You might be surprised by this, but there’s actually a TON of ways to use bandanas in a survival situation.
And I’m talkin’ about more than just covering your face/mouth/head with it.
Bandanas are insanely useful survival tools, and can be one of your best friends in an emergency.
One reason is they’re incredibly lightweight and compact. By folding them up, you can store these in your bug out bag/camping gear without ever being weighed down.
Another is they’re one of the most versatile pieces of survival gear around.
You’ll be astonished to discover these…
15 Clever Ways To Use Bandanas Once SHTF
1 – An Extra Survival Tool Sack
One of the most convenient ways you can store your compact survival tools is by wrapping them up in a bandana. This is especially helpful when you’ve run out of room in your bug out bag.
Tie off the ends of your bandana, and then tie it to a stick. This will give you a portable way to store your survival gear and keep you prepared.
2 – As A Defense Weapon
This is one of the greatest (and most overlooked) ways to use bandanas. Simply roll/whip the cloth into a rope, and then bring the ends together. You’ll find the bottom now has a space where you can place a rock.
Practice makes perfect, but you’ll find that you can use this bandana as a sling to hurl the rock at your target.
This could easily come in handy in self defense, as well as for hunting.
3 – Coffee Filter
If SHTF, you can bet that most of us will be reaching for our coffee first thing in the morning to get us up and moving.
If you run out of coffee filters, you can use a clean bandana as a replacement to ensure you get your morning dose of caffeine.
4 – Immobilize A Limb
If you hurt your arm in an emergency situation, the last thing you want is to move it and risk further injury.
You can tie a few bandanas together to form a sling, thus immobilizing the arm.
5 – Stop The Bleeding
If you’ve been shot in an emergency situation, the first thing you’ll need to do is stop the bleeding.
Lay a few bandanas on the wound, and wrap it as best as you can to prevent bleed-out. Then use your first-aid kit to bandage up the wound, and call for medical assistance if possible.
6 – Lay Your Head Down
Most people don’t think to bring along their hefty pillow in a bug out situation. And, unfortunately, stuffing a pillowcase with leaves and needles can be quite uncomfortable.
Grab a few bandanas, fold them up, and place them underneath your head at night for a soft pillow to fall asleep on.
7 – DIY Ice Pack
If you get injured in the wintertime, you can break off a piece of ice and wrap it in a bandana. Place it onto the bruised area, and you’ll have an ice pack that’ll help bring down the swelling.
8 – Save Your Hands
Most of us have burned our hand on a hot pan a time or two. And you can bet that, if you’re doing all your cooking over an open flame, your likelihood of burning yourself will increase exponentially.
Save your hands by wrapping a bandana around the handle of your pot/pan. This will help you move the cookware without hurting your hands in the process.
9 – Make Smoke Signals
If you’ve got a small, contained fire you can use your bandana to create smoke signals. First, get your bandana wet. Then repeatedly cover and uncover the fire with your bandana, so that the smoke wafts out in spurts.
This is a great way to alert others of your location, especially if you don’t have a flare gun or signal mirror.
10 – Hold Medicinal Herbs/Berries
If you’re hiking along the trail and you spot some delicious berries or medicinal herbs, simply scoop them up and carry them in your bandana.
This is perhaps one of the most crucial ways to use bandanas, since they, along with your skill for foraging, can help ensure you stay fed throughout the day.
11 – Start A Fire
If you’re hard-up for tinder and need to get a fire going, you can always use your trusty bandana. Cut it into strips (to save material), and they’ll help you get a flame going in no time.
12 – Mark Your Trail
Cut your brightly colored bandanas into strips and tie them onto nearby trees. This will help rescuers find you in a crisis.
13 – Keep The Bugs Out
If you’re traipsing through tall grass or piles of leaves, there’s a good chance spiders and bugs will sneak out and try to crawl into your shoes/hiking boots.
You can prevent this by tying a bandana around your pant leg just above the cuff of your shoe. This will help block the insects from getting in and biting your feet.
14 – Plug The Leak
If you’re trying to get out of dodge – but you’ve got a hose leak – you can simply wrap a bandana around it to plug the hole.
This may be a temporary solution, but it’ll help you get back on the road in a snap.
15 – Filter Your Water
In a survival situation, it’s often next-to-impossible to use that fancy home water filtration system you purchased.
Luckily, a bandana, a pot, and a controlled fire can come to the rescue and save you from dehydration.
Simply gather your water from a nearby river, lake, or stream. Then open the bandana, and lay it flat over the top of your camping pot.
Pour the water onto the bandana, waiting for it to drip through. This will remove the debris from your water.
Once the water has dripped through and the physical contents removed, boil your water for about 3 minutes to ensure it’s safe to drink.
Now, as you can imagine, there are more than 15 ways to use bandanas… much more.
If you want to learn about even more ways to use bandanas for survival, medical, and tactical situations, check out the video below!
