Dryer, those heater meals you linked to, they are repackaged MRE's. They have the same type heater, and the same type of main meal packaging. The difference is that they come in a box instead of a bag, and there probably isn't as much extra stuff.

Now to the MRE's... MRE's are a great choice in the following situations.

-You break them down and take out all the non-needed stuff.
- you are only going for a few days.
- You don't want a hot drink or plan to boil any water, so no stove, pot, fuel.

Most people like hot liquids. If you are one of them, forget the MRE. If you are one of those who wants to do the no-cooking trip, throw a main meal and heater every couple of days to give you a hot meal. It is better than eating cliff bars the whole time, and you still don't need a pot, stove or fuel. Some day I am going to bring a main meal packet and a heater to work and weigh it on the 5 point scale. Then I will do a weight comparison and see how many days the benefit lasts (not many, I am sure). Just wanted to throw this out before the MRE bashing begins. I think they have their place for some. Incidentally, you can make your own MRE type meal and use the heater, if you want a "special" one.

Now for the original question... Follow everyone's advice and go to sarbar's site. It will cover it all. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />