You may have heard many different things about thermal blankets, or as they are popularly known as warm blankets (also known as space blankets, emergency blankets, warm blankets). But the first thing you need to know is that these blankets are always ideal as a survival blanket.
The main task of the warm blankets is to protect the people on whom they are covered from extreme cold.
Unlike sleeping bags, which are produced for harsh conditions and emergencies, these warm blankets cannot completely trap the heat, but can allow some wind, rain, snow and other harsh weather conditions to enter. As we can see in the earthquake images, when used in appropriate places, they can become key materials to save lives. In this article, we will talk about some of the advantages and disadvantages of warm covers.
Strengths of warm covers
One of the biggest advantages of warm blankets is that they have an almost non-existent weight. With a weight of just 50 grams, you can pack one in your bag and forget it exists until you need it. In addition to being extremely light, they are also extremely small, with a thickness of only one centimeter and suitable dimensions. Thanks to its small size, it is possible to carry it even in your pocket.
As interesting information, it should be said that these covers were developed by NASA. Space blankets developed by NASA form the basis of the technology behind inexpensive warm blankets. NASA has developed these shrouds to insulate many different spacecraft, including the Hubble Telescope, Mars rovers, and satellites. The extreme efficiency of this technology makes it possible to use it in many different areas today.
Their warm blankets are quite capable of reflecting heat. It is often said that they can reflect 90% of your body heat, and this is largely true. However, as we will talk about in a moment, there are some negative aspects besides this tremendous heat reflectivity.
Weaknesses of warm covers
First of all, just as you would like to have a sleeping bag with you instead of just a thin blanket when camping, it is useful to choose a solid sleeping bag instead of a warm blanket in your survival kit. While it’s possible to get wrap-around protection with warm covers as well, this will not be as comfortable as a sturdy sleeping bag and will likely leave room for the heat to escape. It is also possible to leave openings against external influences such as rain and snow.
Warm blankets are usually much thinner than high-quality thermal blankets or sleeping bags and do not have an additional protective layer. Therefore, it can be torn and punctured much more easily. They are often seen as disposable products.
Usage areas of warm covers
You already know that these blankets were used to warm the people who were removed from the earthquake debris. But these covers also have different uses.
After all, it’s not like a sleeping bag or a blanket, but you can make it easier to survive in your shelter by using your warm blankets effectively. If you have a temporary shelter, tent or other type of emergency shelter (even made of brushwood), it is also possible to spread a heat sheet over the area above you or on the part you use as a wall. In this way, the durability of the warm blanket becomes a smaller problem and you can take advantage of the heat reflective and heater benefits of the blanket.
Another option is to spread the warm cover on the ground. One of the important parts of survival is making sure you’re warm and dry. So depending on what kind of shelter you find, you may need to sleep on a surface such as earth. In such cases, laying your warm cover on the floor will help protect you from the cold coming from the ground, especially if you have a sleeping bag or similar additional protection. However, placing at least one layer between you and the warm cover may be important to preserve the integrity of the cover, especially given the low durability of the cover.
Thanks to the reflective feature of the warm cover, it is also possible to use it to signal your place by cutting a small piece of it.
Warm blankets are a product that you can have in your emergency kit due to these features. However, these covers should not be thought of as a “blanket”.
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