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Home » Camping » 8 Genius Camping Hacks

8 Genius Camping Hacks

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8 Genius Camping Hacks words with family sitting around campfire image

Camping in the summer creates the best memories.  I’m not sure if it is the fact that you are out communing with nature or that you can’t get cell reception that really pulls families together.  Whether you are camping at the beach, a campground or even in your own backyard, everyone could benefit from knowing a trick or two. Here are 8 of my favorite camping hacks to use on your next camping experience!

8 Genius Camping Hacks

 

Camping Hacks are so easy when you use these tips!

1. Fill clean, empty milk jugs with water and freeze it before leaving on your camp trip. Add the jugs to your cooler to save money on ice and keep your food cold for longer. When it melts you can use that water as drinking water for your family.

Camping Hacks are so easy when you use these tips!

2. Make your zippers easy to handle by adding a key ring to them. This is especially useful for sleeping bags in the middle of the night!

Camping Hacks are so easy when you use these tips!

3. Wrap duct tape around your water bottle or a flashlight to save space and also have quick and easy access to it. Duct tape is great for blisters and also can be used to remove ticks.

Camping Hacks are so easy when you use these tips!

4. Wrap a headlamp around an opaque plastic bottle to make an instant lantern. It can light up your tent by hanging it in the middle of the tent or you can leave it outside to use it at night.

Camping Hacks are so easy when you use these tips!

5. For fewer burrs when you are hiking, rub the laces of your hiking boots with paraffin before hitting the trail. It is nice to come back and be ready for your next adventure without worrying about cleaning up your shoes.

It is so easy to use these camping hacks to make your camping trip better! They are so easy---I can't believe I never thought of them before!

6. Yoga mats are not just for exercise anymore. They can double as foam sleeping pads to isolate you from the ground and give comfort when sleeping. Yoga mats roll up nicely and are easy to throw in to your camping supplies.

Camping Hacks are so easy when you use these tips!

7. Use corn chips like Doritos or Fritos as substitute kindling when you are starting a fire. The greasy (yet delicious!) part of the chips helps the fire get going quickly.

Camping Hacks are so easy when you use these tips!

8. Before you leave on your trip put important and sensitive items in separate plastic bags for safe keeping. Even though your phone might not get service, if you bring it camping encase it in a plastic baggie for protection and make it easy to keep track of.

What are your family’s favorite camping hacks?

MORE AMAZING CAMPING POSTS YOU’LL LOVE:

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  • Homemade Non-Toxic Bug Spray

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May 1, 2019
Camping

Comments

  1. Niki says

    August 1, 2022

    I reuse paper egg cartoons, put small twigs or wood mulch in each hole then dryer lint then drip wax over top. Best fire starter ever! When using it, use with the lid open or poke holes in the lid for better air circulation. (I just use with lid open, easier)

    Reply
    • Happy-Money-Saver says

      August 2, 2022

      Great idea!

      Reply
  2. Wendy says

    June 3, 2021

    I sterilise my milk bottles ready for use, I also take the tablets with me too. Works for me when I get near to some where I can wash everything, the van and floor too.

    Reply
  3. Dawn Freeman says

    March 20, 2021

    You can also make a seat for the 5-gal bucket toilet with a pool noodle by cutting a length equal to the circumference them slitting it down its length.

    Another use for pool noodles: cut 1 foot sections to put around the tent guy lines so you don’t trip over them like I invariably do!

    You can also throw in a few solar powered garden path lights to put near the guy lines at the tent door. That way, if you have to make a midnight potty run, you’ll be able to see the entrance and not trip over those lines!! (Is it obvious that I’ve tripped over a lot of tent lines?)

    Reply
  4. Sailorman76 says

    October 21, 2020

    Pick up some sulfur powder at your local nursery. I put some in a old sock and stored it in a ziploc bag. Before hiking or walking in the woods, I dapped my socks and boots with the old sock. The sulfur powder discourages ticks and fleas from hitching a ride on your legs and boots.

    Reply
  5. TX Griff says

    August 7, 2018

    Re: reusing milk jugs. Just don’t. Theres’s no way to fully rid the plastic of milk solids, even with bleach or detergent or vinegar, and drinking melted ice water from an upcycle milk jug will introduce unpleasant bacteria to your gut.
    Instead, use one and/or two liter soda bottles–washed with warm water & detergent, rinsed well, then bleached with one tbsp unscented laundry bleach and two cups hot water, swish vigorously then rinse well… don’t forget to bleach the cap, too– filled with water… leave 1.5″ of air space at the top for expansion.

    Reply
    • Chuck says

      September 10, 2018

      Thanks for the tips. I used 1 gallon jugs my iced tea came in. These were great ideas. Thanks and happy camping.

      Reply
  6. Sonny says

    May 28, 2016

    I put a magnifying glass in first aid kit. Extra fire starter; especially if backpack camping.

    Reply
    • Lisa R says

      August 21, 2017

      Any convex glass will do–even reading glasses! I like taking those flat marbles from the dollar store to use as a back up fire starter. They’re small, super light weight, provide some magnification so I keep them next to the tweezers in the first aid box.

      Reply
  7. Julie Mullen says

    May 17, 2016

    Speaking from long camping experience, if you’re going to use plastic jugs (milk or otherwise), only fill them two-thirds to three-quarters full before putting them in the freezer. Also, bleach is caustic (it’s a base, not an acid), which can mix with the milk fats and saponify, leaving a nasty residue! If you rinse your empty milk jugs with cold water and a little vinegar as soon as the last glass of milk has been poured, then wash with hot, soapy water, you won’t have to worry about residue. (Former dairy farmer- this is how we washed the pipelines that carried the milk from the cow to the tank- acid rinse followed by wash cycle.) Another thought born of long experience: drinking the water as it melts in your jug makes the ice melt faster and also doesn’t keep the food as cold.

    Reply
    • mr.monalinda says

      August 20, 2022

      My kids are now about 40. We rinsed everything and saved our water for drinking. We pour out onto plants needing water and used every drop. Our guts are fine. Drink our precious water and live.

      Reply
  8. Bonnie says

    December 28, 2015

    “Space bags” are great for packing pillows, sleeping bags (folded, not rolled), blankets and bulky jackets when not in use and when transporting to/from camp!
    Got little kids??
    Make a chamber pot out of a 5 gal plastic bucket lined with a kitchen garbage bag and put some kitty litter in the bottom. They make toilet seats just for those buckets!
    No need to get up and leave the tent. (Can sit it just outside also.)
    OR…sit under an adult potty chair like you buy for invalids that fold up.
    Same 5 gal buckets with lids are great for storage and extra seating. (They also make padded lids for those.)
    You’re welcome! ??

    Reply
    • Dawn Freeman says

      March 20, 2021

      You can also make a seat for the 5-gal bucket toilet with a pool noodle by cutting a length equal to the circumference them slitting it down its length.

      Another use for pool noodles: cut 1 foot sections to put around the tent guy lines so you don’t trip over them like I invariably do!

      You can also throw in a few solar powered garden path lights to put near the guy lines at the tent door. That way, if you have to make a midnight potty run, you’ll be able to see the entrance and not trip over those lines!! (Is it obvious that I’ve tripped over a lot of tent lines?)

      Reply
  9. Henard says

    September 7, 2015

    If using a milk jug for water, make sure that you wash it out first with bleach water first and dish detergent if you want to get rid of the bleach taste. Trust me, you won’t like what happens if you only use dish detergent to wash out your milk jug. Better yet, just buy a gallon of water and freeze that and then re-use that jug for now on.

    Reply
    • Anonymous says

      December 11, 2015

      A lot of people use bleach and dish detergent together, but it’s never a good idea. Bleach and Ammonia react with each other. Ammonia is the key cleaning agent in many dish soaps- Dawn is one of them. And it explicitly says on the bottle never to use it with bleach. (It can create a toxic gas.) I would actually suggest using dish soap and vinegar if you want to neutralize smells. The vinegar and dish soap cancel out each others smells if used in equal proportions.

      Reply
      • Alegretorres says

        May 16, 2016

        Thanks to anonymous for the bleach detergent information. My husband always puts bleach in w his detergent and sometimes the smell over takes the kitchen. I think I now know why. Also, I have many empty distilled water bottles (Cpap machine requirement)
        and I have been giving them to my neighbors to store water in for an emergency. Like stated they don’t have to go thru all the cleaning hassles of a milk bottle.

    • Lori says

      August 23, 2016

      buying a gallon of water is the best @ 99 cents I find the plastic stronger and no after tastes or stuff floating in it later.

      Reply
  10. .Terry Finch says

    June 13, 2015

    to save space just take a pillow case, not a pillow When you get ready for bed, put in your dirty cloths, now you have a pillow and all your dirty cloths in the same bag. Maybe on the first night pout in clean cloths, sweaters are the best for a pillow.

    Reply
    • Happy.MoneySaver says

      June 14, 2015

      Great tip!

      Reply
      • Zaboomafoom says

        June 8, 2016

        HE HE HE

    • Happy Husky Momma says

      September 1, 2015

      When my kids were still young and we still twnt camped, instead of dirty clothes we put our coats in the pillow case. Then when you have to trek to the potty you know where it is in the middle of the night!

      Reply
      • Happy.MoneySaver says

        September 2, 2015

        Good idea–I hate those midnight potty trips when you are freezing!

      • Zaboomafoom says

        June 8, 2016

        You can always potty behind a tree?

      • Zaboomafoom says

        June 8, 2016

        Or in your pants?

      • Hilda says

        August 11, 2018

        For middle of the night “potty” trips – bring or save some empty water plastic bottles with screw top to pee in … empty coffee cans with plastic lid for the other… over time, both will break down so you can throw them in the garbage.

    • Nancy Evon says

      December 31, 2015

      add a dryer sheet when you put those dirty clothes in that pillowcase. Helps mask the smells of the campfire and hiking trips from the day!

      Reply
    • Lindsay says

      July 18, 2016

      I don’t think I want to sniff my sweaty camping clothes all night while i sleep. Eew.

      Reply
    • Peacemaker says

      August 8, 2018

      Ewww! Thanks but I’d rather not smell my dirty clothes that I’ve been sweating in all day! ?
      Not trying to be mean…..just my preference.

      Reply
    • Dawn Freeman says

      March 20, 2021

      You can also inflate a large (gallon) zip lock bag to use as a pillow– but to be honest, I always use the pillow case trick. 😉

      Reply
  11. Stargazer says

    October 7, 2014

    None of these “hacks” are original. They’ve all been around for some time.

    Reply
    • Tracy says

      September 1, 2015

      There is never any need to be a nasty person.
      I would love to thank you for those tips!!! Not just for me
      but for those who did not know. 🙂

      Reply
      • Happy.MoneySaver says

        September 1, 2015

        Thanks, Tracy!

      • Landy says

        August 1, 2017

        Ya! Mean people SUCK!

      • Cheryl McC says

        April 20, 2018

        A lot of good ideas in one place. Thanks for sharing. They may not be original but they are NEW to many of us. Sorry about the negativity of some.

      • Quentin says

        October 23, 2017

        Thanks Tracy. I knew some of them but the parafin on the boot laces is new to me.

      • Peacemaker says

        August 8, 2018

        I personally didn’t take them as being mean…just stating a fact! ?

      • Debbie's Mom says

        December 12, 2020

        Thanks Debbie!

    • Alegretorres says

      May 16, 2016

      I too am looking for some fresh ideas. So I can understand stargazers thoughts. I don’t think stargazer was being nasty…just stating a fact. Seems like there are a lot of repost on Pinterest all with different captions to get you to go to there website. Saying that I did learn something new within the comments.

      Reply
      • Peacemaker says

        August 8, 2018

        I totally agree!!

    • Billie says

      August 9, 2016

      I’m 58 years old and go camping all the time and there was a couple of them that I had never heard of so why don’t you keep your rude comments to yourself. There are still people out there that have not heard of everything!

      Reply
      • sue carlton says

        February 22, 2017

        I agree with you Billie…58 and never heard of some of these hacks..Would love more, love to camp.

    • Dennis says

      January 16, 2017

      so? People are born every day as well…how do you think the “newbies” in the field learn? Everything you ever learned in school was there generations before you for the most part….does that mean you should have been taught from a system that was “scrapped” and started all over the day you enrolled since none of the information was “new”?

      Reply
    • Luanne Martin says

      May 6, 2017

      Rude person. I enjoyed it.

      Reply
    • Jim. says

      September 22, 2018

      So has water but we still drink it!

      Reply
  12. Amber says

    August 9, 2014

    Hi karrie! thank you for the tips on camping, i know this is off topic but my chickens were eating a sick wild bird! they ate its eye and were plucking its features do you or any commenters (it would be so great:) have any clue on what i can do ? thank you for everything!

    Reply

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Karrie

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I'm Karrie. Come join me on my money savin' adventures but beware: you may find yourself wanting backyard chickens, making freezer meals and dancing along with me to 80's music.
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