Emergency blanket – how??

I think the aluminized mylar blankets are better than nothing, but not much better. You are correct that they won't do much in the way of insulating you. You could lay down and spread it over the top of you to keep cold rain off. You can wrap it around you to keep cold wind off. You can lay it on the ground, then lay down on it and roll up inside it. In that case, you may stay humid from your own sweat, which is better than being cold and wet from rain.

Fortunately, a store sells them for $2.25, so I sometimes use it as a simple ground sheet for a couple of seasons.

–B.G.–

Caveat: I have an el cheapo emergency (reflective) blanket, but (knock on wood) haven't had the chance to use it.

If I were cold, yes, I would initially wear all my insulation layers and then wrap around with the emergency blanket. H0WEVER, as I start to feel OK (but not toasty), I will start shedding off layers — until I reach come kind of rough equilibrium — may end up to be just a base layer and the blanket — who knows?

Methinks the trick is to shed before you feel fully warm, and to add before you feel really chill.

It's an emergency (i.e. getting lost or hurt in a day hike) — so I am not looking for snoozing all through the night.

Just cerebralizing here — I too await those who have actually lived to tell the tale to add their insights.

My thought would be to use it as a light tarp to get out of the rain. However, wrapping up in it and insuring that you DO NOT SWEAT would also probably work.

Tarp? The thing will tear in minutes — at least mine will.

I carried an emergency blanket for years and never found much use for it except as a ground cloth. I use my Heetsheets emergency bivy all the time.

The Heetsheets bivy encases your form, and works either as a bivy outside your sleeping bag (as rain protection, for example) or as a vapor barrier inside the bag. At 3.5 oz and about $10, they can't be beat. Also, I've used mine dozens of times now without serious tears. (A couple of duct tape patches are badges of honor.) The whole bivy stuffs into a tiny stuff sack in the morning.

Stargazer

I carry a Heatsheets bivy on long trail runs or situations where there's a possibility I don't get home that night.
I figure it'll do a few main things for me:
1. Protect from windchill- especially important if I'm hurt, sweaty, and it's late in the day.
2. Raingear/emergency tarp if I'm stuck in bad weather.
3. Used as a bivy, I think it would do well if combined with leaves, grass, and anything to insulate from the ground as well as pile on top of you.
I'm skeptical about "heat reflective" properties…the windchill of being exposed is what I'd be looking to cut.
VBL? Don't know if this really works above freezing.

Brian, I think all of those items you mentioned would work better than a typical space or emergency blanket. The reflective layer doesn't reflect a significant amount of heat. An emergency bivy or contractor-sized trash bag would be better than an emergency blanket, since it seals out wind and rain more effectively, is probably more durable, and a hole can be poked in it to wear as a poncho, either covering the head or not.