Some of my consulting customers have been so kind to let me share their CBRN setup, read personal protection equipment for conditions that involve toxic chemicals, nuclear bombs or radioactivity, among others. They were eager to show their gear in an anonymized way so that you can learn from their experiences. 

This type of gear can be part of a bug-out-bag, be placed in the basement in case of fallout, or in a car (beware the heat and cold in regards to the filters).

In times where political figures talk about using nuclear weapons as if it were your grandpa's old shotgun, while leaving the population totally unprotected, mindful individuals and families take measures into their own hands in order to protect themselves and their loved ones. They have put the effort into acquiring knowledge and gear to increase the chances while it still is time and equipment available for purchase.

The following examples are meant to give you some inputs and ideas. 

Budget, knowledge, location and additional resources vary widely, so these examples are in no means to judge someone's gear or work, but are part of a wider preparedness effort. Suggestions and direct recommendations were given to further their resilience and some additional pictures show very cost effective setups to help you on your way if you don't have the budget (read 5% GDP of your household income) for war preparations. ;-)

The following setups increase in complexity. Do not just buy gear, read up on the scenario, make plan and then get what you need in order to solve it.

We start with this very basic setup. This is the level of protection from particles and fluids (depends on type) that most people could be able to achieve. The gear depicted above cost in total under 50 EUR in 2026 currency and protects your airways, head and hands. The gloves are already chemical gloves (an even cheaper setup would just include nitrile gloves, which don't withstand much). Eyes and feet are unprotected and the Tyvec suit (Category III, type 4+5+6) is a one-time-article (as is the rest). The particle mask (FFP3) isn't especially tight fitting.

This setup can be made much more versatile in the following way:

A tight fitting half mask has been added, type FFA2P3 R D. This means it can filter gas, vapor and particles and is reusable for particles. The double filter makes it much easier to breathe through, less resistance. It does not have replaceable filters and does not protect the eyes, therefor work goggles have been included. These are not tight around the face, so don't offer gas protection. Another alternative to protection glasses can be diving goggles: These are completely tight, however, can fog up and lack impact protection.
A pair of rubber boots could be added for particle protection from the ground and duct tape to seal off the joints.
A Radiacode radiation monitor has been added to be able to check for contamination and as a personal dosimeter (track the total absorbed radiation). This is the most expensive part of the kit.
Be aware that no respirator or suit can protect from gamma radiation. Only distance, mass and time protect from it. But if a setup is intended to use in a radiological incident (dirty bomb) or nuclear power plant accident (evacuation), this setup might provide a basic level of protection. The same applies to other agents that are not corrosive and don't produce a vapor barrier (hence could enter through the eyes). In case of a fallout scenario (nuclear explosion), this setup also provides protection from breathing in and getting radioactive particles (alpha and beta) on your body and into your airways, e.g. when having to leave a shelter after the initial protection time.

The following kit is from a young family with a small child. Their main concern is breathing in dangerous toxins and radioactive dust. They use civilian full face respirators (certified, bought online) which protect airways and eyes. For their child they use an Israeli child respirator which is battery driven and has the ability to drink through a port. They have only one filter for everyone of them. As a detection device, they use a pen dosimeter, and (not depicted) an air quality indicator and radiological tracking app which shows radioactive levels online on a life map. They plan to evacuate only if instructed so by the authorities or use the app to see the lowest radiation levels and follow that path. 
Part of the kit, but neither depicted is a case with potassium iodide tablets as recommended by the government. 

The child respirator uses a non-standard, non-rechargeable battery and needs a screw driver for replacement.

The pen dosimeter (seen at the bottom of the above picture) was given to them as a present. Looking through it, it provided the following picture: 

This Russian dosimeter shows a scale from 0 - 50 Roentgen (old unit which measures ionization in air, rather than the dose biological tissue receives = Gray). The range of it is rather well suited or conservative for the intended purpose. According to ARS (acute radiation sickness) studies, a dose of 0.4 Gy (46R) with a lymphocyte count of over 1500 (cells per Liter) is very good. In case of a nuclear war, the range might be too narrow, especially if living in a city close to a detonation. The problem with these old units is that they are very unreliable. G-forces like dropping them accidentally on the ground let the needle move out of scale. Even with this reset unit, it shows just below 2 R which the device definitely didn't received.

They chose a child's gas mask of newer make, which is good, as the quality of the plastic and make is variable. Older units of these infant gas masks which regularly appear on ebay and other platforms use special filters like this one: 

As you can see, it has a "lip" which clicks in place in it's blower unit and is not a standard filter. The markings are also inconclusive as to what it protects from. Filters should be interchangeable between all users in a group with spare filters on hand. If filters get wet, clogged or the breathing resistance becomes high, e.g. due to internal malfunction or saturation, it has to be changed. Having additional filters on hand that are correctly stored and for the correct protection level (e.g. ABEK1, R, Reactor) is desirable.

The following setup looks right out of a museum and is very authentic. The owner had various kits for the whole family and they were all standardized with the same type of gear. The military background of the owner is undeniable: He only trusts military equipment, was trained on some of it many years ago and intended to cover the whole CBRN spectrum (chemical, biological, radioactive and nuclear) with it:

He wanted to renew his gear though, so the critique on it was like running in open doors. 

First of all, the whole kit in itself was top notch at some point, but unfortunately, time flies and as people age, so do components. The kit shows an Auer German military mask, a type used for decades, various spare filters, full vacuum packed cotton and charcoal suits (made by Remploy in the 80s and 90s) with gloves and overboots. The suits still hold the strong vacuum, which actually can be a disadvantage as the charcoal becomes brittle and breaks of in chunks after being stored like this for 36 years. In addition a military grad plastic poncho in case of rain or chemical agents, a military Frieseke & Höpfner Geiger counter (out of calibration) with both internal and external probe (high- and low sensitivity) originally using a nickel cadmium battery, but modified to run on 2 CR123 batteries, US military chemical warfare agents detector kit and decontamination kit (both long expired), which become toxic and gives chemical burns if used incorrectly.

The date on the oldest filters was not easy to find out. Many of them predated 1965, though. This can be problematic as the oldest filters included asbestos, a strongly carcinogenic material. These substances become brittle with age, smolder and the get inhaled, where they can do maximum damage. I strongly advise against using gas mask filters older than the 1980s, and then only for particle protection. A filter is one of the most vital elements in your protection system, so you should invest in quality ones, even if they cost money.

An evacuation protocol or decision tool apart from basic drills (duck and cover, correct handling of mask and filter change), especially for the decontamination part after an incident were not implemented. The main goal with the kit is to shelter in place in the basement. The Geiger counter serves a dual purpose as to when it is safe to come out of the basement. Military guidelines from the 1980s were used as acceptable levels, such as "at 40-200 mR/h, maximum time of 3 hours outside the shelter per day". The second function is as a contamination detector (after coming back to the basement) with the external, beta-sensitive probe, for checking for particle radiation on clothing.

The owner of the kit shown above has in the meantime grown a beard and a seal on careful checking was not maintained. One option is to shave (studies show that up to 3mm give acceptable sealing), use excessive Vaseline in an emergency, or use a full face mask, comparable to the infant mask shown above.

The mask on the left is of the newest generation (Avon M50), to the right is an older S10. Both have the same size. What is very visible is the difference on the "lip" close to the throat. The left mask has a long, rubber part, whereas the mask on the right has just a small border. The long lip aids in maintaining a seal even with (moderately!) longer beards. Especially in combination with a fitting suit with hood, a much better seal is achieved. 

Also, military gas masks have strict requirements in what their material should be able to withstand (especially chemical compounds). Civilian masks don't have these requirements as professional users (fire departments) use over pressure respirators with full body suits that give an even better level of protection. So seriously consider if you need the military component protection, as civilian masks have inner masks with soft silicone materials which can provide better seals:

If your scenario requires the use of a respirator / gas mask, the protection of the head (hair, ears and neck) should be a serious consideration as well. All modern chemical protective suits have hoods attached, but if you opt not to use a chemical suit, e.g. rather use a Goretex rain suit for particle protection only, a hood is a good option:

The military masks have one big advantage over civilian ones and that is the ability to drink through them. In long evacuation scenarios, if physical labor (walking distances is difficult enough), summer, full body protection, etc. make you sweat a lot. If you do not replenish this lost fluid, you become dehydrated quickly. All newer systems since the Avon S10 mask have this capability. There are flasks and hydration packs with the correct adapters available. To get clean water should be the highest priority after breathing clean air (apart from the physical protection we talked about earlier).

An advanced system can look like the following and provides many additional benefits in addition to the topics mentioned above. Such a system is very expensive, dependent on your self-initiative in acquiring the individual parts, you can easily reach 3000 EUR per person. This is for the equipment alone. Then you should train and implement procedures that tell you when you should put it on, when you can take it off, and how you handle unforeseen challenges (e.g. of medical or strictly bodily nature) while in your super expensive condom dress.

Dependent on your situation, the money might be spent on other measures to increase your security, strengthen your resilience or give you happiness and peace of mind.

Components of an advanced system (that cover the basic needs):

• Modern mask with drinking system, hydration pack certified for CBRN, new CBRN filters (with "Reactor" marked NATO certified filters, correctly stored), additional spare filters.
• PAPR (positive air pressure respirator) is power driven and aids in breathing resistance as well as sealing as it creates an over pressure. Spare batteries.
• Chemical protective suits, gloves and overboots with tape to seal.
• Decontamination equipment which handles the threats you want to protect from.
• Dosimeter, EMP protected, tolerate high radiation environments, programmed threshold with automatic warning for medium and high dose as well as dose rate.
• Chemical agent detector if these capabilities are required (add at least another 5000-10000 EUR).
• Written procedures and decision making tools.
• Carrying bag(s), correctly packed to have everything ready at a moment's notice.
• Training gear to test equipment and reduce the amount of time to don gear.

Do you have experiences you would like to share or want help establishing the necessary environment in order to protect your family? Don't hesitate to reach out. Use the comment function, send me a PM or en email. Stay safe!