Yor Friend the Garbage Bag

Ever really wonder what you cando with a 55 Gal. garbage bag? let me give you a few examples of why I always carry a couple in my EDC.

1. The first use is as a rain poncho [duh]

2. How about an emergency shelter. They are easy enough to use as such if you just pull your legs up and slit a breathing hole.

3. A tarp. Just split up the side and they can used as a tarp. Make sure they are tied tightly and cannot flap in the wind.

4. How about as a stretcher? Yep. Simply place to poles of an appropriate length through the bag and you have an improvised stretcher that can carry an average adult.

5. Carrying water. I hope no instruction is needed.

6. storage. again no instruction needed

7. String. Cut loops off of the top of the bag. Pull and stretch the plastic as you twist it. If done properly you have ready made line that can be used for a variety of uses. It will be stronger than you think.

8. An emergency flotation device. Add air and close up the end. You can use this to float across rivers, or even for emergency use in the ocean.

9. Biohazard splash guard.

10. put garbage in it

Fell free to add to the list

respectfully

reluctantpawn

4. How about as a stretcher? Yep. Simply place to poles of an appropriate length through the bag and you have an improvised stretcher that can carry an average adult.

Brilliant! That is easily the most potentially useful thing I have learned today.

Thanks for that.

Jon

if you have two and need waders,pull them up to the thighs and duct tape tight to remove excess..You can spin it to tighten it up..

the top of a solar still..

a drift sock for a small boat

snip off a corner for a funnel

a seat cover if you have to lay in the mud and have to get in your car

a cat trap

if its black you can heat water and light foods in it in hot sun

theres a few more in my cranium..just gotta rattle them loose..


[edit on 3-6-2009 by Redpillblues]

You can cut them into strips and braid the strips together to make a strong rope or cord. I use the strips to crochet rugs that are tough, weather resistant and quite beautiful.

11. Weight Loss Device

Cut a hole middle/bottom for your head, cut out the corners for your arms and go jogging wearing said bag under your t-shirt/tracksuit top! Marvel at the rate that you drop your weight!

I always do it when I want to drop a couple of excess winter pounds quickly. Just be sure to get the fluids back into you afterwards!

IRM

All good ideas. I do want to hear the story of the cat trap. I like cats. They taste like chicken.

respectfully

reluctantpawn

a rain catcher. Just tie the ends to a tree and point the low end toward a barrel or bucket.

Several of them are a must for any survival kit. Great thread.

We should have one of these a day to point out every day items that could save your life.

reply to post by network dude


Check out my new thread on an EDC bag. You may find it interesting. If time allows and people ask for it I may start on on various objects that are available.

respectfully

reluctantpawn

Wow, it truly is magical.

Now that we're on the subject of bags. I for one have never understood why my friend the garbage bag is always heavier than my other friend, the grocery bag.

Interesting that you can make an emergency litter from one.


An emergency litter can also be made from two zipped up jackets.

Put the pole through the sleeves with the jacket in the "arms up" position.

Arms at each end and the jacket bottom meeting in the middle.


In a real windy situation a poncho style piece of raingear - whether Gore-Tex or trash bag - will soon have the poncho streaming out from your neck flag style.

Did that trick on a real rough day at sea in the sailboat.
Poncho's didn't cut it.

On land it would do the same unless you tied the bottom down like a dress.

Don't make it so tight around your legs you can't walk or run....

make a tent out of black trash bags to get warm or hot on a snowy icy day .

Make a trash bag into a kite with sticks for entertainment while surviving.

use as tarp under your sleeping bag to keep moisture out.

Form into a sail with an inflateable raft to get on the other side of a lake.

Burn the plastic bag to get a fire going quicker, plastic burns long and hot.

put feet in bag then put boots on to keep feet dry in muck and mud.

Gather berries and edible greens for dinner later with the bag.

Cut a corner of the bag off and prevent a pregnancy.

poke numerous small holes in bag and use as fish net for minnows .

Did a hole about 2 feet deep cover with bag , place grass on top near rabbit runs! could be used for larger game to.

not tried this but in principle should work!

All these great trash bag ideas and I am surprised no body has mentioned its capacity as a Weapon of Stealth Assassination.

It can also make a nice Halloween costume or good night time camouflage. Who can see black against the night?

Or Maybe your stranded on a desert island and need something to do/ a signal of some kind.... Two lite sticks make a kite in a pinch. YOu can even use the trash bag string to fly it.

Or use the two sticks to build a fire and make a hat garbage bag balloon.

[edit on 9-6-2009 by titorite]

Dig a shallow pit a little smaller in diameter than the garbage bag. Pull up nearby green vegetation and lay it in the hole. Place a container in the middle of the vegetation. Lay the bag flat over the hole and weigh down the edges. Place a small rock in the center of the bag. The plants will release water vapor which the will be trapped by the bag and condense and drip down into the cup.

Add make water out of plants to the list.

Hey,

Most of the uses I know of have alredy been mentioned. Garbage bags have certanly made my life easier on the few occasions when I've had to use them (most recently to make a shelter when caught in a winter storm in the middle of the bush).

They make a great sled in the snow as well.

If people a thousand years ago had seen a garbage bag, it would instantly be adapted for all kinds of uses. Nowdays, most people just treat them like garbage... Same for alot of other things that we take for granted.

My favoutite use mentioned so far must be:

Cut a corner of the bag off and prevent a pregnancy.

Thanks wiredamerican, practical and hilarious at the same time

Shane

reply to post by shamus78


If she is ugly you cut cut out a breathing hole and use it to cover her face?
Disclamer: This was meant in humor and in no way reflects my views on ugly or women!

reluctantpawn

I have done all kinds of things with garbage bags... including forgetting to take them out like I did last night!

Once I was building a sound booth in my house and I got drywall dust on me... NOT FUN- SERIOUSLY NOT FUN! So next time I worked on it, yep... I wore a garbage bag.

Putting your rubbish in so you keep your site clean?

Folded or screwed up lengthways into a long piece of plastic, its like a piece of bandage. Can be used as a dressing.

Great thread, lots of handy ideas.

Thanks.

CX.

How about an emergency dress for those nights out in an apocalyptic world?

A few years ago my girlfriend couldn't believe my local council were giving out bright pink bin bags, so i sent her one.

She made good use of it.



Bad quality pic, old mobile phone if i remember rightly, but you get the idea.

CX.

1. Part of an emergency toilet
Line a pail with several nested trash bags. Do your business and tie it off for disposal. People in war-torn areas do this so that a sniper doesn't see them going to the outhouse.

2. Part of a water filter
IF you've seen those designs for an improvised water filter with layers of gravel, sand and charcoal, it is a lot easier to use and change if each layer is in a separate bag that is perforated...

3. Seining for bait-fish
Don't cut a hole in the bag, just put the whole thing under water, and pull it up and out when a school of minnow swim above it. Not incredibly efficient, but you'll catch the one or two you need to fish for larger game.

4. Repair broken windows
in cars and buildings. Duct tape sold separately.

5. Holding your nuts
Gathering nuts and berries becomes difficult once you have so many that they won't fit in your pockets. Carrying them in a bag is more efficient; plus if it rains, you'll keep your nuts dry.

6. Carrying Laundry.
In college, this was ALWAYS a survival situation....

7. Goose Decoys
No, seriously. They sell a cane with a goose-head on it, and you stake it through a trash bag on a windy day. The bag balloons out, and in a stiff breeze, it wags back and forth, like a goose waddling. Several of them in a V will actually convince other geese to land there, long enough to be hunted. It works because geese try to nose into the wind, and they see the trash bags doing the same thing.

8. Digging Marker
If you need to bury something, you can bury it at depth, and then bury the trash bag near the surface. It speeds up recovery time when you return, you can find the bag with a lot less effort that digging a 2-ft hole every couple of feet until you find your cache.

9, Part of a Scare-crow
Rabbits and crows quickly acclimate to traditional mannequins, so you need to add motion and sound. Birds don't like the sound of a trash bag rattling, nor the way it whips in the wind. Tie some soda cans along the base of the scarecrow's "shirt," and put a pebble in each, for increased annoyance.

10. Dressing game
Gutting a deer can be really messy; plus, the good meat is moist and seems to attract leaves and hair from the animals coat. The sooner you cover the meat, the better. I wouldn't use a trash bag for permanent storage, but they work well when you're in a hurry. Also for taking the offal away from your hunting area. The remains will attract coyotes, and so must be removed.