| Think quickly - if you found yourself stranded far | | | | need them most. LED - light emitting diodes - |
| from home with no easy access to things like lights, | | | | technology has been used for decades in such things |
| running water and shelter, what things would you | | | | as watch displays and digital alarm clocks, but they |
| want to have at your side? If you suddenly found | | | | were always considered too expensive and too low |
| your modern home without the power to run such | | | | powered to be used for workhorse lighting tasks like |
| conveniences as electric lights, can openers and | | | | flashlights and emergency lights. As late as 2002, one |
| microwave oven, what should you have at hand to | | | | of the leading researchers in the field of lighting |
| get you through the hours or days till those utilities | | | | estimated that LED lights would be in common use in |
| returned? | | | | the home within twenty years. A year later, he |
| The U.S. government recommends that every citizen | | | | admitted that he had grossly miscalculated because, |
| should have - either in their home or in their car - 72 | | | | "...we erred in presuming only incremental advances |
| Hour Survival Kit, and if you've thought about the | | | | and excluding... major technological breakthroughs.." |
| questions above, it should come as no surprise that | | | | Those breakthroughs made it far less expensive to |
| two of the first items listed in that kit are a knife | | | | manufacture LED lights, and brought them within the |
| and a flashlight. No matter what your emergency | | | | price range of the everyday consumer. |
| may be, a source of light and a good cutting edge | | | | So why should you consider replacing your common |
| will always be important. | | | | flashlights with LED flashlights? The reasons range |
| A Swiss army knife has been a mainstay of survival | | | | from better light to longer battery life. They include: |
| gear for decades. More than just a cutting tool, a | | | | - LED flashlights use a two-step process that |
| well-chosen Swiss army knife is a survival kit in a | | | | produces light that is closer to natural sunlight. And |
| compact, folding package. There's far more to them | | | | unlike typical flashlights that go out when the battery |
| than the one or two cutting blades and the bottle | | | | power is low, LED flashlights often continue to |
| opener that features in most of the cheaper knives. | | | | function at a dimmer brightness for hours or even |
| Features that are important in a Swiss army knife | | | | days. |
| include: | | | | - The bulb in LED flashlights draws far less power, |
| - locking blade | | | | increasing battery life astronomically - some LED lights |
| - compact size | | | | boast battery life of over 50,000 hours. No more |
| - lightweight | | | | frustration of worn-out batteries, or lights that die |
| - sharp, durable cutting blades | | | | when you need them most. |
| - at least one sawing blade | | | | - Unlike typical tungsten lights, LED flashlights are |
| - a can/bottle opener | | | | sturdy enough to withstand being jostled and |
| - a flint | | | | dropped. In tests, every LED flashlight dropped from |
| A Swiss army knife is not, strictly speaking, a survival | | | | 4-6 feet onto concrete survived and continued to |
| knife, though. For that, most survival experts | | | | provide strong, bright light. |
| recommend a fixed blade knife that can be used for | | | | - LED flashlights come in sizes from tiny to super - |
| cutting, sawing, knife hunting, skinning, cleaning, | | | | small enough to hang from a keychain to full size |
| notching and a multitude of other uses. There are | | | | utility lights that can illuminate an entire room. |
| dozens of available styles and types of survival knife, | | | | Indeed, flashlights are not the only LED lighting that |
| making it easy to choose the best one for your use. | | | | you'll find handy in an emergency. Battery operated |
| The most valuable of them combine a sturdy, sharp, | | | | LED kitchen lighting can provide illumination not only in |
| fixed blade with a hollow handle that holds the most | | | | an emergency, but in areas that overhead and typical |
| important items for you to have with you in an | | | | lighting doesn't reach. A few strategically placed under |
| emergency. Those items may include matches, tinder, | | | | counter LED lamps or sticks can make it easy to find |
| aspirin, disinfectant, a small flashlight or signaling | | | | pots and pans or stored foods in dark spaces. |
| device and a whistle. Before choosing a survival knife, | | | | Likewise, LED lamps mounted on the wall of a closet, |
| you should check your state and city statutes to | | | | crawlspace or attic can help prevent accidents and |
| ensure that the knife you want to purchase doesn't | | | | make it far easier to find precisely what you're |
| violate any laws. | | | | looking for. |
| If the last time you bought a new flashlight was | | | | If you haven't considered your 72 Hour Kit, this is an |
| more than a few years ago, you may be surprised at | | | | excellent time to put one together. Today's modern |
| what technology has wrought in just a few short | | | | technology offers many options to ensure that |
| years. LED technology has given us a new class of | | | | you're prepared for any emergency that might |
| LED flashlights that won't die on you just when you | | | | happen. |