FAK – Container for Meds

I am looking for some ideas on what to use for a container for the pills in my FAK. I would prefer to have something that allows me to separate different types of medication instead of putting everything in a small bottle together (current method)
What does everyone use to keep their stuff separated, water tight, and labeled?
-John

I still use one pharmacy pill container and seperate different types of medication with layers of cotton. Like you I have not come up with an alternative that is as small and secure as I would like.
For non-prescription medication I purchase small blister packs and put them in my FAK.

I once took one of those seven day pill things that you see by the checkout at the pharmacy, filled it with my meds, then stuck the whole thing in a vacuum seal bag and sealed it. Not easy to use that way of course, but a weeks worth of meds stuck away for emergency use...

Blister packs, just trim them down and paperclip a tiny type print out with all the usage, dosage and reaction stuff, along with a description.

Some things I repack in 2x2 or 2x3 zipper bags and label with a lumocolor pen. Others I repack in small vials that were origionally designed to carry toothpicks (actually, I think they might have first been centrifuge tubes) and tape a label on.

I am using old pill bottles. I wash them out and use the size that best accommodates a 30 day supply of each medcation or vitamin supplement. I use computor labels to notate the contents in each bottle with scotch tape on top of the labels.

Talk to your local, friendly Pharmacist and you should be able to get the proper size new bottles needed for each med.

This is what I found. Looks like some sort of otterbox:

http://www.specialmedics.com/armadillomedicationstoragecase.html

At the checkout counter of most grocery/drug stores there are usually small travel size bottles of tylenol/aleve/motrin etc. These are cylinders (I've seen two sizes, 11/16" diameter and 7/8" diameter) with waterproof and childproof caps. I buy whatever is on sale then empty the bottle, peel off the label, wrap three feet of gaffer tape around it (makes a good spindle for storing duck tape) and fill it with one type of pill. Depending on the size bottle and size of pills I can store 5-50 pills in each.

A handful of these bottles store all my FAK meds. They are in separate waterproof and crush resistant containers that also have duck tape storage. Try it. It works for me.

I use small (2x3) ziploc bags. I got a case of 1000 a few years ago, and have been using them for nearly everything, including FAK contents, ever since. I got them from Uline (http://www.uline.com/ProductDetail.asp?model=S-7006).

The biggest problem is they are not crushproof, like other containers might be. For me, this is offset by some of the following advantages:

- flat - takes up less space
- organized - you can write on them with a sharpie, and either put different meds in different bags. Or, for a more compact kit, I will put different kinds of meds relating to the same purpose all in one bag (e.g., claratin and benadryl in an "allergies" bag)
- visible - although you can write on them, you don't need to in order to quickly recognize some contents (advil and benadryl are pretty easy to spot, for example)
- kids - I've carried kids medications for my daughter, and I just cut the dosage instructions from the box and slip them right into the bag, so you can read them without even removing them.

I change and restructure and reorganize my kits way too often, but this is one of the few aspects that I've settled on and it has served me well over time.

Hope that helps.

Rod Satterwhite

I have been experimenting with a few solutions.

OBG's idea of using the multi-chambered containers with the days of the week on each compartment(which can be relabeled) was one.

Another is the small key chain with a metal capsule bottle with a screw on lid with a rubber gasket. They come in various sizes. Check your large Pharmacies, Wal-marts, K-marts, & Auto parts stores(where they sell key chains.) Online, EDC Depot carries small containers that are similar.

Hope this helps you,

Tim Bauer

I started using quarter tubes they are sized to hold $10.00 worth of quarters and have a screw on lid that is water and airtight. It holds about a weeks worth of my vitamins (disguised as horse pills). They are readily available at any coin shop. They can take quite a bit of shock but the down side is the plastic is sharp when it does break which would be bad I your pack or when reaching for it in the dark.

I use the same containers for meds. Twelve containers can be carried in a shotgun ammo pouch (e.g., http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/ZWB135-403-2159.html ). One cannot use all of the large size containers in the pouch—I use 4 of the larger and two of the smaller containers on each side of the pouch referenced.

Thanks for all of the ideas, I think I am going to start with a few of the 5/16-7/8 travel containers and put them in one of those pouches that hold shotgun shells. Maybe one that has the webbing inside that holds the shells. I think it would be about the right size. I also like the idea of the mini-zip lock bags, in a hard case all labeled.

For my PSK I just keep them in a mini-altoids tin (both practical and amusing), but for my FAK I've taken one of those 7 day pill containers and printed up labels for each compartment outlining what the pills are, what it's for, the dosage, and expiration date.

For example, one reads:

Ranitidine
Acid Reducer
75mg
2008 MR

...Since my kit itself is sufficiently water-tight, it works quite nicely.

Plano makes a bunch of small tackle boxes for fishing weights etc. that are very small and with many pill sized compartments.

I use the small Plano boxes as well. They also make great battery carriers for AA and AAA batteries.

Might be a bit tough to find, but 35mm film cases would probably work fine.

As an aside, if you drill a hole in the bottom, you can use one to keep the mouthpiece clean on your hydration-bladder.

I have used ...with success ... those travel size pain reliever bottles. My last ..even smaller bottles are old contact lense bottles. When I get new one they come in a little glass bottle with a plastic clip to hold the lens suspended in a solution. I remove the clippy thing, clean them out and peel off the labels.
My smaller pills, I can store 30 doses. Not as small ones I can store 14 doses. Last trip to the Eye doctor I asked for and got 4 more bottles. This year I'll ask again ...as I have found more places to stash my meds (at work, in my car, in my travel shave kits for business trips, my EDC and BOB for starters)
After Katrina, I decided I needed to have at least a months supply of my meds in at least one of my kits.
The travel size pain reliver bottles work better for bigger pills and 10-14 doses are able to fit ...which is a reasonable number for most applications....and NOT all brands are the same size...some are fatter than others. The Aleve and Advil ones are the skinniest I think. So I get 2, put all the pills in one of 'em for my FAK and use the other for meds.
The contact lens vials are glass ... so they could be broken...but you'd have to work at it. I also have a few that are plastic, but they are smaller yet ..but 14 days of 81 mg aspirin fits no problem.

Here is what I use. It has locking lids. Biggest drawback is that it is not waterproof. Each is labeled with name, dose, and what it treats.

I use one of these:

http://www.organize-everything.com/dosipiboxwih.html

It's not water-tight, so it should be stored in a plastic bag, but it has a lot of compartments of various sizes, and is overall about the size of an Altoids tin. Not quite small enough for a pocket-size kit, but well-suited to a vehicle or travel kit.

I got mine at WalMart for about $1 each a couple of years ago, but I can't find them there any more, at least not at my local store.

I use Glad Press N' Seal.

You drop your pills on a piece, fold it over, create the seal by running your fingers around the pills. Trim the excess. Done!

How well does that stuff work for longer term storage? As in you seal some pills with it, toss the package into your FAK, and carry it around for a few days. Does the seal hold, or does movement/vibration/whatever losen it up???

My wonder as well, although since I usually leave my bag packed for a long time (couple months at a time between rotations and repacks), loss of sticky is as big a concern to me as residue is.

The Press N' Seal is very tear-resistant and seems great for long-term storage. I have some old pills that I needed and teared the package open and trust me, it's great! The product doesn't leave any sticky residue either, the coating of the pills seem unaffected.

Try it! ;-)