Can anyone offer advice on how to keep the items of food, candy, firt aid kit in my vehicle from being devoured by the hot sun during the summer months here in SE Texas.

Cars make excellent solar cookers, don't they? There are a couple of approaches that will help. First, use and cycle items that are stored in the car a bit faster. This is fairly easy for food, less so for meds.<br><br>Where you keep things in a car will make a difference. Place things under a seat or anywhere else that is not normally in direct sunlight and wrap them in something that will insulate. Consider a styrofoam cooler if you have the space. You may wind up storing perishable items in different locations from nonperishables that otherwise would be placed together. This shouldn't be too much of a problem as long as you and your family know where everything is.

Good call! I was thinking along those lines myself.

After thinking about this one, I have more of an answer. I live in Oregon when I'm not in Bosnia. I have a large "EMT" style tackle box in my trunk that I keep all my first aid stuff in. I have put this kit to a lot of use. It keeps all my gear organized and readily portable. I have never had problems with the heat. Then again, I live in Oregon and not Texas.<br><br>I don't suggest you use a kit like that for just first aid supplies unless you have the training to use/need that much stuff. However you could keep some of your gear in it, just in case you need to bail. That and a hard plastic case probably retains a lower temp longer than a fabric one. <br><br>Also all the little segregated compartments means even if your stuff melts down, it won't "contaminate"/dirty up all your other gear. <br><br>Just a thought<br><br><br>

HikerDon: Many thanks for your suggestion about the styrfoam cooler. I will try this today. For reasons unknown to me the thought had never entered my mind. Strange how this solution had never entered my mind.

I'm new to the forum, and enjoy the posts very much. Vehicle heat is also a problem here in S. Florida. I'm using a soft sided insulated beverage bag for my foodstuffs and bottled water, kept under a seat to stay out of the sun. It has plenty of room for my three day supply. Everything gets used and restocked at least once a month. So far, so good.

I use a soft sided cooler for a storage container in my car... works great in minnesota where temps run from +130 to -40 inside the car. It also works as a emergancy bucket, since it's water tight.<br><br>PryBry

One downside to a styrofoam cooler, if kept in the drivers compartment, they squeek! It gets really anoying after an hour or so.<br><br> larry<br>

Actually the cooler I use is a soft sided cloth "box" with a plastic water tight liner... If you take all the stuff out you can fold it down and tuck it under a seat. It also has a hard plastic pan/shelf which holds small items such as matches, candles, tools etc... very handy.<br>I've got mine full of recovery gear and survival equipment.<br><br>PryBry

This might require breaking things down a bit (I think), but how about<br>one of the 1 or 2 gallon drink coolers (the kind that have the screw on <br>top, with the flip-up spout thingy)?<br><br>The styrfoam cooler is a great idea but I agree that a drive of any length<br>with that squeaking 'creature' could result in a completely different kind<br>of road rage ! Unless it's in the trunk... But I think that sound is like the<br>ticking clock in the middle of night - you just can't get away from it !<br><br>I intend to try the drink cooler route this year for some food & meds. I<br>think I'll stick a high/low thermometer in it and check the range over<br>a 24-hour period. See what the swings are inside the container.<br><br>Jeff