Wet wipes for the Survivalist

By Joseph Parish

 

One item that my family finds to be almost indispensable while traveling or at home is the popular baby wipes. They would certainly make a great addition to your bug out bag. Wet wipes are known by several different names such as wet towels, wet naps or moist towels. In either case the products are small pre-moistened sections of paper which often is obtained individually folded for your convenience. Such items are for personal cleansing and disinfecting.

In general wipes are produced as small sections of paper which are moistened with a liquid such as isopropyl alcohol depending upon the intended application. It could easily be treated with softeners or lotions as in the case of those intended for infant or baby use. When finished the wipes are usually folded or placed in a dispenser or pocket size package.

Wipes usually serve a vast number of purposes around the household although they are frequently advertised for wiping an infant’s backside after changing their diaper. Our use is for both children and adult during emergency bug out operations. 

The origin of these popular wipes began around the mid 50's as people started to travel excessively. During their trips they desired a simple way to clean up without stopping at a hotel or motel. The very first company to produce these wipes was Nice-Pak who made created napkin sized cloths saturated with scented skin cleanser. From their it was expanded to include products for babies and infants. Our topic today is going to be duplicating these wipes during times of emergencies. 

First off make sure that you save your empty baby wipe containers. Our objective here will be to show you how to make your own with nothing more then some paper towels which have been cut in half and soaked in a mixture of lotion while in the container until such time as they are totally damp. Ultimately these towels will pull up and out in a similar manner as do the commercial versions from the department store.

The exact instruction necessary for creating your own baby wipes is as follows:

Supplies required

1/2 roll of inexpensive paper towels which are cut in half to make half size rolls

1/4 cup of baby shampoo

1/8 cup of vegetable oil

2 cups of lukewarm water

1 used plastic baby wipe container that the above rolls will fit into

Mix all the above liquid ingredients gently and slowly pour the resultant mixture over one half of the paper towel roll that you have placed in the plastic container. When you are using the homemade wipes you should dispense them from center of the roll.

Copyright @2010 Joseph Parish

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