Foil Bag Fail--

after the last snow storm the sun came out in full force so we got on the snowshoes and headed out to the Mississippi backwater woods for a day of tromping around.



at break time i got out one of my Classic Camp Stoves,a 71 with it's own cook kit,and made a couple cups of hot cocoa.

i also brought along a foil bag that i used it my PFD ditch kit for several years.in the cold i thought i would get a good idea of just how well it worked.



getting the bag out i could see there were major problems!



the aluminum coating was gone!



and when i tried to open the two blankets that are held together with tape to form the bag the entire thing went to bits!..all i can think of is that the small plastic sack the bag comes in had tiny holes in it that allowed the thin layer of aluminum to vaporize.i would say this is a one season item that can't stand up to the bashing around it got in my PFD over several years of hard use canoe tripping

Every one of the blankets that I have carried in my PFD did the same thing. I suspected that they were damaged by water and plan on vacuum sealing the next one to see if it will hold up better.

Pete

Excellent post Canoedogs! That's definitely information that needs to be known...by people stuck in places with winter.

-Blast

When you refer to your 71, are we talking about a Primus 71? I have had one for years, still works, but rarely used. An absolutely gorgeous stove. I cleaned and polished mine the other day.

Hike..yes it is..here is another shot that shows it better,it's my most trusted winter hiking stove.

I knew this thread would quickly turn to stove-talk.
-Blast

I missed this post last week, Thanks for the update CANOEDOGS I now need to check my stored Emergency Blankets. Mike

Which brand was this?

guilliamo..it was a Space brand,made in the UK for MPI Outdoor Safety Products.this is all silver and not the orange one of the same size and shape,about the size of your fist.that bag got a lot of hard use.i carried it around in the pocket of my PFD for at least four years.two weeks in the spring and two in the fall on wilderness canoe trips where the PFD got some really rough use being tossed into and out of the canoe and onto the rocks and such at the portages and was wet from rain more that i liked.i kept it in the pack it came in which is just a plastic sack about as thick as a freezer bag zip lock.when i took it out on the snowshoe hike i could see that the bag was somewhat gray and not silver.i have another bag right in front of me now that has just been in camp gear storage for a couple years and looks fine,i'll re-bag it in a couple zip locks but my trust level is down on this and thru advice on this forum i replaced these lower priced bags with the Heat Sheets.i would rate these as good for one season on the trail.just stored in a BOB they should last for years.

Thanks CANOEDOGS,

What a great example of a picture being worth a thousand words...real world testing always trumps the sales pitch in way too many cases.

Glad you took the time to share with the excellent illustrations. Spot on and neatly done.

Regards,
Comanche7

Has anyone ever had this happen to an AMK?
AMK Heetsheets

I've had that happen too - on the other hand, I think the blanket cost me 20p (30 cents?) on offer, so I bought a few.

I just think of them as being disposable, and throw them when they get old.

(In fact I have mostly switched to carrying disposable ponchos now - much more likely to be useful if I get caught out, same size and still provide a wind / water resistant layer if I need to rig a shelter)