emergency planning

As a paramedic in real life, I am constantly shocked by how many people don’t have a basic first aid kit! You would be surprised how many times we are asked for band aids! That being said… I don’t have a first aid kit…. It’s more like a pantry. You should have a first aid kit of some sort, whether it is bought or built doesn’t matter. So today I wanted to talk to you about first aid kits but also the ones I have found that fit into the best first aid kits.

Best First Aid Kits For Homesteaders

The best first aid kits are going to be ones that actually work. It doesn’t matter how much money you spend (or don’t), the best kit is going to be one that you use, is easy to carry, and actually has the supplies you need. At the very bottom of this post, I am going to give tell you what is in my first aid pantry and my “go bag”.

I’m going to list these kits out in price ranges so that you can find something within your budget. Towards the bottom of this post, I’m going to give you extra purchases. These are items that I think you could absolutely use but most kits doesn’t have this stuff in them.

If you are looking to build your own, I did this blog post to help you out.

I’m going tell you which one of these kits are FSA/HSA eligible. Lastly, this post is affiliate link heavy. If you would like to learn more about our affiliate links, click here.

Please remember, this is coming from a paramedic, not a physician and is not meant to be medical advise.

Best First Aid Kits Under $50

General Medi– This first aid kit would be pretty good for in your car, tractor, 4 wheeler or side by side. It is not meant to be an end all be all. But it will work well until someone could get to you with a bigger kit. It’s also got a CPR mouth guard which is fantastic. But since AHA is moving away from rescue breaths this is really a non issue. It’s FSA/HSA eligible and it’s less than $30 as of this writing.

M2 Basics- This one is better because it has more wraps and other bandaging supplies. It’s has a hard case and is mountable, which will make it easier to have at the house. You could absolutely put it in your car, tractor, etc but it will take up more room. I couldn’t find if it was FSA/HSA eligible. It’s less than $50 as of this writing.

Be Smart First Aid Kit– This kit is also mountable and has pretty much the same as the other kits, but with one main difference, there’s medications in this kit. It is also mountable but again, this is not a small kit so you will end up not being able to store it easily in cars, tractors, etc.

Best First Aid Kits Under $100

Comprehensive First Aid– This kit is significantly better than those listed above. It gives you splinting materials, trauma dressings, and more. This is the bag that should be coming with you when you are going out to work on the homestead. It’s under $100 but I think this one is worth the price point. I can’t find if it’s FSA/HSA eligible though.

Ever Ready First Aid Kit– This kit is a great compact little kit that has almost everything you need for just about any situation… except, it doesn’t have splinting supplies. Not a deal breaker because you can make do without but moving someone with a broken bone hurts. It is FSA/HSA eligible and as of this writing is $85.

Lightening X– This kit is made by first responders/ EMT’s, which is weird because this isn’t necessarily the kit I would make. BUT it is a good kit for a civilian to have and everything in it is usable. This kit would be more for someone that has some first aid knowledge since it’s not labeled. But again, it’s got a lot of good stuff in it. It’s about $90 and I can’t find if it’s FSA/HSA eligible.

Best First Aid Kits Over $100

Most of these kits you are paying for the bag, not necessarily the items in it. So keep that in mind as you are looking at these.

Luminary Tactical– This is a great, but bulky first aid kit. It has some things that you will probably never use, like OPA’s, C-collar, and sutures. But it’s there if you do know how to use them. This kit is pricey at $200 but again, it’s robust and covers most of your bases. I can’t find if it’s FSA/HSA eligible.

Lightening X Tac Med– Lightening X makes the list again. This one is more geared for an event medical personnel stand point but it is still a solid first aid kit. I love the removable pouches so that you can just grab that one pouch instead of having to empty out your entire kit. Again, there are things that you will probably never use, like the mask and oxygen tubing but that’s not a deal breaker. This kit is pretty pricey coming in at $330 but it is FSA/HSA eligible.

Advanced Aventurer– This bag would be perfect for most civilian, non medical person. It has just about everything to cover you from minor sprains to lacerations and just about anything in between. It’s a good sized bag without being overbearing like the other two in this list. It’s not horribly priced but definitely not cheap at $300.

Take Aways For Best First Aid Kits

The importance of a good, well stocked first aid kit cannot be underestimated. Unfortunately for most people, they don’t put enough thought into their first aid kid (or lack or one) until it’s too late. And people don’t put enough thought into HOW to use their first aid kit. If they even have one, they just throw it in the car or under the sink and never think about HOW to use what’s in it. So do yourself and your loved ones a favor and learn how to use the kit, how to do CPR, and how to bandage, splint, etc.

As much as you may not want to, please take the time to learn the basics of CPR, how to stop bleeding, place a tourniquet, and bandaging/ splinting. I can’t tell you how many people I’ve encountered over the years that have told me, I wish I would have learned how to do this. Because a lot of the time, it’s their family member on the line.

Imagine with me, just for a second, that you are building a shed and your son walks past a panel of sheet metal. He gets nailed on the leg with that sheet metal and he now has a deep laceration on his leg. He’s bleeding everywhere. What are you going to do? Do you have anything on hand to help stop the bleeding? Do you know how to stop the bleeding? What if it’s shooting blood out? Do you know what that means?

That scenario happened to us, here on our homestead. My youngest son was walking past sheet metal as him and Jared were building the metal chicken coop. Thankfully, we had rags and knew what to do. Thankfully, it wasn’t spurting blood. But that was a trip to the emergency room for 3 stitches to reattach the muscle and another 13 to close him up.

Injuries can happen to ANYONE and if you don’t know what to do, you will be in a bind. So get the first aid kit.

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