Specific kinds of survival flashlights are ideal to use in a crisis. We’ve compiled a list of features that are essential for your survival flashlight.
The Best Survival Flashlight on the Market
You don’t have to take our word for it. This is a best seller on Amazon and other retailers.
GearLight LED Tactical Flashlight S1000 – High Lumen, Zoomable, 5 Modes, Water Resistant, Handheld Light – Best Camping, Outdoor, Emergency, Everyday Flashlights
This would be a great deal for one flashlight, but you get two, so it’s not hard to figure out why it’s the best seller in Amazon and other places when it comes to Survival flashlights.
Essential Features for a Survival Flashlight
1. Durability
It honestly is very important for your flashlight to be durable. After all, it’s meant for a crisis, so it’s going to be subjected to the nastiest of what both people and nature can bring. So, do your research and get the one manufactured from materials that protect the inside components just in case you drop it, or it falls into some water.
Therefore, of course, get a light that says it’s waterproof as well as resistant to dropping it. You also need to take a look at the casing. Plastic is quite popular for regular flashlights, but not a fantastic choice for one needed in a crisis.
In its place, try to get a flashlight made of metal or a mix of metal and strong rubberized plastic. Metal provides a protective shield, so the internal electronics stay undamaged, i.e., it will stand up to cracking or abuse when its put under lots of pressure.
Rubberized material also absorbs dropping or being mishandled. Most of the flashlights come with a rubberized material to cover a housing under it, made of metal, so you get two kinds of protection and support.
Overall, the top material is metal, and out of that aluminum is the best since it’s lightweight, yet durable and lasts for a very long timeframe.
When it comes to being strong and durable, you want a waterproof flashlight. These lights get rated via the IPX waterproofing scale, which lets the user know the amount of water it can resist.
Clearly, the higher that rating, the better the flashlight holds up, and most survival models are rated IPX 6 or higher.
2. Battery Type.
Once you know the strength of the flashlight, check out the kind of battery it needs. Most survival flashlights require special batteries you must buy on the Web or via a special kind of retailer.
Manufacturers do that for a reason; however, it can be difficult getting extras to have on hand in an emergency, and in some cases, nearly impossible if you are suddenly thrust into a crisis.
So I suggest picking one that uses regular household batteries, i.e., D, C, AA, or AAA). These can be bought easily so you’ll always have the light when you need it. And the top batteries of these type is alkaline regarding price, power, longevity, and ease of finding them to buy. If you can, try to find a flashlight using alkaline batteries along with those previously mentioned special batteries (i.e., lithium-ion or nickel-cadmium).
3. Bulb Type.
There are several kinds of flashlight bulbs. The top choices are LED and incandescent.LEDs are newer for flashlights, as incandescent bulbs are the ones that have been usedand tested for many years.
In the past, I’d have said get the ones with incandescent bulbs since they are cheaper. But LED prices are lower now, so I suggest getting one of these kinds of flashlights. They are better nowadays than incandescent ones for several reasons.
An example of a primary reason LEDs are so much brighter than other bulbs is they don’t use as much energy, they’re smaller, as well as they are lots more durable plus will last much longer.
Usually, LED bulbs will function for about 100K hours, but incandescent bulbs only burn for several hundred hours of usage.
Eventually, you will be a lot more pleased if you by LED flashlights.
A question you could ask would be, “is it better to have several LED bulbs instead of just one?” The reply would be that you likely don’t, as many times flashlights with several LED bulbs have small, low priced LED bulbs which are not as strong as a larger single lightbulb. Additionally, the energy used by the light and the batteries might not be utilized efficiently with smaller, multiple bulbs.
Plus, at other times, multiple LED lights won’t even produce a beam as good as one light inside the best type of fixture. The majority of times, how bright an LED lighted flashlight is gets decided by its mirrored frame and the way it is line up with its bulb. A solo LED bulb often is brighter or at least the same brightness as several bulbs as long as the mirrored frame has been enhanced for that single bulb.
4.Brightness.
This will correspond to the kind of bulb, but here is a crucial takeaway concerning brightness.
Being brighter is not always an improvement. Technology for making flashlights has improved, and many wanted larger lights that are also much brighter. Some tiny flashlights out there can shine a beam of light more than a quarter of a mile away. Who needs that anyway? You need to keep in your thoughts what you plan to use the light for.
Most of the time, you are likely going to need it for easy-going things such as walking along the sidewalk at night or if you go camping and need some light. But of course, you might need additional light sometimes, and merely due to a company saying their flashlight provides stronger light might not be true depending on how cheaply it was made, so watch out!
I suggest buying a light that is rated at between 100 and 200 lumens. That provides enough light so you can work if it’s dark, but you won’t use up your battery so fast as you would if the flashlight is more powerful.
Plus, try to find a flashlight with several brightness levels. That’s a good idea if you would have to alternate between different brightness levels or if you need to see something far away. You can find flashlights having two to four levels of brightness.
5.Weight.
Another big factor is weight when you choose a flashlight to use in a crisis. That’s really the truth if you want one to put inside a bug out bag or a smaller survival kit. You, of course, want things to be fairly light if you need to leave in a hurry with a bag full of survival stuff. A few ounces can make a difference if you need to walk a few miles!
Try to find one that weighs eight ounces or less, but likely you can easily find some which meet your requirements that weighs four ounces or less. The lighter it is, the better off you’ll be.
Plus, while you are considering the flashlight’s weight, you have to remember the batteries needed will also play a part in the weight. If it, for instance, uses three D batteries, it could end up weighing a pound if the flashlight itself weighs six ounces. And, you will also need extra batteries, so you need the lightest possible combo of batteries and flashlight. It’s vital to travel light. So picking a flashlight in the suggested range is going to make it much simpler to your survival.
6.Emergency Components.
Don’t forget, a survival flashlight is specifically created for an emergency, and it’s not an item you merely get from a hardware store. It’s vital to get the right kind with the correct survival elements built-in. Those elements will be great during a crisis and might even save a life.
An example of a top element related to flashlights meant for a crisis is they have strobe lights. There are a few different patterns of strobe; however, one of the best is an SOS type pattern.
Usually, you initiate the strobe light via pushing the on or off button on your flashlight, and it will eventually go into the strobe mode. Then it keeps flashing the signal until you turn it off or someone comes to your aide.
Another type of patter is a fast strobe light that’s employed in a tactical situation. These start with the beam being on full force, and then they flash very fast. You would aim it at the intruder’s eyes, or if someone tries to attack you, so it blinds them! That element will assist you in defending yourself in an attack situation.
7.Self-defense Features.
This goes back to the same kind of thing as with strobe lighting. A lot of these survival flashlights get used for tactical purposes. And did you know you could use the light as a weapon? How is this done?
A few of these kinds of flashlights have a feature called the “crenulated bezel.” It lets someone utilize that bezel to hit an assailant who is attacking you. That is great for you and bad for them!
That’s because the bezel is very sharp, has lots of prongs, and it can hold up to a hard impact. So, you need to think about buying lights that have this element.
Certainly, this is not a survival light requirement, plus several of the previously mentioned elements above could be higher rated, however, if you must pick between 2 of them that have similar components. The first one has the crenulated bezel, but the other doesn’t, it would be more to your advantage to pick the one that has it.
Don’t forget about the various patterns of strobe lighting. Those are also very good at helping out if you need to fight off an assailant. If you have a gun and mix a tactical strobe light with it, you have a very powerful combo!
8. Miscellaneous Bonus Features.
There are many other possible elements to choose from, but none of them are necessary for assisting you in choosing a survival flashlight.
Think about searching for a flashlight having these features:
On and off buttons made of rubber: These are robust, comfy, plus being waterproof, providing a durable button you can use again and again.
The bottom is Flat: Presuming the on and off button is sunken into the light’s bottom, or it is on the light’s side, a flashlight with a flat base lets the user set it down onto a flat surface and then you can light up a bigger area.
Clip or key ring: A side clip lets the user attach your flashlight to your pocket, similar to how you’d attach a pen or hold a knife. It also lets you hook it to your key chain or somewhere else, so you always have access to it.
Switch lock: This stops you from accidentally activating the light and assists you in keeping it on if you don’t want it to get turned off accidentally.
Includes a carrying case: This is great when the user wants to carry their flashlight int their pocket or hang it from your hip. As long as it has a decent cover, it will not suddenly come open if it’s disturbed.