used. This will add to their useful life. My question is do you keep your pack ready to go or do you keep these items out, stored near and spend an extra 10-15 minutes packing to bug out?


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## Jerry D Young (Jan 28, 2009)

I keep them packed and ready to go, but take everything out from time to time to allow them to breath and relax. Not the best solution, but I may not have fifteen minutes to get ready to evac.


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## doc66 (Apr 13, 2009)

I take care of this in a different way. I use my BOB for camping a couple times a year to rotate my perishables. I also do NOT pack a tent, air mattress and some of the other "Camping" items that are found in many BOB's. My BOB is a get home bag and I have designed it as a 100 miles or less GHB. The area where I live will provide me with many opportunities to get out of the weather with abandoned buildings, out buildings and such. My tent is a simple survival tube tent, it and the emergency blanket along with my 50 degree bag will get me through a cold night, not comfortably, but alive. The Survival blanket I use as a cover for the bag so that I am not bathed in my own sweat at the end of the night. Doing it this way allows me to regulate the temperature and vent as needed. As for ground cover, I'll use old leaves and brush and whatever else I can find as insulation and bedding. 

Now as for the camping end of it all, I keep my Therma-rest unrolled, valve open and hanging with my sleeping bag in the basement. The cells will break down over time, but as long as you have no punctures or a broken valve it will act as an air mattress and keep you off the ground. Down bags will loft better than a synthetic one as long as the tubes inside the bag remain undamaged. Hanging them makes them last longer, but it also settles the insulation if they are left hanging in one direction too long. 

I personally would not use a down bag the way my BOB is set up, once my down is wet, it's as worthless as a, well, wet blanket. A synthetic bag will provide warmth even when wet. Newer bags pack nearly as light and small as a down. The only time down really gets the nod any more is if you are going to do extreme cold weather camping. I've use my synthetic bag with no tent in sub-temps and slept fine, albeit with snow covering me in the morning.


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## Canadian (Dec 14, 2008)

I keep everything packed. As long as the gear functions I'm happy. The only thing I check regularly is the car and the gun.


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## sgt.doug (Jun 1, 2009)

originally we kept bob's with everything in them but the kitchen sink...but ive changed my thinking......quick escape and evasion tactics(routes dependant on number of idiots clogging up traditional roads) would not be feasible for individuals to pack out tons of stuff...so i thought that if i knew the destination and could cache stores then really no need to haul a lot of gear.....just the basics...48 hour survival gear....oh yea ....and lots of ammo.
then there came the group and lots of ways i was thinking were proven to be the wrong approach.....but collectively they squared me away and i now see the error of my thinking....but really its up to each individual......a single person may not need the gear a couple needs or a family needs etc.


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